Day 535: No Accident

"Success is no accident. It is hard work,

 perseverance, learning, studying,

 

sacrifice and most of all, love of what

 you are doing." 

~Pele~ 

It's Day 535 of Nutrisystem. Perseverance was an appropriate theme for the day since I got out of bed knowing I had a huge challenge in front of me. I knew it was going to take hard work, perseverance and sacrifice. There wasn't going to be a lot of time to hang out on the front porch or lounge in front of the tv. I had 3 hours worth of exercise to get done in addition to a grocery run. It doesn't sound like a lot for a 12 hour day but I'm not ashamed to tell you I need time in between each workout to eat, hydrate, rest and recover - especially when it's 90 degrees and you rely on fans for cooling ! Many in the fitness world will tell you that mindset is just as important as physical ability and I'm starting to believe that more and more. I got out of bed with a goal for the day and failure was not an option. I knew I was going to have to dig deeper than I ever have before but I felt like I was up for the challenge mentally and physically. So I went for it !

Breakfast was a 2.1 ounce 160 calorie cherry cheese roll and a 5.3 ounce 80 calorie Light & Fit toasted coconut vanilla yogurt. Morning snack was a 155 calorie vanilla shake with peanut butter powder. Lunch was a 4 ounce 230 calorie four cheese melt and a chef salad. Dressing added 30 calories. Afternoon snack was a 1.42 ounce 200 calorie Nature Valley salted caramel nut protein bar. Dinner was a 7.8 ounce 190 calorie sesame glazed beef over a new Birds Eye veggie blend I picked up at the store. It's shredded white cabbage & carrots with grilled onions and scallions, seasoned with salt and pepper and a bit of olive oil. The entire 10 ounce package is only 120 calories. I don't have to count those calories because most of them come from the veggies and non-starchy veggies are unlimited. I microwaved them and although they were really good I think they'd be 10 times more delicious if I sauteed them, which the package recommends. Evening snack was a 2.2 ounce 140 calorie lemon zest cake. Total calories for the day are 1185 and I got 64 ounces of water in.

I woke up just before 8 and got up just before 9. My body wanted to sleep more but my mind was not having it. I enjoyed my breakfast on the front porch and then headed for the treadmill. I started off with the longest and toughest workout on the schedule. It was 34 minutes hiking in Lake Tahoe and most of the first 13 minutes was at 10% incline. Once I got past that the incline topped out at 8 and that slight difference got me to the finish ! This workout was 2:1 intervals which meant 2 minute pushes at 2.8 to 3.2 mph and 1 minute recoveries at 2.5 to 2.8 mph. It was already getting hot out so even with a fan I sweated up a storm. I take that as a sign I was working hard ! Once I cooled off I enjoyed a well-earned second cup of coffee on the front porch and then headed out to the grocery store just after 11 am. Walmart was one busy place today ! I didn't pay much attention to what was on the shelves but I did notice cleaning supplies are still scarce. I picked up a couple of super inexpensive tank tops and a couple of t-shirts that I can throw over a sports bra and leggings. All of my t-shirts are huge and pretty well worn so it's nice to have a few new things to wear. Once I put the groceries away I mixed up my shake and hit the treadmill around 1 pm for workout #2. It was a 27 minute hike in Costa Rica. This was left over from yesterday's schedule. It was 6 intervals at a 1:2 ratio consisting of 45 second pushes and 90 second recoveries followed by 2 intervals at a 1:1 ratio of 2 minute pushes with 2 minute recoveries. Incline went to 10% at the 9 minute mark and pretty much stayed there until we passed 23 minutes. The pace ranged from 2.2 to 3.2 mph so it was a tough one ! Just as I started thinking I couldn't go on we got to the end of the last interval and it was time to drop the incline and cool down. That was such a relief ! I had lunch afterwards and then tackled workout #3 around 4 pm. This was a 28 minute hike in Costa Rica. The pace was a steady 3 to 3.2 mph and although there was plenty of incline it was more like rolling hills so it was brief ups and downs, with only a couple at 10%. I took a short break to have my afternoon snack but at 5:30 I was back on the treadmill for the last workout of the day. It was a 26 minute relatively easy interval walk in the Grand Canyon. The intervals were a 1:2 ratio consisting of 1 minute pushes at 3 mph with 2 minute recoveries at 2.6 mph. All of my workouts were with iFit trainer John Peel, who is my favorite because of his big smile and constant encouragement. I logged 115 minutes, 5 miles and 770 calories. Fitbit says I did over 18,000 steps ! After dinner I hit the Total Gym for about 45 minutes. I added a couple of extra arm exercises tonight because I was feeling pretty strong. Needless to say I was glad to call it a day at 7:30 ! Five workouts in one day is hard but it's even harder when it's 90 degrees ! I don't plan on making a habit of it, no matter what the temperature is, and I would not recommend it to anyone. This might be the 2nd time I've done this and it was really, really hard. Right now I feel amazing but we'll see how I feel when the alarm goes off tomorrow ! 

All in all it's been a wonderful weekend. I'm glad I had the exercise challenge to keep me busy today since it's Father's Day and my dad has been gone since 2012. For me, every day is Father's Day and I miss him so much. I can still see his big smile. I can still see him in his usual spot on the couch in his black slacks and red top, waiting to go out for dinner or to the casino. My dad never golfed but he was a Tiger Woods fan and that was Tiger's signature look. I can still hear his laugh. He'd talk to anyone and he loved roaming around the casino while my mom played the slots. He'd have loved having Point Place right in his backyard so it's fitting that he is buried nearby.

Tomorrow it's back to work but vacation starts at 5 pm Friday ! It's going to be another hot one tomorrow so we'll see how long I last working out on the front porch. I have a tough 35 minute workout on my schedule and I'd really like to get that done before work while it's still cool, which means getting up earlier than I've been able to of late. I guess if I can exercise for 3 hours in one day I can darn well get my lazy self out of bed at 6:30 am. Monday challenge accepted !

On that note I'm going to close up the house, turn on the AC in my bedroom, grab a cool shower and then head for bed !