Fitness Friday - After Baby

I have not really been updating about my fitness like I use to do. Since I got pregnant, I never really discussed my workout routine or diet because there was no need for it. At least not in the way I had been doing it. Most of you know that throughout my pregnancy, I did work out. I was actually in labor while working out and did not even know - 40 weeks pregnant. Once I had the baby, I immediately headed back to the gym after a week, with Baby A in tow. When Mr. Man deployed, my goal was to loose all of the baby weight while he was gone. Then things happened with breastfeeding and Baby A's pediatrician did not want me working out until we got it situated.

To this day, nothing that we have done has helped the situation, so I have gone back to working out. I am not doing two a days right now, but I will gradually go back to doing it. I can't really say that I am dieting either, other than the natural healthy lifestyle that I have always chosen.

Now that Baby A is almost 7 months old, I feel I have a bit more freedom with working out. There is never any doubt or guilt in my head on whether I should be doing it or not since we are still nursing. I thought I would write an intro post on my goals, where I want myself, and how I plan to do it.

First off, my goal is just to get back in shape at this point. I am carrying around a little bit more weight than I was use to, so running and doing certain activities are still hard on me. I have no goal of "losing a certain amount of weight" because - to me - my weight is just a number. It absolutely means nothing. My goal is to loose size and tighten. Even though I can fit into my pre-pregnancy clothes, I still know I could do some work. My legs, for example, are a weakness of mine so I would like to do some work on those. I measured myself the other day and began taking pictures. The pictures will be saved for later to show as a progression because I definitely do not feel comfortable showing those pictures right now, not while I still look similar to them. But I will show them at some point.

I started a work out plan a couple of weeks back with high intensity, high pace, and a lot of cardio. I have a set Monday - Friday work out plan, and I stick to it. It has made me feel so much better about doing this and achieving it because I know what I expect of myself and I know what to do without changing my plan every day like I did before.

As far as where I want myself, I would like to loose this extra that I have by the beginning of the year. I know I can easily achieve this with the work out plan and "dieting" I have been doing. Now remember, the word diet just refers to the food I eat. I am not on a particular diet. I try my best to eat as clean as possible but still by reaching all of the nutrients my body needs as a nursing Mom. I can not really put a weight limit to it because I do not pay much attention to my weight. Instead, I look at my body fat percentage. I would like to be sitting between 16-17% by the beginning of next year, which is reachable. I would like to loose 3 inches from my hips and 2 inches from my stomach. Even if I did not loose those inches and gained more muscle, I would be 100% happy. This is a great way to build more muscle actually. By using the excess fat to feed the muscle.

All of this has been working for me. I am averaging 2-3 pounds per week although I just started measuring myself. My clothes are actually beginning to fall off of me, so I know what I am doing is working and will continue to work. It takes discipline and determination to make it happen, but I know in the end I will be much more confident and much more happy.

Stick with me to watch my progress and see the changes I make over the next few months!

Fitness Friday:

Guess what?! It's Friday!

The day I have been patiently waiting for to tell you my new goals within my fitness "career." I am way stoked, and I hope I can inspire and motivate you!

I started a new diet this week to prepare for some pictures I plan to do at the end of August or beginning of September. I do them to help promote bodybuilding.com because they will send us free products. They are ever so fabulous to us and our steep supplement bill, so I try to give back. Obviously, this is a win-win situation for me personally and them. I have been wanting to begin progression pictures for a long time, but I can not just take pictures of myself. Now, I have a tripod and a camera, but I still like to have Mr. Man around. Now he is around, so I plan on being this. No if's, and's, or but's about it.

My diet consists of egg whites, hard-boiled eggs (no yolks), oatmeal, veggie tortillas, cottage cheese, yogurt, fruit, flank steak, chicken breasts, fish, and lots and lots of vegetables. I am not going on Day 5. I started it on Monday.

On Monday, Mr. Man started talking to me about where I want to go with all this working out. In the beginning, this was the end for me. I never had dreams to become a fitness model, get my pro-card, compete, or become a bodybuilder. Mostly, because I am ready to settle down and start a family. Right before he deployed, I got down to the size I wanted to be with decent muscle for my size, with great definition. Nothing over the top. Just plain and simple, healthy. I originally planned on just maintaining it. Every few months I planned to go on a strict diet to lose the excess water weight and bloatness and then go back to normal. 

