3 most important rules for weight loss

Well hello there!  This has been a week of GET IT DONE.  I told my family I’ve turned into a complete perfectionist OCD person and they said I thought you already were.  I had my lists and I kept busy every second of the day.  I went a little crazy on the cleaning and cooking.  I’ve always liked to cook and bake, but that’s going to be my new thing now next to exercise.  Keeps my mind happy and I love feeding people (:

O.K.  workouts were insane too.  My whole body hurts and I’m running a half marathon this Saturday!  For the rest of today and tomorrow I’m going to make myself SLOW down, if that’s possible.  I have the high school kids coming over for lunch in an hour so this will be short and sweet!!

3 things in this ORDER:  DIET, WEIGHTS, CARDIO.  Remember that and all your dreams will come true!

Diet focus today is VEGGIES and LEAN PROTEIN.  You must UP UP UP your protein to see your hard earned muscles.  Eat protein with every meal.  Egg whites, chicken, shrimp, turkey, any lean meats, protein powder…  Get used to it.  Veggies all day and with every meal if possible.  Stay away from breads and sugar and you’ll be happy happy!  I’m working on my goal for October and THIS is key!!  I’ll post my results on HALLOWEEN!!

OK!!  Weights.  I’m not talking 2 lb. weights.  Lift as heavy as you can to complete your reps and maintain proper form.  I lift every day pretty much.  I’m going to take a break next week.  The following week I’ll be hitting Jamie Eason Phase 3 for 4 weeks.  Scary.  Here’s my workout from my class this week.  It was awesome!  Great group!

Killer All Around FUN

 (3 people in a group.  Burpees is the timer.  When they are done, rotate.  Complete 3 times.)

25 burpees

Bicep curls

Sit Ups

25 Tricep Extensions

Thrusters

Tick Tock Abs

50 Walking Lunges

Push Ups

Curtsy Lunges

5 MINUTES OF POWER-Complete each set as fast as you can in a minute for 5 minutes.

8 Overhead Press

5 Burpees

8 Sit Ups

Sweaty mess is all I can say.  Alright.  What did I say was last?  Oh Cardio!  I love cardio.  I’ve been doing these HIGH intensity aerobics classes and they are awesome!  I feel like I’m burning a million calories, BUT if you have more muscle you will burn more calories throughout the day, meaning a higher metabolism.  So, if you are crunched for time drop cardio first, weights second, and diet LAST (:  Most important according to ME!

Well, I better be off!  I did want to add a SWEET compliment my husband gave me.

I posted this dream body on my last post and he told me I already looked like that!  HA HA HA HA HA!!  I think he was just being nice (:  Not quite…until next time.  Train Outstanding and don’t Underestimate yourself!  Have a beautiful day!

What’s on my mind

New month!  I always like to change up my picture and background!  I have a lot on my mind these days.  I don’t know how I organize my brain sometimes!  I have thoughts about EXERCISE, NUTRITION, and FASHION today.

EXERCISE:  My gym is revamping the personal training department, which is GREAT!!!  It will be a lot more organized and professional.  I’m looking forward to being more involved and increasing my clientele.  I also decided to start up my MOM workouts again.  I volunteer and teach a boot camp class at my church.  I thought about dropping it, but I miss seeing my friends and I enjoy putting together workouts!

NUTRITION:  Ahh, my nemesis!  Currently, I have a very determined spark in me!  I’m doing a 4 day cleanse right now and already on DAY 3.  I LOVE it!  That is very crazy to say because I’m starving, but sometimes I really need a kick in the pants.  I’ve been a slacker for too long.  Healthy eating this whole month!  One treat day on…HALLOWEEN!!!  I’m a candyaholic!  I’ll post the details of my cleanse on SATURDAY when I’m all done!  Good nutrition is REALLY the MOST important healthy impact you have on your body!!!

FASHION:  I follow this cute girl’s blog called Pink Peonies.  She has great style and the way she displays her blog is so pretty.  One problem with her site is most of what she models is WAY over the top expensive!!  I was shocked when I liked one of her tops

and discovered it was only $36.00.  The website is called ShopSosie.  SOOOOOOO cute!!!!  Here are a few things I LOVE!  I’m wanting long tops lately to wear with leggings and boots.  They have tons!

I also want to change my hair color soon!  I’m not a blond nor do I wish to be one.  I found this color from a friend of mine who is amazing at coloring hair.  She will have to try it out on me!!  Slightly daring?

 That’s all for today!!  I have a busy night with kids all over the place.  Enjoy the fall leaves and breathe the yummy air.  Life is beautiful!!

