Happy Halloween!

I'm not a big fan of Halloween.  Never have been really.  Okay, maybe when I was a kid.  But even when I was raising Jeff, I didn't look forward to Halloween.

I'll never forget a conversation Jeff and I had when he was only about four or five.  We were walking through Wal-Mart and Jeff was admiring all the candy and costumes when he announced, "Halloween is my favorite holiday."

I immediately replied, "Halloween is NOT a holiday; it's a strange tradition."  At least two other moms within hearing distance snickered.

Fitness Challenge Week 2

WEEKLY POINTS
First of all, there are weekly points we can earn. This is a first for me, so I'm not sure of the exact purpose of the points. But they accumulate week to week and apparently we should accumulate as many as possible. This is how we accumulate points and these will remain constant from week to week.

1. Post a positive comment about yourself once a week. (2 pts/wk)  CHECK 2/2
2. Stay below 2,500 mg of sodium each day. (1 pt/day...5 pts/wk)  CHECK 4/5
3. Drink 64 oz each day. BONUS POINT for an additional 8 oz each day. (2 pts/day...10 pts/wk)  CHECK 8/10
4. Every 30 consecutive minutes of working out scores a point, up to 60 minutes. (2 pts/day...10 pts/wk)  CHECK 9/10
5. Complete the weekly Challenge. (3 pts/wk)  CHECK 3/3
6. Every 25 full sit-ups scores a point, up to 75 sit-ups. (3 pts/day...15 pts/wk)  CHECK 13/15
7. Finishing the week with the highest percentage of weight-loss earns 3 pts AND gets everyone else on your team 1 pt.  CHECK 1/3
8. Being the team with the highest percentage of weight-loss earns another 2 pts.  CHECK 2/2

TOTAL:  42/50

WEEK 1 RESULTS

1. Workout for at least 30 minutes, at least 4 days of the week. No individual calorie goal this week. But the Wolverines need to burn a total of 15,000 calories. We have 10 people on our team, so that's 1,500 calories each in five days...or about 300 per day. These workouts will also count for #4 in the Weekly Points above.  CHECK 5/5 for 2152 cals
2. Complete 300 reps of anything that can be counted in reps, but they must be in sets of 25. This could be leg lifts, bicep curls, push-ups, jumping jacks, etc. Anything that can be counted. And this week, I get to choose which one I do! Individual goal is 300; the Wolverines must do 5,000 reps. With a team of 10, that's an average of 500 reps. Sit-ups completed here will NOT count towards #6 in the Weekly Points above.  CHECK 725 reps
3. Choose a Hard Rep (HR) and determine the number you can do currently...and do it. I chose push-ups. My arms are weak; my shoulders are weaker. As horrible as it sounds, I can only do 3 from my knees before collapsing to the floor. So I must complete 3 push-ups from my knees at least 4 days this week.  CHECK 5/5
4. Give up something food-wise that I know is bad for me. This one was easy for me to choose. I'm giving up McDonald's sweet tea. I grab one of these on the way to work almost every day. That's 280 calories each. I'll save over 1,000 calories a week by dropping this bad habit!  CHECK 5/5

I lost 4.2 lbs this week!  Water weight, I'm sure.  But still good!

WEEK 2 CHALLENGE
I'm supposed to stay off my feet as much as possible for the next two weeks.  And I'm seeing a podiatrist on Wednesday for my heel spurs.  That could be a challenge...for this Challenge.  Here's how Week 2 looks.

1. Workout for at least 4 days of the week, with each workout being one of the following: 30/60/90/120 minutes long.  The 120 minute workout can be split up into two workouts, but must be done within the same 24 hour day.  Individual calorie goal this week is 1300.  Team calorie goal is 17,600 calories. We have 11 people on our team now, so that's 1,600 calories each in five days.  These workouts will also count for #4 in the Weekly Points above.
2. Complete at least 400 reps with at least 100 each of Upper Body (UB), Lower Body (LB), Core, and Cardio...and they must be in sets of 25.   Team goal is 7,700 reps. With a team of 11, that's an average of 700 reps. Sit-ups completed here will NOT count towards #6 in the Weekly Points above.
3. Do 2 sets of my Hard Rep (HR) at least 3 days this week.  They can be split up into two shifts.  That means doing 3 push-ups from my knees TWICE in one day.  I hate push-ups.  I'm such a wimp!
4. No impulse eating of candy or baked goods.  AND stay under your sugar allocation at least 4 days this week.  Bonus of 2 points for staying under all 5 days.

Feel free to join me! You don't have to report your results anywhere. You don't have to officially join anything. Just print out this page and check things off as you complete them. We can get in shape together!

Song List

I sang at mass last night.  I wasn't supposed to, but the scheduled cantor was going to be out of town.  So, I got the call to sub about 24 hours before game time.  I was planning to attend that mass anyway.

I chatted with the organist a little and we decided that I'd choose the music.  This is what I came up with.

