Day 24 - Wednesday, January 5, 2011

My shin still hurts this morning, but not as bad as yesterday.  I decided to take a hike around the town of Ivins rather than go with the van.  If my leg hurts too much, I can go back to the gym & ride the bike or go on the elliptical.  I ended up not needing to come back to the gym early.  In the afternoon, I switched between the bike & the elliptical with no pain.  Of course later someone pointed out to me that I would burn significantly more calories on the elliptical as opposed to the bike.  Gee, I wish I had thought about it sooner because I would have spent more time on the elliptical.

After our mountain cardio class, I was asked to join two other women in a...

JAIL BREAK!!

Who me?  I am such a rule follower that at first, I had my doubts...but then I heard the reason & I was on board for the break out!!  Our dinner was Salmon & Couscous & it was a total of 600 calories.  The driver (who was not a fan of salmon) looked online & found out that Applebee's has a good selection of meals under 550 calories!  Cool!!  She wrote down the calories of several selections & we were on our way.  I don't think I have ever anticipated a trip to Applebee's before!!  I don't know that I have enjoyed a meal as much at Applebee's!

Here is a photo of my meal:

Signature Sirloin with Garlic Herb Shrimp


As the calorie count for these fabulous meal was only 500 calories (not sure how they did it, but they did!), we still had 100 calories left to equal what we would have gotten back at the resort.  Hmmm...what should we do??  Apparently in secret conversations, it has become known that there is a frozen yogurt place in St. George that has been visited by some other guests...I'm not telling who!  We saw it on the way to Applebee's & determined if our calorie count was still less than 600, we would pay it a visit on the way back. 

It is a self-serve yogurt place...yep, they let you operate the machine yourself...with numerous flavors of frozen yogurt & lots of toppings.  I got 4 ounces of red velvet frozen yogurt, which was one of their "guilt-free" choices and according to the website below, it was a whopping 32 calories!!!  And it was DELICIOUS on top of it!!

http://www.only8frozenyogurt.com/only8nutritional.html

If I was looking for a franchise opportunity, I would certainly consider this one!!

http://kraveyogurt.com/

So, I was a rebel with a cause...and I ended up eating 532 calories at Applebee's & Krave...had I stayed at the resort, I would have had 600 calories!

Mitzi

Here are some photos from my hike today:

Day 23 - Tuesday, January 4, 2011

As I got out of bed this morning, the shin really started to hurt with every step.  I was soooooo mad!  I do NOT like shin splints (of course, who would??)  I talked to one of the trainers & she suggested I stay in the gym instead of going on the hike.  That meant I was going to miss the assessment hike.  Usually the first hike of the week is when they figure out which van to place you in for the hikes.  They try to keep people who go around the same speed together.  I have not been pleased with my van placement, but each week has its own different set of circumstances.  My goal for this week was to move up to a van with more challenging hikes.  Of course, now all chances of that would be dashed...

I stayed in the gym & burned a lot of calories, but missed being outside.  In the afternoon, during one of the cardio classes, one of the trainers pointed out that each of us determine how hard we are going to work & she mentioned it didn't matter what van you were in.  I got to thinking about that & I realized that I was getting too wrapped up in the number (hmmm...me, conerned about a number??  Never...).  It doesn't really matter which van I am in because if I am in front, one of the guides will always be with me. There are usually 3 guides with each van -one in the front, middle & back.  I came to terms & realized that I didn't have to prove anything to the hiking guides or myself.  Lesson learned...get over the van assignment...just give it my all!

Day 22 - Monday, January 3, 2011

It snowed overnight here & there was more snow than the other few dustings...but nothing like the snow we get at home!  The hikes this morning were either in town or to Anasazi Ridge (which is just behind the resort).  I chose the latter of the two hikes & it looked quite different with snow!  I enjoyed hiking in the snow - it's better than the rain or sleet & it isn't inside one of the numerous machines!!

On the way back from my hike, I noticed the shin on my left leg started to hurt.  No big deal, there always a few places that kind of groan with use.  I went on about my day, but in the afternoon classes, the shin really hurt when I was on the treadmill.  I tried the elliptical & the recumbent bike & I didn't have any problems, so I stuck with those.

Good day overall, but the shin thing was bugging me...

Here are some photos from our snowy hike today:

 The river below was flooded 2 weeks ago after ONE WEEK of solid rain!

 Note how well you can see the hiking guide in the neon green jacket!

 Here are some more petroglyphs:

Day 21 - January 2, 2011

I was able to add some photos to my blog today.  Still can't believe it took me as long as it did, but that is another story!  Please scroll down & see the new photos (starting from 12/13)!  There are some shots from some the hikes that I have taken and also there are some menu photos to show what it is that they are feeding us everyday.

Tonight a big group of newbies has joined us.  Last week, the stayover guests outnumbered the newbies...but not tonight.  In the past four weeks, there has been no one else from my state, although there have been a few from my home state.  Seems to be a number of Canadians & Texans this week...

