I'm around

I haven't been to this blog in forever but I haven't been to any blog in forever lol.  I updated my personal blog and thought I would stop over here too.  Thanks for keeping this going Cami! :)

My exercising has been going well. Last year I started running again off and on and this year I have been doing it consistently.  Due to an injury I've had to go really slow but I'm glad I can at all.  So far, I'm up to running 6 miles on my long days and between 3-4 miles on the other days.  From my highest weight I'm down 30 lbs and two pant sizes.  I still have a long way to go but it feels good to be making progress.  I'm pretty proud of myself for sticking to this.  I've run one 5k and I'm doing two 10k's soon and then my goal is to run a half marathon by the end of the year. 

Running has been great but I still need to work on eating better all the time not just some of the time.  Plus, I really need to work on getting rid of my belly.  Yeah I can run 6 miles but I don't look like a runner at all. :P  I have the Insanity DVD's that I might start trying.  They are killer but I know my muscles need the change.  I'll let you know how it goes!

Goals...

I am almost there with my goals!!!

Today I ran 4 miles.  Goal is 6.

I ran a 9 minute 17 second mile.  Goal is 9 minutes.

I DID one pull-up.  Highlight of my week.

I pushed out 30 boy push-ups with no break.  Thought my eyeballs were going to pop out. Luckily they didn't.

I did a 2 1/2 minute plank.  Goal was 2 minutes.

I did a 3 minute wall-sit. Finally.

I swam the mile in 39 minutes. Goal was to just swim a mile.

I still can't do the splits!


I think I'm about there, which means I probably need to make some more fitness goals soon.  Any ideas???

Check in on my new goals...

First of all, I want to say WELCOME TO THE BLOG girls!!! I've had my fair share of friends on this blog, but it's been kind of a come and go thing, so it's nice to have some new people!

I thought I would check in on how my new goals are going. (That I posted about a few posts back.)
But before I do, I just want to say how NICE it's been not to focus so much on weight and food, but more on fitness. I feel like when I set goals like this, I can achieve them if I put in enough work. Whereas if I make weight goals, no matter how much I work, it doesn't always work! So, I'm happy doing this for now.


Okay, here goes my update....


First, I did my 2 minute plank! CHECK! It was harder than it sounded.

I also swam a mile in 39 minutes, which was actually better than I expected I would do. I'm not the swimming type. Seriously, I can't even go under water without plugging my nose, so I look like a dork swimming because I have to use the nose plug things and I'm sure people (aka lifeguards at the aquatic center) are secretly laughing at me when I'm not looking. Oh well. I'm trying.

I'm up to 25 boy push-ups  (my goal was 30 without stopping) and you think, really....how hard could it be to just do five more? Well, let me tell you, I thought the same thing, and then I fell on my face at 25.  I'll keep at it though. I might be able to pull this one off soon, if I try at the beginning of my workout, instead of at the end.

I still can't do the splits.

It's been cold so I haven't really ran much this year yet, but plan to more since it's finally warming up. I'm going to work on my 9 minute mile first, and then start training to do 6 miles. This morning I ran a 2 mile MS run with my first grader (who kicked my butt!) but I did 2 miles in 19 minutes, so I think if I tried it, I probably could do a 9 minute mile. I'll give it a shot this upcoming week.

I still fall over at about 2-2 1/2 minutes of my wall-sits.

And I'm nowhere NEAR close to doing a pull-up, but I feel like my arms are getting stronger so I'll keep at that one too.

I still have lots of work to do on these goals, but it's nice to check off a few!!! How are you all doing with your goals???

Alright. I'm in too!

So this is my first post to a blog for several years. I'm not much of a writer so I'll make it short and sweet! I love what you are doing here Cami and Erica and I want in. And BTW, good job Cami! You look great and you've done awesome!

I have hit my own little plateau, so I'm stepping up the motivation. I had my little girl Camille almost 18 months ago. I actually lost the baby weight quicker then the last two pregnancies (#3 and two in school keeps me crazy busy)! But last Thanksgiving and Christmas I let loose. It was so great! But I paid the price and put on a few pounds. I also stopped exercising regularly. So in February or March I signed up at the gym and subscribed to Weight Watchers online. I love both! I've done Weight Watchers a couple times before so I've got the hang of it now and it's always worked well for me. I have always enjoyed exercising and even used to teach group fitness classes.

I'm currently at a weight that doesn't bother me terribly but I'd like to see if I can discipline myself a little more. I'm not sure if I have strong enough will power to increase my fitness level by much. (or if giving up really good food is worth it). But I'd like to find out. So here are some of my goals:

1. Lose 10 pounds (I haven't been at that weight since high school so I'm not even sure my body will do this)

2. Exercise regularly

3. Increase muscle definition. (I'd like to feel confident in my swimsuit or even a tight shirt)

4. Try a CrossFit class when I feel ready

That's it! Not very exciting but it does feel good to write it down. I'm also going to post a "before" pic soon...maybe.

