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1/24/2008 TreadingFitness Ridge - DAY 11 The instant that I heard about Treading class I thought, "Yes, another pool class! I am good in the water." Little did I know that it was code for, "We're gonna put you on a cardio machine and make you go until you feel like puking." Honestly though, 'Treading' has become my favorite class that they offer here. It is setup as an interval training. You jump on a cardio machine and go as hard as you can for 5 minutes. Then you rest for 5 minutes. 4 minutes as hard as you can, then rest. 3 minutes, rest. 2 minutes, rest, 1 minute, 30 seconds and last15 seconds. The idea is to shock your body and push it to the next level, and I can attest to the fact that it does just that. Treading class every Thursday, gotta love it. 1/23/2008 Still CravingFitness Ridge - DAY 10 Burgers, Fries and a Coke...Don't bother me, I'm eating. Do you remember those Carl's Jr./Hardees commercials? That was all I could think about last night after completing my day at Fitness Ridge Resort & Spa. I wasn't hungry, in fact, dinner was delicious and more than satisfying, but I find that I still have pretty regular cravings. Granted, they don't come as often as they did previous to the start of my pilgrimage, but they still come and they come hard. I finally just went to bed so that I didn't have to fight them any longer. How long do you think that I can expect this to continue? Perhaps I should ask our resident nutritionist. 1/22/2008 No More Hugging Last Monday I felt a strong need to hug the stop sign at the end of the morning hike. Yesterday I slapped it and went on my merry way. In one week I feel that I have strengthened my heart and my cardiovascular system. I was the 5th person to the top this week versus almost dead last the previous week. Progress is good....really good. 1/21/2008 The 300 pound club I had high hopes that after my efforts last week I would be out of the 300 pound club when I weighed in. Alas, it was not meant to be....last week. This week it will happen! I lost 6 1/2 pounds last week and I am very pleased by it. Without being hampered by blisters and a chest cold, my goal this week is double digit weight loss. Thanks everyone for your comments...it has kept me going. 1/19/2008 Another Stop Sign & BuffetsFitness Ridge - DAYS 5 & 6 Exercise has officially become fun for me. It is still really tough to get in the mindset and actually start exercising, but while I am in the act, I really enjoy it. Friday at Fitness Ridge Resort & Spa brought about Hip Hop class and something that they call "Living Drums". Each of these classes gets your heart pumping and are well worth attending. This morning I did 6 1/2 miles on the stop sign hike and shaved a half hour off my time from Monday. Exercising in the outdoors is the best, I love it! (Nacho Libre voice over added) Tonight we travel to the famous Chuck-A-Rama with Emily the nutritionist. We are only allowed a 500 calorie meal at a buffet place! This should be really good...maybe I can just have a steak and be done. Tomorrow we weigh-in for the week, so I can't over do it.  1/18/2008 Classes & More FoodFitness Ridge - DAY 4 Throughout our marriage, my wife Amie has always been big on attending fitness classes. I, on the other hand, was too macho to even consider the idea. I am happy to say that I have changed my mind and the classes here at Fitness Ridge Resort & Spa have convinced me of that. I can no longer imagine myself sitting in a gym and lifting weights or running on a treadmill without it being in some sort of class. The group format of classes and having an instructor have pushed me to go harder than ever before. Michelle, one of the owners here, is a fabulous instructor. She explains extremely well what we are doing in the class, why we are doing it and what it will do for our bodies. Not to mention she is a taskmaster...she will push you! I mentioned the food in a previous entry but yesterday was a day to remember. For lunch we had pizza...man, have I missed it...and for dinner we had salmon burgers. There were people that do not even enjoy fish and they were gobbling them down and raving about them. Here is the recipe for the salmon burger: Servings: 4 1 lb salmon 1/4 cup roasted peppers (red or yellow), diced small 1/8 cup chopped parsley 1/8 cup diced red onion 1 tablespoon mustard 2 tablespoons vegannaise (veggie mayonnaise) 3 tablespoons lemon juice 1/2 tablespoon salt 1 teaspoon pepper 1/4 cup oats 1/4 cup egg whites 4 whole wheat hamburger buns
 1/17/2008 Calories & NutritionFitness Ridge - DAY 3 Traditionally I would be out on the morning hike right now, but for whatever reason my blister is ignoring all treatment and continuing its growth pattern. So I decided to blog about yesterday. Yesterday the soreness in my muscles had nearly subsided, so I decided to push myself to new limits. I did the morning hike, at least 3 miles of it, and burned over 800 calories. I was really looking forward to the afternoon classes -- circuit training and kickboxing. Circuit Training is 30 different stations of cardio and weight machines (treadmills, ellipticals, bench press, leg press, etc). They give you two minutes on each machine to go as hard as you possibly can to get your heart rate up. I love this class and hate it at the same time...it is non-stop and Sharon, the instructor, really pushes you to your limits. I burned 1400 calories in this class. Kickboxing is great for anger management -- all that punching that I wanted to do in previous days came in handy during this class. These two classes brought about new soreness that I am now popping Advil for...but it is a good sore, right? In the evenings we have lectures from different specialists on a variety of topics. Last night the Fitness Ridge resident nutritionist Emily Fonnesbeck, gave us some great information on portion sizes and how to spend our calories wisely. Emily really knows her stuff and the lecture was enlightening. I didn't realize how many calories I consumed each day before arriving here! Well, I am off to ride a bike or something....gotta burn some more calories! 1/16/2008 Food, Blisters & PeopleFitness Ridge - DAY 2
Out of all the things that I knew were going to take place during this quest of mine, the change in diet made me the most apprehensive. I don't like vegetables, I adore Chick-Fil-A sandwiches (a few of them in one sitting), and I am accustomed to eating until I feel full.