My thigh feels fine & I am ready to start my final week!  Gonna burn a lot of calories, go on some challenging hikes & learn as much as I can!

Here's the menu for the day:

Day 20 - January 1, 2011

Happy New Year!

This morning I went on a hike called Lower Gella.  This was the one someone warned me about yesterday.  I talked to one of the guides this morning & he said there was some moderate inclines & some declines, but nothing too much.  Okay, well his definition of "moderate" is certainly different than mine!!  Apparently it was somewhere around 7 miles.  It was a good hike & I really enjoyed it, but I wouldn't call it "moderate"!  Actually, I liked the rocks, sand & uneven surfaces.  Our group split into two groups and I was in the faster group, but I was the slowest.  Not a big deal to me, except I found it frustrating as they would leave as soon as I caught up to them!  On the way back, my foot stayed on a rock a little longer than it should have & I pulled my quad muscle as I climbed down from the rock.  Luckily after the hike we had a really good stretch class!  I put some ice on it this afternoon & I know it will be fine by Monday.  Actually that is the closest thing to an "injury" that I have had since I have been here.  Sore muscles, you bet...but no debilitating injuries!

I was talking with one of the guides on the way back today & I told her I want to do more hikes like the Lower Gella.  I want to be challenged more and be at the back of the group, rather than be in the front with an easier hike.  Last week, when I went on the 3rd Ravine hike, I was in front with the guide.  We were cruising along & then we would wait to make sure the others could see us.  One of the advantages of being in the front was that I got a couple of chances to catch my breath.

Earlier this week when I did the infamous "stop sign" hike, I had a guide with me for the last mile (by far the most difficult).  I told him to just keep telling me stories as I could not carry on any type of conversation.  He kept asking me if I wanted to stop & rest and I wanted to yell "NO!" but all I could do was shake my head vigorously.  He did a great job of distracting me while I kept going up the steep incline, but I wanted him to do was to walk a little faster, so I would challenge myself more.

We had the weekly graduation ceremony tonight & then we had karaoke night.  It was fun to sit back & listen to the songs & sing along WITHOUT a mike in front of me!

That's it for now...time for bed!

Here are some photos from my hike today:

Day 19 - Friday, December 31, 2010

Here's the menu from yesterday:

It's the last day of the year...and as we were reminded numerous times today...we have been living our new year's resolution all week...or 3 weeks in my case!

As it is Friday, it was yet another chance for ZUMBA!  I decided to give it another go...because if I didn't it meant another hour of cardio intervals!  It went a little better this week, but I confess that I was lost once she played the "I Played Chicken with a Train" song!!  Who knew?  There also seemed to be a latin version of the macarena dance in there as well.

I won't be up to celebrate New Year's here...gotta hike in the a.m.  Trying to decide which hike to do in the morning.  One is on pavement & I have done it 3 times already...so that is out.  Another is the infamous "stop sign" which I did earlier this week (1000 foot incline, it's very tough at the end).  The other sounded interesting as there are some rocks involved...guess I need to ask around about that one.  One person's definition of tough is very different from another person's version.

My family gave me a gift certificate to get a massage, so I had my first one tonight!  It was WONDERFUL!  I now understand why everyone raves about them!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Mitzi

Day 16 - Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Another good day here at the resort!  It is past my bedtime, but here's a quick update of my day:

Calories burned (so far):  4431
Calories consumed:  1285
Steps taken (so far):  24,997
  **turns out my bodymedia thingy doesn't record steps if I am riding the bike!**

Here's the menu for the day:

Here was my schedule:

6:00 open gym - cardio workout on my own
7:00 breakfast
8:00 Hike  (found our 1st geocache in Utah today)
11:15 Free Weights Workshop
12:15 lunch
1:30 Rode bikes around local neighborhood!
2:30 Cardio Intervals (8 increases & then some sprints...basically sweat & try to breath!!)
3:30 Cardio Intervals (yes, a 2nd time...I wimped out on going to the pool...)
4:30 Total Toning (= hand weights + weighted bar + every imaginable way for us to work muscles all over our body)
5:30 Dinner
6:15 Discussion group

Gotta go get some sleep so I am ready to go again tomorrow!!

Mitzi

Here are some photos from my hike today:
In the middle on the far right, you will see a tiny green speck...that is one of the hiking guides with other guests that were behind us.  It may not look like it from here, but from where we are standing, it was a steep climb up out of the "bowl".

 Now the green speck of a hiking guide is in the lower middle part of the photo:

 The green speck & 2 navy ones are very difficult to see now in the center...so just admire the view!

 This rock formation is referred to as Whale's mouth...

 Look at all the different types of geography...amazing!

 This is probably one of my favorite photos...but it seems like the middle layer of green was greener and the lower layer of red rock was redder when I took the photo!