Mary Ann’s Adventure: Biggest Loser Ranch – Day 11
Day #11 – Thursday Morning – Only 3 more days!
I felt much better this morning and the meds have kicked in. I went for breakfast and worked out in the gym for 2 hours – 9 miles on the bike and 1 mile on the elliptical. Worked my legs and abs on the ‘weapons of fat reduction’ for 30 minutes.
It was still so cold for a hike with my sickly lungs. It was so cold yesterday that the hoses in the Camel Bacs froze and everyone was sucking ice crystals if they could even get that through the hose. Some of the hikers water bottles froze during the 2 hour walk.
This afternoon we had Open Gym = Treading for 45 minutes, followed by Weights and then Ball classs.
We had a great dinner tonight : lettuce wraps with Waldorf salad and a chunk of pineapple with a raspberry drizzle. I found a bag of almonds ( we only get 12 nuts for a snack) that I forgot to eat earlier in the week and had those for dessert as well.
Some of the ladies were playing poker with their almonds and a female police officer from California came into the lunch room with a big bag of almonds…she kicked butt in poker!
I’m down to the wire now….only Friday and a half day on Saturday and I am ‘outta’ here on Sunday morning!
The big weigh in is at 7:45 AM 
Mary Ann’s Adventure: Biggest Loser Ranch – Day 10
Day #10 – Horizontal all day.
Woke up feeling very sick and made the wise decision to stay in bed all day. My roommate kindly brought me herbal lemon tea during the day when she had a break and I brought my meals back to my room.
Mary Ann’s Adventure: Biggest Loser Ranch – Day 9
Day 9 – Windstorm and Tumbleweeds
I had the chills when I went to bed last night and woke up with a full on cold.
Because of the wind and blowing sand we had a relatively easy hike this morning along the bottom ridge of the red rock, over to the Tuacahn, a school for the arts www.tuacahn.org and saw their fabulous amphitheater. What a setting! Robert Redford donated the land and some monies to help build the school. We carried along for another hour or so on what seemed to be an up and down deer trail and ended up at Snow Canyon Road. There were numerous tumbleweeds rolling across the landscape and it reminded our riding days and me in the prairies. Phoenix hated tumbleweeds.
Pool class is CANCELLED today. YEAH! The pool boys will be vacuuming for a long time to get rid of all the red sand that has blown in after the covers blew off.
I am going to lay low today, take my cold meds and hopefully be back on track tomorrow. I am chilled to the bone and am going back to bed for an hour or so.
So much for laying low.
I was able to finish my three afternoon classes..
2:30 – Cardio Intervals
3:30 – Total Body Toning – with steel bars and free weights. She stretched and toned every muscle in our bodies.
4:30 – Balls and Weight training intervals
5:30 – Dinner – chicken and avocado soup, BBQ Chicken on a whole wheat bun with carrots and fava beans and pineapple sorbet
6:30 – Acupuncture – needles in my face, nose, head, arms, legs and feet – hopefully curing my bronchitis. I am so disappointed I got sick. I was doing so well and this will affect my training this week. It’s really hard to breathe with a bronchial infection. I will work as hard as my body will allow.
7:30 – Watched the Biggest Loser on TV but fell asleep before it was over.
Mary Ann’s Adventure: Biggest Loser Ranch – Day 7
The sunny weather turned on us this morning, so basking in the sun by the pool was not going to be an option. Four of us decided to drive to Zion National Park and I am so happy we did. The mountain formations are incredible. Looking at the pictures on Google does not capture the magnitude of this amazing park.
It took a little over an hour to get there. We were ravenous by 11:00 AM. Our brown bag lunch consisted of 1 whole wheat slider bun, 1 oz portion of natural peanut butter, 1 oz portion of jam, 1 non-fat cheese stick, 3 mini carrots, 3 cucumber slices and 1 orange. It just wasn’t enough. We ate everything in the bag and nearly licked the portion cups clean to get every last morsel of peanut butter and jam. We hiked two different trails for a total of 2.5 hours or so and then did a little souvenir shopping. On the way back to the resort we were all dying of hunger and had to wait until 5:30 for dinner.
Dinner was excellent: stuffed chicken breast with brown and wild rice pilaf with craisins, broccoli medley and a slice of ‘chocolate pie’ … low fat chocolate pudding mixture with silken soya on a Post grape nuts cereal base.
All the newbies arrived today! We are now at full capacity with 75 guests. My new roommate is a lovely lady from Fort Lauderdale. I feel so sorry for the newbies. They have no idea how badly their butts will be kicked tomorrow. They look so vulnerable…but they’ll be good by Thursday!
