When I first started this blog about 2 years ago, I had a very specific goal in mind: get in bikini shape for Put-in-Bay. I accomplished that goal, and stayed pretty true to my workout/diet regimen for several months afterward. Then, slowly but surely, I went right back to my old habits of enjoying far too many sweets, and not being as consistent with my workouts as I should have been. Well, it's time to change that. I have a new goal now: Jorge and Adrienne's wedding in San Juan, Puerto Rico on May 27. I'm currently at 157 lbs, and ideally, I'd like to get down to 140 again. So that's 17 lbs in 12 weeks...or about 1.5 lbs a week. Totally doable.
Here's the plan:
Each week, do 4 30-minute sessions of strength training, followed by 45 minutes of cardio
Less than 100 g of carbs each day
Way more fruits and veggies than I've been eating lately
Find a good protein supplement
Enjoy one cheat meal each week
Here goes nothing!
Friday, March 2, 2012
Monday, January 24, 2011
Getting fit again
So... the holidays absolutely destroyed my motivation to be healthy and fit. With cookies and pies at dinner, and chocolate in my stocking on Christmas morning, and an open bar on New Year's, staying on track in terms of diet just didn't happen. So, I'm sad/embarassed to report that I'm exactly back where I started when I first began working out with Amanda in April last year. Same weight, same body fat %, same desire to get whipped back into shape. I was talking it over with one of my co-workers today, and it's not like I HAVE to lose weight. I don't look in the mirror and see anything that disgusts me about myself. But... I know how fit I can be, and that makes me want to get back to that place.
I went to see a nutrition guru/trainer that several of my co-workers have been going to for a while to see what he recommended. He was able to explain the way foods interact to burn fat and build muscle, and for once, it actually made sense. The diet he has me on is very much like the diet I was on with Amanda, but I really understand WHY I'm eating this way now. I also talked to him about personal training, and the fact that I only wanted to do weight training. I didn't have any luck with Marijana or the trainer dunnhumby brought in for the 2 weeks after the holidays, but I believe a main reason for that was they didn't listen when I tried to explain the types of workouts that helped me succeed. When I told Brian today that I prefered weight training, he was thrilled and told me that he and his trainers would put together a plan that I could replicate at Urban Active once my 20 sessions at his gym were over. It's another expense, but totally worth it.
I'm going to be on a really strict nutrition plan for the next 8 weeks, no cheat meals allowed. I know I can do it because I've done it before, and once I see a toned body in the mirror and the weight and body fat % drop back to where they were last spring, I'll know it was worth it.
I went to see a nutrition guru/trainer that several of my co-workers have been going to for a while to see what he recommended. He was able to explain the way foods interact to burn fat and build muscle, and for once, it actually made sense. The diet he has me on is very much like the diet I was on with Amanda, but I really understand WHY I'm eating this way now. I also talked to him about personal training, and the fact that I only wanted to do weight training. I didn't have any luck with Marijana or the trainer dunnhumby brought in for the 2 weeks after the holidays, but I believe a main reason for that was they didn't listen when I tried to explain the types of workouts that helped me succeed. When I told Brian today that I prefered weight training, he was thrilled and told me that he and his trainers would put together a plan that I could replicate at Urban Active once my 20 sessions at his gym were over. It's another expense, but totally worth it.
I'm going to be on a really strict nutrition plan for the next 8 weeks, no cheat meals allowed. I know I can do it because I've done it before, and once I see a toned body in the mirror and the weight and body fat % drop back to where they were last spring, I'll know it was worth it.
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Pledge to Myself
So it's been a really long time since my last post, and I've fallen way off the health wagon. So, tonight, I'm making a pledge to myself to get back on track.
Starting tomorrow, I am going to limit myself to the diet I had when I started training with Amanda back in April. It was tough at first then, and I know it's going to be tough again, but I've put on a good 10-12 pounds since I moved to Cincinnati, and I'm not feeling nearly as energized as I used to. I need to get healthy again.
So, I'm going back to my 140 g limit of carbs, cutting out added sugars (no more being tempted by the M&Ms at Loretta's desk at work), and eating as many lean proteins and veggies as I can.
I've been good about getting to the gym 5 days a week, but I've pretty much only been doing cardio and one day of strength training for my legs. I'm going to start working on my arms and abs this week too.
I know I have the Beaujolais event on Thursday and there will be all sorts of tasty food there, but I'm just going to have to be very choiceful about what I eat. I won't say "everything in moderation," because I seem to have issues with moderation anytime chocolate or sweets are involved, but I will have a couple bites of a dessert if it's there, and then call it a day.
I'm hoping that by putting this in writing, I'm more likely to stick to the plan.
