Still a Kid at 41

23 Monday May 2011

Posted by Amy Byrne-Henderson in Exercise

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Yesterday it felt like the Universe was conspiring against my desire to exercise. My bike tire went flat after I took the time to get the rust off and get Zuzu in the basket. Then, as I went to go hit some tennis balls against the practice wall on the tennis courts of our apartment complex, it started to rain.

Now I know why those things happened. If they hadn’t, I’d have been too sore to do those things with Todd today.

We took our bikes for a 3 mile spin around our neighborhood. We even pumped our legs as fast as we could so we could get hit with the water from a sprinkler.

Afterwards, we saddled up again, this time with our tennis racquets, and headed to the tennis courts. To say we played tennis is stretching it a bit…I think the most number of times we volleyed the ball was six, but in the end, it didn’t matter. We had a lot of fun.

These activities have left me hot and sweaty, but I have an energy that has long been buried. That was so much fun, and I can’t wait for tomorrow!

Hot, Sweaty, and Happy

Weight a Minute, Part II

03 Thursday Feb 2011

Posted by Amy Byrne-Henderson in Exercise, Wedding, Weight Loss

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Amy, exercise, Wedding, weight

So, my goal for January was to lose 10 pounds. I was going to do this by eating right and working out. The reality for the month of January for me was that I lost one pound, and that’s it.

Things I did right: I did not eat Reese’s Pieces, I only had ice cream twice, I didn’t eat pizza, and I worked out more than I have in a long time.

Things I did wrong: I discovered Jimmy John’s (and even though I ordered the veggie sub, it was loaded with Provolone cheese), I didn’t eat Cheerios for breakfast often enough (too often I ran late in the morning and I would stop at McDonald’s for hotcakes), I didn’t exercise quite as much as I should have (even though I did exercise a lot more than usual), I didn’t drink enough water, and I drank more Diet Pepsi.

But, the great part about being an optimist is that I continue to have hope and faith in myself that I’ll make everything right. I know what I need to do to get to my goal so I can feel better about myself (and look amazing in my wedding dress – which I have yet to order)!

Zuzu and I

On Perseverance

19 Wednesday Jan 2011

Posted by Amy Byrne-Henderson in Exercise

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Amy, Curves, exercise, weight

Tuesday was my first day back exercising since hurting my back last Wednesday. I was tired, and I didn’t want to go, but I knew that I needed to in order to get to where I want to be. I was really glad that I went, and I do feel better about myself for having done it.

On Tuesday night Todd and I watched the new A&E TV show “Heavy”, and it reminded me that I need to work through the negative thoughts in my head; those thoughts that tell me I can just work out “tomorrow.” The thoughts that tell me it’s okay to have two scoops of yummy Oberweis ice cream with Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup crumbles on top, even though I didn’t even exercise that day and also had a Provolone laden sub from Jimmy John’s. Phew.

So, today I persevered. I ate well, drank so much water I feel like I might float away, exercised, walked the long way from the parking deck to and from work and took the stairs instead of the elevator. It won’t be long before I’m playing badminton again.

I'm on the left...06/2008 when I was more active. (My awesome sister-in-law April is on the right)

I'm on the Injured List

15 Saturday Jan 2011

Posted by Amy Byrne-Henderson in Exercise

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Amy, Curves, exercise, Latissimus dorsi muscle

When I started working out at Curves I knew I’d be sore. I have not exercised regularly in quite a while. Besides the usual aches and pains, I seem to have pulled a muscle in my back, and it just happens to be one of the two biggest muscles in a person’s back: the latissimus dorsi. The picture below shows just about where the pain is.

It happened pretty early on that I was kinda continually sore in the right one, but then last week I overdid it and hurt them both. For some unknown reason to me, I thought that if I went faster, I’d get finished faster (I was on my dinner break from work and had to go back). What I failed to realize at the time was that 30 seconds is 30 seconds no matter how fast you go! (At Curves you work out on each of the machines for 30 seconds before moving on to the next)

Things got worse on Thursday when I sneezed very hard then felt a ripping sensation throughout both latissimus dorsi muscles. I went to work, but it was pure pain sitting and standing – all I wanted to do was lie down! I lasted until 1:30 pm then went home and lay down on two heating pads. I also loaded up on ibuprofen which turned out to be a bad mistake since my stomach rebelled.

I was laid up in bed all day Friday, and ventured out into the world today because we had errands we had to get done. I’m pretty sure I only whined once that my back hurt and I wanted to go home. Todd may have a different thought on that…

I’m hoping I’ll be okay to go back to Curves on Monday. I’ve actually missed working out!! I’ve noticed a difference in how I feel and look (even though I haven’t lost so much as an ounce!), and Todd said he did too.