I love health and fitness!
I love getting a good night’s sleep!
I love eating well and discovering new healthy recipes!
I love getting a good workout!
I love pushing myself and achieving my goals!
YAY!
But, even though I love it….it is NOT easy!
It seems like I’ll do really well for a while….I’ll eat perfectly and get all my workouts in. I’ll even get several good night’s sleep….in a row (gasp!) I’ll start to feel really good. I’ll see results on the scale and in how my clothes fit. I’ll have more energy, feel more “in control”, feel thinish and leanish and become very content with my efforts.
Great, huh? You’d think this would make me ultra motivated and I would just want to work that much harder, right??
You’d think.
BUT NO….for whatever reason, I become lax! Yes, when I start to see results and am happy with how I look and feel….I SLOW DOWN. Weird.
Ya, I can’t figure it out either.
Remember a couple months ago when I worked my tail off and didn’t have treats for 3 months and lost 10 pounds??? Ya, that was awesome.
Well, I’m sad to say I’ve gained back 5 of those pounds. It may not sound like a lot, but I worked hard to lose every. single. pound. It makes me sad to give any of those pounds back!
It’s not like I’m just laying around eating bon bons all day though. I’m still working hard. I’m exercising regularly and eating fairly healthy. But, I’ve been justifying a little splurge here or there or livin’ it up a little bit too much on the weekends. It’s tough. I have loads of motivation and ambition, but I am severely lacking in the self discipline department! I don’t want to work hard only to throw it all away on the weekends! Auuugh!
Anyway, with all this being said….I am learning to hold myself accountable for ALL of my choices! In order to do that, I know I need to have a plan. I need to physically write down my goals. It also helps me a ton to get other people involved!
Soooo, I was talking to my friend Sheree the other day. She and I have decided to “kill” it for ONE month. We started yesterday (the 10th) and we will end on October 10th. Here are our goals….
- Exercise at least 4 days a week
- Eat no refined sugar or treats
- Stop eating at 8:00 PM
- Eat only whole, good quality grains
That’s basically it. Easy enough, right?? I am going to try to stop eating a little earlier though. I usually just eat a sensible dinner and then tell myself, “I’m done” for the day. I’m also going to be quite strict with my grains.
Here is my “okay grains” list…quinoa, brown rice, oats, low-carb tortillas/breads and Ezekiel bread. Sheree and I decided that healthy whole grain crackers were okay, but I’m going to try to avoid them. I’ll let you know how it goes!
Sooooo, today I decided to make a double batch of my Coconut Chia Protein Balls.
I love these things and it really helps to have yummy, healthy treats stashed in the freezer! BTW, I froze them on the plates for 30 minutes and then transferred them to the Ziploc bag. That way they don’t stick to each other.
I also made a batch of Jamie Eason’s Carrot Cake Protein Bars! They were so so yummy! I will post the recipe on here separately.
I also bought myself a handy dandy little notebook the other day. (This is my “I wanna be a Barker’s Beauty Spokes model pose.)
When I climb into bed at night, I like to write things in my little notebook. I draw a smiley, frowny or straight face on the top of the page to signify my efforts for the day. I also write down what I ate, how I felt and good things I accomplished. I also keep track of my weight loss too. It helps to hold myself accountable.
Anyway, that is my latest adventure! I have so many healthy recipes to put on here too!!! I will try to take some time and crank them out.
“till next time! I hope you are all healthy and happy!!
The notebook is a good idea. When I set a goal like that for myself, whether it’s 5, 10 or 15 lbs, I print up a blank calendar for the time period I plan on accomplishing it in. For instance in February I set a three month plan to lose 15 lbs from my pregnancy last year. I tape the calendar and a pen on the wall in front of the scale and every day I write in what I weigh and what workout I did. I like the visual of having the time frame defined and seeing the ups and downs in relation to if I’m working out consistently. It helps keep me motivated.
I love the calendar by the scale idea! I think it would be great to be able to see the whole month or 3 months all at once. Love it!