I've been feeling a bit anxious about the end of the challenge coming so soon. Not so much concerned with how I did, it is more about what happens after the challenge. I feel like having the 12-week transformation challenge in front of me has pushed me to continue on the journey. It would be very easy to fall back in the trap of my old habits just because the challenge ended. The important thing for me to do in this transition between the end of the challenge and the beginning of the next phase of my journey is to take another look at my goals, and begin to adjust them for my next target.
In the last week I started doing a couple of the Extreme DDP Yoga workouts to start kicking it to the next level. There is a lot I can work on in those DVDs. I did get the closest I have ever gotten to doing the splits though, so that's even better than I thought I could do! We have resistance bands from when we got the P90X system, and I will be working to get at home workouts together that incorporate them.
I will also be working to get even more protein into my diet. Currently, I need to do an even better job of making sure my carb, protein, and healthy fat ratios are balanced. I know that I'm on the right track, this area is about making small adjustments.
The piece that I have had more trouble with than I expected is getting enough sleep. Last night I got to sleep at 2am, and had to get up for work as usual this morning. If I want to give my body the best chance to recover and be healthy, I will need to take this aspect more seriously. Things happen, but more often than not it is just me dilly-dallying around!
I'm looking forward to the next phase, and I know I will be able to do it. I just need to keep the momentum from the challenge going to propel me forward.
Today I have felt a change, a true change. It's not the physical challenge that has been the most difficult, it has been a mental battle for me to take on this 12-week transformation challenge. Today I have finally truly felt something that my husband has said he has for a long time. I'll explain.
It was my planned treat meal today. My husband, Chickpea, and I had gone to the store, and then went to go grab something to eat. The choice of meal and dessert that I made were both things that I have had before. In fact, they were both places I had eaten as treats in the early weeks of this challenge.
The first major difference I found, my body did not react well to the food this time. Without going into too much detail, I had to leave Chickpea in a safe place on two different occasions this evening as once I threw up and the other time was other bathroom issues. Not fun at all. What it made me realize though is that I have made progress with my nutrition. My body no longer handles well what used to be no problem. Too much grease, and too much sweet is just more than it can take. That is a good thing! I am training my body to eat even better, which will help me to reach my goals even more!
The second difference is quite a change for me. I am actually bummed that my stomach is still so out of sorts that I can't do my planned workout this evening. Let me say that again, I actually for the first time EVER am sad that I can't complete my workout! That, my friends, is huge for me! Hubby would tell me that he hates to miss his workout, and I just never understood. Here I am with a bright, shining light bulb above my head because I finally get it. If nothing else is, that is a sign of progress.
Does this mean I'll never struggle with wanting to do a workout again? No. There will always be days that I am challenged. Rising above that challenge more often than not is what will give me progress. I leave you with a song that inspires me in many aspects of my life. Take a listen and read the lyrics below.
All the best,
OkieGal
Alter Bridge "Before Tomorrow Comes" Lyrics:
I couldn't sleep I had to listen
To a conscience knowing so well
That nothing comes from indifference
I look inside of myself
Will I find some kind of conviction?
Will I bid the hero farewell?
Will I be defined by things that could have been?
I guess time will only tell
I guess time will only tell
[Chorus:]
So don't let it be
Before tomorrow comes
Before you turn away
Take the hand in need
Before tomorrow comes
You could change everything
I curse my worth and every comfort
That blinded me for way too long
Damn it all I'll make a difference from now on
Cause I'm wide awake to it all
Cause I'm wide awake to it all
[Chorus]
Does anyone care it ain't right what we're doing?
Does anyone care it ain't right where we're going?
Does anyone dare justify how we're living?
Does anyone here care at all?
[Chorus]
We could be so much more than we are
We could be so much more than we are
We could be so much more than we are
Oh this much I know
When I look at the calendar, it is amazing to see that there are only 2 weeks left in the transformation challenge. I've actually been reading through some of my early posts to see how I've progressed so far, and remind me of where I started.
While I plan to do more review and speak to that towards the end of the challenge, I did notice an interesting difference over the last few days. As I mentioned in my last post, I have found that I miss doing the workouts when I don't do them. My body feels better when I keep moving and stretching throughout the week. There will be times that I may not be able to practically complete my workouts, yet I now know that stretching out is a better choice for me than doing no workout at all. My hip and back are especially benefiting from the DDP Yoga I have been doing, and I truly feel it helps relieve stress as well.
