Fit > Fat

My journey to Buff City - A fitness journal

[buffitup-blog-blog]

HELLO FROM A STRANGER

I thought I was going to be able to keep up a "fitblr" and my normal tumblr on top of work, working out, family obligations, and various other extra-curriculars, but I can't. And I just don't want to anymore.

Exercising has finally become part of my life and working out has become something I want to do, not something I have to talk myself into every day. Part of having this fitblr was to keep me motivated, but I've learned that motivation is as fleeting as anything else in your life. There are going to be days that you just have to do it. And it becomes less and less difficult to Just Do It when you make it a priority just like anything else.

That being said, I decided to shut down this fitblr and just use my "personal" tumblr. If you're interested in following, please do! The more the merrier!

[buffitup-blog-blog]

Today's run

Speed was the focus. One minute run, one minute walk. Total of 30 minutes. Inclines, uneven terrain, and a hot San Diego evening. Felt good.

[enrouteto]

This fundraising page hasn’t been up for a full 12 hours yet and we’ve already raised over 70% of our goal amount. (The thermometer is only updated a couple times a day, if that, so we may have even surpassed 70% by now) We are absolutely floored by the response we’re getting and overwhelming grateful to those who have contributed.

Friends of friends of friends are passing around the link. One person in particular is donating $5 for every time the page is shared, up to $500. Another person has committed to donating $1,000, and then said they’d cover the difference if we’re not able to reach our goal in time. Since it hasn’t even been a full 24 hours yet, I don’t think reaching our goal is going to be an issue.

If our goal is exceeded, the overflow will be donated to families in the same program that haven’t reached their goal yet. There is an 18 year old boy that’s set to start training with TJ’s session and is just under half way there. If we can contribute to their family, that would be amazing, too.

If you would like to donate, please click the link above. Every dollar counts and will make a huge, positive impact on our family and hopefully other families, too.

If you can’t afford to donate, simply passing this post around would be excellent!

[buffitup-blog-blog]

Hi fitblr friends!

I'm reblogging from my other tumblr to spread the word. I know I don't talk about my personal life on here, so here's a very long story short:

Brooke & TJ are my parentals, they got custody of me when I was 15 and they were 25. Though slightly insane, they are the kindest, most generous people I know. They're entirely responsible for who I am today.

Back in April, TJ was diagnosed with a brain tumor. While slow growing, it's mostly inoperable, which means he'll have to be on medication for the rest of his life to control the seizures. Having a companion dog would ease our worries and allow TJ to get back to the more active and independent lifestyle he's used to. For more of his story, please check out the donations page.

As I said above, every dollar counts! If you can't donate, please pass the link around.

Thank you!

[buffitup-blog-blog]

I bumped up my run tonight! Did 4 sets of four minute runs, but dropped my walks own to just a minute. Decided that wasn't going to be hard enough, so I took a more hilly route. Hollllllyyyyyy crap, did that burn. But I'm stoked and ready for more on Wednesday!

Strength tomorrow.

[buffitup-blog-blog]

Yesterday, I invited a friend to run with me. I wanted to do the normal 4 minutes on/2 minutes off, but as soon as we started, she took off with a pace that I couldn't keep up with. I know what's comfortable for me, but I wasn't sure if her pace was normal. When I noticed that she was getting out of breath, I encouraged her to slow down a bit. She would, but before long, she was getting ahead of me again. We weren't even a minute and a half in before she was she asking me for the time between breaths. Another 45 seconds go by and she comes to an abrupt stop and said she couldn't do it anymore. Maybe next time, she'll listen to me about pacing herself.

Instead of trying to talk her down to a reasonable speed for the next few sets, we both decided to just do sprints up a hill. We took turns sprinting with her son in his stroller, an extra bit of difficulty for an otherwise seemingly easy sprint. It wasn't quite that workout that I wanted. My knee has been acting up and though I felt like I could push myself through it, I'm being ultra cautious about it because I really can't have an injury at this point.

Today is a rest day so I can get into a Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday run routine tomorrow. I will do light strength training on run days and serious weight training on Tuesdays and Thursdays with Sundays being my rest days. I know I need to definitely work on my upper body strength, but I feel like getting my cardio endurance up at this point is the best way to go.

[fits-facts]

[buffitup-blog-blog]

Tonight's run went much better than Tuesday's! I managed to get 4 sets of 4 minute runs/2 minute walks, with a 45 second power run just to see if I could. My muscles were pretty tight and I don't want to over do it, so I settled with my 4 sets.

Aside from doing one more set, I only took one 15 second break during the third 4 minute run. On Tuesday, I think I took one in the last two sets. And my favorite part - during my last 4 minute run, I never looked at my watch. I told myself that since this was the final one, I had to power through it and not worry about the time. Just keep going until it dinged and that's what I did.

This is turning out to be a lot better than I originally thought it would be and I'm so excited for that.

