Body Flow or Body Flop?

Going for Les Mills Program #3 tomorrow.  I'm not sure what has gotten into me these past few months but I've just re-embraced my fitness career and took a leap of faith with Body Combat in July, not sure if it was something that I wanted to teach or would be good at and now after a few months, I have fallen in love.  I can tell the progress that I've made as an instructor in just a few short months- I don't think I look like I "fight like a girl" anymore, I'm having a blast and loving it!  When I signed up, I knew I'd have a home to teach it at with Gold's.

Body Flow has always been a format that I've loved and have felt that I needed in my life.  I used to love teaching my Yoga and PiYo classes and have missed them- I think this will fill the void.  Yet another leap of faith, because I have absolutely no clue if I will have a place to teach this beautiful format (assuming I pass certification, of course).  I know that the YMCA in Mt View is bringing it to the schedule and by default as a Silicon Valley Y employee, there is the possibility of getting something there, but most slots I believe are taken by instructors who already teach on that schedule.  I will wait and see.  I have also planted the idea with Gold's that Body Flow would be a great addition to our current Les Mills programming with Body Pump and Body Combat, she was open to the suggestion, but has to roll out Combat in all 5 clubs first.  So there is hope here.  I know members will love this program.

Going into training tomorrow, I'm excited and not nearly as nervous as I was with Body Combat.  I think having two trainings just months apart I do know what to expect generally and I know what will be expected of me to pass.  I know my choreography- which is amazing to me since I have not had nearly enough time to practice.  Even though I received the release a week earlier than I was supposed to by a LM error, I still didn't get to look at it until the official two weeks prior and then I got sick, then Thanksgiving/Birthday weekend happened and work has been off the hook crazy.  So I feel bad that I have not given this the time that I did for Combat.  Of course, with Body Combat when I went to training I pretty much knew the choreography for 60% of the tracks - yes, I am an over-achiever.  I have no clue the choreography for anything other than my two tracks - well I suppose I could muddle through track 10- relaxation! :)

What I am bummed about by having lack of time to prepare was that I was hoping that daily prepping would help to loosen me up, help to get some flexibility back into this aging body of mine.  It wasn't that long ago that I was so much more flexible- amazing how quickly that disappears, but I do know that with practice it will come back again- but there is the key element - TIME.  Did I bite off more than I can chew- to learn and practice and perfect three releases each quarter?  It's awesome, amazing and challenging and I love all three programs- but I actually voluntarily chose to make my life more nuts- as if it's not nuts enough already.

I'm also bummed because my tennis elbow has been really flaring up this past week or so and even though I've been stretching and icing (not nearly enough because it's been so darn cold here), it's still bothersome- but I need to just push through and flip my dog like nobody's business and pray that I don't injure further.  I am excited to take this training with several other Les Mills friends and I have heard that our trainer, Rachel is fabulous.  It's going to be a busy, fun, challenging training weekend- so I best get my Body Flow butt to bed...first up in the morning is teaching Body Combat, then one hour break before training begins!

So Many Emotions...

RELIEF...
My High School reunion was this past Saturday and there is nothing better than seeing everything go off without a hitch.  The venue was perfect, the evening was beautiful, we had great views, good times catching up with various alums.  It was very satisfying to have everything go so well and to know that I had a big part in making this happen.  It's my 3rd consecutive reunion that I've planned and by far the best one and it has been billed as "EPIC"- just not sure what we'll do for the 35th reunion to top this.  The pressure!  But I won't even begin to think about this until at least a few more years.  It really was a great night, I understand the food was good also- but I never made it to the buffet, I was too busy running around visiting with people, selling raffle tickets, checking on the music.  I think if I was not a Travel Professional, I would be a Professional Party/Event Planner.  We spent the night and were surprisingly upgraded to a 1 bedroom suite- pretty sure my friend Michele had something to do with that since she has worked at the Fairmont for a very long time.  She is very well respected there and had a huge hand in securing the venue for us.

OVERWHELMED...
I just really stopped today to count and see that my birthday is two weeks away and Thanksgiving two days after that.  While I am on target with my personal schedule of holiday shopping, almost done- just a few more finishing things to get, I have ordered Holiday cards for business and personal, the business ones arrived today, I set up the carpet cleaning appointment that happens every year the week of Thanksgiving, I've cleared my schedule to decorate the day after and will have everything done and cards in the mail by December 1st...but I just can't seem to get the clock, the days to slow down.  I do not have any open weekends in December- there is something going on every weekend and of course we go on vacation three days after Christmas which means I probably need to undecorate the house the day after Christmas because I'm not going to want to come home to a decorated house on January 5th and not have time to take it all down until the 12th.  That is just not my style.  Once the holiday is done, I am pretty much done with it as well.  I realize that these are good problems to have- I'm blessed to be going on a cruise 3 days after Christmas, but just need more time.

Adding to this overwhelming feeling- trying to stay on top of my fitness schedule, getting in my own workouts, preparing for my classes and getting ready to take on format #3 and get ready for that training next month.  I'm excited for it and know it's going to be fabulous, but did I bite off more than I can chew?

EXCITED...
today was a pretty exciting fitness day.  It was the first day to register for the Megamadness that is Vegas in March, Les Mills craziness, super Mega Quarterly.   I reserved my flights last week and booked a hotel room as well- so today was registration for the actual event.  It's quite a bit more cost than last year, although there are more inclusions, not sure I would have paid for some of the inclusions.   Super excited that Body Combat Master Presenters Dan & Rach will be in Vegas this year, they are my new idols of course and I wish I thought I'd be ready to take AIM 1 with Dan, but just think I need to give it more time, plus it's a pretty expensive weekend when all is said and done.  I need to find a way to write this stuff off!  

Then I had messaged my friend Gediz to see if he was going to need a sub for his Body Combat class when he goes through AIM 2 next month and he tells me that he is giving up that class and probably won't be teaching it then, but also tells me that he suggested that I take over the class if I wanted to.  This is awesome because 1) I've been wanting a class in Mt View.  2) I was wanting to make sure I had a class to teach once Morgan is ready to take over the class in Santa Clara...so things are all falling into place.   I also figured out how to help mentor Morgan and not be stuck with the nasty commute to Santa Clara...I will go down there midday and work from their home until it's time to get to the gym.  Morgan will start to team teach with me this week and I have a plan cut out for her to be ready to tape by 12/20 and hopefully get in a few tapings before I leave on vacation.

Then to top it all off- I received the digital release kits this evening and am in the process of downloading them now- I love the option to have a few extra weeks of learning to master the programs, so this is awesome...i just need to make sure I can get everything functioning where and how I need it to.  It will be a PITA to have to make a CD copy and print notes...but oh well, it is the way of the future, resistance is futile. I do love getting them early!

So overall things are going very well..but I do need to set some time aside to take care of business and get things done. My mad organizational skills (as they have been dubbed from a High School classmate) will need to kick in full force for the coming weeks!

Six more minutes of download and then I go to bed!

64 days until Christmas...OH MY!

Yep, 64 days-- can you believe it?   Well, I won't dwell too much on that at the moment, but considering it's been over two weeks since my last post and it feels like a month- I'm getting a bit scared at how quickly time is flying and how things are just not getting done as quickly as I'd like.

The past few weeks have been busy with learning the new releases for Body Combat and Body Pump- we had the Re-launch at Gold's this weekend and overall it went well.   I had two tracks for Body Combat and 3 tracks for Body Pump.  I definitely have a higher comfort level when teaching the new Pump stuff vs. Combat stuff.  I know this feeling will wear off in time...but it was a little unnerving.  Of course, when I went to teach my track 4 in Combat, the microphone was not cooperating and that threw me off - so I started wrong, but knew instantly where I had gone wrong- kept going for 4 reps and then switched to what I was supposed to be doing...it worked out and I don't think anyone except the shadowing instructors knew- but I was so mad at myself- it's like that microphone wiped out my memory banks in a heartbeat.  Nailed track 5 and had a lot of fun with it.  Overall, it was a great launch day- lots of participants and Robin, the director said after Body Combat she had several people come up and ask about the classes and when/where could they take it--so that's really good news!   Just sucks that I won't be teaching class for 3 weeks with vacation coming up.   Morgan came to the launch and I introduced her to Robin- very excited for her to go through training- it's going to be a great experience for her!

I did make the decision and signed up for Body Flow training in December- I am super excited about this and was able to order two past releases- so my new fitness regimen starting this week is going to include doing Body Flow 3 times per week in the living room to gain back my flexibility once again!  I will need it for training- but I really can't wait to add a third Les Mills format.  I know the El Camino Y is going to add the program and I think I'll be able to get my foot in the door.  Also, I spoke to Robin about adding it at Gold's and she is open to the idea, but she needs to get Combat into all 5 locations first.  I absolutely LOVE that she is a Les Mills supporter!  

October has been birthdays galore!  Brynn turned 11, we had a lovely Friday night dinner out with the family to help her celebrate - it was a really nice time out with great friends.  It was also nice to be out with the kids and seeing them mature and not really need to have friends with them- they were happy to be with family.    Kinsley & Shelby had their birthday party this weekend to celebrate 7 & 6 years...they are getting so big - a good time was had by all.

