BBG week 8 Q&A

1. One thing that surprised me about myself this week:

I have been thinking about taking an online certification to become a health coach for a few years now. I wanted to wait till my son turns one or is sleeping through the night (2 months till he's one- who knows when the later will happen!) Well I called to get additional information the Monday my BBG week 8 started and that just so happened to be a day that they were starting a new class. So I signed up thinking to myself "why put off until tomorrow what can be done today?". I panicked a little at first how am I going to be able to do it all and still get my BBG workouts in which are so important to me?! But I took a deep breath and told myself one day at a time - and what an amazing thing for my son to grow up with a health coach as a mom! 

2. The #1 thing that made me happy this week was:

I upped my weights for my weighted step ups by 5 more pounds on Monday then another 5 pounds on Friday!! 2 personal records in one week!! It would have been so easy for me to stay with my Monday weight on Friday but I pushed myself and was so proud on Friday when I upped my weight again. 

3. Something that didn't go as planned this week was:

I had my husband working out with me for a minute there so I switched my workouts from AM to PM. Well he's off the workout wagon so I'm working out alone again. I really struggled with trying to get up and workout in the AM - I wasn't able to drag myself out of bed for an AM workout any day last week. I caught myself getting down on myself about it then I reminded myself an articale I read a while back about the best times to workout. After stating a few facts giving benefits of morning and night workouts the closing paragraph basically just said you know what- the best time to workout is whenever you can make time. So I reminded myself of that and patted myself on the back for making time.

4. My toughest hurdle this week was:

I was dragging through the workouts- I did manage to up my weights but my energy level all week was pretty low. When you're tired pysichally it really affects you mentally with how hard you push yourself. I did my best to not compare my performances with past weeks but to pat myself on the back for showing up and working out instead of making excuses.

5. What I want to remember this week is: 

Life really is all about perspective. Before this week I was a stay at home mom who made time to workout everyday. Now I'm a stay at home mom who's back in school and making time to work out everyday. Before I had the school component mixed in I didn't think I had any time to add anything to my plate. When I step back and think bout it even though right now I don't feel like I have a sec me a day to spare there are people out there doing what I'm doing and working full time too! Now that I'm back in school it would be so easy to cut out my workouts or make excuses- but I owe it to myself and my son to be the healthiest I can be. 

Why I workout with my son

Everyday I incorporate my son In some form of my exercise. Even if it's as little as stretching, I make it a point to be active in front of him everyday. Yes, it takes at least double the amount of time keeping him occupied and trying to hold a plank. Yes it is more distracting and I probably am not getting as good of focus on my muscles as I would without him. BUT as a parent I can't ignore the fact that one in three of out children today will develop type 2 diabetes! I can tell him to eat healthy and move his body until I'm blue in the face but I know unless I'm living my life as an example of it my words won't mean anything. 

I've heard from countless new moms excuses they can't workout - too tired, my baby won't let me put them down, afraid of injury etc. it's hard to find a nice way to say to them that every mom who has made fitness after baby a priority could have used each one of those excuses! There's ways to get around every excuse you can think of - it's your choice how you want to raise your child and the example you will be. One of my favorite quotes that parallels beautiful with this is "instead of saying I don't have time try it's not a priority and see how that feels". Now I wait until my son goes to bed or have my husband watch him while I do my resistance training 3 times a week so I can balance mom life and my personal goals of muscle building. BUT for cardio and stretching I make sure to prioritize having my son can't be right by my side.

 

As a parent there's so much you can't control which is just an unfortunate reality of life. There are so many more "controllables" we can choose to focus on and take advantage of. Fitness and pyshical activity is a huge one that will benefit your child for life and cause an amazing ripple effect throughout your community to the other children he or she comes in contact with. 

BBG week 7 Q&A

1. One thing that surprised me about myself this week was:

It surprised me this week that I had an easier time doing the workouts in week 5! (For anyone reading this that isn't familiar with the way BBG works you respect the same workout week 1 & 3, 2 & 4, etc. So this workout was the same as week 5 which I remember flying through it with a little more ease. I was talking to my neighbor who got me started on BBG this week and I mentioned when I do BBG 1.0 for the second round I want to track how many times I do each round each week so I can monitor my progressions. Immediately after I said that I backtracked and sad I wasn't sure though- because you need to give yourself some leeway in fitness for a bad nights sleep- an off day- etc. Some people can go super intense about their training and that's awesome! But I think I'm comfortable staying where I am for right now where some days are better than others and just making sure I'm bringing my all to every workout and giving my best day to day which will differ for sure.

2. The #1 thing that made me happy this week was:

I got my husband to do the BBG resistance workouts with me!! THRILLED! We've never really worked out together other than here or there causally before so this is awesome for us. We both get our own personal live in accountability partner- ha! We went for a run together last Saturday and he noticed a huge difference in my stamina since starting BBG. Normally he smokes me in runs and I have the hardest time keeping up with him. For the first time ever I was actually having to slow down for him! That was his "ah-ha" moment in seeing how amazing the BBG guides are so he agreed to give them a try with me and he's hooked! I have him do the second circuit and I do the first circuit so we're not competing with each other so much and lapping each other-  more just going through it together.

3.  Something that didn't go as planned this week was:

Ever since starting BBG I evaluate my workout at the end of each day to have an honest inner dialogue with myself on my performance. I find that this helps me push myself farther than I've been able to in the past. One could defiently say that I'm a very routine oriented OCD person. I look at each workout and get a gameplan for it before I start (how heavy weights I'm going to use- where I'll perform each exercise in my home gym, etc). For Monday's resistance session I started doing the weighted step ups with a 24lb weighted bar as I have been for a few weeks now. About halfway through the step ups I thought to myself- up it to 15lb Dumbbells in each hand- and I did! I struggled through the rest of the reps in proper form. This was so unplanned for me and such a huge step because it's so important to be able to step outside of your confront zone and push yourself. This has been something I've been working on since I've started BBG and hope to continue to make more strides in throughout my workouts not just as a reflection when they're over for my next workout. 

