Two Weeks Down, Five to Go!

So two weeks ago I embarked on a new journey as a Mamavation Mom. It has been eye opening to say the least! Having my workouts planned out for me each day has been great. Instead of trying to find some way to motivate myself, I simply open my binder to the correct week and see what Mr. BookieBoo has planned for me. The diet plan I am following was prepared for my by Alysa of InspiredRD. We are using the exchange system to measure out portions and plan meals. As much as it was a tad bit confusing at first, I actually really like this method of eating. And I can tell you I am eating more food than I had in a really long time! It's crazy, eat more, weigh less. Who knew! You can follow along with my progress here or here.

This past week has been a flurry of activity. Between all of my Mamavation workouts, Sign language class, Cub Scouts, Girl Scouts, my photography business, my Thirty-One business, and Bella's eighth birthday, our schedule was jam-packed.  I cannot even begin to describe the joy I will feel when school is out and we can slow down a bit! But not yet, we still have just about 3 weeks left! In that time we have a Relay for Life event, Bella's Dance recital, Cub Scout and Girl Scout activities and events, more sign language classes, and end of the school year events!

I am really excited about our upcoming Relay for Life event. Both my mom's parents lost their battles to cancer, and my husband's Aunt is currently in remission, so this is a cause that is near and dear to my heart. I had participated years ago, but hadn't in recent years, so I was thrilled when my local running group decided to have a team. So far we have raised over $2,900 for Relay for Life!! My personal goal was to raise $100, and thus far I am at $85. If you would like to help us out and make a donation you can do so right here. Thanks again for following along and supporting me in my journey! 

Hello Again

So last week on Monday I was waiting on pins and needles for an announcement. For the revelation of who had been chosen to be the next three Mamavation Moms. Unfortunately, the Twitter party we had planned on never happened. I can't say I mind, it was the right thing to do.

Earlier that day the Boston Marathon was well under way. I was sitting outside sanding down a chair while Grayson played with his water table. And then the unthinkable happened.It's been hard to get back here and write. I found out on Tuesday that I was chosen as one of the Mamavation Moms to  be in the boot camp for Campaign 16. I am beyond THRILLED about this wonderful opportunity, but I am also heartbroken for the families of the victims who died Monday. And my heart is so heavy for all those who's injuries will forever change their lives.

Are you doing anything to honor the victims of the Boston Bombings? I am, I am going to participate in the Run for Boston #Anywhere5K. Anyone can do it, between April 23rd and April 30th. Just sign up, print your bib, and get out there and run!

I hope that you will continue to follow my progress as I embark on a 7 week boot camp! I know I can reach my goals. As I am nearing the end of week one I am finding that I feel better already!

Before you go I wanted to share the blog posts for myself and my co-moms! You can find them by clicking here: Erica,  Lindsay , and myself!

The Final Countdown

So tomorrow  (Monday) night there will be a Twitter party for Campaign 16, and at the end Leah will be announcing the three new Mamavation Moms! Will one of them be me? I sure hope so, but won't know until then! If you would like to join in the fun, just RSVP here. In addition to finding out who the new Mamavation moms will be, there will be fun and prizes!

This past week as a finalist was a lot of fun. Each day brought new challenges with the hazing. I have been sore all over every day. But it is a good sore! I weighed in this morning and was pleased to see I was down 1 lb since last week. I was SO HAPPY to see the scale move again after nearly 3 weeks of no losses! I am hoping that I will see some bigger movements next week. I really think that for me, the key to weight loss is to keep changing things up and keep my body guessing. Every time I revert to that I lose weight.

This week I :
Ran:
  16 miles (ran a 5K and had a PR of 34:11)
  415 burpees
  450 squats
  235 lunges per side
  128 v-ups
  8 x 1 minute planks
  60 thrusters 
  9 x 1 min Feet of fire
  100 jumping jacks

I think there might have actually been more than that, but I must be honest and say I didn't have it all logged in my journal, so I misght have missed something here or there. But as you can see, I have had quite a busy week! Of all the things listed above I think the hardest are the burpees and the v-ups. Bu they are also VERY effective! You can feel the burn for sure! As hard as they are I LOVE them! 

Another huge highlight of my week this week was being featured as The Sista of the Week on the Mamavation forums. It was a huge honor and a great boost to push through the hazing this past week! 