Mom is doing pretty well- she had a procedure this past week on her leg- there was some blockage shown in her vein study- so they did an angioplasty type of procedure and everything went well.  She had to spend the night in the hospital, but everything was routine.  They will want to do a procedure on her other leg sometime soon- probably before the end of the year.

We are moving along with mom's house- finally.  I was able to get several painting bids this past week and we should be picking one tomorrow who can start this week and get the outside of the house taken care of.  Steve's friend Christian is coming down tomorrow and he will be working on the house to take care of all the interior stuff.  The hope is to be done in two weeks and be able to get this house on the market and hopefully get mom what she is hoping for....the market is remaining hot and there is not a lot of competition on the market, so fingers crossed.

We finally got our refinance- so after all of my patience and insistence- ok stubbornness to not settle on higher rates - we did confirm and lock at 4.25%- so I am a very happy camper with that!   Things are coming along perfectly.

So the coming weeks- well we have our Royal Princess Caribbean Inaugural cruise next weekend- I can't wait to get on a cruise...it's been too long since we've actually vacationed on a cruise.   This one is going to be a lot of fun!   But golly once we get back, it's going to feel like off to the races...it'll be November and really not too many weeks left until Thanksgiving- which equals Christmas decoration weekend and lots to get done for that to all fall into place.  The garage is a disaster zone right now and I have lots of things that I need to try to sell for mom on eBay or Craig's List..just have not had the time to deal with it- but I need to make the time.   Our reunion is November 9th and it seemed so far away- but voila, it's not!   I had hoped to be done with Christmas shopping before this cruise and although I've made some great progress- I'm not sure that it will happen...I need to focus on getting work done before I can dig into more shopping.  Oye!

Great Day!!

Today really was a great day...

Started the morning with my YMCA Spin class..they are a small group, but a very nice group- I feel like we are becoming a small family.   It went well and was a great kick start to my Friday!  I had plans to be super productive today and dubbed today a "work in PJ's day" and that's exactly what I did after my shower!   I got a lot done on the travel work front which was so needed.  Overall, a very good, productive day.

Then it was about 415pm and the day was winding down, I knew I had to get ready to go teach 530pm Body Combat and I decided to log into the Les Mills Instructor Portal and when I did, it no longer looked the same on my certification page...I knew instantly that my video had been assessed and I had PASSED!   I seriously did the Snoopy happy dance.   I really did feel good about my video and felt that I had passed, but until the fat lady sings, you just don't know for sure.  I was thrilled.

I still am so humbled by the number of people who are so supportive of me.  It's just simply amazing!  I went to teach class and it's a class in the building...slowly.  I had 1 person show up- a sweet girl by the name of Amy- this was her first Body Combat class and I could tell by track 3 that she thought she bit off more than she could chew - but how do you discreetly leave when you're the only participant?  I completely toned things down to make her feel successful and to keep trying.   I hope she comes back next week.   I hope that this class builds- I really want to get this class to take off so that it's successful when I turn it over to Morgan.   I'm sure excited that my niece Morgan is going to join the Les Mills tribe and go through Body Combat training next month.  Since she lives in Santa Clara- this class is a great fit for her and I will gladly give it to her to get rid of the nasty friday night commute to Santa Clara.

It was a great class, fun to teach and I felt different teaching it knowing that I was now official!  Now to start thinking of the next fitness challenge.  I have been toying with two options for the weekend of December 7th...I'm either going through AIM 2 for Body Pump  or going through Body Flow training.  I hope to make a decision soon with this.  I'm excited- I would have done all of these years ago if we had the venues that had awesome Les Mills programs like we do now!    Getting excited for the Vegas Super Mega Q in March 2014...it's going to be EPIC and I'm even more excited now that I have two formats under my belt- maybe by then I will have three.  It's amazing how this makes me feel so alive and how much I love sharing this with others.

We are getting ready for the big launch at Gold's on the 19th of this month.  This time around the launch is at the Mt View location- so of course since this is my home club, I feel very attached to its success.   I was subbing spin the other day and most spinners just spin- they do not participate in group x classes- they just spin and spin and spin.  Well, I did my PSA and I think I actually have one gal who is going to come to the launch saturday and try Body Pump and Body Combat...we'll see.  It's going to be a great day and I was so honored that Robin asked me to coordinate the Body Combat master class- assign tracks and get the instructors all on the same page.  I should have that set this weekend- just waiting for the last instructor to RSVP is she will participate or not.  It's going to be great and I can't wait to have a fun Super Saturday with my Gold's Tribe members!  Kia Kaha!!

The rest of the evening:   signed loan documents for our refinance- had the surprise that they expected us to write a check for $3500- I need to get to the bottom of this with the broker- but I do see the error- the payoff included interest effective 10/1 and I just received my statement today showing that we paid this interested yesterday...so it should work out that we don't have to come out of pocket much.  Dinner and much earned WINE while watching great Friday night TV...although mostly alone since hubby nodded off about 3 hours ago ~ time to wake him up and head off to bed.  It's going to be an early morning for me with the JCC launch (I am teaching one track) of Body Pump, then off to Gold's to take Body Combat and teach Body Pump!   Lunch and then a much needed facial appointment...

It's going to be a great weekend!

Great Mother-Daughter Day

Sometimes you just have to say "Carpe Diem".   I was looking ahead to this week and saw how crazy it was mapped out to be...between a few extra classes to teach (my new line dancing series in Newark - although October snuck up on them and they had not advertised for it yet- so we will now begin next week instead- probably a blessing in disguise) and a few appointments for mom- I was starting to feel the stress.  However, I remembered that this week was the final showing of the Classic Series at the Century theatre and the movie is a mom classic  "Vertigo", so I mentioned it to mom and she got all excited- so I realized then that I was committed to take her because disappointing her is the last thing I will ever do.

Monday was pretty much UNproductive...mom had 3 appointments - eye doctor who always takes forever and never predictable as to how much time we will be there, followed by the super efficient plastic surgeon to remove the stitches from last week's tumor removal procedure (yes it was skin cancer and they are not sure they got it all, but this type of tumor is not one likely to spread- it may just produce another growth again and we'll remove if that happens) and then off to the hospital to get the sonogram follow-up on her legs/vein study to make sure the blood flow is all good.   Well the technician did see some blockage- but you don't take what he has to say until you hear from the Doctor.  Anyway, I didn't get into my office until close to 3pm and did a few things, but just was not motivated to get anything done.  Not a great way to start off the week when I know I have things to work on.

Tuesday was wonderfully productive- in large part because the line dance class was canceled and I was on a "get things done" roll and really did make progress yesterday.   Today I did get some things done, but had to leave at 130pm to get mom and go to our movie.  So glad that I did- the movie was good (I had never seen it) and she really enjoyed it.  We ran a few errands afterwards and it was getting late do we picked up Bill and went to dinner at Lucia's and she really enjoyed that as well.  She is a hoot!  She really makes me laugh and I love to see Bill laugh at the things she talks about - he has said numerous times that he knows exactly how I will be when we're old and gray and we just laugh about it- seriously though I'd love to be like my mom when I get to be her age...she's smart, funny, witty and she cares about herself and others immensely.   She's amazing.

Of course, I get the call from her vascular doctor and sure enough - the blood flow in the leg is compromised and now we need to see about a procedure - similar to angioplasty, but for the bypass in the leg.  I will have more information tomorrow, but this should be an easy procedure and most likely an outpatient or overnight stay.  Fingers crossed- I tried to reassure mom that this was preventative to avoid having to need another bypass down the line and that she is so much healthier than she was in 2012 when she had the femoral bypass, so she'll bounce right back.  Let's just hope and pray that this is the case.

Wait and See!

Video is uploaded and submitted.   I taught today and it felt REALLY good- I was totally on with choreography, coaching, technique.  I felt super strong, I felt "in the zone" and even after class Gediz came to me and said "wow- what a difference from the first time we team taught"...he said it was so natural, I was confident and focused.  That made me feel really great.  I know that Gediz has only been teaching Combat for about 6 months- but he's just so much the pro and very good at what he does, I truly value his opinion.

I did have some mic issues 1/2 way through the warm up- terrible feedback and then no sound emitting, so I took the mic off and taught with a loud voice the entire class.  I am seriously DONE with technology issues and I swear if/when I take on another format and I need to video, I'm just going to go buy something that is not going to give me grief!!

I just finished watching the taping from today and while I felt good, and I know I delivered a great class covering all the points that I needed to in order to pass- the quality of the video was blurry- just like attempt #3.  Not sure what is going on with this- unless it just didn't know what to focus on since there were participants in the class.  It focused on me Friday night just fine.   So I was really tempted to submit this one -but I feel that the visual is not clear enough and there are some points where it is hard to hear me with the music/fan, etc.  I had did my sound check before recording and that was all dependent upon using the mic!   So I went with Friday night's "no participant" video.  Kimi emailed me back last night and said that we can upload without participants, but that it's easier to coach with participants- which is very true.

