disconnect

yesterday i ran to panera for lunch to grab my favorite strawberry poppyseed chicken salad.  as soon as i got on the road i realized i had left my phone on my desk.  gasp!  but then...

freedom!

sad, isn't it.  i felt a little lost and nervous at first without my phone.  even if it was only for a quick 20 minute jaunt away from the office.  but what if there was an emergency?  what would i do while i waited for my order?  could i live without my phone for 20 minutes.

crazy!  thankfully those wacky thoughts only lasted a few minutes.  and then i felt relieved.  and excited.  no temptation to check my email or facebook feed.  no way to take a quick picture of my panera bag to instagram to everyone.  i could only enjoy the moment that i was in.  and focus on what was around me.  or think my own thoughts.  i even had to listen to the radio, ads and all.

i loved it.

and i realized i need to do that more often.

so last night i took the girls for a walk to a local ice cream place.  it's a half hour each way.  i had my phone with me for safety reasons, but it was at the bottom of my purse.  i didn't check it at all during the entire hour and a half we were out.  and i resisted the temptation to get on facebook to thank someone who had stopped to let us cross a busy road.

being in the moment with my daughters who are growing up oh so fast was so much better than taking pictures of us to share with the whole world right away.  being able to talk to them without worrying about things happening at work was refreshing.  showing them that mommy could step away from the phone was priceless.

and it will happen more often.

i realize i have done what i said i'd never do. i've become addicted to a phone.  that stops now.  no checking it at every stoplight on my way to and from work.  no using it when i'm with the kids.  no checking email while i'm making dinner.

i think getting stepping away from the phone is going to be life changing!

halfway

it's hard to believe, but our summer is halfway over.  i've already received backpack catalogs from pottery barn kids and noticed that the school supply section is ready to go at target.  how did this happen?!?!?

i'm officially on a mission to make the most of the next 6 weeks before school starts. it sure helps that we'll start off with a trip to the ocean. following that we plan to see the lion king musical, visit the american girl store, and spend lots of time in the pool.  unfortunately big sis came down with swimmer's ear so the past week and a half has been "pool-free" except for lil' sis's swim lessons.

before swimmer's ear

my goal for the kids is to do a minimum of one "special" thing a week.  to get the most out of our swim passes, i'd like to see us go to the pool at least 7 more times before school starts.  and the rest of the time?  we'll just chill at home, summer style with no worries about homework or crazy busy schedules.

personally, i'd like to read a lot more.  and relax a lot more.  but i should also try to get some projects done around the house before the school year madness begins.

6 weeks.  42 days.  i am going to make the most of each and everyone.  beginning with pedicures tonight!

how about you?  how are you making the most out of the second half of summer?

double day

today was double day for me.  thankfully it's a saturday so i had time to do the workouts back to back.

the plan says to do lower focus and cardio.  i did lower focus and core speed (the bonus workout i received).  i already did cardio once this week and i like to mix it up to not get bored.  again, i had to modify parts of both workouts.  but even during the modified parts i felt i was getting a great workout.

after the first week, i'd say my favorite workout would be either the cardio or the core speed.  the ab intervals will be my biggest challenge and i'll be thrilled when i feel i've mastered it.  i'm already anxious to see how the beta workouts will be.

today is also stat saturday.  i took my initial measurements on  monday and measured again today.  the good news: i lost half a pound, an inch in my chest and a quarter inch in my thighs.  the bad news: i gained an inch in my waist.  which is my trouble area.  what's up with that?!?!?!  i'm guessing i'm retaining water.  i have not been drinking much water so i will be sure to up my water intake this week.

i'm not gonna lie.  when i saw my waist got bigger i wanted to give up.  it's so frustrating to see that.  but it has only been a week.  this is a ten week program.  i'll be taking a week off for vacation.  while i'll be running that week, i'm not sure i'll be eating very well. i will try my best to balance enjoying myself and not overindulging.  but when i get back, i'll have 8 more weeks of the program. i'm going to stick to the plan and not give up so that in mid-september i can see some sort of results.  even if it's only a tiny change. that's better than nothing.

in the meantime, i'm going to enjoy my weekend!

faves on friday

today's a tired day.  three late nights in a row.  three early mornings.  busy, filled days.  a few more hours until the weekend, thank goodness.  and a cut and color, which is about two months overdue.  i have been mostly happy this week, but have had some down moments.  so glad vacation is coming up soon.  i need to get away from it all and come back to a fresh start.

source

what i've found this week online that i love:

july 4th - i recently discovered the life with greyson + parker blog.  i think i need to read all of chrissy's posts.  although we have different struggles, i find her to be very inspiring and motivating.  today she talks about facing reality, in a good way.

