Rockstars, Groupies, and Peanut Butter

It's been a few days since my last blog post and I have loads to write about!!!

Item one: Rockstars.

I use the term 'Rockstar' loosely here, as I am not sure anyone but me, Andrea, and Lisa think I am a Rockstar, but Friday night, I sure felt like one. This story also explains Item two: Groupies. Friday night, Andrea asked me to go to her daughters Variety Show with her. Molly is a cheerleader at Neoga and her squad were to dance in the show. They did. Molly was awesome. Awesome I say!

They also had this piece of paper laying on the table when you walked in. Andrea told me to sign it to be a volunteer?? Volunteer for what exactly, I wasn't really sure, but nonetheless, I did it.

The show was good. Much of it was skits and bands and that type of thing. About a half dozen acts or so deep, they announced they were going to begin the Variety Variety Show. Ok I had an idea of what this meant, as Molly described it for me earlier in the evening, but was a little taken aback when they drew MY name out of a hat to perform on stage!

Yeah, that paper I signed meant I was volunteering to be a volunteer.

I hadn't performed in a spotlight in over a year! My heart started to pitter patter just a bit...ok A LOT!!! Molly told me I should tap dance. Ok I thought, I can do that, I have my shoes, I could do that.

When I proposed this idea to Andrea and Lisa, they had the most mortified looks on their faces I have ever seen in my life! The thought of me tap dancing on stage literally made Andrea want to faint I think. She turned a really odd shade of green and red and begged me to not tap dance and to sing instead. Looking at me with eyes the size of walnuts, she and Lisa both pleaded for me not to tap dance (as I still have only had the one lesson), claiming I would embarrass myself in front of hundreds of people. I told them that out of these hundreds of people, I only knew the two of them and Luke and Molly.

With little 12 year old Luke as my guide, I headed backstage to prepare myself for what was sure to be an amazing experience. I put on my tap shoes and started a little jig for Lukey and and his buddies. We all started laughing somewhat uncontrollably at my jerky stuttered movements! I whipped out my music play list on my phone and started to run through the songs for something I could sing with little or no preparation.

Luke suggested that I sing Right Round. Um no. Sorry Bud, but that is a little inappropriate. His friend told me I should perform Bad Romance, but let's face it, I only know the "Rah! Rah! Ra-ra-ra-ah!" part. Holy cow, I was beginning to perspire! I had like 2 minutes to figure something out. The pressure was on!

To myself I kept screaming 'Shit! Shit! What am I gonna do?!?! This always happens to me!' Then it hit me: Shit Happens. It Happens by Sugarland! Boo yah! I had found my song.

I headed back to my seat in the audience and before I even sat down, Andrea and Lisa began to fire questions at me left and right about what I had decided to do. I knew there was no way I was gonna tap dance, but I had left my tap shoes on just to keep the two of them guessing. Even as I walked up to the stage when my name was called, they had no idea what the heck I was gonna do.

When I announced to the audience that I would be singing, Andrea and Lisa let out a huge sigh of relief (right?). I did not have any karaoke track or anything to back me up, so I had to sing it a capella, which usually fa-REAKS me out...

So I asked the audience to be loud and fun and boy! did they follow through!!! They were awesome!!!!!!!!

So I rocked out on the stage in front of hundreds of strangers. And I liked it! A lot!

Everybody clapped and cheered and hooray-ed!!!!

Feeling like a Rockstar, I walked off stage completely satisfied with myself : ) (And so were Lisa and And-Bake... that I didn't try to tap dance)

I think I will be forever famous in Neoga.

On another note: Peanut Butter

I think I may have to switch one of my processed items in my non processed food diet to something other than peanut butter. I ate nearly 2 jars in 6 days. Yep. Gotta find something else. I'm gonna have to nix the protein shakes too. They treat my body WRONG!!!! I don't even wanna be around myself when the reaction comes. I seriously have some gas issues with the protein. Something's gotta go. Cuz the farting is getting a wee bit ridiculous.

Oh. Alli and I have our 2nd tap lesson tonight!! Im ready to knock'em dead with my stellar moves. Ohhhh yeahhhh.........

Eating Nonprocessed Food... with a few exceptions...

I started working at Get Fit Family Fitness in August of 2009 and that is when I really started to care about my body/body image. I used to just eat whatever the heck I wanted to... In December, Amanda and I decided that come January, we were going to get healthy. We both had to create a vision of what/where we wanted to see ourselves in our 'new' bodies. Amanda selected a Victoria's Secret bikini and the beach, and she hung the suit up in her room. I decided I didn't want to look good just in one time and place, but all the time and in all places.

