Accountability...it's a BEACH!

Allright ladies. The countdown has begun. What countdown you say? No, not that one. The one that MOST brides think about is the countdown to their wedding day…and that’s not the one that I’m referring to. I’m referring to the weight loss countdown.

Yep, I said it. I just ordered a size 8 bridal dress, and even though the girls at the shop assure me that the dress will fit when it gets here in 8 more weeks (give or take), I really don’t want to risk it. Plus, when trying on the dress, there were certain aspects of my body that I wasn’t exactly pleased with. Not that I’m grossly obese or heavily overweight, but still I can be honest and say that I could use some toning and trimming.

Enter Mr. CC. He’s a Marine. (Yes, he’s still a Marine even though he’s actually not in the USMC anymore…don’t get me started!) So he takes his physical fitness VERY seriously. Now, with that being said, he’ll be the first one to tell you that since his release from the USMC he’s let that area of his life get a little lax shall we say. So, with both of being disgusted at the thought of putting on swimsuits this year we made a pact.

We WILL start working out and taking care of ourselves so that by the time the wedding rolls around, we both feel good about how we look.

To be perfectly honest, although loss of weight would be nice, it’s not my actual goal here. I want to fit into my clothes again (Barbie doll size or not!) and I want them to fit well. I don’t want them to be tight, I don’t want them to leave marks at the waistline. I want to be able to wear all the clothes in my closet – not that ALL of my clothes SHOULD be worn (I know there are things that need to go to Goodwill!) but having the option to wear them should I choose is what I’m after.

More than likely, during this process, I will lose weight. But I’m more interested in the inches shed. I want to be tone and yes, a little bit buff, a lot more than I want to be a certain weight. Muscle carries weight, so if to get toned and trimmed I initially lose weight and then gain it back I’m ok with that as long as I’m gaining tone and definition and more muscles, not lose and jiggly fat.

Because let’s be honest ladies – the jiggle is NOT pretty. And I’ve got some jiggle right now to be perfectly honest.

And since everyone knows that it’s easier to have a work out buddy (or a trainer) Mr. CC and I have agreed to do this together. He shopped around for a fitness program that we could both do at our various levels and he decided that our tool to get us into the shape that we want to be in was this program called P90X. We ordered it two weeks ago, it got here this past week, and we’re ready to begin. Except that in our enthusiasm to do something, we went about it a little bit wrong.

What we should have done was sit down, read the book that clearly said “Read Me FIRST!” and made sure that we were ready for the hard-core intensity of these workouts. We should have followed along in the book to see what tools that we would need to have ready and available in order to meet our fitness goals. And then there is the all dreaded before shots. Yep, pictures, weights and measurements need to be taken so that you can clearly see where you started and how much progress you’re making along the way.

The program is a 90-day program consisting of 12 various workouts. And apparently there’s an order to the workouts, since we randomly chose one that didn’t require the tools that we didn’t have handy the day that we decided to start this whole thing and that program just about killed us. Yeah, it was an hour long workout…we lasted for 20 minutes. And could barely move the next day. And yesterday was even worse. I swear that with every single step that I took a curse word was either muttered out loud or screamed loudly throughout my head…lots of curse words.

So last night, we decided to be smart about our workouts. Better late than never, right? We outlined our plan, picked our days on and off for the week so that we know we’ll be consistent, purchased all the tools that we need to do the workouts and made a commitment to do this. We also did something that I’ve never done before. We went to GNC. Now, Mr. CC being a Marine, he’s been down this road before where you take supplements to help your workout. Miss CC has never done this, and to be frank, I’m not sure that I’ve ever been in a GNC before…

There is a whole world out stuff out there that you can take. Sure, they carry regular vitamins and holistic medicines, but the bulk of GNC’s business comes from their work-out supplements. There are pills and shakes and drink mixes that you can take that can help your workouts. Now, I didn’t live in a plastic bubble for the bulk of my life, so I knew that there were shakes and protein drinks that guys took when they wanted to bulk up. What I didn’t know was that there were other reasons to take these things besides building mass to your muscles.

There are actually drinks and shakes and mixes out there that help your muscles heal. There are things that you can take that promote calorie burning, that encourage your muscles to burn the fat cells attached to them. There are things that you can take to boost your energy and give your workout a new level once you might reach a peak. I just didn’t know about all of this. So when Mr. CC started talking about supplements, I have to admit to being skeptical. But once we visited the store and he showed me what he was talking about, I began to see what he was talking about. As you work out, there are things that your body needs that you might or might not get from your daily food intake. These things can help your body adjust to the workouts that you’re starting and actually promote the muscle healing process (and since I was still muttering curse words under my breath when I climbed any type of step, I was ALL about the healing muscle stuff!).

This has just opened up a whole new world for me. I’ve worked out before to lose weight or trim my waistline, but I’ve never worked out with someone who knew what they were doing. In fact, I don’t know that I’ve ever worked out like this with a buddy. There were friends that took the same kickboxing or aerobics classes, but that’s all that we did. It wasn’t like this where I’m accountable to someone. We’ve made ourselves be open and honest with each other about what we want to accomplish and how we each plan to get there (he’s cutting carbs for 30 days and I won’t even TALK about cutting out pasta!) and the lines of communication are open and free flowing.

And I’m excited about this! I see that this could bring a new level to our relationship. We’re learning how to set goals together and accomplish those goals through research, dedication, hard work and persistence. We’re going to be each other’s cheer leader to encourage good choices on the hard days. And if need be, we’ll be each other’s support when our legs won’t carry us up the stairs to our bedroom! Whatever is needed.

Thank you Mr. CC for doing this with me. I truly appreciate it and am excited to start our workouts tonight.

And tonight the moment of truth comes in. Yes ma’am. It’s picture night. We’ll take our “Before” shots, step on the scales and whip out the tape measure. We’ll record these stats and do the weighing and measuring on a weekly basis (Mondays) and we’ll take new pictures at the first of each month to note our progress. So just to add one more level of accountability to myself, I’m going to share this information with you, my readers. I know that you’ll be excited for me too as I start this process to looking my best and feeling my best on my wedding day.

And to be honest, I started this process two weeks ago when I ordered my dress. So, I’ll share with you what little I have done to this point, and you can bear with me and watch me “bloom” with our new workouts and follow my progress. The morning after I placed the order for my dress, I weighed in at 158 pounds. After two weeks of watching what I eat, cutting out sodas, and trying not to eat as much sweets…I was down three pounds when I weighed myself over the week. Not a lot, but something at the same time.

Tonight we’ll get an official number to go with, and start working on this in earnest. Wish me luck, and I’ll be sure to keep you posted – although the pictures might be kept private as I’m SURE there are just some things that your friends DON’T need to see!