Closure...

First of all, I need to apologize for leaving you all hanging for so long. So, I am sorry!

I am not a writer by any means and have been struggling to come up with the words to capture what this experience has done for me. The physical part (the numbers) is the easiest so I will start with that.

Over the two week period I lost 10.1lbs, 7.75 inches, and 2.2% body fat.

For me the real journey started over eight years ago, when I was... well, see for yourself.

Many have asked how I did it and the simple answer is the the same thing they preach at Fitness Ridge... diet and exercise. Simple right??? But simple doesn't mean easy. It is the mental part that can create the biggest obstacles for us.

What Fitness Ridge did for me was serve as a reminder that I can do this. That I have what it takes inside me. I just need to make the decision that I want it and that I am worth it. I can eat that bag of salt and pepper chips or that half gallon of ice cream, BUT is that really what I want or more importantly what I need??? If I am honest with myself the answer is always HELL NO!!! Sometimes what I may really need is a hug and most times it is just a kick in the butt to snap out of it. Things like chips, ice cream, snickers bar, big mac meals, large fries... all those things don't love me, they may love to hang out on my hips and add to the junk in my over stuffed trunk, but there is no love, no companionship, and nothing that will help me out of a rut or accomplish any goals worth attaining.

There are those of us who say things like "I can't, I try and nothing works." My dad had a saying for when us kids told him we can't do something, he said "Can't is a lazy man's excuse." And he is soooo right. We can, all of us but we just need to make that decision. One of the trainers, Nicole, said that when we get home and we share with people that we worked out for 7 hours a day, they will ask us why??? Again the answer is simple, because we CAN!

To shave over 3 minutes off my per mile pace on Stop Sign, to do 10mph on the treadmill even for only 30 seconds,  to do back to back Mountain classes, to make it to the optional 6am class every day, to just show up... to accomplish all this in just 2 short weeks at the Ridge felt better than any amount of chocolate ever tasted and leaves me craving more.

I want to thank my hiking buddies, Lisa, Kathy and Emily, if it wasn't for them and knowing we were in it together I am not sure I would have shown up to all the hikes! So thank you ladies.

Janette and Julie, my friends, it was awesome to get to finally meet in person and I only wish that we lived closer so that you all could continue to get me movin. I don't think you realize how many times I showed up (especially for the 6am class) just because I knew you both were gonna be there!! Thank you for always saving me a spot and getting my mat ready for me.  You both better get ready because I am gonna come up to Seattle and do a 2-3day mini Ridge!!! Thank you both for making this experience more than I ever expected and for giving me a safe place to hide out!!! Seriously!!! ;-)

To the trainers, Paige, Sharon, Robin, Anna Marie, Nicole, Tiffany, Marjorie and (Stretchin with...) Gretchen thank you for the hours of pain and torture. Seriously, thank you helping me to go farther, faster, harder, and longer than I ever thought I could. The intense level of caring, compassion and belief you have for what you do and the people you do it for just radiates from each of you.

Jennifer and Emily, thank you for giving us the numbers and showing us how to "kiss" the weight off. (kiss = Keep It Simple Skinny). 

I will end on with this... on all the hikes we went on there was always a song that was playing the back of my mind, it is by Miley Cyrus called The Climb and here are some of the lyrics...

There's always gonna be another mountain

I'm always gonna wanna to make it move

Always gonna be an uphill battle

Sometimes I'm gonna have to lose

Ain't about how fast I get there

Ain't about what's waitin on the other side

It's the climb

On our last night at graduation we went around the room sharing our thoughts and experiences and I would like to leave you all with this as well.

The math behind losing weight is Simple, burn more calories than we consume. Simple right??? But simple isn't easy. Another fact is, this isn't an "All In" game people. This is life, and "Stuff" happens to all of us. Just like the song says some days we're gonna have to lose, but as long as at the end of the line we have won more than we lost, we WIN.  Food can never give us a high like living life can. So just show up,  give it what you got in that moment, and know that you are WORTH IT!!!

Good Night All! ;-) ♥

T.G.I.F.

This morning I did miss the 6am class but not because I slept in. I had an appointment to get my RMR (Resting Metabolic Rate) at 6:30 and you can't do any exercise prior to because it will skew the numbers.

Your RMR is the amount of calories you body burns in a day just to maintain itself. So if I were to lay around the house all day my body burns approximately 1600 calories, which is slightly faster than average. This comes as a relief to me because of my hypothyroid, I feared that I might be slower than average. If you are curious what your RMR is and don't have a way or want to pay for such a test, you can go to the web and do a search on RMR calculators. A good one to try is at shapeup.org. This won't be exact but it will give you a nice ballpark figure as to were you are at. Knowing this number will help us to know what it will require from us, calorie wise, to lose weight. Losing weight truly is very simple math... your calories IN have to be fewer than your calories OUT. Sounds simple enough, but as we all know simple doesn't mean EASY!!

