Happy Little Green Man Day!

Day 3 - so far, so good.

One thing about membership parties at the gym is that they always attract a crowd. Crowds are great for business, but suck for regulars in Spin. Oh well. I still got my Ab Ripper X and lower back exercises in yesterday.

Today, Melody and I are working arms & shoulders, followed by Ashley's Spin class. We plan to do the weights before, so we will already be at the gym when the sign-in sheet comes out. I am trying to revert back to the "baby steps" approach. I had gotten so comfortable with being in a healthy lifestyle, that I felt immune to the failures that come with overloading yourself. The truth is that no matter what level you are at, there is always the risk of failure. This week I have been focusing on sticking to the work-out routine. Obviously, I always try to eat well, and now being more conscious than ever. Next week, I will start back with daily tracking. Melody and I are going to have to keep each other accountable there. It's so easy to be lazy and say, "Oh, I know I didn't go over my calories today." But, the truth is that you don't really know until you write it down. No matter how good your intentions are, the calories can add up FAST.

Perfect example - last night on Biggest Loser they had a cooking challenge. One team fixed a beautiful meal of salmon, wild rice and broccoli. However, they left the skin on the salmon (where a lot of the fat is located). That pushed the calorie count of the meal to 557. It's the little things that can damage you if you're not careful. Tracking helps you keep everything in perspective. If you're killing yourself at the gym, and the scale is barely moving or not moving at all, then all of your efforts might be being sabotaged by your diet without you even realizing it.

So, as much of a pain in the ass as it can be, track, track, TRACK YOUR CALORIES when you're trying to lose weight/cut fat/tone up.