Week in Review - Ode to Friends

I started out the week unable to hear anything out of my right ear.  The docs on call doctor said it was as if I had been flying or as if I had just driven through the mountains.  I said, "I know - now what can you do about it?"  I had no cold, maybe a slight ear infection, no congestion."  It was weird.  I was on an antibiotic, but if I walked right past you this week and you said, hi - chances are I never heard you.

On Monday morning we met with Suzanne for our semi-private NLP session at Golds.  Leave it to Suzanne to come up with new exercises to us.   After this workout, I went and met with Ryan and went over my schedule for the week and my eating from the past week.  Monday evening I went and did 45 minutes of Kickboxing.

On Tuesday morning we met with Suzanne again for our semi-private NLP.   Then I came back to Golds at 5:00 p.m. with Nancy and Tori for a workout with Semaj.  We did the rower, the sled, wall balls and the ropes for 30 minutes.  This was us after 30 minutes.  They absolutely love when I take their picture - especially with the sweat dripping off of our faces.

Nancy, Semaj, me and Tori

We then moved on to Jacob's Ladder, planking and TRX rows for the last 30 minutes.  I grabbed a shake, ran home, changed shirts and picked up my neigbor Kate and we headed to Core Wellness in the Park.  This has turned out to be a really fun time with a new group of friends and we are all enjoying it.  My friend made this photo collage from the night.  The instructor Robyn was standing on my feet while I did sit ups and she kept trying to get a picture and it would never take at the right time.  So I sat up and held until she got a good picture.  It makes me smile every time I see it. 

Core Wellness group

Wednesday all I needed to do was 30 minutes of Cardio on my own and then I did 100 pullups (because we haven't done them since Ryan left Golds).  I headed home after that to spend the day with my husband as we celebrated 25 years of marriage.

100 pullups

Thursday - MARS (Martial Arts Research Systems) said we could bring a friend for free to Kickboxing.  I asked how many friends can I bring?  As many as I'd like.  So on Thursday, I worked out with Semaj again at Golds from 5-6 and then hightailed it down to MARS to Kickboxing with my friends.  They appeased me and posed for a picture afterwards.  It was dress up night for Halloween and that is why Ryan is in costume.  (Sorry I forgot to tell you all about the cardio in between rounds and the ab workout at the end.  oops.)

Kickboxing with Patricia, Ashley, me, Miguel, Leonard,
Michael and Ryan

Friday we had an 8:00 am workout with Semaj and then a 5:30 p.m. kickboxing workout.  I am so happy that Nancy joined kickboxing with me and that Patricia was already a member.  It's a really fun workout.

Nancy, me and Patricia H.

I had gone back to the doctor on Thursday and seen my doctor.  She told me to take a prescription nose spray, a Claritin, a Pepcid (antacid - but it has antihistamine in it) and Motrin.  She said take them all at once.  That worked.  I am 95% better now.  So I should be able to hear you at the gym now. 

I truly am thankful for all of my friends!

It's Almost As If Ryan Knows What He's Doing - Joe says to me (w/sarcasm)

Monday - weigh in day!  Let's go back a week.  Last Monday, the scale stayed exactly the same.  That is frustrating when you have eaten all the right foods and exercised your butt off.  I did my Monday morning workout and then headed to Ryan's place of employment to meet with him.  He looked at the weigh in results and then adjusted my workout schedule to about half of what I had been doing.

You have to understand that in my heart, I totally trust the guy.  But my head and my mouth sometimes take a while to catch up.  So all week, Joe (my son) would ask me "Are you going to the 4:00?"  I'd say, "No, Ryan cut me back!" and I'd say it with some attitude.

So today I came home from meeting with Ryan and Joe asked me, "Are you going to the 4:00?"  I said, "No, Ryan cut me back AND I lost 2 pounds last week."  Joe's classic response ' "It's almost as if Ryan knows what he's doing."

