This week has been another roller coaster. We did more lay-offs at work. Thankfully I managed to come through unscathed, but a few friends were not so lucky. It’s an odd situation. On the one hand you are breathing a huge sigh of relief you still have a job in this economic climate. On the other hand, you’re feeling bad about your friends who lost their jobs. And then you feel guilty for feeling relieved because they don’t have that option. I’ll be glad when this economic cycle starts swinging back up the other way. I know it will, but right now there are days when things can look pretty bleak.
On the plus side, at least it has hammered home the need to leave below my means. Luckily the BF is adamant about doing this which should keep me on the straight and narrow. Not that I spend money left, right and centre, but sometimes I can get that ‘need it now’ rush where you try to rationalize why you simply MUST HAVE SOMETHING. When in fact, you really don’t need it. Or at least you don’t need it right this minute and perhaps you can save up until you can afford to pay cash instead of whipping out the ole credit card.
So once the lay offs were done we were hit with another snow storm. Oh joy. I went into the gym on my lunch hour and it was barely snowing. I came out 40 minutes later and there was at least 2 inches of snow on the ground. I went up to the office and told my boss I was leaving now, but my usual 10 minute ride home took nearly an hour and at one point another idiot nearly side-swiped me when he lost control of his car. I managed to avoid him thankfully.
Then today I find out I have to pick up a job from one of the people laid off. Now, when I started this job I flat out said – I am not doing phones, no way, no how. They said fine, wasn’t an issue, no problem. But with the lay-offs our receptionist’s usual lunch time replacement is gone. So my boss asked me to do him a favour and pick up one lunch hour a week. I was not happy. It felt like a demotion, which is maybe being a bit dramatic about it, but that’s how I felt. I started my career on the phones and suddenly 22 years later here I am back on them? What the hell??
Sigh…but my boss and I have a really good relationship and he hated asking me but what can you do. So we worked out a deal that made us both happy and I picked Monday lunch to get it done and out of the way for the week, and then promised not to answer the phone with ‘Good afternoon, what the @#$% do you want now.’
Writing-wise it was a good week. My goal was to edit / rewrite 6 pages a day, five days a week. Monday and Tuesday I managed 6 pages, but I missed Wednesday because I forgot to reset my alarm and slept in. Then Thursday I squeaked out 7 pages. Then today I went on a tear and blew threw 15 pages to end the week with 34 pages – 4 pages over my goal. Whew.
Work-outs are also going great. I’ve done two days of cardio and weights, one yoga class, 35 minutes of cardio yesterday, followed by about 40 minutes of shovelling. Today I survived my first Spin class in several weeks and then tomorrow its Boot Camp day. I am fitting into my new jeans too and already I’m a bit concerned about the waist. They fit fine on the legs, but the waist is a bit too big (my usual dilemma…argh). I’ve belted it up for now and we’ll see how that goes. I hate the feeling of the waist being bunched up though so I might need to look at tailoring.
Puppy news – STILL trying to decide on a name, but I was talking to the breeder and I can go pay the puppies a visit next weekend at which time I should know which one is mine. And I get to bring it home for good on March 21st.
And there you have it, the weekly recap.
Sleepy is not a good way to start what is bound to be an insanely busy week. Waking at 3:15 am and not being able to get back to sleep, is not a good way to end the night. But, fitting into a pair of pants you haven’t been able to wear since last year improves the day and stumbling into work and finding new puppy pictures waiting for you -- well, that somehow makes all the bad stuff go away.
Week 1 of Booty Camp is underway. We had our fitness assessment on Saturday, and while I was pleased to see my weight was 2 lbs below what I had expected, I was not so thrilled to see my body fat percentage was 29.9%. Apparently it should be around 25%. The circumference of my hips also did not please me. Looks like I’ve got some work to do.
What kind of work you might ask? Well, the kind that involves two trips to the gym a day in order to fit it all in. You see, apparently what doesn’t kill me, will make me stronger. At least that is the mantra I am sure I’ll be muttering by the end of the week. Although, truth be told, I am quite excited to see where I will be by the end of this 12 week process. I plan on working hard to meet my goals, which include dropping 12 pounds to reach my goal weight, and 5 percentage points to get down to a healthy body fat. As for the hips…well I will be shaking my money maker until I knock a good 5 inches off those.
The workout component of the bootcamp includes 6 workouts per week. I knew they meant business when I saw that. I’ve already been going 5 times a week, so adding another day isn’t too bad. It’s just the intensity that’s about to get seriously amped up. Here’s what the week looks like for me:
Sunday: Resting (or make up day if I miss one of the other workouts)
Mon / Wed / Fri : 40 mins of steady state cardio (20 on elliptical stair / 20 on treadmill) and lower body strength training and core training
Tues/ Thurs / Sat: Yoga and 40 mins of interval cardio (treadmill climbing hills) and upper body strength training
Then of course, also on Saturday is our Bootcamp Team meeting / workout. But because it takes over an hour to get all the workouts done, I’m splitting it into half at lunch and half after work.
On top of that, we have the nutrition side of things which allows me daily: 6 serving of grains; 7 servings of fruits and veggies; 2-3 servings of protein; 2-3 servings of dairy; 3 servings of fat; and 8 glasses of water. Naturally all the food is of the whole wheat, low fat, etc variety.
And they gave us this lovely log book that we have to write everything down in. The logic being if we have to write it down, we’ll be more conscious of what we’re doing. Which seems to be the case. Because I didn’t want to write down that I ate a big piece of cake at my niece’s birthday party, so I only ate a very small piece.
Here are some new puppy pictures to end things off. They are 15 days old in these pictures.
First up, as you can see, I have a new puppy picture. This one was taken when the pups were 11 days old (Wednesday). Their eyes are thisclose to being open. I purchased a second hand dog crate in excellent condition and some supplies (a few toys, brush, leash & collar), checked into obedience school and called my vet to give her a heads up.
Next up – revisions on Salvation Falls are humming along. Nothing too traumatic to report on that account. It seems to be flowing quite well. I’m beginning to think hashing out a first draft in 30 days might just be the way to go with me. So far both times I’ve done it, the story has held together remarkably well. Of course, I’m not quite halfway through yet so maybe I’ll be singing a different tune in the second half.
The Workout Bootcamp started last week with the free intro class. I could barely walk for two days afterwards. My podmate and I who are both going were groaning in pain every time we had to get up and walk to the printer. It wasn’t pretty. But the bootcamp starts in earnest tomorrow with a physical assessment and workout. I got the book that goes with it where it tells you what we need to do for nutrition and workouts (6 days a week) and then we will do the fitness assessment at the end of the 12 weeks to see how far we’ve come. I’m looking forward to it. Structure works very well for me (typical Capricorn…) so this is the best way for me to whip my butt into shape.
What else...oh, I finished reading The Winter Sea by Susanna Kearsley and I highly recommend it. It was, as all her books are, an awesome read.
And that is about all that’s going on for this week.
This week has been another roller coaster. We did more lay-offs at work. Thankfully I managed to come through unscathed, but a few friends were not so lucky. It’s an odd situation. On the one hand you are breathing a huge sigh of relief you still have a job in this economic climate. On the other hand, you’re feeling bad about your friends who lost their jobs. And then you feel guilty for feeling relieved because they don’t have that option. I’ll be glad when this economic cycle starts swinging back up the other way. I know it will, but right now there are days when things can look pretty bleak.
