Week 6 Stats

It's been six weeks since I've started exercising and eating healthy.  I try and stay away from the word diet, because honestly I feel like I'm not on a diet that I will do for a few weeks or even months.  I am really trying to change the way I live my life.  I want to have a more active lifestyle.  I want to eat more healthy foods on a regular basis.  I also am not going to cut out the foods I love either.   I have a sweet tooth and I enjoy baking.  I will never prohibit myself from enjoying those things, because then it would feel like a diet and let's be honest dieting is not a long term thing for me.  

So here they are: 

My Measurements:

As you can see I have already seen a ton of improvement.  I'm really glad I recorded my measurements because it's really fulfilling to know that you lost so many inches! Although, if I were to measure again I would follow this diagram for measuring that I found on Pinterest.

I know I have lost a ton of inches in my legs, but not in the areas I have measured.  I have a pair of workout capris that litterally are hanging on me and are so baggy on my legs and butt now and they were tight before.  But the areas that I measured for my legs have seen little change.

Anyways, I can't believe the difference in my body and I have only done this for 6 weeks.  I can honestly say I haven't been this thin since before I got pregnant with my first child.  I also feel like I have a lot more energy throughout the day.  I am going to take my measurements again when I reach the 10 week mark.

Let's Talk About Running......

I have always hated running. No, hate is not a strong enough word.....I absolutely loathe running.

In fact, when I was in Jr. High I got my first A- (which was a huge deal for me because it wrecked my perfect GPA) because I failed the mile run.  How do you fail a mile run you ask?  Well, you don't complete it-that's how!  Yeah, I was that girl.  I was the last one huffing and puffing my way through the mile, and couldn't finish it.  Now, I can honestly say I thought I was going to die when I was running it because I do have asthma and have had it almost my entire life.  So I honestly couldn't run it.

I was traumatized by that experience and I actually got a note from my asthma doctor and didn't have to take PE in high school. It was great.  Did I really need to be excused from PE? No, not really.  Looking back, I'm pretty sure I was just lazy and used my asthma as an excuse.

Now, back to the present.  I still have asthma.  I still hate to run.

I no longer despise running. I actually kind of like it.  I decided to start up this very daunting form of exercise about 6 weeks ago.  One day, I decided I am going to run a mile. For real. Actually complete a mile without stopping and run the entire distance.  I had my husband measure the distance on our road and then I ran.  I ran.  I mean I really ran.  The ENTIRE distance.  This was HUGE. This was MOMENTOUS! I have never ever in my entire 26 years of living done such a thing! When I finished I felt like dying.  No, I thought I WAS going to die.  But I did it.  And that's all it took.  I now have the running fever.  I actually enjoy it.  I actually look forward to running.

But lets talk about my running.  I am a slow runner.  I mean extremely slow.  That very first mile I ran, it took me about 13 minutes to complete.  But, six weeks later my time has improved.  In fact, today I ran my fastest mile. I ran it in 10:58.  Which blows my mind.

I only run 1 mile at a time.  I think I have this mental block that says you must only run one mile, or you will die of exhaustion.  So I am really going to try and increase my distance each week.  My goal is to be able to run a 5k by the end of the summer.  If you would have asked me 3 months ago that I wanted to run a 5k, I would have told you that you were out of your ever-loving mind. Now, I know it's possible. I know I will be able to do it and I know I won't actually die doing it!

Zesty Stir Fry with Brown Rice

Eating healthy surprisingly hasn't been that hard of a transition for me.  I really haven't had to change too many things about my diet.  The main thing that I have tried to eliminate are white foods.  The hardest thing for me to eliminate is white rice.  White rice is a staple in our household and I make a ton of recipes that include white rice.  I haven't cut it out completely, but I eat MUCH less of it now.  I also try and stay away from white sugar and white bread.  

  I am trying to keep more fresh vegetables in the house at all times.  That has been another adjustment I've had to make.  I don't care what people say-eating fresh foods can get really expensive! I try and buy things that are on sale that week and of course are in season.  I made this stir fry for lunch for my husband and I today and it was super filling and had a lot of flavor. You could definitely make this for dinner and add chicken as a protein.  I actually added leftover grilled pork chops to my husbands portion and he said that it was really good that way.

So here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

1/2 yellow summer squash cut into half moons
1/2 zucchini squash cut into half moons
1/4 cup red bell peppers diced
1/4 green bell peppers diced
1 cup of broccoli-steamed*
1 cup of cauliflower-steamed*
1/4 - 1/2 cup of Kraft Lite Zesty Italian Dressing
1 tsp chopped garlic
1 tsp olive oil
Soy Sauce to taste
Cilantro-chopped

Directions:
In a large skillet add olive oil.  On medium-high heat add squash, zucchini, peppers, and garlic.  Saute in pan until veggies are still slightly crisp, then add in steamed broccoli and cauliflower, then add dressing and soy sauce to taste.  Cook until veggies are to your preferred doneness. (I like my veggies to have a bit of a crunch still) Serve over cooked brown rice and garnish with chopped cilantro.  

