Update #1 from Mamacat

Mamacat checked in with me to let me know how she's fairing early in this journey to Becoming a Hot (Sweaty) Mama. I've inserted my own feedback in italics:

Mamacat says:

Friday the kids had no school so I planned for an active day for all of us. Skiing. It's been 15 years since I was last on downhill ski's and the equipment has changed. I also was very fit and skied in the West so it's a different experience altogether. (Awesome! Family fitness!)

I put the three kids in lessons and then put myself in a lesson. The instructor would not let me ski with poles! I knew my legs would get a decent workout so I wasn't thrilled at what the Polar Activity Monitor gave me for a reading. Several hours of leg work and concentration to get a close to nothing reading! Still, I had a blast, as did the kids and we are hoping for more snow so we can go again very soon. (These are the times when you have to be smarter than the Activity Monitor. Even though it says you weren't active, you know better. Had this experience today when I did an hour of yoga to to the tune of 1 minute of activity. When you've had a good workout you know it counts. On the flip side when you've been running around like a crazy woman just keeping up with kids and work and home, you get to see that your day was probably more active than you thought.)

Saturday morning I had pre-arranged to meet some mom friends at the gym. We have been known to power walk the Stillwater stairs, try new classes and just have fun hanging out. The class was an early morning spin class and if I had not vowed to meet them there (not to mention I instigated it) I may have slept in. But I took advise (from the book) and got my stuff ready the night before so the only thing I needed to do was haul my arse out of bed and brush my teeth. (This truly does make a difference when it comes to committing to early morning workouts. Some moms even sleep in their workout clothes. Why not? One less thing to do in the morning.)

I'm soooooo glad I went! (Really, has anyone ever gotten up early to workout and then regretted it? Nah! Remember that when you feel like hitting snooze!) Everyone showed up and the instructor played every '80's rock band you could think of...Styxx, Journey, Led Zepplin,Jethro Tull, Boston. One of the mom's knew the words to every song and could call it on the first three notes. Seems like all of us and our "first concert" on the list of what was played and it made for a lot of laughs. (Sweaty sisters! One of the best things you can do to stay committed is workout with friends!) It was an awesome workout with heart rate monitors reading about 700 calories. Yet my Activity Monitor gave me an solid 7 minutes of activity. I must put it on my shoe next time. (I TOLD you!!)

By last night, my luck and moxie were waning. I had gone from signing one child up for swimming lessons to signing all three up. I was planning to swim myself but at the last minute shifted gears to plan time on the treadmill. Once I got the youngest to class I quickly realized I couldn't leave the pool deck while she was in the water. To make matters worse, I didn't even pack my suit. AND EVEN WORSE, my husband had homemade caramel chocolate shortbread made when we got home. OH THE CHALLENGES! (Here's the thing... if you've had 6-8 servings of fruits and vegetables, and eaten healthy meals all day, I say go for a little homemade caramel chocolate shortbread... oh my, my mouth is watering as I type... as for the swim debacle, you live and learn. Don't beat yourself up. Consider it a dry run -- haha, pun there. Next time you'll know how to make your plan work.)

I have the next five days in a hot sunny location and have packed my workout clothes. I will be without kids and know I'll find time to get some good readings on the Polar Activity Monitor. (What are you trying to do, torture me? I'd like to propose a little contest. The first of us to hit the 2-hour mark on our Polar Activity Monitor wins. The loser treats manicures.)

And for those of you who haven't heard Polar is letting Mama Sweat readers in on a deal for the Polar Active unit I love so much. Just email sales@polarusa.com and let them know you want the Mama Sweat price of $89.95!