Elliptical Crosstrainer Replacement AGAIN

Reebok is going to replace my broken elliptical finally. (This one only lasted about two months.) Robert and I worked out that this one was our 7th one that broke. I'm wondering how long the 8th one will last! Reebok would have saved money if they'd given us a gym-strength one from the beginning as, although we spent a lot of money on the machine, none of them seem to be made to last for people who actually use them.

The video above is what we had to show them in order to get a replacement. Robert had to take the side off in order to be able to show the damaged part. It is broken in the same place that the last one broke. I am worried that, if they replace it with the same model again, it will just break again in the same place. This is only the second time we have had this model as they stopped doing the previous model we used. I liked our previous one better, even though it too did not survive the test of daily use.

If this one breaks after a short while too, I will announce the make and model so you can all avoid buying one. If I ever get a quality machine that is built to last, I will happily write reviews about it every six months for the first two years just to show everyone that it is still going strong! But so far, after having seven machines fail on me and, of those seven machines, three different models that have failed, I am skeptical that any company bothers any more to make quality equipment.

I know that people tend to buy these things and after a few short workouts on them, they have a tendency to only use them as coat racks for the rest of the machine's time in their house. However that is no excuse for companies to allow them to be made so poorly and to let the quality to slip so far down in standards.

I am not overly rough on my elliptical crosstrainers. I spend an hour to an hour and a half a day on the machine, every day. Robert used to use it occasionally too, but he hasn't used either of the last two machines at all. I just run on them. I adjust the resistance as I run. But I don't do anything that should cause damage to the machine.

I am not a heavy person. I am well below the maximum weight allowed on these machines. And yet they keep breaking.

It is such a hassle to have to assemble the machines when they arrive, get to use them for a little while, then wait on delivery of the replacment machine (which has taken several weeks this time) and do without my usual exercise during that time. And then, of course, Robert or I will have to assemble the new one, again.

It is so much hassle that I am getting really, really annoyed with the whole process, but I keep hoping that the next one will last me for a decent amount of time.

Regardeless of my fears for how long this 8th elliptical crosstrainer will last, I am hopeful, and I am relieved that I will once again be able to work out on a crosstrainer again. It always helps me to maintain my weight, and since I have had a small gain during the weeks we were moving and the weeks I have been without my elliptical crosstrainer, I need to get back into my workouts.

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Exercise & Daily Life

Robert and I went for a lovely walk in the sunshine today. Mercury, our dog, loves it when we take him to the park with the lake; it's only about two miles to walk to it from our house. We usually walk all the way around it and around the lake before cming home, and today was no exception.



Because it was so bright and sunny outside, we decided to bring the camera. We took some photos of Mercury and, when we passed by some sheep, I couldn't resist taking some photos of the little black lambs.



Why am I telling you about this beautiful walk? Because I want to share the concept that exercise doesn't always have to be a chore. You can find ways to fit exercise into your day that won't feel like drudgery, that you won't want to hurry through to get over with.

I exercise on the elliptical crosstrainer almost every day. I used to hate it. I couldn't wait to just get it over with and done so I could enjoy the rest of my day. But then I taught myself how to read while using the elliptical crosstrainer. In my daily life, it is usually hard to find time to read, and I love reading. So now, I look forward to my time on the crosstrainer as it is time I get to spend reading.

Yesterday, Robert and I took the children to a play center with lots of climbing, sliding and tumbling types of play areas for the kids to play in. Between us, we had to do a lot of lifting of the baby and following the kids around, helping the younger ones with some of the equipment. It was fun and it was a form of exercise.

Taking the kids to the park afterward, Robert pushed them on the swings for a while and then helped to spin them around the the merry-go-round. Again, it was enjoyable time spent with our children, and it was a form of exercise.

There are many enjoyable ways to fit exercise into your day. What are some ways to exercise that you find enjoyable?

Maintenance Mode

As some of you, having read previous blog posts, know, I reached my target weight in February. Since then, I have been doing really well at maintaining my weight. But there is one thing I am still having to work on.

I can't seem to get my mind out of the "I need to lose weight" mentality. Gaining a pound here or there and then dropping back down only to go up and down again is NORMAL when maintaining. As long as my average weight stays the same, it should be okay and even expected. Slimming World allows for my weight to fluctuate up and down 3 pounds either way from my target weight, so I have SIX WHOLE POUNDS that I can play with.

And yet, I get upset when my weight fluctuates up even the tiniest bit, even when it is still a bit BELOW my target weight, as it is now. It's as if, having worked so hard to get here, I just can't let go and let myself relax about it all now. And yet, I NEED to relax. I need to get my mind into a place that can treat this whole thing as a part of my day to day life, rather than allowing for the stressful worrying about Monday's weigh-ins.

I still intend to GO to my Monday weigh-ins, as I see those weigh-ins as a way of keeping myself accountable and not letting any gains get out of hand. But I need to be able to relax a bit throughout the rest of the week.

I'm working on it.

Happy Mother's Day

Today is Mother's Day in the UK. Happy Mother's Day to all of the mothers out there!

My 16 year old daughter decided she wanted me to get dressed up today and go to the park so she could take photos of me. I think it was just payback for all of the times I have made her and the other kids do the same!



I actually wore a red dress too. I rarely wear red because, in general, I don't think it is a good color with my red hair and freckles. But I think it looked okay this time. The wind was blowing my hair all over the place making it look really messy, and it was really, really cold. Not to mention I did not have a red bra to wear underneath, so my black bra showed up a bit. And yes, I am very, very pale.





Before all of that though, my younger kids woke me up in bed to bring me their gifts and cards and to bring me breakfast in bed (cereal). Gabby bought me a notebook with a matching pen. Isabella bought me a little figurine of a blonde girl which had a cute saying about mothers on it, and Connor bought me the same but the figurine was of a little boy. Victoria showed up with a tiny stuffed beanie Eeyore that was wearing a dinosaur costume. I got cards from everyone.

Not one person bought me chocolates. I wonder why that is. ;)

Actually, Connor made me a little paper purse at school that had two Thornton's chocolates in it. The problem with it was that he brought it home last Wednesday and, between Wednesday and today, he ate the chocolates.

So far, remaining at my goal weight has not been easy, but it's manageable. I'm still hoping for the day when it all comes more naturally to me.

I REACHED MY GOAL WEIGHT!!!!!!

I lost my last 1/2 lb this week to reach my goal weight! I now weigh 135 lbs (9 stone 9 lbs). With my starting weight of 272.5 lbs (19 stone 2 1/2 lbs), I've lost total of 137.5 lbs (9 stone 11 1/2 lbs)! I've officially lost more weight than I weigh! Woohoo!!!!!!!

Now on to maintenance!

I went to extremes with my eating and exercise in order to get the last (stubborn) ten pounds off (not recommended), so I'm expecting my weight to fluctuate up and down as I try to normalize my eating and exercise over the next few weeks, but as long as I stay within 3 pounds either way of my target weight, I'm still considered as being "in target" and don't have to pay for my Slimming World meetings.

I've also vowed to myself to no longer be ruled by the scale. I will now be judging my weight by how my clothes fit and how strong and healthy I feel.

This opens a whole new chapter for me in my health and fitness journey. I will be looking towards strengthening myself and toning myself now.

Am I worried that I'll put all my weight back on? Not really. I worry that I will put more weight back on than I want to, but I know I'll never let myself gain back too much of this weight or get anywhere near as heavy as I used to be. It feels too good to be at a healthy weight!