Back in the saddle!

Or at least at the gym.

New training plan started tonight. My friend Regina and I have a new mindset about working out, and are ready to commit (for real this time) to a healthier lifestyle!

Why is getting in shape so hard, but falling out of shape so easy? It just doesn't seem fair! So... that said. I am putting this in writing right now, so A. I don't forget and B. I actually stick to what I said I was going to do! From now on, I am going to use this to log my workouts, list my mini and long-term goals, and just talk about how things are going. I am NOT going to post my before pictures though... at least not until there is something nice to compare them too :) So here is what we did at the gym today:

Warm up: 10 minute brisk walk on treadmill

Interval course:

5 minutes fast paced jog on treadmill
hopped off, did 20 mountain climbers each side
5 minutes on treadmill speed-walk pace with an incline of 2
off treadmill, 5 Burpees
5 minutes fast paced jog on treadmill
off treadmill, 10 pushups
5 minute cool-down walk
10 shoulder taps each side

Ab workout:

2 sets of 10 overhead medicine ball throws with partner (alternating)
2 sets of side-twist medicine ball throws with partner (alternating)

Cool down:

5 minutes on gazelle machine (whatever that one is called haha)

Weekly goals:

This week is a little funny since we are starting mid-week so we decided to aim for 3 workouts.
Today: Workout done! (go us!)
Thursday: Home workout, kickboxing and intervals
Saturday: AM gym workout

We've decided to set mini-goals for each week and be accountable to no just ourselves, but each other. As we get more into it we will likely add in a diet change goal along with an exercise/weight-loss goal too. This week, if we both do all of our workouts, We are buying each other something :) Regina wants a book... and I think I may want a gift card to somewhere, though i am not sure where just yet!

Another idea I had: A goal-prize wish list. We could each write down a list of things (within reason) we would like as a treat for reaching certain goals, like a mani-pedi, new outfit... etc. THEN when we reach a goal, we will be surprised with what we get instead of choosing!

That's all I have for tonight, it's way past my bedtime... will have to get used to the night time workouts since they are all I can do with Joshua and a full-time job! So I apologize if this is a bit disjointed and doesn't make sense to anyone!

Happy workouts!

Body for Life - First Shopping Trip

This was a busy weekend for me, as you readers know. Saturday I went to the mall to use a Body Shop groupon I had, had a wedding to go to, and did the first grocery shopping trip that follows my Body for Life challenge. Sunday was the official start day of the challenge, and I started out my day with a 5K road race. Joshua was spending the weekend with his Grammy Kelley so I was also baby-free!

Anyways, back to the shopping trip. I couldn't buy everything I wanted for lack-a-moolah. But I managed to do pretty well, I think. Here are the main things that I got for meals and snacks: Protein powder, vanilla flavored. I ended up getting the Jillian Michaels brand powder because it was on sale, and was low-calorie, and gave me the most bang for my buck this time around. I stocked up on greek yogurt, Hannaford had Chobani on sale for $1/each. Score. I got lots of chicken and ground turkey, beans, veggies, fruit, some hummus, bagel thins (my new favorite.) And milk, bread, and cold cuts of course.

I also had to get some foods that Joshua will eat, so I got him some turkey hot dogs, and cheerios, among other things. But those are for him, not me. ;-)

I think I am going to have to stick to mostly frozen veggies and fruits, at least for now. They are cheaper, and the real stuff goes bad too fast since I am usually the only one who eats any of it.

So I think I did pretty well for the most part. there was much more that I wanted to get, but just couldn't this time around. 

Today so far, I've eaten Greek yogurt with granola, coffee, lots of water, and a whole wheat wrap with turkey, hummus, and veggies for lunch. I am going to need to get better at the planning the meals part, and remembering to eat more often in smaller amounts so I don't get so hungry and keep up my metabolism. Maybe I should set an alarm or something?

I also took my before pictures. Which I will NOT be posting. Not until I have decent "after" pictures to go with them anyways. :) 

Body for LIFE - Preparation

I am reviving this blog :)

It's been awhile since I posted here, because I started combining this and my other one for a bit. But, I have just signed up for a Body for Life challenge. I decided it was time to take a new step, and do something a little more structured, with more guidance. I'll tell you though, what I REALLY need, is a personal chef/nutritionist, and someone to follow me around and slap me on the wrist when I try to eat something I should not have.

I am hoping through this experience I will be able to finally beat my battle with junk food, and myself. I know it's all mental. Which is the worst part! It's all me! So I can't have someone else fix it for me, it has to come from me. I find it extra challenging now that I have a young son, and a husband too. Not only to I have to worry about myself, but them too. And more often than not their needs come before my own. I don't feel comfortable taking care of my needs and desires until everyone else's are met. But I also know I need to change that some too. I know that I need to feel happy, and healthy in order to be the best mom and wife I can. And right now, I'm not there. And they both deserve the best of me, right? Right! So that's where we are now.

In case you don't know what Body for Life is. you should check out their website here. What I REALLY want to do is sign up for Cathy Savage fitness. My trainer at the gym is a Savage sister (which is what they call themselves.) I have been to their Sunday Sessions (which is basically a butt-kicking boot camp type workout) And they really do become sisters! Everyone of those women is so motivated, and encouraging. you can't help but to want to better yourself with them. You can check out Nikki's blog here. Unfortunately for me, Cathy Savage is not free. And I am not in a position to pay for any little extras right now, so Body for Life it is! 