july #bodyLOVE summer challenge - another new blog for me and another positive message.  this time about body image.  something i struggle with greatly. 

be like the sun - simple mom's monday inspirational pieces are the best!

that's all for now.  it was a busy week with little time surfing the net.  that's a good thing since it meant more time for family and fun.  happy friday everyone!

killer abs

today i did the focus t25 ab interval workout.  it was really tough.  again, i think i like that because i couldn't do all of the exercises perfectly so i have something to work for.  at the same time, though, i was a little frustrated because i didn't feel i was getting as good of a workout as i could if i did everything right.  but whenever i felt frustrated i tried to picture myself 10 weeks from now having mastered the workout.  what fun would it be if i did it perfectly the first time around, right?

i often feel so frustrated because results don't come quick, especially now that I am getting closer to 40. i like this picture above because it reminds me to not give up.  as long as i'm taking care of myself and staying consistent i will get there.  it will take longer than i like, but that's ok because i'm making positive choices every day.  and even if i don't look perfect, my health gets better every day.

since today's workout had a low calorie burn, the holiday is going to be a challenge.  i'm determined to not overindulge.  i will focus on eating fruits and veggies and will avoid the chips and dip.  i will stick to one, maybe two, glasses of wine, and i will drink lots of water.  i will not allow the holiday to distract me from my goals.

total body circuit

i stayed out late last night and was then woken up by big sis at 3 am and still did my focus t25 workout this morning.  it was a little tough, probably because i was exhausted before i even started, but i still did it!

one thing i like about focus t25 so far is that i cannot do all of the moves perfectly.  so i know i have something to work up to.  today there was a lot of plank work and push ups.  that's hard for me.  i know i will be super sore tomorrow.

food wise last night i went out and had two glasses of wine and some wings.  why i do that, i don't know.  i ate well all day so i don't feel completely horrible about it, but i still know that was really unhealthy.  this is where i struggle.  i was meeting up with friends.  and i wanted to enjoy myself.  i love wine and i love wings.  so how can i resist?  i guess the reality is that i need to work on the 80/20 rule where you eat healthy 80% of the time.  there has to be room in there for indulgences.  i hope last night fits into that 20%!

tomorrow will be another challenge with 4th of july celebrations.  thankfully the menu has lots of healthy options on it.  and i am pretty sure i'm going to do the double workout of the week tomorrow to help burn extra calories on the day i'll probably be eating more.  wish me luck!

my second day of focus t25

today i did the speed 1.0 workout. i have to admit i was a little disappointed in it at first.  the first 15 minutes you alternate stretching with speed work and it's a little slow going, you heart rate doesn't stay up for long and it seemed pretty easy.

but then i got my butt kicked in the last 10 minutes!

this is super sweaty me after speed 1.0!

so, although i didn't burn as many calories as yesterday, i did enjoy the challenge at the end.  and i can see what the workout is getting at.  you really do work your core in these exercises.  and i can tell my legs will be getting stronger.

a little less calories burned than yesterday, but that's ok!

i'm really excited to see what tomorrow's workout brings!

as for food, i did really good yesterday.  i was able to eat more than i expected.  i'm still nervous about keeping up with eating well.  but i know that's where success will be found.  my flabby tummy was created by a lousy diet.  i need to step it up and stop eating so much junk and i need to start keeping my calorie intake in line.  i'm not 18 anymore!

alpha

today i officially began focus t25 with the alpha cardio workout.  i'll admit i had to modify a few times because i wasn't ready for the intensity.  i think if i had been running regularly it would have been easier, but i've been focusing more on strength lately thus the high impact cardio was a little rough for me in parts.  but i did burn a decent amount of calories in 25 minutes.

before i did the workout, i took my measurements and some before pictures. i'm not ready to share those yet, but hopefully i will feel comfortable posting them in a few weeks when i show my progress from the alpha phase.

now, for me, the exercise is the easy part.  i really enjoy working out and have no trouble motivating myself to do so.  the hard part is the eating.  i love to eat.  and i don't really understand why i have to suffer to lose weight and look great.  but, as this past year has shown me, what you eat really does affect your results.  i've been drinking too much wine.  enjoying too many sweets.  not watching portion sizes.  and as someone approaching 40, i'm learning i cannot do this anymore.  so i've set my goal on myfitnesspal to lose one pound a week.  and boy oh boy is that a teeny bit of calories.  but i know i can do this.   it's going to take some adjustments, but i hope to see some major changes over the next 10 weeks!