I am in a new team this week: Go Yellow. God knows what they will do to us this week to crank it up a notch.
Mary Ann’s Adventure: Biggest Loser Ranch – Day 6 – Saying good-bye to new friends on Grauation Day!
Day 6 – 1-Week Graduation Day!
Breakfast – 7:00 AM
Hike – 8:30 AM – 10:30 AM - 6 miles on the West Canyon Trail
Pool – 11:00 – 12:00 – Pool Volley Ball
Lunch - Bean and Rice Taco with Carrot soup
Afternoon off- poolside!! 
Dinner – Asian Chicken and Rice Bowl and fruit skewer with chocolate sauce
Many of Biggest Loser ‘fitness warriors’ leave us tomorrow. Saturday is graduation Day and everyone who leaves gets a huge send off. A DVD of all the week’s action is given to each person every week of their journey here. After dinner they bring in Karoke…OMG! There are a lot of wild and crazy fun people here. We laughed so hard all night. As you know I don’t sing but during a rendition of ‘Thriller’ I decided to jump up and do the moon walk, much to everyone’s surprise! I got a huge round of applause. :) Just a little out of the box action for this Gramma!
DAY 6 – Poolside, all day!
Mary Ann’s Adventure: Biggest Loser Ranch – Day 5
TGIF
Hiking – 2 hours in a canyon and up a very steep hill. Another beautiful day and my taping definitely eased any pain in my shins.
Stretch class – 45 min
Lunch – Tomatillo Soup and a Turkey Club in Pita
Circuit Training – 45 minutes
Zumba - 45 minutes of pure fun
Pool Volleyball – 45 minutes - lots of fun
Dinner – Salmon Burger on a whole-wheat slider bun and a fruit skewer.
Meeting:
During the Biggest Loser Orientation the executive staff promised us that we would all leave the Fitness Program healthier. They did not promise weight loss. In order to accomplish that, they also said they would break down our personal barriers for a successful outcome. One of the returning guests, a Canadian from Ontario, told me they would break you down to tears before you leave. I did not believe her.
Today is Friday and the Biggest Loser tradition is to have a 1-hour sharing session with the guests after lunch. We were encouraged to talk about our experience and any Ah
Hah moments we may have had during our first week. Everyone had a reason why they do bad things to their body. It could be drugs, alcohol, depression or food. (Note to self: Be kind to people, you just don’t know what kind of day they have had.) Everyone was so honest and some were tearful about their personal accomplishments here. I started to well up when some of the ladies started crying when they spoke about their Ah hah moments of climbing to the top of the mountain or simply being able to have a shower without being afraid of falling down. I had to choke back tears. I wanted to share that I had come to rediscover and resurrect the 49-year-old woman who died 12 years ago with her husband. I couldn’t because I would have started bawling. Instead, I told them I loved the friendly staff and guests, the hiking and that I would be back to finish any unfinished business next year. After the meeting, I had fifteen minutes to go back to my room and get ready for the Circuit class. I walked into my room to change and just burst into tears. I shed the final tears of grief, of loneliness, of lost health and the slender woman who loved being outdoors, riding and gardening.
I’m back…only in a slightly larger version.
Mary Ann’s Adventure: Biggest Loser Ranch – Day 4
Day 4 is over! Thank God for small mercies.
Day 4 is OVER.
9:45- 10:45 – I pedaled 22.4 miles before lunch as well as working out on some equipment that I would describe as weapons of mass destruction. I got all tangled up in a couple of them before a trainer came to my aid. Who thought that working your abs could be so complicated?
12:00 Lunch was mushroom soup (made with chicken broth, spices, soy and mushrooms – puréed to perfection) and a turkey sandwich on a whole-wheat slider bun. They use a lot of these slider buns here.
1:15 – Cooking demo with the chef, very interesting. They only use 1 ounce of oil in their vinaigrettes to make enough dressing for 30 guests…. I’ll send recipes later.
2:30 – 3:15 – We also had water aerobics with weights for body toning – non-stop jumping jacks and running in the water and other stunts with weights.
3:30 – 4:15 – Ball works – Oh my, what those trainers can dream up to make it difficult with big balls. For a lightweight ball it seems to weigh 50 lbs when elevated over your head for what seems like forever. Not a fan of ball works. Still having flashbacks of bouncing on a ball Shannon gave me in my living room and orbiting off and hit my head on the coffee table.
4:30 – 5:15 – Treading – Another non-stop 11.7 miles during our ‘Treading” class on the bike. I was able to increase my RPM this afternoon but started to see black spots when I got off the bike. Someone else felt like up chucking. The fresh air sure feels good. I’m happy with my 34 miles of cycling today. Cardio is OK.
