1 week completed!

Today is technically day 8 of my dropping the baby fat adventure. So far it's been challenging, but do-able.
My first day was wonderful! I got up early, had my quiet time in my bible and prayed, got through all of the upper body workouts with ease, and still had time for a shower before anyone woke up! I remember thinking that it was going to be a breeze. Ha!
Day 2 I woke up at dawn and ran on the treadmill before waking the kids to get ready for our co-op day. We actually made it on time!
The highlight of my week was when i woke up too late and ended up doing my workout with an audience. My husband, daughter, son, and baby all had great entertainment. And it was leg day- which is horrid! So I was in the midst of trying to look professional while doing a Russian twist, and I fell off the ball! Lovely! I started at 9 am and with all the interruptions, I was done with my workout by noon. Ugh! But I got it done and felt pretty good about it afterwards!
The circuit day(day 5) was pretty rough too. I was only able to do 12 reps of the jump squats. The body weight squats I used a chair back for stability. After running through the circuit 3 times, I was winded and exhausted. I'm hoping that this week I can do better.
Day 6 was supposed to be a rest day. But my husband and I chose to take the kids to a local wildlife mitigation area to use the nature trails. What was intended to be a leisurely hike turned into a 4.3 mile boot camp stride through sugar sand. the last half a mile was done in the dark with no flashlight. I was having visions of the evening news complete with the story of the local family who disappeared in the woods never to be seen again. Thankfully God sent us 3 women who were also hiking and helped us stay on the trail in the dark. I told them they were an answered prayer! The park itself was really beautiful(if you can overlook the sugar sand). There is a massive split oak tree in the middle of the trail that is still growing on both sides. Plus several lakes and ponds to view and enjoy. We will definitely be going back with a picnic(and flashlight) next time.
Day 7 I completed week 4 of couch to 5k! I'm halfway there! I think I'm going to sign up for a 5 k in April at Forever Florida. I would have plenty of time to finish and practice my new skills. Plus I have 2 friends who want to run it as well(one just had twins in November and started c25k 3 weeks ago).
To top off my week, I measured my waist. Maybe its wishful thinking. But I think I'm down and inch! We'll see next week if its the same. I think I'll measure on day 14 to cheer me up(or depress me).

The Torture(um... I mean exercise) Plan

I've just finished my first week of my new exercise plan. I'm blending strength training with cardio for optimum results. If you want to whittle the weight down. Always include strength training. Building muscle burns calories(think fat) at a faster rate than cardio alone. I opted to follow a 7 day plan from an old issue of  Her's Muscle and Fitness magazine printed in 2007. It's built for at home workouts. The only needed materials are resistance bands and an exercise ball. It also holds some wistful good luck for me, since I used it to lose some of my baby weight after child #4 was born. Both times I started this plan when baby was around 8 months old. I make sure and wait a while for heavy ab work after C-sections. Plus with breastfeeding, heavy exercise can decrease milk supply. Baby #3 is now weaned. Here's the plan below. If you'd like to follow this plan. Just google the name of each exercise. You can usually find a youtube video with someone showing you the proper form. Make sure to concentrate on proper form first. Not on matching the reps. Those come in time.

Day 1. Upper Body: rest 1-2 minutes between sets                  Sets                       Reps
Back Exercise Ball YTI                                                               3                            10
Chest and Triceps Exercise Ball Push-Up                                 3                            8
Delts Band Scaption                                                                  3                            8
Back Bent-Over Band Row                                                       3                            10
Delts Shoulder Press                                                                 3                             10
Biceps Band Curl to Front                                                         3                             10
Triceps Overhead Band Extension                                             3                             10
Biceps Band Curl to Side                                                           3                            10
Triceps Bent-Over Band Kickback                                            3                             10

Day 2: Cardio

Day:3 Lower Body and Core                                               Sets                            Reps
Legs: Exercise-Ball Wall Sit                                                     1                                 5
Core: Exercise-Band Jackknife                                                  2-3                             10
Legs: One-Leg Band Squat                                                      3                                3 each leg
Core: Exercise-Ball Russian Twist                                             3                                10
Legs: Exercise-Ball Split Squat                                                 3                                10 each leg
Core: Exercise-Ball Plank                                                         1                                 10
Legs: One-Leg Band Good Morning                                        3                                 10 each leg
Core: Exercise-Ball Hip Lift                                                      3                                 10
Abs: Exercise-Ball Reverse Curl                                               3                                  10

