So I took my life back...

Way back in 2012, I wrote down my New Year's Resolutions to be in "fitness model shape". That goal stayed in the back of my mind for the past 3 years. All of my campers have heard over and over again.

...Write your goals down
....Make sure they are measurable
....Step outside your comfort zone 

I decided this year to do all of the above. I wrote this goal down again for 2015. I would measure this so called  "fitness model shape" with a bikini competition. However, I needed to make a lot of changes.

As a trainer,  6 months ago, I found my fitness shape embarrassing. We received awful news in our family in both November and then again in December. It seemed like the hits kept coming and I was drowning. I turned to food. 

6 Months Ago:

I was:

Stressed
Exhausted
Questioning my job & my profession
Questioning my relationship

Where do I even start?

I changed my way of thinking. 

I constantly heard those voices in the back of my head of:

You don't need to be in that good of shape
What's the point 
There is no way you can eat that way with a 2 year old
You have too much going on in your life
Your knee won't hold up with that kind of training 
No one wants to hear your brag about your competition 
Waking up at 4am to run on my only days to sleep in is just silly

They were all excuses. I always say, there is no such thing as a good excuse or a bad excuse, its just an excuse. And I wasn't living up to my own words. 

The next 6 months I went all in, no excuses, just one step in front of the other.

And guess what? I reached my goal. 

It was difficult at times, but my friends and clients kept me going. They knew my goal and continued to check up on me. That was all the motivation I needed. I didn't want to let them down. I found an amazing coach, Team Haines Training, experts in the field. As a "teacher" for the past 5 years, it was kind of nice to be a student again. I soaked up all the information I could.

I not only told myself I could do it, but I finally believed I could...no excuses allowed. 

Let's face it, life does get in the way. We fall off the wagon and make excuses. The above story proves it happens, even to the best of us. Fight like hell to make sure its temporary and then make the decision to take your life back. 

"OMG Courtney, you were fat!"

...well not really. But of course my boot campers did not believe me when I told them I use to struggle with eating right & exercising. And they NEVER believe me when I tell them to stay off the scale.

I showed them these pictures:

I then heard..."Oh my god Courtney, you were fat!"

Again, not really. There is just a measly two pound difference in my before/after picture.

My before picture:

Nutrition-
Sugary Cereal (maybe a few cookies) -Breakfast
Diet Dr Pepper- Snack
Bagel + Cream Cheese - Lunch
M&Ms/Candy Bar- Snack
Homemade Dinner/To Go Food- Dinner

Exercise-
20 Minute Elliptical
15 Minutes of "Strength" Training meaning grabbing 5lb dumbbells and doing a few curls, etc.

My after picture:

I eat WAY more! Feel fuller and feel better

Nutrition
Eggs/Oatmeal/Fruit- Breakfast
Peanut Butter/Fruit-Snack
Protein/Vegetable/Complex Carb- Lunch
Protein Shake- Snack
Protein/Vegetable- Dinner

I avoid eating out.
I avoid sodas.
I avoid processed foods.
I do not eat white rice/breads.
I plan my cheat meals.

I still get my vices in, don't you worry of chocolate + wine, but I enjoy them more when I earn them after a great week of eating right & exercising.

Exercise-
Believe it or not, I still exercise around 35-40 minutes. I move quickly through circuits, resting very little and keep track of my weights/exercises I have planned before walking into the gym.

A personal trainer or group fitness instructor truly can be a life saver! They plan the workouts for you!


I never weigh myself. The scale to me really is just a number, I go by the way my pants fit and how I feel overall.

Even though the picture shows just 2lbs lost, it feels like 20+ to me.

Goal Setting At It's Finest...

If you were to ask me, what makes Grit Fit & Wellness/Boot Camp Challenge different from other programs, I would say lots of things! 

Pre/Post Assessments

Nutritional Guidance

Invested Trainers

Lots of laughs

Never a repeated workout

Great workout family

Goal Setting

However, setting goals...BIG, realistic, life changing goals. That is what makes us great. 

I asked one of my campers if I could share not only her goal, but how she plans on reaching it.

Together, we hit every aspect of achieving a goal. 

Specific

Measurable

Attainable

Relevant

Time Based

THIS IS HOW YOU SET GOALS!

This year I want to find a healthier alternative to dealing with my emotions rather then eating. 

1. Writing in my food journal how I am feeling along with what I am eating so I can physically see what I eat when I feel bad vs. Good.

2. Bringing workout clothes to work and going on my lunch or right after work to do at least 20 minutes of jump roping to get my endorphins up and not want to turn to food.

3. Leaning on my friends and fellow goal seekers on bootcamp for support. 

Goal number 2 .