In addition to noticing this difference about my physical activity, I notice it with my nutrition as well. If my food choices skew more towards unhealthy options, I begin to feel the impact. A treat here and there doesn't seem to be a big deal, it is when I choose the less healthy options for several days in a row that it really makes an impact. My stomach is more upset and overall I feel weighed down.
I have found myself wanting to get back into the healthy routine faster each time I stray from it, and this is definitely progress. Early on in the challenge I was fighting my thoughts to not do the workouts. Now I am jumping back into them with less resistance. This is proof that the shifts in my life and the decisions I am making are impacting me for the better over the long term. Two weeks to go, and I am excited to finish strong!
It has been a busy few days. With Halloween just around the corner, I was finishing up the costume I made for Chickpea. It is a hoot to see him in it! I plan to show more of the making of his costume later. It was fun to do, and I am pleased with how it turned out.
As I'm midway through week 9 of the transformation challenge, I am reminded today why it is a good idea to take progress photos! It gives me a chance to see how far I have come to date. The boost that it is giving me to see what I've done is just what I need in these last weeks. I wanted to take a moment to remind myself of my goals during this leg of my journey.
The 6 focuses I have set for the 12 weeks to help me get on the right path towards reaching my ultimate goal are here. Consistently and intentionally: - Improve my mental attitude towards health and fitness - Choose healthy food options - Choose to complete my workouts - Drink water - Make sleep a priority - Thoughtfully allow myself treats.
Overall, I know that I have done well at most of these. The sleep piece is honestly my hardest challenge. I find myself wanting to stay up and catch up on shows, hang out with my hubby, and see what's going on around the internet. The great news is that even when I was down or getting off track, I still was doing more than I would have done in the past. That is progress!
Seeing the progress helps remind me that the small choices I make everyday make an impact over time. I am closing in on the end of the DDP Yoga program, and while I will be continuing to do a few of the DVDs, I will also be adding in more resistance band workouts. Specifically looking at doing the workout I posted at the beginning that mirrors what Gina Carano does. I will continue on this journey, and will make progress. I'm proud of what I've done so far, and will continue to work for my goals.
Take a look for yourself!
The last week has been an absolute rollercoaster. My trip to California was bittersweet, and I made it back to Kansas just in time to turn around and begin a drive to Oklahoma. This is when life happened and in the past it would be knocking me off track.
I'll be completely honest, for the last week as I said goodbye to my dear friend Jessie, and then went to Oklahoma to speak at a ladies' Bible study, I didn't really think much about the transformation challenge. When I left for the airport that Saturday, I had a feeling it would be difficult to stay on track. I was talking to my husband about it yesterday, and determined that it would do me no good to retroactively track my nutrition for that week. There's nothing that could be done about it at this point, and it would just leave me feeling bad.
Instead, I have decided to focus on moving forward. This week is about rebuilding a sense of normal for me. On one hand, I feel guilty doing that. On the other, I know that it's something I need to do. The only way I can truly honor Jessie is through striving for my dreams and loving the life I've been given.
I have learned that in very stressful situations, my eating is non-existent. I did a mental check of what I ate while on my trip to California, and it wasn't much. Sometimes it was because of circumstances like trying to make a connecting flight, and other times it was just the fact that I didn't even think about it. In contrast, my Oklahoma trip was less stressful, and I was wanting to eat more comfort foods. I feel like the two trips balanced each other out in that regard.
I did do my progress photos, and will post them here. I am not seeing huge differences yet, I do feel a difference though. The trips reminded me of that. When I am eating well and staying active, I feel so much better. Just doing a short workout last night helped me stretch out. I will persevere.
While I don't feel like I failed, the quote above is still a good kick in the pants. Keep going. That's what I have to keep telling myself. It's about getting back into it more quickly than I did the last time. Instead of letting myself be thrown off and wake up 3 months later wondering why I couldn't keep it up, I am back after a week. That's progress, and that's what this is all about.
