This was he quote running through my head on the Stairs today. I purposely did not put on my cardio TV, I put my headphones in and took the time to REALLY SWEAT, reflect, and FOCUS ON the week at hand. Last week was simply lack luster. I got everything done that I needed to but there was no SPARK AT ALL, a little blunder even. I allowed grumpiness, doubt, and well... self pity to creep in a bit. That week is behind me now and I am done with it. It is a week that made me realize I am human just like everyone else and sometimes no amount of positive energy in the world can prevail against stress. Sometimes we just have to get out of our own head, and out of our own way. I let myself for a few days wallow in the fact of feeling like a failure. It seems VERY minimal and trust me it was, but I felt a difference in my spirit and it does make a difference in your attitude. Really how people can walk around regularly being moody or with a bad attitude is beyond me. It's so DRAINING and NO FUN!!! Glad to feel back to my normal self!!
Well as I had posted my daughter's first dance competition of the season was Saturday and it was at Lowell Memorial Auditorium in Lowell, MA. This is a stage I had my dance recitals on for years as a child, this is the stage I became to love and cherish as a child. This whole experience was nostalgic, and very SPECIAL for my daughter and I! As a mother I was beyond proud of her on stage. She is a determined, focused, sweet, adorable, talented little girl. I know I'm bias but she IS :) As an adult watching this shrunken version of myself, my mini me - she walks like me, talks like me, moves like me, spazs out like me - just bopping around makes me feel like my life is so complete. It's like someone said to me: "HERE! Here you are a child. Take this child, take this baby girl and mold her into you, BUT EVEN BETTER! Give her everything you had and MORE, and let her fly!" It's an incredible, unbelievable feeling. I had an old friend call today and she said looking at those pictures I feel like I had been transported back in time to watch you. My parents came to watch her and standing there as I took a picture with them and her and her trophy I realized as I often find myself reflecting how incredibly blessed we are. I always joke that I feel older and older every new phase of life, but this was a very good "older feeling". A proud moment indeed!
So she competed in both Jazz and Tap and they won GOLD TROPHYS for both!! She was chosen from her team to accept the trophy for Jazz and was allowed to take it home for the weekend so that was an even better way to start off the season!! I don't like to Brag ;) But the girl's got stage presence FOR DAYS!!!
It was just the high note I needed!! Today we set the clocks ahead by ONE HOUR - SPRING FORWARD!! I started off a little sleepy after a long day and week and losing an hour, but once I hit the gym I was revived. Trained Back - I didn't have my Versa Grips with me today and my partner didn't have her straps - TOTALLY SUCKS - for us girls with weak grip it makes a huge difference, BUT we plugged away anyway and had a great workout despite a little lack of planning.
Started off with Deadlifts:
4 sets of 10 - First set warm-up 85 X 10, 115 X10, 135 X 10, 165 X 7 - dropped down to 135 X 5 - the weights and the drop reflected our loss of grip strength... you do what you can, good to change it up once in a while and challenge without straps but sucks when you're weaker links give out before your back does.
I will say I felt something weird pull in my right side - across the middle of my back. It wasn't a terrible pain per say but definitely some discomfort. Not really sure what it was, just stretched and hot showered it when I got home, feels fine now but it bothered me a little the remainder of the workout. I'm just getting old ;)
Next exercise was Wide Grip Pull down - Again Weight is reflective of no wraps - we do usually go heavier, but we did well considering.
4 sets - 90 X 10, 95 X 10 97.5 X10, 97.5 X10
Next exercise was Hands facing in Chin Ups - 4 sets X 6
And the last exercise T-bar Rows
4sets 55 X 10, 65 X 10, 70 X 10, 80 X 9
I really started feeling that weird pull in my right side but again it wasn't a sharp pain as much as almost an aching, so I just worked through it.
And we finished off with 4 sets of back extensions w/ plate and 4 sets of calves angles press with super super slow negative stretch MY FAVORITE!!
Despite lack of any impressive numbers it was a great workout, and we finished feeling accomplished. Hopped on for 30 minutes of interval training on the stairs to complete the morning. I didn't turn on my cardio TV, I really focused on getting inside my own head again with a good mind set. Chose songs that motivated and inspired and thought about WHAT I REALLY WANT OUT OF THIS WEEK! Last week was my human week, can I make this week my SUPER POWERS WEEK? :) I am on spring break this week no school, and my boot camp starts up next week so I have a little extra time on my hands to really dig in, and get re - focused, and I used my cardio time to start it off on the right foot. It was a very "productive" 30 minutes.
