pre-game update

You are probably totally confused by the title of this blog post.

pre-game update...what the heck?

let me clarify

Last week I told you that I was starting the Tone It Up Bikini Series and that I would post weekly updates. Since I started on a Wednesday and it was the middle of the week, I'm calling it my pre-game week. It was like my little warm-up before the real hardcore 8 week long bikini series stuff. Ya know, cuz I'm hardcore like that.

Here is my update:

- Worked out 3 times last week

- Ate healthy about 80% of the time

- 2 cheat meals and 2 cheat desserts (that is two, too many!)

Total Weight Lost: 2.2 pounds!

Goals for Week 1: 

- Only one cheat meal and one cheat dessert

- Workout 6 times

-Give it my all during workouts

Here are the workouts for this week!

Monday: Biker Babes

I did the Biker Babes workout yesterday and it was killer, I definitely recommend it!

Tuesday: Sunseeker Workout + Sunkissed Abs + 20 minutes of cardio  

Wednesday: Cocktail Dress Workout + Sunset Workout + Booty Workout from DVD

Thursday: Itty Bitty Cardio + Under the Sea Workout

Friday: MaliBooty Workout + 30 minutes of cardio

Saturday: 45 minute run

Sunday: Go on a bike ride or a hike

I hope you all enjoy these workouts! I really feel like they target specific muscles and I always feel the burn. And the cardio workouts are INTENSE! Whenever I want to just quit and die I imagine Karena & Katrina...

And then I keep running and thinking about how confident I'll feel laying poolside.

Keep it up beach babes!!

bikini series

Guess what? Remember a couple weeks ago I said that I was going to eat healthy 90% of the time? Well that most definitely did not happen. I have been eating so bad lately (I'm talking pizza, soda, and cookies whenever I please!) It all started when I took my cheat day on a Monday, let me tell it's a bad idea and I will not be doing it anytime soon. Monday habits set the tone for your week and when you start it off with an unhealthy day of eating it just doesn't work. So after that day I kind of just fell off the bandwagon. I was focusing a lot on blogging and I starting spending my time doing that instead of working out.

The thing about working out and eating healthy is that I really want to make it my lifestyle. I know that with this sort of thing you have to get back up and try again when you fail. You can't let it get you down. So did I eat poorly and work out only a few times in the last three weeks? Yes. Will I continue to let myself do that? No! I really like this picture below, because this is where I'm at right now. Last month I lost 11 pounds, 11 pounds people!! I've gained back 3 which I think is just from not working out and not eating healthy but more importantly I don't want all of my hard work to be for nothing. I don't want to start over. I feel so much more confident about myself. My 'skinny clothes' fit perfectly and some of the my regular clothes are too loose. It is so exciting when you can actually feel and see results.

Last week, I got an email from Tone It Up, if you've read my other workout posts you would know that I'm obsessed with them! They are these super upbeat, positive, and sweet girls who post workouts, videos, and healthy recipes on their blog. Every year around this time they do a Bikini Series. It's an 8 week program and they provide a workout schedule and videos of new workouts. Basically it's planned right before summer so you can get that bikini summer bod, yes please! This series could not have come at a better time, I'm starting a week late but I think this will be the perfect thing to get me motivated. Summer is in just two, short months! I want to be in tip top shape and their workouts are killer, but in a good way. I always feel the burn and I always feel like I'm getting the most out of my workout. I'm starting the plan today which means I will be finished June 26th, just in time to head to the pool and lay out! 

Here are the workouts for this week if you want to join me please join me, I would love to have an accountability partner!

Wednesday: Bikini Cardio + Sunkissed Abs 

Thursday: Bikini Strap Workout + HIIT the Beach {This workout is from their DVD, if you don't have it just do 30 minutes of cardio.}

Friday: Foam Magazine Workout

Saturday: Bikini Cardio {Same as Wednesday} + Itty Bitty Bikini Abs 

Sunday: Sunday Runday! Run for 40 minutes! Pair with Long and Lean from the Beach Babe DVD

There are the workouts I'll be doing for the rest of the week! They are really tough, I can already tell I am going to have to modify the slower jogging part to some walking on the Bikini Cardio workout because I haven't run in a few weeks but who cares? If you have to modify these or if you can't get through the workout the first time, keep trying, you'll get better. Even in just a week, I could see improvements while doing their workout DVD. Just stick with it! As far as eating goes, I'm not following any specific plan. I'm just going to try to eat healthy and aim for 1200 calories a day. I am also giving myself the option to have a 'free' 200 calories a day which means that I will allow myself 200 calories of anything I want to eat. If I decide to use them I think it will help my avoid bingeing and if I don't at least I had the option! I will also have a cheat meal/treat each week. Depending on how many free calories I used will depend on what kind of cheat meal I have.

