Week three... I think I mentioned this last week, but I am still really sore all the time. I wonder if it'll take me longer to get used to the pain than others because I'm heavier. Despite the pain, I have been faithfully going to Square 1 three times a week. This past week though, after my accountability group waschallenged by Marty to lose 20 lbs., I stepped out up and did four workouts. That may have been a mistake. I worked out Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday. When I woke up Saturday, my knees hurt so bad, I could barely move them. Walking up and down the stairs was the worst I've felt since the time I took a Zumba class. So until further notice, I have to make sure that I have space in between my workouts. My favorite trainer is Kim, so I want to make sure I attend all of her classes. Meals have been good. Weight loss so far is 6.2 lbs in two weeks (0.2 lbs week one, 6 lbs week two). I am looking forward to more weight coming off and feeling better when I do those every day things that currently cause me pain.
Want to know more about Square One? Check us out at www.square1club.com or give us a call at 402-333-0706. You can also find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/square1club .
Want to know more about Arianna? Follow along with her weekly blog posts here at the Square One blog!
Tuesday, March 4, 2014
Monday, March 3, 2014
Meet a Member - Melissa T, Week 3
Week 3
February 25, 2014
Successes
·
2 more pounds
down for a grand total of 10.8 pounds so far!
·
I can wear my
work pants that are size smaller than when I started this journey!
Difficulties
·
As I see the
scale’s numbers going down (albeit just a little so far) I sometimes think to
myself, “I’m losing weight…of course I can have a bowl of ice cream or some
Girl Scout cookies.” WHAT?? That’s part of what got me here to begin with.
·
In Train Your
Brain this week we talked about unfairness of dieting. Thinking that even
though I have lost some weight, but still can’t have ice cream is UNFAIR.
Marty’s solution to that is that we need to “Remember our Advantages”. There
are so many more advantages to eating healthy than not. To remember this great
advice, I’m going to place a sticky note with that saying in a few “special”
places (inside the freezer door, inside the refrigerator door and inside the
cupboard door). That will be a good reminder every time I go to one of those
places and open it looking for something to eat.
Wednesday Workout
·
I work out
with a group of teachers after school on Wednesdays and Fridays. I want to
share this with those of you who work out on your own for something different
that you may not have done before.
·
Here’s one of
the workouts we did this week:
·
5 rounds
o 10 push-ups
o 25 tuck jumps
o 10 pull ups
o 25 air squats
o 30 second jump rope
o 60 second plank
o 20 box jumps
o
50 meter sprint
Ponder this…
·
That quote is what Square One truly is. I
can’t get over how different this place is than any other gym I’ve been at
before. On a daily basis, we cheer each other on, clap for each other’s
successes, and support one another not only in the workouts but in reaching
goals too. I love this place!!
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Want to know more about Square One? Check us out at www.square1club.com or give us a call at 402-333-0706. You can also find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/square1club .
Want to know more about Melissa? Follow along with her weekly blog posts here at the Square One blog!
Want to know more about Melissa? Follow along with her weekly blog posts here at the Square One blog!
Weight Loss- Doing the Square One Numbers
Weight loss is thermodynamics. It basically equates to energy - calories are units of energy. Knowing that, you can determine what your body uses, and what it needs.
Resting Metabolic Rate
Your body uses a specific number of calories just to keep running. If you lay in bed all day and don’t exercise, you will still burn a certain amount of calories - your Resting Metabolic Rate, also called the Basal Metabolic Rate. There are online calculators to help you find your RMR/BMR - my personal favorite is http://www.bmi-calculator.net/
For my height, weight, and gender, a formula specifically created by a doctor from The Biggest Loser has determined my RMR to be 1,638.4 calories per day. This is how many calories my body burns just performing functions of living such as sleeping, breathing, blinking, digesting, etc.
However, this isn’t how many calories you need to maintain your weight (unless you literally do no activity during the day - you are bedridden).
Safe Zone, or Happy Face Zone :)
The doctor’s formula determines how many calories you need every day to maintain your weight based on your daily activity level (I have a desk job, so I’d call myself sedentary regardless of weekly exercise). The formula ensures that your Star Zone is going to allow for safe fat loss without losing any of your lean mass, that is, your muscles, tissues, organs, bones, etc.
Based on my height, weight, activity level (sedentary), gender and body fat percentage, I need to eat 2,294 calories per day to maintain my weight.
Explained below, I want to eat 1,311 to 1,511 calories per day to lose weight. I can eat between 1,511 and 2,294 calories per day and not gain weight, but I won’t lose much, either. This is why it’s safe, but not recommended for maximum benefit.
Star Zone, your target calorie range *
Although I exercise 3-5 days of the week, my job is sedentary so I spend most of my day doing little activity. The formula tells me that my Star Zone falls between 1,311-1,511 calories. This takes the calories I need to maintain my weight (2,294), and creates a deficit of 783 - 983 calories, which should burn about 1.5 to 2 lbs per week.