5:45 – 6:45 – Dinner – Stuffed peppers and faux ’Tiramisu’ (and it’s not the tiramisu you would have in any nice respectable Italian restaurant, let me assure you) *Recipes to follow.
6:15 – another sleep inducing lecture. Perhaps I should incite a riot tonight to wake everyone up
7:00 - The acupuncturist taped my legs for me. I feel like a real pro. Hopefully I can hike tomorrow. I don’t want to miss any fun!
All in all I feel stronger and the healthier than I have in years. Every class is brutal but I get through them one by one. My hip flexors still ache, back is sore and the shins are tender. Other than that I ‘m really doing quite well. It is so encouraging to have my family and friends supporting me, and the people here to experience this with. We are all cheering each other on and it really helps.
One of the gals taught me a good trick today. Hang your housecoat in the sauna so it’s nice and warm when you get out of the pool. SWEET.
Mary Ann’s Adventure: Biggest Loser Ranch – Day 3
I limped into my 6:00 Yoga class this morning with a bruised foot. I think the strain of the last few days aggravated the surgical pins in my ankle. My ankle and upper foot bones ached along with the rest of me. I was considering cancelling my hike today for fear of causing further injury.
After yoga, my foot felt a little better or else it was the camaraderie of the other guests who were trekking out like little soldiers, limping and stiff legged that ‘guilted’ me into preserving and working through the pain. I decided to go and was so happy I did. It was a beautiful 5-mile hike. The Paradise Valley area in St George, Utah is a vibrant red (and so are my new $13.99 blister resistant socks that Conny sold me). Paradise Valley is a turtle refuge…who knew turtles lived in the desert?
Our hike was followed by a pool class then followed by another delicious lunch. We had beet soup and mini whole-wheat buns with BBQ chicken ad topped with micro greens.
The 1:00 PM class was Kick Boxing. We all had a great time and enjoyed learning a few boxing moves. Sadly, that class was followed by CARDIO. We had to pedal our butts off for 30 minutes, non-stop at an increasing up hill climb. They had a photographer there taking pictures of us. I can imagine what those pictures are going to look like. Every one of us had crazy hair and red sweaty faces. Happily the cardio was followed by another round of exercises in the pool and a final stretch in the hot tub!
Dinner was a ‘taco’ salad with romaine lettuce, beans and rice with a home made salsa in a whole wheat tortilla and a house made mango sorbet.
Our dietician continues to be very boring. I left her class at 7:00 tonight…what are they going to do? Line me up at the back wall and shoot me at sunset?
I am waiting for my massage….Ahhhh. Can’t wait.
Mary Ann’s Adventure: Biggest Loser Ranch – Day 2
I can hardly walk today!
We did a yoga class from 6-7am, very good stretching! Like it.
We hiked 1000 vertical feet up through the gorge in the Snow Mountain Canyon Park. All up hill. It too me 2 hours to walk 5 miles. I was beyond tired, and to think I need to be able to multiply this by almost 3 to = the 13.1 half marathon! Walking on a flat surface will definitely be easier.
We got back to the ranch at 11:00, just in time for another one-hour stretch class. It actually felt good. I almost fell asleep at the end when they talk softly and have bird-chirping music!
12:00 PM – Lunch was good, as usual – Squash soup and spinach salad with blueberries and walnuts. YUMMY.
1:00 was a weight class using free weights, a big metal bar and lying on our backs on little plastic benches. The laying down part was at the end of the class and my back went into spasms (my old whip lash injury) and I had to get help to get up. I liked the weight class though.
All the instructors are amazing, fun, upbeat, encouraging and have absolutely gorgeous bodies. Everyone here is amazing! I could shoot the dietician because she comes in after supper and we have to sit and listen to her drone on for an hour when we are all so tired, Some of the guests actually fall asleep with their heads on the table.
We went from weights to treading water for an hour! I had to manage in the 5ft end of the pool but I think I have actually learned how to tread water, I have never learned how to swim, rather embarrassing but I’ve been able to fake it so far. But when the class is called for deep water treading, I had to confess. Oh well, at this point, I was so tired; ego was on the bottom of my priority list! I paddled away and finally got the hang of it after an hour of practice. This could be the beginning of a triathlon…NOT!
Last class of the day was CARDIO from Hell! OMG I thought I would die.
We had to start on the treadmill and keep increasing the speed every 30 secs and hold it at the fastest speed for 2 minutes then decrease the speed slowly back down. I think she called it interval cardio. I had my heart rate up to 149 only but I was dying. I really need to do more work in this area. I’m sure my heart rate was pushing 160 at the top the hill climb today! We all finished the class, red faced, sweaty and hobbled off to dinner.