4. My toughest hurdle this week was:

Since my husband joined me for the workouts most of my workouts were done with him after our son went to bed. We tried one in the am but it was just too hard keeping track of our son and workin out so its just easier if one of us isn't free to monitor our 9 month old for us both to do the workouts at night. I dragged through the night workouts compared to the am ones for sure. One night I spent 4 hours trying to get my son down and finished the workout after 10 pm (which is super late for me lol I'm normally in bed by 9)! Although I much prefer working out in the am it's a small price to pay for getting to share this experience with my husband. Knowing we're both putting our fitness and health first by taking time each day to workout together makes me so happy.

5. What I want to remember this week was:

This week was the week of the March Philly BBG meet up. I went to the meet up last month and had an awesome time! Came home so pumped to be a part of such an awesome community and told myself I would take time each month to participate In each meetup to keep my fire lit and keep my motivation high. This month it just seems like every second of our weekends are jam packed - as much as I wanted to go to the meetup I found myself making tons of excuses and telling myself I should really just sit this one out (it's about a 45 minute commute into the city each way so it's like 3 hours of my day away from my son). The night before the meeting at 9pm I started thinking about how the meetup was the next day- as easy as it would be to sit this one out I told myself what I tell moms all the time"you're a better mom and wife if you take time out for yourself every once in a while". So that's exactly what I did! I took the "me" time to go to the meetup and felt the same amazing energy and rejuvenation I felt from last month's. I'm so happy I pushed myself and attended the meetup- I truly feel the past two meet ups and the amazing BBG community I'm a part of on Instagram have been every bit of difference in my success with this program as opposed to things I've tried in the past.

Adult coloring books - a new style of meditation

I was surprised when I read that 6 of the current 20 top selling books on Amazon are adult coloring books! Makes sense though - coloring is a great way to relief stress and tap into memories of simpler times from your childhood where the biggest decision you had to make was to slide down the slide or swing on the swing after you were done climbing the monkey bars. The idea of adult coloring books actually came from Carl Jung -who was always ahead of his time- would prescribe patients to color in coloring books to bring relaxation and mindfulness. Also Jung felt it helped patients access their sub consciousness and tap into greater self knowledge. Coloring is an amazing way you can stay active pyshically while giving your brain much needed rest and relaxation. 

I find myself forever in search of ways to be more mindful and present in my day to day life. Mediation and yoga are two things I love but find myself having a hard time slowing down and doing in my hectic day to day life. Like most moms of young children from the moment I wake up to the moment I go to bed I'm going and going and going. From my number one priority of taking care of my son to preparing nutritious meals for my family, to maintaining our house, maintaining my fitness, etc., etc., there are never enough hours in the day! Whenever I slow myself down enough at the end of a long day to mediate or practice yoga I always feel such relief and relaxation. However I find it hard to slow myself down enough to make them regular habits of mine. Most days it's not until 8 or 9 pm that I'm able to take my first breather of the day and my mind has been on overdrive for 15 plus hours. I find it such a challenge to shift my mind into a calm enough mode to jump into mediation or do yoga. Too often I find myself unwinding my scrolling through my Instagram feed or flipping through mindless tv shows. I am super excited to try my hand at a new mediation technique of adult coloring books! For someone like me who needs something more active to help them slow down and transition at the end of a long day this seems like the perfect tool to bring me down to a more mindful state. 

"Approach" goals vs "avoid" goals

Goals are no doubt a crucial part of anyone's fitness journey. The self talk we use when we goal set is so important and crucial to our success. It's natural to have goals be listing things you want to avoid- the #oneperfectweek I referenced a few blogs back for example had a lot of avoid goals. 

-no processed food

-no cheat meals

-no going over calories for the day, etc.

It's so important to step back and look at the verbiage we're using when goal setting. On initial thought for some people goal setting and setting restricting guidelines for themselves makes total sense on the best way to reach those goals. Using "avoiding" terminology like the above list is setting yourself up for failure. It's negative self talk and telling yourself to stop doing something backfires into continuing to do it- the forbidden fruit scenario. When you step back and think about it this makes total sense no one likes being told what to do- even by themselves! 

Replacing "avoiding" goals with "approach" goals makes all the difference in helping to reach those goals through positive self talk. In reference to the above transformation picture of my BBG progress through the first 6 weeks my goals when I started could have been:

-loose my stomach "pooch"

-have my things not touch 

-look better naked

But those goals are negative self talk and serve a whole lot better if you replace the negatives with actions you can do to make the changes you want to see. For example:

-loose my pooch >> -work on engaging my core more through my workouts

-have my thighs not touch >> - concentrate on going as deep as I can in my squats and really firing up 

-look better naked >> -give 100% effort for every workout I do 

These "approach" goals help by not just point out the negatives I want to change but give me practical steps I can take to empower myself to make the changes. Also, they serve as a much more self respecting dialogue. 

Intuitive Eating

Intuitive eating is a very interesting lifestyle concept I've recently come across. For someone like me who has spent years counting calories and now tracks macros it's a very foreign but intriguing concept to wrap my head around. The whole premise of intuitive eating is to build a healthier relationship with food. A lot of people are regimented with their diets the whole work week and schedule cheat meals on the weekends. For the intuitive eating principle if you feel like having that cheeseburger you'd have Saturday night for a cheat meal on Tuesday night instead go for it! Intuitive eating teaches you to listen to your body cravings and not restrain yourself based on predetermined days you can cheat. 

