Past, Present, and Future

January 8th I made one of the best decisions I've ever made. I decided to make a lifestyle change regarding my health. I know I've already gone into what my change entailed in my previous blog Fit vs. Skinny but I wanted to update my blog not only for the few readers I have but also to document my fitness journey for myself.

This picture was taken the day I started the Beachbody program Insanity. All 5'4 160lbs of me. I am not going to sugar coat anything, this program was ridiculously hard. It was not easy to push play for 60 days straight, but I did it! I did this without anyone keeping me accountable! I say this because if I can do it, so can you!!! I ended the program 15lbs lighter and here is my progress pic:





The weeks leading up to finishing Insanity I started thinking "ok after I finish this, whats next?" I don't have a gym membership but the community I live in has a clubhouse gym. Thanks to the wonderful "fitfam" (fitness friends) I have on Instagram I decided to add weight training to the cardio I had planned on doing. Here is my back picture the day I finished Insanity:

I am so GRATEFUL to the fitness friends I have made via Instagram They have encouraged me in so many ways, but most importantly in regards to weight training. I was able to do 32 consecutive pushups the other day whereas during Insanity I could barely do 8 without feeling like I wasn't going to be able to push myself back up! Also, a couple of weeks ago I went to a fitness class where we previewed Shaun T's (insanity instructor) new workout program T25. As I was doing the jumps I wasn't dying 10 seconds in whereas during Insanity I would have been!

Many of my friends who are beginning their journey in weight lifting have asked me what my routine is so here goes: I start with 30 min on the treadmill. The treadmill is quite new for me as I was doing the elliptical. I've noticed I get a better workout on the mill vs. the elliptical so thats that! MWF I do arms, shoulders and back (M arms, W shoulders, and F back), then TT legs and gluteus (makes me laugh-I do both on TT because they are so closely related). Then I do abs everyday but do different areas each day. This is what works for me-may not be for you-and thats fine! After 4 months I finally feel good about my routine and here is my back progress after 4 months of weight training:

Tomorrow I start a my second Beachbody program T25. I am beyond excited to start this!! I will continue to do my weight training along side this as well as starting Shakeology! If you're interested in any of the programs Beachbody has to offer, contact my Coach and bestie Sonia here and she'll hook ya up! :)

I know a lot of you are hesitant to add weight lifting to your routine. I was most definitely, not because I thought I would look like this:
 but because I really didn't know where to start or what to do! I recommend doing your research! Also Pinterest is FULL of different ideas! Just remember...we all have/had to start somewhere-the most important thing is STARTING!

I'll be posting again after I finish T25... eeekk

xoxo

Fit vs. Skinny

I cannot tell you how badly this topic bugs me-especially since I used to believe it. It seriously gets under my skin so much I don't even know where to begin!

Before I began this journey of becoming fit, I used to tell myself all the time-gosh I wish I were skinny like I used to be! ALL THE TIME I would tell myself that. So back in January I made a decision to get my butt moving so I could be "skinny" again. Within the first month I came across different fitness profiles on Instagram and Facebook who never once mentioned the word "skinny" and I found that odd. The more and more I read their posts and blogs the more my mindset changed. They were exercising to be FIT not to be SKINNY. 

I think in todays society especially the word skinny is thrown out there as the norm and if you don't fit that then you are "fat"! Such lies and I am ashamed I used to believe those lies! I can remember when I was in high school I used to HATE and I mean HATE my "athletic built" legs...meaning I didn't have slender straight legs like all my friends had. I have since grown to love my legs-and I don't think that is being vain at all! I have worked hard to tone them and still have some progress to make! Back when I was "skinny" I weighed 125lbs. I now weigh 140 and look 10x better than when I weighed 125! No one would guess I weigh 140 and I am in no way ashamed of that number! You know why? Muscle weighs more than fat!!!!! I have built up more muscle and have less body fat than when I was 125lbs! 

Anyways back to my point...and that being: please stop believing the lies that you have to be skinny to be beautiful! I'm sorry but when you purposely allow your body to be so skinny you can count your bones that is not beautiful to me-maybe to some-but definitely not to me. There is a huge difference between being fit and healthy vs. skinny and unhealthy! Stop working out to be skinny and start lifting to be fit! Surround yourself with positive role models who have the same goal in mind. 

"I'd rather be fit and healthy than skinny and hungry!" 

This is your 5:30am wake up call...

I heard a commercial on the radio this evening on my way home from Target that went something like this..."what are you doing at 6am, I'm sleeping!" haha I had to laugh and yell "I'm at the freakin gym yo!"

