Weight-loss Wednesday

Is anyone watching The Biggest Loser this season? I am so happy Jillian is back! This season they're tackling childhood obesity and have 3 sweet ambassadors.

During the two night premiere I was working on my exercise plan. I'm not quite done with it yet but l'll be alternating upper and lower body exercises 6 days a week.

Sundays will be off days and my cheat day. Saturdays will be my weigh in day. I don't really have a number in mind. Since I will be doing weights, I'll be focusing more on how my clothes fits because muscle weighs more than fat. :)

Who would you want as your trainer?

 I think I'd be crying the whole time with Jillian. I love her but I don't think I could take the pain of working out and her screaming in my face. lol

If Dolvett was my trainer I think I'd be staring at him like this the whole time.

And would get nothing done.

So Bob would be my choice. I just love him! I would not mind him in my face all the time.

I was chatting with two friends yesterday and was delighted to find out they are both committed to losing weight this year. One hopes to lose 30 pounds and train for a triathlon in July. So excited for him! The other has two family weddings this year so needless to say, she wants to drop a few pounds and has started Zumba. We will now be having weekly iMessage venting sessions and trading tips and encouragement! Whoo! 

I've been thinking...since my weigh in days are going to be on Saturdays and my off days are on Sundays, I think I should change my weight-loss check-ins to Saturday. This way I can summarize my week and share my results.

How are your new year's resolutions going? 

Weight-loss Wednesday

I didn't want to blog so late today but I fell asleep. I was watching FRIENDS all wrapped up in my new blanket and I dozed off. It was great! 

I started this post on Wednesday but it is now technically Thursday, so you get Weight-loss Wednesday on Thursday.

Today I am going to share with you all the resources and equipment I will be using for my weight-loss journey.

APPS:

MapMyRun 

 I love this app! 

You can log your workouts, routes and meals! And you can add friends for encouragement. You don't necessarily have to run, you can track walks, jogs, and other types of workouts. You can use the website, MapMyRun or the super convenient, FREE app that is available for iPhone, Android, and Blackberry!

My username is bmaggie84 in case you want to add a friend! :)

Vemma Bod.e

I just discovered this FREE app yesterday. I'm still exploring it. It can be used with Chris Powell's book, Choose to Lose. It's a low carb-high carb menu/guide type app. As I said I am still trying to figure out how it works. It has video tips, grocery lists, recipes and you can track your progress. I plan on doing his low carb-high carb plan so this is perfect! 

Pinterest 

There are so many tips, exercises, and recipes on Pinterest. Click the pic to go to my boards. I have 2 on Health and Fitness.

 WOGGING:

 Not me! I wish.

Walking + jogging = wogging. 

I broke my ankle when I was 14, had surgery and now have a screw holding a bone together. So needless to say, I have to be careful. Every time I wog I do 3 miles. I don't count laps because I always lose count. MapMyRun is awesome enough that it tells me every time I complete a mile. It tells me the distance and time. I always stretch at home before I leave my house. Just simple stretches. The first lap I do, I warm up. Meaning I don't walk as fast as the other laps. Then once I hit 3 miles I do a cool down lap and some ankle exercises. I walk on my heels for 20 steps, normal for 30 seconds, then 20 steps on my tip toes. I do that about 3 times and then I am done.

Here's how I alternate walking and jogging. I make different playlists each lasting about 60 minutes. Every time a song hits a chorus I jog. Perfect interval training. Well, perfect for me.

DVDS:

Bob Harper is an evil man. Ok, not really. He's gorgeous but his workout dvds are evil. I bought this a while back, watched a piece and found myself out of breath in the first 10 minutes. I only watched it, as in sat down and watched it. I didn't try doing the exercises. It's pretty intense. My only problem with these work out dvds is that the people doing them are fit. They are not struggling as I am struggling. They are not huffing and puffing and blowing the house down. I am.

He's having a sale on his website. DVDs are $3.99! 

 Click the pic to shop!

This woman is a beast!

I came up with a solution to all the huffing and puffing. I'm going to watch the dvds and grab a few exercises and make my own routine. I haven't quite planned it out yet but I'll share it when I do.