Intuitive eating is meant to retrain your mind to trust its instincts when it comes to eating and what your body needs. After years of dieting and restrictive eating that most people who turn to intuitive eating have put themselves through the principles of intuitive eating help turn off all of your restrictive voices in your head when it comes to what and when you should and an eat. It seems simple enough "eat when you're hungry and eat till you're full" but years of ignoring our needs and trying to maintain the latest diet have caused a huge disconnect in so many peoples ability to tune into what their bodies need and are asking for. 

One of the principles of intuitive eating calls for you to "make peace with food". Telling yourself donuts are "bad" like so many diets will have you do creates feelings of deprivation and can lead to uncontrollable cravings and binges for the "naughty" foods. When we live with such preconceived notions in our head of what is "good" food and "bad" food we have such remorse and guilt when we cave in and eat the bad food which is bound to happen at some point or another. That's no way to live life!

Intuitive eating calls for a great sense of mindfulness when it comes to eating. Instead of day after day eating the same portions and not connecting with your food and your stomach - intuitive eating asks you to savor every bite. Intuitive eating calls for you to connect with your stomach throughout your meal and listen to its ques for when it is full. A sandwich you ate yesterday that didn't fill you might fill you after 3 bites today. But if you're not que'd into your stomach and listening to the messages your body is giving you- it's far too easy to get wrapped up in habit and eat your normal sized portions rather than the portions you really need. 

Personally intuitive eating seems a little scary but very intriguing. For me right now nursing my son is my number one priority and making sure I get enough calories and that my macros are on point is key to my success with maintaining my supply. When the time comes that I stop nursing, however I plan on trying this approach of reconnecting with my body and attempting to erase all of the expectation years of restrictive eating and diets have engrained into my head. 

BBG week 6 Q&A

1. One thing that surprised me about myself this week:

I was surprised I couldn't hold plank for a minute straight in the circuit! Normally holding plank for a minute straight is hard for me but doable. But for the plank portion in the workouts when my muscles were already fatigued from the exercises I couldn't hold plank for a minute straight! This was a huge call to action for me as holding plank for a minute is as basic as it gets for someone of my fitness level. So I've started holding plank every night for my max time and my goal is to hold for longer every night. I'm on day 3 and so far so good!

2. The #1 thing that made me happy this week:

I can feel myself progressing with the weighted exercises and feel I'm not quiet ready but almost ready to move up with my weights again. Seriously the progressions I've been making with this program are just amazing to me and by far blow all of my other training out of the water with how far I've come in such a short period of time.

3. Something that didn't go as planned this week was:

I walked for one of my LISS sessions. When I started BBG i would have never thought walking would count as a workout and vowed to have all of my LISS sessions be at least on the elliptical or running with a proper sweat and heart rate at least 130bpm. This week I walked for my 3rd LISS session and broke out in a decent sweat! It was an "ah-ha" moment for me that I needed to switch up my cardio more and not let my body anticipate my LISS sessions so much. I woke up the next day feeling just as lean as the day before not feeling extra bulky cause I didn't burn an extra 200 calories or anything. So from now on I all be incorporating more walking and bike rides for my LISS sessions along with running and elliptical work.

4. My toughest hurdle this week was:

On Monday I got a little over halfway through my workout and by son started fussing to be held so I had to repeat the workout after he went to bed at 9pm. That was the latest I'd ever done a BBG workout. Especially hard after running around after a very active 9 month old from 6:30am on. But I did it pushed my hardest through it and went to bed on Monday with a huge sense of accomplishment. 

5. What I want to remember this week is:

Before I started BBG I couldn't run for more than a minute straight. I'd never been a runner and would "sprint". My dad would ride his bike along side while I "ran" and he would barely be able to peddle at times just coast next to me. We went for a run together this past week with me pushing my son in his stroller and holding my 20lb beagle's leash next to my dad on the bike. I didn't have to stop the entire time of my LISS session for the day! Even my Dad noticed the difference in my endurance since starting BBG!

Fresh vs frozen produce

There are so many benefits to buying frozen vs fresh produce - frozen produce generally saves a few dollars per package and an even bigger benefit it has a much longer shelf life than fresh produce. For people like me that absolutely hate wasting food this makes a huge difference! When I buy fresh fruits and veggies and realize I'm not going to be using them before they go bad I find myself chopping them up and freezing them for later use anyway so I've started buying more and more frozen veggies and fruits. Although frozen produce clearly won't work for every dish you're preparing they're a great alternative for many meals. 

Frozen vegetables and fruits are actually more nutrient dense than most of the fresh produce you buy at the store! If you think about it by the time you're buying and taking home fresh produce its gone through nearly a weeks worth of life from being picked, packaged to traveling to the grocery store then being sorted on the shelf behind the produce they have that hasnt sold so grocers can sell the older produce first before it goes bad. Frozen produce is picked at its peak of freshness and frozen so it's generally more nutrient dense than fresh produce which looses nutrients the longer it sits after it's been picked and packaged.

The convenience of frozen vs fresh food is unarguable! And considering the average person eats a third of the suggested daily intake of produce (3 daily servings instead of the suggested 9) I'd say the more convenient produce can be the better!! I find myself always buying frozen spinach and berries to make my daily morning smoothie- as well as frozen broccoli to heat up, drain and throw on a salad or use as a side dish for an easy dinner. 