Great weigh in results!  It's great doing less and seeing results.  And I absolutely am loving the kickboxing.  When we were kids, my dad bought us one of those Bozo the clown punching bags.

He put it in the garage and I loved punching the heck out of that clown.  You could punch him and he'd fall to the floor and then bounce back up.  It was a great way to get aggression out.  That's what kickboxing did for me this past week.  It was a difficult week transitioning to new things and kicking and punching the bag felt great.  My friend Nancy and my son Joe came with me and this picture was taken after the workout.  It WAS and IS a great workout.

After Kickboxing at MARS

So I did less at the gym.  I did two kickboxing classes.  I did one Core Wellness class and three friends came and tried Core Wellness with me. And I got a hard workout with the new trainer, Semaj.  And I had great weigh in results.  You can't beat that!

After our Pumpkin Core Wellness workout

So yes Joe, It does seem as if Ryan knows what he is doing.  (Thanks Ryan)

A Good Coach Will Make His Players See What They Can Be, Rather Than What They Are. Ara Parasheghian

This week has been a week of change; that is for certain.  I thought I would reflect on coaching for this blog post in my endeavor to keep posts positive.

If you are new to the blog, I'll let you know that I was a competitve swimmer since I was 9 years old.  I swam in college at which time I had three different coaches over the four years that I swam.  So I am accustomed to "change."

My freshman year, my coach was Jim.  I was a walk-on that year.  I had not been recruited to swim.  I simply walked on and asked if I could be on the team.  Jim had coached me once for about 6 months when I was 14.  I had tried AAU swimming for that 6 months and then I had stopped.  So up until this college time, I was mainly a summer swimmer only.  I did well my freshman year.  Jim and I got along well and he helped me improve immensely.  At the end of the year I was awarded the "Most Improved Swimmer" award.  That summer we found out that Jim had resigned his job as coach because he wanted to be a full time fireman.

My sophomore year my coach was Anne Goodman James.  This was 1980/81.  There were not a lot of women coaches at this time and the men on our team gave her a real hard time.  She brought two new things to the table -- motivational tapes that we listened to as a team and yoga that we did in the morning to stretch our muscles.  She was a fantastic coach and our women's team finished higher in our Conference Championships than we had ever had before.  She was the perfect coach for me that year as that was the year I lost my dad to cancer and she was able to connect with me emotionally and help me through that time.  However, her husband was a military man and she was only our coach for that one year.

My junior and senior year my coach was Mark.  Again another quality coach who helped me improve immensely.  He knew a lot about each one of us and he knew when we were having an "on" day or an "off" day.  He taught us to take care of each other as a team.

Each coach had a tremendous impact on my life.  Each year my coach was replaced on a one-on-one ratio.

Fast forward a lot of years and I would consider my "fitness" coaches to have been Ryan and Mana.  With their coaching, I have lost 55 pounds, gained self-confidence, seen fantastic health results, etc.  (all documented in past posts.)  They are no longer the "coaches" at the gym and instead of it being a one-on-one ratio, the two of them have been replaced (in our program) with five and possibly six coaches.  This is a transition in itself for me.  I am reworking what my fitness routine is looking like and trying to continue to work with just two and at the most three "coaches."  It's a little difficult for me to have multiple centers of reference.

One thing I am very excited about is the new trainer that was hired at Golds.  His name is Semaj and he moved here from Denver.  He is a power lifter, a motivator, an inspirational guy who takes a holistic approach to training.  His Facebook posts this week have inspired me and helped lift me out of funks.    I rearranged my schedule so that I could train with him Tuesday at 5:00 p.m.  It was just him and me at that time.  We talked and got to know each other for a few minutes and then we got to the workout.

For the first time in a VERY long time, I found myself looking at the clock at 5:30 and saying, "Oh my goodness, we still have 30 minutes to go."  It was an a$$ kicking in the best way.  He has the enthusiasm and inspiration of Ryan and the ability to push me outside of my comfort zone of Mana.  (Sorry for the comparison, Semaj.)   When the workout was over, he made sure I had his cell phone number and within 15 minutes of the workout, he was texting me to tell me I had done a great job.

