5 Fingers of Thanks

 

1.) Thankful the interview with Bob Harper went well. I'm working on the post right now. It won't be published here, it will be on Mamavation.com.

  

2.) Thankful that I made it through a very hectic weekend and even though we missed a lot of what we had planned we still were able to do a lot.


3.) Thankful that the Feast With The Beast featuring the B-52's is on Friday. I can't wait to check that one off of the Bucket List!

4.) Thankful for good health. I feel horrible right now and my throat is on fire. This makes me appreciate good health.

5.) Thankful that the "Gratitude Cards" were collected and that we were able to display them in two different areas of the church. Also I'm grateful that we found a replacement for Angel Food Ministries! Whoo Hoo. We will be implementing Mid America Foods.

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What's Up Chuck? #Crossfit Gear

For the last 6 months or so I've held on to this $50 gift card to JCPenny. The plan was to save it and put it with my blow money and buy some new clothes or dresses for church. That was the plan.

Some of the moves I do in Crossfit cause the bottom of my feet to burn like crazy! Often I will kick off my shoes (running, basketball or cross trainers) so that I can continue my work out without the pain. My feet are flat which means I don't have an arch. My shoes have had inserts and specially made inserts. I wanted to try some flatter shoes. Today I decided it was time to make use of that gift card I had been hanging on to. My hope is that this will solve my problem.

 

Look! Squeals of joy over here. I'm nearly 40 and it's taken me this long to buy my very first pair of Converse. Seems a little silly to be so giggy over a pair of these shoes. It's not like they make me look super hot or anything. They do make me feel good though. I really hope this plan works! My daughter thinks they're cool. I might just have to buy her a matching pair! :)  

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Freebie Friday - Link Up #contests and prizes every Friday

Are you hosting a #contest? Great! Post it here on Freebie Friday. What better time to search and enter contests than on the weekend? Sign in so that others can find your giveaway. I will be hosting Freebie Friday each week from now on so be sure to drop back by. Now go grab your tasty beverage, sit back and relax and contest hop with me! Don't forget to check out these hosted contest links too.




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#WordlessWednesday - Hollywood

I think she is on her way to Hollywood! What do you think? Does she have stars in her eyes?

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Before You Drink the #Crossfit Kool-Aid...

There is an article in Men's Health titled "Inside The Cult of Crossfit." I tracked it down from an odd tweet that I read. It said something about this guy quitting Crossfit because he couldn't beat the 11 women he was working out with and this guy was shaking his head. Of course that sparked my interest and I had to hunt it down and read it. It's an interesting read that's for sure and if you do read it please do so with a grain of salt. Everyone has their own unique experience.

Recently I've had a few people tell me that I have inspired them to begin Crossfit. They see tons of photos posted by my trainer Shaun McCrary on the CrossfitUnity.net facebook page. My facebook friends have lots of comments to make about these photos but let me give you the real inside scoop.

1.) Not all Crossfit boxes are the same. They may have the same equipment but they are run by different people and each area of town has it's own crowd. If you are new, check out a couple of gyms before you make your decision. My "box" is air conditioned and CLEAN. In that article the author specifically talks about filth and staff infection. Yuk!

2.) I work out with a trainer. He has a long list of credentials. He and I have a long history of working out. I followed him over from a boot camp class that he taught at a YMCA. There is a trust factor there. I don't worry about getting hurt because I'm working with a professional. He is constantly learning and keeping up with the fitness industry. This is a good thing! If you are new you will also want to work with someone who knows how to push you, call you out when you are not doing your best, but also knows when to back off because you're having an off day. Make sure you find out about the person who is teaching you so that you can make an educated decision whether or not you want to train with this person.

You are NOT going to look like this after a few Crossfit work outs. To look anything like this would mean you would have to be consistent with your work outs. You would have to show up and be ready to do anything. You might also have to go strictly Paleo to look like this but I don't know. I don't look like that. You will find girls that look like this all over the web who are doing Crossfit.

Can you benefit from doing Crossfit? Of course you can. You will become faster, stronger and more confident with each work out. Are you going to be sore? Yes! But there is a difference between soreness and actual pain. You will come to know the difference.

Some days you will work so hard at trying to do your work out that you are exhausted at the end. You might just want to hang out and catch your breath. It's not glamorous but that's the life of a beginner. You have to start some where no matter what your work out.