I have been doing this for a while now. Maintaining it is easy for me. I decided to do pictures for myself with Mr. Man to have proof of our hardwork and dedication before I get pregnant. This is what it was all about. 

Then on Monday, Mr. Man and I were discussing the future. What we thought it had in store for us. Truthfully, we have no idea what will be tossed our way, and we do not care to try and figure it out. But I do hope that someday, someday soon, I can make the announce that I pregnant. A year or two done the road, another announcement of another pregnancy, and we can continue to build our family. Mr. Man asked me about fitness. I am been playing with the idea of getting certified to be a personal trainer, but I believe that my career for Elementary Education is much more important, so I have not done that. I help friends for fun, I lend advice, and I obviously have a passion for it.

As Mr. Man and I begin talking about when we began, where we were at, and who was in our lives. I realized that majority of the people that have been into fitness (like me) has either become a professional and famous or got their pro-card or are working towards it. This is not just one or two people, it's a good handful.

When we were stationed in Texas, I met a girl. Her name is Monique. Her husband and Mr. Man worked together. They were cool. Guess what? She's gone pro. She is in every Flex, fitness, etc. magazine out there and at #1 at that. 

When I moved to England, I met some awesome people here as well. On Monday, Mr. Man and I were looking at pictures of our friends. I came to realize that every single one of them compete, every single one of them have their pro-card or very close to getting it. Almost all of them are personal trainers, some with other careers as well. All with banging bodies that I would have never guessed that they had. (I will not say names on these for their own privacy.) Two of the five are females.

One of the two females did it through 2 pregnancies. Not just one, but two. One of which I was able to witness. This is where I realized that it can be done as long as you know what you are doing and taking the right precautions and such. I sat back and reflected on this and thought about how I had changed supplements, started taking prenatals, and began a strict diet. All of which was already setting me up to be successful if I 1.) got pregnant and 2.) decided to push farther.

For me it was to decide this is it, or to go farther. After realizing all these things, I decided that maybe it was time for me to jump on the bandwagon as well. Most of these fitness  people had been working out for double to time as me (6 years or more) and in their late 30s. 6 years from now, not including the past 3 years, I will be 28. Still younger than any of them and not even including the almost 3 years under my belt. So, I have decided to jump on the bandwagon.

The bandwagon of pushing farther for myself, not to compete, not to become a fitness model, not to be a personal trainer, not to become a bodybuilding, not even to get my pro-card. At least not right now. I currently have the numbers to compete, but I want to see it. So, this is where I will begin. This diet is a great setup for reaching this goal. I have high hopes of achieving it.

I will now never say never because you never really know. Maybe someday I will make it a career? Maybe some day I will want to compete? Who knows, but now.. it's just reaching that goal to do it if I want to do it. Doing it for myself. 

I am now working on doing a Fitness Diary. One of which, I would like to document my journey. This is one thing I wish I would have done earlier in the very beginning, but it is never to late to start it up. I like it because it holds me accountable. I do not want to let myself down or anyone else down; therefore, I do not cheat and I do not slack. I have started taking pictures of all my meals. I plan to begin taking progression pictures, and I hope to get some footage of my in the gym once me and Mr. Man can work out together again. All because this will hold me accountable for my actions. Plus, I will get to look back and see how far I have come.

Here's a little insight of my diet the past week.

An example of my breakfast. Veggie tortilla wrap, tomatoes, spinach, and 3 egg whites. Brownie Batter protein shake. Prenatals and B-Complex.

Pre-workout includes half a banana and a Quake shake. (No picture)

This is an example of a post workout meal. Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough protein shake.

Dinner- Boiled chicken breast, 3 hard boiled egg whites, stir fry veggies, and a mixed salad with little Italian dressing and water.

My dessert- 1/2 cup of cottage cheese and clementine oranges. This is also an example of a day time snack and in between meal refuelers.