I respond well to that kind of coaching!  I look forward to moving forward with him at Golds.  I believe that he will be able to extract the best out of me.

Semaj and me -- I was still smiling even after the workout.

To my friends who are being told that their progress was because of them and not their coaches, I call bullsh**.   Our coaches were an integral part of our progress!  A good coach will make his players see what they can be, rather than what they are!  We were blessed with good - no great - coaches.  They will be missed.  But now you need to find a way to move forward.  Continue on with the great progress you have been making.  What I'm doing may not be what works for you and that's okay.  We are all individuals and we all need something different.  But keep going!  I'll leave you with this.

How Do You Measure Success?

How do you measure success?  Some people think, "Oh if only I were rich, then I would be successful."  Others may think, "If only I were thin, that is the true measure of my success."  Here's what I think.  I was rich and I was thin and I was miserable.  I'm not saying that rich people and thin people are miserable.  I'm saying I was miserable.  I think the true measure of success for me is if I can help you be better than you were yesterday, if I can help you believe in yourself more, if I can help you see how truly special you are and that there is only one YOU in this world.  No one else is like you.  That is what truly puts a smile on my face at the end of the day. I had kind of lost this part of myself for awhile and I feel Ryan and Mana did this for me daily and reminded me of how to measure success.  They helped me believe in myself again bringing back to me my positive outlook on life.  You cannot attribute a dollar value to that, but it is the greatest feeling in the world.

As we all get ready for a new week (us with new trainers and Ryan and Mana with new jobs), I wanted to take this time to thank them again.  First a before and after picture of me.  This was before I started working out with them and then a photo from today.  You guys did this to me!!!!!  No seriously, I know I did the work, but you gave me the work to do and you both believed I could do it.

January 2016                             October 2016

A lot of times, Nancy, Jenna and I are complimented on how strong we are.  That kind of goes in one ear and out the other for me as I have nothing to compare this so-called strength to.  I know swimming and swimming analogies, but I do not know weight lifting analogies much.   I could sit here and write you about how much we deadlift, or how much we row, or how much we chest press, or how much we bench press - but I wouldn't know if that was strong or not.  And if it is, I wouldn't want to brag.  So let's just show you what both Mana and Ryan thought would be a fun "last" workout with us.  The one on the left was from Mana and was Thursday night at 4, and the one on the right was Ryan and was Friday night at 4.

So let's just break it down.  Thursday night there were three of us.  As a team we had to run 2 miles, do 300 push ups, 150 pull ups, 500 mountain climbers, 200 deadlifts (at 135 pounds), 300 LM Rows (sorry I don't know what LM means), and 100 burpees.  On Friday night there were four of us.  As a team we had to Row 2000 meters, do 1000 rope slams, 500 squats, 250 pushups (ON MY TOES), 125 overhead presses, 100 burpees, 100 wall balls, and 50 sled pushes.

This might be why we are perceived as strong.  I don't know.  Sometimes I think they love these workouts because it brings them great joy to watch us and secondly because we can't talk much when we are trying to get it done.  Let's just say Nancy, Joe, and I were pretty dang sore by Saturday - but it was a great sore.

Ryan - thank you for moving forward with me.  I'll see you at those weekly meetings.  I also hope to fine tune my frisbee golf skills and maybe our family will get a round of frisbee golf in with you next spring.  Mana -- you won't be rid of us.  We'll make sure of that.  I'm already looking for places where you and Joe can continue with your racquetball lessons.

Please know that in my eyes, you two ARE successful.  We are just one family and you have impacted our lives for a lifetime.  So going forward, define success on your own terms, achieve it by your own rules, and build a life you're proud to live!

Hasta la vista, baby!