[healthyveganbunny]

[buffyshot]

Why is the fitness/weight loss community not freaking out over Nicole Polizzi (Snookie)? Look at her. She’s lost well over 40 pounds and is happily gaining muscles and promoting a healthy image and a healthy lifestyle. ALL of these fitness photos of her are from AFTER she had her baby and oooohhh she’s looking fine. Definitely an inspiration to me.

mad respect

[explosionzinthesky-deactivated2]

Good for her man

[letmeseeyoudripsweat]

beaaaast

[kimberrleighgetsskinny]

If I had enough money for a high class personal trainer I’d look like that too….

[buffitup-blog-blog]

You can have the best trainer in the world, but it won't mean a thing if you don't have the the desire to change. The trainer didn't give her those muscles, she earned them. GOOD ON YOU, SNOOKI!

[buffitup-blog-blog]

I WAS RUNNIN'

I got out there and ran. Very slowly, but I did it!

I did three sets of 4 minute runs/2 minute walks. On and off. I tried to push myself into a fourth set, but my legs felt like lead. Overall, I covered around 2.25 miles. PRETTY STOKED!

I have to get in the habit of being excited about little accomplishments like this because my brain likes to tell me YOU ARE NOT GOOD ENOUGH, WHY DO YOU EVEN NEED TO WALK, ARE YOU THAT WEAK?!

NO! I did really well for my first legit run. I am happy with my progress and I'm totally going to make it 4 sets the next time I get out there. JUST YOU WATCH, BRAIN.

For now, it's time for a little bit of strength training, a nice full body roll out, some dinner, and some chillin'!

[buffitup-blog-blog]

Yesterday was my rest day, so I spent my evening looking up some fitness-related articles. I came across a couple that mentioned foam rollers and felt like I had been living under a rock! Or, just relying on Tumblr to tell me what to do.

Whenever I see something new, my automatic instinct is to do it RIGHT NOW! But, my cash has been pretty tight and that's just not an expense I can justify right now. Fortunately for me, my parentals have quite a few foam rollers (of which, I never noticed..?) so they gave me one of theirs. Stoked!

Before bed, I did the above routine. I feel a lot less stiff this morning. My favorite part was the upper back/shoulders. Ugh, my shoulders are always so knotted, so this was amaaaazzing. I felt like I could just roll back and forth all night.

I am back to working out tonight, so I'm really looking forward to spending some time with my roller again. Hurts so good.

[buffitup-blog-blog]

Last night's dinner: "Pizza" - Everything was homemade: Cauliflower crust, roasted tomato sauce, zucchini, feta, power greens, and a lil bit of white wine vinegar splashed on top.

Breakfast every day: Sauteed veggies, spinach, and two eggs.

Apparently, I really like circular food.

[buffitup-blog-blog]

E'ery day I'm kettlin'

I've worked out every day for the past 7 days. Everything is catching up with me today. My legs feel so weak and my back is starting to hurt because my form is slipping. I've been pushing myself extra hard this week to make up for the days I didn't do anything. Nothing like a little bit of guilt to motivate you.

I'm still planning on going for a run tonight. I've been eating pretty clean lately, but slipping at night for a few mini eclairs and a glass of wine. I think my calories are on point, but the extra fat isn't helping anyone.

Overall, pretty stoked with my dedication this week and my biceps that are slowly making an appearance.

[buffitup-blog-blog]

I've been sitting in front of the TV all day... WORKING OUT.

[reasonstobefit]

submitted by oldisthegrave

[buffitup-blog-blog]

The Best Thing I've Said All Day

Me: I'm going for a 30 minute interval session, 30 seconds on/30 seconds off.

Pecos: Damn, get it girl.

Me: These guns aren't going to load themselves

[buffitup-blog-blog]

(I'm the pale one on the left.)

I think I have such a difficult time sticking to a routine because I'm too focused on whether or not I am/look fat. I love my body the way that it is. Sure, I would like smaller arms and a cute butt - but my day to day, I'm pretty content.

But I don't FEEL good most days. I feel lethargic a lot of the time, I don't sleep well, and I'm sore in places I shouldn't be. I'm not STRONG. And it makes me feel ashamed of myself. Like, why am I getting winded after 20 minutes on the elliptical? Why do I get so weak half way through my interval training? Why can't I touch my toes without slightly bending my knees?

That is what I need to be focusing on. How my body FEELS not how it appears. My health matters more than having a nice shape in pictures. I don't have anything, other than myself, working against me. I feel like I'm taking advantage of myself.

No more messin' around.

[buffitup-blog-blog]

The planner I bought for life in general has turned into a strictly exercise journal. I write what I want to do, in a broad sense, but then fill in the days with what I've actually done. I'm happy to report that some days, I just don't have enough room.

Today, I stuck to a lot of strength training and wrapped up my evening with some yoga.

I'm having issues with my shoulders - they seem to cramp up a lot when I'm holding some of these poses. Does anyone have any tips? I love yoga, but I really hate the cramping that starts in my shoulders and moves up into my neck. I just don't know what to do!

I still haven't tried to run. I'm going to change that after work tomorrow. I have to go into the office, which is right near a cool running trail, so I really have no excuse.