Fitness Friday: "My Story"

I know, I know. Before you say it, I realized I missed last week's Fitness Friday! It was a crazy busy, but fun weekend!

This week I have decided to go ahead and tell you my story. In the beginning I told you it would be my first post for Fitness Friday, but I guess something was on my mind and I never got around to the original post. Well, here it is finally!

How I got Started:

It all started when we lived in Texas. Mr. Man obviously had his regular PT. I would miss him like crazy, so I began joining him doing his sessions since he would get off work early for it. Then, not long after we had been married, he deployed for what was suppose to be 6 months. We know what military men want to do when they are deployed-- Get their fitness on! That is exactly what Mr. Man did. He dieted like crazy, and hit the gym like a mad man. While he was deployed, I worked full time for the most of it. I continued to go to the gym and do my cardio. I even went on the weekends because it helped time go by quicker and it gave me something to do. Next thing I know, Mr. Man tells me what his goals are. I just kind of accepted and respected them, and said I would do it with him. 

And this is where it all begun. He got home in February of 2008. He taught me a few tricks of the trade, worked out with me, and helped me get going. In the beginning, I was afraid of the 'veins and big muscles' just like any other female when they see other females in the magazines. But I did it, just low key.  After a while, I got bored with it. I just felt I was too busy and I was not getting much more out of it than I was before. This is where I went wrong. Mr. Man tells me that if that is the case, then I am not pushing myself hard enough. I kept working out. I never stopped, but I hated the long hours in the gym because we were both having to work out.

My reason for starting in the first place was because I did not want to gain any weight. I was happy with where I was and who I was, but I was afraid of my metabolism catching up with me and gaining weight all because I was not in school anymore doing the extra activities I was doing before.

Mr. Man and I both grew in our fitness. He worked with me, and I kept pushing myself. Once I saw the results, I was hooked. Straight up addicted! Now don't get me wrong, I had my moments. I would cry (in the gym like a baby) over being sore and having a bad day and feeling like crap. I was constantly sore. It was honestly the worst feeling ever at the time, but I pushed passed it. Mr. Man and I continued what we were doing, and later on through this, we decided we need to clean up our foods. We began doing our research and studies to find what was right for us. We found it shortly after all of this. 

I began lifting weights with Mr. Man spotting me. This coming from a girl that could not even bench press the bar. I was a straight up weeny! As soon as I started seeing results, I craved more. I pushed and pushed and pushed myself just to have some muscle. All I wanted was some muscle. Then I started losing weight. I realized how happy I was with the results and thought how easy it was so I decided to go for more. 

We PSC'd to England 2 years ago, and I have been going since. This makes almost 3 years of working out for the both of us. Mr. Man has a dream of lifting like a bodybuilder. He's into the bulking during the winter and cutting in the summer. For me, I am into the getting stronger but staying lean, pretty much all year round. 

My goals have been discussed before in another post, so sorry for the repeat. But this is something that I get asked a lot. In the beginning, it was all about weight. Now it is about being lean, having definition, and lifting to make me happy. Lifting heavier weights for me is like an adrenaline rush for you. Instead of skydiving or bungee jumping, I'm in the gym lifting however much weight I can possibly lift. I have dreams of doing professional fitness type photos. I actually have some scheduled for the end of the summer. Fitness will not be my career, but it is something that I have mad passion for.

I do want this to be known, though. A lot of people look at me and think I do not have to work hard to be where I am, but that is wrong! I grew up in my family as the largest child. I am now the smallest. It takes hard work. It takes dedication. It takes self-motivation and determination. For me, I need that extra push from someone that won't let me settle, which is Mr. Man. It is never easy, and it does not happen over night. Many women wish they could dream their bodies into losing weight, but you can't. And when you get sore, you work through that soreness. Soreness to me now is how I know I am getting results. That is how you have to look at it.

This is probably the worst "How I got started" story ever! Now I know why the bodybuilders, fitness models, etc in interviews have a hard time telling how they got started. It's just something that happens when you see results. You crave more. It's something that is hard to explain.