This week, I am prepping to begin my challenge. I set a start date for myself of May 1. I am currently in the process of purging my house of all of the foods on the "no" list. Or at least moving them to a separate cabinet from "my" foods. I can't totally ban the "bad" because of my family. Also Sunday is a "Free" day. So I am allowed to eat what I want on those days. I am, of course, going to try to stick to the diet for the most part, but I know from past experience, that for me, once I have something stuck in my head that I want, it's hard to get it out :) So I am going to be going with the everything in moderation rule of thumb on Sundays to keep my sweet tooth at bay, and cravings under control.

Right now I am looking for a protein powder to buy. I have used the designer whey brand protein before, and I like it. It is low calorie, and tastes decent, not too chalky. But there are so many out there! I haven't a clue what to buy! I also don't really even know where to begin comparing them. I guess a lot of this process is going to be educating myself about a lot of new and different things, and not being afraid to try something new. So if anyone has any tips for what type of protein powder to buy, do share!

Next, I am going to be attempting to make a meal plan for the first couple of weeks and doing a large grocery shopping trip. So feel free to share great recipes with me too! I'll post again with my meal plan and the results of my shopping trip. Wish me luck!!

Zumba . . . a newbie's review

So I was brave last night and I tried out Zumba.

Note, I have never been a dancer, never taken a dance class in my life. Well, except for that week or so of adult beginner tap classes I took a few years back with Sarah and Heather. But that's different. And I retained none of that, so it doesn't count. And can I just say thank goodness Zumba is not like tap because I was even WORSE at that!

The good news about zumba, is it's fast paced, the class was full of people of all different zumba levels, and I was told the average person burns between 600 and 800 calories in the hour of class. So that's a plus!

For those of you who have not done zumba, or heard of zumba, it's a dance (Latin I think...?) based fitness/cardio class. I can't imagine many people haven't heard of it before. Lots of places are offering it now from gyms (where I took this one) to dance studios and more. There is even a zumba video game! Now, I like to think I am pretty athletic, so aerobically, I could keep up. Step wise, not so much for some parts. But the instructor was not really explaining, or showing us the moves before each little dance routine, so there were some parts where I was just lost, shaking, and hip-swiveling trying to figure out how everyone else was able to move that way. It was a wise decision to stay in the back of the room so when I was trying to figure out what I was supposed to be doing I wasn't messing anyone else up (I hope)

The class was broken down into a bunch of little fitness routines, maybe five minutes a piece I think. We would do one, then take a 30 second break, then go right into the next. Overall, I'd do it again, though I might wear a shirt that says "I'd rather be kickboxing."

Helloooo, 2011.

So, I have been posting for a little while now on my other blog, Joshua Paul - The Blog about the newest member of my little family, my pride and joy, Joshua, and about my adventures being a new mom to him. 

I have enjoyed blogging so far, and wanted to add another blog that is just about me. And my life, both as a mom, and not as a mom. So here it is!

For the last few months, I have been trying to get back into shape. Really though, I have been trying to get back into shape since I left college in 2005, though it has always been more of a "I need to go to the gym . . . but it's too cold to go outside . . . I'll just start my new diet and workout on monday," kind of thing. But now that I have Joshua, he is motivating me, and now that I have found a gym with a daycare in it, and an awesome trainer, that motivated me even more. I HAVE lost a pathetic amount of weight so far, (better than none though, right?!) but I can feel myself getting stronger again and getting some tone back, hooray!

The most challenging thing for me, and always has been, is eating right. I can't exactly pin-point why though. I LIKE healthy food, I LIKE eating well and the way I feel afterwards. The thing I chalk it down to on most days, is the fact that I am usually so busy worrying about making healthy, well balanced meals for the two boys in my life, by the time I actually can sit down to eat, I don't want what I've made. I am sure that sounds ridiculous to most people, who are probably thinking, well if you already made it, why don't you just eat it. And I can't really explain it. But, I just don't want to. I'd rather pick at things, or grab something on the road knowing I can eat it in the car, it will still be warm, and no one will try to steal it from me. It's a bad system, I know. I also blame it on the cost of healthy food. Have you SEEN the prices of fruit and veggies lately! Sheesh.

So when that doesn't work, I try to trick myself, and do the "think about what you want for yourself in the future, not what you want right now, then you won't want it anymore," thing. Which never works out for me. I always end up going, "Hmmm... I really want to be back in shape in the future, but right now, I still really want the snack, and ONE little snack won't hurt, right?!" And then there is the old theory that, If it grew on a tree or in the ground at some point in time, it MUST be at least a little bit healthy. Let me explain how this one works . . . take, for example, chocolate. Chocolate, is made from a cocoa bean, a cocoa bean grows on a tree. If it comes from a tree, it MUST be healthy . . . see?! You can apply the same theory to red wine, beer... the list goes on. (My trainer at the gym is going to kick my butt this week for this I am pretty sure.)

So anyways. This year, I am going to try to not do that . . . haha. We'll see how this goes. I bet once Joshua is walking (any day now) I'll get more exercise chasing him than I already do, we shall see!