Other days you are going to have a hard time and you might need to scale down. Box jumps are my nemesis! Some times the jumps get in my head and I over think it and I just can't seem to do it. I'm not a fan of those days but those are obviously the things that I need to work on the most. The box on the right is what I can do but the box on the left is what I had to do on this day. It happens.

Then there are those days when you reach a personal record. This was a 195 pound dead lift. You can't help but smile when you reach a new level. That is part of the fun of Crossfit. You can measure your progress with every work out. Someone tweeted me today and asked me if I "Love Crossfit?" Some days I love it (when I do well) and some days I hate it (when I have to scale down). I love our community! I really enjoy seeing all the photos on facebook of our members. It's great to be able to cheer them on in that way.

The big question I have been asking myself, especially after reading that article is if Shaun were to leave the gym would I stay? Would I stay on to do Crossfit? After all I have a Crossfit gym right around the corner from my house. I know the owner, why not go there? It would save me time, gas and it's supporting my local community.

Here is what I do know, Crossfit can be very difficult. The Olympic lifting is no joke. It's really hard for me and it takes a lot of demonstration and a lot of practice. Some days I will forget as soon as he demonstrates a lift. I'm not sure if I just get nervous or what??? It happens. I would have never crossed over into Crossfit without the encouragement of my boot camp friends and knowing the trainer running the gym. So my advice to a new Crossfitter? Be comfortable with the gym you are in and be sure to ask as many questions as it takes until you are comfortable with what you are doing. If you work well on your own then a trainer may not mean that much to you. If you need a trainer then find a gym that has one so your comfortable that you will stay free from injury due to lifting. Good luck on your journey!

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#Mamavation Monday - Sick Day for Me This Time

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Please be sure to continue encouraging these Mamavation  #bookieboo #burpee Challengers it's Day85!
@beeacutie2
@MamaSarahJane

@notimeMom

@lorisica 
 For an update please click here  #100DayBurpeeChallenge. 

I'm at home today with all my peeps! I don't feel good. Something is in my sinuses and my ears. The pressure is horrible.Today I broke out the measuring tape! Sick of the scale and it's random numbers. The problem is I don't have a good record of the last time I measured myself. Today I at least have a starting point. I'm pretty sure it is a pretty good loss all the way around. The most I believe is in my hips. I could be wrong. At the end of the post you will see some measurement trackers from RealAge.com. According to that number my waist is still the same as the last time I updated it. Boo! Oh well. I feel too bad to care right now. On a super awesome note............
Our fearless leader has handed me the reigns for the interview with BOB HARPER with this Friday. Of course it will be posted on Mamavation.com stay tuned.

Thanks to New Balance for sponsoring this week's Mamavation blogging carnival. This week's blogging carnival question is: How would you brand your health and wellness lifestyle? How do you want others to know you in this area? 


I want to be known for challenging myself. I want to inspire others through these challenges. I would like to be known as an all around athlete. I love to do many different types of exercises and that is why A Renaissance Woman fits me. I'm a mixed bag of tricks. It's important to me to surround myself with people who are like minded online as well as offline. I struggle with my eating. As much as I would like to eat clean I have a serious addiction to sugar. I also struggle with stress and there are times when I just turn to auto pilot and grab comfort carbs. What does that tell you? It should tell you that even though I work out a ton I am still a work in progress. I know deep down that I will NOT reach my goals until I slay the eating dragon. Each day we make choices of how we will work out, sleep, eat etc... I just have to make the best choice for me at the moment. I really have to work on that.


Eating out:
Firehouse Subs 10/2, 10/9
Subway 10/15
Miller's Cafe 10/23


My Work Outs this past week-
10/10 Monday -  Rest Day, #100DayBurpeeChallenge
10/11 Tuesday - Crossfit, #100DayBurpeeChallenge
10/12 Wednesday - Crossfit, #100DayBurpeeChallenge
10/13 Thursday - Crossfit, #100DayBurpeeChallenge
10/14 Friday - #100DayBurpeeChallenge Rest Day
10/15 Saturday - #100DayBurpeeChallenge, Galveston 10K bridge run
10/16 Sunday - #100DayBurpeeChallenge, Rest Day

Scale Reading - 2 pound loss. It should have been 5 because that is what the loss was after running that 10K but I have NOT eaten well since the race. 3 pounds worth?! BAH!!! 

Stress Level - Enormously high! I don't feel good. My husband is leaving in a few days. I just don't feel good.


