My struggles..

Within this new lifestyle that I am growing accustomed to, I'm still having some struggles and challenges....

My main weakness is a sweet, late-night snack just before bed. Heck, I even served milk and cookies at 11 o'clock during our wedding reception. It's me and what I do! I get it honest-- my dad is the same way! My snack is usually a cup of milk/chocolate milk and pop tart, slice of cinnamon toast, cookie, peanut butter sandwich, etc. It's a habit and my day doesn't feel complete without it. Knowing that I cannot keep doing this, I've started switching my snack to a better choice--- low calorie bread, low calorie treat, banana and peanut butter, etc... I'm hoping that I can make a smart choice switch and then eventually, I won't even want it at all...

Another struggle--- giving up my sweet tea for water. I've not had soda/pop/soda pop (whatever ya'll call it!) since January of 2006 (I think?-- Could have been 2005?). When I gave up pop, I drank mostly milk, juice, kool-aid, and water...Not long after is when McD's introduced their sweet tea... I was immediately hooked. I was raised on tea during the summers at home and became attached to McD's quickly. I  stopping every day before/after class to the $1 large...EVERY DAY.... Now it's my only vice and I'm having a hard time letting it go. I drink mostly Crystal Light, water, Powerade or milk at home, but I'm a sucker for a sweet tea at restaurants. Stressful days at work call for a stop through the drive-thru on my way home, and occassionally, it's a "two large sweet teas" kind of day.... I'm working on switching over to more water with meals.

Dinner choices--- My husband works long hours and never knows when he's getting off work until they come and tell him to leave. That only leaves me with 30 minutes notice before he gets home, and sometimes that is 9 or 10 o'clock at night. You can understand why I don't cook often, right? I usually cook us one good meal a week, and make enough to have leftovers. On nights that he is home late, I eat a bowl of cereal, a sandwich, a low calorie microwave dinner, a salad, etc. I have a hard time wanting to cook much of anything for just myself. I'm on the hunt for better choices for dinner for one.

If you have any suggestions--- Please share!  What are your struggles? How do you overcome them?

Accomplishments!

Today marks 4 weeks since beginning my lifestyle changes.... This poster says it all!

I am not exaggerating when I say that today is the first day that I honestly felt a true difference in my body. I've noticed little bits changing here and there, but today was the "wow!" day!

I wore capris and a tank to run in and felt confident while running.

Speaking of running... Today, my darling husband had a movie to return almost a mile from our house.... He is sick and asked if I would run it down to the video store.... I said yes and was serious... I ran into town to return it. This was the first run in a week (I try not to push too hard and do a run on a heavy Insanity day, so it had been a week since the last run) so I started out with a .2 mile warm-up. I picked up the pace to a jog/run. After about 1/2 mile, I was quite winded and debated walking for a bit, but I kept going. I took several deep breaths and blew them out quickly to get more oxygen going through my body, and I kept pushing! I ran 2 miles straight-- no stops. When I say 'no-stops' I mean that I even jogged into the video store to put the movie on the counter (with my I-pod playing--w/o headphones! haha) and back out... Most of my run was on level ground, with just a few slight inclines. I ran exactly 2 miles before taking a .2 mile cool-down back to our house. I felt amazing!! I didn't want to stop working out. I continued stretching and doing small exercises all evening. I'm almost addicted to the feeling after a good workout/run now!

I wish our town had better sidewalks in many of the areas. I hate running on the edge of the streets!

Other accomplishments:

On Tuesday, I did the full 10 minute Insanity warm-up with only 1 extra break. I felt so good about it....and then on Wednesday, I did 25 minutes of the workout without any extra breaks. I was moving quite slow sometimes during those 25 minutes, but I didn't stop! It was amazing!

Just like the poster above says, 8 weeks is when friends and family can notice.... in about 4 weeks, my cousin graduates high school so the whole family will be together for his party. We will see if anyone can notice! haha

I think the biggest change that has helped my workouts is that I splurged on new tennis shoes. I spent more on these shoes than I have on any pair before, but they are so worth it! My knees don't ache after working out anymore. I got this pair of Mizunos:



I LOVE THEM!



I'm debating what workout I want to do after I finish Insanity in 5 weeks... I've seen where he now has Asylum, but I haven't looked into that one yet. I've also considered training for a half marathon. We'll have to see how much running I get in between now and the beginning of June... A local town has a half marathon in September, but I want to make sure I'm ready before I sign up. There's a big difference between 2 miles and 13 miles!!



I am actually looking forward to bathing suit season this year. I can feel my thighs, abs, love handles, biceps and triceps getting toned and can't wait to show off my Insanity results! I gotta keep digging deeper! 5 more weeks!

This is INSANE!!!!

Ok... I'm 22 days into Insanity..... 41 to go, but who is counting, right?!?!?!

Being three weeks into the nine weeks, I've grown to like this workout...Like---not love--- like. I will say that I like these workouts better than any others that I've tried, but I don't wake up every morning looking forward to and wanting to do the workout... I love the results and the feeling from it...but I don't LOVE to spend 40 minutes in agony and creating a pool of sweat. Anyway!


