workout 120 days straight

I celebrated this FABULOUS day with an even more FABULOUS run. I missed it so much!

Today was supposed to be Day 120, but I woke up yesterday unable to get out of bed… at all. The exhaustion was extreme and more like anything I’ve ever felt and had to stay in bed ALL day, hence no workout. :’(

Could it have been from the stress of planning and cooking a huge family dinner on Saturday? Who knows!

What I do know is: Kung Foo Panda was really good, I love the show “Brothers and Sisters” and yesterday qualifies under my “workout daily except when ill” rule.

So tomorrow as 120’th day of workout, it is! :):):)

My injury is sticking around like an unwanted guest and I’m devastated!

In desperation to keep active, in place of my running days, I’ve been pedaling like a madwoman on an exercise bike to morning trashy tv. It’s my least favorite activity in the world (I do it with the grumpiest look on my face), but if I don’t, then the loose skin that gathers in some areas of my body will fill in, I’m sure.

Sigh.

I miss running!!!

I was shocked when I reviewed all the entries I wrote for one of my goals. I know I’ve come a long way, but I didn’t know-know, if you know what I mean. Maybe it’s because I see myself everyday or how contorted our own vision can be due to mind’s eye, but I’m still in disbelief how quickly a body can transform in less than 4 months. When you eat right and work out regularly, the changes can be rapid; I mean, I don’t even look the same than just three short weeks ago!

Consider the following:

This pic was taken just days before I started working out.

Sept. 18, 2008 – Just after two months of working out

Oct. 3, 2008 – Just before my 3 month anniversary of working out. You might be able to see that there’s less fat around the waist and my arms are more defined.

Oct. 28, 2008 – 3.5 months of working out. Yes, I know, I’m terrible at posing, but is this really me? I’m supposed to be a flabby couch potato!

But hey, if this doesn’t motivate me to continue on my journey, then I don’t know what will. ;)

My worst nightmare happened on Monday night: a lovely stomach virus!

What does this mean? NO food with flavor, NO exercise (it was hard to exist to begin with, so this was the last thing on my mind), NO nothing except trashy morning tv.

But-but-but my streak!!!!!

Yes, it was broken. Being bedridden for 3 days, however, allowed me to do some thinking about this goal again and at the end I decided that I am going to make one teensy weensy exception to this goal: illness.

So from now on, I will allow overlook only illness in my streak and adjust accordingly.

In other news: My workout while vacationing in Fort Worth was an absolute blast! The treadmill was a snore, but I got to bounce around on the elliptical for a little while and work with some free weights – two things that I do not have in my fitness regimen whatsoever. In addition, working out in a hotel gym all by myself (by the looks of the people in Texas, no one worked out) allowed me to admire my new body all I want, which only motivated me to work harder. Sweat looks so sexy!!!

And lastly, I realized that I’m unhappy over the 100 Push up Plan because all this time I’ve been looking at it wrong. My road to fitness was never about doing 100 push ups or running a marathon or anything like that. I started to LOOK GOOD and FEEL HEALTHY. So here I was boohooing about repeating Week 4 Day 1 for the 987’s time, yet I ignore the definition forming in my arms. Talk about an oversight! (Think: fitness model vs power lifter) So from now, I’ll use the program to further my definition and not get too hung up over performance. What a relief!

Somedays – especially when I work out really hard – I can cry in a drop of hat, although I don’t. The oddity, however, with teetering on the floodgates of tears isn’t from sadness, it’s from euphoria. The only experience I can compare it to is being on MDMA (type of the recreational drug Ecstasy), which I haven’t done in many, many years, but one can never forget that, well, ecstasy.

Just thought it was worth mentioning just in case anyone else experiences this.

I had a weird workout yesterday. I’m used to – and usually enjoy – the mood fluctuations that come with exercise, but yesterday was the first time ever that I suddenly felt overwhelmed enough to cry. Yet I had nothing to cry about! Strange.

In other news, I had a profound moment on Sunday. Since it took place in the shower it might be the runner’s high talking, but when I asked myself if I was going to workout every day even next year, for the first time the answer “YES” came to me. That’s a big moment!

I going out for a run in 20 minutes. It will be the first time I’ve ever run in the dark. I’m a bit nauseas from waking up so early in this morning, but I’m hoping I can shake it off. It’s as dark as right right now (5:44 am), but I’m pretty excited to witness the sunrise! Should be an awesome experience.

Has it really been over three months? Wow.

At this point I can’t imagine not having exercise in my life. It’s no longer so much a streak I’m trying to carry through, but more of… a ritual or a routine. The feeling of pushing my body even though the muscles are tired is… sweet. I enjoy “experimenting” with different workouts and seeing the results afterwards. I love to record every little detail in my fitness diary and looking back on it to compare my progress. It’s hard to believe that just 93 days ago, I was a chunky little couch potato who hated exercise!