Unfortunately, Julie is still feeling under the weather and actually went to the doctor to get some good meds. We hope that by tomorrow she will be on the road to recovery.

As for our hikes today, they try to make Friday more of a fun day. Don't get me wrong we are still working out for 7hrs!!! Both Janette had a fun hike and not quiet as taxing as previous hikes.

Janette hiked Volcano and got some good pictures.



Look close to see 2 white specs where the roads intersect, that's the van they drove up in.



My hike was at Three Ponds. We went about 4.4miles and traveled up about 500ft in elevation. The beautiful thing about this hike was there was NO SAND!!!! Eeeeeee

So her is the summary of today:

6:00 - Stretch (Janette) RMR Testing (me)
7:00 - Breakfast: Fruit Parfait (This tasted like the grain we feed but without molasses)

8:00 - Hikes
11:15 - Cardio Intervals
12:35 - Lunch: French Onion Soup and Chicken Cesar Salad (Very Good)

1:15 - Lecture: Budget Review (making a plan of action for when we go home)
2:30 - Zumba (Janette) Circuit Training (me)
3:30 - Circuit Training (both of us)
4:30 - Zumba (both of us)
5:30 - Dinner: Turkey Burger with Veggies and Dessert Orange Slices Drizzled with Chocolate (Yummy)

Today was the last full day for us and in a way it was our "Last Chance Workout" because tomorrow at 6:45am we are getting our final weigh in and measurements to see what we have accomplished these past two weeks. They will measure our weight, body fat, and measure the inches around our chest, waste and hips. These are good things to know but the changes that matter the most can't be measured with a scale or a tape measure. The changes that last happen on the inside... in our minds and most importantly in our hearts. So no matter what that scale says, for me this is just what I needed to get my "mojo" back. I am ready to go home but for some it may take longer and that's okay. I hope that those who need longer are able to make that investment in themselves and that they realize it is such a small price to pay for getting their lives back.

Good Night All!

And those of you out  in the "City" celebrating tonight, Salute!!! ☺>-|

Raising the Roof

First of all, to all of you who put in a prayer or two for us to have favorable weather... it WORKED! Last night the wind howled and the rain poured and then we woke up to sunshine and no wind! Don't ever under estimate the power of prayer! THANK YOU!!!

Julie did join us for stretch class this morning but she still is not feeling well so she chose rest over going on a hike.

Janette's hike was STOP SIGN and she was just dreading it. Even though she completed it with great times last week, to her it felt like her nemesis. It was long, boring and the van took way to long to pick her up at the bottom and she was freezing! But today she KILLED it! She ran 3/4 of the way and made it to the top in 43mins!!! This is traveling 4.3miles up a 1000ft raise in elevation!!! INCREDIBLE!!!

My hike was White Rock and overall it was a great hike... EXCEPT for the last 3/4 of a mile that was up hill in SAND!! We traveled 4.25 miles and climbed up about 900ft in elevation.

So here is the summary of today:

6:00 - Stretch
7:00 - Breakfast: Fruit and Egg, Bacon, Cheese sandwich

8:00 - Hikes
11:15 - Open Gym (Janette and I both did some cardio work)
12:35 - Lunch: Artichoke Soup and Turkey Pita with Salad
1:00 - Lecture: Planning Strategies
2:30 - Ball Works (keep it clean people)
3:30 - Treading (Cardio Suicide)
4:30 - Janette did Ball Works and I did more Cardio
5:45 - Dinner: Stuffed Chicken Breast with Rice and Carrots and Dessert Peach cobbler (Yummy)

Today was all about RAISIN the ROOF and taking ourselves to that next level. Janette did it on Stop Sign and I too had a moment today. For the first time I did 10mph on the Treadmill, granted it was only for 30sec. I hadn't really set out to achieve this goal, I think I just got caught up in the moment. During open gym (at 11:15 class) I was on the treadmill doing 1min speed bursts with 2mins recovery and I got up to 9mph and just stopped. Why? Because I have never gone faster than that. There was also a little fear that I wouldn't be able to do it and may end up go flyin off the back of the machine. At lunch one of the trainers (Tiffany) asked how fast I got that treadmill goin and I told her 9mph but I would like to try 10mph just once before I leave. As she walked away, I thought to myself... You big ol' dummy, why did you voice that to a TRAINER.  You know she is gonna come and ask how it's goin? Did you do 10mph yet???