Here are my goals for the 8 week series:

1. Tone up...everywhere!

2. Lose 7 pounds/Goal Weight: 135 {If you can do simple addition you just found out how much I weigh} 

3. Eat clean

4. Feel confident in a bathing suit!

I will be posting the workouts for the plan each week just in case you want to follow along. I will also be checking in and giving you weekly updates about my fitness journey. I think this will help me be more accountable since I am announcing it publicly! I call it a journey because it is an ongoing challenge for me to be healthy and it is something that I am constantly trying to be better at. 

Hope you join me during the next 8 weeks, we can do it!

Don't forget to enter for your chance to win a $125 gift card from either J.Crew, Loft, Old Navy or Gap - winners choice! Just simply use the rafflecopter below to enter!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

lifestyle change

Hey guys! I just wanted to give you all an update on how my healthy eating and working out has been going. A few weeks ago I posted my one month progress which you can read about here. Since then I have decided to make a conscious change with regards to my eating and workout habits. I decided that I wanted to change my lifestyle. Instead of calling it my "diet" I wanted to make it my lifestyle. Instead of counting calories I wanted to just eat healthy in general. Instead of working out to lose weight I wanted to workout to get toned and keep my body healthy.

A Lifestyle Change

All of the things that I talked about in my first post are great tools for helping you lose weight. However, I think once you learn about what to eat you get a general feel for what you should be eating, when you should be eating, and how much you should be eating. The more you do things the more naturally they come to you. This is why I have decided to try to eat healthy 90% of the time. Instead of having a specific day set aside to have a "cheat day" I will just cheat if it's something that I'm really craving. This might not sound like a good idea to some but it makes sense to me logically. The downside of having a specified cheat day is that I end up eating way too much all day long and then craving sweets on all of the other days I don't get them. Now if I feel like going out to eat or having a treat I won' t have to wait until my cheat day and end up going overboard. I think that if you make a decision to be healthy most of the time then you can be successful, just remember to have self-control. Here is what I might eat on a normal day:

Breakfast: Whole Wheat Eggo's + Sugar Free Syrup // 190 Calories

Snack: Banana + 1 Tablespoon Peanut Butter // 190 Calories

Lunch: Turkey Sandwich // 200 Calories

Snack: Cheese Stick + Orange // 130 Calories

Dinner: Grilled Salmon + Veggies // 400 Calories

Dessert: Vita Top // 100 Calories ---> This is such a yummy, low cal dessert, plus it really tastes like a brownie!!

These Tone It Up girls will kick your butt into shape!

Avoiding a Plateau 

I also decided to change up my workouts a little so that I don't hit a plateau. I also was getting bored with my old workouts and something new is always more exciting, even when it's working out! I have decided to do longer runs, more HIIT {High Intensity Interval Training}, and more focused toning routines. For the HIIT workouts and longer workout {the one on Saturday} I am using the Beach Babe DVD from the Tone It Up girls. For Arms, Abs, Legs, and Booty workouts I will link up some of their videos that I use from YouTube! Here is what my new workout schedule will look like, feel free to start this plan with me!