Holding plank for 2 minutes

Planking is a great exercise that engages the muscles deep within your core as well as pretty much every muscle in the front of your body. I've always been embarrassingly bad a planks my whole life. I always admired people who can hold plank for 4 or 5 minutes strauight but just never really saw it as an option for me. Recently I did a fitness assessment where you do 3 exercises AMRAP style (as many reps as possible) for a minute than hold plank for as long as you can. The assessment should be repeated once a month to track progress through your training. All of my results were pretty solid except for my plank which was straight embarrassing compared to the rest of my results (maxing out at 1 minute and 24 seconds!) I took a step back at my results and started looking into what it means if you can't hold plank well and how I can improve my fitness weak link. 

Planks are a huge reflection of your core strength. Core strength helps shed belly fat making you look thinner, and more importantly to some people it helping support your spine and reducing back issues. The stronger your core is the better your posture is (which I have to admit my posture is terrible - makes sense when you look at my plank results). Core strength is so much more important than looking good in a bathing suit or getting defined abs. As we get older the stronger our core is the better our balance is - therefore the less likely we are to fall and break bones in our senior years. 

It's suggested 2 minutes in plank position is a good assessment for long term health. Being able to hold plank for this long generally means you have lowered amounts of belly fat and are supporting your back muscles in your daily activities through your core which helps prevent injury. Proper form while planking is so important to not hurt your lower back muscles. While planking the goal is to always keep your body as straight and stiff as a board and imagine your belly button being drawn in as high as it can go into your spine. Engaging your belly button is how you get to your deeper core muscles through this exercise. For women it's also suggested to engage your kegal muscles throughout your plank hold as well to help ignite the lower abdominal muscles. 

In my journey to being able to hold plank for 2 minutes straight (hopefully beyond 2 minutes!) I am going to hold plank for my max time every evening and track my time to see my progressions. My goal is to be able to hold plank for 2 minutes straight (pretty much double the amount of time I can sustain now) in 2 months time. I also plan on continuing planking daily to maintain my growth with it and not loose the progress I make. It's amazing how fast your body can push itself and grow with daily exercise. It's equally amazing how fast your body can loose it's gains and backtrack when you don't exercise daily! 

BBG week 5 Q&A

1. One thing that surprised me about myself this week was?

I was surprised that I was still fighting my mind when it came to my ability to do commandoes in plank form as opposed to modifying them down on my knees. Although last week I did every set in proper form with no modifications this week I fought my mind a lot on the negative self talk of "I can't do it" I even dropped to my knees for the last 2 on Wednesday. I wasn't upset at myself though- I know sleep comes into play with a lot of this and right now (at 9 months old) my son is still working on not getting up every few hours through the night. I need to look at this as a journey not a race and know that some days will be stronger than others and that's ok. As long as I'm giving it my all.

2. The #1 thing that made me happy this week was?

I had a personal goal to engage my core more during my liss sessions. I've always been the worst at engaging my core during cardio which I know is so important. This week I reminded myself as much as I could and although I didn't spend every minute of my liss sessions with a fully engaged core - I made great progress which I hope to maintain and build on as the weeks come. 

3. Something that didn't go as planned this week was?

I didn't plan to forget to set the timer!!! Ha I was so tired on Monday when I woke up to do legs that on my fourth set it just seemed to be dragging on and on so I looked at the timer to see how much time I had left and realized I forgot to set the 7 minute timer! Lol that will not happen again!!

4. My toughest hurdle this week was?

I got sick on Thursday and woke up Friday with a nasty stomach bug! I wasn't fully myself again until Sunday so I had to skip Friday's workout - make it up on Sunday and double up a liss session. I was nervous I wouldn't get the recommended amount of liss and resistance sessions in for week 5 but in the end I got 4 liss and 3 resistance sessions in late on Sunday so I can fully move onto week 6!

5. What I wan to remember about this week is?

I want to remember the importance of listening to your body. If you're sick or feeling like your pushing yourself too hard taking a rest day is going to bring you closer to your goals than pushing yourself to exhaustion and injury. As hard as it is for us type a personalities to divert from our weekly plan it's so important to honor and listen to the messages your body is telling you. Taking a day off is a lot better than pushing yourself getting injured or sick and having to take a week off.

Benefits of water

Drinking water is one of the easiest steps we can take towards stating healthy. Most people don't drink nearly enough water though. Depending on who you talk to you'll get different equations to calculate the exact amount of water you should be drinking. A general rule of thumb I try and go by daily is the 8 x 8 rule. It couldn't be easier- drink 8 ounces of water 8 times a day. 

A lot of people wait until they're thirsty to drink water which is a major fail - when your body is thirsty it's already dehydrated! It's important to stay ahead of your thirst to keep your body properly hydrated. 

Drinking the suggested amount of water daily helps your body perform better in so many ways. Just a few of the many health benefits include  :

-clearer skin 

-flushing out your body of toxins

-fighting infection in your body 

-boost energy

-reduce the risk of cancer and heart problems 

A major added bonus is the tremendous weight loose benefits drinking enough water brings. A common rule of thumb is to drink an 8oz glass of water before every meal to keep your stomach fuller and your portion intake smaller. But did you know that drinking a gallon of water a day can help your body burn an additional 180 calories! Water has been shown to up your metabolism by as much as 1/3 higher than its normal rate within 40 minutes of drinking it! 

BBG week four Q&A

1. Have I given this first month my best effort?

Tough question- the answer is yes though. Over the past month I've evaluated my efforts after every workout. I've analyzed where I could have pushed harder and where I was listening to my mind more than my body in terms of scaling back and using modifications. Did I push myself to my breaking point with each round? No. But I didn't skip one workout or one minute of the guides and pushed myself mentally and physically everyday. Most importantly I've grown more in the past month than I have in the past with 2 years of crossfit programming.