So guess what trainer we had for Treading today??? Yep, it was Tiffany. As class starts (this is where we go all out for 5mins, then 4, then 3, 2, and 1 min) I was feeling pretty good on the elliptical, so I decided for the 1min I was going to get on a Treadmill and try for the 10mph. Figured I might as well get it over with and if I fall I can always just use the excuse that it was the end of class and I didn't have fresh legs!! wink wink   Well, the 1min finally rolled around and I walked my sorry butt down to the treadmill and then came the command to hit for 1min. I as the speed increased I just prayed that I could at least get to 10 before I flew off the back and then  once I got there I was like... wow, I am still on the machine. At 30 seconds my feet were getting to shaky so I grab the side rails and hopped of the belt, slowed it down to 6mph to finish the minute and hopped back on.  And then the Tiffany did what trainers will do... asked us to give our all for one more minute. This I did at 8mph and I was able to finish, couldn't hardly stand up after but I was done!!

Here is something for us all to think about, where have we placed limits on ourselves and how many of those limits are simply out of fear. Fear that we have built up on our own, not necessarily because someone has told us we can't do it. The next time we face one of those fears I want us all to ask ourselves three questions... What is the worst thing that can happen? Is that really the worst thing or is that just what we tell ourselves to feel better about not taking the chance? And what would it feel like if we did over come that fear and take the chance?

My fear was I didn't want to look like an idiot flying off the treadmill, and deep down I knew that wouldn't happen because I could just grab the rails like have done before. My real fear was failure! But not anymore. I did it. It wasn't pretty... I didn't go for the full minute but I did it. And nobody can take that away from me. Next time (and there will be a next time) I will try for 35sec and the next 40.

So what's your goal?

Good Night All! ;-)

Pumpin' It Wednesday

I don't know how all you day shifters do it!?!? This gettin up to be in class at 6am and without coffee... let's just say it ain't pretty!!! Although, I will concede that it has its benefits when comes time to hit the trails.

The weather was a little overcast for our hikes today. Most of us got some sprinkles, while others actually saw a snow flake or two. The lucky part was that there wasn't a lot of wind. With these weather conditions you can be assured that Janette and I will not be making in splash in the pool!!!

Janette's hike was White Rock and this hike has a lot of up-hill and sand. The really cool thing about this hike... I get to do it tomorrow!!! Ugh

Julie's hike was Reverse White Rock, which means she got to start at the top and go down hill. **Unfortunately she didn't have any pictures at the time of this posting.


My hike was up to the top of Volcano Hill where we got some spectacular views. Over all we traveled about 4.3 miles and climbed in elevation from 4000ft up to about 4800ft.



Me, Kathy & Lisa



So here is the summary of today:

6:00 - Stretch
7:00 - Breakfast: Fruit and a Panini with Almond Butter, Jam and sliced Banana & Strawberry
8:00 - Hikes
11:15 - Stretch
12:25 - Lunch: Tomato Soup and Green Pizza (this time with a red sauce)
1:30 - Open Gym
2:30 - Mountain (Death after lunch!)
3:30 - Mountain (Double death but there was no way we were gettin in that pool!)
4:30 - Kickboxing (more bruising between the knuckles and I didn't get any chocolate for it either!!!)
5:30 - Dinner: Salmon with Orzo and Dessert Fruit (this was by far the best meal yet, sorry the picture doesn't do it justice but that salmon just melted in our mouth!)

7:15 - Field trip to Target to get some blister supplies and some cold medicine for Julie. Here is the loot I scored...

Additional layer for the next 2 hikes!!!



It's all about the lips and the feeties!!!




Julie didn't make it to the afternoon classes, she has been fighting off a cold the last couple days and finally her body said enough. It's a little surprising that we aren't all coming down with something because of all the toxin's we are flushing out of our systems from high intensity exercise and all the water we drink. Come to think of it... we have Treading tomorrow, ya know I think I am starting to feel a little sick myself!!! :-0


Today, Janette and I  were really PUMPIN it in Mountain class (BOTH of them) and not on purpose. I went all out on the first one and when I decided to stay in the gym instead of getting in the pool in the rain, I said I was just gonna go down to the end of the row of machines and take it easy. Then I hear Robin, the instructor, start calling out the times to increase the intensity and before I even knew what I was doing I was right back up to the top of the DARN Mountain. You gotta watch this instructors, they are sneaky little buggers and they will have you doing things you didn't even know you could do, let alone even know that you wanted to do them!!!


