An Update

So, it's been a while since I've updated but there wasn't much exciting to say. I've made it through weeks of training and I officially love this program. Seriously, it's the best. Not that it's easy, it's not, but I can tell that I'm getting stronger and it's pretty great. I even lost one pound! Last weekend I wanted  to encourage my new behaviors so I made myself a cute new headband. Check it out.

I felt like a goof taking a gym selfie, especially since I am regularly the only woman in the weight room and definitely the only person under 30 years old. 

My friends and I were encouraging each other and this was our text exchange one evening. The happy faces refer to me making my goals on my fitbit app. It's surprising how excited I get about the little happy faces. For the record today is Sunday and I did not get all the happy faces but I did rest up and paint my nails. Priorities yo. 

Weekly Wrap-up

About halfway through my workout today.

I hope you all had a great week! I know I did. It was a good week at work and home and Dan and I spent the evening last night making gluten-free fish and chips and watching Harry Potter. It was pretty awesome. If you're interested I used this recipe for the fish. I got up and had a good gym session this morning and weighed myself and found out I lost one pound! Wahoo! I plan to spend a good portion of my Saturday buying some flannel and making a blanket scarf because even though the stores have their spring lines out it's still cold here. 14 degrees and foggy when I left the gym this morning. Here are some interesting reads from my week:

  Paleo Parents had a great post on strength training. 

Starbucks is now offering coconut milk. It still has sugar but it's a great non-soy option for those that are dairy free. 

Patricia Bright has some great diet and fitness tips for you.

There's information on the importance of calories on Robb Wolf's blog

This is an interesting article on the effects of soda on our bodies

Allies and Changing Strategies

Hello friends! Today we're going to talk about reevaluating your plans. The best plans need to be evaluated because you know, we make mistakes. So, naturally a few weeks into my training schedule I decided to reevaluate my plan. One thing that is working very well is my group of allies. I have great, supportive friends and in particular one that asks me about my training and one that asks about my food. But I felt like I needed more data to be successful, so I bit the bullet and bought a fitness tracker. I know I said I was too cheap but I felt like the benefits would outweigh the cost.

This is the one I bought. I got this picture from the website, I tried to take one of mine on my wrist but it was terrible so this one would be better. 

The benefits of this model are that it tacks your heart rate throughout that day (along with steps, distance, floors climbed, etc.) so that you get a more accurate calorie count. I wanted this so I can get a better handle on my calories in/calories out. This may be the only time in my life that I have cared about math. Ever. It syncs with the My Fitness Pal app too. 

This model also has a silent alarm. I know that sounds terrifying, it's not. It's just an alarm clock on my wrist. It vibrates to wake me up and doesn't have a snooze button so I'm more likely to actually get up and get to the gym. 

Between my friends and my new tool I will hopefully be more successful in my weight loss journey. I'll keep you posted!