So in order to stay focused, on track, and in high spirits everyone in my family has to be on the same page. We have A LOT going on and its the only way it can work. I am only as good as my support system, and without even needing to say it my husband sensed I needed a little oomph. Since its getting warmer and nicer out he is back to using the grill outside, YUM! It just makes food taste so much better - he cooked, weighed and portioned all our meals out for the next few days! That will last till about Wednesday and then we'll need to do it again, but what a nice thing to come down and see...
“Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.”
Next up our little house renovations story for the weekend: It's actually quite comical, I laugh because if there were ever a video camera in my house to see our experiences you guys would CRACK UP. My father in law calls us Doug and Carrie from KING of Queens - NUFF SAID LOL. So as I mentioned we're renovating our house. We moved in in June of 2010 and we started with all OUTSIDE renovations because in the summer that's where we are. We have a large yard and a pool so we have a lot to do out there. We stained the entire back deck, cut down and removed trees, cleaned leaves - 5 huge bags, swept, weeded, planted two new trees, fixed the front porch and just did all outside projects all summer.
In September we started inside house projects. We started with the living room - painted and bought new living room furniture and all new curtains. Then went onto our dining room, new pub table, new wine rack, hung pictures, painted. Now "painted" sounds easy, but our house is an older country style - the top of the walls has thick drywall swirled texture then its separated by a chair rail and the the bottom has rough sawn pine wood and the trim in sawn pine. I cannot tell you how difficult this is to paint. The texture and wood SUCK UP PAINT. You need several coats to cover perfectly. When its done, it looks awesome but it is a bigger undertaking than just "painting. We considered hiring someone because it is a big project but decided to save money since we have so many projects, and we would just take our time and do it ourselves. My husband convinced me that it "builds character" to do it our self... AKA how a cheap husband convinces his wife not to hire someone :) I have to say it does feel good to complete projects though.
Well now we're into our kitchen, always the biggest project in the house. We started by painting the cabinets, then onto the walls, Ern and his Dad replaced the counter tops, and we have a moulding that needs to go up. And we took off our butcher block, my father in law sanded it down and put a new oil on it and it looks brand new! And the last piece finishing off this week will be new floors. It will be a brand NEW kitchen with lots of blood sweat and tears put into it. And it started to feel more and more like its OURS. Again there's tons of the rough sawn pine and trim work and dun dun dun THE CEILING in the eat in part is that pine. Painting rough wood is hard enough, and so is painting a ceiling now put those together and it = DISASTER lol
SO TODAY after our full day yesterday at the competition, and Ern had a trade show for work, and AFTER I trained back and completed cardio I came home to Ern having started touching up the trim. I quickly ate, gave the kids lunch and got ready to start on the daunting task of painting the ceiling... let me fully paint this picture for you:
Ern walks out to the garage to get the pole that attaches to the roller so I can at least roll the first coat without getting up and down on a chair or step ladder. He comes in the house rubbing his face and mumbling grumpily and half laughing under his breath... "What happened?" I said. "It's like Tom and Jerry out there, only I'm by myself. I stepped on the end of a rake and it hit me square in the face SO HARD." I laughed and should have taken that as an omen of things to come LOL So I start painting and immediately start thinking WHAT THE HELL?!?! MY SHOULDERS AND NECK ARE GONNA KILLLLLLLLLLLL. Stand up and grab a broom stick, now reach it above your head and press it into your ceiling back and forth and back and forth while leaning your neck back to look up. First off hows your shoulders and neck feel? Second off how much shit just fell in your face? And third off if you JUST trained upper body and are already sore how bad do you think it feels? I was like SWEATING and I just started and then DRIP DRIP right on my face!!!!! The first splatter of paint hit me... uggggg "This is ridiculous!" I said "PAINT is hitting my face!" Now let me preface this with I am not a pre - madonna, I don't mind some manual labor but this seemed like an obnoxious task, between the position and the aches and now the paint hitting my face I was beside myself LOL But I continued on...
