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!