The dvds are available at Wal-Mart, Target, and Amazon.

BOOKS:

 I'll be getting most of my exercise moves from this book.

 Awesome book title, huh? 

 

 I typed up the rules and you can get a copy here.

Please let me know if you can't access it, I've had trouble with it before.  

 

Our body is an incredible machine. It's important we understand how it works.

 EQUIPMENT:

Jillian Michaels' 30 day shred mat and 3 lb weights.

I also have some 5lb dumbbells that I'll use. 

Yup, I got an elliptical. I am serious about losing weight.

FOOD:

I am still reading Choose to Lose and haven't quite planned out my meals yet.  I'm going to be on a new schedule starting next week and I want to plan my meals and exercise routines around it.  I'm going to do Chris Powell's low carb-high carb cycle. As soon as I plan it all out I'll share it with you. I'll be eating oatmeal, fruits and veggies, chicken, and tilapia. Just to give you an idea. 

This is my longest post ever! Thanks for reading til the end. I hope I included everything. If I left anything out I'll be sure to address it in future Weight-loss Wednesdays posts.

Are you embarking on a fitness journey of your own? I would love to swap stories, tips, and ideas!

I'll be back next Wednesday to check in.  I'm taking the dreaded "before" picture tomorrow. Yikes.

Weight-loss Wednesday

I got my wog (walk + jog = wog) on today and Monday. I'm sticking to my 3 miles a day, 3x's a week. And I feel good.  I wanted to take a picture of the sunrise this morning but it was cloudy. I am officially on Christmas break! School resumes on January 7th so I've got until then to fully plan out my exercise schedule and eating plan. I've been reading and researching so that I can put together a plan that's good for me.

I must remember this when my calves start to hurt. Keep. Going.

I've got some exciting news to share tomorrow! Well, exciting for me anyway! :)

 I'm off to watch The Hobbit in a bit! 

Happy Wednesday, friends!

Wordless Weight-loss Wednesday

   

 

 (my favorite!)

Weight-loss Wednesday

Short post today. I've been getting my 3 miles a day, 3 days a week. I wog for an hour. Walking + jogging = wogging. :) I broke my ankle when I was 14 and had surgery to insert a screw to hold my foot together, so I have to take it easy. Don't want that screw popping out. Once I'm lighter I'll be able to run. 

I bought these yoga capri pants at Target (♥) and they are amazing! I want to wear them everywhere! I am very motivated to work out right now cause I get to wear my awesome capri pants!

  

I'm wearing them right now!

On my last post, which you can read about HERE, I talked about Bob Harper's skinny rules. I've been doing 6 out of 20 and I feel good. I typed them up and you can download them HERE. (Hope it works, first time using google docs!)

Thanks for stopping by! I truly appreciate each and every one of you that takes time to stop by and read my lil old blog! 

Weight-loss Wednesday

As I said in an earlier post, I saw Chris Powell on The Dr. Oz Show and was really intrigued by his carb cycling plan. High carb one day, low carb the next. And you get a cheat day! That is something I can do.


But before I discovered this carb cycling plan, I was reading The Skinny Rules by Bob Harper. He explains 20 simple rules that will help you lose weight. So far I've been doing 5 of them. Ssh, don't tell Bob!

Rule 1: Drink a large glass of water before every meal - no excuses!

Rule 9: Stop guessing about portion size and get it right - for good

Rule 14: Eat a real breakfast.

Rule 15: Make your own food and eat at least 10 meals a week at home.

Rule 19: Sleep right.

Rule 20: Plan one splurge meal a week.

I'm currently reading Chris Powell's book and trying to write out a meal plan and an exercise schedule. I am really liking that I can eat carbs because I cannot wait to eat tamales this holiday season!

Thanks for reading! 

Weight-loss Wednesday!

Hello, loves!

Let's dive right into this weight loss stuff! You probably think I'm a little bit crazy for wanting to start losing weight right before Thanksgiving but I am not going to drastically change my eating habits. At least not yet. I am going to approach this weight-loss journey differently than my previous attempts. For now, no food is off limits. I'm focusing on moderation. I do plan on giving my eating habits a makeover. 

