New Blood Work Results

Today, I went to the doctor to get my blood work results. It was back in September 2012 when I first reported my results after diligently setting out to eat right, exercise 3-5 times a week and drink Shakeology. The results from September 2012 are posted below along with my latest results:

September 2012
Cholesterol 198 (dropped 7 points from original blood work)
HDL 65
LDL 113

December 2013
Cholesterol 194 (dropped another 4 points)
HDL 71 (increased 6 points)
LDL 103 (decreased 10 points)

These are AMAZING numbers and the Doc was very well pleased! Truly, this proves if you put your mind to it and stick with a program you too can make drastic progress.

I cannot say it enough, find an exercise routine or begin to walk, eat right (that means cut back on your dairy, red meats and portion sizes) and start drinking Shakeology. I know, you are skeptical, and believe me, so was I, but the benefits, the blood work and the results prove that eating right, adding Shakeology to your diet, and exercising are the necessary players in your fitness journey.

Fifty is just one year away for us and we are blazing a trail that will hopefully keep us on target into our fifties and beyond. Seriously, if you have any questions about Shakeology, or the programs we have implemented, please contact us - you are that important!

Eating Out of the Palm of Your Hand

A coach and friend shared this with me. Learning how to eat out of the palm of your hand. Makes me think this is what women used before measuring cups and measuring spoons.

Source: This page was taken out of the High Desert Pulse Fall/Winter 2011 Publication (pg. 25) http://www.bendbulletin.com

10 Days into Focus T25

When Steve and I started T25 I kept complaining about how different it was from INSANITY and how there was no way that I can get the same results with T25. But I must confess - just 10 days into the program and I have already lost 5.4lbs and seeing more definition in my abs. Each of these DVDs are 25 minutes in length and are focused packed. Last night I did the Speed 1.0 DVD and burned off 350 calories - not bad for 25 minutes. The program is amazing and I really am looking forward to seeing the end results!

It Has Been One Year This Month

What are we talking about?

One year ago this month, Steve and I entered our first official 5k race together. This year Steve bumped us up to the 10k. It was another beautiful day on Whidbey and the weather was perfect for the run. The route was filled with some high elevations, paved roadways, trails and majestic views of the mountains and the coastline.

Our legs are a bit tender and we are tired, but running the 10k was well worth it. Here are some interesting stats about the race, and our personal times:

Facts:
1) The largest age group represented in the 10k was the 40-49 year old; with the 50-59 year old's making up the second largest group. Can we say "Baby-Boomers"?

2) There were 91 folks running the 10k;29 being male and 58 being female.

3) Out of the male 40-49 age group there were 11 men; Steve placed 10 out of 11.

4) Out of1 the female 40-49 age group there were 18 women; Sherri placed 7 out of 18.

Times:
1) Steve managed to stay in the race this year and pulled ahead of Sherri to come in #59, with a killer time of: 1:09:06 / 11:04 miles per minute.

2) Sherri lagged behind, but came in #60, with a time of: 1:09:32 / 11:08 miles per minute.

Our friends did not run this race with us this year, but we are planning on running a 5k in September to support our friend and Autism Awareness.

Recap: We have run a total of 8 races since starting last August. We ran in 2012: the Race the Reserve 5k, the Turkey Trot 5k and in 2013 we ran the Sweetheart Run 5k, the Shamrock Run 5k, the Eagle Run 5k, the Whidbey 5k, the Yankee Doodle Dash 10k and the Race the Reserve 10k. Besides the 5k we plan to do in September that we mentioned above, there may be a 10k Turkey Trot in our future.

Steve is also talking about running a half a marathon next year - pray for me...I do not know if I am ready to take that leap yet!

It's Out - Shaun T's "T25"

Well call us crazy, but we are jumping in feet first. Starting today, we began Shaun T's new fitness program, "T25". This program is different than Insanity because it is only a 10 week program and each work out is just 25 minutes long. We will keep you posted as we move through the program.

Yankee Doodle Dash - July 4th

On July 4th, Steve and I participated in the Yankee Doodle Dash that was held by the YMCA in Everett. This was the first official (timed) 10k run for Sherri and the first race we ran that had a patriotic theme.

The folks out for this run were all dressed in red,white and blue. Many had headbands and other wares to show their Independence Day Spirit. The course was fairly flat, which gave us a slight advantage, which was greatly appreciated since Steve was dealing with muscle cramps. We had to stop on a few occasions so he could stretch his calf muscles.

One of the highlights along the way was the community spirit. Along the route there were many folks that had come out of their homes and were waving flags and giving encouraging words to keep us going. Every one we came in contact with had quite the jovial spirit. We did cross the finish line right around the 65 minute mark, which is the best time we had since we started running our practice 10Ks.

The day and the scenery were beautiful. The only thing that could have made it better is if our friends could have run the race with us. We are hoping to get together in the near future.

It's FEBRUARY...what have you been doing?

WOW! Where did the month of January go? It is hard to believe we are now in February. Are you sticking to the goals you set for yourself this year?

We are still plugging away at P90/Insanity Hybrid. We had a slight set back due to two weeks of illness. We were getting ready to get back into the Hybrid routine, but some friends of ours wanted us to join them in a race. We like to run races especially with our friends. Initially we planned to run our first 5k for 2013 in April, but as you might have guessed by the photo, we are running a 5K Sweetheart Run on Saturday.

Sherri just came back from a two mile run just to make sure she could still do it. The last race we ran was the Turkey Trot in November. We don't live in a climate that gives us 70 degrees of sun shine all year round, so our running days usually get put on the back burning for a few months.

Nevertheless, we are excited to be running with our friends and our sweetheart, of course. This will be the first time we get to run with Tess' husband and to be transparent, he is the one who has motivated us to get out there and do this. It is this very thing that makes it fun to run with other friends. We keep each other motivated and accountable. We will post our results when we finish the race and maybe even a picture or two!

What ever your fitness activity is for this year, keep pushing play and stick with it! Remember doing something is better than nothing! Feel free to leave a comment and tell us what you've been doing to keep yourself active. We would love to hear from you!

HaPpy New Year ~ 2013

We would like to wish all of our friends and followers a Happy New Year!

Hopefully, you have set your health and fitness goals for 2013 and have a plan in motion to help you obtain them. We want to wish you much success as you endeavor to meet your goals.