In the Groove

Anybody remember that dancing video game?  In The Groove?  It was so awesome!

What?! No I'm not a nerd!! Anyway....

I finally got in the groove this week and so far it is really kicking butt!  I finally scheduled in my workouts and guess what?  I'm actually working out! It's the best! I decided to do my workouts in the morning.  It's pretty rough because I'm not a morning person and I'm getting up at 6 am to fit my workout in, but leaving the workout for after work wasn't working - there always is too much going on; mornings are a sure bet.  However to be successful at morning workouts, it takes a little prep the night before.

7 am and just finished my workout!!!

Still Figuring Things Out

I cannot believe it has been over a month since my last post.  Time is moving way too fast.  I always think once I get to the next chapter of my life - things will slow down.  One of my old co-workers told me that it never does slow down and I'm beginning to realize that is true!

Anywho, a quick update on my progress from my last post and then onto some new realizations. In my last post, I talked about how I need to simplify my health plan.  Two very easy things to focus on: choose better stuff to eat and move 5 days a week.  So far I have not made any real progress on this.

The weather has been unseasonably cold this week, reminding me that Fall is just around the corner.  It seems like it was yesterday when I was moving into Fall/Winter clothes realizing that they didn't fit me because I gained too much weight over the summer.  Pledging that by summer 2014, I would lose it to fit better into my shorts...now I'm staring down the end of summer, realizing that soon I will be in the same place I was last year - unable to fit into most my Fall/Winter clothes....pledging to do something about it by summer....

But what to do? That realization that I mentioned above has the answer.

Stupid sweet tooth

Back to Happiness

Hello all.  Recently I have been pretty upset/bummed/angry.  I haven't really been able to nail down what the issues are, but today I took a break from work, took a walk and figured some things out.

Time to walk the trail by work!

First, I have been super stressed out.  My life is busy - that's nothing new and is never going to change. I keep thinking if I had only made more to-do lists and stuck to them, I'd be feeling happier.

Realization: No, I wouldn't. I love to-do lists and will always be a list maker.  They help me get things done, but I can't structure every second of my days around a to-do list.  I need to have time to do fun things, relaxing things, and nothings.  I mean it's already July.  JULY, People!!  And I have barely did any summery type things. I have to enjoy this weather while we have it.  I don't want to waste all my summer washing dishes and folding laundry.  Bottom line is that there are always going to be things on the to-do list and I have to be okay with not getting every little thing done.

Can you spot the hawk?

Second, I have been really upset about my health weight lately. I gained weight, as you may know if you are a reader of this blog.  I have been "trying" to lose it, but I have not been very committed, which is crazy since every morning when I get dressed for work and my clothes are snug, I am immediately mad at myself and disappointing in myself for not trying harder; for not having more of this weight gone.

Realization: K.I.S.S (which equals Keep It Simple Stupid, in case you didn't know).  You may remember from my last post this complicated plan I made involving tracking my calories and working out. Forget it. Time to simplify. For now, I'm focusing on eating better-for-me foods/making smarter choices and moving each day (M-F).  Moving might be a gym workout, but it also might be a walk through nature.

From Mike's and my walk tonight. No filter needed

Which brings me to my last point. When I first seriously started this journey and shortly thereafter started this blog, I was happy and excited to be on the journey to a healthier lifestyle.  Eating good-for-me foods, exercising and researching about health topics made me happy. These days, it's depressing.  I'm not feeling inspired by the blogs I read or the life I'm living. So for now, if taking a nature walk makes me happier than going to the gym, I'm going to do it. If just eating better foods, rather than tracking my calories makes me happier, I'm going to do it. 

From my work break walk :)

I'm going to try to get back to that happiness factor. After all, what's the point of living to 100, if you're not happy?

Working Out - Rock On Challenge

In a few weeks, Mike and I will be going to this huge rock festival in Ohio called Rock on the Range (ROTR).  This will be our 5th time going (had to miss last year due to our wedding - finances and time off work didn't allow us to go :(  ).  I was hoping to be down back closer to the weight I was when we went two years ago, but so far this year I haven't been as committed as I could be. With ROTR only a few weeks away I knew I needed something to get me motivated.

You know what motivates me?  To- do lists. I freakin LOVE to-do lists. Something about crossing items off when I complete them brings me a great sense of accomplishment and happiness. So I designed a to-do list for my workout goals which I titled, Rock On Challenge.  Get it? Because we are going to a rock concert?

Oh, okay you got it.  Good. I formed the list into a calendar so I can keep track of the days as we get closer to Rock on the Range. Each time I complete one of the tasks, I X it out.

So what's on the list?

MWF - Cardio, Legs and Abs: I know the best way to lose weight and to have a healthy body is to do both cardio and strength training, so in addition to cardio I'm doing Legs and Abs on M, W, F.  Your leg muscles are your biggest muscles and the more muscle you gain, the more energy (fat) they need to sustain themselves. Abs are my weakest muscle.  For those reasons these get three days a week.

T & TH - Cardio, Arms and Yoga:  My arms are probably one part of my body that I'm decently happy with, so they only get two days.  I'm adding in a 20 minute yoga work out to help strengthen my core.  I know yoga is really, really good for you, especially to help strengthen muscles.  At my new job I share multiple desk chairs with multiple employees, so it's hard to adjust them to the right spot for me and it's causing a bit of back pain. I'm hoping yoga will help. I'm using a free app called Simply Yoga.

M-F - Met calorie goal: I'm back on MyFitnessPal.  I'm tracking everything I eat M-F.  I'm not tracking on the weekends, because I'm hoping to not burn myself out. My goal is to be under or met my calorie goal on any of my tracking days.

M-F - Extras: I'm giving myself X's in extras for anything I do outside of what's listed above that helps me towards my goal of getting back to a healthier weight.  Examples include getting up from my desk chair and walking once an hour for the whole day, taking a walk on my break, turning down a bakery item or other junk food, parking farther away in a store parking lot. If I do multiples in a day, I get multiple X's! And that makes me happy :)

Weekends:  I have no set plans for the weekends.  This is for a few reasons.  1. To keep me from burning out. 2. Weekends around here around crazy so it's harder to plan for all these items. 3. To keep it a bit more flexible.  Maybe I am super booked and only had time for a 10 minute workout - on the weekends that's good. 4. Having a rest day.  Mike's and my life is always. crazy. busy. so having a day to chill out is definitely needed for our mental health.

This week I'm rocking out my to-do list and it makes me so very happy!  I'm hoping to feel my clothes fitting better soon!

What do you do to keep yourself motivated?