Trying New Things -- Kickboxing

Patty - 3rd grade

Never in a million years did I think I would walk through the doors of a Martial Arts & Kickboxing business.  And yet I did!  My son Joe and I attended our first ever kickboxing class, last night.

Before I go forward, allow me to go back in time a bit.   In 1969  I was in 3rd grade at St. Johns Catholic School in the Bay Area of California.  My teacher was Sister Mary Mercy.  I'm not so sure I had much fear in my life up until this point.  However, in California at this time there was a notorious killer called the Zodiak killer.  His prey was school children.  So EVERY day, Sister Mary Mercy would release us at the end of the day and say, "Beware of the Zodiak killer!"  I was scared to death every day walking home with my friends.  It did teach us to be aware of our surroundings, but that fear stayed with me for a long time as you will see.

Before I started the 12 week challenge (before Jan 2016), I would want to go for walks in the neighborhood for exercise, but I was literally afraid to do so.  I had fear and I had NO self-confidence.  (That may be hard for some of you to believe as I am quite sassy these days.)  I would go for a walk IF my husband Dave would go with me.

I remember in the spring of 2016 (when the weather had warmed some and I had lost some weight), I started venturing out on walks by myself.  I actually have neigbors that will tell mutual friends, "I saw Patty walking last night.  She's losing all kinds of weight."  I remember mentioning to Ryan that I had been sooooo afraid to walk by myself and he said something like "with your weight loss, you are gaining confidence."  I was gaining confidence, but I still was always aware of my surroundings and I always ran through my head my exit plan if anything was to happen.  But I also knew I was getting pretty dang strong and I could fend for myself better.  This may sound silly coming from a 55 year old, but old fears die hard.

So, Ryan is now going to be teaching kickboxing at MARS.  So I was like, "what the heck."  I'll sign up for a trial of 3 classes and see what I think.  My son Joe was totally into it too, so he came with me.

As I listened to Gina instruct the class, I began to see this was much more than just a cardio workout.  This was a form of self-defense and that actually got me pretty excited about what I was learning.  I am always striving to grow and stretch myself and putting myself in a kickboxing class was definitely doing that, but to realize the benefit to my life-- that was like frosting on the cake.

Another really cool benefit is how it strengthens my hips.  When I started the 12 week challenge in January 2016, my hips popped out of place daily.  By March, they were pretty stable.  The whole movement of kickboxing involves your hips and strengthens your hips.  For me, that is a HUGE benefit.

I know the owner of the gym and I asked her how she would explain Kickboxing, because I had no idea it would be this awesome.  This is what she said--  "One way to look at it is a bag-pounding, sweat-pouring, stress-relieving workout program while learning moves that will Skyrocket confidence and learning a few self-defense techniques along the way.  It also helps in strengthening muscle, in flexibility and in mobility. I also believe that it is great and helpful for people of all ages and of all abilities."

I concur!  And friends, Mr. Shigematsu (AKA Mana) will be teaching here as well.  Mana will be working with the kids.

They have a great trial program if anyone wants to try kickboxing with me.  3 sessions for 19.99 and you get a pair of boxing gloves thrown in. There are morning and evening classes.   I signed up via their website -  http://www.grandjunctionmartialarts.com/index.php.

Big thanks again to Mana and Ryan for instilling some confidence back into me.  I've come a long way since January in that category.  There may be times you are sorry you did that for me as I have a hard time shutting up, but all and all the confidence is a great benefit to my life!

From the Champ to Ryan R. Teal

-

Ryan's green "uniform" shirt - boy he took a lot of flack for that shirt.