The UP side-A new PR on that 10K that I ran last Saturday. Whoot.

A bit of inspiration for you ladies!
Remember - YOU are a role model.

Need for fitness support? Join the "Sistahood". More great resources: The Y, Crossfit Training, Vitamins for your age group, RealAge.com

• The long term goal 45 pounds by the end of the year.
• The short term goal lose 3 lbs. per month. 
• January 179 - 180 = 1 pound gain
• February 180 - 177 = 3 pound loss
• March 177 - 176 = 1 pound loss
• April 176 - 174 = 2 pound loss
• May 173 -173 = 0 pounds lost
• June176 - 170 = 6 pound loss
• July 170 -172 = 2 pound gain
• August 173 - 172 = 1 pound loss
• September 173 -171 = 2 pound loss
• October 171
• November
• December

Secure Your Success
Charting your progress gets you there faster. Try these tools:

 Track my weight loss.

 
Watch my waist get smaller.

Track my walking.  
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5 Fingers of Thanks

 

1.) Thankful

79bookieboo Leah Segedie

@MyTrainerBob One of my contributors @PamelaMkramer is interviewing you on Friday and is SO excited! #mamavation  21 Oct

 

 Yep! You read that right, I get to do a phone interview with the BOB HARPER!!!! Yes, Biggest Loser Trainer Bob!!!! Spin Class in LA Bob!!!! I have always wanted to talk to him and this is my big chance! Ahhhhhhhh (deep breath)

  

2.) Thankful to be done with that bridge run!
3.) Thankful that October is almost over. It seems like this month has just gone on and on.

4.) Thankful that the tree house is finally completed.

5.) Thankful that there are only 15 days left in the burpee challenge! Whoo Hoo....

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Galveston Toughest 10K

What a trip it has been! This is my 3rd 10K to run this year and this time it was on a bridge. How crazy is that? A friend of mine's daughter asked me, "Why are you running on the bridge?" My friend answered, "She does it for fun!" ROFL!!! I guess that is the right answer. It is fun to keep challenging myself. Today was a PR for me 1:05:34. I was incredibly proud of myself because I did run the entire race. Normally during my 5Ks you will read about me walking because my start off mile is too fast and my ability to maintain that pace for the rest of the race hasn't worked out yet.

This time, I didn't get caught up in the speed of the crowd, just a nice steady pace for me. Special thanks to katieRUNSthis for turning me onto Rock My Run. I downloaded several playlists to help me get through this run. My training on the Kemah bridge was worth it. Galveston doesn't have as steep of a bridge so it wasn't as hard as Kemah thank goodness but I was prepared.


My pastor always tells us to invite Jesus along with what ever we are doing that day. This is something I take to heart and I do it often especially when I'm working out! After I finished the 5th mile of this race I started praying. I was really getting tired and different parts of my legs and feet were starting to hurt. Here I am off in my own world just focusing on lifting my legs, landing mid foot and trying to concentrate on the music and relaxing. "Jesus, come with me for this last mile. I'm inviting you to finish this run with me!" Out of the corner of my left eye I saw these feet matching my pace. It was the most incredible experience. Call it what you want but the timing was undeniable! This man and I ran together, side by side, running the perfect pace for at least half of the last mile. At the last water station we got separated for a brief period. He was ahead of me for a while but then we matched pace again and all of a sudden he was able to speed up and I was on my own again. 


When I got to the finish line and saw the clock running it was under my 6 mile run that I practiced on the Kemah bridge. I took off as fast as I could so I could beat that time and I did! That was the most amazing feeling. After the race I found "my Jesus" and I told him my story and he thanked me. He said I helped him keep pace. Either way, we helped each other and it's a race I will never forget. 


The photos were just released and there he is on my left in the dark shades. How crazy is that? On to the next race.

 Steve, Me, Nu, Liz & Keith

These are just some of the awesome people that keep me going! They are always so supportive and up for new adventures. They are amazingly fast and very inspiring. I feel blessed to have them in my life.

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Freebie Friday - Link Up #contests and prizes every Friday

Are you hosting a #contest? Great! Post it here on Freebie Friday. What better time to search and enter contests than on the weekend? Sign in so that others can find your giveaway. I will be hosting Freebie Friday each week from now on so be sure to drop back by. Now go grab your tasty beverage, sit back and relax and contest hop with me! Don't forget to check out these hosted contest links too.




