August Fitness Challenge: Uptown Funk Ab Routine

Now that we are finished with the 200 Squat challenge, I thought I would pick the next challenge myself and see if anyone wants to join me. It's AB month, people. I know. I KNOW! But, my abs are as close as you can get to dead and still be breathing, so I need to work on them. I really like the Uptown Funk Ab Routine on YouTube, but right now I can only get about 35 seconds into it before I am gasping for air and praying for a stroke to finish me off. So, I'm taking the month of August to see if I can get through the whole thing without a break. Who is with me?

***** CHALLENGE ACCEPTED*****

Here's the link:   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2EGLIyDkXE

Workout Plans for July 20-26

The plan: cardio (15 minutes) 3x, plus the squat challenge previously posted.

The Reality:

• Monday: 15 minutes on the elliptical machine, 1 hour in the pool, squat challenge
• Tuesday: 45 minutes in the pool, squat challenge
• Wednesday: squat challenge
• Thursday: 1 hour in the pool, squat challenge
• Friday: squat challenge
• Saturday: rest
• Sunday: rest

Can I accomplish my goals: YES I CAN!

Weekend Weigh In: July 19, 2015

I've decided that the weekends are the best time for me to do updates on weight and occasionally pictures. So without further ado...the results of 2 whole weeks of work. I'll be honest enough to say the last 2 days have been hard for healthful eating, since I'm a stress-eater. However, between the beans and rice lunches, squat challenge, water drinking and swimming as often as I have time to get in the pool, I think I'll at least even out.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Starting Weight: 160 pounds
Current Weight: 159.5
Weight Change: -1/2 pound
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Not quite a huge change, but every little bit helps. I have new motivation (and more opportunity) to work out with Dan out of town. I'm hoping to surprise him with a #10 loss by our anniversary at the end of August. I'll keep ya posted. ;)
The squat challenge kicks into high gear this coming week, so by next weekend, I may not be able to walk. Which would at least mean it was working. And I neeeeed to be in the pool every work day this week. Here we go!
Oh, I almost forgot. I promised a picture. Enjoy!

This is one of my new fave outfits. Comfy but stylish brown and gold t-shirt, dark jeans, brown and gold flats.

July 2015 Fitness Challenge: 200 Squats

Apparently, I get bored easily and like to cut myself slack/grace far too often in the workout areas of my life, so in addition to my regular 3x a week cardio sessions, I decided to accept a challenge from some friends to be able to do 200 squats by the end of July. We start tomorrow.

*****Challenge Accepted*****

Here's a link to the workout, http://www.popsugar.com/fitness/30-Day-Squat-Challenge-30806625 and it has a printable so you can keep up with it whether you are home or out and about.
I'm looking forward to it. A higher, tighter, smaller booty is in my near future. Woot!

I am BACK!

...and fatter than ever. *le sigh* Time to fire this blog back up and see if I can motivate myself with the fear of public humiliation. LOL! 
I am currently weighing in at 160 pounds. *ouch* That is what I weighed when I was pregnant with DT and my heaviest weight ever. I can beat myself up about it, or I can do something. So here I am, doing something. I am still doing well on water intake and veggies, but I have quit exercising and lost all awareness of portion control. So, it is back to basics. 
For the month of July, I will be working out (cardio) 3x a week, and eating small portions. I am also doing black beans and rice for lunch every day M-F while at work starting on the 13th. With water, of course in keeping with my New Years Resolution to drink water during my work hours of 11am-6 pm. With Independence Day behind us as well as Birthday Game Night, I think I am in the clear for parties and such. That helps. :) 
I will start by filling my plate with fruits and veggies, with a small portion of lean protein, and skipping the carbs if/when I can.
Wish me luck. 
     ~K~

Good bye 2009

Well friends, as we prepare to bring in the new year, I have to pause and look back over the last year. Have I accomplished all my goals? Have I lost all the weight? Have I begged, borrowed, or stolen any will power? Well, no...to all of those. Do I feel discouraged or have I lost faith in the idea?? NO to that as well! I've learned some new habits, gained some muscle, some confidence and some friends in my pursuit of health. I will redouble my efforts as the new year starts, so stick with me this next year and I'll see if I can't wow some of you with my incredible shrinking body...LOL! have a great new year everyone!!
Blessings,
Kristy

Well, Fudge it all, Anyway!

