My Favorite FitnessBlender Workouts

I love working out with FitnessBlender on youtube! I have been working out with them since I started this journey in January. I highly recommend them! They have over 350 full length videos to choose from ranging from beginner to advanced.

One of the first videos I started doing was low impact cardio. Twenty-two minutes of quiet, no bounce cardio. There is not a warm up or cool down included but you can easily add one yourself.


I also love a good kickboxing session! Punch and kick out your aggression! Get out of here fat!

A few months ago I started doing tabata or HIIT workouts. They are my favorite go-to workouts. HIIT stands for high intensity interval training. The great thing about these workouts are that you do them at your intesity level. So pretty much anyone can follow along. I can't do a lot jumping so I typically modify when needed.


If you don't have a much time, FitnessBlender has more than a handful of quick workouts. Sometimes I do a quick video before work and a quick one after work if I am pressed for time.

Here are links to my favorite workouts. Enjoy.
Quiet Cardio Low Impact
Fat Blasting butt and Abs Tabatta
Crunchless Abs Workout
Cardio Kickboxing
Barre Workout for Butt and Thighs 
Tank Top Arms Round 2 


Weigh-in update! I weighed in on Friday 12.16.16 and I was down two pounds for the week. That's a total of 59 lbs! I'm under 180 which was my first mini goal. Guess it's time to set some more goals!

Importance of Journaling

Some women love shoes...I love journals and notebooks! I love putting pen to paper. I have my food journal with me at all times. Only way for me to track properly. I usually have a smaller notebook about 5x7 or a smidge smaller. This way it can easily fit into my purse.

I also keep a prayer journal. I find it easier to talk to God this way. Usually if I start to pray out loud (technically in my head) next thing you know I'm over in left field off on another tangent. Writing helps me stay focused on the Lord and to show all of my gratitude...and of course pray!

I only have a few pages left in my prayer and food journals. You know what that means! I got to take a stroll down the stationary aisle. I ended up with two new journals and then two super cute composition notebooks. I couldn't decide which I liked best...so I got them all.

My prayer journal has the scripture of Psalms 118:24 on the front. "This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it". In love! I usually get up about 5:30 am to start my day and this will be a great reminder to be joyful!

The "yes you can" composition notebook will be my goals notebook. I am starting to write my goals in 12 week increments. As I accomplish goals and find things that aren't working I will need to update them. Three months seems like a great time to re-evaluate. 

The "anything is possible" composition notebook is just for funsies right now.  Who knows. I am sure I can assign a purpose to it.

I pulled a muscle in my left quad so I have been taking it easy today. I happen to have an appointment scheduled with a massage therapist tomorrow but I don't know if that will help? I will talk to her bout it. This is the first time I have had a pulled quad. lol Other than magnesium oil and a bit of heat I'm not sure what to do with it.

While I rest up I am going to start writing in my notebooks. Making my goals super official. To achieve your dreams you must turn them into goals. Then turn your goals into affirmations. Writing time!

Affirmations: Helping Affirm Who You Want to Be!

Somehow along the way we pick up negative thoughts about ourselves. They could have been given to us by others or we create them. I struggle with negative thoughts on a daily basis.

Affirmations have helped me be successful in the past. I just got out of the habit of saying them. I am excited to start them again. 

I have learned from my experiences in the past that affirmations should be phrased positively, be in the present tense and be possessive. They do not have to be super elaborate but they need to be specific. Envision how you want to be and then speak to yourself as if you are already that way. These help us to see ourselves in a new way.

Affirm the positive behavior that you want. Say your affirmations to yourself daily. You can say them as you drift off to sleep at night, when you wake up and throughout the day. Repetition will make them a reality.
 
My Affirmations:

• I am happy and enjoy each day.
• I am worthy of love.
• I have a healthy self-image.
• I have the desire and motivation to be healthy in body, mind and spirit. 
• I enjoy exercising and I am full of energy. 
• I have control of my anxiety and I remain calm when stressed. 
• I am working daily on becoming the person I want to be.  

I am struggling with my anxiety and being tired all of the time so I tried to write my affirmations to work on those things. I am going to my doctor tomorrow for my wellness visit and I am going to talk to her about always being tired. I am sure it's related to my PCOS but I wonder if there is something I can do other than what I am already doing.

Today was the first day to recite my new affirmations. I am going to do these for the next 30 days and see if there are any changes. I encourage you to write your own affirmations or use the ones above.

The Journey Begins...

I am ashamed when I look in the mirror. My weight, my size, my fat is the results of my emotions…my inability to control the guilt and pain I have. The saying, “what you eat in private, you wear in public”, couldn’t be truer for me. When I’m sad, anxious, overwhelmed, or depressed I eat. When the past tries to escape the surface of my subconscious, I eat. Sometimes I eat until I feel guilty or even sick and I forget about the past…at least temporarily. 

I am tired of the cycle. I want healing. I’ve been here before. I have the knowledge of how to lose weight. It’s putting it in action. I’ve been working on my “lifestyle” change for six months so far (this time around anyways). I am currently stuck at 202. It’s been about 2 months since I have made any real progress. I am so close to entering ONEderland. I don’t know what’s holding me back. I really thought this would be the week…I worked so hard this last week. I know my sleep was lacking at times and I had a binge night that didn’t end well. But I picked myself up the next day and got back on track.

 

I’ve lost 35 lbs. over the last six months which is progress and for that I am happy. This plateau feels like failure though. I cried so hard after realizing that this was NOT the week for this stepping stone on my journey. It’s a BIG stepping stone though. I haven’t been below 200 lbs. in quite some time. It’s time to move forward. Fall down seven times, stand up eight. It can just be so hard sometimes…but so is being unhealthy and overweight. I have to continue for my kiddos, for my husband and for myself. I know that when I take care of myself I can take better care of them. I want to have energy to get things done, mark off my to-do lists. I want to keep my house clean. I want to enjoy time with my family. I want to have a happy and productive life. 

 My journey has just begun. I am ready to be the best me I can be and the best wife and momma I was meant to be. It will be a balancing act I’m sure but I’m up for the challenge. Join me in this adventure. It’s gonna be crazy at times, emotionally trying and downright hard. But it will be worth it. I am worth it! If you’re reading this, you are worth it too! 

We have one life to live and one body to live it in. We must take care of the bodies we’ve been given or we will not have anywhere to live. Dead. Super dead. Or even worse, we’ll live miserable lives full of ailments and aches and pains. Never fully enjoying life the way it was meant to be; full of happiness and joy. I’m bound and determined to enter ONEderland and never leave!