New Years!

Oops! The holiday craziness got the better of me and I slacked off on my posts. :) Now the festivities are winding down and my commitment to my health is ramping up! I took my workouts a little easy this last week, and ate WAY too many sweets. Now i'm back on the bandwagon and hit my workout hard this morning. I'm sitting down today to set my goals for 2013. I'll post my speicifc fitness goals here as soon as I've nailed them down! Think about yours. What do you want to accomplish? How do you want to FEEL at the end of 2013? Pick achievable goals, but also goals that will CHALLENGE you! If you need help, let me know! I'd love to help you! Here are some good ones for you:

Here's to a better you in 2013!

Food as Fuel

Eating right can be hard! I've made so many changes to my diet, all for the better, but i'm still tweaking. I haven't gotten the results that I've hoped for from my 90 days of ChaLEAN, and after a long talk with my coach we've decided I need to cut back my calories a little more. It's hard to adjust to a new calorie range. I'm kind of a grump today. :) But I'm really working on changing my mind set from eating food for fun to eating food to fuel my body. My body needs good quality food to work as hard as I expect it to. Good quality food can also taste good! It just takes some experimenting. I'm working on it!! So I will be successful at fueling my body. Will I slip up? Yes. But I'm going to keep working until  I know what my body needs and wants.

Muscle!

When people think of a weight loss journey, obviously they think about the numbers on a scale. I always did, and still often do. But today I want to talk about the other ways you can notice changes that are even more important! I learned from a great coach that when you are training your body correctly, often you will not lose weight quickly, but you will see dramatic changes in the shape and size of your body. We all know that muscles weighs more than fat. We also know that muscle is much more compact than fat! So if you are eating well and training your body in a way that creates muscle, you will slim down. Even if the number on the scale doesn't change! Its still a process and you have to learn how your body works, how much food and exercise it needs, but its true!

I often focus on the fact that the scale hasn't moved much for me recently. HOWEVER, even though I still weigh more than I did when I got married, and I still weigh more than I did after I lost my weight after baby #2, I am a clothes size smaller (if not 2 sizes) than I have ever been in my adult life! I have lost a lot of inches in the last year, I wish I had kept better track, but I know I have lost more inches than I have lost pounds. That is because I HAVE MUSCLE! I don't waste away my time on a treadmill or elliptical. Although I do love cardio and I do a LOT of it when I'm training for Triathlons and other races, I've learned that steady state cardio does not change my body. I need more! So when I do cardio, I try to add intervals, change up my heart rate so my body doesn't get bored. I also make sure that I eat enough so that my body doesn't want to use my muscle as a source of energy. YOU CANNOT DIET YOURSELF FIT! You have to eat enough food, and food from the right sources for your body to maintain muscle!

So, what I'm trying to say is, don't focus on the scale! Weigh in once a week if you must, but don't let the number on the scale make or ruin your day. More importantly, take measurements and pictures. I take my measurements and pictures once a month. Its a great motivator and its nice to see everything shrink and tighten.

How to Survive the Holidays!

I really recommend reading Lindsay Brin's post on her blog about surviving the holidays without weight gain. Her recommendations are right on and totally attainable! I'm going to try and follow them!

Read it HERE!

1 Year

This time of year marks 1 year since I got serious about my journey to Health. I was trying for a little while before that, but it was the holiday season of 2011 when I decided enough is enough and took charge of my life. Here I stand 20 pounds lighter and a lot stronger. Like i've said in previous posts, I am far from perfect, but I am a better, much healthier person now and I am so happy about that! I realized today that I am finally to the point that I don't have to beat myself up when I make mistakes. I've realized that I know how to take care of myself and that I can't undo that with one bad meal or one missed workout. I am not where I want to be, but I am on the path and I will get there. I'm determined. I have the tools. I have the knowledge. And I have the heart! Its taking longer than I want, that's for sure, but its a journey. I think in our society we are just so used to getting what we want right when we want it, that its hard when we have to be patient! Be I will be patient. I want it bad enough. :) Do you? Be patient. Your hard work will pay off. If you get discouraged, just remember:

I have to remind myself of this A LOT! And so far, I have decided its worth it to work my butt off! :)
Here's to another year of hard work, character and muscle building, and being proud of the person I'm becoming.

Motivation Monday

I think this quote so SO much! I wish the world could see everyone this way. I wish we could be measured by what we CAN control and what we are trying to become. Love it.

Motivation Monday