On September 1st, Julie of From Awkward to Art, challenged 32 bloggers to a weight loss challenge. The idea being that we could motivate and learn from each other. On September 1st this seemed like a pretty easy challenge. Let me tell you there was nothing easy about this challenge.
I started slow, as in on the fourth of September. I started out by walking about 2 miles, three times a week. Then I realize it burned next to zero calories. That motivated me to move on to some DVD work outs. I started with Slim in Six, a program I did years ago as a bride, to get in shape before my wedding. It was a pretty good mix of cardio and weights and I did the same intro DVD for about a week. Then I moved on to Jillian, which we all know is the devil herself. I did the first level of 30 day shred for 5 days. In a row. Killer. Then I switched back to Slim in Six level 2 and I'm still doing this DVD this week.
My only issues at this point is that Slim in Six level two is 50 minutes. So some days, when getting my ass out of bed before 6 am is impossible, I cut out one or two of the work outs. Never the cardio or the abs. Usually the bun burner and the yoga. I like that Jillian's workouts are only 30 minutes or less, but at this point I'm pretty sure I will never successfully do plank jacks, or plank jumps, or planks of any kind. Wasn't planking some fad, like a joke or something? How is this a real work out thing???
What I have taken away in the 10by10/10 challenge is that I'm working out about 4 days a week. That's huge for me. Some days I run, because I just can't handle the background music on the DVDs. Some days I have to walk around for half the day in my work out clothes because I woke up late and I only have time to work out and get my girls to school. But what's new. I'm usually a hot mess for half the day anyway. However, I'm grateful that I participated in this challenge because I remembered why I exercise. It makes me feel good. It keeps me motivated. I like the way I feel.
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| This is so much better than what the scale says. Pinterest. |
Did I change my diet during the challenge? No. I eat super clean, Paleo style anyway. But with Paleo I eat a lot of fat, so that's probably a reason why the pounds aren't melting off. But with out carbs and grain, fat, veggie fats, are what keep me from feeling starved. And when I'm hungry, I get hangry, and when I get hangry, I usually rip faces off. Just sayin.
Did I loose 10 pounds? No. Not even a pound. Talk about a motivation killer. The scale sucks. I knew that well before this challenge. But I stepped on that em-effer every day, and then I stopped. I weighed last week, and I'm roughly the same as I was on September 4th. Give or take 2 pounds, which is water. But I did loose inches. I took my measurements on September 4th, and according to my measurements I have lost 1 inch in my waist and 1 inch in my hips. Awesome. One inch is one inch. My bust stayed the same, thank God, and let's not talk about my thighs. Thanks.
Big news since the challenge. I have a bicep muscle. I like my shoulders. And my jeans aren't as tight. Those are good things. Bad news since the challenge, I discovered that my new problem area are my saddlebags. Saddle bags. It was never an issue before, so I blame my age. Thirty five is a cold bitch. She's not going to stop me though. I'm going to keep working out. I'm going to keep running when I have the chance. And I'm going to keep trying to be more comfortable in this body.
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| I love this. It's from Pinterest. It's so true, but Wednesdays work too. Any day can be the day you change your life. |
This 10by10/10 challenge was good for me. It gave me a reason to get my ass in gear. It made me more aware of what I'm eating and why. It made me realize that after 35 years, 2 kids, and a million different diets, I'm finally in a healthy place. I'm not sick every day. I'm able to get out of bed. I don't run out of energy. I'm eating and not going hungry because of food allergies or deficiencies. That's a great place to be. And I'm happy to be here, saddle bags included.