Starting tomorrow, I am going to limit myself to the diet I had when I started training with Amanda back in April. It was tough at first then, and I know it's going to be tough again, but I've put on a good 10-12 pounds since I moved to Cincinnati, and I'm not feeling nearly as energized as I used to. I need to get healthy again.
So, I'm going back to my 140 g limit of carbs, cutting out added sugars (no more being tempted by the M&Ms at Loretta's desk at work), and eating as many lean proteins and veggies as I can.
I've been good about getting to the gym 5 days a week, but I've pretty much only been doing cardio and one day of strength training for my legs. I'm going to start working on my arms and abs this week too.
I know I have the Beaujolais event on Thursday and there will be all sorts of tasty food there, but I'm just going to have to be very choiceful about what I eat. I won't say "everything in moderation," because I seem to have issues with moderation anytime chocolate or sweets are involved, but I will have a couple bites of a dessert if it's there, and then call it a day.
I'm hoping that by putting this in writing, I'm more likely to stick to the plan.
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Yikes!
I've had a rough couple of weeks in terms of my diet. Marijana told me when I first started with her that I should probably up my carb intake and decrease the amount of protein I eat. She also recommended adding fruits to my diet. I think I'm going to have to talk to her this week and figure out a new plan, as I've put on some weight and I'm not feeling nearly as good about my body.
A strange thing about me is that I do much better with strict rules-- for example, Amanda told me I should be aiming for less than 100 grams of carbs and less than 40 grams of fat every day. As long as I knew that, I was very disciplined with my diet and tracked everything in mydailyplate. As soon as Marijana told me to increase my carbs, I went crazy, and it's really had a negative impact on me and my progress. I was increasing my carbs with junky sugar carbs in desserts like ice cream and cookies. I've been eating way too much Graeters, and when I go to the grocery store, I sample just about anything they have available, whether it's cookies or dips served with chips and crackers. I've also been snacking on Special K cereal, and even though those are technically "good" carbs, I've been eating too many of them in the evening, so it's being stored in my body as fat. And that's why my weight keeps creeping up. Grrr.
When I started training with Amanda, my biggest challenge was overcoming my cravings for carbs, and particularly sweets. She told me that I just needed to not eat any sweets at all for three weeks, just to train my body not to crave them. I was able to do it then, so I'm setting out to start another three weeks without sweets tomorrow. I will be making one exception on the 9th when I go out to eat at Orchids for downtown Cincinnati restaurant week (the fixed-price menu includes a dessert, and since it's supposedly the best restaurant in Cincinnati, I have to try it), but I will plan accordingly and make sure I keep my carb count even lower in the couple days leading up to it.
The most annoying thing about all of this is that I know better. I did so incredibly well with my diet when I was sending Amanda my food journal each week, so maybe I just need to tell Marijana to keep me in line a bit more and hold me accountable to her. I should be able to hold myself accountable, but I'm learning that I really do need that extra push from someone else.
I looked at my Put-In-Bay bathing suit photo today, and literally almost started crying. My body is a far cry from where it was then, and even from where it was a month ago, and I'm just not happy about it. Luckily, I have been keeping up with my cardio workouts, and the training I'm doing with Marijana is going very well. I just have to get back into my diet routine and hopefully I'll be able to get back into shape, because right now, I'm definitely not where I want to be.
A strange thing about me is that I do much better with strict rules-- for example, Amanda told me I should be aiming for less than 100 grams of carbs and less than 40 grams of fat every day. As long as I knew that, I was very disciplined with my diet and tracked everything in mydailyplate. As soon as Marijana told me to increase my carbs, I went crazy, and it's really had a negative impact on me and my progress. I was increasing my carbs with junky sugar carbs in desserts like ice cream and cookies. I've been eating way too much Graeters, and when I go to the grocery store, I sample just about anything they have available, whether it's cookies or dips served with chips and crackers. I've also been snacking on Special K cereal, and even though those are technically "good" carbs, I've been eating too many of them in the evening, so it's being stored in my body as fat. And that's why my weight keeps creeping up. Grrr.
When I started training with Amanda, my biggest challenge was overcoming my cravings for carbs, and particularly sweets. She told me that I just needed to not eat any sweets at all for three weeks, just to train my body not to crave them. I was able to do it then, so I'm setting out to start another three weeks without sweets tomorrow. I will be making one exception on the 9th when I go out to eat at Orchids for downtown Cincinnati restaurant week (the fixed-price menu includes a dessert, and since it's supposedly the best restaurant in Cincinnati, I have to try it), but I will plan accordingly and make sure I keep my carb count even lower in the couple days leading up to it.