Dinner was delish! Chicken with a turkey marinara sauce on top of a bed of spaghetti squash and other veggies. Dessert consisted of 2 chocolate dipped strawberries (91 calories) but the group I was with decided to swap out our dessert for another serving of squash (60 calories)! The waiter looked at us oddly. One lady ordered the strawberries and they were dissected and we all got 1/4 of one =24 calories. Oh dear…. this is what grown women do when surviving boot camp!
There is absolutely NO DOWN TIME except for an hour lunch. We barely have enough time to run and change for each class.
You would love it here! There are many guests who are just here to lean out, get fitter than they already are, and have a holiday. They seem to breeze through the classes. In fact, one of the fit ones (as I call ‘em) not only hiked up the 5 mile trek this morning but finished in record time and hiked 1/2 back down and back up and still beat me…I was dragging at the end of the pack today with only 4 guests behind me. There were 9 in our Orange Group!
It’s now 8:19 and I have to shower, take a couple of muscle relaxers and Advil and hit the sack. 5:30 wake up call comes quick! :
There are 72 guests here, mostly women. There are about 10 - 20 year olds, 20 or so 30 year olds and the rest are 40-50 year old women and men. There are only few 60 and older. One of our trail guides is a spry man in his mid 70′s. He hops around the big rocks like a billy goat…there is hope for me.
I haven’t got my pedometer thingy working yet. I forget to put it on for the last two hikes, however, one of the other guests said we had 22,000 steps on Monday, not including the 2 pool classes and today was 26,000 steps and something like 2400 calories burned. I need to get mine operating.
Not sure where they are making us hike tomorrow but the scenery is fantastic, the beautiful red mountains. I’ll send pics when I get home.
We are also starting a kickboxing class tomorrow. This should be interesting because I can barely lift my leg out of an exercise bike at present!
Mary Ann’s Adventure: Biggest Loser Ranch – Day 1
Today was grueling.
My roommate left the ranch in tears. She couldn’t face another week! Three other ladies have injured themselves.
I was up at 5:30 – Pilates for 1 hour. I did not realize how un-limber I was. Breakfast was served at 7:00 AM. We had to hurry and pack up and be on the bus at 8:00 AM. We drove about 10 minutes and hiked along the Santa Mara River Trail, very beautiful area. Lots of difficult terrain to traverse – sand, dirt, rocks and avoiding cacti! They showed us some petro glyphs along the way. I had to keep my head down for fear of tripping. We hiked for 2 hours up and down the river canyon. I made good use of my Camelback and the gloves Conny gave me. I was very proud to be right up front behind the guide for the entire hike. There were several other ladies who were very very slow. It was frosty and cold when we left but I stripped down to a cotton T-shirt on the hike back to the van.
I ate an apple in the van and it was the best apple I ever ate!
We had to hurry and change and meet at the pool in 15 minutes. We got back to the ranch in time for our water class exercises – focused on the core. There was a ton of running back and forth across the pool using rubber froggy gloves as resistance. I was not looking foreword to the class in an open-air pool but I loved it.
After the pool, it was another quick change and time for lunch, which was delicious. We had vegetable soup and a rice bowl with barley instead of rice and 6 large prawns with a green chile salsa.
We only had 15 minutes to make another quick change and we were all back in the pool for more core work with noodles and weights! Pulling on a wet bathing suit was not fun. I have two tops and only one bottom. We all felt like limp noodles by the end of the class.
Now another quick change and it was time for the Circuit class. This was brutal. We had to do 2 minutes on every machine in the gym. First Cardio for 2 minutes with increasing speed every 45 seconds. Jump off, run to a new weight machine. We did 2 reps on the weight machine with increasing weight. Then back to the cardio equipment. They were yelling at us the whole time to go faster, get to the next machine faster…
One of the contestants from the Biggest Loser in Season Nine – Ron and his son, are here working out with us. He said this was way harder than the TV version… help!
After the whipping we got in the gym we had to have another Pilates class using the big balls. I could barely stand by now. All the other ladies, especially the ones over 50 were looking haggard, drawn and everyone’s hair was a disaster! I started laughing when they started dragging their butts into the core strength class. We were not happy by this time of day. OMG. We did survive the day!
I had turkey chile, a corn muffin and a slice of pineapple for dinner. We had to sit through a boring lecture from the dietician and only got back to my room just a while ago. This is harder than I could have imagined.
Day two tomorrow. God help me!