Here are some likes and dislikes.
What I like:
--- It's fast-paced.... you DEFINITELY don't get bored... The 40ish minutes really do go by quickly. He doesn't waste time being cheesingly motivating or explaining the exercise in great depth. The workout switches daily so you don't get bored!
--- It pushes you! Just when you think you can't possibly do any more, Shaun T. tells you to dig deeper and focus, or you get that break you've been needing. The timing of most workouts is almost perfect!
--- The countdowns- you know the length of time left for the exercise you're doing, how long until a drink break, and how long in the day's workout. It's great. Definitely keeps me motivating and gives me something to look forward to!
--- The stretching- I'm a sucker for pilates and yoga stretches and every workout has about a 8-10 section of deep stretching and slow movements (l.o.v.e  it!)
--- Everyone takes breaks and modifies the workouts on the DVD- The video is not full a perfect athletes that do the entire 40 minute workouts without needing a break/drink or slowing down... they ALL do! Even Shaun T!
--- Quick results--- You've seen the crazy pictures of the results some achieve in 60 days! My husband is already noticing a difference in 3 weeks.
--- Edited to add: The feeling of accomplishment when it's over! I love marking off that day on the calendar and knowing that I've completed one.more.day!
--- The publicity that it has. Saying, "I workout 40 minutes a day," doesn't get nearly the recognition and sense of pride within myself as saying, "I'm 23 days into Insanity!" and seeing the reaction from the person, who then says "You're doing Insanity!?! I've seen that on TV. It looks tough!" It always strikes up a conversation about the workout, lifestyle changes, fitness, etc. It's great! It pushes me to want to complete it and be able to say, "I finished 63 days of Insanity!" Everyone has seen the info-mercials and been terrified of the workout.... it feels great to be doing it!
--- The calendar- It keeps you on track and doesn't leave you asking "What should I do today? Which of these DVDs in the stack should I do?" You know what you're doing when you wake up that morning and you know roughly how long it will take. No more wondering "Have I done enough jumping jacks? Should I move on to squats now? How many of those should I do?"..... The calendar helps so much!


What I don't like:
--- There's not enough oblique and saddle bag workouts so far. These are my two huge 'trouble zones.' I hope these get hit more in Month 2.
--- I wish there was a heavier background person-- where am I supposed to squeeze my fat roll/love handles into during some of these stretches? Every one is tiny and ripped... I just want to see ONE video with someone who isn't a size 00. Give me a realistic person out there sweating and pushing through like I am!
--- I get SO thirsty! I want to guzzle the whole water bottle during the first water break! One time I let myself drink as much as I needed because I was THAT thirsty....within a 45 minute workout, I finished 2 Powerades....... My belly hurt so badly that I could barely continue the workout.... Learned my lesson!
--- The amount of jumps and push-ups.... These are killers! I know it's part of what is getting the quick results, but I take a lot of breaks during some workouts because these two activities just exhaust me!



I'm pushing through and digging deeper.... I cannot wait to see what Month 2 has in store! I have a full week of "recovery" next week that is filled with core cardio and balance. Looking  forward to it!

If you look cute after your workout...

This is after I re-pinned my bangs... Enough said.

My face will stay that red for a long time.... I don't know if you can see how WET my hair is....but it drips with sweat! My little baby curls form around the edge of my hairline... My bangs never go back into the correct side-sweep position until they are washed and styled again.

I have to plan when I'm going to do my workout around when and where I need to be other places...

This is NOT a morning/before work workout... at least not for me.   (I shower at night.)

I expressed my hate for the amount of sweat Insanity creates.... it messes up my hair washing schedule.... *haha   but I feel so good after I've crossed off another day on the calendar of completion!

I've completed Day 19! Still surviving. I'm feeling some regression in the cardio portion of the workout and it is upsetting me. My flexibility is great and I can tell that I have more endurance, but I don't feel that I last as long during the cardio before I need a short break. Near the end of the first week, I felt great! I could go much longer without a break and could complete many more exercises....but then I started getting sinus congestion and I've slowed down a bit. I hope the allergy season passes soon and I can get back to advancing again!

I've started jogging a day or two a week....about a mile and a half each time. I'm completing the runs without breaks, and I'm pretty proud of it. I can tell that it works totally different muscles in my legs than the insanity does! I just throb when I get home, and I hurt the next day during Insanity.

More about my insanity work out later... I want to update my likes and dislikes of the program....

EDITED TO ADD:

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Good Food...

This is what I'm trying to remember and follow. If I keep cookies and sweets around, I eat cookies and sweets. If I keep fruit around, I eat fruit.... This has been a big change for both Cameron and I. He is joining with me to eat healthy and broaden our horizons on food. We are not perfect by any means, but I'm trying to be more concious of what I buy and consume.

We're mixing in more whole grains, fruits/vegetables, foods with lower calories, water, salads, etc.

The biggest thing that I believe in for a healthier way of eating is that you cannot refuse your body from something. If I tell myself that I am 'not allowed' to eat chocolate, I crave chocolate. Instead, I find a smarter chocolate snack and keep only a small supply. Moderation is the key.

By the way---my favorite chocolate snack is:

I don't believe in "diets." I believe in healthier choices, moderation, and lifestyle changes.