Ch-ch-changes...

Another whirlwind week behind me.  It's Friday night and I'm sitting on the couch watching a movie with my three best guys and thinking about everything that's happened this past week.

Work has been super busy and I've got a bunch of stuff to do this weekend to be ready for meetings next week.  So fun. 

Zumba was just AWESOME this past week.  Wild and crazy and energetic and uplifting.  I am so excited to expand our Zumba family some more starting with this week.  As a sad note, Hip Hop Hustle just hasn't taken off the way we wanted so we're shelving it for now to focus more on Zumba and Zumba Toning classes.  Still working out the details but hope to have the new Toning schedule out by the end of the weekend.  It's going to be rough but I'm ready to add it on and make it happen.

Then there's my big news for the week.  About a year ago my doctor put me on metformin.  Not because I'm diabetic, pre-diabetic or even because of my blood sugar at all - it was because of my insulin resistance due to my PCOS.  Well... the week prior I called my doctor and asked to have my labs redone because I was having weird symptoms, rapid heart rate while doing nothing, hot flashes and a general feeling of ickiness. I was afraid my thyroid meds needed to be adjusted. 

Not so! My TSH was completely normal (.771!) but the issue was with my chemistry panel.  I was at a meeting and didn't have time to get the exact results, but the basic conclusion?  The metformin was the likley cause of my symptoms. 

So! NO MORE DIABETIC MEDICATIONS.  At first I thought the metformin would help with getting the weight off but it had the exact OPPOSITE effect for me.  It's only gotten harder. I'm excited to see what my body does over the next few weeks.  I already feel much better after four days without taking it.  We shall see if the positive trend continues.

This coming week is the last week of my first Shakeology challenge group.  I am so excited to see the results of the final weigh in and measurements.  I know I can visibily see a difference in all of them! SO EXCITED!  I'm starting a new challenge on April 1 as well and I can't wait to see what the next group brings to the table.

My plans for the weekend? Prep for challenge groups.  Finish refreshing and choreographing the toning routines I'm going to start teaching this week.  Play catchup on some general paper work I need to get complete. 

Going to be a hectic but awesome weekend.

Happy Friday all!

My safety bubble? Consider that burst!

My year of living dangerously? Here we go.

I registered today for the Zumba Instructor Conference in Miami in August. I wasn't going to register.  I kept balking on the money side of things but the truth is... I was scared to death of going.

Why?  Because I still fight EVERY. SINGLE. CLASS. with feeling like the fat instructor.

I say that and it sounds like I'm whining... but it is a real issue for me.  I'm highly insecure in my own skin sometimes.  I know once I'm in front of a room of folks I get in to my groove and own it but there are times when the thought of getting in front of that room makes me want to cry.

I'm committed and I keep going back but there are days when I feel like I should just hide in the back of the room.

Thursday night I got to class late and I walked in to a room with 70+ students and I froze for half a second.  So many new students.  I felt like they were all wishing I was any other instructor.  When I got up there though I put my game face on and worked them out and it was one of the hottest classes I've ever taught solo.

So if I feel like that in a class in the studio where I work how am I going to survive a room full of highly trained fitness professionals?  I even have minor panic attacks at big master classes... now this?

It's going to be rough but I know it's going to be worth the stock I'll need in Xanax to get in to the groove.

I'm psyched because I get to bring back AMAZING tips, tools and moves from the best of the best. I can't wait to up my game and bring even more of a workout to the Wilson Zumba family!

Classes I'm taking?

• Hip-notic Belly Dancing
• Flamenco Fever
• Master Class with Beto
• Miami Party
• Colombian Connection
• Hip to Strip
• Reggaeton Rebellion
• Zumba® Brazilian Carnival 

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! The awesome hurts.  My body aches just thinking about it. I can't wait.

Other things outside of my comfort zone on the schedule?

Wilson Women's Club 5k - May
TurboKick Certification - Summer?
FitBloggin'12 - September
Run for your Life - October

Not to mention the new tasks I take on at work every day that push my boundaries.

I love it.

I turn 30 in October.  Going to be a whole new me by then!

My bubble?  Consider it popped and I'm loving the freedom already.

Good times... Good times.

Friday was the perfect day of me time. I took a vacation day to rest, relax and get my head back on straight.

I started my day off with a full body massage.  My first ever.  And it was AMAZING.  Aaaaaaaaahhhhhhmazing.  DeeAnn is a fantastic masseuse and she's also just an amazing person.  I met her through Zumba at the Y and I'm so glad I did.  The massage was a full hour of just pure relaxation.  She spent a good amount of time on my back and hamstrings since they've been so sore in the last week or so.  I felt relaxed and rejuvenated at the same time.  Best hour in a long time.

I followed that up with a manicure, pedicure and eyebrow wax.   It was nice to be so pampered. 