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#WordlessWednesday - The Bat Team

Who's ready for some Trick or Treat?

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5 Fingers of Thanks

 

1.) Thankful to have the remaining tree house supplies!

2.) Thankful that it should be finished this coming week.
3.) Thankful that both my boys won their games this weekend.

4.) Thankful that we got to actually rest some today. Everything we did was mostly around the house.

5.) Thankful that my arms are finally starting to recover. Tons of working out this week. Rest days are good.

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Making The Cover!

Every now and then our church will give the kids a project to work on and then they will incorporate their artwork into the bulletin for that Sunday. My son had to dig for his but he finally found it. He was so proud! I think he did a great job! What cracked me up was the "Nuts Rule!" shouted by the squirrel. I love the detail. It made me giggle so I thought I would share.

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Freebie Friday - Link Up #contests and prizes every Friday

Are you hosting a #contest? Great! Post it here on Freebie Friday. What better time to search and enter contests than on the weekend? Sign in so that others can find your giveaway. I will be hosting Freebie Friday each week from now on so be sure to drop back by. Now go grab your tasty beverage, sit back and relax and contest hop with me! Don't forget to check out these hosted contest links too.




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Bloggers Get an A for Reciprocity

Let me first start out with defining Reciprocity. I'm cutting and pasting directly from the "Social sciences and humanities" section of the word in Wikipedia.

Social sciences and humanities

• Golden rule/ethic of reciprocity
• Norm of reciprocity, social norm of in-kind responses to the behavior of others
• Reciprocity (cultural anthropology), way of defining people's informal exchange of goods and labour
• Reciprocity (evolution), mechanisms for the evolution of cooperation
• Reciprocity (international relations), principle that favours, benefits, or penalties that are granted by one state to the citizens or legal entities of another, should be returned in kind
• Reciprocity (social and political philosophy), concept of reciprocity as in-kind positive or negative responses for the actions of others; relation to justice; related ideas such as gratitude, mutuality, and the Golden Rule (Ethic of reciprocity}
• Reciprocity (social psychology), in-kind positively or negatively connotated responses of individuals towards the actions of others
• Serial reciprocity, where the benefactor of a gift or service will in turn provide benefits to a third party

This is a handy dandy list of what we bloggers get! We get this concept. You will find that is why businesses want to work with bloggers to help spread the word of their product or service. Small groups of bloggers are formed to help get the word out about their posts using "ReTweets" on Twitter, "Like"s on Facebook, Votes on other sites, "I Like It!" on Stumble or thumbs up on You Tube. Bloggers understand how to help each other, how to highlight each other by using guest posts or featured bloggers. If you haven't been told lately let me be the first to say THANK YOU! I'm so glad this is the custom among bloggers. It's so nice to have the support.

Recently I've taken on a few new roles by becoming a virtual assistant, a social media strategist and a public relations coordinator for a few small businesses. In my experience working with 'non bloggers' in these fields there is not that sense of reciprocity. Some of the people maintaining these company accounts don't seem to understand this is how great networking really works. We help each other. We connect on another level and I'm so thankful for that! It would be great if more people engaged online with this concept. I have found that lots of companies will create a Twitter account and that's it. They don't engage or provide useful updates. Social media is more than just setting up an account. You have to manage it and get involved with the community.

Once again, thank you! Thank you to those bloggers who engage, network and get the true meaning of community.


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#Challenge - Create an Online Class

If you're a new reader you will quickly find out that I'm always challenging myself in one way or another just check out my side bar. Today I'm working on a new kind of challenge. I'm dusting off the old Masters degree and putting my love for Social Media to work!

I have exactly 8 days to create an online course about Sociology and Social Media. This is going to require lots of research on my part. What kind of sites will we study? What sort of groups will we research? What type of books will we read? It's all a mystery at the moment but if I want this class I'm going to have to make it come together. It's not a how to class where I teach you how to create a blog or create Twitter and Facebook accounts. Even though I am skilled at those types of things. No, we are going to delve much deeper.

A 16 week course.  How do I test their knowledge? Do I go with opinion papers? So much to organize with so little time. You would think this would be a pretty easy task. The problem? My husband is leaving town for the week, so is my Mother and Grandmother. That leaves me with the three kids all on my own. So here I go taking a deep breath! If I can pull this off......awesome things are going to happen!

 ***Update***
I was able to pull it off. I created the syllabus and all the course work. It was presented to the committee and this is the response I finally received.

