WorkOut Wednesdays

THE 12 WEEK CHALLENGE

I am more than just a little late about starting this "New Years Resolution" but in this case late is better than never. I am extremely goal oriented and the idea of working out just to workout... well it exhausts me before I even start. So I am usually too tired to get in the car to go to the gym. (Yes, I know fatigue is a HUGE sign of being out of shape. I have HIGH hopes that working out will give me the extra energy that I desire need.

To give into the "goal oriented" side of me there is a time limit on my workout regimen. I do have hopes that by the end of my 12 weeks that working out will have become a habit or at least routine enough so that I don't feel like I should be doing something else instead.

I don't know about you but I need a bit lots of extra motivation to keep me going so I will try to post about these things that help motivate me on Wednesdays.

WEEK 1 IDEAS

• Keep yourself motivated by hanging a bulletin or magnetic board for posting exercise information in your workout space.
• Use the board to hold your exercise routine, inspirational photos or quotations, and a chart for tracking your progress.
• If you don't have wall space for an information board, use a three-ring binder instead.
• I have chosen to some of my inspiration on the mirror in my bathroom. It is the first thing I see and it encourages me for all the right reasons. This will hopefully keep me positive about working out and prevent me from dreading it. (I don't dread the workout itself. I usually dread the amount of time it takes to go workout and I feel like I'm getting behind in all the other things that I should be doing. For some reason I NEVER feel that way about blogging... That is probably due to all the sweet comments and feedback that I receive from all of you. I LOVE THE INTERNET. My only regret here is not discovering blogging earlier.

Now I have to admit I will be cheating!! I am getting my workout routine from my sister, Kristen. She is a personal trainer by profession. You ask why I haven't taken advantage of this opportunity before... TIME. To visit her gym, I would have to drive 30 minutes to get there, workout for 45 minutes, then 30 minutes back home, then shower & get ready, which is another 30 minutes... working out would have taken up 2 hours & 15 minutes of my day. Then if I have any errands in the city I would have to drive 30 minutes back again (I wouldn't want to run those errands without a shower) plus add in child care and gas and the issue becomes TIME and MONEY. To sum it all up... that is why.

However the sweetest little bundle of joy, my new niece, Koah Hope, has provided me with a wonderful opportunity. Kristen, due to her HIGHLY motivated self (that's why she's good at what she does), is determined to get her awesome pre-baby body back. She was not obsessed with her body while she was pregnant instead she was more concerned with making sure her baby received all the nourishment and nutrition that she needed. (This incredibly healthy baby had a 9.9 APGAR result; she is already off to a great start). Consequently Kristen gained some pregnancy weight. I am so proud of her for this. I have seen too many mom's obsess about their weight & then the babies have health issues. You don't get the opportunity to grow THAT healthy child again but you CAN always work out & loose the weight. WHOA! I need to get back on track. So ANYWAY, now that she just had a baby 5 days ago, she will begin the 12 weeks with a LIGHT workout only lasting ten minutes. She will be telling me over the phone what to do so I can workout at home. I'm loving this! Time and Money are on my side. The time and the intensity will increase gradually as her body heals but she is wanting the workouts to remain around 30-45 minutes. (This will vary depending on the results that she will be receiving). Once she develops the exercise program she is planning on marketing it. She is just wrapping up the production of her pregnancy workout videos... hmm. I foresee a future contest or giveaway here).

As we all know working out without changing your eating habits may help your heart but it won't help the condition of your body. Instead you will feel like you are & will be getting bigger because you will be building muscle under the 'chub" that is already there. (I am not a fan of the word fat). So I will be... UGHHH ... changing my diet. SOB! SOB! No more cheese fries. SOB, cheese burgers, (the tears are streaming down my face at this point), or junk food. I am still in search for healthy family recipes (I'm not going to cook seperate meals for each of us. Besides, it will be good for all of them as well to start eating healthy). As I find good ones I will post recipes & share them. If any of you have any good healthy recipes, please.. I beg you... please share with me.

As I said earlier, Kristen will probably be marketing the 12 week (post-baby) workout so unfortunately I can't give you the detailed exercises but I do have permission to share the general areas & times that we are working out so that if you want to follow the challenge you can. Please let me know if anyone is interested in working out with us & I will set up a Mr. Linky so we can all read each others posts & gripe about it together follow the progress together.