10 miles ... 10 miles ... 10 miles

I signed up for a 10 mile race today. It will be my motivation over the next 8 weeks!

Run little girl ... run

The results are in ...

I weighed in at 145.8 lbs today! Whoa Nelly ... dropped 3 pounds during my cleanse. I did a search of 3 pounds and this is one of the many images I got ... In 7 days I lost a puppy!

Cleanse: Days 3 and 4

Still going strong on my modified cleanse.

Day 4 I added a serving of brown rice, serving of lentils and a serving of almonds. Again, focusing on my Saturday weigh in with a goal of 147 lbs.

I've been enjoying some pretty amazing grapefruit.

Cleanse: Days 1 and 2

What have I been eating for 2 days and how do I feel? It has been a combination of the following (sticking to the 2 X as many vegetables as fruits)



Oranges
Grapefruits
Apples
Carrots
Sweet Potatoes
Spinach
Onions
Tomatoes
Romaine Lettuce
Snap Peas

Supplement shakes: 8 oz. Rice Milk and 2 tbls of mix. Mix is from the standard process cleanse and contains proteins from whey, flax and rice. Additional ingredients include powder and extracts from brussels sprouts, kale, barley grass, alfalfa, soybeans, grapes, carrots and red wine.

On my salads I've been mixing my own dressing of balsamic vinegar, garlic, lite olive oil, lemon juice, pepper and celtic salt.

I've experienced a range of feelings over the course of 2 days. I believe, that while I'm not doing the cleanse on the level of a 10, my body is still detoxing to a certain extent. I've experienced a few headaches but all have been cured by drinking 8-16 oz of water. I've experienced a bit of ... well ... let's just say my body is LOVING the food I'm giving it and refusing to let it go (also trying to cure this with excessive amounts of water).

I feel healthy. I am proud of the discipline I've had over the last two days and feel positive about today! One day at a time and I accept the challenge.

Starting tomorrow, I will be able to add a serving of brown rice and a serving of lentils to the cleanse. That will make for a filling meal after 3 days of veggies and fruits!

My 7 day Cleanse

'Cleanse me once ... Cleanse me twice ... C'mon pretty baby cleanse me deadly ...'



So I'm doing my own modified 7 day cleanse. I've done one in the past, it was 21 days and felt amazing after. No need to worry, its healthy and doesn't deprive my system of anything. The foundation for the cleanse is a plant based diet and supplement shakes that provide additional nutrients for the day. The cleanse eliminates dairy, wheat, gluten, sugar, alcohol, etc. from my daily diet and body. On a scale of 1-10, 10 being the strictest possible standards of the cleanse, I probably fall about a 4. I will still be drinking caffeine (I love my cup of black coffee in the morning)!

My goal is health and weight-loss. I have lost 7 lbs. since the beginning of my journey and this last week I've hit a plateau in my results. My experiment, the modified 7 day cleanse, will be to record the results my body can achieve with this plan over the course of 7 days.

The plan goes like this:

Sunday Day 1:
Unlimited Fruits, Vegetables (flax and olive oils, lemon juice, spices)

2 supplement shakes

Monday Day 2:
Unlimited Fruits, Vegetables (lots of green veggies for protein) (flax and olive oils, lemon juice, spices)

2 supplement shakes

Tuesday Day 3:
Unlimited Fruits, Vegetables (lots of green veggies for protein) (flax and olive oils, lemon juice, spices)

2 supplement shakes

Wednesday Day 4:
Unlimited Fruits, Vegetables (lots of green veggies for protein) (flax and olive oils, lemon juice, spices)

2 supplement shakes
(2 servings) lentils, beans, rice

Thursday Day 5:
Unlimited Fruits, Vegetables (lots of green veggies for protein) (flax and olive oils, lemon juice, spices)

2 supplement shakes
(2 servings) lentils, beans, rice

Friday Day 6:
Unlimited Fruits, Vegetables (lots of green veggies for protein) (flax and olive oils, lemon juice, spices)

2 supplement shakes
(2 servings) lentils, beans, rice

Saturday Day 7:
Unlimited Fruits, Vegetables (lots of green veggies for protein) (flax and olive oils, lemon juice, spices)

2 supplement shakes
(2 servings) lentils, beans, rice

I did EVERYTHING right ... drop scale, DROP!

Looking back on my week, I was so so so good and I'm proud of myself! It's a constant climb ...

Let me tell you about my little friend, the scale. Actually, my little friend would like a name. I'm going to call it, friendly. So I get on friendly this morning and I find myself, not exactly getting to the point where I'd hoped. I did EVERYTHING right this week. Food? ... check! Workouts? ... check! What the HELL?

Ok, here is where the folks who don't use scales have it down. They go on how they feel, right? That's exactly the mentality I'm taking away from this day. I feel fantastic. My skin is clearing up. My clothes fit better. Friends and colleagues are asking if I've lost weight. I feel my confidence on the rise.