"Pam - unfortunately, we will  not be able to offer the media course for the Spring 2012 semester. Because of budget cuts, the HSH administration is not allowing ANY new courses to be offered because they tend to have low enrollment. I could not change anyone's mind about it. So, I would suggest that you continue to work on the course, and I was told that we could possibly offer a new course in Fall 2012. Sorry about this dissapointment, but let's keep working on this because as you say, no course like this has been offered here, and I think this would make a great addition to our sociology curriculum."



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#WordlessWednesday - Swing!

I love this photo my husband caught of her on the swing. She looks so happy!

For more WW participants head to:



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#Mamavation Monday - Rest Day!

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Please be sure to continue encouraging these Mamavation  #bookieboo #burpee Challengers it's Day71!
@beeacutie2
@MamaSarahJane
@Aries_Mommy
@notimeMom
@ResaMichelle
@lorisica 
 For an update please click here  #100DayBurpeeChallenge. 

 1st up Barbells For Boobs - Sorry no action shots.

2nd up Taebo with "The Billy Blanks" I'm that dot on the right. lol

That was a tough work out but for saving 2nd base I'm all for it! I'm sure that chemo or surgery is a lot tougher. Working out with Billy was pretty rough for an hour and a half but it was worth it. Our trainer prepared us well. We survived and I was super happy that I was mostly able to keep up. I swear I drank sooooooooooo much water when I got home. Today I'm forcing myself to take a rest day minus the 71 burpees. My legs are in recovery today. Fo Sho!!!!

Eating out:
Firehouse Subs 10/2 (for the last time!), 10/9 - I can explain! lol - I tried something with lower calories on the menu. After Taebo I was starving!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!



My Work Outs this past week-
10/3 Monday -  #100DayBurpeeChallenge
10/4 Tuesday - Crossfit, #100DayBurpeeChallenge, Taebo
10/5 Wednesday - Crossfit, #100DayBurpeeChallenge
10/6 Thursday - Crossfit, #100DayBurpeeChallenge
10/7 Friday - Rest Day
10/8 Saturday - #100DayBurpeeChallenge,#Crossfit Grace WOD
10/9 Sunday - #100DayBurpeeChallenge * 2 (again!) #Crossfit - 1.5 hours of Taebo

Scale Reading - first reading 153, what??? it's broken, 158, then 163 - WT? Is that possible my last weigh in was 171. I got on again later and it ready 170. I did use the hand weight to check the scale and it read correctly. I don't know what is going on! I'm going with 170 since it makes the most sense. On that note, it's a 1 pound loss.

Stress Level -Whoo hoo!!!! Through the roof. So much drama I don't have the time to type it all out. I could totally have my own show. I pray for simplicity!!!!

The UP side- The Galveston 10K is coming.

A bit of inspiration for you ladies!
Remember - YOU are a role model.

Need for fitness support? Join the "Sistahood". More great resources: The Y, Crossfit Training, Vitamins for your age group, RealAge.com

• The long term goal 45 pounds by the end of the year.
• The short term goal lose 3 lbs. per month. 
• January 179 - 180 = 1 pound gain
• February 180 - 177 = 3 pound loss
• March 177 - 176 = 1 pound loss
• April 176 - 174 = 2 pound loss
• May 173 -173 = 0 pounds lost
• June176 - 170 = 6 pound loss
• July 170 -172 = 2 pound gain
• August 173 - 172 = 1 pound loss
• September 173 -171 = 2 pound loss
• October 171
• November
• December

Secure Your Success
Charting your progress gets you there faster. Try these tools:

 Track my weight loss.

 
Watch my waist get smaller.

Track my walking.  
Click on those "Like" and "Retweet" buttons to share with the online community. For current events see the side bars and click on the "Add Me" tab above to connect with me using other social media services.

5 Fingers of Thanks

 

1.) Thankful to have made it through the weekend! I do have a nice collection of shirts. lol

2.) Thankful I got to attend Dave Ramsey with a great group of friends.

3.) Thankful we got to have a nice dinner with my Mom so my son could play kissy face with her!

4.) Thankful my husband made the drive to check on our eldest today. She's just fine.

5.) Thankful that the pumpkins are coming to the Pumpkin Patch!

Click on those "Like" and "Retweet" buttons to share with the online community. For current events see the side bars and click on the "Add Me" tab above to connect with me using other social media services.