EDITOR’S NOTE: Jeanette Balmut has been selected to participate in the Year of You, a fitness challenge hosted by The Manteca Bulletin, CalFit Manteca and CORE Athletic Performance. Balmut is keeping a weekly journal, highlighting the strides and struggles of her fitness journey.

Day 309
(Monday, Nov. 23)
Ok, here we go.  A scary week for someone on a “diet.” Let’s see how I can succeed with my goals during this fattening week. 
My goal is to at least stay within a pound or two of what I am right now.
I meet up with Javi at the gym, and he warns me it’s a circuit day and it’s going to be a tough one. He doesn’t lie! I start with three minutes on the treadmill, running, down to the floor for dead lifts, then kettle bell squats, then jump squats with 20 pounds in each hand, then a full bar over the head.
I do this all over and over again. Yep, it was hard, but damn I feel so good when I am done. I finished with a two mile jog/walk/run/jog/walk on the treadmill with an incline of eight. Of course I can’t forget my challenge and complete 60 sit ups, 60 crunches and 80 squats.
Get home to an already cooked dinner — thank you, honey!  Sure makes it easy to do all this hard work when Mike is at home cooking dinner.

Day 310
I have a dentist appointment after work, so that means I won’t hit the gym till late.  No problem since its cardio day and I am just going to plug in and get to work. I do five miles and then do my challenge for the day and call it a night!

Day 311
Last day of a regular routine before I start a four-day of no work and lots of grub!  I’m nervous, to be honest.
I arrive at the gym for a workout with Javi and we do shoulders and biceps today.  He puts me through five different apparatuses and I finish strong. Move on to some cardio and then my daily challenge.  I’m on my own the next four day. I can do this!
We have a nice dinner of chicken, asparagus and salad. 

Day 312
It’s Thanksgiving Day for everyone but our family.  We do ours on Saturday, always have. So, today is a day for us to decorate our Christmas tree, hang our lights, go to the movies and just hang out.  It was perfect, except I didn’t work out.  Oh my goodness, the guilt is overwhelming.  
I had big plans all day to leave for a run, but it never happened.  I knew going to bed that I would wake up and go to the gym and then go again later in the day.

Day 313
Yep, I did just that.  I woke up and out the door for my first workout of the day. I am burning the popcorn off that I had at the movies last night AND preparing for my dinner I will be having tomorrow night. I do a hard cardio and finish with my daily challenge from yesterday.
I spend the day decorating, cleaning, and a little shopping here and there.  Crazy to think that people actually got up at 4 a.m. this morning to get in line at Target for Black Friday specials,  and when I went to Target at 4 o’clock in the afternoon all the specials were still there, stacked up and ready to buy!
I raced home for my second workout of the day. I did a few machines, and then hit the back room with some weights. I did arms and core and box jumps and lunges. I finished with my daily challenge for today and called it a night! 
I feel better knowing I can have my mashed potatoes tomorrow and not feel too guilty.
Day 314
I am up early and back at the gym. I wanted to get there early and get out. I do my cardio (Stairmaster and elliptical) and my daily challenge and head home for college football and our Thanksgiving dinner later tonight! 
I feel like I have worked hard enough the last couple of days to enjoy it without too much guilt.
It ends up being a great day.  The USC Trojans win the Pac-12 South and are heading to the championships against Stanford. The Thanksgiving dinner was amazing and I enjoyed every bite of it!  I didn’t deprive myself of anything. I had all my favorites. It was so worth it.

Day 315
Sunday morning and off to the gym I go. I don’t want to, I want to lie around and sip warm coffee, read the paper and watch HGTV but no — I go to the gym like a good girl.  It was a good day for me too.  I do 5.5 miles of cardio, 100 sit ups, 100 crunches and 100 squats.  It takes me one hour and 28 minutes to complete this and I leave feeling great!
It’s a leftovers and fend for yourself day.  We have left over turkey and salad (I didn’t bring home anything that would be too tempting (like stuffing and mashed potatoes). 
I am looking forward to getting back on my Monday through Friday schedule. It makes it so much easier to follow the rules.
My goal for this week was to stay within a pound or two of my last weigh in.  As I head to bed after this hard week I step on the scale and I am thrilled that I am at 196.6.  That is only 1.4 pounds above my last weigh-in. 
I am satisfied with that number, but know how long it takes to get off 1.4 pounds.  I’ll be back at it tomorrow.  Doesn’t it just stink how fast you can put a pound on and how long it takes to get it off?  It’s so not fair.