I want to be a size 5 jeans by summer.

1. Food journal 5 or 7 days

2. Stick to my first goal and use the support I have

3. Work out 5 to 6 days a week.

And my fitness goal is to do 100 double unders by summer.

Continue to follow goals 1 and 2 and jump rope at least 20 minutes a day.

And I can say with a great deal of certainty, she will hit her goal. 

2015 Pre-Goal Setting

Exactly 4 weeks ago, many of us set New Year's Resolutions. How are they going? Are we keeping up with them?

Only 48 more weeks to go, right? 

Resolutions are a tricky thing. Every trainer wants their clients or campers to want to achieve some kind or resolution! With our program, Grit Fit & Wellness/Boot Camp Challenge, I always encourage those to really contemplate their GOALS, not resolutions the entire month of January.

Try it out for a week, is it achievable?

Does it work with this point in your life? 

Last week we sat down and took a blank page and I told them to just write whatever came to mind as I talked.

Here is what I said:

• Reflect back on 2014. What are you most proud of having accomplished? What moments of achievement stick out in your mind?

• Imagine that through an explainable miracle, you have been transformed into the smartest, most ambitious, and creative human being on this planet. Knowing that with absolute certainty that you can achieve anything that you set your mind towards, what near-term goals would you choose to pursue to help improve the overall quality of your life?

Write the first thing that come to mind for improving your

• Energy- What enhancements will grow my level of energy and focus to improve my productivity?

• Exercise- What gradual changes will enable me to improve my exercise routines?

• Health Improvement- What shall I stop or continue doing to improve my health? What steps can I take in the next 48 hours?

• Healthy Environment- What improvements in my living environment will promote a better health?

• Nutrition- What can I do to improve my nutrition and hydration?

I also found this article helpful as well in terms of goal setting for 2015 from bodybuilding.com:

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/50-fat-torching-tricks-fire-up-your-fat-loss.html?mcid=SM_twit03011115

Next step...setting of the actual goals! 

Temptation is Everywhere

The song sings..."It's the most wonderful time of the year!"

As a trainer, it's the scariest time of year, starting with Halloween and ending around New Year's when individuals ask themselves as they step on the scale, "What just happened?!". 

I know what happened. 

Temptation, temptation and more temptation. 

This week I had my clients and boot campers go away from actually logging what they ate, but logging what they did NOT eat. 

What temptations do you come across in a week? 

Here are just a few:

Temptation Journal #1
 
Fri Candy coated pretzels at target. Put them back. Begrudgingly
Fri night-turned down adult drinks and seconds at terry and brads. Settled for slices of caramel apple....
Saturday-kept driving instead of going to sonic for a blast
Sat-vendor food at event. Seriously?? Philly cheese steak. Sigh. Had a sushi roll instead.
Sunday-Halloween candy, movie popcorn and coke, more candy. and pecan pie. My favorite. Pretty sure I'm being set up by the boyfriend......
Mon-regular coke and lunch with some of the staff. It's easier to eat right if I just don't go.
Wed-Chinese takeout. Cause it would be so much easier than cooking. Made a Boarshead Everoast chicken sandwich on flat bread with avocado instead. Best. Sandwich. Ever!!
Fri-resisted punching the girl coming around to all the offices with doughnuts in the face. I REALLY wanted a doughnut.
Halloween night-gave out snickers, twix, Reese's. Didn't even THINK about eating them after the mornings workout.

Temptation Journal #2

Oreos
Oreos
Oreos
Pizza
Coke
Coke
Make a cake
Candy corn
Chips
Candy

And then there were pictures:

I'm exhausted just looking through these pictures and journals. 

What can we do?

Practice Willpower

Willpower is like a bicep, the more reps with a dumbbell, the bigger the bicep gets. The more you practice saying, "no", the easier it is to say and the more those around you will realize you are serious about your health. 

Preparation

Proper planning is key. We typically fall victim to temptation due to not being full on good food. Think about it. You are hungry and in a hurry...why not have some Halloween Candy. If we plan meals/snacks, our full stomachs help combat temptation. 


Accountability

Someone holding you accountable such a trainer, friend or significant other who supports you and your goals during the holiday seasons will help you hold strong in face of your biggest temptation. 



We survived Halloween. Now bring on Thanksgiving & Holiday Parties!

Guest Blogger: Drum Roll Please....

Emily Jones will be a Guest Blogger during our 8 Week Go Commando Race Training Program that prepares individuals to run a 5K, 10K or Half-Marathon. The program will consist of 2x a week of the Nationally Recognized Boot Camp Challenge workouts in addition to group runs on Saturday mornings.  
 
Emily will be participating in the 10K on October 18th and sharing her workout and training experience here.

