Most ingredients fit into the chop chop salads, but conserve on your calories by lessening your dressing and adding flavorful vegies and spices!
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One of my favorite things about going to the gym is the opportunity to catch up with my friends. I get to run into old friends I haven’t seen in a while. And I get the opportunity to make new friends at the gym because I LIVE there right now. There is nothing better than having a friend with you during a workout. Maybe it’s a friend that will push you to try a new workout. Or a friend that will laugh with you as you fumble through a class. Maybe a friend that will bring out that competitive nature in you and push you to work harder. My favorite is a having a friend that you can chat with and before you know it you’re done with a great workout. A helpful reminder for me is to make a personal commitment to my workouts and vow not to let workout buddies schedules influence my own workout schedule. You know how when your “buddy” can’t make it to class that day, then you decide to give up and not go either. I’m thankful to have a group of friends that like to workout, so there is usually someone I can drag with me to the gym. Or even better, someone that will drag me to the gym. So a shout out to all my workout buddies who make my workouts more fun…. Sarah, Jessica, Jen, Sara, Katie, Kari, Flicka, Bethany, Cara and of course my hubby Shawn.
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So we’re down to the final few weeks of the challenge and I’m surprised to find myself filled with a bit of fear. Have I done enough to reach my challenge goal? With only a few weeks to go, I have to stay committed to my food tracking and my workout schedule. Anyone else dreading those final pictures? Since I’ve seen my “before” pictures, I’m a little nauseous just thinking about having more pictures taken. I’m praying for MAJOR changes. Lastly, I’m fearful of ever going back to the way I was. I like the way being healthy makes me feel, but for me I know that it comes down to daily commitments to staying healthy. What keeps us from falling back into old habits? Maybe it’s the fear of going through all the hard work again. Maybe it’s just the fear of taking another terrible “before” picture. What will you use to keep you accountable?
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So I was listening to the Miley Cyrus song The Climb. (I have a 7 year old daughter…it’s a requirement) and couldn’t help but see how it related to the challenge. “I can almost see it, that dream I’m dreaming but there’s a voice inside my head saying you’ll never reach it”. Somedays I feel like I’ll never reach my weightloss goals and the negative self-talk can get in my way. I feel like I’m constantly fighting the “uphill battle” of my weight and a healthy life. But I realized like the song says that “I’ve got to be strong and just keep pushing on”. A healthy life is a journey. It’s about being proud of myself right now in this moment. The fact that I’m even doing the challenge! Maybe it’s as simple as completing a workout, an interval or about resisting that extra cookie because you know it’s worth it in the end. All of us can look back and say “I did the Gold’s Gym Challenge in 2010, look at what I accomplished!” This can be the turning point that we look back to. We’re halfway there already! So, in the words of Miley, “Keep on moving, keep climbing, keep the faith, baby. It’s all about the climb!”
