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Blog Withdraw

Posted in Daily struggles, Family, Fitness, Life, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on February 17, 2013| Leave a Comment »

It hasn’t been that long….but, it feels like it!!

This has been a crazy weekend, starting with our winter trip to the zoo. Before you have me committed, let me explain!!! There was a really nice giraffe lady that told us to come in the winter because many of the animals are more active and vocal during the cold months. So…we decided to brave the cold….and it was WORTH it!! Not only did we learn that our (<–yes we’ve staked claim) giraffe has finally become pregnant, but holy crap the animals were relishing the cold weather. The lions were playing…and growling like crazy, the elusive red panda was playing in the snow, oh and we learned the zoo has a Starbucks. It was fantastic! Not to mention…no one goes to the zoo when it’s cold so we practically had the place to ourselves. 🙂 We learned the birds created this beautiful 200lb nest in the atrium, which we’ll be posting pictures of, and when the cold became too much there were plenty of indoor exhibits to warm up in. 🙂 By far, it was one of my favorite trips to the zoo.

Aside from that, we also had my sister’s birthday and birthday party. Talk about chaos….*groan*. Currently, we are working on science fair projects…right before bed time. -.-

I failed slacked on my eating and workout plan. BUT!!! Tomorrow is a new day and we’ll be right on track again. Early morning run down will go as follows: 5am alarm, 15-20 min of yoga, 1mile run, 1st day of Insanity, then of course…..breakfast!!!! Oh..did I forget to mention my brother put Insanity on my phone so we could transfer it to the computer…? I will start it tomorrow, and I’m taking weekly photos that I may or may not post on here. Eff it….we’ve all been there right? By this time next year…the goal is to be the healthiest I’ve ever been in my life! Fit and strong…not skinny fat, not underweight, not starving.

I make it a point to let you know when I screw up as well as when I’m doing well, so that you know you’re not alone. The key idea is to stay positive and never give up. So you ate that extra slice of pizza….evaluate, learn, and keep going!

Hopefully everyone is having a great weekend!!!

–T

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Progress already!?!?!

Posted in Daily struggles, Fitness, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on February 11, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Obviously, when you start working out, after a few sessions YOU can notice progress. Like, when you can wake up in the morning with out exhaustion, or it’s a little easier each time to do those lunges, OR you just feel a million times better all around. Being my third week of training myself…I never thought other people would start noticing differences! D says to me the other day…..your sides are way smaller…..me: REALLY! 😀 Thanks babe…….D: And your stomach….Me: 😀 <–super cheesy grin, no words needed. So I am doing something right after all! Oddly enough, because she seen those small results, it makes me want to push harder! If within three weeks she can really see differences…imagine what I would’ve had if I had done that extra something. 😛 I should’ve taken before and after photos….:( But, I suck. Sorry.

I just had to share my joy!!! 🙂 Now it’s time for my 30 minute interval run….ai-ai-aiyyy.

–T
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Step Off that Scale!!!

Posted in Daily struggles, Fitness, Life, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on February 8, 2013| Leave a Comment »

For those of you who are trying to lose weight, do you catch yourself running to the  scale often?

…….STOP!!! The cardinal rule is to only weigh in once a week to track progress. When you are working out and building muscle….sometimes those numbers don’t drop like they’re expected too. Do NOT get discouraged…you are gaining muscle weight while you work out. On top of noting your start weight, you should be measuring key areas of your body, along with body fat percentage. With body fat…unless you have a scale that tells you all the fancy stuff, you would need calipers. Or go to a gym and have them do it for you. 😀 If those numbers aren’t changing then…you need to rethink your workouts and eating plan. But, if they are changing and the scale’s not….you’re doing fine!!!

(Here’s an explanation on how to measure your body with a tape measure.)

http://www.livestrong.com/article/267099-how-to-measure-body-parts/

The only reason I bring this up today is because I caught myself hopping on the scale every morning. (Old habits die-hard) As my brain started doing that thing it does….you know over working, thinking too much, becoming paranoid…..I had to reality check myself! I’m not even trying to lose weight! Goals are different for me these days….muscle, strength, flexibility, stamina, health…..not skinny, size zero, sickly, and bony. So trust me when I tell you, I know how easy it can be to slip from reality. You just have to remind yourself of what you’re doing this for!!! Stay positive, write down your goals, and every once in a while reality check yourself! Find someone who will motivate and push you in the right direction.

Things to remember: 1lb of fat takes up more space than 1lb of muscle, but 1lb of muscle weighs more than 1lb of fat.