So we wait and see where the chips fall.  A fellow instructor from training module submitted hers last weekend and found out Friday that she passed...so hopefully I find out very quickly also.  Biting nails!

Going on #5...

Yep, going on my taping attempt #5 tomorrow morning at Gold's Mt View.  It has been a challenging few weeks- mostly with technology.   Taping #1 went well- I was not perfect, the mistakes I made were minor- but my phone camera app somehow had these 10 second blips of silence.  Could not figure it out for the life of me- we thought maybe a notification was coming through or something.

So Taping #2- Santa Clara Gold's while I was subbing for Nicole, I put the phone in "airplane mode" and still had these 10 seconds blips of silence.  It's really quite odd and after doing research I can only conclude that it's a quirk with my stock phone camera app that has been a known bug since the last upgrade.

Taping #3 - Gold's Mt View again last weekend- Gediz was busy getting GRITty, in a two day training for GRIT, High Intensity Interval Training class, so I was teaching all on my own.  I had downloaded another camera app on my phone and determined that there was no moments of silence issues.  However, the phone was not properly propped up and ended up slipping during the first 10 minutes of class- there was about 10 minutes of not seeing 100% of me teaching- my niece Morgan noticed and put the camera back in place, but the video quality was very blurry, so I think it just could not focus on me at that point.  Again, it was a great class- I know I did well with technique and choreography and coaching- but no way this is submit-table.

Taping #4 - tonight I was subbing for Nicole again at Santa Clara Gold's- actually truth be told this is officially my class because Nicole got a new job and will be working Fridays.  I don't plan to keep this class long term because getting to Santa Clara on a Friday evening is a nightmare from Redwood City- but I told Robin I would hang with it until our cruise at the end of October.  Honestly, I don't think this class is going to survive.  It's not a good time slot- tonight nobody showed up and previous weeks, Nicole was getting 2-3 people tops.   So I decided I would still tape without people..get all set up and the microphone is all messed up- someone jacked up the pins in the transmitter, so it's basically toast.   In any case, I taught and taped the entire class and it went very well- I really nailed it - choreo, coaching, technique and I did not have any tech issues!! YAY!   Granted this camera app is lower resolution, so it's a bit grainy- but you can still see me, see what I am doing and the audio was perfect.  However, not sure I can submit a video without participants- Oh GEEZ!!!  I've sent out messages to see if I can get an answer- but so far, nothing.

So in order to be safe vs, sorry- Gediz has once again offered his class for me to teach tomorrow morning and I'm going to do it so that I can get this done once and for all, I hope.   I really can't even express what a God send Gediz has been, he really has stepped up to the plate to help me out and to help out other instructors who were in my training- he is the epitome of "one tribe"!  Wendy has also offered me to teach her Sunday 7am class at the Y and although the offer is wonderful- I'm just not sure I can do a 7am class...but suppose if push comes to shove I would.  Fingers crossed that tomorrow's is great and/or I find out I can submit tonight's taping.

I am LOVING Body Combat- it's so much fun and I still am not sick of my music from release 56!  Although I am getting anxious to start learning release 57- we will be launching in a few weeks and I need to learn!!!  I also need to learn the new Body Pump- welcome to the world of dual releases- I truly do not know how the superstars do it that teach 5+ formats!!

What's next?  Well, I am looking ahead and am pretty sure that I will be doing something in December- it will either be AIM 2 for Body Pump  OR possibly Body Flow training- they are both the same weekend and I'm torn between the two options.  The Y in Mt View will be getting Body Flow, but the director said that existing instructors are taking the training and will have classes- basically there won't be any room for me to have a class..but she is bringing on Body Combat in January and will need instructors- so thinking of getting my foot in that door and maybe it will work into a Body Flow class- at least subbing!  I'm excited - really feeling the fitness and loving it!

Today, I taught 4 classes:  2 spin classes, 1 Body Pump and 1 Body Combat.  The Body Pump class was at the PAFY and I always get such a warm welcome from the 1040am crew.  I had multiple people say "we just love when you come sub"  "we just love when you teach"- GOSH, talk about making my day.  Then after class, one member told me that I inspired her to add a bit more weight to her bar and she felt the difference in a good way- she was excited!   I had a relatively new pumper come up to me afterwards to go over some moves and get feedback- she said that although she's only taken 3-4 classes, I'm the first instructor that she's taken Pump from where she felt she could approach me afterwards.   Such awesome feedback, really made me happy.    The members at PAFY really are special people, I'm growing to love this facility more and more.  I'm also loving the team spirit among the instructors here.

Very exciting- I taught a line dance class this week across the Dumbarton Bridge at FIT@PRC- I've taught here before, they are managed by Mobius Fit (used to be managed by Fitness 101) and the class was such a success that they are going to have me do an 8 class series in October and then finish it off with a field trip to the Saddle Rack.  HOW. EXCITING!  

So things are coming together in the fitness arena.  I am still working on weight loss plan and logging my points, trying to eat right- I'm not perfect, but I'm a work in progress.

Feeling Ready...

I find this so very strange that I am NOT freaking out about taping my Body Combat assessment tomorrow.   How is that possible that I'm not a crazy case- of course I still have to get a good night's sleep, so hopefully that happens and I'm not plagued by nightmares of everything that can go wrong.  But seriously, I feel ready- I'm not expecting perfection, I'm not even expecting a good enough video to submit- if I get one tomorrow, great but I still plan to tape two more times.  I supposed I don't feel the urgency in tomorrow's taping.  I know what I need to do.  I know the choreography, that I don't even have to second guess - the dear Lord has blessed me with musicality and a memory to remember moves that go to beats.   Thankfully too because it would be so tragic to love music and dance as much as I do and then not be able to put the two together in harmony.

I am taping at my home club- Gold's Mt. View, so I know that some regular members who take my Body Pump class will be there, I have already team taught twice with Gediz.  He has been AMAZING and such a great supporter and so giving of his time and of his class- he's letting me teach his class so that I can tape, that's just so awesome.   He's given me great feedback each week and has complimented me on the improvements week to week.   I've already tested my phone and know what setting it needs to be so that it doesn't stop taping and/or the battery goes kaput.   I figured out why my "dry run" taping had some silent sections (very brief)- concluded that it must have been an email notification coming in or something like that- so my friend Butch suggested that I put the phone in airplane mode - brilliant! 

I pretty much went through the music everyday in Hawaii, mentally going through the choreography, I even caught myself going to sleep at night doing the choreography to the music, but the music was just in my head.  It brought back a memory from my 24 hour fitness days teaching Body Pump 10 years ago- one member Kevin always took my class in San Carlos and there was this one time I showed up at the gym- no power in the Group X room- which meant no music, no microphone..but it didn't mean no class.  I wasn't going to turn away a room full of eager Body Pumpers, so I taught the complete class without the music and Kevin came up to me afterwards and said that he heard the music and he felt the music with the way that I had taught class.  He said that everything was right on the beat...crazy, but that was a serious WOW moment for me in my teaching career.  I feel that way now with the Body Combat music- I do feel it, I know when moves are changing and I know when the music is changing.  

So here we go..915am Body Combat Gold's Mt View-  "take one" of my video assessment and I'm not worried, I am a perfectionist and I have three attempts to get this as "perfect" as I can for submission.  Take Two will be Friday at 530pm at Gold's Santa Clara and then Saturday at 915am again at Gold's Mt View and both of those I will be flying solo as I am subbing those for Gediz and Nicole. Although, I do hope to see some instructor friends and one or both tapings.

Off to bed and I'm going to dream Body Combat- I'm sure.  Two awesome classes to start the day and then I get to play the rest of the weekend- Yippee-kai-ay! 

Not what we necessary wanted..but exactly what we needed!

This vacation has been great- not necessarily what we thought it would be initially.  I think we both had the plans that we would spend each day poolside enjoying the warmth of the sun and then spend each evening dancing the night away at Nashville Waikiki.  Not a bad plan and it does combine the best of our two favorite vacation past times.   But as we often find out, things don't always go the way we plan them to go.   And honestly, that is really OK.

Day one, hubby's sunscreen didn't do its job- I think we have determined that it was his older bottle of sunscreen and was probably expired- he has two newer bottles that expire in 2015- so we're guessing they have a shelf life of 2 years and his first bottle was definitely older than that.  As a result, day two by the pool could not happen and day three was a partial day in the sun and then we moved to an area where he could be in the shade and I still had sun.  It worked and it's all good.  Tomorrow is day four and we have our all day tour to Pearl Harbor- well not all day, but 7am until 2pm roughly.  We might even then do a segway tour in the late afternoon.  I'm a bit nervous about doing this because I am not that coordinated- but we'll see.  I would like to try it!

Yesterday we met another Les Mills instructor for lunch with his wife- completely impromptu thanks to Facebook and seeing who else is on Oahu at the same time.  Butch was part of my AIM 1 training in Vegas, so it was nice to meet up for lunch with his wife.  We had a lovely time at Duke's on the beach and finished off the fabulous meal with a shared Hula Pie.  Then last night we met up with one of my Mercy classmates, Lani and her husband Joey at the Moana Surfrider's Beach Bar and had a very nice visit.  It just amazes me at how you can meet up with someone you spent 4 years of High School with- you were friendly to each other over those 4 years, but weren't necessarily "friends"...however, now 30 years later we are all the same- we are all equals- we have all lived life and have our stories, our battles and our battle scars of life.  We have all had life events impact us for good and for bad and it's all of those experience that bring us all together.  I love it!   It was a lovely night.