Its true! Insanity should come with a disclaimer-upon finishing you will truly be insane! haha as I feel like only an insane person would look forward to working out that early! Yes there are days, like yesterday, where I hit the snooze like 3x! But all in all I do actually look forward to getting my butt up and getting in the gym

Arm day progress

I do arms/back on MWF and then legs/glutes on TT. I always warm up with 20 min of intense cardio on the elliptical. I read from one of my fitness people that I follow that if you can do more than 20 min of cardio on a machine you are not pushing yourself hard enough! Makes sense right? So I do an interval circuit that gradually gets harder and then eases off! Let me tell you I am a sweaty mess by the end!! haha but I feel great! Its a great way to kick start my weight lifting.

A little leg day action!

I cannot tell you how much my muscles have changed since I started weight lifting. Weight lifting isn't just for men anymore! My husband always jokes with me that I'm going to become this big ol' muscle woman! haha but that is simply not going to happen! I'm not taking steroids so its almost impossible for this to happen! The only thing I am taking prior to work outs is a drink called C4!  I HIGHLY recommend it for those of you who are looking to push yourself harder! It is a pre-workout intensifier and it does just that! Definitely intensifies the workout and allows me to push deeper in my workouts. Also I work out with a heart rate monitor which allows me to see my heart rate and push myself harder to be in that target range! Its called the polar ft4 and it is a MUST for me. I have left the house without it before and turned around to go get it! Also the last thing I think is a must have is a sweat band! I purchased mine at walmart for $4.97! :) I wear it around my stomach and it helps me sweat like CRAZY! haha

All of this to say...if you are on the fence about getting in shape...DO IT! Whether its an at home program such as Insanity or P90x or Jillian Michaels or WHATEVER the case may be just push play!! Or if you are more interested in getting out of the house and going to the gym set a goal for yourself. Everyone is different and has different goals in mind. But the common denominator between everyone is this: we all had to start with something! It may be little or big...but just START! :)



PS: One of my best friends has recently become a Beachbody coach! Beachbody is a great company-same company Insanity and P90x came from! If you need help getting started or motivation or getting their yummy shakes please contact her here: Beachbody Sonia Caramazza

"Insanely" busy

Where or where has the time gone? This is a question I ask myself almost on a daily basis! It seems like there is never enough time in the day to accomplish all the things I need/want to!

My last post was about volleyball, so that is where I will pick up!

I am now co-coaching a club volleyball team. It started up in January and goes til May. We practice every Monday evening and Saturday mornings-if we don't have a tournament. Our tournaments are usually on Saturdays, however, some are on Sundays. They are ALL day events which makes for a very tiring day-but its definitely worth it and a lot of fun! The relationships I'm building with the girls is so special to me-I love them all and the different personalities they bring to the team.

Another thing that started in January was Insanity! haha no I did not go insane-although sometimes I felt like it! Insanity is a compilation of workout DVD's! It is a 60 day program that is super intense-hence the name Insanity! haha and let me tell you what...it was INSANE! The first 2 weeks were pure hell...I seriously thought I couldn't do one more day! BUT...I pushed through it! There are 2 phases to the program. The first month is all about getting your endurance up!! Then you have a week of core balance which is such a welcome break from the crazy intense workout! However, its kind of a tease! haha I say this because its light work compared to the first month. So once the 2nd month starts its a RUDE awakening! The 2nd month is MAX everything! Max cardio, Max plyo, Max interval circuit...you get the point! All of this to say I am HAPPY and PROUD to say I completed the 60 day challenge!!!!!

While doing this program I started posting my daily workouts on Instagram for accountability purpose. In doing this I found several other people who were doing the same workout! There is a whole community of "Insane" people on Instagram so it definitely helped keep me accountable. Another thing that helped was following different fitness people on Facebook and Instagram. A couple in particular combined weight lifting along with their cardio. Insanity is strictly cardio and "self" weight. So for the last 2 weeks of Insanity I added in weight lifting. I did/do Arms/Back on MWF and then Legs/booty on TT! I could tell a difference in my Insanity workouts once I added weight lifting. My pushups got stronger and my squats weren't super unbearable. Also in addition to lifting weights I most DEFINITELY cleaned up my eating habits! Lean meat such as chicken and salmon, and then a fresh veggie along with a sweet potato! I also incorporated protein shakes into my daily food intake!

Needless to say...I have drastically changed my way of living. I have been so amazed not only by my body transformation, but also by the way I feel! Working out and eating clean is no longer a chore to me, but rather a lifestyle! I don't sleep well if I don't work out-(Sundays are rest days with Insanity, but after about the 3rd Sunday I couldn't rest, I had to do something active!) I also feel like my immune system is much stronger because of my lifestyle change. Studies have shown that those who have an active lifestyle have stronger immune systems than those who don't...I'll definitely take that, who wouldn't? :) Not only do I feel great, but its also setting a great example to my child. He knows when mommy puts on her tennies that she's going to workout! haha its pretty cute, he even comes over ever so often and "does" the workout with me! :) I love being able to set that "active" lifestyle example for him.

