Battle of the Post Holiday Weight Gain

 

Did any of you over do it like me this past holiday and gain weight like me?

Who am I kidding? With me breastfeeding for the majority of 2015, I let my eating habits go awry, anything and everything I wanted, I ate inhaled. Now all that post baby weight I lost, is pretty much toast. I’m back to my normal weight which is not bad, but for me, I know that I can do better. I can tell by the bloat that the carbs I’ve been inhaling are not doing my body any good. So, it’s time to get my food portions and meals in order. I’m not going to go on a juice or tea detox, because it takes a lot to oil this 6 foot machine! I am just going to do some meal planning and eat less processed foods, eat more veggies and fruits, and drink more water. I’ve done this before if you have been following my blog posts.

I am also back in the gym! I started back last week and it felt glorious! The Fitbit is the reason ‘m back full fledged.

Image Source: FitBit.com

I bought a Charge HR(In purple!!!!) to inspire me to get off my butt and on me feet as well as track my heart rate. What I didn’t think would happen was my competitive spirit to kick into full blast! On the Fitbit app you can add friends, and can challenge them during the week, cheer their progressions and taunt them in competitions. It’s an amazing device and they have many different kinds.I got this one on sale during the holidays and I must say it’s one of my best purchases in 2015.You can check out the various Fitbits here. Today I did about 45 minutes of intervals on the elliptical, as well as took 5 flights of stairs back to my desk and took the 15 minute ab class they offer at the gym at work. I also make sure to track my food and connected my Fitbit to the wonderful app MyFitnessPal which helps you track your food and helps you set goals for eating. Before I put something in my body I will put it in MyFitnessPal to see if it’s a good food or a bad food. Food planning helps and they even help you set goals for exercise and things. I really love the app and it helped me lose 25lbs a few years ago. I am SO excited that I am back on track and I can bring you guys some great fitness content and potential yummy recipes  soon. I am so happy to be on my journey again!

 

 

Well, That Was Quick…

My child is 10 months old. 10 entire months ago I was on the verge of having her.(See pic below)

 

Amazing how time flies!  Well My little babe can do so much! She is curious, full of personality, and loves to smile. She is eager to learn about new surroundings and things, she crawls on all 4’s (the cutest thing you will see), and now she is standing. You better believe I am one proud mama!  She also finally has a tooth! It came in about a week and some change ago. Check her out in action on my Instagram page here.

 

I am currently planning her  1st birthday and everything seems to be coming together pretty well. I hope it all goes off without a hitch on her big day. Planning things typically can bring out your creativity and really make you do some research. I plan on having a unique theme since it is her 1st birthday. I plan to blog about what my ideas are. I have an online vision board of sorts, and  I am trying my best not to spend too much money! It is hard to edit yourself when you have a little girl. I thought people were lying when they said they will make you spend all of your money. I’m here to tell you they were not lying nor exaggerating. There is an abundance of cute clothes and trinkets out there for baby girls. I’m going to go ahead and join buyers anonymous.

So let’s talk  postpartum working out. I haven’t really done it. I committed myself to it one week and then my work/life/obligations I let them take priority over it. I promise I will get back on it. TBD though. My sHERO for fitness after pregnancy is fitfoodiele. The girl is amazing. 2 kids, and a hubby and an entourage of small businesses, she finds the time! You can check out her blog for fitspiration at fitfoodiele.com or on Instagram @fitfoodiele I do plan on getting back to blogging about my fitness chronicles but if you need a resource she def takes the cake!   Have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend mine starts today! WOOT!

Eventful is not the Word

I have had all kinds of things going on these days,

School has kept me so busy, that I was unable to even look at a gym. Luckily, I was able to do a 5k and a 28 mile bike ride this weekend, which has my glutes a little sore, but I feel foxxy! I did the Tour de Donut which benefits the Make-a-Wish Foundation, with my new bike group called the Slow Spoke Society! Go on over to our Facebook Page and like it! We are new fresh and ready to conquer rides! On this bike tour, we got to eat as many donuts as we could as we rode. I ate about 3 donuts. I was more concerned about the water and where it was lol. Check out the pics!

//instagram.com/p/gNr8bhPztj/embed/

This entire month has been absolutely challenging for me. School, Work projects, Home life, and just life in general has been a whirlwind. My home life in particular was a nuclear disaster, which is why I ended up moving, and I feel like a heavy load or burden has been lifted. My morale this month, because of my stressful home life, has been all the way down. But do not worry, I have managed to stay positive, take it one step at a time and I am rebuilding it back up.

The 5k and the 28 mile bike ride really helped. When in doubt, work out! Ha! Working out has become such a great form of therapy. I mean, I read about it being a stress reliever and therapy, but I think I truly experienced it this weekend. Sometimes life will kick you in the rear hard. It is up to you whether you become a victim of your circumstances, or get back up and say is that all you got?!

I got contacts this Friday and I as a avid glasses wearer feel so fancy! LOL I like that people can see my face and I like the surprise people see when they notice my glasses are missing.

This week I am going to get back into my workout routine, start to bike halfway to work, work on reading my 3 chapters, 2 discussions, and 2 papers. Sounds like a lot, I know, but time management is the key to being successful! I got it. Hope everyone’s week is great as well! Stay focused and positive!!!