A pound of fat is worth 3,500 calories. If you want to lose one pound of fat in 1 week, you need to create a deficit of 3,500 calories that week, or 500 calories a day. You can accomplish this by eating 500 calories fewer than your maximum amount, so for me it would be 1,794 calories per day. This is higher my Star Zone, and will stick within it to lose weight more quickly, again - closer to 1.5 to 2 lbs per week instead.
The cool part: Creating a deficit means that my body needs something else to maintain its basic needs (breathing, exercising, talking): body fat! Your body literally uses its own fat to account for the energy it needs if you give it fewer calories.
Excessive Calories, the Sad Face Zone :(
It is not recommended to eat more than your safe zone. This is too many calories and it will cause you to gain weight, because your body is taking in more energy then it can burn, and it stores those calories as fat! For me, this range is 2,294 calories or higher.
That’s all there is to it. A lot of numbers, a little bit of math, and a bit of physics. Remember, all of the numbers involved in the example above were specific to me. Your numbers will all be different. See a staff member at Square One to determine your star zone and safe zone!
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Want to know more about Square One? Check us out at www.square1club.com or give us a call at 402-333-0706. You can also find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/square1club .
Tuesday, February 25, 2014
Meet a Member - Melissa T., Week 2
Week 2
February 18, 2014
Successes
·
After my
first official 10 days, I can proudly say that I’ve lost 8.8 pounds so far! My
work pants are feeling a little looser.
·
We rank
ourselves each day for the previous week with a star, a smiley face, or a sad
face. A star means I stayed within my calorie range to lose weight. A smiley
face means I stayed within my calorie range to maintain weight. A sad face
means I consumed enough calories to gain weight. I had ALL stars this past
week!
·
The quote I
added to the bottom for this week’s “Ponder this…” sure has a lot of meaning.
That being said, I have been completely honest in my food journal (and to
myself) in what I’ve eaten and stayed within my allotted calories for weight
loss. It seems to be working!
Difficulties
·
I’m still
getting use to the amount of time it takes for me to preplan what I eat. I sit
down each night and start to plan my next day.
·
If I feel
hungry, I have to stop myself from going to the cupboard and grabbing some
Cheez-its. I have to remind myself that they really aren’t worth the 180
calories! It makes me wonder how many calories I was actually consuming each
day before I started keeping track. I probably don’t even want to know!
Wednesday Workout
·
I work out
with a group of teachers after school on Wednesdays and Fridays. I want to
share this with those of you who work out on your own for something different
that you may not have done before.
·
Here’s one of
the workouts we did this week:
o 50-40-30-20-10 (one round of 50 each then run, next round of 40
each then run, etc.)
§ Goblet squats
§ Sumo dead lift high pull
§
Run a lap between each round
Ponder this...
Monday, February 24, 2014
Meet a Member - Arianna P., Week 2
Week two... on the grind. So far, this week has been the toughest. I had my first "Train Your Brain" and accountability classes. Marty talked about recognizing when we overeat, "jumping off the cliff," and saying "no" to foods. I tend to overeat when it's sitting in front of me, whether on a table or on my plate, or if it's in between lunch and dinner when too much time has passed between the two. Usually, these are the times when I also jump off the cliff -- those moments when you're hungry, stressed out, sad, angry, whatever, and you say "I've had three cookies already, forget it," and you eat the rest of the package. I've had two of those moments this week -- Valentine's Day and the day after (my best friend's birthday party). I realize those moments when I'm about to jump off the cliff and belly flop in the ocean, but I don't stop myself. I just let it happen, feel like hell, and hate myself the next day. That needs some fixin'. After accountability, my calories have shrunk way lower than the calorie app I use says I can eat and lose 1-2 pounds a week. That also came into play for why I overate. It'll take some getting used to to not overeat during the day.
As far as working out, it's been going good. I had three different trainers the three days I went and every workout was different. Marty likes the ropes, straps, and cords to do various exercises. The new trainer, Kim, introduced me to wood chops. With this exercise, you take a weight and slam it down on a giant tire like you are chopping wood. This is probably my least-favorite exercise. Becca threw in cards, ladders, and yoga balls. I found out there are stomach muscles under my belly -- I had some rolling abdominal cramps for about 10 minutes after doing crunches on the yoga ball (those SUCK!). They went away, and I was able to finish the workout though.
I hope the rest of this week I stop being so sore and tired (who said the soreness goes away after one week?!?) and that I lose at least 1 pound (last week it was 0.2 lbs, but I hadn't started my new calorie intake yet).
Want to know more about Square One? Check us out at www.square1club.com or give us a call at 402-333-0706. You can also find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/square1club .
Want to know more about Arianna? Follow along with her weekly blog posts here at the Square One blog!
Want to know more about Arianna? Follow along with her weekly blog posts here at the Square One blog!