I have a new week ahead and new goals to focus on. Plus ladies, we all know there are just some week(s) out of the month ... Ahheemm ... that we have no control over our hormones or our water retention. So if the scale doesn't drop or even edges in an upward movement, we have to focus on how far we've come and see today as a new day!

I will continue to eat all the fruits and vegetables I can handle and even slightly more than I can handle at times!

I will continue to plan my workouts and set new goals!

Today is a new day, this week is a new week!

The skinny on being a 'Skinny Bitch'

This book reads like I'm talking to one of my closest girlfriends. Yes, I love to express a little emotion with a touch of gusto and sometimes I'll cuss like a trucker! So do the authors of 'Skinny Bitch', Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin. When I picked up the book, just two days ago, I had no idea what it was about other than the phrase on the cover.



"A no-nonsense, tough-love guide for savvy girls who want to stop eating crap and start looking fabulous!"

In just the first 10 pages you will be reminded:

* Soda is liquid satan
* Cigarettes are for losers
* Habitual drinking leads to fat pig syndrome
* Coffee is for pussies
* You need to exercise, you lazy shit

The following chapters discuss a bit of everything else. Sugar, meat, dairy, protein and controversial issues like veganism and the FDA.

Take it all in with a light heart and don't get your undies in a bundle if you can't take a bit of sass! 'Skinny Bitch' is a fun read from two women on a mission.

I'm flying high ... FLY YOGA

So this week I took a new adventure ... It's called 'Fly Yoga' and it's just like it sounds. I can't tell you how important it has been, to my life, to be trying new things and exploring new challenges. If you find yourself getting sick of the same old routine, if you find yourself going to the same gym over and over ... I encourage you to do some research in your community. Make a commitment to find one new activity to do a week!



When Crunch shuttered the last of its Chicago locations last year, it took its innovative and fun classes with it. One of those offerings was AntiGravity Yoga, a mix of yoga and aerial arts (along the lines of Pink’s performance at the Grammys—with a lot less water) that allowed participants to float from pose to pose and reap the awesome benefits of inversions without the fear of smacking into the ground. But Antigravity Yoga is back—and better than ever—as Fly Yoga. Former Crunch instructor and certified AntiGravity Yoga teacher Brent Holten decided to bring it to his gym, i.d. (which is, coincidentally, located in the former Crunch Lincoln Park location). I’m no stranger to antigravity classes, so I figured I knew the drill in Fly Yoga. But Brent stripped down the cookie-cutter class syllabus, instead tailoring each session by adding more yoga moves as well as Pilates and strength-training segments. In other words, I still got that weightless floating feeling, but with less Cirque du Soleil and more asana. I loved the additional twists, advanced inversions (the Dracula headstand, with the flying wings draped behind me like a cape? Okay) and booty-toning moves, and I’ve never felt more confident doing a handstand. While AntiGravity Yoga was something I did on an “easy” gym day, Fly Yoga is a bona-fide calorie-sizzling, mood-lifting workout.

Resource: Time Out Chicago

YES for Bikram Yoga!

I hadn't been as active as I'd hoped this last week. I reached out to a friend and she agreed to meet me for yoga yesterday. After going almost a week with very little activity my mind and body feel so much more alive today. I was more alert in class and I slept like a baby last night.

I began my first yoga class about 5 years ago and started practicing Bikram just about 3 years ago. I continue to do multiple disciplines on a weekly basis (Vinyasa, Ashtanga, etc.) There is something about Bikram that detoxes my mind and body the way nothing has been able to do.



Bikram Yoga according to his website:

Bikram's Beginning Yoga Class is a twenty-six asana series designed to scientifically warm and stretch muscles, ligaments and tendons, in the order in which they should be stretched.

Bikram Yoga's twenty-six posture exercises systematically move fresh, oxygenated blood to one hundred percent of your body, to each organ and fiber, restoring all systems to healthy working order, just as Nature intended. Proper weight, muscle tone, vibrant good health, and a sense of well-being will automatically follow.

Bikram teaches you not only the ideal pose - how you will eventually be able to do it - but also the reality - telling you what problems you will have as you try to do the pose, what clues will help you make rapid progress, and where you might be tempted to "cheat," thus depriving yourself of the benefit of doing the pose properly. Bikram explains to you, in his inimitable humorous and informative way, how his scientifically designed series of twenty-six poses will enhance mind and body, relax, strengthen, reshape, and heal all of you in 90 minutes.

Apollo Anton Ohno

A perfect example of integrity on a daily basis. What determination and discipline this young man exemplifies in setting and reaching goals! Thank you Apollo!

Single Ladies Event

My workout today:

Learn the dance routine to Beyonce's 'Single Lady' with some of MY ladies!