I love this!!  My LIFE!

Week of workouts and what to eat

Hello!  We woke up to more snow!  February has pretty much been like January around here.  I was able to shovel my driveway first thing this morning for a pre-workout workout!

So, the other day a fit chick (Christmas Abbott) caught my eye on the Yahoo news page and I looked her up.  Of course she’s a Cross Fit girl.  I admire the hard work and effort it takes to stick to those workouts and strict eating.  Impressive.  I want her abs!

I’ve never really tried Cross Fit long term.  I do live in a VERY fit town.  We have several cross fit gyms along with a half a dozen regular gyms.  When spring and summer hit we have several great running and biking roads and trails.  I can’t wait to hit them!

I’m RARELY an excuses girl.  I have to say though that being a Mom of 5 kids at this stage in my life makes it pretty hard to keep up my “wanna be a rockin’ cross fit girl” physique.  Here’s to reality!  However, I do believe that one can achieve amazing results with sheer stubbornness and dedication.  We did this workout yesterday and all my friends were telling me how sore they were today.  Give it a try!

Hit it Hard Tabatas

20 seconds on and 10 seconds off of each exercise.  8 rounds of each exercise before moving to the next.

Burpees

Dumbbell stiff leg dead lifts

RUN (2 sets of ladders in the gym)

Jump Squats

Ab twists holding a weight

RUN ladders

Push Ups

High Sumos

RUN ladders

Mountain Climbers twisting knee to opposite elbow

Reverse lunge with front kick

RUN ladders

Butterfly sit ups

Curtsy side jump lunges

RUN ladders

THE END!

I have 1 week to lose 3 pounds.  Today I weighed 130 and that was before any workout.  I thought I’d share what I’ve been eating.  I don’t think you need fancy and complicated recipes to eat well.  This is what I’ve been loving lately.

BREAKFAST: 1 egg, 2 egg whites with veges and ham sauteed up or a protein shake.

LUNCH: Salad with cottage cheese, veges, chicken, EMERGE drink from MAX MUSCLE.

SNACKS: Cottage cheese and greek yogurt with stevia, cinnamon, and blueberries, nuts and raisins, ZONE bar, pear or apple.

DINNER: chicken and veges.

I found this pre-cooked chicken at COSTCO the other day and it is SOOOOOO good!  10 minutes in the oven.  So easy!

I like being strict and seeing results.  Workouts are more fun and I have more energy when I’m eating well.  Here are my workouts for this week:

MONDAY: 7 mile run

TUESDAY: Jamie Eason Live Fit Legs and Back workout

WEDNESDAY: Tabatas and 5 mile run

THURSDAY: Body Combat and Jamie Eason Arms, Abs, and 20 minute sprints

FRIDAY: Shoulders and 30 minute sprints

SATURDAY: 7 mile run and body combat

Does that seem like a lot?  Advice: Find what you love and do it!  I haven’t modeled any workout clothes lately so I thought I’d add a pic.  GOOD workout clothing is ESSENTIAL to me 🙂  This outfit is very comfy!

TOP: Albion 

BOTTOMS:  Lululemon

Hope you all have a Terrific, Magnificent, Beautiful, and Awesome day!  

Time to get serious

O.K.  Today is a REAL post about what I love: lifting weights and eating clean!  It is the last week of December and I’m not eating my best and when I don’t eat my best I don’t even exercise!  Hey, at least I’m consistent!  When I lose my momentum in the fitness world I look to someone inspiring.  The other day I got an email from bodybuilding.com that had the profiles of the 5 finalists for their 2013 spokesperson of the year.  Talk about strict dedication!  So, I found a girl close to my size to “copy”.  You can look at her full profile on bodybuilding.com.  She’s slightly younger than me, but she’s 5’6″ and 130 lbs.  What impressed me most is that she’s lost 55 lbs.!  She talks about the many ways she tried to lose weight and ONLY when she added heavy weights to the mix did her body really change.  I soooooo need to get lifting again!!
I’m a BIG fan of New Year Resolutions!  That doesn’t mean I keep them.  What it does do, is motivate and challenge me to be better!  Several of my friends want me to weight train with them.  I’m going to put together a 8 week program for us.  I will use several ideas from bodybuilding.com.  I’ll post the details SOON!  Here are my fitness goals for 2013!!!

• Follow 8 week program.  Do not miss a day!  That’s lifting 6 days a week.
• Run 3-4 days a week. (I’m signed up for a half in January).
• EAT CLEAN!  No white flour, white sugar, or processed foods.
• 3 treat days a month.  This equals out to 10% of the year.
• Body fat at 15% by end of March (My husband won’t like that one).
• Finish my personal trainer course by March.

