Thursday, January 10, 2013

Workout Diaries: VI

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Hey, hey!  Another work week is almost at a close, and every Thursday I try to blog about my fitness accomplishments and struggles for the week as a way to keep myself accountable and motivated. I think that since I've graduated from college (you know... mid-day naps, 2 hours in the gym, parties, dancing...... oh, and occasionally class!) my health in general has declined. I've gained a ton of weight, and working a desk job has really taken it's toll on my fitness level. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this series, and please feel free to comment any tips or tricks that you've found and if you'd like to link up, let me know in the comments so I can follow along! 
 
To see past diary entries, >>> CLICK HERE <<<

Weightloss Goal & Pounds Lost To Date:

My goal is to lose a total of 60 pounds, which would bring me to the weight when I felt the most confident - high school. That's a hefty goal to have, but it's totally possible to do it the healthy way as long as I put in the work. This week I got back into the gym and really pushed myself, and I lost my first pound! I've never worked so hard for anything in my entire life, and I really feel proud of myself for pushing through, even on those days that I just didn't feel like putting in the effort.

What’s Keeping Me Motivated:

I really haven't gotten to the point where I love working out. Truthfully, I don't even like it yet. But I know that in the past I've really enjoyed running and being active and I really can't wait to get back to that point. My good friend Sarah shared >> THIS << calorie counter with me last week, and in all honesty it's been my #1 motivator. It's helped me to learn actual portion sizes (I'm now eating less than half of what I was usually serving up per meal) and really gotten me to focus on what I put into my body. Also, every time I work out it adds calories to my daily allotted amount... so I know that if I don't work out, I won't be able to have that late night bowl of ice cream or snack because I'll be out of calories. Seriously, it's been such an eye opener!
 
Also, I've signed up for a 10k (Love Rox) race next month and a 5k obsticle course race (Rugged Maniacs) in May. I'm debating on signing up for another 5k in April. But anyway, I know that these races are right around the corner and so that really pushes me to give it my all at the gym. I've always always always wanted to complete a half marathon, so one of my goals this year is to complete a race every 1-3 months and get my body ready for the Yuengling Shamrock race next March. Fitness is all about making lifestyle changes, and if I constantly have a race to look forward to then I have no reason to slack in the gym!!

How I'm Staying Active:

Like I said, this week I've really been pushing myself in the gym. I walk to and from work, so I count those 3 miles because it's a very hilly walk and I walk at a brisk pace. I'm lucky enough to have a gym in my office building, so on my lunch breaks I've been hitting the treadmill hard running 2 miles and speed-walking 1 mile. That's a total of  6 miles per day - 30 miles a week! Not bad if I do say so myself!

Healthy Foods I’ve Tried:

Up until recently, my diet has consisted of highly processed foods and my portion sizes were probably 3x what they should be. I had been coming home from work and feeling sick to my stomach from eating too much dairy (I'm lactos-intolerant) and tired from late afternoon runs to the vending machine. Also, I had developed acid reflux which is very uncomfortable. To top it all off, I donated my kidney 2 years ago and the extra weight has been making my kidney work overtime.
 
I had an 'ah-ha' moment at work a few weeks ago, and started asking myself if eating like a twelve year old was really the most responsible thing that I could be doing with my life. Diabetes runs in my family, and I don't want my poor eating choices to effect my health in a very serious way. So, I have made a huge change in my diet and although it's only been a week I honestly think that what I'm eating is going to be extremely possibly to stick to.
 
I love to cook, so I've taken this as a personal challenge to make healthy food taste good. I have traded my morning bagel with butter for fresh fruit, stopped drinking high calorie beverages at Starbucks,  and my lunches are leftovers from the night before - which forces me to cook every night rather than giving into laziness which is usually popping a pizza in the oven. This week I tried Quinoa, which I now love, and I've eaten a lot of rice, beans, veggies, turkey, chicken, and shrimp. I've stopped relying on carbs to fill me up, and instead added more fresh foods... I haven't even eaten any bread all week which is amazing to me!

Goals For The Upcoming Week:

This week was tough, I'm not gonna lie. Every day in the gym I would be in the middle of running a mile and I'd say to myself "just stop, start walking, you cant finish all of this" but each and every time I have! This has just proved that I can do anything I put my mind to and made me realize that my goal can actually be accomplished if I put the work in. Next week my goal is to just continue to ignore that little voice telling me that I can't. I want to continue my 6 miles of cardio, 5 days a week. I want to continue to eat healthy foods and discover different meal options.
 
I'm ready for this challenge!
*Workout Diaries is a weekly post that will track and monitor the progress that I am making as I attempt to lose 60 pounds. Please feel free to follow along and post your success stories or struggles in the comments section!

4 comments:

  1. This is awesome! You got this!

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    1. Kim! Thanks lady ;) I clicked your link and it brought me to a blog so I'm hoping this means you're going to start blogging again?!!

      Hope you're doing well!

      xx, Kara

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  2. my phone hates me! anyhow, cutting out meat meant cutting out all the condiments and fillers and bread that went along with it. That alone cut out so many unnecessary calories and i stopped feeling sluggish and full. I can't remember if you went veg but i do remember your macro diet. With all the energy I got from my new diet, i killed it at the gym because I had so much energy. My thyroid medicine also gave me new energy and I finally started getting out of bed. And can you believe even at 125 lbs I was still at risk for diabetes? It can strike anyone. Since you're lactose intolerant, you should be much more diligent about cutting out dairy anyhow, right?! It's easy once I cut the pizza out too (accidentally dropped it cold turkey at new years, but I'm 22 days strong now!) and we don't use fake cheeses. I've come to LOVE veggies and instead of it being just a side for dinner, it's now my main ingredient for every meal. I also cut out fruit (unless it's my only option, like my breakfast on vacation yesterday), as crazy as that sounds. It's loaded with natural sugars, but it's still sugar.

    I too have super soft skin when I work out, and am not perfect and do miss a lot of time when i take the weekend off. But little things ilke sending my print jobs to a printer father away, lunch walks, using bathrooms on other floors, etc. do wonders! I now take a class twice a week that's high intensity. I admit that's all I do now aside from some of his exercises here and there, but my endurance is up and i'm stronger than ever. I'm so proud of you and can totally relate to EVERYTHING you post in these diaries. Keep pushing, and I BEG you to please come in for a free test at my work. Shoot me an email at iheartmini at gmail dot com and I'll set it up. Takes 5 minutes to save your life!!! (and it gives you access to free dietitians that also saved my life and got my butt in gear) I know I sound like a walking billboard, but every friend and family that I've brought in has done a complete 180 with their life and I'm so proud that I keep recruiting more! Keep posting these diaries. I'm (apparently anonymously) cheering for you over here!! I hope my other comments went through. If not, I can shoot you an email too :)

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  3. apparently they didn't go through :( i'll email you what else I wrote. I'm not anonymous! I'm Samantha that has known you since the day you met Sean.

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Please keep all mean spirited comments to yourself... that means you anonymous!