*You don't have to steam your broccoli and cauliflower before hand, you can saute it with the other vegetables.  I just happen to like mine steamed rather than sautéed)

Athletically Impaired

I am athletically impaired.
At least that's what I've decided to call my inability to do anything athletic whatsoever.

I am not overweight, in fact according to the infamous BMI calculator I am healthy!  But who really believes the BMI calculator? I am almost positive that my body fat content is well above the healthy range and that my muscle mass is well below the normal range for a woman.

I have never played sports or even been a regular gym goer. I guess I am just lucky that I have been able to maintain a healthy weight, because heaven knows I love food.  Since I haven't really had a major weight problem, (if you dont count 3 pregnancies) I haven't seen the use in actually doing physical exercise.  Yes, there have been times when I could have lost a few pounds, but honestly I have always felt pretty healthy.  I am a mother of three and spend most my day chasing around three kids, which turns out to be a lot of exercise! But it's not the type of exercise that really gets you physically fit.

I am not physically fit. I am weak. And when I say weak I mean I am not physically strong whatsoever! I'm pretty sure anyone young or old could beat me in an arm wrestle.  I am one of four girls in my family and it's a known fact that I am the weakling.

I started this blog so that I could journal my progress in my pursuit to become strong and physically fit.  I'm not going to go overboard.  I still want to have a curvy figure, but I also want some muscle mass.

I started exercising and counting calories about four weeks ago.  These are my measurements when I started as well as a lovely before picture.

Weight: 159 pounds

Height: 5' 7"

Waist: 37"

Bust: 39"

Hips: 41.5"

Thighs: 23"

Calves: 14"

Biceps: 11"

Neck: 13.5"

April 18, 2013

I am slightly embarrassed to post this picture, but I really wanted to track my progress and see the difference in my appearance.  I've already taken my 4 week measurements, but didn't take a picture.  I am going to take my 6 week measurements this week and post a new picture.

I started this blog to really track the progress I'm making in my pursuit to become healthy.  I plan on posting what exercise routines I'm doing, what foods and recipes I've tried, and anything else I find inspiring.  

About:

I'm Lindsey!

I am athletically impaired.

At least that's what I've decided to call my inability to do anything athletic whatsoever.

I am not an athlete.  I am just an everyday stay-at-home mom who wants to be physically fit. I have never played sports or even been a regular gym goer. I guess I am just lucky that I have been able to maintain a healthy weight, because heaven knows I love food.  Since I haven't really had a major weight problem, (if you don't count 3 pregnancies) I haven't seen the use in actually doing physical exercise.  Yes, there have been times when I could have lost a few pounds, but honestly I have always felt pretty healthy.  I am a mother of three and spend most my day chasing around three kids, which turns out to be a lot of exercise! But it's not the type of exercise that really gets you physically fit.

{My Family}

I started this blog on kind of on a whim.  I thought that if I actually started a blog to document this journey I am taking, then I would hold myself more accountable and actually achieve my goals.  

So far it's working.  When I started this blog (about 2 months ago), I was out of shape and definitely had some leftover baby weight to lose.

 As of July 4, 2013 I ran my first 5k and have already signed up to run a 10k in August.  I have never thought that I could actually be a runner.  I couldn't even complete running a mile in high school.  I honestly don't know why I started to run.  One day I just told my husband that I was going to try to run all the way down our street to our stop sign.  It's about a half mile in distance and I honestly didn't think I would be able to do it. But I did.  I ran the whole way, and the rest is history.

{My first race}

 I've caught the running fever.  When I began this journey, I didn't go into it thinking I was going to take up running.  It was actually quite the opposite really.  I went into it wanting to do mostly strength training.  I never would have imagined that I would actually enjoy running.  

I have now given this fever to my husband and he is now training with me to run our first 10k together. It is so great to have someone that supports you fully in everything that you do.  My husband is that person and he is always motivating me to do better!

This hasn't been an easy process, it actually kind of sucks sometimes.  

Every single day I have to make a decision to "show up and train hard." Sometimes it is extremely difficult to make that decision.  

Somedays I want to be lazy and do nothing. 

 Somedays I would rather eat a pint of ice cream than do another squat or push-up. 

Somedays I would just like to give up.  

But I don't.  Every single day I show up.  Not only physically, but mentally.  I don't want to be the person I was before.  I want to be strong, I want to be healthy, I want to be a better me.  It's hard.  It can really suck. But it is so rewarding! I have never felt better! I have never felt in more control of my life.  I feel awesome, and because of those feelings, I always make the decision to show up the next day.  To try harder than the day before, to push myself more.