The evening was even more awesome.  When I was younger I found and fell in love with MST3K.  Well, parts of the cast and writing crew have gone on to two different awesome projects.  RiffTrax and Cinematic Titanic.  Well, last night I got to go with Marshall, Matt and Chip to see the Cinematic Titanic crew LIVE.  It was unbelievable! I laughed so hard I cried a few different times.  So awesome. 

We also got to have dinner at a pretty cool Irish pub called Bull McCabes.  I, of course, had to get Shepard's Pie.  MmmMmM.

Today we had a kick butt Zumba class to start the day off and I've spent the rest of the day working on Zumba routines and hanging out with Matt.  We just finished watching the Winnie the Pooh movie and I feel like a kid again!

We also did a bit of shopping earlier.  I bought some more workout clothes and some various food stuffs for tomorrow and the upcoming week.  Tomorrow I restart TurboJam and I'm also doing a 24 hour Shakeology fast. I want to try to get the salt and fat from the last week or two out of my system.  The steroids got my eating all wonky and I want a day to try to get back on track.    So, tomorrow I will have 3 Shakeology shakes, snacks of fruit and veggies and green tea and that's it. I may do a salad for dinner too.  Depends on how I feel.

I'm in the process of setting up another 30 day Shakeology challenge to start April 1.  So far the March ladies have been seeing amazing results.  I can't wait to see their final results at the end of the month!!

Changing things up...

So there's a song we do in Zumba - BEP's Imma Be - that is either a students FAVORITE or MOST HATED song.  We did it in my Zumba license class and I was reminded of it by the rockin' Rocky Mount crew a few months ago. 

It's legs and abs for almost 4 minutes and it's great. 

Well... I had an idea.  Since my back and side are still hurting from the strained muscle the ab part of the song hurts me and I wanted to see what I could do to change it up.  It's ALLLLLLLL legs now.  Plie squats. Squat into side leg lifts.  Squats into high knees. WOOHOO!

It's intense and gets the heart rate up even more than the ab/leg hybrid routine did (to me anyway.)  I've now done it 3 times in 2 days and my quads and inner highs and glutes are in pain in such a good way.

I'm going to have a bathing suit ready rear if it kills me.. and everyone in my classes. BWAHAHHAHAHAH

I'm starting to work my toning routines in to my classes so I can get my tone on.  I'm also starting to do TurboJam next Monday morning.  I'm going to follow their schedule for a full 90 days.  Woof!

I'm still surviving my no bread Lenten promise but it's HARD.  This evening I nearly slipped up because I ran to McDonald's for a MLP kids meal and I got the cheeseburger.  I was SO TIRED I nearly forgot to take the bun off.  Marsh caught it though.  yayay Marsh!  I'm 26 days or so away from gorging on biscuits and bread sticks.

Weight and Measurements. Woot!

Well.. late for 2Q but here it is.

Measurement	08/21/11	11/21/11	02/21/12	2Q Change
Weight	340	329	310	19
Wrist	6.75	6.33	6.25	0.08
Upper Arm	16.75	16	15	1
Chest	50	48.75	48	0.75
Ribcage	43	42	41.5	0.5
Waist	48.5	45	44	1
Hips	68	64	61.5	2.5
Upper Thigh	34	33	31	2
Calf	17.5	17.75	15.5	2.25
Ankle	10	9.75	9.25	0.5

That's 22.5 inches and 30 pounds since August.  In a little over 3 month that's 19 pounds and 10.58 inches.  

I'm feeling strong.  Things are really going my way!

This week is the mid point weigh in for my first 30 day challenge.  I'm excited to see if my participants are seeing the same results I did! I know they're working it hard!!!

I'm planning on starting another group on April 1st if anyone out there is interested! Inbox me!

The real world ate me.

It seems like this week was just one really, really, really long and terrible day.  Still, I'm actually pretty content all things considered.

Let's rewind to Sunday.

After the high of the Zumbathon I was ready to take on the week.  Marshall was going out to hit the store and BAM his battery was dead. It had to be jumped to go to the Zumbathon on Saturday.  Went to start my car? Also dead.  The issue with mine was the security chip in my engine had died.  Not cool.

Then I went to go teach Zumba at the YMCA and midway through class I moved the wrong way and heard/felt something go POP in my back just below my shoulder blade.  YEOWCH!~ I could barely make it through the rest of class and was ungodly thankful for my front row divas for holding it down for me.

Monday the main was not any better. Marsh drove me to work and I brought a pillow and my ice pack to the office, medicated with a rotation of ibuprofen, naproxen and aspirin to keep the swelling at bay.  It only moderately worked.  On top of being in pain I had a big meeting at work this week so I had a TON of actual work to do.  So I couldn't take it easy and relax.  I had to be productive.

After work I still had a class to teach and I got there and I made it through... it wasn't all that fun though.  On top of everything else I slapped the floor doing Shawty got Moves and hurt my thumb.  OW! I made it worse today.  See?

 

 

 

Bad picture, but the bruise isn't pretty to begin with.

I finally got in to see the doctor on Wednesday.  Tuesday was painful but no worse than Monday but I knew I needed to have it checked. 