I believe in you, and so should you 🙂

–T

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Workout Switch-up

Posted in Fitness, Life, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on February 4, 2013| 2 Comments »

My rest day was so long! I did end up going out for a short walk….I made it all the way to the drive way before I realized the snow would not let me go anywhere. Even today the snow is absolutely relentless. Instead of doing the runner’s thingy that was planned for 5am, I had to improvise. To become a good runner you need cardio and stamina, so I quickly made a list of exercises that helped from the Army and created a circuit. The list is as follows: Do each for 1:00 with 20 sec rest

-Jumping Jacks (go hard!!!)

-Mountain climbers

-Speed-skaters

-Jumping Jacks

-Plank (every runner needs a good core)

-Squat Jumps (as high as you can go)

-Jumping Jacks

-High knees (fast, fast, fast)

-Run in place ( fast fast fast)

-Jumping Jacks

-Jump Rope

-Reverse Plank

-Toe Touches

-Jumping Jacks

I did one round of this because it’s kind of long. Then I went to my Brazilian butt workouts. (The goal for today was to work on my abs down) Once I finished with that, I did P90X ab ripper!!!! Then I completed another circuit…sort of, by then my legs and hip flexors were in absolute muscle failure, but I pushed myself to do as much as I could until I couldn’t do anymore! Remember, your mind gives up before your body does. Tell yourself that every workout. When it starts to hurt, push harder!!! Of course, I had to do some major stretching after that. I concentrated mostly on my abs, hips, and legs to help prevent injury. All in all today was a great day for me. 🙂

Until next time,

-T

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Sunday is the Day of Rest

Posted in Daily struggles, Fitness, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on February 3, 2013| 5 Comments »

So you guys know yesterday I woke up praying to not have to work out. Determination shone through and I busted my a** through a one hour workout. How come today, which is supposed to be my rest day, I’m itching for some cardio and strength training? Maybe it’s like a reverse psychology thing….”you can’t work out today” “Psh, watch me”. Just to reaffirm the need for my rest day, I decided to look up a few sites and see what they had to say…LiveStrong says I better bench myself for the day if I want my muscles to repair. UGH! FINE! According to them, you need about 48 hours for muscles to repair…which is why most workouts have you in a different muscle group everyday. Looks like I will be hitting the books and doing some homework for the day. (The wifey will be so proud of me 😀 ) Now, I also learned that light exercise can be ok on a rest day….but, since I have no idea how to “light” exercise, I will be breaking for the whole day.

Tomorrow is a new week, and I’m so very excited because I start my runner’s training. Snow or no snow I will be hitting the pavement with my sister-in-law! Week one is a 20 minute walk each day (mon-fri), doing 4minute intervals of speed walking to 1minute intervals of pace walking. Since I haven’t been a runner in about ohhh, 3 years, I want to make sure I condition my body right. The goal is to be able to run a 5k by June, and a half marathon by August. There’s also a lot of charity walks my sister and I are planning to do. We have the Red Cross Heart Walk, Breast Cancer Awareness walk, and I believe there’s another one somewhere in the middle that I can’t seem to remember……gah! I hate when it’s right there on the tip of your tongue….and you just can’t grab it. LOL!! The point is, when you want to do something you need to set goals for yourself. Don’t blow anything out of the water…like, “in three months I want to ride my bike across the country in 4 days”.  Set one major goal to reach in a reasonable amount of time, and smaller goals that will help you achieve the big kahuna. So, my major goal is to run a half marathon. Smaller goals: Make it through each week without quitting, run a 5k, be able to run for 20 minutes with no stops. <—I can achieve those in a decent amount of time and they will help me get to my half marathon!

OH!!! I almost forgot to share that yesterday I, once again, started not smoking. Well, I’m trying. I’ve done very well!! D has been a major help by kicking my butt every time I whine for a smoke. All together I may have smoked one cigarette yesterday and so far none today. This is a major step in my progress to getting healthy. The only thing I noticed is I get food cravings…dun dun duuuun. I broke down a little yesterday and had a handful of Reese’s Mini’s……but, when I ate them I was like “ew”.  They didn’t even taste that good anymore! 😀 So, I started drinking a ton of water to fill my need for a craving. I find that it’s a lot easier for me to control urges when i have a water bottle on me at all times because sometimes they’re just boredom. When I start fidgeting with my water bottle and drinking it, the urge goes away. It’s like magic, except more useful :D.

How do you control cravings?

