Well...are you moving yet? Have you started doing something positive for your health? Have you been consistent or hit & miss? Even if it's hit and miss, don't be discouraged! It's better than sitting on the couch eating Cheetos and drinking diet Coke. :)
There will always be things that happen during the week that will throw you off track. Family issues, sickness, work schedules, kids sports, helping kids with homework, etc. Don't let this discourage you and cause you to give up! If you feel like you've fallen off course, just start up again. This is Body for LIFE, not just a 12 week challenge. Find a routine that works for you and work that routine! The results will come in time.
I just completed Week 4 of my challenge. I have only dropped a couple of pounds, but have lost 2 inches off my waist and 4% body fat. I also took my 4 week pics on Saturday and compared them to my starting pics and can definitely see a change. Now...it might make you want to hurl to think of taking a pic of your body, but taking progress pics every 4 weeks will actually encourage and fuel you! Changes you might not see on the scale or in the mirror will show up in photos. Use this powerful tool to push yourself to take things to the next level! And remember, no one has to see your pics except you.
Now, on to this week for me...I'm going to have to tweek my cardio w/o's now since I broke my treadmill on Saturday morning. I was near the end of my 20 min HIIT workout and as I was running at 8mph, I started feeling the belt slipping under my feet! With every step, the belt would stop for a second, then start back up as I lifted for my next stride. Thankfully I didn't crash and burn! But my treadmill is RIP now. But I can't let this mishap stop my progress. I'll find another method of HIIT and keep going!
If you haven't started moving yet, plan something today and do it! :)
Monday, March 7, 2011
Friday, February 18, 2011
Be Aware of What You Eat
Hey everybody! I hope y'all have been up and moving this week. If you haven't then get up and move today! Do something today for your health, even if it's small. A little something is always better than nothing at all. :)
I wanted to write a little about good eating. Eating healthy is so important to your overall health, well being, and how you feel. With so many chemicals, preservatives, processed foods, etc. on our grocery store shelves, it may feel like it's getting harder and harder to make healthy choces. But just remember these few tips. On a daily basis, you should be eating a proper balance of protien, good carbs, and healthy fat. Buy plenty of fresh vegetables and fruits. Eating veggies raw is obviously the best way to consume them to ensure you're getting the most bang for your buck as far as their nutritional value, but if you don't like raw, chop 'em up and saute' them in a little olive oil and fresh garlic. YUMM!! Buy lean cuts of meat, whether it be chicken (skinless), pork, beef, or turkey. Nuts are a good source of healthy fats as well as salmon and talapia. Natural/Organic peanut butter is also a good source of fat. Just try not to overdue it. PB is a tough one for me because it's so good. I have to watch my intake so I don't get too much of it. Good carbs would include fresh potatoes, sweet potatoes, brown rice, whole grain/whole wheat products, etc. And remember correct portion control is important! Protein portion should be the size of your open palm. Carb size should be the size of your fist.
Next time you go to the store, try picking up some of the foods that I've mentioned. Try to stay away from so many boxed/packaged sugary foods. Try to buy as many natural sources as you can. If you feel that you can't switch over to completely eating clean all at once, just start by trying to replace some of your meals with healthy ones. Do this for a few meals next week, then a few more the week after, and so on. Before you know it, you'll be eating clean, feeling better and will have a happier, healthier body!
I wanted to write a little about good eating. Eating healthy is so important to your overall health, well being, and how you feel. With so many chemicals, preservatives, processed foods, etc. on our grocery store shelves, it may feel like it's getting harder and harder to make healthy choces. But just remember these few tips. On a daily basis, you should be eating a proper balance of protien, good carbs, and healthy fat. Buy plenty of fresh vegetables and fruits. Eating veggies raw is obviously the best way to consume them to ensure you're getting the most bang for your buck as far as their nutritional value, but if you don't like raw, chop 'em up and saute' them in a little olive oil and fresh garlic. YUMM!! Buy lean cuts of meat, whether it be chicken (skinless), pork, beef, or turkey. Nuts are a good source of healthy fats as well as salmon and talapia. Natural/Organic peanut butter is also a good source of fat. Just try not to overdue it. PB is a tough one for me because it's so good. I have to watch my intake so I don't get too much of it. Good carbs would include fresh potatoes, sweet potatoes, brown rice, whole grain/whole wheat products, etc. And remember correct portion control is important! Protein portion should be the size of your open palm. Carb size should be the size of your fist.
