The first day of....

...the rest of my life?  A journey of 1000 miles begins with a single step?  I hate cliches.  How about "Today I worked out at Gold's for the first time, so that means I've actually STARTED doing something about my fatness."  That's better. 

Kenz and Deb joined me at the gym.  I REALLY loved having them there with me.  For reals.  Not sure if they even realize how much their support means to me.  I didn't even feel self-conscious as I watched the gym rats swagger from one area to another with their bulging muscles.  I just carried my own bulges from one machine to the next, testing the weight levels I'd need and testing the effect on my back.  Per Travis' instructions, I used light weight with 15-20 reps or until I felt a bit of a burn, then rest...then 15-20 more reps.  I didn't even look at the two forbidden machines (thus, no ass-kicking from Travis) and, as of this writing, I have no back pain. 

One thing that really surprised me was how weak my left leg still is.  After my 2nd back surgery,  walked with a limp for several months and wasn't able to lift myself up on to my toes on my left side.  It was SO WEIRD.  I was using the dreaded 'butt blaster' machine, which requires you to push a weighted slide back with one leg and then the other; the intent being to work the ol' badonkadonk.  When I moved from my left leg to my right, I had to increase the weight to get more resistance.  I have a feeling I'll discover all sorts of interesting  things about my body as I work out more.

We were at the gym for an hour & 15 minutes.  (Travis said only 30 minutes at time at first.  Sorry, man.)  I didn't kill myself, but I didn't lame out, either.   I was ready to jam and Kenz said "5 more minutes!".  When your kid wants to do something good for a little while longer, the right mom thing to do is be supportive, right? And '5 more minutes' on a regular basis means I'm one step closer to having thighs that don't rub together.  I'll be able to wear corduroy pants without having the fire department on standby!

Next Friday is my official weigh-in and photo for the challenge.  Oy vey.  I have actually purchased a sports bra for the occasion.  (Please spare yourself from that visual.)  I'm hoping for the worst 'before' picture in the history of the challenge.  I thought about throwing the horns, but since that's more of a celebratory move, I'll save that for the 'after.'