Replace old habits with new ones: Every time I want to smoke I’m going to do 50 crunches, leg lifts, or a 1 minute plank. That should help with the ciggy craving and sculpt my abs! 🙂

Now, it’s time for me to do some homework and ….not smoke, or work out, orrrrrrr eat garbage.

 

food-cravings-1-291x300food-cravings-2-300x288 <—what are you craving?

 

 

Until next time ❤

-T

 

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HOLY MORNING CRAZY!!!

Posted in Fitness, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on January 31, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Ever have those mornings where everything goes wrong one after another?? Yep….that was me today. Even though I woke up late I still planned my day accordingly. My morning Yoga was the only workout I could fit in before school. So, the “adjustment” plan is to get home around 3:30 and do HIIT workouts until 4pm followed by some intense core and arm strength training. Then I’ll repeat yoga and maybe take the dog for a walk with the kids.

So, sometimes your schedule will get messed up and things will go all cray cray….don’t worry. Have a plan B! Do extra things throughout the day that will help with that missed workout blues. Force yourself to sit straight while tightening your core on the drive to work….better yet if you can, walk to work! Waiting for a copier?? Do calf lifts!! (I’ll post a link to some great at work excersices at the end of this blog.) Right now, I’m in the library at school….doing a V-sit while I type this. It’s the little things that will make all the difference in the end….<–that’s what I tell myself when I feel whiney. 😉 I have to remind myself it takes 21 days to form a habit…keep working, keep working….

Breakfast: Banana peanut butter smoothie (YUM)

Snack: Almonds

Lunch: turkey, lettuce, tomato, hummus on whole grain wheat bread (hummus is a great sandwhich spread and way healthier than mayo!!!)

2nd snack: cottage cheese with strawberries

 

It doesn’t seem like a lot when I write it all down, but I’m pretty much eating every two hours. Then for dinner I eat around six and drink lots of water until bed. So far it’s been a week with my healthy eating and I’m feeling more energized, fuller, and less “blah”. I’m also still learning a lot about the right foods to eat, and what does what for what. (<–Say that five times fast…..readyyyyy…..GO!!) Is there a nutritionist in the house? Even though I don’t have all the good for you stuff, I still make a gallant effort to eat healthy. Benefits are already noticeable and I am in LOVE!

Oh snap, it’s almost class time, I needed to get in one more blog!!! Gah!

http://pinterest.com/brockcomm/workplace-workouts/ <—As promised 😀

 

Stay focused!

-T

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Goals

Posted in Daily struggles, Fitness, Life, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on January 30, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Pre-workout snack: 1 slice of whole grain wheat toasted with peanutbutter and 1/4 of a banana on it.

Workout time: 1hr 30 min

Breakfast: Oatmeal with banana and cinnamon and a glass of soymilk

 

This morning I woke up in an “eh I don’t want to work out mood (-.-)”. So I got up, made my snack, drank a glass of water…..and worked twice as hard as I have been. Take that whiney brain!!! My body will be thanking me later. Yoga, of course, is what starts my day. I don’t have a specific yoga, I usually go on YouTube and pick one. Then I did a full 20 minute cardio routine that I made up as I went along. (the Army was good for something) Then did some ab-a-licious moves that were randomly found on Pinterest. Last but not least, tha bootay. By tomorrow I feel like I should have buns of steel…..those Brazilians are no joke, seriously. Starting Monday, I’m doing a couch to 13.1 running thingy. Yes, I said thingy. I don’t know what you call it…a plan…goal? Anyways, it works you one week at a time into a half marathon runner. 😀 I used to run before, and then I was like, what??, what’s that??, I don’t have to? And, that was the end of that. I’m trying to repair my core this week and get some stamina, then bring on the running. There is somewhat of a plan….as much as I can plan, anyways. 😀

My New Habit tip: Fill a 32 oz water bottle, put in two thin slices of lemon, some cucumber slices, and mint leaves. Let it steep over night for a great detox water!!! and it’s tasty….like a mojito but, healthy.  You could add fruit if you wanted as well…I throw in some strawberries or raspberries. I’ll be drinking one of those a day, and then regular water throughout. 😀

Also, here’s a link to an ab move that makes you burn!!!! http://www.fitnessmagazine.com/workout/abs/exercises/power-abs-workout/?page=2

I’m in love with that move, my mummy tummy may not be…but, I’ll show that bitch. Now it’s time for me to clean and do some homework before my beautiful family comes home. We have Science fair Projects to do….

Until next time:

-T

 

INSPIRE:

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