It is Friday and time to reflect on my past week. I wanted to share my fitness story with you, but I am busy sorting through that history and pictures, as I know a visual is always nice, and I haven’t finished going through all of it yet. I will do a history post next week; from my skinny childhood to the tanking of my metabolism, to my anorexia, to my binge eating, to being healthy, back to unhealthy, and my current life-is-a-journey-strategy. It’s been an exhausting ride. I would like you to have a peek of it though so you better understand me. Most of you will probably relate.
This week has been hard. Tasks seem to have babies in the night so I wake to ten times the amount I had the previous day. There have been an inordinate amount of appointments and meetings on top of it all, as well. And LAUNDRY. Holy, vacationing with two kids really triples the amount of laundry you have when you return. I have felt scattered and unorganized all week. For seven days I had zero responsibility and getting back to it is harder than I imagined. (Boo-hoo to my first world problems, I know).
Between catching up on the parent-teacher interviews we missed, meetings, hand-outs from school, emails and doctor’s appointments, the week went by in a blur. Izzy had a doctor’s appointment for her arm, which may require physio to get her full mobility back. We are waiting on x-ray results. So I see more appointments in the future.
However, I did get back to working out! To ease back in to it, I did my three HIIT workouts but skipped the treadmill jogs in between and did a yoga session instead to stretch out and feel centered. I find on busy weeks, I really need the yoga DVDs to do at home so that I feel less crazed and stressed. I have needed Josh to push me every day to do it. I am not in the workout mindset anymore and would have quit, if not for his encouragement. It would be a shame to backslide and lose progress at this point. I see a lot of positives lately. I could focus on the negatives, but that is really discouraging and makes me feel like giving up. Instead, I have FORCED myself mentally to take in only the gains: stronger calves full of muscle, better definition in my shoulders, my glutes are stronger and that makes my knees and hips stronger, strong biceps that let me pick up my kids to spin them around without dropping them or getting winded, smaller waist, ab strength so I can hold those yoga poses longer, and more energy.
I haven’t been waking up in the mornings though! Actually, I only did it for two weeks before giving up. Which means I have to frantically arrange my whole day and evening to fit it in. It’s annoying and frustrating but my alarm didn’t work for a couple of days, and then I just chose not to for the rest of the week to ‘ease back in to real life’. *cough*. I know this is a horrible excuse and not a good reason at all, and I feel like a failure even saying it. But I convinced myself it was valid! I slept in all week but now that I feel my post-vacation cough and cold is fading, there is no excuse not to. I don’t HAVE to get up to work out, but I find it much better to get my workout done right away so I have the evenings to pursue other things. Plus, my energy level is generally better for the rest of the day if I have fit my workout in before breakfast.
Even knowing all of this does NOT make it any easier! Not at all!! I fight it every single morning. I just have to do it. Like pulling off a band-aid or jumping in to a cold lake. It’s worth it. Right? Right! (Ugh. Haha.)
I was so sore this week. I took a couple weeks off from working out and it is so hard to get back to it. After my Ab workout, my abs felt downright bruised. I jumped in with the same intensity as I had before the break and I shouldn’t of, maybe. I pushed myself and I am proud that I did, because I didn’t sacrifice form or jeopardize my knees. The pain was worth it but it made for a very long week.
I have started the BBG 1 Workout again, but I am going to mix in other activities so I don’t get bored. I will do the HIIT workouts, as usual, but pepper in other things on Tuesday and Thursday. This time around, I am hoping to gain more muscle in my back and glutes and I want to see my triceps tighten up a bit. I am going to up my weights, work really hard on form, and have fun with it. Another thing I want to do is slow down each movement so those muscles have to hold their form and really WORK hard. I will let you know how it goes.
Happy Friday! x
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