Middle of 2nd Week: Can you see a difference?

Hello there! I know I stated that I'd only post once a week, but I'm in a writing mood so here goes. I've gotten a bit better at keeping up with my exercises so far, and it is extremely helpful that my husband is also working out with me. (Although we do tease each other from time to time during the exercises: "And you gave me a hard time when I couldn't get past 40 sit ups?!")

Anyway, I very nearly didn't make it this week. Tuesday was a bad day. I was PMS-ing, tired, and after a stranger tried knocking our door down at 9pm the previous night, I was a nervous wreck thinking someone was going to try and tear our door down. (We never did find out who it was, though he drove a white Dodge Ram truck with blinking lights.) I took a "rest day" and the rest of the night I admit I felt bad that I did! I kept thinking, "So what'll be the excuse tomorrow why I won't exercise?" because I do it so much.  However, during downtime at work, I decided to look up new exercise routines. Maybe I was just getting bored from doing only cardio this whole time?

I found a fun-looking exercise routine that I decided to integrate into my current plan - Prevention.com's "25-Day Barre Boot Camp."  I had seen barre exercises before, but everywhere had a more extensive workout and one that wasn't encouraging for a beginner. However, the boot camp was quite detailed in how to perform the moves and included photos to compare. It advertised that it could help you lose 3 lbs in a week (I'm assuming if you include a healthy diet with it). It looked easy and well, anything was better than me doing another day of cardio!

I quickly bookmarked the page on my phone and once I got home slunk into my yoga pants and a tank top and begun the exercise. OH MY GOD. I broke into a heavy sweat almost immediately and my (admittedly weak) leg and foot muscles screamed. I could feel an intense burn while I did the recommended amount of repetitions (though the site encourages that if the repetitions are too many to lower the amount or increase based on fitness level), and well......

I HAD FUN.

One of the moves actually made me look like I was attempting pliés a la a real ballerina. It was really fun and intense and kind of made me go back to when I was a little girl dancing in my bedroom. Today my legs were burning and sore (admittedly I must not have stretched enough prior to the exercise, an error I was quick to fix today before today's reps).

Result-wise: I'm keeping the Barre exercise, and going back to cardio tomorrow for a variation.

So far, I'm not seeing a huge difference body-wise. I do see my waist becoming significantly more defined, however, and my thighs are increasingly slimmer. (I'm focusing on my thighs first and foremost). I'm not as tired anymore when doing exercise and I have a bit more energy during the day.

All in all, I think I'm doing great. Let's see another bad day come up and then we'll see what I'll do. :)

Week Two: I Can Breathe!

So as of tomorrow, I will have gone a whole week on this workout plan. So far I feel I'm doing pretty well. I'm feeling a distinct tightening around my legs, which is where my last few days has been targeting. I'm also been eating a bit better than I usually do.

This week I've actually started having a much healthier lunch time routine. I'm usually having a frozen meal, which isn't healthy with a high sodium content, a cup of yogurt, and a cup of jello. Now I made a full week of different sandwich wraps, using a low calorie, low carb, and whole wheat flatbread. Yesterday I had a spicy tuna wrap, which consisted of a sauce made of mayonnaise, Sriracha, and avocado and carrots with brown rice and white Albacore tuna. It's pretty good, if you have a bit of low-sodium soy sauce added.

The best thing about this week is that my husband, instead of joking about how silly I look when doing my exercises, is actually doing some exercises with me. Our son tries to mimic us (which is totally not a bad thing!) when we're doing crunches or jumping jacks.

We went to the State Fair this weekend, and usually I tire easily. This time not so much! I was pretty active and was able to keep up a lot better. I also didn't have much trouble with a big walk. The only problem I had was with my feet because my shoes weren't walking-compatible. I also didn't eat much if any of the fried foods - just a sati babi pork on a stick and a lot of lemonade.

Excuses I've made up in the past seem shallow. I'm really enjoying myself exercising. I won't post pictures yet until I hit one month.

Day Two: Is It Working Yet?

Since I didn't really elaborate in my last post, I'm going to make up for it with a second post this week.
My name is Kim, I'm 25 years old. I am currently going to school for my Bachelor Degree in Paralegal, and I work for a major bank. I am married and I have a four year old son. I am also grossly overweight. Ever since I hit puberty I've always been a bit heavier than other girls. It wasn't until I got pregnant with my son that that extra weight ballooned to making me over 200lbs. I am not proud of it. It's rather embarrassing to have to try on clothes in a store to the point that I would rather order online and hope the clothes fit right. I don't like going out in shorter pants or dresses with my family because while my son and husband are fairly skinny, I'm rather huge. It is because of all that that I started this plan.

I currently workout at home, a big portion because I am still ashamed of going out to a public gym to work out. Also, I want to guarantee I can stick to a workout routine without wasting money that I need to live on. Luckily, my husband is also working out with me, but he will be doing a different routine than I.

The routine I am participating in is from the Back on Pointe tumblr (http://backonpointe.tumblr.com). I'm not sure I mentioned them last post, but here you go. I had stumbled across the tumblr when I was going through Pinterest's Health and Fitness section and found some of their plans. I decided to merge two plans together: the regular daily workout and the Train Like a Slayer Cardio. I set it up as alternating between if a day is odd or even numbered. It gives me a variation each day, so nothing will be repeated until 2 weeks later. My husband just wants to focus on his abs, so he is participating in the 30 day Ab Challenge. So far, he's doing great. I'm quite jealous of how long he can plank.

Already I'm feeling my legs tighter and a tightness in my midsection, but again, it's only day three of my workout routine and I know not much has been lost... yet. Still, as long as I feel like this (accomplished) every day after my workout, I think I'll do good. And I'm not doing this alone this time, so I'm excited.

I'll be starting a semi-diet next week by substituting a frozen dinner I usually have for lunch at work to freshly made sandwich wraps and adding more vegetables to my diet. I'll post weekly with my sandwiches and the recipes if I like them. :)

Til next week, toodle looooooo.

Week One - Here I Go.

I've decided to turn this into a fitness blog. I have decided to start a new fitness plan called Back on Pointe (http://backonpointe.tumblr.com). She posts many awesome workouts depending on fitness level, body part you're wanting to focus on, and diet plans. =) I've so far have done two of her workouts and they kick major butt.

I also started this so that way I can watch my own progress and hopefully I can learn some things from fellow bloggers. :) Feel free to help me! :)

Day One:

Front and center

Side shot

So as you can see, I have lot to work on.  Wish me luck!