Ab Circle Pro Challenge

I feel like my family collects fitness equipment. We should all be in better shape. One of the pieces of fitness furniture we have in our house is the Ab Circle Pro. I've used it a few times, but not consistantly, so I'm going to try it out for the next 14 days because their claim is that you should see results in 2 weeks or your money back. So, here are the rules of the challenge.

1. Take measurements-will not share what they are, but just know they've been taken and logged in a personal log book.
2. Use Ab Circle Pro at least 3 minutes per day beginning today (February 23-March 8). 3 minutes is what the ad claims or at least that's what I remember. I'm supposed to be able to see results by using this machine for 3 minutes per day. They also claim that you should lose 10 lbs in two weeks, but that involves their nutritional plan, which is a calorie restricted diet, which will make you lose weight without the addition of this equipment, so I'll also report if I've lost any weight, but inches lost around my waist is the main concern of this experiment.
3. Document all Ab Circle Pro time and days missed to be fair.
4. Document all other physical activity (cardio, yoga, etc).
5. Document all eating habits; make no major changes.

I realize that weight loss is attributed to many factors, so to be fair, the results that we are concerned with in this experiment are any positive changes in my waist line. So, I've measured my waist, and will measure again on March 9, 2011 to see if there have been any changes. Look for a full account of the experiement in two weeks.

Third Week Slump

So, here's a little secret.

The third week of any diet or plan that I have is usually the toughest, especially if I haven't seen any results. So, my goals this week are to keep plugging away at last week's goals. I didn't quite meet all of them. I worked out 3 times, kept track of most of what I ate, and I ate a pretty good number of fruits/veggies. I did not to the Ab Circle 10-Day Challenge, or do a single yoga work out.

However, I have found that keeping this blog and my food/exercise journal keeps me pretty motivated. So, today's get motivated tip is to keep a log. Keep a log of all your activity and little victories that you've made so far. Whether you started drinking more water, tried a new veggie, or took a 10 minute walk each day, celebrate those little victories. It's a step in the right direction.

"More Beautiful You"

Love, love, love this song! Just reminds me that beauty is something everyone's born with, and my goal here is to be healthy.

Quick update: Last week, I did well with all my goals. I dressed cute every day of the week. I worked out 4 times, which exceeded my goal of 3 times. I stuck to my limit of one non-water drink per day. I only failed to keep track of what I was eating every day, but I'll try harder this week.

This week's goals:

1. Keep track of calories consumed/burned in food/exercise journal.
2. Eat more fruits and vegetables.
3. Add yoga to work-out routine (Still aiming for 3 days of cardio at least).
4. Try out Ab Circle 10-day challenge (More on that Wednesday).

On another note, I didn't see any change in my weight despite my efforts, but I feel better, and I'm proud that I met 3 of my 4 goals, so I'm pushing forward. Looking forward to a great week.

Workout Wednesday

One of my biggest struggles in this weight loss journey is finding the time and/or the motivation to work out. I'm can usually go a week or two with pretty consistant work outs, but then I start getting lazy or busy with school. I'm often using school as an excuse, but I need to work on being more disciplined in all areas of my life.

So, for the first Workout Wednesday post, here are some general tips to stay motivated and active:

• Fit exercise into your schedule. Everyone's busy these days, but if have spare time at all, use it get some activity. Take a 10 minute walk or hula hoop during commercial breaks (that's what I do). Just remember that something is always better than nothing.
• Buddy up! Meet with a buddy to go to the gym or walk or run together. Having a partner helps to keep both of you motivated and accountable.
• Work at your own pace. If you're just starting out, don't over do it. A healthy lifestyle is a marathon, not a sprint.
• Log your time. This is a great way to keep track of how much exercise you're getting in, and it's a good way to stay motivated.
• Variety is the spice of life. Don't just stick to the same boring routine unless it works for you. I know that I get bored doing the same thing every week, so I try different videos, classes, and work outs from time to time.

So far, I've only been to the gym once because I had class and homework last night, but my goal for the week is to work out 3 times at least. I have one work out down and 2 to go. Planning on hitting the gym after class tonight because it's a great way for me to de-stress at the end of a busy day.

What do you do to stay motivated and active?

First Motivation Monday

"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." -- Chinese Proverb

Over the past weekend, I've really been thinking about this Beautiful at Any Size project and what I'd like to accomplish. I have two main goals:

1. To live a healthier life, lose weight, and love the life I'm living.
2. To inspire others to do the same.

So, Mondays are hereby "Motivation Mondays," and each week I'll post my goals for the week and something encouraging to get the week started. Wednesdays will be Workout Wednesdays where I'll write about different workouts that I've heard about or am trying out. And finally, Fridays will be my Food and Fun day, and I'll post fun, healthy recipes and post some fun ways to spend the weekend. My life is pretty jam packed, but I think I can manage at least 3 blog posts a week, and maybe more if I feel inspired.

Enough introductions, onto today Motivation Monday!
I don't know about you, but when I woke up this morning, I asked myself "Is it really Monday already?" But I pressed through that feeling because I know that today will be a wonderful day. And to make sure of that, I decided to start my week by wearing something that makes me feel good. So, I slipped on a purple wrap-around dress and headed out the door. Unfortunately, I did not check the weather, so I'm a little chilly, but I feel great, and I look fantastic! I'm combating "a case of the Mondays" with one of my favorite outfits and a positive attitude.

My Goals for the Week:
1. Keep track of my food intake on my food/exercise blog.
2. Work out at least three times this week.
3. Limit my non-water drinks to one a day.
4. Dress my best every day this week.

This is all very manageable right now, but as the weeks go on, I'll start putting together more challenging goals. Looking forward to my journey, and I hope you're looking forward to yours whatever it may be.

New Year New Me

I know, I know. It's been a new year for a month. However, I am half Vietnamese and today is actually the Lunar New Year, so Ha!

In college, I had this idea to write a book called "Beautiful at Any Size," which was going to be partly about my journey to better health and a resource on how to dress for your body, highlight your best features, cultivate inner beauty, and be beautiful no matter what size you're currently at. I think sometimes our culture says that "You're not beautiful unless ______" and you can fill in the blank. Well, my intention with the book was to counteract this myth and turn the focus of weight loss to being healthy, not becoming beautiful.

Clearly, the book never came to fruition, and even though I'm lighter now than I've ever been college, I still have a long way till I'm at a healthy weight. So, I'm going to bold and open up about my own struggle and journey in hopes of encouraging others. I'm taking my ideas for my book and putting it online instead. Obviously, I'm still in the beginning stages of this, but I will get organized. Ideally, I will post my food journal for the day, mostly for my benefit so I can keep track of my own intake, and for accountability in a sense. Maybe if I force myself to post every day what I'm eating, I'll be able to watch what I eat a little better. I'll also post an exercise log. I'll have weekly weigh-ins for myself and pictures of my progress. My dream for this is to be an exercise in accountability and encouragement. Knowing that I'm going to post everything I'm eating each day in my Food/Exercise Journal will hopefully keep me from being tempted to overeat and encourage me to exercise. Then, additionally, I'll comment on what works for me, what keeps me going, and what inspires me, so that maybe you'll be inspired and encourage in your own journey. I'm taking the weekend to regroup and figure out what I want this to be, and hopefully, things will be up and running next week.

Until next time!