All I have to say to anyone that just wants to lose a few pounds or become the next Ms. Olympia, whatever your goal, don't be afraid. Don't be intimidated, and always tell yourself you can... because in reality, you can do it! Anyone can. If I can, you can!

Fitness Friday:

This Friday I decided to finally tell you all a little about me, how I got started, and where my goals are at this part in my "fitness world."

First off, I have realized that I use "fitness world" a lot. I use that term because I literally feel that it is a world of its own for me. I am a completely different person in the gym than at my house, hanging with friends, etc. Majority of the time it is because I am focused and determined, but nonetheless, it is another world for me. Also, my fitness goals take up a lot of my time and day. Not because I "live" in the gym, but because it is also about my lifestyle, my eating habits, my health.

Growing Up:

When I was growing up, I was chubbiest child in the family. I was born the smallest baby of my siblings, but soon grew to be the chubbiest of all. Both of my other siblings lost a lot of their baby fat once they began school. Not me. It took me several years later, in to my high school years, to finally lose my baby fat. Needless to say, that explains a lot. I was always the larger one and told from a very young age that once I got older I would have to watch what I eat to maintain a healthy weight.

In high school, I slimmed down quite a bit. It was not until my Freshman year in high school that I slimmed down to my smallest. I loved the feeling, but my body had naturally did it on its own. 

How I Got Started:

In high school, there was always the talk of everyone that gains the 10 pounds after graduating from high school and beginning college. Then there was always the 10 pounds that people gained once they got married. Well, I was engaged by my senior year in high school. (Yes, you heard that right!) I was not only facing the 10 pound gain from graduating, but also the 10 pound gain from getting married. 

Since I had always worried that I would easily gain this weight, because I do gain weight very easily and very fast, I began thinking about things I could do. With Mr. Man just graduating from Basic and Tech School, he was already into the cardio routine and encouraged me to go with him to the gym. We did this for a year of our marriage and that was that.

Well, a few days after our 1 year wedding anniversary, Mr. Man deployed for what was suppose to be a 6 month deployment. When he left, I was working full-time. I quickly began shedding the pounds because I was going to the gym everyday in order to fill up my time, plus working many hours. I knew I wanted to loose more weight because I knew being so short, I still looked like I had extra pounds that I could leave behind. The StairMaster and Elliptical became my best friends. (Oh, and the sauna!) Mr. Man and I discussed the workout regimen and the eating habits (because I had horrible eating habits). He was working out there and wanted to get "big." He did his thing, I did mine. 

He came back from his deployment, and that is when we hit it off. I realized how obsessed I was with becoming fit, always improving myself. Once I would see one goal, I pushed harder realizing that it was all so reachable. One thing lead to another, and here I am today. We've been working out together as a couple for 3 years now. I am including the time he was deployed (the first time) because we were both working out, but obviously not together. Now, we had both thrown around weights and did cardio from the very beginning of our marriage, but we honestly did not have any idea of what we were doing and we were not as focused as we are now. So I can not and will not include that. 

The beginning was hard. I will not lie. I would get so sore and could not move that I would be so miserable. But I always reminded myself that if there was no pain, then there was no gain. It is hard, especially first getting started. It sucks. You have to train yourself, your mind, your thoughts, your body, everything. There were days where I would just want to give up, and Mr. Man was there to encourage me. Sometimes I would get so exhausted and frustrated where I would tell him that if he didn't love me for me without all the working out then oh well. It is not easy, but it is well worth the fight! Still to this day I get tired of it, frustrated, have a mental block, but after a week or two of letting go, I always have to go back. And when I do, I go back 100 times stronger than the last time. And really that is what it is all about. 

My Goals At This Point:

Originally my goals were to be healthy and lose weight. I lost some weight and began getting healthy, but then I started to see my muscle definition. 

I have a lot of people ask me what is my goal. They ask me because they say I am so small and I look so healthy, so why more. I really have a hard time answering this because I do realize that I am small. I do recognize that I look healthy. But that really isn't what it is about. It's about how you feel about yourself and what your own personal goals are. My goal is just to be happy and confident in my own skin. 