 A few years ago, I did the Atkins diet. NO CARBS. Like at all. I stuck with it for almost 3 months and lost 26 pounds in that time. The only thing I changed was taking out the carbs. I didn't exercise. While that was totally awesome, Thanksgiving was coming up and I wanted to eat all those delicious carbs! Long story short, the 26 pounds came back and brought along some friends. Was I really never going to eat another carb again in my life?! Ugh, and the constipation sucked! Sorry, TMI! 

So that was a complete fail.

Clicking the pic will take you to my Fitness and Health Pinterest board. There are more pins, now! :)

This time I've done my research. Turns out our bodies need carbs! Too many and too little carbs make you fat!

I recently saw Chris Powell, known best for the transformations on Extreme Makeover: Weight-loss edition, on The Dr. Oz Show (I ♥ Dr. Oz!) and he blew my mind! (Chris is a cutie, ain't he?) Focus, Bren!
Chris Powell has a book on carb cycling titled "Choose to Lose", which I am currently reading. I had never heard of this. Remember me and Dr. Atkins? >:/
I've read several books and articles, I mean there is SO MUCH info out there and all agree that eating 5-6 meals a day speeds up your metabolism. So, I can eat a lot, they can be carbs AND I can lose weight? Sign me up! 
For my makeover, I am using the Mediterranean food pyramid as my guide.

As I said, I have read several books and I'm grabbing a few things here and a few things there. I'm not doing anyone's complete plan. I believe God has led me to these different resources and now I have to do my part and put them to work.  I've pinned the books to my board in case you want to check them out. I apologize if I just threw all this random information at you. I promise to organize it better next time.

For now, I am drinking 8oz of water before every meal. I got that from Bob Harper in The Skinny Rules. I am also using these cute little plates I found at Dollar General. If a meal has pasta, it goes in the fruit compartment. I'm heading to San Antonio on Friday and won't be back until the 26th. You better believe I am taking at least one plate with me! I know I will make good (and delicious) food choices. No, I am not going to bust out my plate at restaurants, or will I?

Friends, losing weight is hard. My failed attempts are proof that it's hard. But this time I've got Jesus and the Holy Spirit as my running partners! If you want to make changes, please know that I will be praying for you. If there is something specific you want me to pray for, (doesn't have to be weight-loss related) shoot me an email. Let's do this together! :)

Time to lace up those Nikes!

Weight-loss Wednesday and a favorite things giveaway!

I have what you would call a bit of a weight problem. I am overweight and therefore unhappy with my weight. I hate all the clothes in my closet and it's not so much that they are ugly but that I hate the way I look in them. In life, we will be faced with things we can change and with things we cannot. This is something I can change. Diabetes runs in both sides of my family therefore putting me at risk. I am hoping to get a full time teaching job soon and I need to build up my immune system and just be healthy in general. I do not want to get a cold the first week of school. I know this is a teaching blog but I named it "The Teacher Diaries" with the intention of sharing not only about my classroom life but my life in general. 

I decided that Wednesdays will be my weigh-in/check-in day. Knowing I have to post will keep me accountable. I created a new board on Pinterest where I will pin books, exercises, recipes and supplements I use. 

You can browse my board here.   

There is only one pin because I JUST created it. lol 

 I have a Health and Fitness board but it is just 300+ random pins. The new board will help me organize them.

  I really hope y'all don't mind I use Wednesdays for this. If there is anything you are doing or using to get healthier, please feel free to share. You can leave a comment or email me. :)

Here's a pic to ignite my motivation:

Anything for Ryan. ;)

I am going to imagine that I am running towards him!

Moving on, I was watching Ellen as I was writing this and bawling my eyes out. She just gave a car to a family in need. I ♥ her. She is a wonderful human being.

Onto the giveaway, click the pic to go to Aimee's blog and enter her 300 followers giveaway! She's giving away a few of her favorite things that just happen to be some of my favorite things.

 

And finally, my Boys are back with a new Christmas song! Enjoy! :D