We have attempted to go dancing twice at Nashville Waikiki and both nights were bust.  The first night we did get some dancing in and we were the only ones dancing for a bit and seems that some locals had issues with us being the spotlight- it got oddly competitive and uncomfortable, so we left.  Last night, the place was just entirely too redneck and not very dance friendly- the floor is small to begin with and some locals were dancing wrecklessly.  Its ok...we left and came back to the hotel.  We didn't even try tonight since we have an early morning tomorrow. 

One more full day and one more night, then it's home and 56 days until the next vacation...a cruise which is our most favorite type of vacation!! Can't wait!

August in a Nutshell

August has been a busy month and I can't believe it is already Labor Day weekend.  It's been a busy month, so here are some of the highlights...

Fitness -  I've been practicing Body Combat endlessly and loving it!  I've team taught twice and received some really great feedback from instructor friend Gediz.  I'm going to be taping 2 times in September when I sub his class and thinking of subbing one more class in Santa Clara for another opportunity to tape.  Super excited to be continuing my Les Mills journey.   Received an unexpected post on Facebook from another LM instructor/trainer and he offered some really nice words of encouragement..all in all, I'm feeling really good about this.  I'm sitting in Hawaii right now and yes, I brought my Body Combat music & gloves and will be practicing in the hotel room every day!    My tennis elbow injury sustained during the Body Combat Challenge has been a pain in the arse all month and I've had to modify my lifting weights in Body Pump.  I'm thankful to now have 10 days off until I teach Body Pump again and hopefully this will heal my arm.

I've been very diligent with my Weight Watcher tracking, my food intake, drinking my shakeology everyday and so far I have lost 12 pounds and I'm feeling really good- this is it,  I'm losing the happy fat once and for all.  I am making small goals that happen to coincide with vacations and am determined to make sure that vacations don't become counter-productive to the weight loss journey.

Work - it's been a busy month with travel requests and a month with a lot of clients complimenting me on wonderful trips.  It is so gratifying to speak to clients when they return and have them tell me all about their trip and how perfect everything was.  I am blessed to have just celebrated 23 years in the Travel Industry- so happy that I found this career path, I can't imagine doing anything else.  I get to help people take vacations of their dreams and I get to go to fun places myself. 

Mom - overall she is doing well.  We finally got her computer set up at her apartment and she is thrilled to be playing her Bejeweled Blitz and Text Twist.  It helps her with the boring times and that was the goal- so I'm very happy that she is entertained.   Health is doing pretty well too- everything seems to be stable and we are on the 3-6 month Doctor visit schedule, which is fabulous.  We do have one hurdle to overcome and that is a growth on her temple that is seeming to be getting larger.  She will be seen by the Dr. next week while I am gone and hopefully it turns out to be nothing.  My hope is that it's a calcium deposit or something along those lines.  Something easily fixed.  No more medical drama please.

August has been a fun time socially.  Went to an AMAZING concert- front row tickets, just happened to try to get tickets to a sold out show at the box office on that day and yay- front row- Luke Bryan was amazing, as were his opening acts of Florida Georgia Line and Thompson Square.   We've been celebrating various birthdays this month-  Great Niece Kenzie (2),  Great Nephew Kayden (1),  Pastor Eric (30) & friend Lisa....fun times!   We have gone to Candlestick to see the Niners practice and also to a pre-season game.   Feeling a bit nostalgic with this being the last year at The Stick, but they are making it extra special.   I've been to a few Giants games also, although not a great season for them- I still love them and root for my G-men.   Went to see Journey Revisited - "Music on the Square", super fun night. 

Overall, it's been a great month.....looking forward to September!  It starts off in Hawaii- that's got to be a good start- right?

Tribe Vibe

Crazy as it sounds- I am missing Body Combat- I knew that I wanted a day of not hearing the 10 songs that comprise Body Combat 56, I knew that my body wanted nothing to do with jabs, hooks, kicks for at least a day--but now I think I'm ready to get back at it and work on what needs to be worked on so that I can submit a passing video assessment.

Sunday night I was just numb- in a good way.  My body was so exhausted, my brain was running on empty- I did nothing but become one with the couch and my laptop for "fun"- did not attempt to bring any work to the couch- it could wait.  It was a wonderfully relaxing evening and I still stayed up too late- you'd think that I would have melted into bed early- but I was still so  wound up.   I was overwhelmed by the number of people with "likes" and "congrat" messages on Facebook and many telling me how proud they were of me for having completed the training and passing.  It felt really good.   I was also blown away by the number of Les Mills instructor friends who very quickly volunteered to be part of my video assessment class.   I'm really feeling the Tribe Vibe big time....and it's very cool.

When I was first certified in Body Pump- which at the time it was Les Mills/Body Training Systems- the Maori culture was really not a part of the program, it was not emphasized, the "tribe" mentality did not exist.  Sure, you had other instructors there to help and mentor you- but it was just different.   Then over the years when Les Mills and Body Training Systems split and Les Mills moved forward with all of the programs- they really started to develop the Tribe mentality, the family of Les Mills instructors worldwide- but I was not teaching at any facility that offered these programs, so I was not really part of the tribe, so to speak.   The past year or so with more contacts on Facebook, with the face to face meetings with other instructors at Quarterlies, Mega Quarterlies, AIM and now this Body Combat training- I am just really feeling the Tribe Vibe (love that phrase that I just put together).  When I decided to take the Body Combat training, I had reached out to several instructors that I knew had been teaching the format for years and they were all so gracious with their advice and helping with feedback, opening up their classes for me to attend.   It was very cool and like I say now to have so many wanting to help me with my video.  It's very heart-warming.  I remember when Gold's in Redwood City brought in Body Pump, the club required any instructors who had not taught in a few years to re-assess with a video and it was like pulling teeth to get bodies at a mock class to film.  Very stressful.

I had the best massage yesterday- I actually went to see the Chiropractor first and that was fabulous but boy my body was sore.  The massage though- seriously the best one I think I have ever had.  about 30 minutes of Shiatsu with lots of stretching and then serious massaging of all my aching body parts..she did wonders- I was like mush when I left and I can honestly say that I woke up today feeling pretty darn good...only body part that still hurts a bit is my right elbow and that is from that stupid Crab Crawl that I could not do in a coordinated fashion...but it is feeling better today- I still went light on my bicep weight in class tonight because that seems to be the one move that irritates the injury.  

Had a great birthday dinner for my brother last night- always nice to spring mom from "the institution" as she calls it.  Just felt like a normal family night around the dining table talking and laughing.  REally happy that my mom is doing well and living close by now.  I feel as though we are finally getting to enjoy things.

Today I taught a line dancing class at the JCC for a 70th birthday party.  It was a really fun time with about 20 ladies in attendance for the party- and they caught on very quickly.  In an hour, they learned Cupid Shuffle, Electric Slide, The Hustle and Alley Cat and we danced a few of them more than once.   Afterwards, I had several ladies ask me if they could get a regular class at the JCC..so I am hopeful that this will come to fruition...it was a beautiful day and I taught outside on the 4th floor of the Cultural Center- an area that I didn't even know existed.  Before I left, one of the ladies came up to me and said "So cute talented girl with the smooth dance moves, how can we get you to teach a class regularly?"...so sweet.  Watch out Fancy Feet (Bill Horst)- your wife now has "smooth dance moves"  :)  It was a great fitness day and finished with a fabulous Body Pump class tonight.

All in all a great day...behind in travel work- so need to focus big time on this tomorrow...need to catch up and end the month with a bang!

Passed!

Passed!

What a weekend!  It was tough, it was grueling, it was long, it was filled with moments of needing to dig deep down within and moments of pushing beyond your limits.  It was AMAZING.  I am so very exhausted as I write this, I hope my thoughts come out the way they should.

I woke up Saturday, ready to take on the world, despite my road rash knee/leg.  What I didn't know then is the pain I was feeling in my leg/knee was nothing compared to how my body is feeling NOW after hours and hours of  crazy fitness fun.   After introductions, we got right into the master class.....we started with some lecture/educational information and shortly after that we did our first of two presentations.  I was nervous, but felt confident that I knew my stuff with regards to choreography and that coaching would or should come relatively easy with my Body Pump experience.  My biggest concern was getting the left/right cues correct since you have to talk in opposites.  I had track 8 for my first presentation and it's a fairly long track- almost 8 minutes and it's right after a tough Muay Thai track that is high intensity, breathe-sucking, six rounds of combat.   I stepped up and got right into it...I felt good.  I felt confident.  The coaching kicked in, the cueing was right on...I know we talk about moments in class, moments that we want our participants to feel- the fitness magic, the chills, the goosebumps.  There is one part of track 8 where you jog in place before you go for the last round of jabs (endless jabs) and I seriously got the chills and goosebumps...it was truly magical, I almost cried....but smiled instead and kept encouraging everyone to make it through the end of the battle.   Afterwards, we received our feedback for the first presentation- I was given very good feedback and two things to focus on regarding technique (no surprise here since this is relatively new to me)- extend my punches more and always come back to my guard.  Hmmmmm, the very same two things that my friend Donna told me a few weeks ago and I thought I was doing it, but not.   The rest of the day was focused on technique drills and more education.  Came home, showered, had dinner, did some "homework", received a lovely foot massage from hubby and then crashed!