(Digression.  I was slightly concerned I had done something to a rib the way it cracked so I did the bad internet user thing and WebMD'd the symptoms.  First suggestion of what was wrong? PULMONARY EMBOLISM.  Second option? Muscle strain. End Digression.)

I went to the doc and he informed me I had, indeed, strained my rhomboid muscle and prescribed vicuprofen (a hybrid of vicodin and ibuprofen), a muscle relaxer, a steroid and gave me a shot of torodol. He told me to keep working out and to push through the pain as much as possible.  He made a good point - I really won't want a muscle that's around my ribs to get too tensed up and it did hurt less if I kept it moving.  So I kept up with my normal workout schedule.

Thursday was the day of the big meeting.  I barely slept Wednesday night because, apparently, this specific muscle relaxer acts like ritalin for me and I was super focused and mentally aware all night but I got up and headed to work and then Raleigh for the meeting and presentation.  It went really well.  I was exhausted.

I got to teach my first class at a new location after work on Thursday and it was unbelievable! I love the energy of the folks there and can't wait to see them again next week.  On a sad note I did have cancel Hip Hop Hustle Thursday night because I tried several of the moves and it caused pain beyond what I could push through and not cry.  Back to it next week though!

Yesterday was a super sad day for me too because it was a coworkers last day and I was so sad to see her go.  She is an amazing woman and I'm glad I had the honor of working with her.  I cried saying goodbye.  I try so hard not to cry at work.  For her, it was worth it.

I also got to have a girly night out yesterday - went to a ThirtyOne part with my friend Jennifer.  Was out in Tarboro but worth the drive.  It was great to spend time with her.

Today I had to skip my morning Zumba class due to what I can only describe as a hangover from the muscle relaxer pain killer combination.  It was hard to fall asleep but when I did I slept well... but I woke up feeling like someone drilled in to my temples.  I did, however, get to go to a Zumbathon in Goldsboro to support the instructors out that way.  It was a blast and I loved getting to teach for the crew out there.  It was a rush!

Now I'm spending the evening reading and relaxing with the boys.  Tomorrow I go for a run/jog/walk and teach at the Y.  ALSO it's weigh in and measurement day.  Because I forgot about quarterly measurements 2 weeks ago.  Whoops! Tomorrow! Yayayay!

Zumbathon - Success

Yesterday was the big day - Sarah and I hosted a Zumbathon here in Wilson and it was successful beyond our wildest dreams.

Here's the story.  At the start of the school year one of our Zumba students, Maryanna, approached Sarah about helping her with her senior project.  She wanted to do something with Zumba in the community.  Initially they were going to do something with the local children's after school center.  That didn't work out. Then a plan was born!

Sarah and I had been talking about doing a Zumbathon for a family with a son who suffers from hemophilia and it just seemed everything

Yesterday we had 12 amazing instructors and just over 120 residents of Wilson and the surrounding areas get together to raise money for the Davis family. 

Let's review the day, shall we?

We started off with temptation - breakfast at Cracker Barrel.  This biscuit stared at me, tempting me to eat it.  I was good though.  I only dreamed of getting it's tastiness in my tummy.

Then it was off to Fike High School to get everything set up for the Zumbathon.  Everything started to fall right in to place and before we knew it the stage was set up, the music was pumping and Sarah and I were up on the stage.

We were all higher than high on the energy of the crowd. It was fantastic fun and for such a good cause.

Action shots below.

120 people!!

Shake it!

Mrs. Fatass and I!

Maryanna teaches her first solo routine ever!

Heather rocks out to "Shackles (Praise You!)"

Jesus gets us shakin!

Keith salsas to a remix of "Yellow Submarine."

Mrs. Fatass gets the crowd pumped.

Me shakin' it with Heather.

After everything was broken down and money counted, we went out to dinner and watched Carolina whoop Duke.  Fantastic day was fantastic!

I am so blessed to have Zumba in my life.  It's given me friends, a new "family", a connection to the community and a creative outlet.  Yesterday just proved to me that things come to you when you need them most.  Thank you to my Zumba family for giving me new purpose in life.

No Bread? Only SLIGHTLY problematic ...

So I'm a little over a week in to Lent and my sacrifice of bread.

I've been swamped, thankfully, and haven't had as much time to dwell on the cravings for warm Italian bread and tasty biscuits. But it's difficult... I just want to not think and get a sandwich or reach for the bread basket.

Physically it's been easier than I expected. The physical cravings are minimal. The emotional? A completely different story.

A rough day at work? I can't go home and as I look at dinner I feel incomplete without crackers in my soup or bread with my pasta or croutons on my salad. I don't need those things but it's part of how I think of a complete meal. It's how I think of bonding with those I love.

All of my comfort food meals are generally accompanied by a bread product.

So, where is a bread addict to find her comfort?

In her friends, in Zumba, in my workouts. It's not as yummy in my tummy but I'm coping.

36 days to go.