It's been awhile!

Oops! Haven't updated in a couple months, sorry! 

Do you ever get bored with your fitness routine? I know I occasionally get bored with mine so I learned instead of "taking a break," I switch it up! It's also great to switch it up so that you do not get stuck in a plateau or workout rut.

I recently discovered this great new app called SworkIt. (Please note I am not endorsed by them just writing my own little reveiw). And it really helps when I am  in a rut and bored with my own routine. 

As you can see you can choose the type of workout you would like to do,and once you make your choice, the duration of your workout. This app is also great for travel because you do not need any equipment to do any of these exercises. 

Once you are finished with the workout it gives you an estimate of how many calories burned during the particular workout you just did.

Another helpful tip to avoid getting into a rut is to never go more than 3 days without working out. Even if you just have to go for a walk around the neighborhood just keep moving and you will avoid the feeling of regret for missing a workout.

What do you do to avoid getting bored with your workouts and into a rut? I would love to hear from you, please leave your comments below.

Motivation monday... Why?

Why do you work out? 

Here's my answer to this question and I would love to hear yours! I workout to feel strong, confident, healthy, and to be get fit. I workout to set an example for my daughter to show her the importance of keeping moving.  I workout because I am training for a 10k in January and cross-training makes running easier. I workout because it's the only "me time" I have these days, it makes me feel good and I have never regretted a workout. I workout in hopes of inspiring others to do the same to feel good.

So why do you workout? I would love to hear from you in the comments below! 

Pick yourself back up and just keep moving!

Last week started out with a tummy bug and I could not do anything or eat anything. I felt bad for not doing my daily workout and eating properly. Everyone has a downfall when it comes to fitness, it's not always easy to stay on track and eat properly. I had a couple "off" days this past week. At first I beat myself up over it but I realized that only threw me more off track. I learned that you have to pick yourself up, brush off, and keep on moving. Today I did that by running 2 miles on the treadmill and doing a 40 minute bootcamp-style full-body workout at the gym. Truthfully I was contemplating going to the gym since I had already ran 2 miles, but I am sure glad I did! I thought to myself that I was going to wear myself out, but that is so far from the truth! I feel great, energized and ready to conquer the day! How do you pick yourself back up? 

Hard work + willpower + clean eating= results.

So for the past couple weeks I am truly working the hardest I ever have trying to get into shape and I am already seeing results. I am starting to also feel more energized and better in general. In the past I would work out, eat somewhat healthy, and only see little results. This time around I am working out, eating clean and seeing much bigger results. Now I see what people mean when they say your eating habits play a huge role in becoming healthy and fit. I used to think that by counting calories and eliminating something during the day that it was ok to eat ice cream, a cookie or some kind of sweet snack at night before bed. I have learned that counting calories is still important, but what really matters is the type of calories you are eating. For example: a cookie and a serving of almonds may have the same amout of calories, but the way your body will process each of those food choices is totally different. While the cookie has little to no nutritional value, and lots of sugar, the almonds have good fats, potassium, protein and will make you feel full longer. Now I am NOT a nutritionist, I am just posting what I have learned through my own research. 

Working out is now a habit of mine. I have to make sure I plan my day to squeeze in a 30 minute workout. The easiest time to work out for me is early in the morning before everyone else is awake. Therefore I get my workout done and still have an entire day ahead to do other things. 

Results 

So here are my results after a week and a half of clean eating and working out:

*Lost 6 pounds

*1 inch on my waist

*2 inches on my hips

*3 inches on my thighs

If you are just starting to work out measure yourself. It will help you stay motivated when you see results. And remember you CAN do it!

Have a happy Sunday!

It's not a "diet," it's a lifestyle change.

So I am down 5 pounds in a week and a half, why is that? I joined a 30 day cardio challenge group (cardio everyday for 30 mins a day), I go to a mommy & me workout class at least twice a week, and I cleaned up my diet. I started slowly cutting out processed food & refined sugar from my diet (yes I had a cheat brownie on Memorial Day), and this week I joined a clean eating challenge group so I can hold myself accountable. I have learned that I do better with other people who are trying to achieve the same goals. 

One thing that bugs me on my new lifestyle journey is when someone thinks I am on a restrictive "diet." Eating clean, working out, and cutting out processed food and refined sugar  is not a restrictive diet, nor am I being picky, I am just taking care of my body. I try not to get too upset because I know this is all new to some people, so if they ask I explain exactly what I am doing and learning from my journey with hopes to be an inspiration to them. I have learned not only how to cook healthy, but how to make healthy taste good. 

Do you eat clean? What are your favorite clean recipes? 

Stay on track!

Happy friday to all! So glad the weekend is here, but the weekends always seem to be my downfall. I always fall off track. But I'm not going to do that this weekend, nope! Why is that? Progress! I'm finally start to notice it. Since I restarted my blog and held myself accountable I have lost 2lbs. So what am I going to do to stay on track? I plan on attending my Mommy & Me class at the gym I attend and also running. It's also a holiday weekend! So I plan on not over -indulging. 

We are supposed to go to a bbq on Sunday and guess who signed up to bring dessert? Me! I am planning on making one unhealthy dessert and one healthy one that is also yummy but I won't feel guilty eating it. Going to also to try to bring healthy snacks and food with me so I don't fall for the unhealthy ones, wish me luck!

 

What do you do to stay on track? Hope everyone has an awesome weekend!!!

Challenge yourself.

Sometimes I get so upset with myself for falling off a workout routine. I wonder why? It's not that hard to dedicate 20-30 minutes of your day (if that's all you have) to work out. 

This past Saturday during the Flavor Run 5k I figured out why, I sometimes do not challenge myself enough and get bored with the same old routine. Why did it dawn on me during the flavor run you ask? Because I didn't train for this 5k (to some people 5k's are a breeze, but to me they are a challenge because I'm not the best runner), and most of this 5k was mostly in grass and gravel in the what felt like 90degree heat. I wanted to give up .25 miles into the race. I was hot, having a difficult time, and had already ran past most of the group I came with, and some of the group I was with was way ahead of me. Even though this was considered a "fun run" I considered it one of the most challenging 5k's I ever ran. But I kept going. Running, walking, running, walking, running. Toward the end of the race I caught up to an old friend. He was walking, so was I. We saw the finish line and we stuck together and encouraged each other to keep on going and started to run again. I needed that. I knew I could do it. The challenge was great and hard but now I have it under my belt. 

After running the 5k I no longer felt tired, or defeated. I felt like I won my own challenge and the feeling was awesome. From now on when I start to slip down the slippery workout slope I vow to challenge myself to do something different. After running that 5k I didn't train for, I know that anything is possible! 

Pre-race. Didn't know what I was in for.

Post-race, with my awesome trainer from the gym I attend. 

My next big challenge will be the Disney 10k in January. 

Hold yourself accountable.

Ok so I am a bad blogger (as stated in the previous post) and have not wrote anything in a little over a year. Because I have been falling off-track, which is very easy to do, I have decided to start to blog again and hold myself accountable.

On this blog I plan on sharing my exercise journey as a mother. Us mommies have busy lives, but we still have to make time for ourselves to clear our heads. I plan on sharing meals, exercises, and my journey to getting back to my pre-pregnancy weight (which sadly I have 18lbs to go).

Please note I am not a nutritionist, nor personal trainer, just a mommy trying to get into shape.Hope you all will take this journey with me.

I hope to update this blog once or twice a week with progress. I hope to inspire other mommies to get on the fitness journey.