My next 20 weeks

I've mentioned that I've started a new program.

I'm using a hybrid schedule developed that uses both ChaLEAN Extreme and TurboFire.

I don't know about you, but I have a difficult time just looking at something and grasping what it means. Words come in, words go out, and I'm left just looking at each day as 'what am I doing today' rather than 'how does this fit in with the program'.

And so, I fixed it.

First I color coded it, so that I had some idea of what groups go together, and planned out my tracking days on the rest days closest to the 30 day marks.

This helped, but it's still not exactly where I just know what the clear themes are and how the time is broken up.  ChaLEAN Extreme was very clear cut with weekly repeats and the three phases.  This is a whole different beast to me, and I like to know what I'm aiming towards and what my focus is, and where the phases are, so that I can get in the right frame of mind.

So I broke each program and day down. Was it cardio? Was it stretching? Was it a ChaLEAN circuit? Was it TF strength? Was it abs? Was there a clear pattern?

YES!

Weeks 1-3:      Burn Circuit & Abs workouts alternate with one day of Cardio a week

Week 4:           Cardio with one HIIT and one Abs day

Weeks 5-8:      Push Circuit & Cardio+Abs workouts alternate

Weeks 9-12:    HIIT+Strength & Cardio+Abs workouts alternate

Week 13:         Abs+Stretch & Cardio+Stretch workouts alternate

Weeks 14-16:  Cardio & Lean Circuit+Abs workouts alternate
Week 17:         Cardio with 2 Abs days
Weeks 18-20:  HIIT+Strength & Cardio+Abs workouts alternate

The big blocks are:
Burn
Push
HIIT
Lean
HIIT

And Abs 3 times a week, almost every week.
Cardio gets added in as a regular occurence in the 4th week.

So, look out! I'll be ripped by the time I get to my 31st birthday! All those Abs and cardio combined with strength training? I'm excited!

And now, the plan makes so much more sense to me, I can look forward to it!

~Katie

April Progress Report

It's that time again!
Lots of pale flesh on the interwebs!

Tracking day.

Overall, I lost inches everywhere except my arms.
Why?
Because this girl has GUNS!

BOOM!

I can see the difference this time, I'm a few pounds down and I've really toned up. Comparing the way before and the now is HUGE!

And now for a peak at the new bathing suit from the drawer that I picked for tracking for this next round. I start tomorrow with the TurboFire/ChaLEAN Extreme hybrid schedule. It will be exciting! I know that I'll tone up a ton and also shed some of this fat that's staying on me. Why? Because it's more cardio intense. Looking at the schedule between now and September, it's a huge amount of ab work, cardio, and with some of the weights still thrown in there. Not too much, but enough to keep me on track.

Push-ups: 7 continuous on toes followed by 7 continuous on knees before I felt I needed to pause.

Squats weights: 30 lbs

Biceps: 17.5 lbs

Triceps: 10 lbs

Delts: 10 lbs

Row: 22.5 lbs

Shoulder Press: 17.5 lbs

Woot!

~Katie

Changes, All the Little Changes

Before I get to the actual post, today, I slept in. So my workout will be between work and girls night. It will be Push Circuit 2, so it's 35 minutes and weightlifting-focused, so I think I can do that, shower, and walk to the restaurant in time after work today. The front room rearranging has taken a toll on my bedtime.

Okay, on to the Changes.

I've been documenting the daily stuff on here, but sometimes, I like to make a retrospective.

Today, I realized that there are a lot of little changes that have been adding in to the big changes.
And some of them aren't so little. But all of these changes have been since the beginning of this year.

