Some Good and Some Bad

Let's start with the good. I am watching the snacking and the portions and in general what I put in my mouth. But this past week has been hard when it comes to getting up and exercising. I have been staying up to late and my days have been full with a long list of stuff that needs to be done. But because the list is long I have been pretty active all day, mowing the lawn moving furniture, mopping floors etc. So the bad is I have not been very diligent in getting my exercise in. I did measure my waist again on Monday and I was down 1/2". I'll take that.

Inches

I did pretty good last week. I ran 4 days in the morning before Joe left to work. I also watched what I was eating, I did not count calories but I cut a lot of stuff out that I knew I shouldn't be eating. This morning when I went to Costco I bought all healthy stuff, you know how hard that is with all the tempting yummy stuff they have too. I am cutting red meat out of my diet and will eat poultry and fish only a few times a week. I am going to get a few vegetarian cook books and try to incorporate more fresh veggies and fruit into my diet. Today for lunch I had a green salad with a boiled egg cut up in it and it was actually really good a filling. Since I am not weighing myself I decided to measure my waist right over my belly button since that is where most of my fat is. Sad to say it is 35". So my goal is to get rid of 5" at my waistline. Today after running I did crunches and will continue to add more muscle strengthening exercises to my routine.

I'm Not a Pretty Sight, Time to Change Again

It is really sad that when I started this blog I had pretty much reached my goal after several months. Then we moved and winter hit and I got off of my normal routine and gained it all back plus some (I am guessing since I don't want to get on the scale). After having to buy a few pairs of shorts that actually fit me comfortably since last summers don't fit anymore, I decided it was time to make a change again. Again, I don't know how much I weigh but I am estimating that if I lost 15 lbs. I would be happy. Most of all I need to eat healthier and exercise more.

This morning I ran just over 4 miles in 45 minutes (okay, I walked a little because the uphill on the way back is a killer). I need to continue to get up early and run in the mornings and then incorporate weights. I am trying to decide if I should just do weights at home or try to make an effort to hit the gym with the kids. I also want to be active as much as possible with the kids this summer. Walk to the park, play outside and do yard work, hike, swim and do whatever else will keep us moving.

Improvement Needed

I am learning a lot from the book but still need to put it into action. I need to eat more natural foods and cut the crap out of my diet. I have been a little better at working out but could be much better. I have started running at 6 am with a friend every other day. I need to incorporate strength training into my routine. The bottom line is I need to take better care of my body and only put things into my body that it needs. I need to stop feeding it stuff that can harm the delicate endocrine system and mess up the balance of hormones. I am learning that when your hormones are off balance it can cause all kinds of problems with how you feel, your energy levels and how you metabolize your food. If I was made of money I would go through my house and get rid of all the bad stuff and replace it with healthy alternatives. But I am not, so this is going to have to be a process that takes place over time. Most of all I want to do this for my kids so that they can be as healthy as possible.

Rededicate

I got a little, actually a lot of track when I went on a month long vacation. Enough said about that. Now it is time to get back to where I should be. Let me just say that it is not fair how hard it is to get the muffin top off compared to how rapidly it reappears. I do have a new book that my wonderful husband ordered for me through Amazon to get me motivated again, maybe it's a hint;). I have also been put in charge of the fitness mini group at church, so I think that will motivate me as well. Wish me well.


This is the book that I am starting to read. It has great ratings. I will keep you posted on how I like it.

Swimsuit Season Here I Come

So, after maintaining my present weight for over a month now I have decided that I need to try to tone and maybe lose a few more pounds. Swimsuit season is right around the corner and I need a little help. I have turned to someone I really look up to for help. Unfortunately, she could not train me in person, so I am going to have to turn to one of her DVD's that has really good reviews, "30 Day Shred." I love watching Jillian Michaels train people on The Biggest Loser.
Today was my first session with Jillian. The DVD has 3 levels and I thought that I would start with level 2 since I am in okay shape already. Wow, it was harder then I thought and it didn't help that I had a 2 year old and a 5 year old join me half way through. I am definitely going to try to stick to this for 30 days. Joey (5) already informed me that my abs almost look like Jillians after just one session.

Maintaining

For the past few weeks I have been trying to maintain the new weight that I am at. I could be happy at this weight so I wanted to see how my body liked it. I feel that sometimes you work super hard to lose weight and get to a number on the scale that sounds good in your head but may not be so good for your body or the lifestyle that you want to lead. Then once you get there you find out that no matter how hard you try to maintain the new weight your body wants to weigh a little more so it is torture. For example, you have to work out way more then you have time for and keep your daily calorie count at a number that is just to much of a struggle. At this new weight I have been able to eat an amount that I feel happy about, I eat reasonably sized portions but don't ever feel hungry, I also don't ever try to feel full, just satisfied. I feel at this weight if I miss a work out or two that my weight won't go up as long as I just get back on the treadmill as soon as I can. For example, last week I was sick and didn't work out a single time. When weighing myself this morning I was happy to see that I was at the same weight as last week and the week before. I think my body could be happy with this weight and I can too. Of course I would like tighter abs and a little more off of my gut and a more shapely back end but I think that will come in time as I continue to work out and add more strength exercises to my routine.