2. The #1 improvement I have noticed this month?

My ability to step back and really analyze my performs in a workout and honestly assess if I had given 100% or not. I would say that I've always been more of a "cardio bunny" with my workouts until about 4 years ago when I started focusing more on body weight and strength training exercises. Through the past four years I never really questioned my workouts or if I'd given "my all".  I've never had a community like the BBG community to reflect and share my experience with. Some days the #deathbykayla hashtag seemed all too literal while some days I felt like I could have pushed harder. Which had me step back and start being a little more analytical of my performance than I had in the past. I have to say in the past if I left a crossfit class not feeling like I got the best workout I would think to myself "wow the WOD (workout of the day) was weak today" not that I hadn't given my all (which was probably more of the case looking back).

3. The #1 thing I can work on moving forward?

Pushing myself physically and not listening to my mental limitations. My motto moving forward is that if I attempt a push-up for example from plank form and can't do it that ok I'll scale down to my knees but I have to at least try it from the full form before I use any modifications. I'm not trying to push my body elite athlete style but I want to know that I'm giving my all while being patient with my body and trusting the process takes time. 

4. My toughest hurdle this month?

I don't really think I had any "tough" hurdles- however in the past it was always by goal to train 6 days a week but if my son was having a bad day and I was exhausted I'd skip a workout here and there and be ok with 5 workouts a week. With the BBG guides that wasn't an option for me. I was going to do exactly what Kayla recommends in the exact way she recommends to do it. So a few days in the beginning I had to get extra creative with fitting my workouts into my busy mom life but I feel like that "hurdle" has passed now and at this point it's not even a question of how I'll get it done just of when.

5. What I want to remember about this month?

The amazing progress I've been able to make in just 30 days. I've upped my weight for all weighted exercises by 10 pounds. Gone from doing commandoes modified on my knees after five sets in plank to being able t do the whole round of 12 sets two times around in planks! One of my favorite fitness quotes has always been "one of the greatest moments in life is realizing that two weeks ago your body couldn't do what it just did". I've always been inspired by that quote and progressed in my workouts but never been able to relate to the two week time period in the quote. If you would have told at the start of the program the progressions I would make in just a short month with my abilities I would not have believed you. 

My daily positive affirmations for my son

"All that we are is the result of what we have thought. The mind is everything. What we think we become" -Buddha 

The definition of an affirmation is that we are declaring it to be true. An affirmation is a positive sentence you say to yourself and out loud to the world for your intentions for yourself. These intentions overtime become engrained in our mind as reality therefor becoming reality. Some people would compare it to a "fake it till you make it" mentality. 

The words we say to ourselves internally and out loud are so powerful and go a long way in manifesting our destiny. Your thoughts are so powerful and affirmations (if you truly believe them) can program your mind to believe what you're saying is true.

As children if we're told were creative, smart, etc. it stays with us in our conscious and unconscious mind for the rest of our lives. The same is true for any negative statement children hear - that can go a long way in disrupting healthy self esteem and creating negative mind patterns they'll have to deal with for the rest of their lives. 

Ever since I've had my son my desire to be the best role model for him has been a number one priority. I know as his mom I am the most important person in his life for the time being and my actions from his birth will go a long way in shaping his priorities for life. On a day to day basis I eat healthy and exercise to show him the importance of taking care of our bodies. Now that he's almost 9 months old (don't know how that happened!) I'm working on ways to make sure he has a positive self image and mindset. It seems everyone has an opinion on how he looks- of course we hear how adorable he is from everyone but we also hear a lot of comments on how "big he is" or how "big his head is". I know no one means any harm by their observations but I want to make sure as his mom I'm doing everything in my power to make sure he doesn't label himself as a "big kid" etc. Everyday before we go to bed we look in the mirror and say "I love myself and I love my body". Even tough right now he doesn't understand my words I know one day he will and that for now he feels the energy and love from the message. 

The 5 Ingredient "rule"

When it comes to what kinds of food you buy at the grocery store there are a lot of opinions. Some people feel you shouldn't buy food with ingredients on the label you can't pronounce. Some people are anti processed food at all (a lovely idea but not always realistic). Or my personal favorite - the 5 ingredient "rule". This is as simple as its sounds- don't buy food with more than 5 ingredients on the food label. This simple to follow rule eliminates most junk food from your diet. This particular rule is a nice way to still be able to indulge in treats like chips and ice cream but make sure you're eating the healthiest versions you can. 

I totally get it that in alot of people's busy day to day lives grocery shopping is more of a hassle than anything else and the thought of taking the extra time to read through each ingredient on the food label of what you're buying just isn't realistic. Until one day you make the time and realize the "go-to" chip you've been getting for years now has over 15 ingredients on the nutrition label! If you take the extra time on one grocery trip and analyze a few other options you'll easily find a new "go-to" chip with under 5 ingredients. You'll even find some chips with as little as 2 ingredients- potatoes and oil! 

If you're interested in digging a little deeper there's a few ingredients you'll find in 5 ingredient or less foods that you want to avoid regardless-

-hydrogenated anything

-mono sodium glutamate 

-high fructose corn syrup

I personally don't stress about the protein, fiber and fat contents on ingredient labels because I know my diet contains an abundance of fresh produce and healthy fats and proteins to supply my body what it needsnutrient wise. Overall the 5 ingredient rule is designed to make it easier to make healthy food choices while not taking up too much time researching everything on the food label. 