Final Blog Post:

My first 8 week Boot Camp Challenge session and the Go Commando 10k race is over and I’m alive and well and able to write this final blog post.  In fact, I’m more than alive and well, I’m down 8.5 inches total and 1.5% body fat!  Hello, Results.  So nice to finally meet you!

I was strangely nervous when Courtney took my “after” measurements.  I was sure that somehow, some way, I would be the one that showed no improvement.  Or, even (gasp!) the one whose numbers increased.  It’s hard to forget all the failed diet and exercise attempts of the past.  I should have known better than to question the process though.  It works.  It truly works and I was thrilled with my numbers, which were taken after 7 weeks, and with my performance in the Go Commando 10k race.  No way could I have completed 6.2 hilly miles without Courtney’s training and that of the Boot Camp running coaches.  Crossing the finish line to a group of cheering boot campers was an amazing feeling of accomplishment.

Each Boot Camp class ends with the campers revealing their effort level on a scale of 1-10, their high during the class, and their low.  As I reflect on the entire 8 week session, I am proud to say that my effort was a 10 during each and every class.  I may not have wanted to attend on certain evenings, but once I was there, I was determined to give it my best effort.  Plus, who wants to do burpees for losing a team competition?  Not this girl.

My highs from the session include:

·         8.5 inches total and 1.5% body fat lost

·         Compliments received

·         New friendships gained

·         Endurance increased

·         Challenging 10k race completed

·         8.5 inches total and 1.5% body fat lost – That’s worth repeating!

My only low is that I have to take a temporary break from Boot Camp.  So, so sad!  After working for the same organization for the past 13 years, I’ve accepted a new job and will be commuting to Nashville.  While my schedule will have flexibility to allow me to attend Boot Camp after the initial training period is complete, I won’t be back in town in time for class during the interim.  So, my low is not a goodbye to Boot Camp, but a goodbye for now.  We will see each other again soon.

If you’ve been considering trying a class, don’t hesitate any longer.  If this mama of two with a full-time desk job, who loves to eat lunch out on the regular, can get results, so can you!  I’ll see you on your mat ASAP!

Guest Blogger: Embrace the Suck

Emily Jones will be a Guest Blogger during our 8 Week Go Commando Race Training Program that prepares individuals to run a 5K, 10K or Half-Marathon. The program will consist of 2x a week of the Nationally Recognized Boot Camp Challenge workouts in addition to group runs on Saturday mornings.  
 
Emily will be participating in the 10K on October 18th and sharing her workout and training experience here.

Week 6

This week, the Convention & Visitors Bureau (CVB) staff, who host the Go Commando race, were organizing the race medals in the conference room next to my office.  I caught a glimpse of the sleek design as they sorted them into age group categories.  I joked that if they wanted to go ahead and put my name on my age group top finisher medal and call it a day, I was fine with that.  They jokingly replied that it was possible because the 10k has been a less popular choice than the 5k, which is sold out, and the half marathon.  Insert panic attack!  The 5k is Sold Out???  Thank you, CVB, for crushing my dreams of dropping down to the 5k if I prefer a flat 3.1 jog instead of a completely hilly 6.2 miles on October 18.  Love you, too!

As the news that the 5k was sold out and also that the 10k currently had lots of space left (translated to possibly being the LAST person to finish) was sinking in, the Boot Camp running coach sent me an article on tips for having a successful run.  Many of the suggestions were on how to properly fuel and were things that I’ve heard before and follow.  One point struck a chord though - “Embrace the suck”.  Quit fighting the pain and quit stopping when it hurts.  Ouch.  They’ve got my number.  I (always?) stop when it hurts.  I (usually?) take the easier option, like the 5k versus the 10k.  Hello self-realization.  I’m supposed to embrace the pain and even learn to enjoy it?  Until reading this, I was certain that running was only this painful for me and that all other runners had advanced past the suck and their runs were now pain free and delightful and the asphalt felt like fluffy clouds on their feet.  Misery loves company and I had found company.  New on the To Do list: Embrace the Suck.

Tuesday Boot Camp class was my first class since the Women’s Half Marathon the weekend before.  There were four boot campers who had completed the half and we celebrated our accomplishment with partner exercises, relays, sand bells, and games.  Thursday was a series of jogging and sprinting, which I’ve learned to embrace as the only way to improve my pace and potentially not be the very last person to complete the Go Commando 10k.  Even if that happens however, I have still completed 6.2 miles and lapped everyone on the couch.  And the feeling of crossing the finish line, no matter how fast or slow, does not suck.  Thank you, Boot Camp Challenge, for another rewarding week full of self-discovery.  Can’t wait for our next therapy/workout sessions!