20 Pounds in 2 Months

Week 1

2012-01-15T21:28:00.000-08:00

It was a good week. I am down 2 pounds and feeling good. I've been good at not snacking at night (which is my kryptonite!) I splurged my one meal (hello mexican food) and reluctantly got back on track the next day. Glad to have the structure back again though. I've realized that it I keep my breakfast/lunches simple and the same then it makes is a lot easier to plan. I printed out a calendar and made a 2 week menu for my dinners using the menu planner from www.eatingwell.com. Printed out the recipes and highlighted the ingredients I need to buy for the week.

Here is what my work out schedule was:

Monday: Walk/Jogged for 1 hour (5 miles) *see my notes below about the benefits of walk/jogging

Tuesday: Walk/Jogged 1 hour (4.5 miles)

Wednesday: Insanity Cardio (50 minutes)

Friday: Walked 45 minutes

Saturday: Insanity Interval Training

*I've began jogging last year but still cannot keep a steady running pace the entire time (I can make it about 1.5 miles before I have to walk). I wear my heart rate monitor every time I work out so I can log my calories burned to calorie intake. When I do some sort of walk/jog ratio I burn as many calories as when I do Insanity. It is good for your body to raise your heart rate and let it drop/rest and then raise it again. It explains it well HERE.

DAY 1

2012-01-07T10:17:00.000-08:00

I will probably post weekly updates, but today I will get started with what I ate and my work out.

Breakfast:

PROTEIN/GREEN SMOOTHIE

1 CUP ORGANIC BABY SPINACH
1 CUP FROZEN WHOLE STRAWBERRIES
1/2 MEDIUM SIZED BANANA
2 TBSP. GROUND FLAX SEED
1 SCOOP WHEY PROTEIN (I use Muscle Milk- Vanilla)
8-16 OZ. WATER (depending on the consistency you prefer)

TOTAL CALORIES: 257

BLEND and enjoy! I always use a straw to drink, for some reason I have convinced myself it's a "treat" smoothie when I do.

MY WORK OUT:

INSANITY MAX CARDIO

CURRENT WEIGHT: 142
WAIST: 29"
HIPS: 37"
THIGH: 23"
ARM: 11"

THE RUN DOWN

2012-01-07T09:35:00.000-08:00

I am addicted to fitness success stories, especially ones with before and after pictures where people are half the size they used to be. I love the Fitness section of Pinterest and think, "If that person can lose 150 pounds, 20 should be easy!" So here I am 7 days into 2012 and ready to commit and challenge myself!
In order to lose 20 pounds in 2 months, I will need to lose about 2-2.5 pounds per week. This is a very realistic healthy goal as long as you are doing it the right way, according to webmd.

MY PLAN:

EXERCISE-
-DO INSANITY 6 DAYS A WEEK
-WALK/JOG 3-5 MILES WHEN THE WEATHER PERMITS

DIET-
-PLAN 2 WEEKS WORTH OF HEALTHY MEALS
-KEEP AN ACCURATE FOOD JOURNAL
-DRINK MY GREEN/PROTEIN DRINK AT LEAST ONCE (if not twice) A DAY
-EAT 3 MEALS/2 SNACKS PER DAY
-EAT ALL GRAINS/FRUIT BEFORE 4PM (then only veggies and lean proteins)
-DON'T EAT ANYTHING AFTER 7 PM
-ALLOW MYSELF ONE "SPLURGE" MEAL PER WEEK

Current stats (weight (gulp), measurements and before picture) to follow.

About Me

2012-01-07T09:14:00.000-08:00

I am not a fan of dieting (which explains why I have been overweight for the last 9 years). When I was younger I was always active and busy with athletics, I could eat what I wanted without worrying too much. After I got married, I was happy and got fat fast! Luckily, I married a sweet and loving husband who really loves ME and never made me feel bad about it. Whenever I attempted to "get in shape" he was always supportive and never disappointed when I didn't follow through. Fast forward 5 years, and I got into the "having babies stage". I didn't see the point in working my butt off to only gain it back 18-24 months later. At my heaviest, I weighed 175 lbs (that was before I ever got pregnant)! For my small 5'6" frame, that was a lot of extra weight.
After our 3rd baby I decided "I AM READY!" It took me months just to prepare myself mentally for the task (so many voices in my head saying, "You don't have it in you!"). Once I wrapped my brain around the idea, I signed up for a half marathon with a very good friend. In 4 months I went from anti-runner to finisher! I paid closer attention to what I ate because if I ate like crap I felt it in my training, but I was not very good at committing to a strict caloric intake because I thought, "I'm burning it off!" During my training I did lose 15 pounds, which showed me that that I COULD do it and I didn't have to "accept" my out of shape post baby body!
I went back to college last year and started with a required nutrition class. I thought I was pretty knowledgeable about nutrition and fitness (even though I didn't make use of the information), but I learned so much in the class and hope to share some of that knowledge in this blog. It definitely helped in my training.
As of today, I work out 4-5 (or at the very least 3 times a week- minus the lazy/binge week over Christmas Break). I walk/jog for an hour or do 45-60 mins Insanity. I keep an eye on what I eat, but I am addicted to eating out (Papa John's Veggie Lovers Pizza, In-N-Out and Costa Vida)! I DO drink a spinach/whey/fruit smoothie once a day to balance it out, but I know that my diet is what has stood in my way of REAL results. I let myself off of the hook to easily and reward myself too often with treats.
I am a 30 year old wife and mother of three (5, 3 and almost 2 years old), going to college 1/2 time, and a total "foodie"!