Opening:   #885, All Are Welcome

First Reading:   Jeremiah 31:7-9 (The prophet celebrates the end of the Babylonian Exile. God will bring the people back “from the ends of the world” because “I am a father to Israel.”)

Psalm:   sung, Psalm 126:1-6 (This communal lament recalls God’s mighty deeds of the past, especially the restoration of the people from the Exile, and it calls on God to act once more on behalf of the nation in the current crisis.)

Second Reading:   Hebrews 5:1-6 (Continuing to reflect on the image of the high priest in the Temple as a way to interpret Jesus’ mission, the author of Hebrews points out that high priests did not choose themselves; they were called by God. Jesus was called the same way.)

Alleluia:   sung

Gospel:   Mark 10:46-52 (Bartimaeus calls out for help with the persistence of faith. It is this persistent faith that brings him healing and leads him to discipleship: “Immediately he received his sight and followed [Jesus] on the way.”)

Offertory:   #933, How Great Thou Art

Holy, Holy:   #317, People's Mass
Memorial Acclamation:   #319 B, People's Mass
Amen:   #321, People's Mass
Our Father:   Traditional
Lamb of God:   #322, People's Mass

Communion:   #653, Receive in Your Heart; #685, Amazing Grace

Closing:   #956, Now Thank We All Our God

Seven Word Status

Picture from the Loogootee Tribune site, from Regional weekend

The Loogootee Lady Lions win volleyball semi-state.

Christmas Toy Store Sponsored by Area Christian Churches

[copied from the Martin County Journal]

The Christmas Toy Store will be held on Saturday December 8, 2012 in the fellowship hall of the Loogootee United Methodist Church, 208 West Main Street, in Loogootee. Again this year the event will be a truly community Christian event because it is being co-sponsored by the four Martin County Catholic Churches, the Loogootee United Methodist Church, the Hindostan United Methodist Church, St. John’s Lutheran Church of Loogootee, and the Shoals United Methodist Church. If any other Martin County churches are interested in participating, please contact Curt Johnson at 295-4985.

The Christmas Toy Store is full of all kinds of toys donated by parishioners and church members, local businesses and the Crane Navy “Toys for Tots” program. Last year two free toys were given away to around 646 children. There were also bicycles and lots of “stocking stuffers” that were given away. Eligible shoppers and children – Parents and legal guardians ONLY (changed this year), who reside in Martin County, are eligible to shop for eligible children. Children are eligible for toys if they are 18 years old or younger on December 25, 2012 and a resident of Martin County.

Sign-up locations and dates – Sign-ups are from October 31 to November 30, 2012 at the following four locations. Do not sign-up more than once.

-St. Vincent De Paul Store, 516 Park Street in Loogootee

-Hoosier Uplands, Main and 2nd Street in Shoals

-Loogootee Library

-Shoals Library

Shopping times for the parents or legal guardians are from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Shopping times will be assigned as 8:30, 9:00, 9:30, 10:00 a.m., etc until the last shopping time at 2:30 p.m. People will select an available shopping time when they signup.

Diagnosis

I finally went to see the doctor about my left foot pain.  I've had plantar fasciitis pain in the past, associated with weight gain and working out.  But in the last couple of months, the pain has been worse in my left foot.  Always before, there were stretches and things I could do to lessen the pain.  But not so much lately.

Well, I found out today that I have heel spurs.  In fact, the nurse practitioner could feel one of them without even doing an x-ray.  The one on the back of my heel is fairly pronounced.  But I have one on the bottom of my heel as well.

This is an x-ray of a normal foot.

See how the outer edge of the bone at the heel is mostly smooth?  That's a good thing.

 

This is an x-ray of a foot with multiple heel spurs.

See how there are hooks pointing toward the front and the back of the heel?  This is fairly close to what mine looked like...only my front spur (the one pointing towards my toes) was the smaller of the two...and both of my spurs were as pronounced as the larger one in this picture.

The doctor asked me if it hurt just to stand.  [lol]  I admitted that I felt pretty okay standing...as long as I didn't have to stand for hours at a time.  At any rate, I'm supposed to stay off my foot as much as possible for the next two weeks.  And I have to do a few foot exercises every day.  AND I have to go see a podiatrist on Halloween to see if they need to put a shot in my heel!

Fitness Challenge Week 1

THE CHALLENGE
I'm doing another fitness challenge on myfitnesspal.com.  I did pretty well with the last one I did.  And I really enjoyed it. ...and I really need a kick in the pants.  So, I'm taking advantage of another Elimination Challenge to get back on track.

We call it an Elimination Challenge because we can be eliminated for not doing everything assigned for the week.  And worse, if everyone in the challenge completes everything assigned for the week, someone will still be eliminated, either for the lowest percentage of weight-loss or for the least amount of effort.

Personally, I don't care if I'm eliminated or not.  I intend to stick with the Challenge anyway...ALL 11 WEEKS.  So I'm calling it a Fitness Challenge.  I started yesterday, Sunday, the 21st.  Each Challenge week goes from Sunday to Thursday.  The 11th week will be the week of December 30th.  So, it goes right through a couple of major holidays...AND my birthday!

