Oops

So I picked a bad week to do a No Sugar Challenge. Auntie Flo visited and nothing shuts her up better than something sweet, chocolaty, and so not good for you. So I'm enjoying my sweets this week and just upping my workouts and avoiding soda...mostly anyway I did slip up last night. With the stress of finals and end of semester stuff I'm thinking a restricting type of challenge is not a good thing right now.

So lets change up the challenge (because I like doing personal challenges) and make it a move more challenge. It goes with my 2014 resolution and health/fitness goals for this year.  So I challenge myself, and you if you wish, to move more. Set your phone alarm to go off every 30, 35 or 60 minutes and get up and do 5 minutes or more of some activity. Especially, if like me, you are studying for finals and lose track of time.

So do squats and jumping jacks during commercials, take a 5 minute run outside around the house and up and down the driveway, tickle the kiddos for 5 minutes, wrestle with the hubby. Anything,just get up and move for 5 minutes or more. The goal for adults is 150 minutes of exercise type activity per week. So if you get up and dance 6x a day for 5 minutes each time you have 30 minutes a day. Do this 5x a week and you've hit that 150 minutes. Easy peasy, right.

So, here's today's activity thus far for accountability:

25 minutes Zumba-style dancing (I worked out to Dance Fitness with Jessica, just search for her on YouTube. She's great.)
75 squats
1 minute 40 seconds of burpees
1 minute 20 seconds of wall sits


So I'm up to a little more then 30 minutes of exercise today. Am I done? Nope, it's only 11am here, there's still a whole day to go through.

To keep you on track..

If you made a goal/resolution to get into shape for 2014, I'm here to help. Today is the last day for free shipping on the P90X3 and Focus T25 challenge packs. After today the shipping and handling goes up to a discounted 2.00 and then will go up again after 1/31/2014. The challenge packs are on sale through January for only 180.00. With the challenge pack you receive the fitness program, one of five delicious Shakeology flavors, and a FREE 30-day trial membership to the Team Beachbody Club. Everything you need to be successful.

To order the P90X3 challenge pack go here: http://teambeachbody.com/shop/-/shopping/BCPX3205?referringRepId=301613

And to order Focus T25 challenge pack go here: http://www.teambeachbody.com/shop/-/shopping/BCPT25205?referringRepId=301613

First Challenge of 2014

It's been 2014 for a week now. Has anyone fell off their resolutions yet? Honestly, I'm barely keeping mine. Stress lately has been doing that to me. I need accountability (which, of course, is one reason for this page). I have fitness apps on my phone and kindle, but rarely use them. So I decided on my January challenge. This one will run through the end of February as well. 

For the next 7 weeks the challenge is log your health/fitness journey. You can choose your favorite way to do this. I'm going to be using a free printable from here http://www.designfinch.com/2012/09/01/planning-to-get-fit/# (I'm using number 6). Starting this evening I will take a snapshot of my journal each day, whether I fill it out or not. I need to log the good as well as the bad. I will post the picture on here for accountability. 

If you would like to join along just like and comment  on my Facebook page and (if you can) share your log entry. You don't have to share any measurements if you don't want to. Just share that you followed along. Let's hold each other to our goals.

Yay for Friday the 13th

I don't know why everyone gets so superstitious about Friday the 13th. It's usually been pretty good for me, just like every other day of the week. Though it  is about the only date I will go and buy myself a lottery ticket, just hoping for an added bit of luck.

I'm still working out to my Advent exercise calendar. Today is 13 bicycle crunches, love them. I love doing these short exercises this time of year. I've been studying for finals, and so sitting more then I care to do. So these short exercises gets me off my rump and moving. I usually do more then what I wrote to do, I see that as a minimum amount. I believe we should get up and do random exercises at regular intervals. Pop out a few squats or something every 30-45 minutes. Gets blood flowing and keeps your behind from getting sore.

It being cookie season, I think 5 minutes of  medium intense activity for every sweet should help keep those calories burned down a bit. Well, in theory anyway.

Not too much else to post at the moment so I'll leave you with a "lovely" picture of me doing my bodyweight triceps extensions yesterday. 2014 will be the year those flabby arms disappear. I want to wear cute tanks this summer.

Okay before I get back to hitting the books, I'm going to make a quick post on something amazing that became available yesterday. If you haven't already heard, Beachbody has made a new P90x. This one is P90X3, all the intensity and work from P90X in only 30 minute workouts. Perfect for busy people like me who cannot always find time for a 90 minute workout. However, I can almost always squeeze 30 minutes in my day.

Through the rest of December, P90X3 will be discounted. If your a Beachbody club member you get further discounts. Plus there is free shipping right now. Looking for a Christmas gift for the health/fitness nut on your list? Order by December 15th to get P90X3 by Christmas.

December Goals and an Advent Workout

Hello Dear Readers!
I hope everyone of you had an amazing Thanksgiving weekend and made good decisions and made time to be active. I tried my best, the active part was pretty slim due to cold temps and me being a chicken when the thermometer reads below 30 degrees Fahrenheit. Brrr. However I did OK on everything, proof being the scale actually read less today than it did on Wednesday. If I had splurged too much it would of been higher due to water weight gain. I did have soda, and that was probably the worse I did.

December goals:
My main goal for December is to have fun and not stress too much. If I lived in the Southern hemisphere December would be my most favorite month. I love Christmas and everything it stands for. 
So for December lets not worry too much about the food we eat as long as we keep 80/20 in our mind. Eat great 80% of the time so that 20% of the time we can enjoy those Holiday sweets and treats.  No guilt is allowed this month. We will keep active enough to keep those bad, negative thoughts at bay.

For some fitness fun I'm thinking up a fitness Advent calendar. There will be a different exercise each day. So here is the list:

A Family That Workouts Together...

My oldest son is in Civil Air Patrol. It's an auxiliary of the Air Force created in 1941.  Their main mission is search and rescue.  Anyway, he's been a cadet since last October and all he needs to do to move up in rank is pass pt. However, my boy is scrawny.  He's about 5'8"-5'9" and 104lbs fully dressed (to the shoes).  He's okay at the mile run.  He can do the push-ups and curl-ups now.  He has trouble when they do the shuttle run (a 30 foot sprint, picking up a small-ish object from one side running back placing it on the other line then returning to pick up a second object).  He's suppose to do it in 10.5 seconds and his time is 15 seconds.  So I'm trying to help him shave the 4.5 seconds off his time.
So yesterday we started the One Hundred Push-ups program and the Two Hundred Squats program.  My son has no problems with  push-ups, he's been doing them at least once a week for several weeks now.  I'm trying to get him to exercise more often to build muscle. He can probably out push-up me easy, even if his form is awful.  His squats surprised me.  I can do 30-40 squats no problem. My 14 year old son could only do 8 before he said his thighs were sore.  So I'm making sure he keeps with this squats program. I'm trying to teach him that squats will strengthen his legs and help him run faster.  I was sure that he could do at least as many as me if not more.  I'm guessing the pt they do at the C.A.P. meetings focuses on upper body and core moves and not as much on legs.  
When my husband isn't out-of-town, we'll work on a 3-day a week running plan as well.  Not only am I getting fit, I'm encouraging my children to be fit as well.