The most annoying thing about all of this is that I know better. I did so incredibly well with my diet when I was sending Amanda my food journal each week, so maybe I just need to tell Marijana to keep me in line a bit more and hold me accountable to her. I should be able to hold myself accountable, but I'm learning that I really do need that extra push from someone else.
I looked at my Put-In-Bay bathing suit photo today, and literally almost started crying. My body is a far cry from where it was then, and even from where it was a month ago, and I'm just not happy about it. Luckily, I have been keeping up with my cardio workouts, and the training I'm doing with Marijana is going very well. I just have to get back into my diet routine and hopefully I'll be able to get back into shape, because right now, I'm definitely not where I want to be.
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Lifestyle change
So I've been in Cincinnati for about three weeks now, and so far I'm loving it. I'm working at dunnhumbyUSA as a senior associate on the Johnson & Johnson team, though I have 8 weeks of onboarding with all the other new graduate hires before I'm allowed to do any "real" work. I've had a couple little team presentations to prepare for, but nothing too taxing yet. I really enjoy all my co-workers, and I'm reassured that it really is the perfect company for me.
I must admit, though, that working 8-5 every day is quite an adjustment from the rather relaxed schedule I had spring quarter. It hasn't been quite as easy to stick to the "eat every 3 hours" rule that I followed when I was training with Amanda, but I'm doing the best I can. dunnhumby also provides lunch for us at least a few times a week, and typically, it's a boxed lunch, which equals a lot of carbs (sandwiches and cookies are almost guaranteed to be on the menu). I've finally gotten to the point of bringing my own lunch, just to help stay on track. On occasion I will treat myself to a cookie for dessert, but I just can't let myself eat them every day.
In terms of working out, I joined Urban Active for $30 a month, and it's about 7 minutes from my apartment. When I signed up, I also got a free personal training session. I wasn't impressed, and the price was quite high ($45 for a half hour). Luckily, my manager at work recommended her former trainer, Marijana, who is located in Northern Kentucky. It should be about a 10 minute drive, but in bad traffic, it's more like 25. Still worth it to me.
I had a consult/initial training session with Marijana last week, and I've decided to hire her for two sessions a week. As much as I'd like to think I could train myself with weights at Urban Active, it's quite busy and crowded there, and it's hard to get to the equipment I'm familiar with. I also just do a lot better when I have someone else I'm accountable to. I can easily get myself to the gym to do 45 minutes of cardio and some core work 4 times a week, but I need that extra push to get a really good strength training workout, and that's what Marijana will do for me. She's fantastic-- a lot like Amanda in that she's young, does figure competitions, and is very encouraging. She complimented Amanda's training of me, and said that my form was already good and she looked forward to pushing me even harder in the future.
The one key difference is in the diet that she recommends. When I told her that I tried to keep carbs below 100 grams per day and protein of around 140, she said she thought I could up my carbs and lower my protein intake now. When I started with Amanda, my goal was to be bikini ready, so she essentially had me on a competition diet so that I would look really toned. However, now that I'm just trying to maintain a nice figure, I don't have to be quite as strict. Marijana was also concerned that since I'm working 40 hours a week, I will also start to feel sluggish if I only consume 100 g of carbs a day. She made it very clear that since the diet has been working well for me, she didn't want me to change if I felt healthy and energetic on it, but that if I started feeling tired, I should talk to her about potential changes. She did recommend adding a little bit of fruit (which I stayed away from due to the sugar content), so I'm looking forward to eating bananas again :)
We have "bootcamp" at work this week, so we'll learn everything there is to know about dunnhumby condensed into several sessions throughout the week. I went through it last year as an intern, and I'm actually looking forward to the refresher.
I must admit, though, that working 8-5 every day is quite an adjustment from the rather relaxed schedule I had spring quarter. It hasn't been quite as easy to stick to the "eat every 3 hours" rule that I followed when I was training with Amanda, but I'm doing the best I can. dunnhumby also provides lunch for us at least a few times a week, and typically, it's a boxed lunch, which equals a lot of carbs (sandwiches and cookies are almost guaranteed to be on the menu). I've finally gotten to the point of bringing my own lunch, just to help stay on track. On occasion I will treat myself to a cookie for dessert, but I just can't let myself eat them every day.
In terms of working out, I joined Urban Active for $30 a month, and it's about 7 minutes from my apartment. When I signed up, I also got a free personal training session. I wasn't impressed, and the price was quite high ($45 for a half hour). Luckily, my manager at work recommended her former trainer, Marijana, who is located in Northern Kentucky. It should be about a 10 minute drive, but in bad traffic, it's more like 25. Still worth it to me.
