I need a challenge!

Hey Jeni, 

Long time no post! It's been a crazy few months and I have definitely de-prioritized my health and wellness. Yikes! 

I started to work out in the mornings and did relatively well with this new challenge. Then once December hit and I was working at my mall job things got a little crazy! Couple that with a marathon Christmas shopping day and I really needed a rest. That was in early to mid December and I haven't really been to the gym since. Yikes #2! 

Now I did some walking when I was one vacation, but that probably doesn't offset the minimal water consumption and bad food overload. Yikes #3!

Now that we got all of that out of the way, I want to focus on the future. For the first half of the year, I was very focused on everything. The second half, not so much! I hope to figure this out over the course of the year so I am not always in this continual yoyo with my weight and fitness. Since I'm my own worse critic, it makes me feel bad. 

Today I'm starting a 60 day challenge at my gym. I'm hoping to get off my rear end, get back in shape and keep things in order! 

Are you ready for this?!

Xoxo

Jenne 

Ski Time

Hey Jenn!

  I am having such a great time the last few weeks. I'm trying new foods and new activities and surprising myself almost daily!!  I'm looking forward to getting into some real Winter activities but we haven't had any real snow yet, it has all melted the next day.  So today, Ev, our friend Mike and I went to the Catskills to go cross country skiing. It was only a 45 minute drive into the mountains to find 20" of snow!!   It was soooo absolutely beautiful. I am what some might call a "terrible" skier. I fell waaaaay more than I was able to stand and I really hit my knee pretty hard but it was still so incredible to breathe in the fresh air and revel in the beauty that surrounds our home.  I'm hoping we can spend more time in the woods this winter. It's just so amazing what we have available to us- the sights and the opportunities to be active!! 

I'm so looking forward to the next few months. I wanna go sledding and skating and snowshoeing!  

What is your favorite way to be active outside in the colder weather?

Hope you're making the most of your weekend and keeping it active. 

Xo

Jeni

A Happy Practice

Hey Jen,

  How was your day??  Mine was a bit of a rollercoaster... I slept horribly last night, tossed and turned and maybe got a combined 4 hours of sleep. I'm typically a solid 8-9 hours of blissful sleep kinda gal... But today I was meeting up with two new running friends and I was way too pumped to miss out. So I met with them at 8 and ran 3.5 miles. When I came home I was hoping to do 3 sets of this arms and abs routine but was sooooo wiped out that I did only one set. I realized that on no sleep and just a banana for breakfast I wasn't going to break any records... So I made some protein pancakes and then did another set. I was sort of bummedout about my weak performance. But i kept reminding myself to be kind and compassionate. 

This evening I did a little self-led yoga practice and it was incredible!!! First of all, I found a pandora station called "yogini" it's aweeeesome!!  I carry around a lot of fear about hurting myself- you know, after breaking my back and all... I am a tad afraid of certain things. I always dream of getting into crow pose but my fear always prevents me... well tonight I just kept saying to go for the pose lovingly and to be supportive of myself... And sure enough, I got it. For only 1 second, but it's a step!!  Then, this week, after 8 years of being afraid of plow pose (it's a pretty deep and intense pose for my body) I have been able to put it in to my practice again!!!  I am soooo happy!!

So despite the fact that the day sarted a bit rough... i am so happy with the way it turned out.

I hope you're having a good week! 

Fit dreams,

Xo Jeni

Discipline December

hey Jen!

  How was your thanksgiving?!?  Did you see family, stay active, eat lots of pie??? Thanksgiving is so strange... The week before, I feel like "oh there's plenty of time before the Holidays and year end" and then the day after it's like instant ticking clock mode... It's December 1st. Soon to be Christmas and then New year, then our bday and then Valentines day.... I know there is so much to do in the coming weeks and months. It can be easy to get overwhelmed. 

Today I read an instagram hashtag "discipline december"- the gal was saying that no matter what the craziness she wants to have the discipline to value her commitment to health/fitness. We both know how easy it is to get off track. It starts with putting our goals asside for one day... And then all of a sudden it's been a week since we took a walk or checked in with our personal thoughts- you know besides the thoughts of checklists, deadlines and stress.  I really want to stay disciplined this December too!  

So, this last week, as an official Tone It Up gal has really helped me to make some pretty cool chamges to my normal behaviors. I have eaten 5 small meals a day for the last 8 days and worked out 7 out of the 8 days!  Changing my habits/attitude towards eating has made a huge difference in my enegery level. I haven't had coffee since last Saturday and I have not at any point of the day (other than bed time) felt sleepy!!  

