Thanksgiving is a time to feast and reflect on what you are thankful for, and I am thankful that I have lost 30 lbs. over the past year......Oh yeah, I'm thankful for my family, my friends, my safety, my shelter, and all of the other important things in life, too. Let's get back to what this blog is really about though, weight loss/management.
How did a person that is a low-cal blogger/personal trainer/health coach even have 30 lbs. to lose in the first place?
Well, let me explain that before you decide that I have lost all credibility. Life happened. Stress overtook me. I suppose I let it overtake me or, rather, consume me. I kind of gave up on myself for awhile. My wake up call was a picture. It's always a picture. My face looked fatter. I didn't recognize myself anymore. There were a lot of tears. There was a lot of self-loathing and shame. When I was almost done feeling sorry for myself I decided to do something about it. Over the past year I have recorded my calories on the Lose It! app. I can't say that I did it religiously, but I can definitely tell you that when I stopped tracking I hit weight loss plateaus. I also increased my workouts tremendously. On average, I worked out 6-8 hours per week. At this point, I may have lost your interest. You may be thinking, "Eight hours!? Ain't nobody got time for that!!!!" I can't resist an opportunity to quote Sweet Brown. Please stay with me, folks.
Does it help that I am a personal trainer? Of course. Does it help that I work at a gym part-time, as well? Of course. Does that mean that you can't do the same? No. However, it may be more realistic to shoot for 5-6 hours per week. Think of the time that you spend on leisurely activities like watching TV, reading, etc. You get 24 hours in a day. Let's do the math for a super busy schedule:
8 hours sleep
1 hour shower & get ready
10 hours work/juggling kids
2 hours traffic
2 hours food prep/eating
+1 hour TV or Workout (How about combining both?)
24 hours
Sounds exhausting. It's hard. I get it. What's also hard is living in an unhealthy body. It doesn't have to be an hour per day everyday. It could be split up however you please. I tend to workout 2-3 hours on both Tuesdays and Thursdays, 1 hour on Saturday or Sunday, and 30-50 minutes on Mondays and Wednesdays. I always take a minimum of one day off for recovery. If you haven't been exercising at all, then focus on trying to exercise 30 minutes per day. Even just 30 minutes a day can dramatically improve your overall health, and impact/prevent diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease.
I am still working out at least 6 hours a week, and I am now 5-10 lbs. away from my goal weight. I haven't blogged in quite some time, but I'm back. You have goals. I have goals. I want to help. Let's embark on this journey together. Over the next several weeks I am going to be adding some exciting changes to my blog. I'm going to be changing the look, logo, and name. I will be adding fitness tips, workouts, and motivation. In addition, over the next couple months I intend to finish my book that I have been teasing for years. I'll let you know when it's finished.
I'd love to hear from you about your fitness/weight loss journey. What are you thankful for this Thanksgiving?
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