fitness motivation

Fitness Friday 04.17

| The Bee Life

Happy Friday!

With this being the end of month three, and although my second assessment didn’t show any progress and was disappointing, I remained consistent to my last check-in.  Knowing all of that, I’m still feeling awesome and finally back into that workout groove that I’ve been working and longing for.  The lack of progress gave me a wake-up call that although consistent, I still have A LOT more work to do to keep reaching my goals.Fitness Friday 04.17 - the bee life
And, I’ve finally realized the sentiment of the above mantra.  It is so easy for us as humans to wish for things; wish for a new job, wish for a better body, wish for people to change, etc. and it’s so just as easy to sit and complain about those things and make excuses.  But it isn’t until you start working towards those things, that you’ll actually receive them.

A lot of the biggest success stories in our history and life are based off of hardwork and determination – that shouldn’t change no matter what you’re working towards, especially if it’s working to being and feeling your best. If we are not our best selves for us, we cannot be our best selves for others.

Here’s to more work!

Fitness Friday no. 21

| The Bee Life

Guys & Gals. How are we doing? It’s Friday yet again and we have one more week of September left before it’s October, woah!

I will admit heading into month 10 of 2016; I was hoping to have made better progress and be more consistent with my workout routine. I know for any of you who are keeping up that I am sounding like a BROKEN RECORD, I know.  Anyone want to just shake me and yell, JUST DO IT ALREADY?? Yeah, me too.  But since joining the professional world, finding that balance and continuing the same level of work I used to put towards my body and health has shifted drastically.  And from that perspective I have not been happy.
fitness-friday-no-21-the-bee-lifeI will also be the first to admit I have not been nearly as proactive as I preach or want to be. I could definitely be more proactive… I WILL be more proactive.  The statement above rings true for my mentality lately, I’ve been able to find a million excuses to justify why going home after work or not waking up early and telling myself I’ll do it later. In fact I started off with an excuse of work/life. Being fit, and healthy IS important to me, lazy is just getting in the way. Not to mention, I am pretty sure I am stressing myself out more about not working out than I am actually working out. Not proactive. Not helpful. No good.

Here are ways I plan to be proactive this fall!

Fall 2016 Goals:
– 2-morning workouts a  week
– 2-lunch workouts a week
– Weekend walks/runs/Barre3 on rainy days
– Continue to eat better

Already Planned:
– 5k scheduled for mid-October
– Gym membership purchased
– Weight Loss Challenge with B – starting Oct 1st

Here’s to pushing through, getting off our asses and pushing ourselves to be the people we know we can be and being happy with ourselves at the end of the day in all aspects.

Fitness Friday no. 12

| The Bee Life

Finally! Friday.

Since I have been killing it at boot camp the last four weeks, I was reminded just how much I love group classes and why it’s easier to have success when you surround yourself with others who have similar goals, work ethic and drive like you do.Fitness Friday 12 - the bee life

Here are 5 reasons why you should be taking a group class in order to maximize your workouts.

  1. Healthy Competition. Whether you’re spinning on a bike or making the rounds in a circuit, that person next to you, whether you know them or not will push you. You don’t want to slack off when the person next to you is killing it. It’s human nature to want to compete and rise to the occasion, even if it’s in your head.
  2. Similar Lifestyles. One thing is for sure, you and your classmates have something in common, you show up to class. Surrounding yourself with like minded people makes you stronger.
  3. Routine. After a few classes you’ll know generally what to expect and who to expect, easing your nerves or hesitation of getting your workout in, and allowing you to focus more on the workout and less about everything else
  4. You’re In It Together. Everyone will be doing the same workout, maybe a few modifications here and there, but everyone is equal and working through the same pain, this builds a level of comradery and trust.
  5.  New Friendships. Class after class, and week after week you might find that you’re chatting with the same group of people and make a new friend that you probably wouldn’t have met otherwise. Maybe you hang out, outside of class, maybe not but at least you have someone to work with and continue to motivate you.

If you’ve ever gone to a group class you know what I am talking about. Surrounding yourself with positive vibes and motivated people, help make you stronger mentally and physically.  I didn’t truly realize how much I missed it, until I was back into it.

Why do you love group classes?

Fitness Friday no. 11

| The Bee Life

Okay, so I must admit, since the last Fitness Friday – when I was sharing my ongoing struggle of balancing, life, work and workout life, and my new goal of trying to focus a week at a time, I have come back with a vengeance!

Focusing one week at a time has been SO helpful.  The weekend before March 28th, I told myself that Monday, March 28th I was going to start my super expensive, boot camp classes that I got for Christmas.  Here is the kicker – the class times are a bit tricky for me, I either have to wake up early, leave work a bit early, or go super late and I can only go Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday.  Not to mention, I had everything packed and ready for my first class… except my sneakers. I was so mad, but also determined that it wouldn’t let that stop me! In a panic and on a limb I reached out to my girlfriends at work, luckily one had a pair in her car and was my size. (Thanks, A!) Fitness Friday 11 - the bee lifeSo after overcoming my first day obstacles, and making it to the class (and nearly throwing up) I looked at my scheduled and made it happen the rest of the week, whether it was after work or before I actually got my butt out of bed! Woo-hoo! So needless to say, the classes have been kicking my butt – but it feels great to be in a routine again and really working at it… I just need to start adding in a little more cardio to supplement.

Although my classes are strength, circuit training, they do include some cardio, however not as much as a full 40-minutes on the elliptical or a long run.  Adding in some extra days of sweat and burned calories is what I need to start doing in order to crank everything into gear. Now that I’ve got 2-solid weeks under my belt, I am going to try and start adding in a little extra in my in between days, but still focus one-week at a time.

Here are some suggestions on finding focus and balance in your workout routine:

Pick Strength Days: Don’t try and fit everything into one day, you’ll get burned out and the workouts won’t be as strong or impactful. I am considering my boot camp days my strength days, Monday,  Wednesday, Friday and Saturdays.  Planning and focusing on my strength time in my 1-hour classes allows me to help focus and dominate the workouts while not getting overly fatigued.

Pick Cardio Days: Find days to contribute to cardio, I am a firm believer in ‘rest days’ so I don’t need to workout 7-days a week, but adding in two-days of cardio for at least 30-minutes will help me pick up and get to my goals. It’ll also add to the current workouts I’m accomplishing in my strength days.

Plan Ahead, Make It Happen:  It gets as granular as setting out your work-outs clothes the night before.  Having these ready to go in the morning eliminates slacking, and putting off getting ready and out the door. I’ve also been blocking my calendar to accommodate for my workouts and planning to see when I can make the next one happen. If you don’t make it happen, be sure to have a Plan B – but also remember that your Plan B is your last chance, there is no skipping that!

Feed the Addiction: After you’ve gotten into a routine, whether it be two weeks or ten, you are going to start loving how you feel (because I sure do). So feed into it, and keep going, don’t stop even if obstacles come!! I look forward to getting to my workout and challenging myself and I want more, and I want to see more results.

Happy Friday!! Have any of you focused one-week at a time?