Sorry, could NOT resist the title! Jodi and I made fudge yesterday and I just can't leave it alone. Good thing I've lost a few pounds this year....I'm about to gain them all back. Actually, I'm pretty please with how I've been doing the past 2 weeks. I've worked out almost everyday and until yesterday, was doing a great job of keeping up on my liquids, which always seems to be the first to go. So, I'm back on track with that today....now if I could just walk away from the fudge...*sigh* Christmas is going to be hard. Anyone have any tips to make it easier, besides just not making any treats, since that isn't an option? Well, I'll go weigh myself and report back...wish me luck!
Beginning weight: 155
Goal weight: 110
Present weight: 147
Oops, looks like I gained two pounds back...but I tend to do that when I quit getting enough liquid, so I'll blame that and not the fudge. I'll try to post a pic soon. Thanks for all the support!

Does Giving Up count as Excercise?

LOL...here we are at the very beginning of the holiday season and I've neither lost any decent amount of weight, NOR begged, borrowed or stolen any will power, so where does that leave me? Still heavy, still needing to work on my willpower and irritated with myself. *sigh* However, as always, there are things to be grateful for and about.

• I have come a long way in the portion control department, but I don't always USE said knowledge...oops!
• I AM working out on a regular basis, although this habit is still fresh, so pray with me as I hope to continue it!
• I am almost ALWAYS getting my water these days...and probably 5 out of 7 on my fruits and veggies
• I have continued to work on eating from scratch, not out of a box, out of the freezer case at the grocer's or eating (God forbid...LOL) microwave meals. I haven't bought a loaf of bread in over 6 months, I think...hurray for whole wheat bread with NO added ingredients
• The kids are learning good eating habits while they are young, setting the habit for life long good eating. (on a side note, I bought sugar snap peas the other day and the boys ate them all before I got any...dang it! HA!)

All in all, I guess I'm a healthier, still heavy Kristy at the almost end of this year. I've lost 10 pounds, dropped a pants size (or should I say actually fit into the size I was claiming anyway) and have learned some new habits. Thanks for your support along the way, and keep praying for me as I enter the dreaded holiday eating zone...LOL!

Blessings,

Kristy

The Scale Doesn't Lie...or so they say!

Time for the weekly weigh in....here we go. My water intake was GREAT this week! Fruits and veggies not so much, but I was close most days, so I gotta keep working on that one. Working out, I did pretty well. I was much more active this week than usual even around the house, working in the yard, etc...so even though I actually missed a workout or two, I feel ok about that. The stair thing is working out pretty well, although I had to convince one of the dogs to STOP running up and down with me and barking the whole time...ha ha ha! So what's left?? OH, just the weight and picture...BRB

Starting weight: 155

Goal weight: 110

Present weight 144...YES another pound GONE!

Pounds to goal: 34

Pounds LOST: 11

Hmmm, the picture is kinda dark, and it's not as flattering as the last one so that's OK...LOL! See you soon!

~K~

The Low Down on the Weigh down

Well a few good things and a few not so good things. As of this AM, the scale still says 145 which means I have hit the 10 pounds lost mark and stayed there for a full week...that's a good thing! BUT, I was hoping to have lost almost 35 by now so it's not as wonderful as I would like. I'm doing great on my liquid intake, my fruits and veggies (thank you V8Fusion) and am making great strides in the portion department...these are all GREAT things...however, the workouts are harder and harder to find the motivation for...hmmm. 'Shua's wedding is in 5 weeks...I could still safely lose 10-12 more~so I need some serious cheering on here so I can force myself to work out. I've been trying to get in 10 sets of stairs each day this week. I haven't hit that goal yet, but each day I get closer. In fact, I have time for about 3 more sets and that will put me at my goal for the day, hurray! So wish me well and I will try to post a new pic this weekend. Thanks for your support, it means more than you know.
Blessings,
~K~
Starting weight: 155
Present weight: 145
Pounds LOST: 10
Goal weight: 110
Pounds to go: 35 I WILL get there, I will

Just Passing By...

Well, this week held some high points and low points... but this is a quick post, so I'll just highlight and keep moving!

• I did great the first half of the week and then I got...LAZY...oops!
• I DID manage to keep my water/fruit and veggie up take high, so that's great!
• I lost another pound...yippie!

This week and EVERY week until I leave for the wedding in 7 weeks, I intend to do these few things

• 8- 8oz glasses of liquid each day...hopefully MORE
• at least 1 serving of FISH each week
• 5 pilates/yoga workouts and 3 cardio workouts
• be outside for a while each day...enjoy the sun, breathe fresh air, and get moving!!
• get my 5 a day of fruits and veggies
• Dan wants me to start taking a calcium supplement, so I suppose I'll add that to the list as well ; )

That's enough for now..so here are the stats...I finally hit the 10 pound mark this week...took me long enough...LOL

Beginning weight: 155
Present weight: 145
Goal weight: 110
Pound LOST: 10!!!