I was trolling around on FB earlier and I saw a picture posted that I had been tagged in back at Christmas. I had promptly untagged myself because I thought, "OMG what an unflattering picture!" In reality, I just hadn't come to grips yet with the weight that had crept on over the summer and fall months. This is that picture:

This picture was taken at Christmas. And no the food in front of me was not all mine, but it might as well have been. I've always had the attitude that if I was hungry I would eat, if not I wouldn't. I wasn't going to deprive myself. As time went on though, I wreaked havoc on my metabolism by chronically under-eating the right things and then overloading one carbs and sweets. Since I joined Mamavation I have learned a LOT about the foods I was putting into my body, and I am getting a better handle on what I need to change. I need to fuel my workouts! After this picture was taken, and after I joined Mamavation, I began making changes. I changed the way I work out, I changed how often I worked out, and I changed the way I eat. I have lost 17.2 lbs since January 9th! I still have 25-30 lbs to go to reach my goal weight, and I know I can do it.  So regardless of the outcome of tomorrow's Twitter party, I am still planning to be a big part of Mamavation and I still plan to keep pushing myself to reach my weight loss and fitness goals.

Thanks for cheering me on along the way, I truly appreciate your support!

How do you do it?

We've all had those days, you know the ones. You can't seem to get moving. Your motivation is somewhere between non-existent and LOW.What do you do to keep moving?

I have struggled with this before, especially in the weeks and month following the births of my children. It was so easy to just turn the TV on to Dora the Explorer and lay on the couch while the kids watched TV and played in the living room. And fresh home cooked meals? Yeah, those are great. But so is Stouffer's Mac and Cheese, all 8000 calories of it! It's just so much easier than trying to get motivated to get in the kitchen and prepare a healthy, balanced meal.It was easy to let the housework go, but in the end it got done. The cooking is a work in progress, but we are moving in the right direction. Letting my body go, on the other hand, that was a bit harder to take back than a pile of dishes or laundry.

Some of the things I have found that have helped to keep me motivated each day to keep myself up and moving:


1) Get dressed from head to toe. Whether I am getting dressed to go on morning run, or just dressed to go anywhere, I get so much more accomplished!

2) Make a list. Don't worry if you don't check off every item. But having a list helps you to visualize all the things you need to do each day. It especially helps if you do not crumble up said list and throw it in the trash. I leave mine on the counter until it's done.

3. If you are a busy mama like myself, learn to cook! I don't mean to imply that you don't already know how. But I know, the things I thought I knew about cooking were sorely lacking! Cooking larger batches of a meal and freezing it has been such a help for those days I lack the time or motivation to prepare a full meal, and it saves my family from eating crap! Also, have you tried crock-pot recipes? There are approximately 367 million amazing things that can be made in a crock pot. While you work, or while you sleep, or while you do yard work! Crock pots are amazing!

4.  Get moving! Go for a walk. Go for a run.  Do a workout DVD, go to the gym, go to a boot-camp. Do something. Just make sure that you are moving around and not settled in one spot for hours on end. I know sometimes I will think of every possible excuse I can to avoid a workout, but I will force myself to do it. And I promise you every single time I am so glad I did the workout.

So I hope these ideas might help you to keep moving. What other suggestion do you have?

Mamavation Monday: And so it is..

So last night I waited up hoping to find out if I might have made it was one of the five finalists for Mamavation Mom. I was super exhausted from the day's workout, as the hazing (from Saturday evening) included 4 sets of 15 thrusters, 4 sets of 25 burpees, 3 one min planks, 2 sets of 25 v-ups and then another (for Sunday) 4 sets of 25 burpees. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday I was camping with my daughter and her girl scout camp, so when I saw the hazing posted Saturday night, darkness had already fallen and I felt it would be safer to do the workout in the morning, when I could see what I was doing! I got home nice and early and got right to it. A few hours later I saw the Sunday hazing posted and thought, dear God why didn't I just do those burpees at camp hahaha! By the time I finished them I was totally wiped out! It felt AMAZING to be so exhausted though! I took a shower and put on some fresh clothes and we headed to the park with the kids. So by the time I had fed, bathed, and tucked the kiddies into bed I was already beyond tired. I began the waiting game of checking Twitter, FB, and Google+, as well as Mamavation.com for the big announcement. But I just couldn't hang and eventually I passed out. So imagine my surprise and excitement when I awoke this morning and saw THIS!

I am so honored and thrilled to be a finalist! This means the next week will be spent busting my butt, working out, eating right, pushing myself as hard as I possibly can in my quest to be one of the chosen three. I would love if you could show me some support during this time! Also, the big announcement will be made on Monday April 15th during a live Twitter Party from 8 pm to 9:30 pm EST.

So I need to get up my before pictures, and measurements, but I do have my weight. I am starting out at 155. I had a slight weight gain, which is disappointing, I was 154.6, so 0.4 lb gain. I will take it though, as I have been noticing some more muscle definition this week in my legs for sure! My ultimate goal weight is 130lbs. That is not my pre-pregnancy weight, but a weight I am comfortable with, and given the fact that I am developing muscles, I think this is something I can work towards! MY biggest problem is my diet, and I have been working hard at trying to tweak it! Any advice is appreciated!  I am so excited for this opportunity, I really hope I make it!!