IT'S TIME

Hi!  I'm Erica and have been following this blog since the beginning - bathing in the inspiration you ladies give me - however still falling short in the self discipline area and forcing myself to begin an actual fitness routine.  I think I was afraid to ever post and find myself  held accountable to my goals but let's face it - IT'S TIME!  And I think the whole idea of being held accountable is a good idea at this point! :)

 

To start off, I thought I'd tell you a bit about myself.  I am a homemaker to a wonderful husband a three beautiful children!  My husband and I are movie buffs (nothing better than curling up on the couch with your hubby and a bowl of popcorn - oops I shouldn't say popcorn on a fitness blog now should I :).  I love interior design and enjoy doing yard work, reading and scrapbooking although it is getting harder and harder to find the time to do any of these at the moment.  I find myself VERY busy with three young children.  And that's okay, in fact I love it!  I often remind myself that "there is a time and a season for all things" and right now I'd much rather cherish the small every day moments with my kids while I have them in my home and can enjoy their laughter and energy. 

And that last word brings me to the greatest reason for FINALLY posting on this blog.  My kids are VERY active and are blessed with an incredible amount of energy.  I figure I'll never be able to keep up with them if I don't try to get a bit more fit! :)  That coupled with the idea that I'd like to eat a bit healthier as well as be an example of good health to my kids and wa-la...here I am.

 

With all that in mind, I've decided that I'm most interested in simply getting fit or toned rather than losing weight mostly because...well...I'm not fit or toned :)  and really my weight hasn't changed much over the years.  However, I know that muscle weighs more than fat so the fact is that although my weight hasn't changed much and that it didn't take long for me to get back to my 'before baby' weight, my muscle tone is gone and I in fact have more fat I'm carrying around than I have in the past.  At this point, my goal is to lose 1 1/2 in. around each thigh and 4 inches around my belly.  And it would be great to lose about 8 lbs. but have attained more muscle tone with that weight.  I'll have to give it some more thought about particulars in a later post. 

 

To try and help, I started doing Zumba three times a week (occasionally missing here and there) about three months ago - just here at my house via DVDs.  I really love the energy in the workouts and I'll admit...I'm a dancer...and prefer that type of workout over others.  I've never been a runner/jogger however I realize that variety is best for your body and so over time I might have to branch out a bit and try new things.  I also just started tracking my caloric intake just to give me an idea of where I am in my eating habits and to see if I feel like by simply adding exercise I can continue to eat the way I do (which I really do feel is pretty healthy with a good variety of foods) even including my treats OR if it might be wiser to switch up my diet as well.  If the later is the case, I'll have to take that on in time but for now, I'm starting with simply adding exercise to my routine and hope to be able to accomplish that and move on from there.  I'll keep you (and myself included) posted on my progress.  Wish me luck and thanks again for all your inspiration!!!

New kind of goal...

So I lost a little weight the good old fashion way after I was done nursing Morgan, and then, as to be expected, I have kind of hit a plateau. Oh well. I'll work through it. But...instead of making MORE "weight-loss" goals, or even dieting goals (no white flour, no treats, etc.), I decided to come up with a few FITNESS goals for me to work towards instead. It'll be nice for a change to focus on these goals instead of weight! Here are a few that I am working on.

Run a 9 minute mile.  (When I run it's more like  a "slog"  ...aka slow-jog, so a 9 minute mile is a good goal for me!)

Run 6 miles without stopping.  (Let me clarify....the 9 -minute mile and the 6 mile run in NO WAY relate to one another. Got that?  I'll do my 9 minute mile one day. And run a slow 10-11 minute mile for a full 6 miles another day.

Do 1 pull-up. Yes only 1. I would try for more, but I know my limitations. I have never done this before. Not sure I'll get there either, but I'll try.  This may be my hardest goal yet! haha

Swim 1 mile, preferably in a decent amount of time!  45 minutes would be a decent amount of time in my eyes!

Do 30 boy push-ups without killing over.

A 2 minute plank with no breaks.  (With good form.  No butt in the air!)

3 minute wall-sit



Anyway- don't laugh at my goals. They may seem easy to YOU, they may seem hard. Who knows, and who cares? We're all at different levels in fitness and all that matters is we're trying right?  I'm still using myfitnesspal, and sticking to my calorie goals everyday. Hopefully, I'll reach some of THESE goals in the next few months! Maybe you should make your own and post them for me so we can work on them together???

Remember how anybody can be an author on my fitness blog?  Yeah...lately I'm the only one who posts on here, but if you want in...just let me know! It's a great way to stay motivated knowing others are doing it too!

Oh...and I'd love to be able to do the middle splits. Not sure that's really that "healthy" but kind of a fun challenge.  We shall see!

Before and After pictures....

This picture was taken back in the Summer,

This picture was taken today.

 

I still have a ways to go to be at my ultimate goal, but I'm not gonna lie. I feel pretty good about the progress I've made and the self-discipline I've kept. 

I'm down 27 pounds, and have been able to maintain what I've lost through the Holidays!  (Hooray!)  

 It's not been easy.  I've stuck to my calorie goals and kept exercising even when I wanted to be lazy and eat orange sticks. I did have more sweets than I would have liked, but I'm going off treats until Valentine's Day, just for extra help.

 

It's funny to me that maintaining a healthy body weight can be so easy for some, and so hard for others. But, I guess we all have our different struggles in life. Just glad that MYstruggle motivates me to be healthy!  

Here's to 2013!! Let's see what we can do girls!