I will leave you with my transformation photo. It is a collage of Day1, Day 30, and Day 60! My only regret is that I wish I would have incorporated eating cleaner and weight lifting right from Day1 instead of waiting til day 30! Oh well...better late than never! :)

Knee pads and shorts

Hopefully I can get through this blog without bawling like a baby...haha but luckily for you, you cannot see me if/when I do! :)

Okay so many of you know I was offered the amazing responsibility/privilege to coach freshmen volleyball! We are in our 2nd or 3rd week, cannot remember...and things are going great! What I love about the freshmen level is that they are still forming their habits and finding out what works for them...as well as learning learning learning! It truly brings me such joy to see the look on their face when they actually get it! :) So fun!

I have 11 girls on my team and one of them is a foreign exchange student from China-who always comes to practice in her school clothes. Before I go into my main point, I need to preface this by telling you more about her background. The exchange students must complete a summer course before school starts. The school has 30+ exchange students this year and every single one of them accepted Christ during that summer program-let the waterworks begin! It touches my heart so much because all of these kids had NEVER even heard the word JESUS before coming to CCS! How incredibly sad is that?! Can you imagine not hearing the word JESUS until you were 15?? I still cannot get over that...

During our coaches meeting, we were all challenged to "be bold for Christ". Growing up in a Christian home and going to a Christian school and constantly being around Christians-don't get me wrong I am in NO WAY complaining or making light of this fact...I just realized that I somewhat took for granted what "being bold for Christ" really meant! I really started pondering what I could do for my girls to show them "boldness". I had been opening and closing practice in prayer, but added devotions to the beginning of practice. Devotions on Tuesday talked about having a "Christ-like attitude" on and off the court. This to me was PERFECT. I told my girls that we are the ONLY christian school in our league! What a responsibility we have to show those schools Christ. Whether it be the way we respond to a call, good or bad, or even the way we respond when we win/lose! We should always keep in mind our attitude is more important than winning! The Christ-like attitude also meant how we treat each other! (my exchange student wasn't there during this particular devotion) I told my girls how she had recently accepted Christ and that as her teammates and sisters in Christ they needed to step it up and include her and show her what being a Christian really means. I left that practice, as I do every practice, praying that what I said in those 10-15 min devotions would have an impact on my girls.

I showed up to practice today and as I'm sitting there getting my devotional out and chatting with the girls, my exchange student walked up to me with the biggest smile on her face! This was pretty shocking to me because she is VERY quiet and very reserved. I looked at her and instantly smiled...I said "hey you're wearing knee pads and spanx"!!! Still with that big beautiful smile on her face she said "yeah my teammates took me to the store and bought these for me" (ok, I can finally see the keys).I wish you all could have seen her during practice-she was smiling and high-fiving left and right!  I cannot even tell you how PROUD I am of my girls!!! If that is not showing Christ then I don't know what is!!!

I am so excited to see what else God has in store for my girls this season. :)

Headbands

Ok another wonderful Pinterest find!!! haha I made Oatmeal cookies tonight and finished off the oats and was about to throw away the container when I remembered a crafty thing I saw on Pinterest! Its SO easy to make and takes like 10 minutes tops!

1. Strip the container of the wrapping so you are left with just the cardboard. I had already spray painted the lid before I thought to take a picture so oops! :)

2. Take a sponge brush and cover a section of the oat container in mod podge-my favorite crafting item.  Once you have a good section covered, place whatever paper you have decided to use on top of the glue section. I used tissue paper just because its thinner and molds easier to the round container vs. a thick paper. 

3. Once you have your container completely covered in one layer of the paper, reapply a second coat of mod podge and paper if necessary. I applied two coats of both just because the tissue paper is thin and the second layer allowed me to cover up little sections the first layer missed. The thing I like most about using the tissue paper is that it gets a "crinkle affect" that I really prefer over a smooth surface! 

4. Let it dry COMPLETELY. Tissue paper is super thin so it will move and rip very easily if you put the headbands on too quickly...learned that the hard way! But...the good thing about mod podge is that you can just apply layer after layer and it just adds character the more you add! :) 

The finished project! :) 

Open

As part of Wesley's bed time routine, we read him two books. The first book is an alphabet book and then he gets to pick the second book. The past few weeks he has been getting really good at saying all the letters-even Q-thats my favorite one he says! :)

Well yesterday he was watching Super Why and they needed to spell the word Open. There was a map on the screen that had symbols next to each letter and the characters of the show only had the symbols. Well as they pulled up each symbol/letter they would say "what letter is this?" for each of the four symbols Wesley said O.P.E.N!!!! I'm sitting there watching him say each of the letters and I seriously got tears in my eyes!!!

I guess its true what they say, you are your child's first teacher! So proud of you Bub!!!!