Today was an early morning and we kicked the day off pretty quickly with presentation number 2 on the same track as yesterday- hopefully showing that we did our homework and show improvement.  Fortunately, we all did.  I flubbed one part of the choreography- ironically it was the same flub that our trainer Rebecca did the day before in the Master class, so I didn't feel so bad.  The key with any choreography flub it to recover from it and hopefully the error is only between "Me, myself & I"...I didn't get the chills like the day prior, but still felt like I nailed the track overall and did show improvement.  The feedback concurred, so I was given the next level of things to work on.  After some more education, we then had the Body Combat Challenge...and I'm not going to go into detail because this was what freaked me out the most - the not knowing what challenge we'd be put up to...but let's just say that the 2 minute stations were killer and challenging and at one point I was "this" close to having a breakdown because one section was SO.F'N. HARD for me.  But I "sucked it up buttercup" and kept pushing to do it.  How rewarding to be done and to have passed the challenge and worked it, and worked it hard.  After lunch, more education and then we finished the day with our third presentation on a different track.  I was struggling with the track all afternoon- I could not get coordinated with my roundhouse kick and back fist punch- my arm just would not cooperate and do what it was supposed to do, when it was supposed to do it.  But I think I nailed about 6 of the 10 reps of this combo.  I can only use fatigue as my rationalizing for that because I was doing it correctly all week.  Once we were done, the day was a wrap and we were given our final assessment for the weekend and YAY- 3/3 = PASS!   I was thrilled to get 3/3...I had thought I might get 2/3 given some technique areas- but I nailed enough of the technique and showed improvement over the two days to receive the 3/3.  Yay me.  Super excited and happy to have this weekend behind me.  However, after a couple down days, it's back at it to perfect everything else so that I can get ready to tape class for my video assessment.

We had such a great group of instructors in this training and it was nice to get to know new friends and we all shared a phenomenal experience together.  I made it a point to high five everyone after their presentation and prior to one person's presentation I could see on her face the nerves and I just went up to her patted her on the back and told her "you got this...you can do it"...after her presentation she came up to me and thanked me for giving her that comment before her track.  Felt so good to help someone else out.   I was super excited to see Laurie who used to be a corporate employee for 24 hour a long time ago..she was always such a nice director who I'd run into at the Expos and really remembered her energy and spirit- we partnered a few times over the weekend and it was just really nice to reconnect with her.

Overall, great weekend.  Rewarding experience in so many ways.  When I signed up for this training, it was a leap of faith- can I do this?  Will I get through?  Will my troubled injuries let me?   I'm happy to report that my degenerative toe is not hurting me - my feet were overall sore..but that's to be expected.   My boss at Gold's, Robin was very supportive when I told her I was signing up and she had faith in me, even when I wasn't sure I had faith in myself.   I could not have done this without the support of other tribe members and friends and family.

Well, I am POOPED and must get to bed...sadly, I need to teach Body Pump at 7am and sure hope I can lift my arms and legs! HA!  First step, getting off the couch and walking up the 14 stairs to my bed!

Twas the night before....

Body Combat training...and all through the house...I sit here with my leg elevated and an ice pack.
Had a great day at the drag races with my Brother, Hubby and nephews...weather was great (until the sun went down = new jacket purchased), races were fun to watch and to photograph - all in all a great day.  However, walking back to the car when everything was over, it was dark, walking on a gravel surface with some rocks here and there- of course I step on a rock wrong, ankle starts to roll- I was able to get out of that situation but in my effort to do so tripped over another rock and went flying.  Down onto my knee first and two hands.   Of course, because I have the shortest legs in the family- 3 of my family members were ahead of me and had no clue that I had fallen, the 4th member walked right past me and claims that he didn't see me - that it was dark.   But of course, from my point of view (the fallen) to see my nephew walk past me- HURT.   I've got to believe that he didn't see me or didn't realize that it was me that had fallen, lost in his own little world at the end of a long and tiring day.   I had still quite a ways to walk to the car and my leg was hurting and my knee kept "clicking" with each step up the last hill.  Of course, I'm in tears because all I can think about is Combat training this weekend and all of the time and hard work I've put in to get ready for this weekend.   I just hope my knee isn't F*#$@d up!  I've fallen on this same very knee before a few years ago tripping over uneven pavement during a walk - so I am very careful to look where I step, but tonight was just too many bullets to dodge in the dark and uneven surface.

So other than a messed up knee/leg- I am ready for this weekend - or will be once I get a good night of sleep- which is where I'm headed to next.  I had a great week of training and am so very grateful to my friend Lisa who has supported me through all of this and has welcomed me and my DVD to her living room everyday this past week to "do the workout" and for me to get the choreography into my noggin.  Yesterday, I was trying to cue the moves with the teachers on the DVD- I think I'm OK.  I feel pretty good about my tracks- I really love this entire release, but I think that just happens with whatever release you train on, it becomes a special place in your heart and soul.    A few comically moments during training this week.  Of course, Keegan was watching his mom & I do this workout and he actually did stick around and watch with us almost everyday- which is pretty darn good for a 5 year old!   On the second day, he pipes up: "Mom, do you feel the burn?"  (I think he's watched his mom & Jonathan do too many Jillian Michael's DVDs)- but it cracked me up...then yesterday Keegs was SINGING one of the songs and I just about died laughing...and he pipes up "I can't get this song out of my head"-- really at 5, he says that?   He's just such a sweetie pie.   Any kid who has been wearing cowboy boots since he could wear shoes is a pretty fantastic kid in my book!

Ok- I could write on for days..but I am off to bed...thankfully training begins at 10am tomorrow and I am going to get there a bit early to help greet the trainer and help her to get set up since the Director won't be there until later.  Sort of excited to be the "liaison" or "club rep" for this.  I really do feel like Mountain View is my club- we are a great family together and so very excited to be embarking on a second Les Mills format!  Only took me 13 years (but that is actually a lucky number for me)..and I'm training on the last weekend of July- just like 13 years ago with Body Pump!   Not going to let a little (or big) bruised knee get in my way.

Ready, Set...GO!

As I sit and write this, tonight is THE latest that I am allowing myself to stay up this week.  I need to focus and get ready for my big Body Combat training weekend.  I am beyond excited, nervous & anxious.  It's going to be a TOUGH weekend, but I'm sure also a lot of fun and I'm just going to go in as best prepared as I can be and give it my all.  I have plans with Lisa to get together several times this week and "practice" with her.  Best way to get and keep that choreography in my head is to do it over and over and over again.  I was happy with my track assignments - truth be told I would have been happy with anything but track 6 with the Matrix Kicks and I have heard that nobody was assigned that track since it's a new move and quite challenging for advanced instructors.  Sigh.

Sleep is going to be key for me this week so that my body can get the recovery that it needs.  I went to Body Combat yesterday and then taught my Body Pump class and after dancing friday night and going to bed at 2am, then up at 8am...well not enough rest and too much wear and tear in a short period of time.  I'm not the spring chicken I was 9 years ago when I taught 18 classes per week and danced 3 nights in a row...I also used to get naps- daily.

I am a bit bummed in that my ActiveLink decided to fail this past week, so I have not had any accurate input to my Activity points since Tuesday.  After doing the troubleshooting and contacting customer support- they determined that my device has malfunctioned and they are shipping me a new one.  I hope it comes tomorrow.   As of Friday's weigh in- I have lost close to 7 pounds since getting back on track and I'm super stoked about that.  I am really being good with my food intake and trying to be diligent with portion control and trying to eat better.   Now that I've tried the Shakeology samples- I'm anxiously waiting for my shipment so that I can do the meal replacement nutritional shake once per day.

Other than this huge focus on fitness right now...work has been busy and I have been feeling accomplished.  Still having a steady stream of new business trickling in and quite a few last minute trip requests, which always adds a bit of stress to the mix.   Mom is doing well with her health, but suspect the mental game is shifting and I need to really start to find things to do with her to keep her busy or encourage her to do somethings herself- with fewer Doctor appointments, she's not getting out that much and the excitement of bingo can only go so far.

Ready, set, GO....Go to BED early!!
Ready, set, GO...kick some butt in training this weekend!!
Ready, set, GO...and be focused all week!!

That is the agenda for this week!   Off I GO!

Feeling GREAT!

