goal #2

i'm just going to gloat for a minute

and tell you how proud i am of myself and of bill

we had an action plan

we implemented

and we've succeeded!

the hardest part?

rolling out of bed every morning (i HAVE to exercise in the morning)

my alarm is set for 5:40

i usually hit snooze (10 minutes)

but get up after about 5 minutes of laying in bed and decide it's time to start the day

bill somehow never hears my alarm, but the second i pop out of bed - he's up too

let's just all be glad i have the willpower to not continuously hit snooze

i am also so proud of bill who is now conscientiously thinking about the foods we eat and buy

he's on board, for a trial phase, of my fitness pal (seriously so easy to track, should probably have bill write about this since i feel men are probably less likely than women to be detailed about tracking calories)

and even though i haven't gave in and bought a scale yet (more on that in a minute)

i could tell the dress i wore yesterday was looser in the bust and the dress i'm wearing today is hanging baggier in my hips and not tight on my butt

so after smashing goal #1

what's next?

i love running

i love to hate running some days

but i honestly love it and want nothing more to be back in the zone of going for a 7 mile run in the morning and watching the sun pop up

one of my goals before 30 is to beat my half marathon time

back in 2010 i ran my first half marathon - i trained right!

i had high hopes of finishing at around 2hrs -2:15 minutes

but, alas, it was my first, and it was in nashville - the whole course was rolling hills, and while i had trained on hills, i wasn't prepared for 3 huge hills (up and over, and back up and over the river downtown as well as climbing 2nd? 3rd? street) at miles 10-13 and i had a finisher's time of about 2:30

so i think i have a lot of room for improvement (even for a slow runner) as well as picking a less hilly race (one here in louisville?)

now, i'm not ready to set my sights on a half marathon just yet - that's a goal for another time

but right now i'm working on building my base back up

and for the next 4 weeks my goal is to complete the couch to 5k program (i love this program and have done it a couple times to build my base back)

now you're probably all like - but rachel, the program is 8 weeks

i know - but i kind of already have a good cardio base from the past 3 weeks, and the first weeks of the program seem too slow for me

so this morning i completed day 1 of week 4 with mister woodford by my side!

the program only requires you to run 3 days a week

which falls right in line with what i've been doing previously

so my OTHER goal (yeah, i need 2!)

is to actually do the 30 day shred by jillian michaels - i will only be running for 30 minutes on run days and need something else to do on tuesday and thursday - so it makes for the perfect accompaniment


google image 30 day shred and look at the results if you need some motivation!

i've done disc 1 a couple of times now - and it's a great workout and only 20 minutes long

i've wanted to do this since i tried it, and for extra motivation

amber @craftyhealthymommy is hosting a challenge for the month of July

the stars aligned and i'm joining in

so back to the scale question

i really want to do before and after pictures and stats as part of the challenge

but i still feel uncomfortable about sharing.

as of right now i think i'll take some before pictures and a few measurements

and wait until the end of the shred to share my results.

i need to build up a bit of confidence first :)

if anyone is interested in trying to do this for the month of july let me know (and also check out amber's post if you're interested in winning the challenge)

i would love to know who's in this with me

you can pick up the dvd from target for about $10

OR you could buy each disc on amazon prime (and stream through laptop or tv) for $1.99 a disc (there are 3) - that way you could try disc 1 without too much commitment

you will also need 3-5 lb hand weights.  although, i've used 10 lbs (it's really hard) and somethings you can modify and not use any weights

my reward for completing this 4 week challenge?

a pedicure

my feet are pretty rough right now, but i'm going to hold out until i complete this goal

i think bill and i are using our same rules - if we fall off the wagon 1 day - it adds another week to our reward date

ok...so now, who's going to shred with me?

 

it's the freakin weekend

happy friday!

i've taken a half day and am enjoying the rest of this kombucha out on the patio

can i also just say that i think my muffin top has shrunk, if ever so slightly?

it's a great way to start the weekend - indeed!

weekend plans are fairly minimal right now - except for the fact

i have crushed my 3 week goal of working out and sticking to a meal plan!

oh yeah!

hip hip!

i got this ya'll!

so what does that mean?

well it looks like bill's reward is to see the superman movie (and i guess i get to tag along)

and i get FROYO!  aww yeah.

i hate when people say don't treat yourself with food when you're dieting - you eat that ice cream on your reward day and you enjoy it!

just don't reward yourself daily...

so 3 weeks down but not done

i'll touch on my next goal monday - but it involves my lady crush jillian michaels.

i was pretty absent yesterdy on what i've been stuffing my face with - i was quite exhausted

but i managed to net 1400 calories - which is an improvement

that food looked like:

knock off sausage egg mcmuffin, cliff crunch granola bar, leftover channa masala, peanut butter pretzels, and tortellini with red sauce and parm

i think i'm going to grill some corn tonight - i have a hankerin'

enjoy your weekend!