The way I feel about Ryan R. Teal can be summed up in 6 words – he added years to my life.  I feel like this entire blog is a tribute to what Ryan has done for me, so I want to approach this post from a slightly different angle.   (Check out the following posts to see how Ryan has helped me – Thank you Ryan—April 11, 2016, Essay Written for 12 Week Challenge, Blood Tests Don’t Lie, and Alive at 55 and 55 pounds Lighter—It’s a Good Day)

Many of you who have followed the blog know that my husband Dave and my son Joe have done NLP with me since the beginning (Aug/Sept 2015).  They have built their own relationships with Ryan and they too are going to miss seeing him every day.  Ryan liked to call Joe – “Honest Joe.”  Joe’s the only honest one.  What number are we on, Joe?  Did your mom do all her reps, Joe?  We will probably continue to tease Joe about this for a long time.

 

Dave – well we all know how much Dave loved the alley and alley sprints.  I learned the terms “hard pass” and “tapping out” from watching Dave’s relationship with Ryan.

However, I haven’t talked much about our youngest son, Ben.  Ben is 14.  He can pretty much eat anything he likes and not gain a pound.  So in his mind, why does he need to work out?   He was not interested in the least with joining NLP with us.  His love is the computer (that he built).   

As I got to know Ryan better, I asked him if he would be willing to train Ben on a one-on-one basis.  As a trainer, he wanted to know what I was looking to get out of it.  To start, I just wanted to get Ben away from his computer, get him a little bit of exercise, and provide him with someone who could act as a big brother to him, someone Ben could feel free to open up with and complain about his day or whatever.  (I was that person for some of my nieces as they grew up.)  And thus it began.

Ben doing a box jump  (actually posing for a picture after his box jump.

At first Ben was NOT into it at all, but he did enjoy the time with Ryan.  It got to a point where Ben would ask, “Is today training with Ryan?”  I would cautiously answer, “Yes, why?”  I was thinking he was going to say, “I don’t want to go” but it was quite the opposite, he was happy to go.   Ben would come straight from school to the gym pretty much and so a lot of times, he would talk Ryan’s ear off about school while they trained.  I don’t know a lot of what they talked about because I told them they could keep it private unless it was something I needed to know.  But I do know that Ben complained to Ryan about having to wear a uniform to school and how he thought that was lame, etc.   Well, Ryan has to wear a “uniform” to work and he told Ben sometimes he doesn’t always like that, but he does it—thus relating what he’s learning in school to real life.  (Look no further than the first photo on this post.)

There were many life lessons imparted to Ben in those sessions.  One time Ben had made a poor decision and I had let Ryan know about it privately.  It turns out Ben opened up to Ryan all about it and again Ryan was able to help guide him if you will.  So, Ryan.  It turns out just last week a group of kids at school invited Ben to partake in some illegal activities during lunch on the field at the school.  Ben declined!  Hallelujah!  Those kids were caught and expelled.  I believe you have helped us help him and I am thankful for that.

Ben is on Fall Break right now.  Yesterday I drove him 30 minutes to the Redlands to his friend’s house.  Ben and his friends rode their bikes all the way from that house in the Redlands to our house.  That’s insane.  He would have never been able to do that if he had not trained with you.  He’s not even complaining about being sore.   He actually did this again today.

Ben's friends did not want their photo taken - so I was sent a photo of the bike!

I personally do not know another trainer that could relate to him so well and so our hope is Ben can continue with Ryan somehow – even if it’s to meet at a park and train sometime.  Ben is building Ryan a desktop computer for payment.  So it’s a win-win the way I see it.

Look what came in the mail today!

Look who almost has it all together already.

Ryan R. Teal you will be on our Christmas card list for life!  We can never thank you enough for all that you have done for us.

In case some of you don’t navigate back to the posts I mention above, let me just say that from Day 1, Ryan has called me “Champ” or “Champion.”  Even when I was 276 pounds and couldn’t do a push up for the life of me, at the end of our classes, he would say “See you later, Champ.”  In his correspondence to me throughout the months, he addressed me as Champ.  I didn’t feel like a champion, but eventually you begin to believe it.  

Ryan believed in me from Day One!

Now, at this stage of your life, Ryan.  I believe in YOU.