Much to my surprise, the 1200 calories per day that they serve here are very filling and quite tasty. The food here is filled with vegetables and low calorie soy products. We had enchiladas last night with squash in it. I hate squash but this meal was amazing! There have been tasty soups, plenty of salad, fruit, and we had a delectable chicken breast drizzled in a made from scratch bbq sauce on Monday night. Best of all there has not been one instance yet where I have been dying to eat something. When mealtime arrives I am hungry, I eat, and then I remain satisfied until the next meal. Does anyone know if tofu gives you gas?
The only negative thing that I have encountered thus far has had nothing to do with the spa -- I have an enormous blister on my right foot. I am doing everything to treat it and move on with the regimen. I can't let it slow down my progress. Please let me know if anyone has any miracle treatments.
Lastly, the people that attend these spas are very interesting. I have met some very nice people from every walk of life, and then there are a few that I would like to punch in the face. Yep, I am still struggling with anger issues. At the risk of sounding judgmental, it seems to me that some of the guests are wealthy enough to throw away money and spend their time sitting around being negative about life. It just surprises me that they would even make the financial and time investment. About 70% of the guests here this week are rather fit people. Unlike me they have maybe 10 pounds to shed. Most of these people will reach their goals because they appear to be the hardest working -- perhaps it is their sense of purpose?
Regardless of the attitudes and the vegetables my pilgramage continues. Peace and Love. 1/15/2008 Have You Ever Hugged A Stop Sign?Fitness Ridge - DAY 1
Do you remember when all the reality tv shows surfaced in the late 90's? For some reason all the contestants started calling their appearances a "journey", like somehow their scripted lives on the show were actually going to end up somewhere. This week I have embarked on my own little journey. Since I detest that word now, I went searching for a suitable synonym and came up with "pilgramage".
My pilgramage started Monday morning at 6am when the gym facilities at Fitness Ridge Resort & Spa opened for use. I walked briskly on the treadmill to warm up for the hike at 8am. The night previous we had met the other guests attending the spa. Many of them had already been through a week or two at the spa and they spoke ominously of the Monday morning hike. At 8 o'clock we gathered in the lobby, received a summary of the hike (4 1/2 miles on a paved trail) and loaded ourselves into vans to be bussed up to Snow Canyon State Park. No big deal.
The hike started out on rather flat terrain and I felt encouraged after the first two miles that I would be able to withstand the burning sensation emanating from my chest and legs. At 3 1/4 miles the paved trail lead out onto a main road and drastically changed, at least for me. The incline increased and the burning sensation turned to hellfire. I have not known this type of pain since 2-a-days in high school football. Suddenly I began talking to myself trying to wean some additional motivation from within..."Don't Stop"..."Just Don't Stop" and some other crazy stuff that I dare not repeat in this forum.
As my subconscious conversation continued, I noticed other guests that had already reached the top coming down the trail toward me. Each guest that passed shouted words of encouragement...except one lady that shouted, "Hey, the speed limit is 25 here and you are holding up traffic!" In the instant that I pondered punching her in the face, she was gone.
Just when I felt that my calves would explode, I rounded a bend and saw the infamous stop sign that represented the top of the hike. I reached the stop sign and gave it a big, big hug. I had reached the top without stopping! Although I knew my body would pay the price, I had pushed myself beyond my current limits and achieved something extremely difficult.
Overall I burned 2400 calories, ascended over 1000 feet in altitude, and gained some additional self-respect in approximately 5 1/2 miles of walking. It didn't bother me that my body would suffer additional torment throughout the course of the day because I knew that my pilgramage had started with success. 1/11/2008 A Wretched Noise So our newest addition, Olivia is well on her way to being admitted into the hospital with RSV. She is so congested that when she cries it sounds like a back-alley cat. It doesn't help that each of the other kids have contracted their own version of the virus. I am curious about when they started calling it RSV? I mean, isn't it pretty much a cold gone really, really bad? I make light of it, but that is only because my heart breaks every time I hear her labored breathing and kitten-like scream. We will keep you posted. We want no part of any hospital visits for our infant beauty. 1/7/2008 Baby Shoes Tonight we arrived home from a little family home evening outing and got the kids ready for bed. We took off baby Olivia's shoes and her socks came off with them. The other kids were amazed and wondered aloud how the socks could possibly stay upright in the shoes. I think the better question is why are we putting shoes on a three week old baby? She isn't really going to walk anywhere. Somewhere there are baby shoe companies laughing at us...all the way to the bank. |
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