I had a consult/initial training session with Marijana last week, and I've decided to hire her for two sessions a week. As much as I'd like to think I could train myself with weights at Urban Active, it's quite busy and crowded there, and it's hard to get to the equipment I'm familiar with. I also just do a lot better when I have someone else I'm accountable to. I can easily get myself to the gym to do 45 minutes of cardio and some core work 4 times a week, but I need that extra push to get a really good strength training workout, and that's what Marijana will do for me. She's fantastic-- a lot like Amanda in that she's young, does figure competitions, and is very encouraging. She complimented Amanda's training of me, and said that my form was already good and she looked forward to pushing me even harder in the future.
The one key difference is in the diet that she recommends. When I told her that I tried to keep carbs below 100 grams per day and protein of around 140, she said she thought I could up my carbs and lower my protein intake now. When I started with Amanda, my goal was to be bikini ready, so she essentially had me on a competition diet so that I would look really toned. However, now that I'm just trying to maintain a nice figure, I don't have to be quite as strict. Marijana was also concerned that since I'm working 40 hours a week, I will also start to feel sluggish if I only consume 100 g of carbs a day. She made it very clear that since the diet has been working well for me, she didn't want me to change if I felt healthy and energetic on it, but that if I started feeling tired, I should talk to her about potential changes. She did recommend adding a little bit of fruit (which I stayed away from due to the sugar content), so I'm looking forward to eating bananas again :)
We have "bootcamp" at work this week, so we'll learn everything there is to know about dunnhumby condensed into several sessions throughout the week. I went through it last year as an intern, and I'm actually looking forward to the refresher.
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
The Final Tally
This morning was my final training session with Amanda. It was bittersweet. I was sad that I'm not going to be working out with her anymore, but I was absolutely thrilled with my final results.
On March 18, (my first meeting with her, which was actually two weeks before my first training session) I started at 158.5 pounds, and 24% body fat.
Today, June 15, I was down to 140 pounds and 16.5% body fat. Wow. It was a lot hard work, major diet changes and some serious sweat, but definitely worth all of the effort.
Amanda even baked me a delicious, yet somehow healthy cheesecake cupcake as a cheat treat for actually listening to her for the last three months. I couldn't have done it without her, but I feel really confident that I'll be able to keep it up going forward.
I'm moving to Cincinnati in a week, so be sure to keep checking back for updates!
On March 18, (my first meeting with her, which was actually two weeks before my first training session) I started at 158.5 pounds, and 24% body fat.
Today, June 15, I was down to 140 pounds and 16.5% body fat. Wow. It was a lot hard work, major diet changes and some serious sweat, but definitely worth all of the effort.
Amanda even baked me a delicious, yet somehow healthy cheesecake cupcake as a cheat treat for actually listening to her for the last three months. I couldn't have done it without her, but I feel really confident that I'll be able to keep it up going forward.
I'm moving to Cincinnati in a week, so be sure to keep checking back for updates!
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Weekend Recap
I got home yesterday from our trip to Put-In-Bay, and it was a fun weekend. Looking good in a bathing suit at PIB was one of my motivations for starting this personal training plan, and it definitely paid off. I got a lot of compliments on the fact that people could see a big change, so that was really nice to hear. More than anything, I just felt really happy and proud of what I've been able to accomplish. I promised early on that I would post a before and after shot, so here it is. Wish I'd thought to take a photo of me actually AT P-I-B, but this will have to suffice.
I was still fairly strict with myself while I was at PIB, though I did have a few cookies and a brownie at Annie's bachelorette party. I also splurged on the way home yesterday and had some gelato, which frankly, wasn't all that impressive. I guess my sweet tooth has been defeated :)
I decided that I'm going to keep working out with Amanda until graduation. I feel like I have myself trained pretty well, but knowing that I still have to report to her is going to make it more difficult to cheat with my diet and workouts, which I'm trying to avoid doing. As long as I can keep myself disciplined before I move to Cincinnati in a couple weeks, I'm hoping that it will help me stay fairly disciplined once I move. Guess only time will tell.
I was still fairly strict with myself while I was at PIB, though I did have a few cookies and a brownie at Annie's bachelorette party. I also splurged on the way home yesterday and had some gelato, which frankly, wasn't all that impressive. I guess my sweet tooth has been defeated :)
I decided that I'm going to keep working out with Amanda until graduation. I feel like I have myself trained pretty well, but knowing that I still have to report to her is going to make it more difficult to cheat with my diet and workouts, which I'm trying to avoid doing. As long as I can keep myself disciplined before I move to Cincinnati in a couple weeks, I'm hoping that it will help me stay fairly disciplined once I move. Guess only time will tell.
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