So right now, I can say that my goals are to maintain my size but lose more of my body fat and gain muscle in its place. This is something that takes time. Definitely does not happen over night. I really like to get back where I was with my lifting, but my schedule right now is not allowing that because it messes with my eating schedule, which in turn messes with my energy level. Overall, my most important focus is my legs because I have large hips and thighs. 

A new workout that Mr. Man showed me today that I really want to be able to do is Medicine Ball Crunch/Hit. I did it today to see if I could handle it, and it HURT! My abs are sore from yesterday, so I ended up having to drop the ball on myself so it would not hit as hard. And of course, I used a 6 pound weight ball and not a 12 like in the video!

Hopefully, I can post some pictures soon. I just got to remember to take my camera to the gym with me!
 

Fitness Friday

Instead of introducing you to how I got started in my "fitness world." I thought I would blog about something that has been on my mind. First off, I want to say that if I did have a specific day for me to talk about my progression and other fitness moments, this blog would be overwhelmed with nothing but that... and that would just just plain Jane boring.  

So the topic today: Insecurities. 

Everyone has them. It's normal to not be 100% happy with your body, but you should be happy with yourself. Just yesterday, I was in the middle of a conversation with 2 people in their mid-30s discussing why they do not wear shorts, bikinis, flip flops, and what parts of their bodies they just do not want to show. One of them does not wear shorts or capris. I have never seen this lady in either and I have been friends with her for 2 years, which means for 2 summers. The other woman discussed her self consciousness of her stomach. After having two kids, she now has the stretch marks and c-section marks. Neither one of these ladies are large by any means. They totally are not! The point is that they have insecurities, and the way they get over those insecurities is by hiding them. What happens next?

When I started talking about things on my body that I am not exactly confident about, they looked at me and said, "You can not have a perfect body." "You will never have a perfect body." "Everybody has that." and so on. Just because I am small does mean I am 100% happy with my body. Just because I am young does not mean that I am ok to have a muffin top and flaunt everything I don't have. So for you to understand, I am going to give you some insight of my side of the conversation.

I said that my insecurities are my thick thighs and small chest. I have a bubble butt. I have no boobs. It is just how I am. I am ok with that, but what I am not ok with is my little dimples on my legs that stick out because I am so light complected.. and well flabby. So what do I do? I work out the darn dimples. I get on the stairstepper at the gym, I walk uphill when I can, I work out my legs 2 times a week, I get the job done. It's my choice. It's who I am, and it's what makes me happy. And guess what? Within 2 weeks of working out, my dimples are gone. Because I do take pride in my body. I am determined to look the way I want to look. I want to be healthy for my kids and my grandkids. I want to still be confident in a bikini when I go to the beach. I still want to have the option to wear shorts if I chose. This is just me, and I do not expect you or anyone else to feel or do the same.

I am young, yes. I get that. I am small. I get that, too. I understand that I will never have a perfect body, but I do believe I can work to be more healthy and confident in my own skin. If this is what makes me happy, what makes me feel good about myself, what gives me pride, then this is what I will do. Just like them. They do not like some parts of their bodies that they can not necessary change, some they can change. I have the same. Now, I chose to try and change it while they sit back and say "I'll never have a perfect body." That is their way of getting out of it. That is fine with me because that is their choice. I don't judge them for it, and I expect them to not judge me for the choices I make.

Everyone, no matter how big or small they are, no matter how healthy or unhealthy they are, we all have some type of insecurity.

Fitness Friday is really about inspiring others to become the person they would like to become within their "fitness world." Notice I said "their"... YOUR own wants, YOUR own desires. Not mine, not your husband's, not your best friend's, YOURS! So hopefully with me being open on how I have got to where I am, and my train of thought on things, maybe others will be willing to change themselves for themselves. Because afterall, it does take YOU to want to change for YOURSELF before you will actually do it. Trust me, I learned this the hard way. 