It's been an awesome weekend filled with fitness fun and great times out with fantastic friends.  Sometimes I forget just how lucky I am to have so many wonderful people in my life.   As I sit here and type this, I am SORE!  And it FEELS WONDERFUL!   I am sore in so many places that I have not been sore for a very long time.  In the last 4 days, I have completed 3 Body Combat classes, I've taught 3 Body Pump Classes,  1 spinning class and did some dancing Saturday night with the hubs.  It feels good to be active again, it feels good to be doing "my" workouts again.  

Body Combat this weekend was with two different instructors, one relatively new Combat instructor at my gym and he was really good, I would never have known that he was just certified on the last release.   Today I was a guest at another club to take class from my friend Donna and she's just impeccable.  She team taught with another instructor and they really were fabulous and I tried to soak it all in.  I know my body was definitely fatigued going in today but it was fun!   Donna gave me some great feedback afterwards...I need to work on extension in my punches and also need to remember to keep my guard up.  I know the punch extension is a definite- I can see and feel the difference between doing it right and wrong after going over it with her.   The guard issue, I am aware and do try to keep it up- I may have just been out of it today.  Going  to check with Saturday's instructor to see if he noticed anything...but in any case, I am aware now and will be paying close attention.  One thing about me, I am a perfectionist and want to succeed well at the training in two weeks.

Two weeks, actually less than that.  Hopefully, this time in two weeks I am blogging about what a wonderful weekend of training I've had with tribe members and that I have left with a Pass.  There are three options, Pass, Pass Withheld or Fail.   The third option is not even an option.  However, still no DVD/notes/track assignment in the mail yet.  I hope, hope, hope that it comes tomorrow- I'm dying to know which tracks I've been assigned.  I'm scared to death that I'll get the Matrix track, it's going to be hard enough to master the move without having to teach it - although it's a shorter track to teach.  Oh well, I'm going to get whatever I'm going to get and can't freak out about it until I get it! 

The three eating out occassions went well.  I actually made conscious decisions and did not overeat- in fact I left part of my lunch on the plate yesterday and then both last night and tonight I ended up taking 1/2 my meal home.  Major progress for me.  I will have some great leftovers this week for lunch!    So onto the next week and hopefully another successful one! 

APPLIED Knowledge IS Power...

Once again focused on ME and trying to lose the weight that I've been trying to lose for two years now..of course I did lose some of back in 2011 and then 2012 happened- the year of taking care of others and paying very little attention to myself.  Although, indirectly my lack of activity did help my foot recover and there is no way I would have voluntarily took a backseat to being active if I could have helped it in any way...so foot feels good, but at what cost- extra weight that does not feel good. Ok, enough of the history lesson.

I have read every darn weight loss article I could find, compared options, and it still comes back to Weight Watchers for me.  It has worked in the past and worked quite well for me, I just needed to jump start it and see what I could do differently, while still following the program.  I started to peruse over the WW website and noticed a new device they were selling- the Active Link...it's a little thing that can attach to the waist of your pants, you can wear it in your pocket, on a chain or attach to  your bra or workout shirt..so lots of options and it will tell you how many activity points you are earning.   Figured this may be the perfect thing for me because let's face it- I've "followed" the program and logged my points and been active and used some activity points (not all of them) and still did not see the results that I should have.   Now some would say it is "what" I'm putting in my body and yes, I agree with that to some degree.   But I wanted to see what input this device would give to me.

You have to wear it for a week and it evaluates how active you are.  Now I may have picked a week that basically "screws" me, because this is how they determine your baseline of activity.  What week did I evaluate?  Last week, the 4th of July holiday week where I taught 9 classes as opposed to my normal 4.   But in reality, I SHOULD be getting the activity of 9 classes per week just for my own "feel good" and my own workouts.  I need to add in at least 5 workouts that are MINE, not teaching. Granted teaching you are active, you are working out- but you're not focused on YOUR workout, you are focusing on the CLASS's workout.   So maybe my evaluation week screwed me, maybe it didn't.  We'll see.

I do think 9/10 of this equation is mental and the games that get played on ones mind.  I was very irritated the first day that I worked out this week and didn't have any activity points.  In fact, for all of last week the darn thing credited me with only 4 activity points for the week!!!  Now prior to this device, according to the Activity Log, a 45 minute weight lifting workout with vigorous effort would warrant 4 points- just one class - I teach 4 of these per week.   A 50 minute spinning class would give 8-9 points- just one class.  I won't even get into a night of line dancing.  But this is a HUGE difference in "extra points" that one could conceivably eat.  So clearly there are some discrepancies and what to believe.  Well since I was not losing weight when I was earning all of those activity points (and using a good portion of them)- I'm going to assume that the device is accurate and that less is more, more accurate that is.

Today is day one of my 3rd week with the device and it has credited me with 4 activity points today- but that is after teaching one Spin class and one Body Pump class with a little extra practice of Body Pump afterwards.  If I were using the previous point systems I would have logged about 12-14 points today- BIG difference!

So what has the scale said- well I started this new journey on June 21st, 3 weeks ago and I am almost down 5 pounds.  I am paying attention to eating when I am hungry, paying attention to when I am bored and might wander towards food.  I am taking my late night "work" to my office because if I sit on the couch, I will wander to the very close kitchen at the hint of hunger or supposed hunger.  I am trying to not eat after 9pm.  I am trying to limit the alcohol intake to no more than 3 days per week and am really looking ahead at my calendar to plan accordingly.  Enjoying wine almost every night is just not worth the extra weight anymore.  Thanks to a Beachbody Coach who sent me samples, I have tried 3 flavors of Shakeology and they are pretty OK- they aren't to die for, but I can live with them and I think that doing one meal replacement shake is a good option for me.  To get the nutrients that I am missing and have a very low point meal.  I am still going to try different veggies, but may go back to just starting with salads- I did pretty good 13 years ago with my Caesar Salads with light dressing, it did get me to eat the green leafy crap!  At a recent cruise line seminar, they had a pre-planned menu and it was a Cobb Salad- well that was not so bad actually- but then again it had hard boiled eggs, bacon bits and chicken breast that was warm (I hate cold chicken on a salad)...but I did eat a fair amount of the romaine as well.

I have started taking Body Combat classes in an effort to prepare for the training in two weeks.  TWO WEEKS!!  Starting to freak out a bit, especially since I have not received my DVD/CD & notes yet- hopefully tomorrow.  Although, probably better that I have not received it yet- with Body Pump launch tomorrow, my head is already focused on the one class.   Class last night was good- it felt good to be doing some cardio and my foot held up which was good news.  I am sore today in places that I have not been sore in a long time.  The teacher is a new Combat instructor, it was her first class actually and she did very good- but it also made me feel like "I could do this".  In talking with her and a few members after class, I was telling her that the Gold's members were great and very forgiving and then one member piped up "We don't have to forgive you for anything, you're perfect everytime."  Boy, that sure made my day and I know that I'm not perfect- I make mistakes, I just know how to cover them up. :)   I'm definitely getting anxious for the training and very nervous of the unknown.  I know that Les Mills is famous for having "the challenge" during their trainings and with Body Pump 13 years ago the challenge was to run x miles- I can't remember it may have been 1 mile or 3, it didn't matter at the time I was not a runner (still am not) and I was petrified that I was not going to be able to do it.  But I did.  So freaking out a bit not knowing what the challenge with Combat training will be.  As I am typing this, I just realized something coincidental- my Body Pump training 13 years ago was a two weekend deal but it finished up the last weekend of July.  My Combat training is the last week of July- how weird is that?  I'm thinking that is a good sign.

Alright, guess it's time to start this weekend.  I still have some work to finish up, must review Body Pump a few more times before 815am launch and try to plan my weekend meals to be point friendly.  We have 3 eating out functions this weekend- it will be challenging for sure...but hopefully I will counteract the effects with lots of activity.  This weekend calls for Body Pump x 2 and Body Combat x 2 and hopefully some dancing tomorrow night.  I am reconnecting with another fitness instructor next week for a walk at the Dish, so I am really looking forward to that also.  It's ME time, no excuses- the time has come and I'm doing it!

Whirlwind

Wow- have not blogged since the middle of May- not for lack of thinking about it- but the time sure is flying right on past me and I've been incredibly busy.    Guess I am overdue and feeling the need to write down some thoughts or more.  

Mom first..she was released from rehab on May 21st back to her apartment and happy to say that she is doing VERY well.  She had physical therapists working with her a few times per week at home, we have had follow up appointments with her doctors and the shoulder is considered healed, her range of motion is very good.  For awhile, it was "driving miss daisy" with her in the backseat, but now she has enough ROM to use the handpull for the front seat to get into my Pathfinder.   She was elated when she tried and was able to.  She is gaining weight and is currently a strong 97 pounds -although she decided to lie on her California ID this past week and said she was 105 and a height of 5'0" (she is really 4'11")- she even gave me a speech to not "rat her out" at the DMV when she put those false measurements down.  Gee, would I do that?   Who doesn't like on the Driver's License or ID for the height/weight- right?   Overall, she is doing good, she is healthy and that is HUGE!  The weekends are slow and boring for her, so I really need to make a point of taking time out to do something with her on the weekends.  It's just really tough since that is "Pam & Bill time" and I am with her so much during the week taking care of business.   I'll figure it out, I always do.