Day 4: Rest

Day 5: Metabalic Circuits  Complete each circuit 4-5 times, rest one minute between each set and 2-3 minutes before moving on to the next circuit.
Circuit 1: Lower Body
*Legs Bodyweight Squat ...15 times
     High Knees in Place.......15 steps
     Jump Squat.....................15 times
Circuit 2: Upper Body
*Chest: Push-Up...............................................15 reps
*Arm: Ball Throw at Wall...................................15 reps
*Chest: Exercise-Ball Push-Up...........................15 reps
*Arms and Delts: Ball Throw at Ceiling.............15 reps

Day 6: Rest

Day 7: Cardio


For cardio, I'm going to continue the couch to 5K running plan. Either on my treadmill or on the road as I progress. The plan requires 3 days. So I'll add a cardio session in somewhere that I can. Probably on my day 4 rest day as long as I've had a full 24 hours after my leg day. So here we go!!!

Whole foods, Vegan, Clean Eating, whatever

In September, our diet took a big turn for the better. We had been enjoying the average American diet filled with meat at every meal, dessert after every dinner, and comfort food every day. Yes, we strived for whole wheat and skim milk. But it didn't always happen. Then I read Jessie Hawkins book Vintage Remedies Guide to Real Food(www.vintageremedies.com). And we stumbled upon the movie Forks over Knives and the Engine 2 story. And viola! Here is the basic guideline that our household is trying to reach(And in a budget friendly manner):
1. Nothing processed: No man made ingredients. If it has the words, hydrogenated, hydrolyzed, modified, high fructose, ends in a number, or is something that I cant pronounce or picture in nature, then I don't buy it or feed it to my family.
2. Whole grains: whole grain brown rice and other rices, 100% whole wheat pastas,100% whole grain breads.
3. A Maximum of 2 meat dinners per week. Strive for free range and grass fed, local if possible. Opt for safe, sustainable fish. Everything else is vegan or vegetarian
4. Use extra virgin olive oil sparingly for cooking. If baking and oil is needed, sub applesauce or use canola oil.
5. Limit myself(not my kids) to one serving of dairy a day. I use Unsweetened vanilla almond milk instead.
6. Fruits and veggies, fruits and veggies, and fruits and veggies. As many as I can!
7. No refined sugars! Instead sugar is replaced by evaporated cane juice(sucanot). Along with maple syrup, honey, brown rice syrup, and other natural sweeteners. Natural sweeteners are used sparingly.
8. Strive for organic when necessary(this one we are working on).


I think this about sums it up. Maybe? It's still a work in progress. Not 100%. For instance, I still give the kids honey nut cheerios for breakfast. I haven't been able to find a cereal that we can both agree on that is a whole food. Ideally I would make them oatmeal(1/2 C oats, 1/2 C water, 1/2 C Milk, 1t suconat) every morning. But it gets monotonous for them after a week or so. Plus it's a bit hot here some days for oatmeal.

The frustrating thing about this is that my husband has lost almost 30 lbs since September. Just from the difference in our diet. And a couple inches off his waist! Me-maybe 5 lbs. But no difference in my waist. But I feel great! Which is a start Ugh! Time to kick it up a notch!!

Who knew?

Last time I lost the baby weight, I had a cleaning out party. Me and a garbage bag got together and stuffed anything I owned that was size 12 or over out of my house! I was slim, sleek, and in shape. And I was never going to see the numbers 12, 14, and 16 again!
But fast forward 5 years....I have an awesome life blessed abundantly by my Lord and Savior, Jesus. An amazing husband who is my best friend. A bright and darling 3rd grade daughter. An energetic and snuggly 1st grade son. And a new baby, 7 months old and cute as a button! I also have at least 30 lbs of excess weight and a 40 inch waist!! And nothing fits!!! Boy do I miss those clothes that I so quickly threw out 5 years ago. But who knew! right?
I'm determined to lose the  lbs and the waist. And NOT buy any new clothes. Post haste!