BBG week three Q&A

1. One thing that surprised me about myself this week-

 I was surprised that I was able to up my weights from 20lbs to 30lbs for my squat presses and my weighted step ups. The first week I struggled with 10 lb Dumbbells in each hand and I didn't really think I was going to progress to 15lbs in each hand in under three weeks. After my second resistance session on Wednesday I evaluated my workout and realized that although I was exhausted at the end of the round with the squat presses I wasn't exhausted with that particular exercise. So on Friday I started out with the 15lb dumbbells in each hand for the squat presses and got exactly what I was looking for - struggling to get through the last 3 of the 15 reps while still in good form.

2. The #1 thing that made me happy this week was-

I didn't plan to backtrack on the progress I made last week in my push ups. (Last week I started to push myself and do 5 push ups in plank form drop to my knees for one then pop back up to plank for a few etc instead of doing the first couple in plank and dropping to my knees for the remainder of the set). 2 of my 3 resistance sessions I totally phoned in my push-ups on my knees and didn't even attempt them in plank position. I was super frustrated with myself after the Monday and Wednesday workouts because I know I could have pushed harder. But the #1 thing that made me happy was that come Friday's resistance session I pushed myself and did the whole set of 15 in plank form for the first time ever! Now to just make it a habit. I think a little pep talk before each session might be in order - mind over matter!

3. Something that didn't go as planned this week was-

It's been a goal of mine for a few years now - that I've been very inconsistent with - to be able to do a full set of 15 push ups in proper plank form. Last week I thought I'd made a big stride closer to my goal but this week like I mentioned above on 2 of my 3 resistance workouts I was so fatigued I didn't even attempt a push up in plank form and just started right from my knees! It didn't go as planned for me to backtrack like that. At the time I thought I was listening to my body but as soon as the workout was done I realized it was my mind I was listening to and there was no reason I couldn't have attempted those push ups from a plank.

4. My toughest hurdle this week was-

Hands down keeping my eating in line was my toughest hurdle. I live by that saying "you can eat your way through any workout" and normally have an easy time staying regimented with a clean diet where I count calories and monitor macro portions. This week I was coming off of #oneperfectweek where I was extra strict for a week straight and I just felt like I was more hungry and craving sugar and carbs so way more than normal. It was a huge lesson for me to just maintain my normal 90% good 10% "cheat" routine daily instead of trying any restricting diet like that. A few days this week my diet wasn't nearly as on point as it normally is and I really feel it affected my progress for the week. Live and learn!

5. What I want to remember about this week was-

I want to remember how strong your mind is in what your body can do. It really is so mental in terms of pushing yourself. I really had to evaluate my workouts after my first two resistance sessions and realize I was hardly pushing myself as much as I had in the previous week- crazy easy it is to start to rest on our laurels. Moving forward my game plan is to give myself a mental pep talk with goals before each workout. If I try and my body is exhausted and can't go where I'm trying to push it that's ok- but I at least need to know I'm trying.

6 health benefits of Apple Cidar Vinegar

Recently I've been obsessed with using Apple Cidar Vinegar (ACV) as a dressing straight up on my salads. My love for it mainly started from only having 400 calories or so left for dinner and not wanting to waste half of them on salad dressing. At first I found it to be a bit of an acquired taste but once I got used to it I find I quiet like the taste on a wide range of salads! It's become very refreshing. I started doing a bit more research on ACV as its very well known in the holistic health world as the most beneficial of all the vinegars. Apple Cidar Vinegar has been used for many centuries for everything from a cleaning solution to an aid in weight control. While some of the benefits of ACV are more "old wives tales" many other benefits have been scientifically proven! 

Here are some of the top health benefits of drink ACV:

-calm an upset tummy

The antimicrobrial properties and pectin can calm an upset stomach and help fight bacteria including diahrea when mixed with water and drank.

-cure a sore throat

When garbled the bacteria fighting properties in ACV can fight any bacteria in your throat that might be causing you discomfort.

-clears a stuffy nose

The potassium in ACV when swallowed can thin out the mucus build up in your nose and help clear up a runny nose!

-help with weight loss

The acidic taste of ACV helps to suppress your appetite - while increasing your metabolism and reducing bloat from water retention! Also the anti glycemic effect in ACV helps to control blood sugar leaving you feeling fuller for longer. 

-give you more energy

The amino acids, potassium and enzymes of ACV help relieve feelings of exhaustion in part by getting your lactic acid flowing.

-curing bad breath

-since ACV fights bacteria- gargling it helps fight bacteria in your mouth that would otherwise result in bad breath!

-stopping hiccups

By over stimulating the nerves in your throat with its sour taste swallowing ACV straight up when hiccuping can stop your hiccups in their tracks!

With many other benefits from teeth whitening to clearing up bad skin there are so many reasons to incorporate ACV into your daily healthy regimen!

My #oneperfectweek setback

I recently participated in a food and fitnes challenge called #oneperfectweek. The overall rules of #oneperfectweek are as follows :

-6 days of working out

-1 rest day

-8 hours of sleep a night

-drink plenty of water

-no alcohol 

-no cheat meals

Overall on a day to day basis I find myself following the above guide with adding in a treat here or there if I'm craving one- I would say the 90% good 10% bad rule of thumb. I decided to partake in this challenge for fun just to say I did it if you will. For my challenge I committed to :

-6 days working out

-1day rest

-only drinking tea and water

-no flour or sugar

-2,000 calories a day of 35% fat - 25% protein and 40% carbs

I went into the challenge pretty confident since like I said my normal eating routine isn't far off. From day one I found myself craving sweets more - I took it as the whole theory you want what you can't have. So I went into day 2 saving some of the fruit I eat as carbs for a treat at night so I'd have something to satiate that craving. The rest of the week went as planned and towards Friday I even thought of keeping it going and joining the #iquitsugar challenge I'd stumbled upon! As I started planning out days ahead I realized that we were having company and it wouldn't be fair to serve food with no flour and sugar to fit my needs- also that I didn't want to make my guests feel uncomfortable by not eating the food I served but a "special" meal so I decided to go back to my normal routine of one cheat meal a week and the 90/10 rule. 