So for all you ladies (and men) out there that have a desire to lose weight, eat healthier, become more fit, whatever the case... lets do it together! The first thing you need to do is recognize that you need the change. Don't be modest. Don't be shy. And do not be in denial or lie to yourself. Just be ok with it and know you want change. Once you do that, you will need something to motivate and encourage you to push farther. In the beginning, for me, it was food. Once I got passed ever wanting nasty food, it became rewards in other sorts. I have bought clothes a size or two too small to force myself to fit into them. I have bought sexy lingerie a size too small to fit in for my husband. Definitely reward yourself in a way that is satisfying for you. Whatever it is that will motivate you, do it. And make sure you set reachable, realistic goals. Take it a step at a time. Do not say ok I weigh 550lbs and I want to lose 100 of it. Tell yourself that you weigh 550lbs, and you would like to lose 10lbs within a week. For most, it will be more like 2-5lbs a week.

Is there something about your body that you can change and would like to? Do you want to change it? If so, what would be your rewards for working so hard to achieve your goal?

Friday Fives:

So I did the Friday Blog Hop, and generally I would just post a regular everyday post following that. But I came across this Friday Five. It just so happens it is related to Health. If you know me, you know I love health and fitness, so I could not pass this up.

Actually, here is where I can present to you  something I am looking forward to doing in the future. I want to do a "Fitness Friday." Perfect time to introduce this since I am discussing health and discussing it on a Friday! This is mostly for myself, to be accountable for my health and fitness. I like to be able to show others, hopefully inspire others, too. I will start the first Friday off with how I got started and my goals, then from there I will post about my progression, tips, gym stories, health stories, etc. Anything and everything about health and fitness because I have a passion for it.

Back to Friday Fives:

This is hosted by:

The Friday Fives for this week is Five Health Tips.

I thought about what I wanted to write because health is a big part of my life. It was hard to just choose 5, so I took it as an opportunity to write about things that have helped me personally as far as my health goes without getting too deep and having unnecessary tips flying around.

The 5 I have chosen are:

1. If you are prone to getting kidney stones, UTI's, or bladder infections, drink cranberry juice consistently. Cranberry juice creates an energy barrier that keeps bacteria away from cells in the urinary tract. I have a very weak bladder. I get bladder infections that no other's business. It is terrible. Well, actually it WAS terrible. Now, it is much better because of this advice I received when I was younger from my doctor. I was not a big fan of drinking fruit juices at the time, so I took the cranberry tablets. I am hear to tell you that the juice helps so much better. I have been able to catch bladder and other infections before they become actual infections (if that makes any sense). If you are not a big Cranberry Juice fan, try the Cran-Grape Juice. It's wonderful!!

2. Fruit. So many people have a misconception about fruit, and honestly it bothers me. They think because they are eating fruit that they are healthy. This is wrong. Yes, fruit is good for you. Yes, fruit is healthy. But if you are the type that eats fruit constantly but never burns the energy that it provides to you from its sugars, then all those sugars are stored into your body and turned into fat.

3. Eat eggs for breakfast. It is proven that people who eat eggs for breakfast burn more calories during the day. It's your choice on whether you choose to eat only egg whites or the whole egg, but eggs are really good for jump starting your metabolism for the day. 

4. Water. You hear people constantly talking about this, but I definitely wanted to put this in there since we are in the summer months. Drink plenty of water. If you are not a water drinker, try putting Crystal Light in your bottled water and it will help you get to drinking more water. It has no sugars and only a few carbs. Slowly pull yourself from the Crystal Light. You will see and feel just how important water is to your body once you start getting the adequate amount.

5. Weight Training. I definitely debated putting this one out there, but I decided it is a must. Many people, especially women, think that weight training is for bodybuilders. They are afraid of getting "big, bulky man muscles." They do not want the thick veins that show. Whatever their reason, but I am hear to tell you that, that is not true. Weight training is a fat burning booster. If you do cardio all the time, your body just gets use to it. That is when you hit that point where you either want to give up or strive to push through that standstill. It takes the strain of weight to build the muscle. From there, the muscle will burn the fat. Remember muscle weighs more than fat!

101 in 1001 Days:

So I jumped on the bandwagon of this project. I did finish setting my goals. I plan on starting this within the next week, so hopefully I can introduce you all to it soon.

So now I have the 50 Adjectives that Describe Me and My Life, Fitness Friday, and the 101 in 1001 Project! This should be fun!