• I see a therapist every other week. We are evaluating different possibilities of the root of my high anxiety issues & panic attacks as well as my scatterbrained-ness and overall mental health. I want to be able to have a plan of attack that is appropriate to what my brain is doing rather than guessing and worrying about it. 
• I am following the ChaLEAN Extreme 90-day Challenge. I'm following the schedule, and while I may have missed a day or workout here and there, I have been very good about giving it my all every day. I'm glad that I chose a program with workouts close to 30 minutes each day rather than over an hour. It's manageable, and I can fit that in to my schedule. It's a small commitment, but I'm seeing the results. (Dude! I have BICEPS!!!!)
• I'm taking a daily multivitamin.
• I'm drinking Shakeology every day, which I didn't quite realize until yesterday how much it has been working for me. When you drink something that filling every single morning and then you have to fast until 11 am one day, let's just say that my sweet cravings were off the charts yesterday. I wanted to eat everything in sight! I have really been loving the chocolate flavor with a healthy dash of Cayenne Pepper added to it.
• I am attending Weight Watchers meetings and tracking my intake as well as my activity. We'll see how ActiveLink works for me once I get past the assessment phase. This has been a really good change. I've been dropping pounds since starting this. It has been the impetus to cooking at the house more, drinking less beer and alcohol, and focusing on fruit, vegetables, and protein sources to fuel my workouts.
• I'm cleaning things up. I'm making places for everything. I'm getting rid of clutter. I'm removing the excess (but I'm not getting rid of my jeans. My jeans will stay in my closet forever. I think I still have maternity jeans somewhere.)

So lots of little and big changes. They are all starting to add up. I can see muscle in my body. I feel better. I feel happier. I feel less like the world is going to crash in on me. I am getting stuff done. And I am moving forward. Little changes. They make for big leaps.

~Katie

Here we go again! Weight Watchers

So a big part of my struggle is with my intake. I've been eschewing tracking because I don't really want to be honest about what I eat and what I drink every day. And I've been shooting myself in the foot. As evidenced by the only slight change I experienced over the past month.

My mom emailed me with an idea. Join Weight Watchers meetings with her for Lent. Commit to going to the meetings and tracking and using the tools for the rest of Lent.

She used to be a leader & weight watchers has been a side part of my life for a very long time. And I have always thought that I could tackle my weight without it. I could "do by self" to quote a two year old me. This past summer, I used the etools to moderate success. I lost 10 pounds or so. Then I fell off the deep end and stopped tracking & ballooned up t20 lbs. So starting again & committing the hour a week (or two hours today) seemed like too much. When I'm already stressed about what I'm eating, how I'm working out, putting in the work at work that I need to, spending social time with loved ones, and investing time in my business, how am I supposed to cope with one more thing?

How am I supposed to add another thing into a bag that's already bursting?

Except then reason stepped in. This is a tool. It is an organizational method to manage a few of those things that I'm handling loose-pack. It gives me a focus for how to plan meals and how to think about things.

So maybe it's one more hour a week. Maybe, just maybe, it will alleviate some of the load. I have promised to follow through, so I will follow through.

~Katie

So Demoralizing

Yeah, so I tracked today. I was feeling so good about it.

Yes, I was a little bloated. But I've been working so hard! I've been feeling better! I've been doing so well! Right? I was going to see results!

Well, here they are, in living color. My still fat ass on the internet. The only benefit is that I don't see as much belly fat hangover. That is the one place that I see improvement.
I gained .7 pounds.
I gained inches or stayed the same almost everywhere.
UGH!!!!
---EDIT---
I wish that the waist measurement was actually at my waist. Instead, it's at my belly button. The place I feel I've changed the most is just under the boobs, on the ribcage and my belly. My haunches haven't really changed, and my thighs have gotten larger, but probably mostly because ChaLEAN Extreme is extreme on the amount of squats you do.

It's difficult to compare the before and after photos because the angle is different and so is the lighting. I decided that the orange/brown look wasn't doing me any favors & realized I had a door where I could get a straight shot.  The height of the camera is the same between the photos, though, as is the way the bikini is tied (as in I haven't been able to untie that knot for YEARS).

Forgot to add the other stats:
Push-ups: James and I did a test last night. I did 3 push-ups on my toes and then 8 on my knees. I didn't time them. I should have. Maybe I'll do that tonight.
Weights I'm using:
Lower Body: 15-20 lbs
Triceps: 5 lbs
Biceps: 10 lbs
Back & shoulders: 10-15 lbs

~Katie
PS I'm still going to continue with this. I'm feeling stronger. So hopefully I can actually shed some inches in the next month.

I'm not happy, but I'm hopeful?

Minor milestone

Today, I had a minor milestone that makes me hopeful for tomorrow's tracking day.

I was able to hook my bra on the middle clasp rather than the last one!

~Katie

Photo is Creative Commons from WikiHow