Boy am I glad I stopped when I did! I lost maybe 2 pounds the whole week - and when I came off and had my well deserved cheat meal it's like I couldn't get enough sugar and carbs!! I had the worst sugar high - didn't even feel good but my body was craving more! Since I know the more simple carbs you have the more your body craves them I tried to ignore my cravings but found myself for 3 days straight after just wanting sugar and sweets! So much more than normal - and I ended up gaining the 2 pounds I lost back and then another 2 on top of that! 

It became clear to me that importance of giving your body in moderation what it's craving at the moment. If you are craving chocolate and add into your daily calories a piece of chocolate or on a cheat meal splurge then you're going to help maintain your cravings and keep them at bay. It's simply unrealistic and unsustainable to never splurge on a treat or a craving. A lot of people have the experience I did after a crash diet or juicing diet - really any kind of restrictive diet to binge when it's done and just crave all the sweets they avoided so much more than they normally would have if they didn't try the diet. 

Eating slower

As a new mom I've developed that terrible habit most new parents do of eating my meals way too fast. It's so much easier to throw a salad down in under 5 minutes rather than to take 30 minutes standing up holding your baby on your hip with one hand and eating with your opposite hand. Even when people are over and offer to hold my son or he's asleep I find myself eating way too fast so I can be ready in case he starts crying for me. It's really taken away some of the pleasure that I was had of eating a nice meal. A lot of new parents go through this as well as a lot of busy people all over that are going 1,000 miles an hour through their days. 

It's very important that we slow down our eating and keep conscious of the fact that it takes our stomachs 20 minutes to communicate to our brains that were full. Eating slower is also important to be able to get the maximum amount of enjoyment and pleasure out of our meal. 

Other than being conscious to eat slower and take more breaks between bites - here are a few easy ways you can set a more mindful environment for yourself -

-Don't let 4 hours pass in between meals 

-Drink a large glass of water before every meal 

-Always sit down at a table to eat

-Don't eat in front of the tv

-Turn on some music 

-don't bring your phones or tablets to the table 

BBG week two Q&A

Had a pretty good week this past week! Checked a few things off my bucket list in the health and fitness department- 

-First and foremost officially done week 2 of the Bikini Body Guide *yayy*!

-Also done my #oneperfectweek personal challenge where I committed to a diet of 2,000 cals a day consisting of 35g fat, 25g protein, and 40g carbs - only drinking tea and water - not eating flour or sugar - and training 6 days a week (most of which is pretty normal 80% of the time for me just tightening up that extra 20%). 

-AND to boot I did a week at home long teeth whitened program! Lol

Here's my BBG week 2 Q&A:

1. One thing that surprised me about myself this week was-

I was able to get my abs sore for days! Even week one I didn't get the lovely hurts your abs to walk up stairs - hurts your abs to turn the steering wheel when your driving feel. In the past I've had the hardest time exhausting my core and getting sore for days from a workout like I could easily do for my upper body or legs. This week I was pleasantly surprised to wake up Thursday after arm and ab day with a hard time lifting myself out of bed due to my sore abs. Yay for non scale victories!!

2. The one thing that made me happy this week was-

There was so much that made me happy this week throughout my BBG journey but if I had to pick one thing it would be I really pushed myself a lot harder than I normally have for years of working out.  Example: for a push up I'm not able to do more than 5 in perfect form all the way chest touching the floor in proper plank position so I'll drop to my knees and finish the set with 10 on my knees. This week I did 5 push ups in plank - then 2 on my knees then forced myself up for 4 more in plank than 1 on my knees etc. I really dug deep and pushed myself harder than I thought I could go. 

3. Something that didn't go as planned this week-

I skinned My elbows from all the comandos! (For any non - BBGer a comando is a high plank lowered down to a forearm plank right side first then left side brought back up to high plank right side first than left side and repeat the opposite side. BBG will have you do about 15 on each side for 3x total a few times a week!) at first when I took a shower after my Wednesday resistance session I felt a burn when the water hit the raw part of my elbow and immediately thought score! I worked out so hard I have a battle wound!! Then when my elbows hurt just bending them in a long sleeved sweatshirt it wasn't as fun. But it's ok I know it'll heal and its part of the process of pushing myself to my max.

4. My toughest hurdle this week was-

Pushing myself harder than I've ever pushed myself more mentally than psychically. Like I mentioned I pushed with more high plank push us then dropping to my knees more than I ever thought I could. For months I probably psychically could have done what I did this week but mentally I've been holding myself back. I think it was Wednesday during my 2nd set of comandos my mind totally went blank and I literally was so exhausted mentally and pyshically that I lost total count of my reps and what side I was on. That's never happened to me in a workout before and really took me by surprise. But I just powered through then for the next set of comandos made sure I was tracking it extra carefully so I wouldn't blank out like before.

5. What I want to remember about this week is-

In just two short weeks I can already feel major improvements I'm both my strength and cardio. I feel better all around - taking control of your health and fitnes and really pushing yourself in both aspects is just the best feeling!

Enough excuses!

