Can I do this?

I had to tell my self that today, as I was running. After spending five days at a convention where I did workout. Not as much as I should have but I got my exercise in. I arrived home feeling tired and depleted. So Monday, my workout never actually happened, in fact I opted for pie instead. Well today after I dropped the boys at childcare, I parked around the corner for my run.  After completing a mile and a half. I found myself asking if I could make it. Then it hit me, it is not can I  but will I make it. If I decide that I am going to do it, I will. If I doubt my own ability then I wont.

Half the battle of working out is overcoming the mental barriers you place on yourself.  You can physically do more than you think you can. That mental voice in your head, will sometimes talk you out of it. I often have to recite positive affirmations to myself when I feel like I am losing motivation.  Sometimes it is as simple as repeating " I can do this" over and over as I work through a hard session. When I am done I say " I did it!!" 

Remove the negative thoughts about your ability and start realizing your potential. Instead of saying " there is no way I can squat a hundred pounds"  say " I  am working toward squatting a hundred pounds.  This holiday season give yourself the gift of positivity!!!!

Couples Therapy

Seriously that is what it is!!Working out with my husband has strengthen our relationship. We started working out together when we were dating but one of us would be more committed than the other. That was frustrating and we would both fall off our routines. However years after we got married, we  would work out in the gym together and compete on machines. Our diets however were not as good as they could be so we did not see the results we desired, once again we fell off.

As you all know I started on a weight loss journey on my own and built a strong foundation. I had some individuals goals that I met before we started working out again together. My husband also started to plan out his own goals and put a plan in to action.  That was over  two years ago and one thing remains constant, we either work out together or we work out alone. Fitness has become a part of our lives and we have learned to balance each other out.  I can get lazy during reps and he motivates me to push harder. Sometimes he needs a little nudge to get started, so I push him.

We  laugh, joke , listen to great music and talk about everything under the sun while we train. I am the first to notice his body change and he is the first to notice subtle changes in mine.  My children train with us on the weekends and it hilarious to see them try and do yoga moves. My oldest is actually really   strong and will drop down and do  push ups and  sit ups like a pro. I feel like my family benefits from our new habits  and my children don't stop a workout from occurring. We find a way to do it with them.

We no longer train in expensive gyms, we hit the gym at the University because it is free. Most of the time we train at home or outside( you will catch me in university gym daily for my cardio fix).  This past summer you would see us at the play ground with the kids  doing our routine while the kids played.  The boys would run over and join in periodically then go back and play when they got bored.

We just started a new round of P90X together and it is amazing how much stronger we are. I  go to bed every night knowing that I will have blast in morning.  After the kids are off in the morning we have a 8am date to press play or run 4 miles. We are stronger in every way,so if you are sitting on the couch with your spouse try getting up together.

A Day Spiral....

A day spiral can happen at anytime, for me it usually happens when I am stressed out! What is a day spiral ? Well a day spiral is when you start off with a missed work out or a "cheat meal" and you let your entire day spiral out of control. I usually am thinking that I have already missed a work out or ate too much so, I throw in the towel for the day.  Luckily for me I learned early in this journey that it is never too late to change.  If you miss a workout, get one in later. Eat to much at a  meal,  throw in an extra workout or just deal with it. 

Everyday will have it's challenges , the common denominator in each day is you. You can make the decisions that will determine if you take a step back or forward. Don't let a day spiral  turn into a week of bad decisions. I received a e-mail from a reader asking me how I stay on track. The reality is that there is no magic answer. I am learning as I go and some days I fall back into bad habits.

The difference between the old me and the new me is that I have the tools  that I need to  be successful. I am constantly reading and learning about health and fitness. I surround my self with people who are trying to maintain a healthy lifestyle. My lifestyle is now very active so, I am constantly on the move. So how do I stay on track? I guess it is because I am living a differently, I have changed my life. So this is just how I live now, being sedentary and eating fast food is a rare occasion  in my current life.  I have made this habit , it is now a part of how I live my life. 