Specifically with the nutrition help he has given me EVERY WEEK since January 18, I have lost 55 pounds, the airplane seat belt fits me now, my blood pressure is normal and I am off all blood pressure medicine, my Rheumatoid Arthritis is no longer in the high inflammation category, it is in the lowest of low category, he helped me get within the correct weight to be able to enjoy a helicopter ride with my family on a recent trip to Alaska, he got me in the swimming pool again as I was a collegiate swimmer and he encouraged me to swim a meet – first time in over 30 years.  He taught me that eating is okay, in fact it was very necessary.  That one I still struggle with.  And with his encouragement I have written those progress reminders on 5x7 cards that I keep with me all the time lest I get discouraged.  Like I said in the first paragraph – he has helped me add years to my life!

I count myself fortunate because Ryan and I have a goal, he has agreed to still meet with me once a week (payment for now is that computer Ben’s building.).  I believe we will meet that goal and surpass it. 

Dude – all I can say here to close this out is THANKS!

Manaman - AKA Mana Shigematsu

I told you it would be a week of posts.  Our two favorite trainers are leaving Gold's Gym this week and our family will miss them both very much as will many other gym participants.  Mana's last day is Thursday, so I wanted to devote a post to him.

I'll have to start out by saying that I trusted Mana with my son's life and recovery from scoliosis surgery.  As soon as Joe was cleared to be back in the gym, Joe wanted back in the gym.  Joe's trainer was Zach, but Zach moved out of state after a few weeks of Joe being back in the gym.  We were referred to Mana.  Joe can be a pretty quiet kid and sometimes (emphasis on sometimes) Mana can be a pretty quiet trainer.  But they hit it off.  As your children grow up, they ask their parents to take a step back - so I did.  I took a step back and let the two of them work together.

I want to share a few before pictures - before that day we met Mana.

Spine - before picture

Right before surgery

Just 6 months before we met Mana, Joe was training his new straightened body how to walk.  Walks to the mailbox tired him out immensely.

As a mother, respect and trust needed to be built between Mana and me, so that I felt 100% confident that my son was in good hands.  That is exactly what happened.  Joe enjoyed being with Mana and Mana has made that boy STRONG! His spine doctor and his family doctor have recently seen him for check ups and they are both very impressed with how strong Joe is and how well he is doing.  I attribute a lot of that success to Mana's working relationship with Joe.  Sure Joe did the work, but Mana guided it.   It will take time for me to build that trust with someone new.

Another really cool thing is that Mana taught Joe how to play racquetball.  Now Joe LOVES racquetball.  Even when Mana was recovering from shoulder surgery, he would play left-handed racquetball with Joe.  It's the little things like that, that make me respect and appreciate him even more.

Look how good Joe looks -- Can't thank you enough, Mana!

As much as Mana was helping Joe, Mana scared me.  I did NOT like working out with him and I went through a period of time where I avoided his workouts.  It wasn't that he was mean or rude or anything like that.  He just always tried to push me harder and further than my mind thought was possible.  So I stayed away.   When I finally began to believe in myself a little bit, I slowly started going back to the classes Mana ran.  Let me tell you between Mana and Ryan, they have made me STRONG!

This morning was a leg workout with Mana (for me).  Just a few months back an orthopaedic doctor told me I had "runners knee" and that it would never get better.  Thankfully my physical therapist and my trainers thought otherwise and we rehabbed my knee.  Today we were doing a leg press and Mana had set the weight at 200 pounds for my workout partner.  Mana then left to set up an exercise for the other two girls.  So my partner did the leg press and then I did the leg press.  I was like, "COOL - only 200 pounds - piece of cake."  Well if you remember I posted previously about a trainers 6th sense.  Somehow he knew it was time to come check in and after I had done 12 of 15 reps in my 2nd set, he made me put the weight down and put the weight on 260.  I had to start over.  Actually 260 wasn't too bad either, but I swear I didn't say anything out loud.   BOOM - up to 300 pounds.  Thanks Mana.  If I dare to say out loud, "I can't even get it started."  His response is, "That's because you're pushing with your toes, not your heels."  Oh yeah, how many times have I heard that one?

leg press

300 pounds - push with your heels!