Next time you go to the store, try picking up some of the foods that I've mentioned. Try to stay away from so many boxed/packaged sugary foods. Try to buy as many natural sources as you can. If you feel that you can't switch over to completely eating clean all at once, just start by trying to replace some of your meals with healthy ones. Do this for a few meals next week, then a few more the week after, and so on. Before you know it, you'll be eating clean, feeling better and will have a happier, healthier body!
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
It's Time to Move
It's time for the Corporate Body-for-LIFE Challenge 2011! I'm glad they decided to start it earlier this year because I was ready! I started a few weeks ago working out and eating clean but ended up with a sinus infection. I made the decision to see if my body could fight it off without having to put any antibiotics into my body. (I'm not recommending anyone do this...if you feel like you should go to your doc, by all means, go see them). It took 2 weeks of drinking lots of water, sniffing Ocean Nasal spray, and eating lots of oranges, but my body fought it off. But during this time, I wasn't working out since I was wanting to save energy to help my immune system gain strength. So glad to be done with that!
So this week I started the corporate BFL challenge with my employer. I have set pretty lofty goals for myself this time, all of which surpass my results from last year. One thing I'm planning to do different this time is making myself drink more water. I bought a refillable 32 oz. water bottle and a new pair of running shoes. Sometimes I find it helps to motivate me to get a fresh pair of workout shoes, new w/o pants, shorts, etc. Since starting the challenge on Monday, I've already been drinking more water daily and am hopeful that by doing this, it will enhance my results. A lot of sources say to drink a gallon a day of water. I'm up to drinking a little more than 1/2 gallon daily at this point. Might be a while before I can get to a gallon! That's a LOT of water. :)
For those who may wonder what the BFL workout plan looks like, in a nutshell, it consists of 3 days of weight training and 3 days of cardio. Alternating muscle groups in each w/o to give time for recovery. In weeks to come, I'll go further into detail and give specifics about my w/o routines as well as my eating plan.
This week's blog title is It's Time to Move. So what are you waiting for? Find some time everyday to get up and move! Take a walk or jog around the block. If it's too cold outside, head to the mall and walk around there! Just do something to get up and get moving! Do this consistently and your body will thank you.
Hope everyone has a great week!
So this week I started the corporate BFL challenge with my employer. I have set pretty lofty goals for myself this time, all of which surpass my results from last year. One thing I'm planning to do different this time is making myself drink more water. I bought a refillable 32 oz. water bottle and a new pair of running shoes. Sometimes I find it helps to motivate me to get a fresh pair of workout shoes, new w/o pants, shorts, etc. Since starting the challenge on Monday, I've already been drinking more water daily and am hopeful that by doing this, it will enhance my results. A lot of sources say to drink a gallon a day of water. I'm up to drinking a little more than 1/2 gallon daily at this point. Might be a while before I can get to a gallon! That's a LOT of water. :)
For those who may wonder what the BFL workout plan looks like, in a nutshell, it consists of 3 days of weight training and 3 days of cardio. Alternating muscle groups in each w/o to give time for recovery. In weeks to come, I'll go further into detail and give specifics about my w/o routines as well as my eating plan.
This week's blog title is It's Time to Move. So what are you waiting for? Find some time everyday to get up and move! Take a walk or jog around the block. If it's too cold outside, head to the mall and walk around there! Just do something to get up and get moving! Do this consistently and your body will thank you.
Hope everyone has a great week!
Saturday, January 8, 2011
Week 1 Results
I started back on Body for Life and have completed Week 1. It feels good to be back on a healthy eating plan and exercise routine. Had a good HIIT workout this morning and hit my abs afterwards. This was my HIIT routine for Week 1. This was done on the treadmill. I used a (mp3) program that I got last year called Treadmill Trainer by Yuri Elkaim. His TT#1 is great for someone just starting HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) or if you haven't done it in a while and want to get things going again. I change it up a little to suit me but this is the basic summary.
First interval is:
1 Min walking warmup
20 sec jog @ 60% of max run
30 sec fast walk (Repeat this 5 times)
Then the next interval is:
30 sec jog @ 60% of max run
1 Min fast walk (Repeat this 5 times)
The next interval is:
1 Min jog @ 60% of max run
2 Min fast walk (Repeat 4 times)
The last interval is:
2 Min jog (1st min @ 60%, 2nd min at 90%)
Then walk it out for a min, then you're done.
This was a good start for me to get back into the swing of running. I remember when I started my BFL Challenge last March, I pushed it too hard the first week and injured my knee, which resulted in missing my HIIT workouts for the 2nd week. I learned from that and haven't had any kind of knee pains thru the entire first week of doing cardio. Each week I plan to step it up a bit to continue pushing myself past what I was doing the previous week.