Most people that workout on the regular have at least a few people in their life that don't and communicate a lot to them why they can't workout. Sure there are medical reasons why some people should not work out - but most of the time the excuses are not valid reasons why they can't workout. It's all about your personal priorities. Here are some of the top excuses people make to justify not working out and why they are NOT valid:

-TIME

Even if you just get your blood flowing and body moving for 30 minutes a day that's literally 2% of your day! The average person spends way more than 30 minutes a day watching tv, cruising the Internet, on social media, etc. So if this is really you're excuse than try saying "It's not a priority" instead of "I don't have time" and see if that changes your mindset at all. 

-KIDS

Using your children as an excuse to not workout is just that a big excuse. I've worked out with my son in the carrier since he was 6 weeks old (carefully of course)! How can I raise my child telling him to workout and eat healthy if I don't myself? We are our children's biggest role models. Although there's no denying things can get a little more complicated working out with little ones in tow it all goes back to the old adage "where there's a will there's a way"! There are tons of videos on YouTube of parents working out incorporating kids of all ages to help motivate and give some ideas. I always say my son is my reason not my excuse. 

-TOO TIRED

It's totally understandable to want to hit the snooze button before your day starts or sit on the couch and watch tv instead of working out at night. But you just need to commit! It's proven if you skip one day you're more likely to skip consecutive days and not stay on a regimen. Screw the whole "starting on Monday" idea! Why let another day pass before you take the steps to be the healthiest person you can be for your family your friends and most importantly yourself. Start controlling your mind and commit - even 3 days a week is going to get you more progress than nothing!

-COST

Gym memberships can range from $10 a month to $100 a month depending on the facility. If you're not in a financial position to spare anything that's totally ok. There are hundreds of body weight exercises you can do from the comfort of your own home for free! Again YouTube is a great tool when you're just starting out with a routine to get you going.

There are countless more excuses out there but with each one comes countless reasons why you should workout anyway (unless you have a medical reason of course). Take control of your body and your mind and start moving today for a healthier tomorrow. 

The skinny on "meatless Monday"

Meatless Monday is such a simple easy way to take benefit your overall health through your nutrition. There's been a lot of research done on  the health benefits of going a vegetarian or even partly vegetarian lifestyle. Vegetarians over time have much lowered risks of cancer, heart disease, asthma, diabetes and high blood pressure! It's totally understandable that most people aren't ready to give up meat and commit to all out vegetarianism. Which is what's so great about meatless Monday. It's as simple as simple as it sounds - dedicating one day a week to not eating any meat. The day of the week Monday comes into play in part for the catchy name but also with the thought that it'll kick start your week with healthier habits. Going meatless in your meals just one day a week can imporove your health, your finances, as well as the environment! Here are the main reasons you should give it a try :

-meatless meals generally produce lower calorie meals which over time will hel lean you out

-meatless meals have less saturated fat and cholesterol!

-meatless meals overall provide your body with more fiber, vitamins and minerals

-meat in general costs much more per pound than tofu, beans or vegetables. So meatless meals {most of the time} cost less to make.

-with healthcare premiums being what they are and such a burden to so many people out there - adopting a meatless day of the week and improving your overall health will lower your risks of the top preventable diseases in turn lower future and overall health care costs.

-eating less meat and more produce just once a week helps with lowering water consumption. It takes almost 50 times the water to raise livestock as it does fresh produce! Pretty crazy! 

Consciously adopting Meatless Monday's (or whatever day of the week you can go meatless) is a great step to controlling your health and nutrition. Not to mention a nice way to challenge yourself with some new recipes and bring some new additions to your household meals. The zucchini "meatballs" pictured above were a huge hit with my husband. He even asked me to make them again and told me he couldn't even tell they didn't have meat in them!  

Let's talk "fast food"

When most people think of fast food they think pizza or places like McDonald's. Some people even get excited to be able to get food for $1 at places like that. Seriously think about it - food should NOT cost $1! Over the past few decades the amount of money we spend on health care and food has flipped- I don't have the exact numbers but something like 30 years ago people spent 80% of a percentage of their money on food and 20% on health care and medical bills. Now it's the opposite the average person spends something like 5 times more on health care costs than food BECAUSE they're eating bad food. 

Being a stay at home mom to an 8 month old that will let me put him down for 10 minutes at a time maybe once or twice an hour if I'm lucky doesn't give me a lot of time to prepare fancy meals (totally not complaining my son is the best thing ever and I'm gonna have killer arms in the end ;). It would be so easy for me to get processed food and microwaveable dinners. But even the "Healthy Choice" prepared meals contain up to 100 times the level of sodium in them than fresh food. Think about it fresh veggies only last a week or so when they're store bought so really how much processing etc is going into so many of the foods out there that don't expire for months yet have fresh foods in them. ALOT!

In an ideal world meal prepping for a few days is a great way to stay ahead of the game and make sure that in your everyday busy life you have healthy options to eat on the run. But we all know too well we hardly live in an ideal world - sometimes life just gets ahead of me and I can't meal prep. I can just as easily throw a salad together or throw a microwaveable meal in the microwave - the salad obviously is the much healthier option. The salad above is my "go-to" on meal when I'm starving with no meals prepped or when my son is giving me one of my 10 minute "breaks" to prep a meal and gobble it down!

-pre washed veggies

-microwaveable organic chicken strips (ideally I oven grill a box of organic chicken breasts and have them in the fridge at all times but if I'm out - easy!)

-microwaveable quinoa (again- ideally I meal prep a few cups of quinoa and have them in the fridge at all times but this works in a pinch)

-chopped up red onion (to add a nice crunch and make me not miss croutons)

There's really no excuses here- this and so many other meals can take just about the same exact time as a microwaveable meal but tastes so much fresher and is so much healthier! Let food be your medicine and medicine be your food.