Hey Suzy! This is a favorite topic of mine!! My key success points: throw out the junk food, PLAN your meals with healthy nutritious foods, and find a physical activity that you LOVE to do. Always loved riding your bike when you were a kid? Get one and get out there. Never happier than after you do a little yoga? Get some Yoga DVDs from the library and hit the mat. Would love to release some stress and hit a punching bag? Take a boxing class! The possibilities are ENDLESS and we can all find something that brings us joy, that we can stick with and that will help us get out there and get fit.
Thanks! I LOVED mountain biking BEFORE kids and I keep telling myself to get that bike out and MT. Bike again! As I remember I felt like a kid on a BMX bike----we know how fun that is. OK OK---I need to get that bike out after my trip and ride a trail for the first time in 16 years.....!!
Whenever I ride my bike...my memory shifts back to my childhood: riding around the neighborhood after school, the wind blowing through my hair, thinking how good it felt to be "free" from school for the rest of the evening, and coming home to dinner that my mom had ready. Casually riding my bike today around the neighborhood makes me feel 35 years younger...it's mentally exhilerating! I do not really use my bike for fitness, I only use it to unwind. Maybe I should tke my bike on a trail at Ridley Creek Park for a challenge.
You are getting me motivated to ride my bike just for the fun of it!! Thanks Trish! ---Maybe I need to ride with you sometime. YOUNGER feeling---that sounds great :)
Dive into a fitness program that is appropriate for your level of fitness. "Visualize" yourself commiting and succeeding before each workout (I usually do this at night while falling sleep). Share your goals..once you go "public" you are less likely to back down. Stay at it for at least 4 weeks, by then it may become more habitual and you will not stress about the commitment anymore. Visualize the end point...if I am starting a 90 day program (ex. P90X) I count forward 90 days on the calender and then keep that "finish date" in my head, as the date gets closer, I know results are coming close too! If that date comes and I did not complete my goal, I will be cranky!
I do not have any advice on dieting...I could use some...I try to "eat clean" at home, but I often give in to temptation...usually when the kids are indulging at Cold Stone or KFC, I am too! Maybe I should just stay in the car and let them go in and eat!
For me, I had to find something that I enjoyed. It took a while but I finally did and it was at home workout DVD's. I felt comfortable doing them in my own home because I am totally uncoordinated. As each day passed, I got better at them and have really made a lot of improvements towards my physical well being. I've also involved my family , including our dog, into my exercise routines. We walk, swim (well, not me...I'm afraid of drowning...lol), bike ride and hike. They are reaping the benefits. I also journal my food intake and keep track of calories. I try to stick with the Food Pyramid's guidelines. Some days are easier than others but I keep in mind that I'm making this a lifetime change and not a quick fix.
I joined a local boot camp in my area! I was hesitant at first because having kids and being out of shape and not working out since the last one, I knew it was going to be difficult. The camp I chose was in the Philadelphia area called Epic Boot Camp. My instructor has been fabulous! This is my 2nd month and I have to say that I am loving it! I enjoy the group of women I work with because it isn't just me and the trainer. The other women in the group silently encourage each other and I almost feel disappointed if I don't go to camp because I think we all want everyone to be there. Plus the more women there are there, the more fun it is! I also have to admit it is nice to get out of the house everyday and be with other women in my situation(and leave the kids with my husband for a bit, but don't tell him that). He likes it to, he says he can see a change in my spirit and a change in my body!
I was in great shape before I became pregnant. Now my son is almost 10 months and I have a nagging extra bit of me I carry around. The best method that works for me is to reduce the carb intake. I have done the South Beach Diet in the past but I did not cut out the fruit for the first two weeks as they suggested. By cutting out the carbs and beginning with protien in the morning I am feeling better and slimming back to my former physical self in a safe and healthy way. With the winter months approaching, I find that substituting herbs, spices, and color into my diet replaces the DRAB beige of the carb craving. Each day is better. Try little meals thru the day instead of big meals and LOTS of water.
Well at the begining of July, I turned 30, which got me thinking about the next 10 years, which lead me to this list:
1. Finish Masters Degree in Counseling
2. Lose 30 pounds (and keep it off)
3. Quit "temporary" job (technically did this yesterday…
yesterday
Suzy Stauffer Ready for a noght out with the ladies at DOC's-- Join us-- 7p-9p in West Chester, PA==
yesterday
Christy Clay So scatter brained, what is the deal!