WEEKLY POINTS
First of all, there are weekly points we can earn.  This is a first for me, so I'm not sure of the exact purpose of the points.  But they accumulate week to week and apparently we should accumulate as many as possible.  This is how we accumulate points and these will remain constant from week to week.

1. Post a positive comment about yourself once a week.  (2 pts/wk)
2. Stay below 2,500 mg of sodium each day.  (1 pt/day...5 pts/wk)
3. Drink 64 oz each day.  BONUS POINT for an additional 8 oz each day.  (2 pts/day...10 pts/wk)
4. Every 30 consecutive minutes of working out scores a point, up to 60 minutes.  (2 pts/day...10 pts/wk)
5. Complete the weekly Challenge.  (3 pts/wk)
6. Every 25 full sit-ups scores a point, up to 75 sit-ups.  (3 pts/day...15 pts/wk)
7. Finishing the week with the highest percentage of weight-loss earns 3 pts AND gets everyone else on your team 1 pt.
8. Being the team with the highest percentage of weight-loss earns another 2 pts.

WEEK 1 CHALLENGE
Second of all, we will get a new set of tasks to accomplish to compete with each other.  Right now, we're on teams.  I'm on the Wolverines again.  But eventually, the teams will be so small, they won't matter anymore and it'll be every man/woman for themselves.  But right now, we want to meet the Challenge individually, but also as a team.  Here's how Week 1 looks.

1. Workout for at least 30 minutes, at least 4 days of the week.  No individual calorie goal this week.  But the Wolverines need to burn a total of 15,000 calories.  We have 10 people on our team, so that's 1,500 calories each in five days...or about 300 per day.  These workouts will also count for #4 in the Weekly Points above.
2. Complete 300 reps of anything that can be counted in reps, but they must be in sets of 25.  This could be leg lifts, bicep curls, push-ups, jumping jacks, etc.  Anything that can be counted.  And this week, I get to choose which one I do!  Individual goal is 300; the Wolverines must do 5,000 reps. With a team of 10, that's an average of 500 reps.  Sit-ups completed here will NOT count towards #6 in the Weekly Points above.
3. Choose a Hard Rep (HR) and determine the number you can do currently...and do it.  I chose push-ups.  My arms are weak; my shoulders are weaker.  As horrible as it sounds, I can only do 3 from my knees before collapsing to the floor.  So I must complete 3 push-ups from my knees at least 4 days this week.
4. Give up something food-wise that I know is bad for me.  This one was easy for me to choose.  I'm giving up McDonald's sweet tea.  I grab one of these on the way to work almost every day.  That's 280 calories each.  I'll save over 1,000 calories a week by dropping this bad habit!

MY PLAN

1. Positive comment each week.  I've already written all 11 of them. (2 pts)
2. Watch my sodium. (5 pts)
3. Drink 72 oz of water each day. (10 pts)
4. Workout 60+ minutes each day by doing at least one of the following:  5k(2-3x each week), Les Mills Pump (weights), or Rockin' Body (dancing/aerobics). (10 pts)
5. 75 sit-ups each day. (15 pts)
6. 100 reps each day (upper body, lower body, core, and/or cardio).
7. 3 push-ups from my knees each day.
8. NO McDonald's sweet tea!

Feel free to join me!  You don't have to report your results anywhere.  You don't have to officially join anything.  Just print out this page and check things off as you complete them.  We can get in shape together!

Hebrews 4:14-16

[from the second reading at mass this weekend]

Seven Word Status

The Loogootee Lady Lions win Volleyball Sectional!

Pray for Religious Freedom!

Saint Thomas More, patron saint for religious freedom

O God our Creator,

from Your provident hand we have received

our right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

You have called us as Your people and given us

the right and the duty to worship You, the only true God,

and Your Son, Jesus Christ.

Through the power and working of Your Holy Spirit,

You call us to live out our faith in the midst of the world,

bringing the light and the saving truth of the Gospel

to every corner of society.

We ask You to bless us

in our vigilance for the gift of religious liberty.

Give us the strength of mind and heart

to readily defend our freedoms when they are threatened;

give us courage in making our voices heard

on behalf of the rights of Your Church

and the freedom of conscience of all people of faith.

Grant, we pray, O heavenly Father,

a clear and united voice to all Your sons and daughters

gathered in Your Church

in this decisive hour in the history of our nation,

so that, with every trial withstood

and every danger overcome—

for the sake of our children, our grandchildren,

and all who come after us—

this great land will always be “one nation, under God,

indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

We ask this through Christ our Lord.

Amen.

Copyright © 2012, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Washington, DC. All rights reserved.

Hebrews 4:12-13

[from the second reading at mass this weekend]

Seven Word Status

God lets me sing, so I sing!

Psalm 128

[the psalm at mass this weekend]

Seven Word Status

 

Sometimes I really miss having a cat.