Working the pounds off...at least I HOPE I am~

Another week has passed and while I have worked hard, not sure yet if that will translate to the scale or not. Getting my 5 of fruits and veggies proves to an insurmountable task some days...but I am getting closer each week...must continue to eat better and smaller portions. The smaller portions are going much better this past week and I'm proud of that. I've managed to squeeze in 5 sessions of Pilates and while I never got around to doing my Billy Blanks, I did work in the yard a few times and worked up a good sweat and that counts in my book. : ) SO, what does the scale say...that ALL Important question of the week?? Well sadly, not much...just that I didn't lose any weight this week, but since I feel good, I worked hard and my pants are fitting better, I'm OK with that! So for next week....smaller portions, keep up with water, fruits and veggies and *sigh* more cardio, plus after a tip from my bestie Liz, a few spinach salads to boost the old metabolism. Off I go to work out!!
Starting weight: 155
Goal weight: 110
Present weight: 146
Weight lost: 9

What's the Scale say this week??

Well, I'm almost afraid to look...LOL! After eating very well all week long, I ate very decadently over the weekend and didn't get my liquid intake up to where it should be. But before the scale says otherwise, I feel good, I have energy this week, PLUS last week I did yoga 4 days, Pilates one day and at least one day of strength training! I'm really proud about that! I got a full week of workouts in, hurray! My liquid intake was great up until the weekend. I got my fruits and veggie servings in most days and I feel good about that too! So what's on the line up for this week?? Adding in some cardio....sigh* Cardio equals sweating...LOL! When the temp today is supposed to be 103, it's hard to psyche myself up for cardio, but I can do it...I CAN! So, keep up the liquid, keep after those fruits and veggie servings, and keep 4 days of yoga/pilates and add in one or two of cardio! Wish me luck...I"m headed to the scale....I'm a bit nervous!
WEIGH IN~
Starting weight: 155
Goal weight: 110
Present weight: 146
POUNDS LOST: 9..yes! I lost another pound! YEAH!
I'll add a picture in just a minute, need to comb my hair first...LOL Be right back

OK, well. combing my hair didn't help much, but it will have to do...LOL! Here I am in all of my "look at me, I lost weight' glory...ha ha ha!

And just for reference sake, here is my 'before' pic

July 2009 update

This week I focused on portion control since this is one of my major problem areas. It's not that we eat unhealthily, but that I eat way too much of it...and I'm working to get a few less carbs in as well. So anywho, that went rather well and though I felt a bit hungry a time or two, I drank more water/tea and resisted the urge to eat more. I paid more attention to what I was eating than I have in the past few weeks and not only did I enjoy what I was eating, but I got 5 servings of fruits and veggies in 6 out of 7 days...hurray! This week I am focusing more on a bit more moving around. Over the weekend, I worked in the yard, jumped on the trampoline for a few, lugged some boxes and did some stretching. I am going to do some yoga before bed to help loosen some muscles that have gotten tight. Tomorrow brings more working in the back room, which means cardio and strength training...LOL! Plus, just plain old sweating! I think I'm getting back on track...which is good since I want to lose at least 20 before 'Shua's wedding which is in just 10 weeks...yikes!! So keep me on my toes, ladies! Less food, more water, more moving around, these are the keys that I need to keep in mind....baby steps! It's not going to fall off tomorrow when I get out of bed ( oh how I WISH it would) but I can burn it off, slowly and consistently. I can do it! Now for the weigh down...here goes!
Blessings and thin thighs,
~K~
Beginning weight: 155
Present weight: 147
Short term goal: 130
Long term goal: 110

Ugh...made that DOUBLE UGH!

Well, since it's been 2.5 months since I've posted on here and my weight is still right around the 147 mark, I can only assume one of a few things...or possibly ALL of them have come into play in the past few months...

• I must not be working out enough
• I am not eating as healthfully as I would like to think
• Portion control is still out of control
• Motivation/Time is a bigger factor than I would like to admit
• I just don't care very much about being fat....dang it!

Honestly, most of them have come into play almost every day...sigh! But, it's a brand new week, the house is decent, I only work 2 days, and so I have no excuses not to be working harder on this goal of mine. I need to keep reminding myself that the weight will not just fall off. SO...to that end, wish me luck as I restart the uphill battle of the bulge. I want to be healthy, fit and even trim. Let's get that burning...where's my Denise Austin Kickboxing tape?? Anyone have any ideas, motivation or words of wisdom for me???