Mana assist with a squat - take that orthopaedic doctor!

I am not sure where Mana will end up, but wherever it is in life, he will be successful.  If he continues with personal training somewhere, we will be seeking him out.  He has changed our lives for the better and we will miss seeing him at the gym everyday.  I'll especially miss that cup of coffee he always seems to think I need first thing in the morning.

Manaman85 OUT!

PS.  This is a note from Mana to all of us he's had the pleasure to train:

I don't want any gifts or words of gratitude or anything like that. I just want all of them to know that I always wanted every single one of them to reach their goal. And I truly believed they all could hit their goals no matter what they were. I never did my job for the pay bonuses or to be "top dog". I wanted to show people that the only thing holding them back, were themselves; that they were capable of things they never thought possible. At the end of the day, I just wanted to be appreciated and respected by those around me.

Alive at 55 and 55 pounds lighter - It's a Great Day!

It was July of 1962 and I was a 9-month old baby girl crawling around on the kitchen floor when my 2- year old sister thought I might like to try a peanut (a Spanish peanut with the skin on.)  Due to a series of unfortunate events – no 911, fire department going to the wrong house, parents having to drive me to the doctor’s office, doctor having to do an emergency tracheotomy – and so forth and so on, I nearly did not make it to 10 months old.   My sisters remember all the different meals the church/neighbors brought over (for 30 days); my mom remembers the doctor sleeping in the room next to mine and praying for me every day.  Our entire church, community, and medical team had me in their prayers as the doctor had given me up and placed me in God’s hands.  Needless to say, the prayers worked.  When they brought me home from the hospital, I had curly hair from the oxygen tent and a nice scar that would grow with my neck.

I think my big “Aha” moment in life came in July of 2011.  I was 49 years old and I was in California for my godmother’s recognition/memorial service.  My godfather was a man named Max Fisher and he had passed away when I was 12 years old. 

My godparents - Max and Betty Fisher and me

At this service, I met Max’s brother and his wife for the first time ever.  This woman stared at me, stared at my mom, stared at me and then with tears in her eyes she asked my mom, “Is this the peanut girl?  Is this the girl we prayed and prayed for?”  My mom said, “Yes it is!”  Then this woman looked at me and asked, “Can I hug you?”  I said, “Absolutely!”  I thanked her for all her prayers 48 years previous.  She asked for a photo together (which she must have because I do not.)  The moment felt surreal as I had heard my whole life about those who had prayed for me, but I had never met someone who recalled it so vividly to me.

Max's brother and wife - thanks for the prayers!

It was also at this time [July 2011] that I began experiencing joint pain.  It would actually take until February of 2012 for the diagnosis of Rheumatoid arthritis and the treatment (prednisone – for 10 months.)  During this time my blood pressure skyrocketed as did my weight.  I just kept adding more prescribed medications to my regiment.  I began to think that I would not see 53 years old (as my dad had only lived to 53.)  I thought back to this woman saying – “Can I hug you?  Oh darling we prayed and prayed and prayed for you.”  And I thought WHAT AM I DOING?

I began unloading responsibilities slowly.  I was working 2 full time jobs.  I was running a Bible fellowship with my husband twice a week in our home.  I was writing the school newsletter and heading up the school parent club.  I was helping with chess club with the other boy’s school.  I was the treasurer for my daughter’s swim team.  I obviously had a lot of trouble with the word NO.  I slowly began to unload responsibilities so that I could get to the point of putting myself and my health first.

I had tried numerous weight loss programs throughout the years with absolutely no success.  But I was ready to start trying again in the summer of 2014.  Then “BOOM” we found out that our son had scoliosis and he had it bad.  That surgery/recovery took us to May of 2015.  That is when we both walked back into Gold’s gym determined to get stronger and fitter.

