Bootcamp....Strong Is The New Skinny

So here it is,  Leg Friday....Done!

Currently:
Biceps - L-10.75" R-10.75
Chest - 35.63"
Waist - 34.25"
Hips - 39.5"
Thighs - L-23.75",  R-23.75"
Calves - L-15.75",  R-15.75"

Last Week:

Biceps (unflexed): L-10.5"  R-10.5"

Chest: 35.5"

Waist (aka,belly button): 34"

Hips (aka, butt): 39.75"

Thighs: L-23.5"  R-23.5"

Calves: L-16.25"  R-15.75

Clearly, I am not good at self-measuring.  I'm only human.  I will get this right eventually.  I think I will have to get Dustin to help me out.  It's not as easy as it sounds.

Sheesh.  Well, any gain is probably due to muscle mass.  I definitely feel stronger.  Strong is the new skinny, ladies!

Beautiful, Braided Bread

This tutorial was not planned.  Not at all.

I didn't even start take pictures for it until I had already finished making the dough.

That's when it occurred to me, "Raven, you have two lumps of dough. Braiding the first was fun. Braiding the second will be fun too.  So why not take some pics and blog about it?!"

Duh. 

It's sort of funny because the recipe is from an incredible and extensive baking book, but it's written for the UK.

That means, a lot of the measurements are in pounds/ounces and I don't have a digital scale.  Fortunately, I have a spring scale that is mostly accurate.

But I need CUPS!  I can't measure ingredients by their weight!  This is America for crying out loud!  We are different from the rest of the frickin' world.  We care about/know only one language and we measure things in CUPS! (and inches...just to take it one step further)!

Also, word to the wise, when using yeast, you have to know that there are different kinds of yeast.  Instant, Active Dry, Rapid Rise and Fresh Yeast.  These do essentially the same thing in the end, but if you are substituting you can't replace 1/4 ounce of instant yeast for 1/4 ounce of active dry yeast or even 1/4 ounce of fresh yeast.  Oh no my friend. You would be very, very sad with the outcome.

This almost happened to me today.  The directions called for 3/4 ounces of fresh yeast.  So I went to my scale and measured out 3/4 ounces of active dry yeast (it's what was on hand).

I measured out about 9 teaspoons.  Nine! Almost my entire jar!  I knew something had to be wrong.  I asked Mr. Google what to do, and he showed me the light, as always.  I found this chart and the rest is now history.  I think I ended up using approximately 3 teaspoons.  (I was making 1.5 loaves).

Now we can begin:

Bootcamp...So Proud!

Cardio Wednesday!!

I have an extreme love/hate relationship with this bootcamp.

5:15am sucks.  Pushing my body to it's limits sucks.  Running around feeling like I have cement blocks strapped to my feet double sucks.

However, I am recovering quickly.  It's pretty amazing.  And I have a great friend that's keeping me motivated.  Thanks Aim!

Today, I was not as short of breathe as I was last week.  I did walk a couple of times, but only for a minute.  My second wind came sooner too (and third, and fourth...).

Boot Camp, Day Three

I've never had strong arms.  Ever.

Some might say they're kind of puny.

They would be right.  I'm okay with that.

In high school, I was never able to the one and only pull-up required for the physical fitness tests.  I had a teacher once who let me do push-ups instead.  That was the only year I ever passed the presidential fitness test requirements.

That one stupid pull-up has always kept my ego in check.

And now, Arm Day Monday keeps my ego in check.  Actually, Bootcamp in it's entirety does that.  I'm a wuss.

Bootcamp...What Have I Done!?

Bootcamp....sucks.

Bootcamp....is great.

Bootcamp....just started yesterday

...at six-thirty in the morning.

You're thinking that I'm crazy. Yep.

You're wondering why anyone would want to torture themselves in this way.  Me too.

You won't believe me when I tell you about what a deal it was.

Smoky Mountains & Babies!

Wow.  What an adventure the past couple of weeks have been!

I have battled with Hurricane Irene.  Traveled to the Great Smoky Mountains.  Visited a great number of family members in Chickamauga.  Flew in an air plane to return to Philly on September 11th.  Road tripped to catch up with my sister in Baltimore.  Saw more babies in a weeks time than I have in a normal six months time.

All in the span of two weeks.

I need to take a breath.  Inhale.  Exhale.

That's better.

Now, let me share the some visuals with you!