Please pray that Mother Nature takes it easy on us for our hikes tomorrow... that's right rain or shine we are hiking. Truthfully the people in Utah are just not in their right mind, thinkin it's perfectly fine to go out in this nasty cold weather!!! CRAZY!!!!


Well folks, that is all I got for you tonight. I hope this note finds you all doing well!

Good Night! ;-)

Whoa Nellie!!!

Good thing the 6am class was stretch that allowed us to pretty much lay on the floor for an hour because after going all out yesterday our tanks were a little on the empty side!!!

Janette's hike was the easiest hike she has taken thus far (easy for her that is)!!!

Julie once again left her crew in the dust, so starting tomorrow she will be on the next level up for her hikes.

       Sorry no pictures from Julie yet, she is getting ANOTHER massage! ;-)

As for my hike, I had the famous STOP SIGN hike. Just to refresh your memories this is the one that is all on pavement, it is 4.3 miles to the top of a climb that is 1000ft in elevation, and once you reach the top you head back down to see if you can make to the bottom before the van comes by to pick you up. Here are the stats comparing last week to this week...

                                        Last Week                           This Week
Time:                              2h 22min                             2h 14mins
Distance                          7.64 miles                             8.61 miles
Avg Time per Mile        18.7mins                               15.5mins

So today not only was I able to make it all the way back to the start, I got there with enough time to eat my apple!!! 

So here is the summary for today:

6:00 - Stretch
7:00 - Breakfast: Fruit and Pineapple Muffin
8:00 - Hikes
11:15 - H2O Circuit (Julie) Free Weights Wrkshp (Janette and I)
12:25 - Lunch: Chicken Coconut Soup and Quinoa Lettuce Wrap

1:30 - Gym Class: Free play
2:30 - Deep Water Suspension (Julie) Cardio Intervals (Janette and I)
3:30 - Cardio Intervals (Janette and Julie) Total Toning (Me)
4:30 - Total Toning (We all did this one)
5:45 - Dinner: White Bean Chili and Dessert Parfait (Vanilla Chocolate tofu pudding)

You might have noticed that Janette and I avoided the pool today. Both of us were having trouble warming up after our hikes and had I gone into the pool I would have been like the iceberg that sunk the Titanic!! Bbbrrrrrrrrrrrr

After going all out on the Stop Sign my body was telling me "Whoa Nellie" through the afternoon classes but I still showed up and gave it the best I had even if I didn't go as fast as I have before or at the same intensity level. The lesson here is just show up. We aren't going to always get that runner's high and go forever with little effort. So just show up and give it WHATEVER you have in that moment. We don't know what tomorrow holds, it could be another runners high or tank half empty, but you won't know unless you just show up!!!

Good Night All! ;-)

On a Mission Monday

Well, here we are the first "active" day for week 2. We are definitely starting to hit our stride here. Today there were less nerves and more take charge in our approach to each activity.  We went into each class knowing what was coming, we were fired up and when we finished our tanks were empty!

The first hikes of the week are always assessment hikes, so Janette and I were on the same hike again. Our hike kinda went in the opposite direction. Instead of climbing up, we climbed down about 250ft and then on the way back we had to climb up it! But this was a gradual climb over about 6miles total.

Julie had an interesting hike and like the champ she is she was at the van at least 15mins ahead of the rest! Smokin!!!

Today was an amazing day and we were On a MISSION like no other!!!! Everything flowed smo0thly, we were maxing out until we were all near death at the end of each class yet still loving every minute of it, and then from out of now were we would get this burst of energy as we walked into the next class. AWESOME!!!

So here is a summary for today:

6:00 - Yogalates (Yes, we all made it again!)
7:00 - Breakfast: Fruit and a Egg, Cheese and Tomato Sandwich
8:00 - Awesome Hikes
11:15 - Mountain (This time we kicked Mountain's Booty)
12:30 - Lunch: Tortilla Soup and Turkey Sandwich

1:30 - Gym (No Lectures) Today we rode bikes to a near by park and played kick ball!!! Haven't played that since grammar school! So much FUN!!!
2:30 - Circuit ( 2 mins cardio, 2 mins weights 6 sets of each)
3:30 - Core (working lower back and abdominal muscle groups)
4:30 - H2O Circuit (pool time)
5:45 - Dinner: Grilled Chicken with Polenta / Dessert was Chocolate Strawberries

                ♥Happy Valentine's Day!!♥

I was a little nervous as to how I would actually feel today after doing absolutely nothing yesterday, but ALL day long I have had this "runners high" and it just leaves me wanting more!

Good Night All! ;-)