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So we’re halfway through the challenge. I feel like I have the “mid-challenge blahs”. The newness and excitement of doing the challenge have started to wear off. I’m getting too comfortable with my workouts and a little lazy with my food. The scale is still moving in the right direction, but never as quickly and drastically as I want it to be. I’ve had a bit of a bad/frustrated attitude this week. I got a birthday email from the gym yesterday with a “pass” for one day worth of couch sitting, extra snoozing, movie watching, ice cream cake eating ditching the gym day. It was very cute and I sooo badly wanted to cash it in. But I’m doing this darn challenge and I need to stay committed to it. Ugh! I realized that this is the part of the challenge where perseverance kicks in. It’s time to regroup. Change up the workouts, get some new music on my iPod and get disciplined with my eating habits. It’s a new day, and there are new ways. The March class schedule will be out any day, maybe there’s a new class to try. We’ve been blessed with some beautiful weather so maybe it’s time to workout outside. I need to commit to a positive attitude… “I’m half way there and look how far I’ve come”. OK, even writing it I’m feeling a little better, but I’m still saving that “pass” for April…
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For the past week or two, I’ve noticed a lot of fatigue in my knees. I didn’t know if I was doing an exercise wrong or if the increase in workouts was just making them tired. I described my knee pain to “Trainer Kari” and she suggested that it was probably time for new shoes. I was surprised because I bought my shoes at the end of summer/ early fall. But she said that typically shoes need to be replaced every 4-6 months. So it was time to go shopping…YAY! I went to Performance Footwear and got fitted for new shoes. I was REALLY surprised with the results. First, they had me walk in just my socks to assess my gait and determined the right kind of stability I needed. Then, found out that my last pair of shoes was a whole size bigger than what I needed. Next, discovered that I measured for needing a wide width shoe, something I never knew. Yeah, I was wearing an 8 ½ and I actually needed a 7 ½ wide width shoe. The best part was when I put on the shoes and felt instant relief in my knees. They felt so good I didn’t want to take them off. The salesperson told me that a lot of our body’s aches and pains can be a result of our shoes. I admit that my typical method for choosing shoes was more about style, color and cuteness. I happened to catch an article about running shoes that says you should replace your shoes every 350-550 miles, so if you’re doing a lot of movin’ and groovin’ for the challenge it might be time to replace those shoes.
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Who else watches the Biggest Loser? I love to watch that show. I call it my “motivation”. It makes me want to head to the gym in the morning. It’s so amazing to watch the transformations. I wish I could drop 10-15 pounds a week like they do! I’d be done already! But if you think about it, those of us on the challenge are doing our own “real life” Biggest Loser minus the giant scales. (Thank goodness!) I recently got the Biggest Loser Simple Swaps book and it has a lot of good ideas and recipes. Here’s one I tried and liked. I’d love to see what everyone else is eating, so feel free to share your favorite recipes in the comments.
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I love Tuesday nights, because it’s my kickboxing class. I was surprised to discover how much I enjoy kickboxing. Remember I’m the girl with the two left feet in class usually, but somehow I manage to survive and have fun in this class. I guess I can kick and punch just not dance or step on boxes. There is something really empowering about doing all the punching and kicking and blocking. It’s a great way to rid yourself of any aggression. Mary does a wonderful job of explaining the moves and makes it fun and easy. But by “easy” I don’t mean that you won’t feel it, you will definitely be sweating and burning lots of calories. It is an awesome full body cardio workout! The only problem is that the class is really full. Last week, I “literally” got kicked in the rear. So I’m holding out hope that more classes will pop-up on the schedule. (I loved Angela’s Wednesday night Turbo Kick too….please come back Angela!) If you’re like me and have a hard time finding your “rhythm” with your two left feet, maybe give kickboxing a try. Come join me in kicking and punching calories away!
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This challenge has showed me how hard it is to make your self a priority. As a wife and mother, I feel guilty taking “me” time. Despite my husband’s assurances that it’s OK for me to take time for me, I feel guilty asking for help. I feel guilty taking time away from my family. I feel guilty putting my kids in the child care room because I want to workout. And don’t forget about our endless lists of tasks waiting for us like grocery shopping, cooking, laundry, bills, and cleaning that have to fit in around school and work schedules. I feel like I got so busy taking care of everyone else’s needs that I forgot to take care of myself. But if you don’t take care of yourself, it’s hard to take care of your family. For the past month, I found that when there’s a will there’s a way. I’m amazed at where I’ve been able to squeeze in a workout when I really want to. I even went to a 5am spin class this morning, and anyone who knows me knows I am NOT a morning person. I realized the laundry and other tasks will still be there when I’m done with my workout. I realized that a “date” with my husband at the gym can be fun too. I realized that my kids will be fine in the childcare room. (A shout out to Michelle and Caryn in the Wenatchee childcare…my kids love you!) And I realized that I’m making a happier, healthier wife, mother and ME.
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