What drives you?

Whatever your goals are, whether you want to lose weight, gain muscle, or just be healthy, you need something that drives you, that pushes you, and inspires you to reach your goals.

It could be something as simple as wanting to lose a size or two, or to fit into that new dress for your class reunion, or that new bikini you bought for a vacation this summer.

Maybe you're trying to start a family, and want to make sure you're healthy for your future children, or the ones you already have, or your parents, or your spouse.

Something a lot of people don't consider, is when you make a commitment to get healthy, lose weight, and/or get in shape, you have to do it for yourself.

You have to want it more than anyone.

People have asked what my motivation to lose weight is, what drives me.

I want to do it for myself. I want to do it for my husband and my family. I want to be an inspiration to my mom and my dad and my entire family, I want to have confidence in what my body can do, and I want to be the best version of myself that I can be,

I want to wear my new bikini on our cruise in November. I want to feel confident in shorts and tank tops this summer, in that little black dress I bought to wear for our anniversary, in my own skin, no matter where I am or who I'm with. I want to live a long, healthy, full life.

What do you want? What drives you to do what you do?

Hard work equals big changes

Since my copy of Insanity is still messing up, I've kind of moved on from it in order to keep progress going.

Last night, I sat for an hour and a half going through workout after workout from Blogilates and a few other places trying to devise the perfect workout routine for me; I needed something challenging, enjoyable, with lots of stretching in the end.

What I came up with is a little bit frightening to me, but I think the results are going to be fantastic!

A lot of you have been asking for a workout schedule. Let me just start by saying that I am no fitness expert. I don't have a degree, I don't even have a boatload of experience like a lot of the popular bloggers do. But I love to learn and research like you wouldn't believe, and this is the plan that I think I can get the best results from, because its going to genuinely push me to the limit. This is what I think will work for ME. It may be too tough for you or not challenging enough.

I've incorporated straight cardio, Pilates, Jillian Michael's 30 D.S., and my favorite, yoga. Here's the schedule.

MONDAY- 1 hr. run, 30 d.s., 50 min total body from blogilates, yoga.
Tuesday- 30 d.s., 50 min upper body/arms/back from blogilates, yoga.
Wednesday- 1 hr. run, 30 d.s.,50 minutes abs from blogilates, yoga.
Thursday- 30 d.s., 50 min lower body from blogilates, yoga
Friday- 1 hr run, 30 d.s., 50 min total body from blogilates, yoga
Saturday- 1 hr run, 30 d.s., yoga
Sunday- yoga



I chose to do yoga on Sunday instead of just resting because we usually go for a walk together that day and some stretching after would be very relaxing for me.

In addition to this, I will be dog Blogilate's 90 day meal plan challenge, with a few adjustments here and there, and I have a few cheat days scheduled, like Valentine's Day and our anniversary. Mark was deployed last year so we didn't get to really celebrate, so I'm not missing out on anything this year!

Let me know if you have any questions, I would love to hear feedback!

-KJ

Here's to a healthy lifestyle!

Hey y'all!

I've gotten quite a few questions the last few days and decided to address them. Most of them were along these lines:

How can I easily lose weight? How strict does my diet have to be? How can I lose a lot of weight fast? When will I see results from working out? How long do I have to work out to lose weight?

I've come to realized that our culture is into putting in the least amount of effort possible in order to achieve their goals.

In my journey to become a healthier, physically fit woman, I've drawn the following conclusions:

1. Weight loss is not entirely based on the gym and your workouts. 70% of your physique comes from your DIET, the other 30% from your physical activity. You can't eat whatever you want and expect to lose weight, no matter how much you workout, which leads me to my next point.

2. When it comes to counting calories, not all calories are created equal. It's not completely based on how much you eat, but also on WHAT you eat. 300 calories of lean protein and some veggies is much better for you than 300 calories of French fries from McDonald's. You are what you eat, and I'd rather be a lean mean machine than a fried potato.

3. If you count every single calorie every day for the rest of your life, you will probably lose your mind. It is ok to enjoy a piece of cake every once in a while. And when I say that, I do not mean every weekend. Be healthy, don't overindulge constantly, but don't become so strict that you can't or won't enjoy some dessert on your birthday or a piece of chocolate on Valentine's Day from your sweetie.

4. Don't give yourself an easy out. Don't stop working out for a week just because your abs hurt or your legs are sore from squats! Please please take care of yourself if you are sick or injured, but don't stop because it hurts. It's supposed to, to a point. My philosophy: if you're not puking, fainting, or dying, don't stop.

5. It will not always be fun. You will be sore, you will not want to get up and workout, you will want that piece of cake at the office party, and you will probably say you're giving up more than once. But don't. Be frustrated, cry if you have to, and move on. If you want results, you have to work for them, and have to put in the effort. Don't give yourself excuses, give yourself results that you've worked hard for.

You are worth it. I know that, now go prove it to yourself!

-KJ

A new Start

I'm finally not sick.

After two straight weeks of feverish chills and aches and just plain feeling cruddy,

I woke up this morning with no stuffy nose, no sore throat, nothing!

 

THANK GOODNESS!

 

I barely worked out while I was sick, I was active but I didn't push myself.

 

No more.

 

 

I woke up this morning, had a glass of water, made myself a quick meal-replacement shake,

put my shoes on, and then I remembered.

 

Our copy of Insanity is messed up.

 

Boo.

 

So I decided to do 30 Day Shred twice to make up for it.

 

Um. I'd forgotten that it's actually a pretty intense workout, especially when you've done

nothing really for two weeks.

 

I'm hooked again. It sucks that we haven't been able to finish Insanity, but until we get another copy,

I think I'm going to stick to 30 Day Shred, cause it worked great for me last time.