Monday: Run 4 miles

Tuesday: HIIT workout, Arms + Abs workout

Wednesday: Run 4 miles

Thursday: HIIT workout, Booty + Legs workout

Friday: Run 4 miles

Saturday: Cardio + Strength Training Workout for 45 minutes

Alright ladies, I hope this helped! If you have questions about anything or want me to talk about specific health related topics, please let me know!

month one progress

I am excited to announce that I have kept at least one of my resolutions that I made back in January! A little over a month ago I decided that I wanted to start working out and eating healthier. Why you ask? I didn't think I was super fat or anything but I did feel like I had some extra pudge to lose. Let's say that I didn't love those love handles so much! I was also eating way to much junk food that was making me tired and bloated. Plus, summer is right around the corner and I want to feel confident this year!! After my first 30 days in I posted my progress pics on instagram and one of my sisters said that I should blog about some tips for eating healthy and working out. So far I have lost 7.6 pounds!!! Now I am not a nutritionist or a workout pro but I do try to read about the things that are best for trying to lose weight. There are lots of good articles I've read when searching things on Pinterest just in case you're interested!

Before and After

Body for Life

A little bit of background about my trying to lose weight in the past, I did Body for Life almost three summers ago, about a year ago I did the whole counting calories things, and this time I've done counting calories for the most part. When I did Body for Life I lost about 15 pounds which was very doable considering I ate way too much junk food as a poor college student. Can you say McDonalds and Krispy Kreme?? Yes you can and I ate from those places at least twice a week. Gross! I really liked Body for Life because it taught me a lot about nutrition and the different between protein and carbs and how to pair them together for each meal. With that plan I ate breakfast, lunch, dinner, and three snack each day. I would definitely recommend this for beginners who want to learn about nutrition. Also, I still felt like I got to eat a lot.

Counting Calories

Last year when I counted calories and started to workout I lost about 13 pounds but once I moved back to CA and started planning my wedding I didn't have the time, energy, or desire to work out {strange since it was my wedding where there would be a million pictures of me}.This time around I have just been doing the same thing that worked for me last time, counting calories and working out. I find myself eating about 5 times a day and I eat 1200 calories a day. I always try to eat healthy 6 days a week and then I have one cheat day a week. I have been working out about 4 times a week because sometimes I work all day on Friday and Saturday {Sunday is my rest day} but I want to up it to 6 times every week.

Tone It Up

What I have recently been reading and looking into a lot is the Tone It Up nutrition plan and workouts. The Tone It Up brand stems from two trainers/nutritionists who have created workouts, a nutrition plan, and even a protein powder. They have got some killer bods and I pretty much just want to look at them. They are definitely my inspiration this summer!

Yesterday I just purchased their Beach Babe DVD and I already did one of their workouts today for my leg day and it was super tough but I really liked it!! They have what they call their "fine toning method" which is basically doing small exercises once you already feel like you need a break. Let me tell you my thighs were on fire, no joke! Has anyone purchased their nutrition plan? It is pretty expensive so I want to do more research on it. Please let me know if you have tried it and recommend it!

8 Tips 

{that I think will help}

1. Drink lots of water!! 

You are supposed to drink half your body weight in fluid ounces {so if you weigh 150 lbs you would need to drink 75 ounces of water each day} I've noticed that with drinking a glass or two with each meal makes me feel more full.

2. Calorie Tracking Apps

Use apps that help track calories so you can know how many you have for the day. This also helps you get a sense of how many calories are in certain types of food. I use My Fitness Pal and it's great...and free!

3. Less is More

Smaller meals are better. I aim for 5-6 meals a day. It helps with your metabolism if you eat every 2-3 hours.

4. Music is your friend

Listen to upbeat music when you work out, it makes such a difference when I run to fun music!

5. Strength Training is important too

Don't forget strength training!! Weights are made to be used by girls too. It won't make you look like a gross muscley body builder lady either! Balance cardio with using weights for a toned, fit bod!

6. Cheat a little

Have one cheat day or meal once a week or else you will totally cave and binge.{maybe that's just me though...}

7. Change for yourself! 

If you're going to change it has to be because you want to and for nobody else. 

8. Don't be a quitter 

Guess what? You are gonna cheat and eat junk food or be too busy to workout sometimes! Guess what? Get back on the bandwagon and do better the next day. Don't quit!!

Now that I've blogged your ear off, what tips and tricks do you have for me? 

Comment and let me know if you want more info about what I've been eating or what my workouts are like!

new year's resolutions

This post is much overdue but here are a list of some of my New Year's Resolutions. 

{in picture form, because that's just easier}

Be back in a year to see how I did.

time to....