Fitness: Month Two Check In

Well, it's officially been 60 days since I began my training with the Get in Shape Girl, so it's time for an update.

Starting Weight: 141.8 (ish)
Current Weight: 140.2 (ish)

Sad to say I haven't lost much weight.  But I do feel like I'm seeing changes, albeit subtle.  And I have to admit this month I haven't been that focused as I spent almost two weeks away on vacation where I was definitely not following my meal plan.  But as soon as I came back and started up again, I noticed a quick turn around.  I think at my lowest point I weighed in just over 138 lbs, so I'm fluctuating a bit.

I am noticing an improvement in my pushups, my runs are getting faster, and this week was the first time I was able to hold my planks for the full time for all three sets!  I'm really enjoying the diversity of the workouts, although I wish I had other options for my HIIT.  Unfortunately, I have a very "spartan" gym set up at work, so we don't really have any cardio equipment at all.  So all my HIITs have been sprints.  I tried doing mountain climbers, burpees, etc... for the intervals, but I couldn't keep going for the entire 60 seconds, so I've got to improve a bit before I can try those again.

Tell you what, my upper body is looking sick.  And my booty is looking better too...I notice I've got more of a curve from my lower back to my booty (I should have taken a side pic so you could see).  The lovies are still there, but they've always been my problem area.

One bummer is that I just found out my PT test isn't until February.  I was really hoping it was in November so I could knock it out before the holidays while I'm still in the zone.  I guess this just needs to motivate me to keep up with my workouts and my eating through the holidays so I can get the high score I've been aiming for.  I'll keep you posted!

Missed an update?

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• Month One Check In

Fitness Update: 6.5 Weeks Left

I'm on my second day back from a nearly two-week vacation and definitely feeling the pain of not working out at all. Don't get me wrong, we were super active, but there was no running or strength training and TONS of eating involved. I may or may not have eaten my weight in fresh Vermont cheese, so I know I've got some work to do to get back into it.

That being said, I feel strong. I did my strength training and HIIT session yesterday and am feeling the pain in my chest and back today. This morning I ran juuuust shy of a 5k and think I ran my fastest pace in over a year. Check out this comparison of just two months ago when I started here...my pace has improved by over a minute!

Overall, I'm aiming to run a 5k at a 9:00 pace by the time I leave this job on September 30th.  I think the sprints I've been running are helping immensely, so I think that goal is totally doable.

I am all registered and lodged for the Wine and Dine Half Marathon in November, so that's my next big goal. I'm hoping to get any time faster than the last one, hahaha! I'm not running with my super freak fitness friends, so I'm a bit nervous that I won't push myself as hard as they pushed me during the Princess. But I think if I keep that in my head and I train more than I did (which was almost nothing), then I should be ok.

I came across this old picture of myself from back in February before the Princess, but right around the time I started to really focus on getting back into shape and getting stronger. It's pretty awesome to see the difference a few months makes...even though the scale hasn't changed that much. Overall I think I've lost about 7 pounds since February, but I feel like the change is more significant than that.

I think my biggest challenge has been eating. It's tough to balance wanting to experience things with my family with eating right. I've been on point during the week when I work, but I just can't bring myself to order grilled chicken or fish at my favorite mexican restaurant or abstain from the chips and salsa. I just need to make sure the indulging is the exception, not the norm, and I think I'll reach my goals.

Wordless{ish} Wednesday

This week my focus is all on the big day.  The big race.  My biggest accomplishment.  The Princess Half Marathon is on Sunday...  Outfit is purchased.  Hotel plans have been made.  One long{ish} run is behind me.  Now just counting the minutes.



Noshing on some blueberries during my army training

I'm staying focused by eating right...which is no easy task these days.  I've literally been nursing my bad eating habits since I was four months pregnant, and I'm finally feeling in control again.  I'm tracking everything I eat on myfitnesspal and logging my workouts on runkeeper. 



This is the handiest food app I've seen in a long time...You can literally just scan
 each food item and BAM!  It enters it...easy peasy

I'm hardly even tempted to cheat...and that feels good.  I know deep down this is something I want, and I'm only hurting myself if I don't stick to the program. 
 