June has flown by incredibly quick- celebrated 7 years with the most wonderful man in the world although we picked the worst place on earth to do this- Disneyland in June is NOT the happiest place on earth; however, we did have a good time- we did get to go on a lot of attractions.  We had a very fun time at The Ranch Restaurant and Saloon - great dining and then country dancing afterwards and then on our Anniversary a fabulous dinner at Napa Rose.   All in all, our weekend away was fabulous despite the crowds and chilly weather- we actually had to buy jackets the first night at Disneyland.   We parted ways at LAX,  Bill went home and I continued onto Orlando for my annual Vacation.com conference with a few extra days at Disney World with my friend and colleague, Mandi.  We had a great time- lots of valuable education, fun times socializing with other agents and some great activities for the conference goers!   Our two days at Disney World were a blast, but I was definitely ready to get home once all was said and done.  It was an exhausting 10 days and literally took me a week to recover.

Bill celebrated his last birthday in his 40's - lucky number 49 and I think that he had a great weekend of celebrations.  He is so damn good to me, that I really wanted to make sure that he was treated extra specially for his birthday weekend.  He is my rock, my foundation and I could not do this life without his support.  He's amazing.    We started out Friday night by his request at PF Chang's for dinner, then danced the night away at the Saddle Rack- afterall, he is "Mr Happy Feet"- we were joined with a variety of friends for one or both venues and had a great night.   Saturday we picked up my mom and the three of us went to see "Monsters University"- which was a very cute movie and then we came home to a homemade Spaghetti dinner, thanks to my brother.  It was delicious and it was also great to "spring" mom from the old folks home for a saturday since that is her worst day of the week (most bored).   Sunday, my brother made a special breakfast for Bill - french toast and sausage after we had morning massages.  Then we finished up the weekend with a concert at the Shoreline- "Bone Bash" with Night Ranger, Bad Company and Lynryd Skynyrd.  It was an amazing show- great music and we had phenomenal seats- just 4 rows from the stage!  Incredible!  It was also a special treat to meet up with my BFF from 1st grade (Marianne) and her daughter (Brianna) between acts and got to meet her special guy.   Overall, it was a GREAT weekend!

Now for me..well, I think that I am finally getting back to me and starting once again to take care of myself.  Afraid to say that too loudly because then the other shoe might fall.  I have refocused myself with weight watchers again.  I have purchased their activity device so that I can truly see what activity points I am earning- I'm in the first week evaluation phase, so we'll see what comes of it.   I am beefing up my activity and getting in some workouts for myself and I've done something extremely scary.  I have finally signed up for training for a second Les Mills format.  Yep, I have not told many people- so anyone who reads this blog- feel privileged because I am not bragging too  loudly on this.  It is definitely something out of my comfort zone, but one of Les Mills principles is to "Be Brave" - so that is exactly what I am going to do.  I'm waiting for my DVD and choreography notes so that I can start to work on that.  I'm excited that Gold's has added two classes to the schedule, so I can go take the class 5+ times before the training weekend at the end of July.  The format is Body Combat- a mixed martial arts class with moves from Karate, Muay Thai, Boxing, Taekwondo, Tai Chi.  Nervous, excited, anxious- but I'm going to give it 200% and we'll see where the chips fall.    The bottom line is that I will be learning one of the best programs out there- definitely the best martial arts inspired program from the best trainers in the business, so I will soak it all in and do my best.   July is big time training month for me to be ready for this.  My friend Lisa has said over and over again that she'd love to train with me, which I think will be good for me to get my feet wet before training weekend.

Overall, I am enjoying the summer, definitely enjoying the HOT weather we've been having- bring it on, stay forever- I love it!   Been having some great times with fabulous friends.

Ok- as my nephew just reminded me - I was "off to bed" about 30 minutes ago according to my facebook post- so I will finish this up and head off to bed.  Get a good night sleep to attack this short work week that is overloaded with fitness fun and a great 4th of July weekend on the agenda with great people!

Where do I even begin?

I really must set aside time to journal at least once a week because here we are a month between posts and I know that I am going to have a hard time keeping these thoughts coherent...eeeks.  Life has been BUSY.  Life has been CRAZY.  Time is flying by faster than the speed of light- I'm almost feeling a little anxious about this.  I mean really the time flies by so fast that I'm starting to look at milestones- 30th High School Reunion,  Close friends beginning their 50's,  Siblings beginning their 60's and then hearing so often about people you know directly or indirectly passing at these ages or dealing with life threatening diseases or challenges - it's just all a bit too "real" and quite scary.  I suppose it's a message to just live life to its fullest because you just never know what tomorrow will bring.

I'll start with mom, her rehabilitation at Lytton Gardens is going well.  We met with her orthopedic Doctor two weeks ago and they took a new x-ray.  Shoulder is healing and they cleared her to do some exercises with her left arm.  She loves therapy, loves doing her exercises and loves her therapists.  Stacy & Mark get two thumbs up and I think they both enjoy my mom and her chatty-ness.   She has made several friends with the staff at Lytton Gardens, it's funny how so many of them remembered her from her October stay there and one of the workers even remembered me in the elevator the other day.  He says to me, "I remember you visiting your mom, you're a big Giants fan" :)  I remembered him too and we chatted about our favorite baseball team!    I've had several of the nursing staff comment about how my mom is so lovely, so nice, so friendly, etc.  Her attitude has stayed positive most of the time.  She has had a roommate for a few weeks that she didn't care for, but she has left and now has another roommate who is much more conversational- which I think is the key point.  We go again this week for another x-ray and if what the Doctor is hoping for proves to be correct, she should be cleared for weight bearing on the left arm, which means she can get back to her walked and presumably get back to Woodside Terrace maybe within the week.  Two things she still has a bit of trouble with- taking her shirt off at night and tying her shoelaces.  So we'll see how Tuesday goes at the Doctor office.    Her leg/ankle wounds are looking pretty good- the ankle still has some scabbing, but it looks very dry- so I'm not worried about it.  If all is going well with Dr Gillon and her back surgery recovery - we have an appointment with her at the end of the month.

We had a lovely Mother's Day today- initially my sister was going to host but since mom couldn't be gone from Lytton Gardens for more than 4 hours, we relocated to our house and it all worked out well.  Given all of the driving I'm doing each day back and forth to Palo Alto to see mom and bring her whatever she needs, it was nice to not have to get on the road today- other than to go pick her up.  My sister took her home, which allowed me to really relax after clean up.  The day was put on jointly by everyone.  I love when you can "host" and not feel exhausted afterwards.  My darling hubs and brother cleaned the patio, killed the annual wasp nests, brought out the cushions so that we could dine al fresco.  Weather was gorgeous.    My sister brought dessert from Nothing Bundt Cakes and it was delicious, she also made a caprese salad and brought a bottle of wine from her Mediterranean Cruise.  My brother picked up the Ice Cream.  I'm actually getting better at allocating tasks.  When I was shopping at Safeway for the food on Friday I was about to get ice cream, realized that it would be better to have Baskin Robbins and instead of going there myself, I just asked my brother to do this.  So proud of myself.  I'm finally learning that I will do it all and people will allow me to do it all, unless I put my foot down and delegate.

The past month has been pretty full with social engagements.  Bruce's 50th birthday bash, Jonathan's birthday party,  Morgan's 18th birthday,  Scotty's birthday.  Brynn's play which was followed by a fun night in the McClymond back yard enjoying beautiful weather and great food with the best of friends.  Lady A concert "date night" with Bill,   "Knight Moves" dance concert at Hillsdale HS- finally after years of wanting to see what a great show this has been, finally got to experience it.  Great show.  Lots of business social engagements- ship tours, vendor meetings, webinars....and let's not forget going to a few Giants games and watching several others on the TV.  They are showing great promise and my favorite MLB commercial this year is where they pose the phrase, "I play for..." and then a variety of players  fill in the blank.  Buster Posey is on the commercial and he fills in the sentence with "3 rings in 4 years"- Hell Yeah!  

As busy as this past month has been, it's about to get much crazier in the coming weeks...a packed two days of work this week, but also have two classes to teach, chiro appt, massage appt, nail appt, mom's Dr appt, trip to Costco to buy goods for Redeemer family fun day, pack and be at the airport by 530am on Wednesday!  Oh fun, I think I am planning on pulling an all nighter Tuesday- I mean heck if I go to bed at 2am, will I really sleep for 2.5 hours?   I just know me and my habits.  Two days on the Celebrity Solstice will be a tease, but I'm looking forward to seeing the ship, having one day of being out of touch - no phone, no email, no technology.  Just the ocean, my hubby and 3000 of my closest TA colleagues.  Come home and hit the ground running with a Mega Fitness Day - starting at the YMCA for a Master Class with the fabulous Susan Renata and preview of Body Pump 86 (have not even received the release in the mail yet), then a technique refresher afterwards.  BBQ at an instructors house with Susan attending as well.  Then it's hop over to Crunch for a workshop with fellow Spin instructors, followed by an instructor social.  Looking forward to it.   Sunday- can't wait to see my friend Kelly perform in The Wizard of Oz, she is the Wicked Witch and I just know she's going to be excellent!   Then to finish up the month...a few more Giants games (can't wait for Pixar at the Park), Morgan's High School graduation (so honored that she gets enough tickets so that I can attend), final preps for mom's garage/estate sale (getting her house cleaned up and ready for the next move- ultimately to sell), the college kid returns home for the summer (YAY!) and then we finish the month with younger nephews 18th birthday!   See, I am getting old- how can this be happening?

