Week 7

This week was horrible! It was basically the last week of vacation as I have to start setting up my classroom on Monday and officially report to work Thursday the 31st. So I basically did nothing but sit around and watch tv. I wanted to have a relaxing time before life got hectic again. I have learned it is VERY important to have your habits established before going on vacation. I know if I had an established schedule that I had been following to a T for at least a month I would have done much better. This week I plan on getting back to a routine that I will keep during the school year. I want to get that established before the students come back August 6th and classes start August 22nd. This way when more things are on my plate my exercise routine will be established. I have done a bit better with my eating habits. I am trying to only buy healthy foods with only one or two "bad for you" snacks.

I am going to start a new exercise video called, The Firm Express. It is an exercise program that has you work out 3 times a week for 20 minutes. There are four cycles all with a cardio, sculpt, and cardio+sculpt dvds. They give you a bonus dvd with a metabolism boosting workout and an ab workout. I am excited to try it out and see how it goes! They include an eating guide but I won't be following that this time. My goal is to do the videos Monday, Wednesday, Friday as soon as I get home from work, around 4:30. That will allow me to be finished by 5pm. While the weather is still nice I want to go for hikes on Sundays. I also want to try and swim at least once a week if not twice. I was thinking Tuesday and Thursday mornings or Saturday mornings. Haven't figured that one out yet.

Hopefully things will be better this next week!

Week 7 and total change
Date: July 27
Weight: 119lbs   no change
Waist: 30in      -0.5in
Hips: 33in       -1.5in
Thighs: 20in     -0.5in

Week 6

This week has been so much better! I went for a walk with my mom and dog everyday Monday - Friday and averaged 1.88 miles and 52.2 minutes. It took us a bit longer to walk because the dog was very interested in every inch of the park and of course had to explore something new every day! I've gotten a few gadgets to help me with this quest as well. First, I got a new log to record my exercise and measurements.I haven't started using this yet but hope to next week. Second, I got the Garmin Vivofit. I had the Nike fuel band for a while but you can't swim with that. So far I love the Garmin! It tracks sleep, shows you steps, distance, calories, time and date, and uses a watch battery so there is no charging! The screen is always on which is nice. I think the best part is the dynamic goal. Every day the device creates a goal for you based on your profile and the previous days activity. If you met you goal the day before they will raise your goal a little. If you were off they will lower it a little. They have never lowered it so much that it was easy for me to reach the goal with out getting up and moving and they have never increased it so much that I would have to extend my work out by a lot to meet it. So far I am loving this device.

          

Weeks 4 and 5 - Vacation

I have been on vacation for about three weeks now and it has not been good for my health journey at all!! These first two weeks I haven't really done much. I went out with my friends for the fourth of July and we walked around a lot but other than that I have not done much in terms of exercise. I also have not been eating very well. I did not take any measurements as I was a bit scared to look. I did step on the scale quickly and did gain a pound or two (YIKES!!) which showed me how important it is to stay on top of my health and wellness. I am hoping to at least go for some walks with my mom and my dog next week so I am doing something! Week 5 was kind of hard to exercise to begin with as over the week I spent 25 hours in the car! Hopefully next weeks goes much better and I will get back to the measurements for week 6!

Week 3

This week I managed to work out three times. On Monday I took a zumba class which was fun, but I was very tired! Tuesday I spent 45 minutes on a stationary bike so that I could do some reading for my class. I ended up biking 6.5 miles! Then on Friday I met my friend before class and we swam some laps. I forgot how good of a workout swimming is! Needless to say it tired me out and my arms were very sore. I hope to swim twice a week when the school year starts but I am not sure how that will work with my dog. The next few weeks I will be on vacation and some friends are visiting so I'm not sure how well my habits will hold up!

Week 3 and total change:
Date: June 29
Weight: 116.6lbs  -2.4lbs
Waist: 29in  -1.5in
Hips: 32in   -2.5in
Thighs: 21in  +0.5in

Week 2

What a week! After a hard week 1, I was aiming for 3 workout days this week. Well I only got in two. Monday I went to a zumba class with my friend on campus. It was not as intense as some other zumba class I've taken, but it was a lot of fun and I worked up a sweat so it was a good workout. Wednesday I took a barre class. I had never taken one of these before but I was a ballet dancer from age 3-18 so I know a bit about barre. My ankles are very week and my muscles that are used in a barre class were very out of shape! It was a very good workout though. Many times during class my muscle were shaking they were working so hard! They only bad thing was it made me miss ballet even more than I have been. I hope I can find a studio to take a class in the fall. On Friday my plan was to workout but I ended up getting sick and spent the whole weekend in bed. So again this week I only got in two work outs. I am setting the goal of four for next week and I am determined to make it! I also found a really cool youtube video of an ab workout I want to try! (See video below) With that said here are the numbers for this week.


Week 2 and Total Change
Date: June 22
Weight: 116.8lbs -2.2lbs
Waist: 29in -1.5in
Hips: 32in -2.5in
Thighs: 21in +0.5in 

   

Week 1

Oh goodness this week was tough. When I share my daily routine you will see why. I set out to work out 6 out of 7 days a week. This week I ended up working out 2 out of 7 days. However, I did not eat very many carbs. It seems as though I ended up eating pretty healthy for me this week and ended up doing okay despite my lack of exercise. I have been creating protein shakes in the morning and using vegetables as well as fruit. I have also added local honey to help me with my allergies. I haven't had to take any allergy medicine for a few weeks now! For week 2 I am going to go to a zumba class Monday morning with one of my friends before our class. Wednesday I am going to go to a barre class after my summer academic class. And Friday I may try zumba again after my academic class. I am optimistic about increasing the number of days that I exercise this coming week!

Protein shake!

Morning routine
4am wake up
4:15am hour long workout following the workout schedule
5:15am shower and get ready for the day
6:15am take the dog for a walk
6:30am have breakfast
7:!5am leave for class
8:10am-10am class

End of week 1 measurements
Date: July 15th
Weight: 117.9lbs    -1.1lbs
Waist: 29.5in    -1in
Hips: 33.5in    -1in
Thighs:20.5in    no change

Starting Numbers

I want to make clear I am not doing this to lose weight. I do not think I am "fat" but I do have fat; there is a difference. I want to gain muscle and I would love to have a six pack. If I lose weight I lose weight. I am more concerned with getting rid of the excess fat around my waist and thighs while gaining muscle. With that said, here are my starting numbers!

Date: June 8th
Weight: 119lbs
Waist: 30.5in
Hips: 34.5in
Thighs: 20.5in

 

Creating a Habit

There is the myth that it takes 21 days to create a habit. That's it. 21 days until you are able to keep up with that exercise plan, or new diet without thinking about. But 21 days is a myth. New research has come out that says on average it takes about 66 days to create a habit. How Long Does It Actually Take to Form a New Habit? (Backed by Science) So I embark on creating two new habits. The first is exercising 6 days a week. The second will be to cut out carbs, artificial sugars, and dairy from my diet. I've created a workout plan that will give me at least 45 minutes of exercise a day. This habit shouldn't be too difficult for me as I use to run every day. While doing this I am going to limit carbs, artificial sugars, and dairy to one meal and one snack a day. Now I should say what I mean by carbs. I am going to continue to eat fruits, veggies, and beans. But the "bread" and grain carbs are the ones I am going to cut out. Eventually, I would like to take part in the Whole30. They do not recommend that you start the Whole30 and a new exercise program at the same time. So I am going to start with exercising and limiting the carbs, artificial sugars, and dairy for about 30 days and then I will do the Whole30 as well. Hopefully all goes well as I embark on this adventure to better my health and wellness!!