We thought we were eating healthy, but then we got a personal trainer, Beth, (yes, like they have on tv... how awesome is that??) and Beth informed us that we ate like sh*t. Our nutrition was all backwards and.... just wrong. Since then, Amanda kinda fell off the wagon and no longer goes to Beth, and I'm not so sure she eats healthy, either...

I switched the kind of milk I drank (from 2% to skim), the bread I ate (white to whole wheat to Ezekial (Bible) bread), my drinking habits (no juice, no soda, no alcohol... at all), cereal (no more Frosted Flakes for me!!! Special K!) my peanut butter (regular Jiffy of Skippy or Peter Pan to Reduced Fat then tried Naturally More (YUCK!) then Amish peanut butter (not too awful) before finally settling on Smuckers Natural (nothing but peanuts), and the jelly I used on pb & j sandwiches (home made to store bought to reduced sugar grape then deciding on reduced sugar or sugar free strawberry spread). I also began to eat veggies... something I had never really liked before... I learned to eat carrots and broccoli, which is a huge accomplishedment for me. I even gave celery a shot, which I still find bloody disgusting!!!!! Marshmallow Creme was omitted from my diet and so were things like chips and macaroni and baked mastaciolli from Joe's : (

With these changes, I saw small changes in my body and my ability to exercise... my Spinning classes seemed to be harder on my brave students, yet easier on me, and my workouts with Beth were getting better and I felt better just in general, then I decided to take it one step further.

Wednesday my friend Lisa and I started a new diet, or excuse me, a 'new way of eating'. For 30 days we are not allowed to eat processed food.... but we each have a 3 exceptions we got to choose... Lisa's are Protein shakes, cottage cheese, and Bible bread. I chose to splurge and use protein shakes, peanut butter, and milk as my exceptions. Other than those few items, we cannot eat anything processed, from a package, injected with hormones, from a jar, can, jug, or with salt or preservatives in it... not even bread unless we go to the field and pick the wheat ourselves. Yeah... ouch.

I didn't realise how much crap I ate until now. I went to Subway the other day and realised I couldn't eat anything there... at all. Except bottled water, and who goes to a restaurant to eat bottled water? I almost picked up a 2pack of crackers before stopping myself. I cannot have cereal either, which I usually had in the morning. I can have eggs... if I get them from my Aunt Margie's chickens! This is a challenge!!! Yesterday I worked out literally from dawn til bedtime. I had my personal training session with Beth, went on 3 or 4 bike rides, a short run, and taught TWO Spinning classes in a ROW!!! Talk about intense. I burned enough calories that I could've eaten whatever I wanted, in this case: pizza crust and a gooey pb & j sandwhich! I deserved it right?!?! I worked my ass off right!?!??! No. Nope. No pizza for me, and no pb & j. They are processed. I settled for a baked potato with pepper on it. It was kind of bland, but I chased it with peanut butter and it turned out to be okay.

1.5 days down, 28 1/2 to go!!!!

Serious Blogging: Tap Dance

So... I decided today is a very good day to start getting serious with my blogging... There are two thing I will be dicussing from now on: tap dance lessons and a new way of eating- consisting of nothing but nonprocessed foods. Here goes:

Yesterday night I took my forst ever tap dancing lesson. I take them at Cayla's in Effingham. My instructor's name is Amanda... she had no voice for our first lesson, which made her speak real quiet like (and me feel like a jackass for laughing obnoxiously loud everytime i misstepped). Haha. My friend Alli, or as she is known to most everyone we know, my 'Other Half' is taking lessons with me. It's just us in the room, nobody else, which is good, cuz I am guessing we look pretty hysterical.

I have never taken dance of any kind. Ever. I have no idea why I started in the first place. Tapping will be good exercise I guess, but it will most likely never get me much of anywhere. I just wanted to be educated in something... like ya know those people who go around ghatherings and brag about how they lick their elbow or how they can bong a beer??... well I think I want to have the comeback of "So-friggin-what? I can tap dance. Bloody tap dance I tell you!!!!!!" Haha.

I thought I would be tap stupid... but I am not. I was actually pretty good. I am so glad Other Half came with me though... her skillz made for a good laugh! The poor kid could just not get the steps down. Some people who can not dance well say they have two left feet... she kept forgetting she had a left foot at all :) But nonetheless, I am proud of her for completing the lesson.

Today I put on tap shoes and tapped around at work all day. Alli stopped by and we tapped together. My friends at the gym stoood around us and applauded our efforts. It made me feel good, I mean, part of me knew they were only clapping cuz they thought it was funny, but they made me feel like... I dunno... a Tap Dance Superstar????? This last phrase is questionable, as I am not sure I am really doing as well as I think I am... we shall see.

Until then, dance like no one is watching!!!!! (or I might get too embarassed!)