-Sharde

 

Legs

 

Pull out the handicap signs.

Yesterday was Leg day! My oh my! I have a new personal best. leg pressing 180 in 3 sets of 30 with a rest pause. Brutal. I was dizzy and my legs were weak. Fun times. I have 2 days of rest (today included) and I am going to recover!

My leg workout consisted of:

20 mins of cardio on the elliptical

150 seated barbell twists per side

1 drop set of a total of 100 reps  leg extensions starting at 170lbs and dropping to 30lbs after every 10-20 reps (BRTUALLLLLLL)

Seated leg curls at 70lbs w/ 2 warm up sets 10 reps and  3 sets of  20 reps 

Leg press w/ 2 warm up sets of 10 reps at 90lbs and 3 rest pause sets of 30 reps at 180lbs

Hack squats w/ 2 warm up sets of 7 reps at 70lbs and 3 sets with 7 reps at 80lbs

20 mins of cardio on the bike 

And a wheelchair LOL. I felt like I needed that. I hope everyone’s hump day is going well. Mine is. I downloaded this new app called Bitstrips it’s like a comic version of yourself. I have had tons of fun posting things on my social network sites. Who knows, I may post one on here! Hahah Happy HUMP DAY!

 

Check out my Progress! (After a week of eating cakes, pies and ect)

Tuesday WOD

 

This was the workout I did yesterday. I did it with so much enthusiasm, my trainer was shocked. He wondered what had gotten into me and whatever it was, I needed to keep on with it. I told him it was probably my food intake. That was my guess. My guess was also, that I was coming off of a Mini Vacay and my spirit was refreshed. Hopefully I can keep my enthusiasm up. I ran 25 hills and did not complain once. I did 16 in a row without one tiny break. I did not let the fatigue discourage me. The only thing I was not successful at was my workout on the pull up bar. That’s okay, I will work at it.   I hit the punching  bag like someone had offended my Mother! I was in a rare, but welcomed beast mode. Do you guys have days like this? It felt amazing that my trainer was happy about my performance. Let’s see how Thursday pans out. I am excited.

Today I read the latest entry from the Ascent blog and she challenged me. To do what I feared the most. 10 pull ups!!! I am going to do it. By the end of this year. I am going to do it! Watch me work! Another update on my ever changing physique. My abs are starting to play peek-a-boo. This means one thing. They are on the rise. I have never had abs. Well I have had a silhouette (What I am working with now) If I keep up with my clean eating, and my workouts, I will have a little something something. I will keep you guys posted! HURRAH!

WOD

Yesterday,

I had my session with my trainer at #Garagefit. It included:

It literally put me to bed. I actually had a sweat pool on my back and on my torso, which is huge for me. I honestly believe that I have hypoactive sweat glands. Meh. I came home to my eager dog, only to disappoint him by falling asleep. I even attempted to watch Catfish, and ended up turning it off and going right to bed. I have to work late tomorrow so another Workout session with #GarageFit is due. I will post the workout and let you know how it made me feel.

Some personal goals I would like to accomplish this month:

• Work on my patience( I sometimes have a moment or 4 of impatience)
• Find an apartment (My rent increased substantially so, I have to find a more affordable place)
• Pay for someone’s Coffee via Drive- Thru.
• Buy/Rent my books before the 1st day of school so I will not fall behind.

Do any of you have any personal goals you would like to accomplish this month?

Weekend Recap

What a wonderful weekend!

I started it off with a bicycle ride around my city. I participated in “Critical Mass” where bikers from all over town meet up at one location and ride out for 20 miles with no particular destination. Was it a challenge? If you count 20 miles as a challenge then yes! Was it fun, absolutely. It motivated me to want to ride more. I bought a bike the day of and had a difficult time getting an entire bike in my sedan (I do not recommend it), and once that was all set I had some seat issues but a quick stop at Lowes and a few minutes later I was ready to go. Now the lower part of my glutes feel sore, but other that that, I feel fabulous! Here are a few pictures from my Instagram (@shoedooo)

I named her Schwinniqua Jones(LOL)

Pretty cool eh? So Saturday I spent my day at my brothers baby shower. He is having a girl with his Fiancee. I will be an Aunt for the 3rd time! This makes my mother aware that I am childless and I get the whole, “When are you going to settle down and give me some  grand kids talk” Ehhhhh. Give me a few years Mom. I need a boyfriend 1st! I was also the most competitive in the baby shower games. I love to compete what can I say. I have 2 cool prizes now. A bread and oil set and a margarita set! Oh yeah! I ended the day re-connecting with an old high school buddy and frolicking at the pool. It’s summer and the pool is a lovely thing.

Sunday I was a bum. Completely. I slept in and played with my dog. I got into a minor fender bender (No biggie!) and had the most hilarious dinner with my closest homegirls. My life experiences are super hilarious according to them. We had tons and tons of laughter! My friends Chicken Tetrazzini was so delicious. Oh. Carbs + Cheese = a lovely explosion of deliciousness. So what did you all do this weekend? Hope it was as fun and adventurous as mine!