 

just werking on my fitness

so i somewhat mentioned bill and i starting a project yesterday

and this is it

our wall of good intentions

bill and i are very similar in our ebb and flow of on again- off again fitness and health levels

we both make it a priority to eat well and get regular exercise

but sometimes we have fat days

and sometimes those fat days turn into a fat week

and before i knew what happen

i was out of shape and we were eating a lot more "beige" foods than usual.

what typically happens is one of us will go on a "kick" and the other doesn't latch on, and thus the other's "kick" burns in a fiery hole.



but when bill mentioned crafting our chalk wall to be a workout/diet/inspiration wall

i latched right on

once we're both committed to something we're both pretty headstrong

but we also need a few nudges from the other every once in awhile.

we recently purchased an elliptical -

which we've both been using regularly - a great win for the both of us.

however, i wasn't as religious about using it as bill was

i have no motivation to workout after work and my commute home

bill typically wakes up while i'm showering in the morning, but has an easier morning since his day doesn't start until 1 pm

bill is able to leisurely find time in the morning for a run, weights, or elliptical work out

back in the day i worked out in the morning and loved having it done and over with

but now i just want a few more minutes of sleep or to lay in bed



bill understands this, and has agreed to wake up in the morning with me (so i'm not the only one suffering at 5:45 am)

so to break it down in three parts:

THE WORKOUT

this week we have 2 alternating workouts up on the wall

i thought it would be fun to throw in "just dance" on the wii as a workout - which could be considered "easier" days.  trust me though - you work up quite a sweat!  and it's a lot of fun to well, just dance and be silly

the other workout we have utilizes the elliptical and weights - 30 minutes of one of the TOUGH pre-programmed workouts on the machine + a workout i found via pinterest via fitness magazine via bob harper - it involves lots of squats and lunges (which after monday's workout i can tell you it was pretty hard and my thighs are still burning)

saturday we've designated as a rest day

and sundays, weather permitting, we have planned to ride 15+ miles on the bikes.  i think we are both interested in riding further, so perhaps a progression schedule will be in the works.

the plan is to switch up the workouts a bit weekly - throw in a yoga dvd, throw in some body pump, do the elliptical with a new weights workout after - etc. (i also discovered Jillian Michaels workout dvds on amazon instant prime download last night and tried doing a few minutes of the 30 day shred (1.99 for 20 minute workout, not bad) - it burned so good and will definitely be in the rotation)





or...some prancercising


THE DIET

i don't think we need to do a complete overhaul in this area - for now we're writing up our daily meals on the wall

bill has decided to cut out the potato chips and cookies (i am proud to say there are zero potato chips in the house) - i would never eat the chips and somehow 2-3 bags a week would be consumed.  ahem... 



(i also just realized i have 2 potato dishes on this day i photographed - may be switching that up)

our biggest goal in this area is to make sure we have healthier snacking options

and bill has kindly offered to make my breakfast in the mornings while i shower after the workout.  my breakfast of choice is usually yogurt and fruit or oatmeal and fruit+nut butter

for lunches/dinners my aim is to keep it vegetarian.  many lunches will probably include a turkey sandwich, but on the nights i cook with leftovers to be had - i want to keep it vegetarian.

this used to be more of an issue, but over this past year bill has actually decided he likes pan fried tofu - which basically makes me jump for joy - because one of my most favorite vegan dishes is veggies +rice+ tofu dump.  i also love a sweet potato with beans.

 

this not only frees up my guilt of "what is bill going to eat?" but means bill can help and learn to prepare these dishes on his own - and we can share them together.

THE GOALS

for now we have short (ish) goals (3weeks)

our immediate goals are pretty much to workout and follow our meal plan

and trust me, waking up for the workout is trying enough

if we stick with the plan for 3 weeks

bill gets to see the new superman movie

and i get frozen yogurt

if we miss a workout our "prizes" get set back 1 week per 1 missed workout.

i know.

harsh.

my mini side challenge is to not have any sweets at work (seriously, there is every kind of candy imaginable in the cubical next to me, and there are always birthdays being celebrated.  birthdays=cake)

for every indulgence i make i have to do jump rope intervals at home.

i'm just going to avoid them all together.

we decided we would eventually create a long term goal (6 months +) but we haven't decided what it should be - a trip? a new camera? laptop? european bike tour? half marathon in a city we've never been to?

some of our "prizes" are pretty cash dependent so perhaps we need to create a way to save along with working out

i like the idea of setting "month-end" goals - it's just long enough without seeming too far away which helps me stay focused.

i'll try and do 1 post a week on our progress and the exercises we're doing that week (i'm all for some recommendations)

i also kind of want to picture what i'm eating daily to hold me accountable - i realize many of you could give a flying toothpick...

so i probably won't "advertise" when i post something like that - but feel free to check back to get some meal ideas

so that's our action plan and so far - 2.5 days in- bill and i are in the zone!

it's required coffee on my part (which i had quit for a few months)



but other than that it's been really fun to workout with bill - it's another excuse to spend time together and get something accomplished as well

did you read any of that or just scroll through for the gifs?  i completely understand.