99 Minutes!!!

I did it!

Tony the Anti-Jared and Jen the Prior Fat Girl's 4/20 Challenge is today and I'm proud to tell you I did it!!

I'm a big fan of both their blogs and look forward to every single post. I love that they both tell it like it is. They are inspiring and motivating but they don't sugarcoat what it takes to be successful in this weight loss game. They are proof that if you work hard you can get the results you want just like they did.

I remember Jen and Tony's last challenge but I don't think I would have lasted 10 minutes on the elliptical back then. I committed to do 60 minutes on the elliptical but now that I've been going to the gym regularly, sixty minutes isn't such a big challenge anymore. Sixty minutes is my regular workout now, or at least it was before I wrenched my back a few weeks ago.

This is the t-shirt I wore at the gym today.

I signed up to do at least 60 minutes but if I felt good enough I was going to push it for the full 99 minutes. I figured "no pressure" was a good motto to have. I didn't want to re-injure my back so I was just going to wait and see how I felt. I was still feeling pretty good after 60 minutes so I decided to stick it out for the full 99 minutes that Jen and Tony were going to be on the StairMaster. My thighs would have been screaming if I tried to do 99 minutes on the StairMaster but I'm proud I was able to stay on the elliptical for that long. My thighs were screaming a bit and felt like jello when I got off but it felt good.

The whole time I was on that machine I was thinking about what an inspiration Jen and Tony are to me. They are the real deal. Jen still struggles with the candy dish at the office just like I did every single one of those 40 hours a week I was trapped in the office and Tony gets up at an ungodly hour so he can make time for the gym. They've celebrated the joys of birth and the crushing loss of death and through it all they are still fighting the good fat fight through all of life's ups and downs. They are weight loss blogger rock stars.

I really wanted to get a picture of the machine showing 99 minutes but the machines at my gym are set at a 60 minute max with a 10 minute cool down so I had to do 70 minutes and then continue on for another 29.02 for a total of 99.02 minutes!!! I did it at a lower fat burning intensity instead of the high cardio because I reasoned if I was going to go the distance it would probably be a good idea to slow it down a little.

*Do the math. It adds up to 99:02 minutes, 814 calories and 5.87 miles. Not too shabby, huh?

Everyone is always looking for motivation to get off their ass and lose the fat they've been dragging around but it's not about motivation, it's about accepting that there is no magic to weight loss. Anyone can do it. They are everywhere. You've seen them around. They've been on tv, they've written books, they've let us into their lives through their blogs. There are so many good examples - Sean Anderson at Daily Diary of a Winning Loser, Diane at Fit to the Finish, Lori at Finding Radiance, Cammy at the Tippy Toe Diet, Jennette, the one and only PastaQueen, Shauna, the Amazing DietGirl, they all did it and so can you and I.

They aren't keeping a big secret from the rest of us. They've showed us how they did it and have been telling us how to do it for years. It's not magic, they just did what it takes. It's not all about a diet of rabbit food and denial, it's about living a healthy lifestyle. Eat healthy foods, enjoy not so healthy foods in moderation and get out and move your ass, it's no big secret. Stop watching so much tv and take a hike, take the stairs instead of the elevator, just keep moving. We all know that right? The question is "how bad do you want it?" Do you want to do what it takes or eat that cake? Do you want to watch tv all night or work up a sweat? It's a choice.

After 99 minutes on the elliptical machine I was a total sweaty mess. If you don't believe me, keep an eye on Jen's blog where she's threatening to post all the sweaty pictures of everyone who participated. There's still time to join the challenge. Get out and do 60 or 99 minutes. Make the choice to get out and get healthy.

I celebrated 4/20 this year by getting high on endorphins and spreading Bob Marley's message of peace, love and all that other other good stuff.

Love the life you live,

Live the life you love.

- Bob Marley

Celebrate 4/20 today by getting high on endorphins! Peace out.

P.S.

I'm sad to say I may have lost a few followers by admitting I enjoy smoking the peace pipe on occasion. I'm sorry if I offended anyone but I'm not going to lie about who I am. After my last post I did learn that 4/20 is the Evil Adolf's birthday so maybe they thought I was celebrating his birthday and they were offended by that or maybe I just bore them, who knows. Anyway, just to clarify, I was not celebrating the birth of one of the most evil men in history, I was referring to the 4/20 stoner holiday.