Week #1:

Monday began the start of a fitness journey that has hopes of resulting in stronger, thinner healthier me! Prior to the beginning of the fitness challenge, I created somewhat of a plan. I knew that I needed to change my diet and eating habits. For my workout plan, I took into consideration my “problem areas” as I call them. The lovely female love-handles and of course those buns and thighs. I set a few goals and here we are! 

With Week #1 completed, I am now realizing what I have gotten myself into. If you have ever set a workout plan for yourself and weren’t as successful as you wanted to be, then you probably know what I’m talking about.

Eating habits were the most difficult to change this week. Especially when you live with a 6′ 1”, 150 pound man that has eating habits similar to a garbage disposal. In this situation, I think I have every right to scream, “It’s just not fair!”

My fridge is now full of nutritious options, but I’m finding that it is easy to slip up at times. Not only do you have to control what you eat, but you have to control how much you eat as well. I actually happen to really like a lot of healthy foods. Have you ever tried grilling asparagus? It’s fantastic! You’d be surprised how great some healthy foods can taste, but perhaps this is the problem! Its easy to convince yourself that since the food is healthy, a hefty portion is ok. This is an issue I am currently trying to tackle. Also, I will post a list of my favorite healthy foods at the bottom.

As for my gym experiences this week:

It seems as though it should be the point where everyone starts giving up on their New Year’s resolution, however, anyone who has been to Leid recently can vouch for the fact that it is packed! I was a frequent user of the gym throughout last semester and I think many can agree with me that Leid has been a bit “overpopulated” this past month.

All the extra foot traffic makes it a bit more difficult to stay focused on your workout. I finally came to the point where I didn’t care what everyone else was doing anymore. Once you reach this realization, focusing on your own workout is much easier!

I started with a plan of alternating among arms, legs, cardio and abs. I have done a combination of all of these through out the week. I found that free weights are especially my favorite because you can do many different things with them. Also, unlike with the machines, you don’t have to spend 3 awkward minutes trying to figure out how they work.

Weight-lifting went well and I’m looking forward to pushing myself. I ran different distances throughout the week and even tackled a 5K on Tuesday! I was really proud of that one. However, my calves, knees and the blisters on my feet seem to send another message.

As for next week, my goals are to continue with my workouts. I need to focus on staying motivated and push myself to run. I’m hoping I can keep it up throughout this weekend and not fall subject to the Domino’s student special pizzas! My motivational phrase for this challenge will be “Stay Strong!” So here I come ISU!

Favorite Healthy Foods (Try them!)

Grilled asparagus, spinach salads, cucumbers, celery and baby carrots with ranch, grilled fish and chicken, and broccoli. These are just a few, I will add more as I experiment!