The Army's version of a "snack"



The perils of radio

So, here's hoping I:
(1) Finish the run on Sunday without any major issues (i.e. death or dismemberment)
(2) Stick with the program
(3) Get back down to my pre-pregnancy weight of 130

Weighty Issues

This is a frustrated post...just an FYI.

So, it's now been 14 months since I had my son.  Never a day in my life did I think I would be this far postpartum and still needing to get my body back on track.  I've been so overwhelmed, so stressed out, and just downright depressed that I haven't been working out consistently and I've been eating like crap.  Who knew it would be this hard...

So, when I found out I was coming here for two weeks I decided this would be my reset button.  I knew I would be all alone, without the pressures of work, family life, or needing to feed others with the foods they love, and I could just be me.  Week one was a totally failure.  I don't think I even tried to eat healthy, although I did work out a bit.  After heading home for the weekend, I realized I was wasting my opportunity and needed to get back on track.  So this week I have been doing really well.  I've been tracking all my food, working out, drinking water, taking vitamins.  Doing everything I know to get back to where I want to be.

And then I hit a roadblock.  You see, I've been tracking my calories on the Spark People app, which lets me input my goals, my food, and my workouts.  It told me my BMR was 1725, and in order to lose 12 pounds in 12 weeks, I would need to cut 3,500 calories a week - either by diet or exercise.  So I've been tracking so far...never exceeding my calories and working out.  Then I decide to google BMR and I find out that pretty much all the other BMR websites out there say mine is only 1435.  Shit.  So, in order to just MAINTAIN my weight, I have to only eat 1435 calories (I've been averaging 1600, minus 190 in exercise).  So, I'm barely maintaining right now.  I'm just not sure how I can get under by 500 calories a day with that low of a BMR.  And not feel like hell, that is.

In addition, I've really been leaning away from animals products these days.  I gave up dairy for the whole month of January and have been planning to go full-on vegan for Lent, but I'm at a crossroads.  The only way I know to be lean and fit is to eat chicken and veggies.  Fish and good carbs.  Cottage cheese and egg whites.  Nothing vegan about that.  So, do I give up my hope of being vegan (which makes me feel better - but that may just be compared to when I was eating crap, I don't know) or do I risk adopting a new eating plan that may or may not leave me skinny and/or sick?  I know it's possible to be a fit vegan, I'm just not sure if it works for me.  But I want it.  But I want to be lean too.

Post Baby Body Adventure

As I slowly approach the six-week postpartum mark - that is, that magical date when one can return to working out - I stop to think about my strategies, goals, and worries. 

First and foremost, I am a little nervous about getting back in there.  I don't feel as though I am healing the way I should.  Not that I really know how I should be healing, but not quite the way I thought I would.  My doctor's appointment is set for the 20th, so hopefully I'll feel more confident by then or else I can ask her what she thinks.  I hope everything is ok and I can be reassured that starting up my workouts will be safe.  Funny I always thought I would be "sort of" working out by now and waiting for that appointment just so we could "get busy" again, but it's not that at all.   I just want to know I can move freely without fear.

So, what are my goals?  I think I have several, all of which I hope to accomplish simultaneously.  Here's the rundown:

• Get under 130 lbs (this is my happy weight and I tend to hover between 130 and 138, so I want to try and get under 130 for a change).
• Earn a 270 or better on my PT test scheduled for 6 months from my delivery date (so approximately June or so).
• Run a half marathon by the end of the year (or early next year if there isn't a good one in the area before then)
• Overall, tone up.  Better booty, better abs, stronger arms.  Do a pull up.  

Nothing that seems too demanding or out there, right?  I just really need to dedicate myself and make no excuses.  It's amazing how hard it is though when Joe doesn't work out.  I feel guilty taking time to go to the gym when he is able to maintain his body without any of that.  And now I will have to leave Nash...  But I must do this for myself.

Strategies are simple.  Work out.  And eat better.  I am already working on the eating thing, but there are still a lot of improvements to be made.

Competition in the Belly World?!

I find it funny, and yet frustrating, the amount of competition there is in the pregnant world.  Seems like everybody has an opinion about how much weight you should gain, when you should begin showing, and how fast you should lose the weight.  I mean, I'm not even a celebrity and I already feel the struggle.