I don’t know what series of events brought Ryan Teal to Gold’s gym at that time, but I do believe our paths crossed for a reason.  After my many, many failed attempts to lose the weight, he offered to help me and he believed in me from day one.  He put in a lot of his own time to go over my nutrition weekly and write me a weekly plan.  Today I am 55 years old and with Ryan’s help I have lost 55 pounds since January 18.   

Ryan is way smarter than me.  He's trying to explain the FICK equation.

I told him I would think of him for the rest of my life every year on my birthday and this is why.  With his help, I have lost 55 pounds, I am off all blood pressure medicines and my blood pressure is normal, my rheumatoid arthritis has decreased significantly, and I feel great.   I have now outlived my father and my mom is still going strong at 87 and I feel confident I will be going strong when I am 87.  My husband and I are about to celebrate our 25^th wedding anniversary and I now believe we will celebrate a 50^th wedding anniversary as well. 

Dave and I - pre birthday dinner

So it’s my birthday and I am celebrating by LIVING!    

Shows the curly hair a little better.  They think it was because of the oxygen tent I was in for 30 days.

Feliz Cumpleaños, Marivel!

  Fasten your seat belt and get ready for a ride.  It’s going to be a week of posts.  Today is my friend’s birthday and I am going to devote a post to her.

In the spring of 2007, my daughter was in 6^th grade and Marivel’s daughter was in 8^th grade.  We all four attended a New York City “music department inspired” field trip.  My daughter had paid extra to have two to a room for her and her friend.  Her friend ended up not going and Jessica needed a room to stay in.  She was put in with Marivel’s daughter and two other 8^th grade girls.  Thus began my relationship with Marivel.  We (parent chaperones) were not allowed to chaperone our own children and we were kept busy from 6 am to 11 pm every day.  It was on this very field trip that I decided I did not ever want to be a chaperone again.   I was overweight and out of shape and I just could not keep up.  We’d walk like 2 miles into the center of Central Park, take a photo, and then immediately walk back to the bus.

Angie on the left and Jessica's other roommates

Me and Jessica

Fast forward to the summer of 2015.  Our son Joe was in high school.  Marivel’s son Jason was in high school.  They had both signed up for a trip to Europe.  Marivel’s family (minus the older girl) and Joe and his dad were all on this trip together.  They all hung out a lot together and ate meals together and Marivel was sharing with my husband Dave all about their successful weight loss with the NLP program at Gold’s gym.

In August of 2015, Joe and I started with the NLP program at Gold’s gym.  This is when I saw what a loyal friend, Marivel could be.  She was “on fire” about her own success and she wanted to motivate and help me.  She literally changed her entire workout schedule at times so that she could attend the same NLP class that I did.   I didn’t really know anyone and she wanted to make sure I was comfortable. 

By December of 2015, she kept telling me about this trainer who wanted to help me win the 12 week challenge that Gold’s put on.  I kind of just kept blowing her off.  I had actually wanted to enter the challenge a few years previous and a trainer had actually told me not to, because I wouldn’t do well.  If you don’t know Marivel, let me tell you that she can be persistent.  We became texting buddies late at night and she kept planting that bug in my ear.  “Ryan wants to help you.”  “Ryan thinks you can win.”  “You should talk to Ryan.”  GEEZE woman – okay then!  I talked to Ryan and the rest is history (or at least the rest is this blog. Haha)

Marivel, I will forever be thankful for how God just worked it out for our paths to cross at the right time and for your ever-loving doggone persistence to get me to talk to Ryan.  Here I am 53 pounds lighter and 9 years older than when I chaperoned that NY trip and I’m thinking – I could chaperone a trip again.  I’d probably kick ass now if I had to march in and out of Central Park for a photo.

I love you girl!  Happy Birthday!