Besides influencing my eating style, the last week I have been more motivated to push myself than ever before. I never really made time for crosstraining or challanged myself (outside of running).  Well this past week has been totally different. The pictures above are from my HIIT workout Saturday. I did a 3 mile tempo run- running at a normal pace for one song and then pushing it for the next song- alternating for the 3 miles.  Then i came home and did 8 exercises for time, gulped some water and then did the 8 exercises again. Look how toasted I am in the bottom picture!!!  HIIT stands for High Intensity Interval Training. So these 8 exercises get your heart PUMPING!!  My butt is still sore today- and I love it!  

So what on your agenda this week?  

Look forward to your check in!!

Xo

Jeni

Yesterday was Magic

hey Jen!  

  Yesterday was one of those GREAT days!!  Motivation was endless and everything seemed beautiful and blessed. I woke up early and despite the pouring rain took Roscoe for a 2 mile walk.  I ate only REAL food and plenty of it (I actually cooked dinner- a rarity for me). I finished my application for a job I really want but was too nervous to apply for and then went to the gym where I pushed my workout harder than I have in years!!

So, where did this motivation come from?  Well for a year and a half I have been admiring Tone It Up. Do you know about these gals??  They are beautiful and positive and brilliant. They have a nutrition plan that breaks down all the aspects of nutrition that I could never wrap my brain around. Lately, and maybe it's because turning 30 is only a month and a half away... I've become so much more aware of my body and that I am lucky to have my health- but despite all my exercise, I don't really treat it right. "You can't out exercise a bad diet". So I decided to make some changes and bite the bullet and join the Tone It Up community. Yesterday I treated life as a gift and I felt so lucky and joyful. We have organic produce and meat at our disposal year round- how privileged are we?!?!  I know I'm no fast food junkie- eating organic has always been second nature to me but I sure do allow daily over-endulgances and when life gets busy grab for cookies instead of a real meal far too often.  I know I burn a lot of calories during my long runs but I never thought to replenish with whole foods, rather than an entire box of "organic cookies/ice cream"....

  So this is it, our last 45 days before turning 30.... Let's value ourselves and our bodies and feel special and lucky to have them and now let's treat them right!!  Isn't true health the best gift we could receive?!  And we have the power to gift it to ourselves!!!!

  Let's love our bodies and our progress (just like you did the other morning on your walk/run... I'm proud of you for being positive!!)

Xo

jeni

Family Time

Hey Jen!

  Girl I am so proud of your success and determination over the last few weeks!!  I always get so much more out of early morning workouts than night time workouts. I feel like you get a totally different view of the world and of people and boy sunrise sure is a sight to see!!  Are you going to classes or just doing workouts from your arsenel? 

I've been keeping up with activity the last week but have actually taken a break from running and decided to delay to a half marathon at the beginning of March. My knee has been in more pain than ever and as it turns out, I'm suffering from an overly tight IT band and need to focus on crosstraining and stretching.  This is NOT a set back, although I really wanted to do the half in January...  I'll restart my running plan Dec 15th. So until then it will be lots of kettle bells, yoga and cycling. 

  Last Sunday Ev, Roscoe and I went to the land conservation area for some outside active family time. I gotta say, those are my favorite dates!!  We really live a environmentally rich area and I love being able to experience it as a family!!

So now we are a week away from Thanks Giving... How do you plan to stay active and combat endless desserts and third helpings?!?!

Look forward to hearing from you. 

Xo

jeni

Small successes

Hey Jeni! 

How has your week been? How is training going for your half marathon? I admire your will to try winter running.  As I go to the gym each morning, I see a lot of runners that's are out in the 5am hour with all of their gear. It sends a shiver down my spine when I see that the temperature is in the 30s! 

This week was week 2 of my morning workout routine. I can say that I am still going strong in waking up and getting to the gym before work. I had some sleep glitches towards the end of the week, but I am hoping to continue to work on my sleep hygiene with at least 7 hours per night. 

Overall I have been enjoying the morning workout. It is difficult to want to go to bed between 9-10 pm because I am such a night owl! I have been able to become pretty organized and able to stay committed. The feeling is wonderful. I am starting to feel better that I am working out more frequently. I find that when I am working out I have a desire to eat better and treat my body better. 

On Tuesday, we had a really warm day! At some point in the day I believe that I saw 70 degrees outside! I chose to do an outside 3 miler. I will say, I had some difficulty! I had a hard time breathing and I felt really heavy. On the second half of the run, I cooled down to interval speed walking and running. Overall, I finished with about an 11:00 minute pace, which is interesting because when I first started running my pace was between 11:00-12:00. I think that even though I walked some, it shows how my pace has improved since I decided to try this running thing.  

My response to the workout was the highlight. Generally if I have a less than successful workout, I tend to get frustrated! However, this time around I tried to remain grounded and reminded myself that it's ok that this workout wasn't perfect! If I am always hard on myself it can certainly lead to more stress and frustration, which isn't good! 

Hope you've had a stellar week! 

Xoxo

Jenne