After my cardio this morning, I grabbed my floor mat and worked on my abs. UGH! Not fun! Lol! Someone told me if you find an ab exercise you don't enjoy doing, that's the one you should probably do more of. She's absolutely right! And at this point that includes every ab exercise out there for me! Ha! But I forced myself to get thru them and completed them. I did 3 sets to failure of Bent Knee Abdominal Hip Raises, 3 sets to failure of Barbell Abdominal Rollouts , then 3 sets to failure of Flutter Kick Oblique Crunches (bicycle crunches). Didn't enjoy any of it. But now that I'm done I'm glad I did it!
OK, my results for Week 1 are:
Lost 2 lbs.
Dropped 2.5% body fat
Lost 2.5 inches off waist & hips combined
Pretty good first week. :) I can definitely feel the wheels of motivation starting to roll!
First interval is:
1 Min walking warmup
20 sec jog @ 60% of max run
30 sec fast walk (Repeat this 5 times)
Then the next interval is:
30 sec jog @ 60% of max run
1 Min fast walk (Repeat this 5 times)
The next interval is:
1 Min jog @ 60% of max run
2 Min fast walk (Repeat 4 times)
The last interval is:
2 Min jog (1st min @ 60%, 2nd min at 90%)
Then walk it out for a min, then you're done.
This was a good start for me to get back into the swing of running. I remember when I started my BFL Challenge last March, I pushed it too hard the first week and injured my knee, which resulted in missing my HIIT workouts for the 2nd week. I learned from that and haven't had any kind of knee pains thru the entire first week of doing cardio. Each week I plan to step it up a bit to continue pushing myself past what I was doing the previous week.
After my cardio this morning, I grabbed my floor mat and worked on my abs. UGH! Not fun! Lol! Someone told me if you find an ab exercise you don't enjoy doing, that's the one you should probably do more of. She's absolutely right! And at this point that includes every ab exercise out there for me! Ha! But I forced myself to get thru them and completed them. I did 3 sets to failure of Bent Knee Abdominal Hip Raises, 3 sets to failure of Barbell Abdominal Rollouts , then 3 sets to failure of Flutter Kick Oblique Crunches (bicycle crunches). Didn't enjoy any of it. But now that I'm done I'm glad I did it!
OK, my results for Week 1 are:
Lost 2 lbs.
Dropped 2.5% body fat
Lost 2.5 inches off waist & hips combined
Pretty good first week. :) I can definitely feel the wheels of motivation starting to roll!
Monday, January 3, 2011
Ashamed but Motivated - A New Beginning...
Never imagined after completing my Body for Life challenge in June 2010 and even winning 2010 Male Champion in the BFL Corporate Challenge that I'd let myself down and go back to where I was before. I'm ashamed to admit, I have. I didn't realize the negative result of going off track over the last few months until now. But this has shown me that a healthy lifestyle needs to be just that, a LIFEstyle. Something Body for Life taught me was how to eat healthy and how to exercise. I have the tools needed to live a healthy lifestyle, I just neglected them. And as I took my measurements and "before" photos today, all of this hit me like a Mack truck. But I'm not defeated. I feel challenged!
I decided a couple of weeks ago that I was going to start Body for Life the first week of 2011 and I'm excited to have started today. I'm motivated and am on the right track and will complete this first 12 week challenge. But this time I'm not looking at it as a "12 week" deal, but rather the beginning of eating clean and regular exercise for 2011.
For anyone who has had success in losing weight, becoming fit, or living a more healthy lifestyle but went back to old bad habits and eventually gained some of the weight back, or maybe all or more, don't be discouraged! Let that fuel you! I'm going to prove that you can get back to that healthy place in your weight, health, and back to loving the way you look and feel. Follow my blog over these next 12 weeks and see what happens. JOIN ME!
I decided a couple of weeks ago that I was going to start Body for Life the first week of 2011 and I'm excited to have started today. I'm motivated and am on the right track and will complete this first 12 week challenge. But this time I'm not looking at it as a "12 week" deal, but rather the beginning of eating clean and regular exercise for 2011.
For anyone who has had success in losing weight, becoming fit, or living a more healthy lifestyle but went back to old bad habits and eventually gained some of the weight back, or maybe all or more, don't be discouraged! Let that fuel you! I'm going to prove that you can get back to that healthy place in your weight, health, and back to loving the way you look and feel. Follow my blog over these next 12 weeks and see what happens. JOIN ME!
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