College kid is doing so well at RIT, he is loving his studies, is doing very well in his classes.  Loves working on thesis projects and he was just awarded a $5000 scholarship for next year- so very proud of Michael and the success of his Freshman year.  The summer is going to fly by and he is already talking about maybe not coming home next summer and also realizing that he needs a car back there and is probably going to ship his truck back to school.  We'll see if he loves the east coast during the summer when it's ridiculously hot and HUMID.  He is not a hot weather kid and has actually started to complain a bit about the May weather...HA!  This should be fun to see the change in attitude.  I always knew that snowy winters would not bother him.

Fitness World...been busy subbing classes and really enjoying my classes.  I love all of my classes, but my Body Pump crew in Mt View really has a special place in my heart.  I've had so many wonderful compliments and people who have taken such an interest in me and my life- I feel as though we are friends, we are family beyond the actual class.  I have gotten back to tracking my food on Weight Watchers once again and am trying to stay on track.  Pretty much eliminating alcohol outside of weekends.  Keeping the drinking to 2 times per week- which typically will be over the weekends.  So far I've lost 3 pounds and I just need to keep it going.  I have yet to add in more of my own workouts- I need to and have plans to do this- but I also know that I need to find balance with my schedule first.  I think if I can start to get to bed earlier and get up earlier I will be more successful at getting my own workouts in before the work day gets too crazy.  I would like to take on another Les Mills format.  Gold's is going to be getting Body Combat and I am considering going through the training.  I would love for Gold's to get Body Flow...we'll see, I know they are not looking for another format quite so soon...but perhaps.

Starting the refinance process this week.  Our appraisal came in favorably- so moving ahead with the mounds of paperwork that is involved.  It's so much more when you're in business for yourself- so speaking of which, I suppose I must get up to my desk and start scanning because that is due tomorrow!

Overall, feeling blessed and just wishing that time would slow down a bit.

World's Collide...

This has been one friggin' crazy a$$ week and all of my world's have been colliding and I am beyond stressed out!  Not even sure where to begin...but travel work has been busy to begin with and my hours in the office have been very limited.  Yesterday had a cruise ship inspection in SF,  today a lunch meeting for Celebrity Cruise Lines, tomorrow a speaking engagement at my High School's Career Day.   Fitness world has been nuts with preparing for the Gold's Launch Party for Body Pump 85 this Saturday- other than going through choreography any chance I get- which has been more mentally vs. physically- but I NEED to go through it physically at least once before Saturday...guess that will be tomorrow- sink or swim.  Add to all of this, mom was transferred Tuesday to Rehab in Palo Alto- so my drive to visiting her is longer to and from and the next two days it is very unlikely that I will get to visit her at all.   Although, another instructor volunteered to help pick up bars and weights tomorrow to alleviate my stress, which might actually allow me to swing by and see mom for a little bit en route to Santa Clara for Launch Prep.   Saturday is non-stop from 8am until 11pm..launch day in Santa Clara,  CPR renewal in Campbell, then Birthday party in San Mateo with absolutely no wiggle room in between the three stops.

Allergies have been KICKING my butt!  Sneezing,  eye (singular) watering, headache for 3 days now- ENOUGH already!  I am loving the warm weather, but hate this change of seasons when allergies go bezerk.  It has also been dragging me down and caffeine has not helped.  My energy has been completely zapped this week.  Ugh.

Feeling overwhelmed, knowing that I have work to work on, but my head just won't allow me to settle in on it.  Sunday will be my day to rest and hopefully get some things taken care of so that I can start the new week off feeling accomplished and caught up.  Please...hopefully.

Mom is doing pretty well, I must say and that is good.  I actually don't feel as though she is "waiting" for my visit- she is busy during the day with therapy and in between therapy taking naps because the therapy is physically exhausting for her.  This is all good.  She is getting stronger and she is so determined to get well and get back home.  I will of course always be a bit uneasy with her living alone that she will fall again and hurt herself again, but I can only pray and let go and let God take care of her.  So hard for this control freak.  I am a bit worried about the leg once again.  It has gotten crusty and seems a little moist in areas.  I took some pictures and emailed them to Dr Gillon who replied back today- she agrees and thinks that I should go ahead and debride them and hopefully cleaning them up that way will help them to continue to heal.  Looks like maybe mom banged her leg at some point- who knows, maybe during her fall somehow.  Again, just want her to be healed and have some fun.   The wonderful Dr Gillon even said she would meet us at her office if I thought she needed to do the debriding- they just don't make Doctor's like her anymore, she is still recovering from her car accident with 5 fractured vertebrae and has been off work since the beginning of the year.   Although getting mom to her office presents a problem right now with her fractured shoulder.  Ugh.

Ok- going to get to sleep, work is not going to get done, better off trying to get up early to attack a few things before heading to SF!

And the other shoe drops!

Well, just when I was starting to feel really good about Mom's health...back in the hospital.  My biggest fear has come true- she had a fall in her apartment.  Not clear on all of the details, but she woke up from sleeping to go to the bathroom and didn't make it, she didn't remember falling, but was on the floor for hours.  She says she pushed her help button necklace, but I'm also not sure if she was pushing it correctly.  My best guess is that she laid on her bedroom floor with a quilt that she crawled to get for at least 4 hours.  Breaks my heart.  Still not sure how she was found, but I think it might have been the cleaning lady- Good Lord I shutter to think if it had not been cleaning day.  I would normally not have talked to her until late in the day.  Woodside Terrace called 911 and they took her to the ER at Sequoia, they called me and I dropped everything...again, to be there with her.

When I got the ER, I was sort of taken aback, not being sure what to expect, well her lips were bright red- concluded that she had dried blood on chapped lips from being without liquids for hours and having bit her tongue when she fell.   Bruise on her neck and then whoa...her left shoulder/arm a very pretty purple.  I was hoping that maybe she just bruised it badly...but The outcome?  Fractured shoulder- not bad enough for surgery and the bone is as "together" as they would like for easier healing, but it's still a 4-6 week recovery period.  Sigh.   Of course, as a bonus we found out that she has a UTI, which would explain why she's been getting up more often at night to go potty...which probably helped in this whole ordeal because she's been more fatigued with this interrupted sleep pattern.  Good Grief.   It's nasty looking- but here is the shoulder/arm in beautiful purple:

It was a full day at the hospital, she finally got taken to her room around 330pm, but the fun still wasn't over because we had to wait for her nurse to check her in to the floor.  Well, once I found out we had Nurse Steve, I just rolled my eyes and after 30 minutes of waiting for him, I had enough.  I spoke to another nurse, complained about waiting for him and also voiced my displeasure with having him as mom's nurse.  Thankfully, this was taken care of right away.  The Supervisor was meeting with me immediately and changed mom's nurse and ended up putting on her chart "female nurses only"- most of the problem nurses we've had on this floor have been the men.  It just has been that way.  It was very comforting to know that speaking up does work.

So I have been pretty much numb all night long.  Finally got home around 630pm after stopping by mom's apartment to pick up a few things.  I had not eaten anything all day, so I was famished and although I probably needed to be teaching my Body Pump class tonight, sadly I had someone teach a sculpting class in my absence.  I just didn't want to chance not being able to make it, so I contacted the GXM early in the afternoon just in case.

People tell me all of the time what a great daughter I am and how lucky my mom is.  My mom tells me all of the time how sorry she is that she takes up so much of my time.   I'm really having struggles with all of this.  I am definitely happy that I've been able to help my mom and be there for her and "turn the tables" as needed since she did a fine job of raising me...but I have to say that I'm getting a little burned out with all of it.   I'm really not sure how much more I can take.  I've been waiting for my "reward" and I really thought that reward would be to finally enjoy mom's company doing fun things- going to a matinee movie once a week or when the weather gets better - go hang out downtown outside for lunch or take her to music on the square or who knows what- anything that was not a "purpose".  The majority of our time spent together the past year has been for a purpose- going to a Dr. appt, changing bandages- all care-giver roles and I'm really wanting to get back to doing things as friends again.   I'm starting to wonder if that day will ever get here, am I fooling myself into thinking that it will?   We were SOOOOOOOOOOO close to her being completely healed.  All clean bills of health just two weeks ago, just working on the GI stuff with preventing C-diff.  Of course, now with this UTI she has to be treated with antibiotics which have a good chance to bringing the C-diff back for an 8th visit.  Praying that it doesn't.

Prognosis...well not sure how long she'll be in the hospital, but suspect they will keep her for at least 3 days as then she would qualify for skilled nursing and I think she will need that.  How can she live on her own with one arm use?   Discouraged right now.  Sad for her.  Sad for me.  Angry at the entire situation.  Feeling a bit lost.