Tuesday, February 18, 2014
Meet a Member - Melissa T.
Growing up I was always “a big girl”, “big boned”, “overweight”, “fat”…whatever you want
to call it. The teasing began in Junior High and continued through High School. Teasing by people,
who at that time, I thought were my friends. The memories of those “friends” going passed me
muttering “Buffalo”. That was my under the breath nickname. Once you hear something over and
over, it becomes what you believe…I believed it and still do.
As an adult now, I know I need to train my brain to think differently. Here are the top 3
reasons why I need the help from Square One to become a NEW ME:
To be a better TEACHER…I feel that I need to be a good role model to my students by
not only teaching academics and the importance of them, but also teaching students the
importance of having a healthy body and mind. How can I teach the importance of having
a healthy body, when I clearly do not have one myself? I believe Square One can help!
To be a better PARENT…when I look at my two beautiful daughters I begin to see how
they are so much like me. It makes me sick to think that someday someone could hurt
either of them with just a word or two, and eventually believe that it’s true. How can I
teach my children that it is okay to love yourself how God made you, despite what other
people say when this is something I struggle with myself? I believe Square One can help!
To be a better ME…like I said before, I need to train my brain to think differently. How
am I able to train my own brain to think differently when it’s never thought differently
before? In order to do this I need help, support, encouragement and to be taught how to
think differently. I believe that Square One can train my brain!
Here is what she writes after one week at Square One:
Week 1
February 8-15, 2014
Successes
·
New Year, New
ME! I’m excited to say that I’ve joined the Square One team! With their help, I
am going to become the best ME I can be and in the process hopefully inspire
others to do the same.
·
On February
8, Marty weighed me in and did all of my baseline measurements. He gave me a
daily calorie range. I have been tracking my food every day and have stayed
with in my daily range!
·
They say this
place is “not your normal gym…it’s different”. At first I thought, “How can it
be that different?” I soon found out.
I have learned that at Square One members work as a team. It’s encouraging…it’s
like a family…and I’m proud to say that I’m a part of it now!
Difficulties
·
The only
downside to this week is that I didn’t get to workout as much as I had planned.
Tuesday night was a late night with conferences, so no evening workout at
Square One. Friday we didn’t have school, so no workout after school.
Wednesday Workout
·
I work out
with a group of teachers from school on Wednesdays. Here’s what we did this
week:
o
5 Rounds
§
24 kettlebell swings
§
24 box jumps
§
3 minute run
§
24 burpees
§
24 wall balls
Ponder this…
Monday, February 17, 2014
Meet a Member - Arianna P, winner of our 6 Month Membership Giveaway!
I am a 30-year-old stuck in an 80-year-old's body. I've been a "big girl" almost my whole life, but haven't really felt the effects until after recovering from pneumonia, a two-week coma, and physical rehabilitation in July 2011. Ever since then, my weight, pain, and ailments have increased to the point where it hurts to do anything. My quality of life frankly sucks. The four most problematic health issues I have are severe obstructive sleep apnea, osteoarthritis in my knees (and potentially other joints), and chronic back pain and fatigue. These could be greatly helped or go away altogether if I lost weight.
Despite working full time, I also go to graduate school full time. My finances do not allow me to pay for a gym membership or trainer. I sorely need an expert's help to lose weight the right way and keep it off. I need to lose weight. So I can live, not just exist.
Hi all you people out there! It's been one week since I started from square one at Square 1 Club. It's been scary, crazy, wonderful, tiring, inspiring, energizing... Phew! Last Monday, I was super excited to find the place. I pull up to the building and was a little surprised. It wasn't what I expected to see. I thought Square 1 was like a "regular"club or fitness center: rows of equipment and people just doing their own thing. I sat in my car for a minute, all of a sudden nervous and scared to go in. "What am I doing here? They're gonna know I'm a phony, totally out of shape..." all those kind of self-depreciating talk. But then that voice kicked in and said, "Get your butt out of this car right now!" And boy, am I glad I did! After filling out paperwork and touring the club, everyone lovingly talked me into working out. I had to take a break about every 5 minutes, but I finished that first workout and felt good. My back was killing me, but I felt good. Wednesday was workout #2 and it was just as wonderful as the first. The best, hands-down BEST thing about Square 1 is the people. All of the beautiful, wonderful, caring, hard-working, just ahh! There aren't enough positive adjectives to describe all the people of size at Square 1. Even on those days (a little like today) when I don't want to come in because I'm tired, people like Keshia, Kerri, Karen, Marty, and Becca, just to name a few, will keep me coming back.
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Want to know more about Square One? Check us out at www.square1club.com or give us a call at 402-333-0706. You can also find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/square1club .
Want to know more about Arianna? Follow along with her weekly blog posts here at the Square One blog!
Want to know more about Arianna? Follow along with her weekly blog posts here at the Square One blog!
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