I think I'm going to include more cardio, though.

Which is why I'm so excited to say I got my bike all fixed up! Just need to air up the back tire and fi the brake line that popped out the front part, and I'm golden!

 

I'm also starting to do some of +Blogilates  workouts again. They're an awesome kind of

pick-me-up workout when I don't have a ton of time but need to do SOMETHING.

So when I was going through and making a list of my favorite workouts so I can bookmark them,

I re-discovered her 90 day Challenge.

It's a really intense meal plan and workout schedule. The meal plan is

EXTREMELY strict, but I think that's just what I need. So whenever we go grocery shopping, I'm getting the things I need and I'm going to start it! If you've never heard of the 90 Day Challenge, head over to http://www.blogilates.com/ and check it out.

 

I will be starting it Feb. 15th.

 

And depending on the results, I may extend it out past 90 days, because I need some big results, because..

 

We are going on a cruise!

 

I'm so excited! Mark's aunt and cousin are celebrating their birthdays in November with a cruise,

and since he hasn't seen them in ages, we decided to go! I'm very excited, as this will be my first

time leaving the country, and I'm dying to go to the Caribbean. My plan is as follows:

to spend the entire week in a bikini, with a fruity-drink filled cocounut with crazy straws and umbrellas in my hand, not doing ANYTHING but relaxing and enjoying time with Mark and the family.

 

I'm determined to be swimsuit-ready by summer, and then anything after that is just the cherry on top.

 

 

 

 

 

I'm also going to be investing in a new pair of running shoes soon. What are your favorites? I'm a big Nike fan, but if there's a better shoe out there, I want to know!

 

Email me or comment with your suggestions and questions!

The beauty of being you

This morning, I did what I usually do every morning. I woke up, I brushed my teeth, washed my face, and just look at the reflection in the mirror. As usual, I didn't like what I was seeing staring back.

We're flooded every day with images of what perfection is like. For women, it's teeny tiny waists, a gap between your thighs, tiny arms, and long flowing hair. For the men, it's a set of abs that are most likely airbrushed, perfectly gelled hair, muscular arms, and a perfect 5 o'clock shadow.

If I just described you, congratulations! You fit into society's standard of being an attractive person!

For the rest of us, it's less fun.

I have had self esteem problems since my later years of high school. Not because I was bullied; I wasn't. I actually enjoyed my high school years. I had great friends, an amazing family (still do!), and I was pretty successful! However, the more I grew up, the more I realized how much I didn't fit in with how everyone else looked. I wasn't overly tall, I wasn't skinny, I didn't wear skinny jeans with uggs or straighten my hair perfectly every day. And while no one ever made fun of me for how I looked, I began to doubt myself. And doubt can be a dangerous thing to a teenage mind.

Even now, happily married to a husband who adores me and thinks I'm beautiful (he had to marry me for some reason, right? ;) ), I am very, very self conscious, and I know it bothers him as much as it does me.

So, I've decided to change how I look at myself. I am going to try my hardest not to compare myself to someone else, because we're completely different. I am beautiful, and I don't need to change; I need to IMPROVE myself.

I will never be a size two. I will probably always be a little 'fluffier' than most of my female friends. I will likely always have a big butt, too. So, to society, I will never be perfect, and I will never fit in. And that's ok. All I want is to be the best version of myself that I can be. I want to be HEALTHY, not just skinny, and my healthy will never be the same as someone else's. To my other friends and family struggling with their weight, and self esteem issues, remember this: you are not fat. You HAVE fat. There is a difference, and it does not define you.

Week one -INSANITY

So my first week of Insanity has actually been pretty insane.

Hubs hurt his wrist when he dropped his motorcycle, so he couldn't do it for a few days to let it heal up, but I've managed to push through the first week.

I'm sore pretty much every day. Only the first few days were so bad I had to stretch thorough every time I stood up so I could walk comfortably, but I feel good! I'm ready to bring down the next week.

I've decided to take my measurements every Monday, though I won't be sharing them with you until I finish Insanity, just so I can keep the mystery going. ;)

Today will be a tough day, we both woke up feeling pretty cruddy, so finding the motivation to work out, at least with Insanity, will be tough, but I'm sure I'll manage!

Have you pushed yourself this week? Doesn't have to be fitness related!

Starting the year off right!

Hey everyone!

So far, 2013 has been pretty fantastic! Unfortunately, we did get our BOP turned down, but since we finally heard, Mark can go ahead and re-enlist, and we can start shopping for new furniture again! Woohoo!

Also, we started INSANITY yesterday.

Oh. My. Gosh.

This is only the second day and I'm DYING. I'm going to be so sore, but it's so worth it. We have big plans for our second anniversary (since he was gone last year), and I'm determined to look completely different by then. (I also have an eye on a dress hanging in my closet that I want to have to take in).

Also, I wanted to share something that I think is just beyond AWESOME. Mark's stepmom gave me this thing called the BodyMedia armband. It's a little armband that has sensors on it that, when touching your skin, track your calories burned, steps taken, how well and how long you sleep, and when you enter your food, tells you exactly what your calorie consumed/calories burned ratio is. I've only been wearing it consistently for about a week, and I can't imagine my weight loss journey without it now. Seriously, it's great. If you can, I can't recommend it enough.

On another note...

THANK YOU ALL! Slowly, but surely, the Facebook page I started to go alone with my blog is starting to take off, and I'm getting more emails weekly now. I can't thank you all enough for your support! I've gotten so many supportive emails, and just as many with people asking questions about something I posted. If you have any comments, questions, or anything you want to share, comment or email!

<3 KJ