So Ern and I are just talking and chatting away, joking around, the kids are coming in and out and playing in the family room and PLOP 2 big paint splatters on my face and I felt it way too close to my LIP, YUCK! And then I thought about my eyes. So we decided I definitely needed some safety goggles painting above my head looking up at it, you're asking for it to go in your eyes. So thankfully I had my Chem Lab goggles, guess they came in handy for something. And I put those on... at first I am trying to wipe away the paint every time I felt a little splatter, but then it just got to be too much and I said the hell with it I'll wash it all off at the end. CRICKET CRICKET CREEK - the sounds of my neck, shoulders, and back, and plop plop plop the feeling of PAINT SPLATTERING ON MY FACE LOL and all the while Ern's getting a kick out of it. I'm saying "We should have hired someone for the ceiling, this is too hard!" and he gave me the whole "it builds character" line again. I'm about a quarter of the way through and he says "Steph I'll finish it, if its too hard." Seems like a noble gesture I know, BUT I WILL BE DAMNED if I let him have over me that I couldn't finish it for the rest of my life, and I TOLD HIM THAT!!!! LOL Him and I have a healthy relationship of busting each others balls, and although he would have finished it for me, I would have to hear for the next 10 years how I couldn't finish the ceiling, yeah Ummmmmm NO I will take paint in my face and a broken NECK thank you. We laugh about it and he says: "Seriously your pride means that much? I'll do it for youuuuu." (taunting me at this point) and I grumbled and said "The hell if you will!" and finished the ceiling! lol Now I know it was somewhat reverse psychology but in my head I won, HOW I won looking like this I don't really know but its DONE! lol
SERIOUSLY IT WAS ON MY LIPPPPPPPPPP!!!!!!!!!!! GROSS LOL
The best part of painting though was when Bryce said AND I QUOTE: "I don't know how but by MAGIC I got paint on my feet." Me: "Bryce it wasn't magic you need to stay off the stairs like we said." Bryce: "No it was MAGIC Paint just got on my feet by MAGIC."
So once out kitchen is done I'll post some before and afters! It's a lot of work but PRETTY EXCITING!!
So onto this week and whats NEW!! I am driven, focused, BUSY, AND BLESSED!!
I have my Boot Camp KICK off this coming SUNDAY with a nutrition seminar and sample class before starting my next 6 week session which is FULL.
Thursday I am heading to meet up with WILL BRINK and train LEGS and shoot a video for both my blog and his site! For those who may not know who he is if you are not in the industry. He has been around in the INDUSTRY for a long time - not an age joke just very knowledgable, experienced, and respected. He has been a Writer/Contributing Editor for over almost two decades and have been published in a wide variety of publications, including: Muscle Media, MuscleMag International, Lets Live, Muscle n Fitness, Life Extension magazine, Muscular Development, Townsend Letter for Doctors, IronMan, Inside Karate, Tactical Response, Exercise for Men Only, Physical, Power, Body International, Oxygen, Penthouse, Fitness RX, Big, as well as others over the years and in many different languages. He had a monthly column in MuscleMag International called “The Intake Update” for a decade. Many of his articles can be found on the major fitness/health/bodybuilding web sites, such as bodybuilding.com and hundreds of other sites. You name it, he has written an article on it: Weight training, weight loss, HIV, cancer, heart disease, anabolics and other drugs, pre contest diets, supplements of all kinds, hair loss, and many other topics relating to health, fitness, longevity, and bodybuilding, as well as law enforcement/military related topics. He has put a large sample of my articles on the web page for your perusal. He also has trained high levels athletes, bodybuilders, police, and military personnel. His site is http://www.brinkzone.com/
I met Will back in 07 as he judged me in a figure competition and was impressed with how down to earth he was. His articles and knowledge is very science based and I guess I assumed he would be an arrogant person trying to show off his brains and knowledge constantly, but he is quite the opposite. I had the pleasure of training with him for a functional Fitness Day for Female Athletes and it was so FUN and so outside of my BOX.
Which BTW - I have spoke to both him and John Sullivan about doing another one, so if that seems like something you might be up for message me. You do not have to be an athlete to train like one :)
I'm excited to train with him Thursday, he mentioned heavy squats and SLED DRAGS, right up my alley! So stay tuned for that video coming soon!!
I also have some booth work coming up for an MMA EVENT and I'll be slinging bottles for an MMA event both in April, so I will update with that INFO when I have all the details!!!
“Success means having the courage, the determination, and the will to become the person you believe you were meant to be”
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