So, all of you New Year’s junkies, eat up!  We’re starting HARD on JAN 1!!!!!

Hope everyone had a great Christmas!  This is what I got!!

So cute with my red boots!

My vest is white and blue reversible.  Much cuter than this one, but I couldn’t find a pic.

Merry Brightness.  Enjoy the Snow Tonight.

 

Day One!

Hi there!

I hope everyone is on board with our healthy habits challenge!  I have already thought of lots of motivating and helpful posts to get started on.  I just want to start with this one and say, WOW!   One of my goals is to look this good in itty bitty white shorts!

Tomorrow I will post a list of HIGH FIBER FOODS and LOW SUGAR FOODS.  To clarify, 6 grams of sugar means in any one thing you eat, not for the whole day.  That would be near impossible.  Milk is o.k too.  It is higher in sugar, but I think a little skim milk will not hurt you!  Almond milk is a yummy alternative. 

Here is something I ripped out of Oxygen Magazine and put on my fridge.  The question was, “I rely on about three cups of coffee a day.  How can I increase my energy without caffeine?  The answer was to munch on snacks that combine a slow-digesting carbohydrate with protein.  Here are a few options:

6 almonds + string cheese + 1 medium pear

1 orange + 12 cashews + 1/2 cup low-fat cottage cheese

2 slices whole grain toast + peanut butter + 1/2 cup low-fat cottage cheese

high-fiber dry cereal (8 grams of fiber) + skim milk + fruit

They also said to sip green tea.  It has about 1/3 the amount of caffeine per cup and green tea has fat-burning antioxidants! 

Enjoy!!  

I want to lose 5 lbs.

Maintaining my weight has always been important to me.  I have never had a major weight problem.  I have however been pregnant 5 times and had to work to lose the last 10-20 POUNDS with many of my pregnancies.  For the majority of people (me included) this is not easy!!  I am a very DETERMINED and MOTIVATED individual.  Now that I am DONE having children I have a long-term goal to keep my weight within 5-7 lbs. of my desired weight.  I don’t have a problem throwing numbers out there.  I am 5’7″ and  I really like to weigh 130 or a little under.  My body would rather stay around 132-133.  Therefore, I am eternally trying to lose 5 lbs.  I don’t mind this challenge in life.  It is FUN? for me to try new diets and eating plans and of course EXERCISE to my hearts content.  As much as I love exercise, I know that the biggest influence for a healthy weight is….WHAT YOU PUT IN YOUR MOUTH!!  I have read with slight variations the ratio that exercise, nutrition, and genetics have on health.  Here is a great blog I found at carolinescott.org.   People have asked me what CLEAN eating is.  Once again I refer you to Tosca Reno.  Excellent website.  Here are some basic CLEAN eating tips!

Simple “Do’s and Don’ts” of Healthy Eating

What To Do

• Eat more-5 to 6 small meals a day.
• Eat breakfast everyday, within an hour of waking up.
• Eat a combo of lean protein and complex carbohydrates at each meal.
• Eat enough (2 to 3 servings) of healthy fats everyday.
• Stay hydrated (about 8 glasses of water a day).
• Keep clean, healthy foods close by and on hand at all times!
• Depend on fruits and veggies for vitamins and minerals.
• Try doing most of your shopping on the outside aisles of the grocery store…this is where the clean whole foods are mostly located.

What To Avoid

• Avoid highly processed foods.
• Avoid white flour and sugar.
• Avoid foods containing unnecessary preservatives, additives and chemicals.
• Avoid artificial sweeteners and sugars.
• Avoid artificial foods in general!
• Avoid saturated and trans fats.
• Avoid sugar loaded beverages like soda and high sugar juices.
• Limit alcohol intake.
• Step away from the “super-size” menu!

 

I have seen this chart at 70% nutrition, 20% training, and 10% genetics as well.  It’s hard to believe that nutrition plays that big a role.  I believe it 100%.  I have trained and worked out like crazy and the only time I see real results is when I’m eating CLEAN!  By results I mean: pounds lost, clothes looser, mood up, body tight with more muscle definition, more energy and endurance during exercise and throughout the day.  I am far happier when I’m making smart and healthy eating choices.

I don’t have too many pics. of me when I was pregnant.  Here is one about 3 months after having a baby and one of me at the Bahamas 2 years after baby #4.  Next post will be how to stay motivated and determined to keep losing weight!!  Hang in there!

Me, 3 months postpartum

I miss the SUN!!!