Tales from the treadmill

I have changed my workout routine since the semester began. My office hours are early afternoon so I head to the campus gym at about 8:00am  and I can usually get in a  great workout before I head to my office.  So I have been running indoors consistently for about 3 weeks and I have noticed a few things about the treadmill. I usually wear my ipod and heart monitor while I am running.

I have noticed that, my gadgets usually are off from the treadmills read outs. So I started doing some research.  I found that the calorie estimate on the treadmill is based on the average  exerciser, it has nothing to do with you. So if an average person burns 200 calories running a mile, then that is what it will say.  you in fact may be burning more of less.  So don't base your workout on that caloric burn, your best bet is to use your own heart rate monitor. That way you will have an accurate read out of how much energy you are expelling.

When it comes to distance the treadmill cannot determine your stride.  I happen to be 5'3 and my monitor calculates me running father on the readout than , the treadmill does by a quarter mile.  I have also found a new machine to torture myself, it is called Jacob's ladder.  Click the video below to see a short video about it.

I honestly feel like a clumsy on this machine and I have not stayed on it longer than 15 minutes.  I am working on improving my stamina on it though. For now it is a new challenge that I am embracing. 

Scale withdrawl

So I might have  a bit of scale withdraw, I actually tried to piece together my old one.  then I caught myself and had to laugh. I am glad that I decided not to purchase a new one though. I do feel a bit more encouraged that I am not reflecting on the scale every day.

Sugar withdrawl

I often get caught in a sugar trap, I have a few weeks where I tend to eat  a bit more sweat treats than  necessary. As I looked through my food journal, I realized that I have had a bit of a junk food fest the last couple of weeks. I guess that is the honesty of a food journal because you really get to see what you are putting in your body.

Anyway, I decide to go on a bit of a detox and get my self back on track. I realized that I was putting in about 150 sugary calories about 4 days a week.  It does  not seem like a lot but that  2400 calories a  month. Which can easily convert to a pound if you add in any other splurges.  In addition to that, also noticed that I was making those splurges at night. So I was hungry and fueling my self with an unfulfilling snack.

Sugar is addictive and it has always been a weakness for me. So  I know that I have to be careful because I can easily fall back in to old habits. My detox is not one where I am attempting to rid my system so much of toxin. I am actually just reinforcing good habit by eating clean and reducing my processed sugar intake. So I still consume  natural sugars from fruits and vegetables.

Mixing up my workouts have been fun, I am planning to write up a workout plan for myself.  That way I have a month of workouts prepared. In addition to that I am planning a photo shoot for my anniversary. Its time for some new family photos, the pictures we have in our home don't resemble the new me.

I am headed out for a workout, have you gotten off the couch today?

Change is good

I am a big fan of changing up you routine but I have become less and less a fan of paying for it. I have purchased and completed several different 90/60 day workout programs along my journey. I have had gym memberships and  I have and will never give up my subscription to Oxygen magazine.  As many of you know , it gets expensive and after adding up the $1320.00 a year I was paying for a  family gym membership, I was not pleased. Not to mention the $936.00 I shelled out in 2 years  for Weight Watchers.

All of this came into perspective as my family and I were making a 1000 mile move across the country. I made some specific  choices,  we chose a warmer climate.  I also picked an apartment complex with a fitness center and decided to utilize that fully. I work at a university with a state of the art gym, free for faculty, so I am sucking it up. I will work out and take classes with students if I have to.

In addition, my husband and I have started planning our daily workouts. We write them out and have a clear idea of what we are working on daily. He is and  has been a refreshing addition to my workouts this summer. We are working out in the evening at the park with the kids.  That way, we can do it as a family and the kids can go play when they get bored. I am truly tired of DVDs and paying that  hefty gym bill but I wont sacrifice my fitness. I still write down everything I eat and all my workouts but now I do it in a journal.

I will say that, this change has  reinvigorated my workouts.I am actually feeling muscle soreness again and I am  excited to plan each day. I feel like I am growing in my journey and moving to making this a lifestyle. I  will be taking the money I would have spent on the gym and saving it each month. I will place that in an account that will add to our next summer vacation as a surprise for my family.

Now I am headed to pull out my Oxygen magazine collection to look for some new recipes. What are you doing to keep yourself in the game?