So I've been attempting to travel the road to getting fit. It's been a short journey so far but I honestly do want to have a healthier and more active lifestyle, so I've made some changes and taken some baby steps to hopefully achieve just that.
But first a little background...
You should know that I am not educated or in the know about anything health/fitness/exercise related. I am also not extreme about anything fitness related. I have never been a member of a gym or exercise class. I have (almost) never attempted any type of dieting fad. And I've never researched anything to do with getting in shape. The only somewhat extreme exercise/diet related thing I've done in my adult life is P90X... or P45X as we renamed it. Terrell and I did it together shortly after I recovered from giving birth to my firstborn. It definitely worked and was definitely effective, but was definitely not realistic. Working out 6 days a week for an hour plus just isn't going to happen here in the Selph household. Neither is maintaining a diet like the one we strived for while suffering through P90X.
Sooo, having said all that, I've always had a very simple, everything in moderation, nothing crazy- extreme type mentality when it comes to eating and exercise. And above all else it must be realistic. In my opinion it will not last unless it realistically fits into my lifestyle, routine, cooking abilities, grocery budget, etc. Will not. So I pretty much never do anything drastic or make any huge changes. Maybe that's the problem. Ha!
What I do try to do on a somewhat regular basis, and always work harder to do when I'm being especially conscious of my waist line or how my clothes are fitting (we don't own a scale), is to watch my portions, drink water at every meal except breakfast, snack healthy (granola bars, grapes, almonds), seldom order fries, eat a healthy cereal every morning, control the sweet tooth, and cook fairly healthy meals. As far as "activity" goes I've always just counted chasing after the boys or taking family walks as good enough exercise. Which isn't that much exercise at all. Which leads me to my progress and setbacks after one month of making a conscious effort to become fit.
Progress: For 3 weeks leading up to Spring Break I worked out (doing my Fitness At Home) at least twice a week. I found a realistic routine that I loved which included working out during naptime on Tuesdays and Thursdays and once on the weekends. My Tuesday/Thursday naptime workout was going great. We didn't have anywhere to be on those nights so it was okay for me to look a mess afterwards. I was able to workout while the boys were napping or while Garrison watched a show. And, I was truly making progress with the workout... going through it faster, completing the routine 3 times, and improving on my wall-sit. =) I was almost to the point of becoming addicted like everyone talks about. Yay! I was also doing better with my eating habits because I was motivated to keep calories burned from coming back.
Enter Spring Break.
Setbacks: Spring Break was a whirlwind for us. Super busy and super crazy. We traveled a ton and then I got sick. Talk about a momentum changer. And a bummer. Once our break was over I was forced to focus on getting well, recuperating from all our traveling, teaching/working/the regular routine, and Garrison's baseball schedule. So I missed 2 weeks of working out and my eating habits have been all over the place. While I was sick I ate very little, then when I felt better there was tons of Easter candy left for me to consume. I don't crave candy. Ever. Until it's in my face. I've been eating tons of little chocolate candies and/or Skittles ever since.
But this week I'm getting back on track and determined to change the momentum back for the better! I'm working out again and the Easter candy is almost gone!
Moving forward I will have to make some adjustments. Specifically every week I'll have to check Garrison's baseball schedule before I can plan for my workout days. I just can't go to practice or games looking like I do when I finish a workout. And by that point in the afternoon there is no time for a shower. The boys need my attention and so does supper. But no matter what our schedule is like I'm really going to try to make it a priority to exercise and complete my workout at least twice a week. Baby steps. That's all I can do at this point. Eventually I'm sure I'll need to change the workout itself to keep myself challenged and moving forward. The disadvantage of working out at home by myself is not having that challenge and encouragement from someone else. There's nobody here to push me but me. But for now it's progress and it's a step in the right direction.
And, don't forget portion control and smart eating. Progress begins and ends at the table. I think. At least that's my opinion. =)
Yay for already working out and exercising more in 2013 than I did in 2012!
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