Three weeks of the 12-week transformation challenge done! Even with some rough points in the week, I finished strong! It has been interesting to find out which of my focus areas are coming along and which are still a work in progress. I am really impressed with how well the infused water pitcher is helping me keep up my water intake. I have had above 70oz for nearly two weeks now, and most days are closer to 100oz! That is a huge improvement from my past bests of around 40oz in a day! I will say that the weekends are more of a struggle for me when it comes to this focus, and so I will be more intentional about it on the weekends moving forward.
From a mental perspective, the fight over doing my workouts is diminishing. I had no trouble jumping right back into it today after my rest day. I still need to work through the physical aspects. My body is still working through the transition from not working out to having a consistent workout regime. Just keep going, and I know it'll continue to get better.
One of my focuses is to be more thoughtful about my treats and to choose healthy food options. I have found that by planning my treat meal in advance, I am less tempted to have treats the rest of the week. I had set in my mind that it would be Saturday, and so we went out and had a great time. It was part of the plan, so I didn't feel guilty. This week we had Mi Ranchito, which is one of the Mexican restaurants in the area. Had chips & salsa, cheese dip, and a great dinner. We then went for dessert to a new place that opened up, Smallcakes Creamery. Smallcakes is a cupcake shop and the creamery is a new concept store for them. They basically take their cupcake flavors and put them into the form of ice cream. I took a picture to prove I did indeed have a treat! Two of my favorite flavors of their cupcakes are the Caramel Crunch and the Red Velvet. Naturally, I got them both in a waffle bowl. It was awesome! When you plan your treat, consider them! :)
The other thing about the treats that is interesting, I don't want them during the week. I had the dinner and the ice cream last night, and I was ready to eat healthy again. I felt bloated and sluggish at the end of the night. I don't regret my treat. I just feel like my body is getting more and more used to the healthy options. It actually wants them more often over the junk than it used to. When I do have to grab a quick bite out, I'm making better choices. That is great progress!
On the sleep front, this is definitely a work in progress. I was in bed around 1 am last night. Between the bloated feeling from the treat and the late night, my day started rough today. As I ate well and got active I noticed I felt better. Getting sleep is going to be important for me. I may have to start writing it on my calendar to keep it top of mind. That seems to be working for my workouts, treats, and water consumption.
I am excited and nervous for next week's measurements and progress pics. I am feeling a difference, and it will be interesting to see if it shows when I check in!
This week has been an improvement when it comes to nutrition for me. I have gotten within striking distance of my calorie goal, and am doing better on the ratios too! I'm still feeling some aches here and there, yet have continued to stick with the workouts. I've been modifying if needed to avoid truly injuring myself. The infused water pitcher has been a great way for me to consistently get my ounces in. The main area with some progress still needed is getting to bed & to sleep at a more reasonable hour. I've improved here, just need to continue that focus.
I mentioned before that my need to focus on overall health had, in part, to do with the fact that I have been told by the doctor several times that my cholesterol was high. This is still the case, in addition there is another reason that nutrition has become a greater focus for me. That reason is Chickpea. From very early on, Chickpea was showing great interest in the activity of eating. He enjoys watching us eat. He thought it was funny at first, and then became more interested in what we were doing. He wanted to try it to!
This made me think about what I was modeling for him. I knew that I wanted him to try real foods. I had planned to make his food for several reasons. One is that it would be easier to just make extra of foods we were already buying. Two is that it's cheaper. Three, I want Chickpea to get a taste of real food before anything that has been packaged or processed is introduced. Fourth, it's easy and cheap!
I got myself something quick one day, and Chickpea was showing interest. I sat there and thought, "I would love to share from my plate, but how can I do that when I'm not eating the things that he can or should eat?" It made me think about what I was modeling and what I want him to see and do.
Now that I'm getting my nutrition on track, I feel much better about what I'm showing him. He will also see that it's fun to have a treat from time to time. That's the point. I'll be giving him an example of a balanced look at food. He will have the opportunity to appreciate healthy foods, and also still be a kid and have a treat here and there.
I am learning a lot and really thinking about why I do what I do. It became obvious now that Chickpea is here, I had to adjust what I am doing nutritionally. Not just to make sure I am here for him for as long as possible, but also to make sure I am giving him the best example I can of a healthy, balanced life.
Another week has come to a close for my transformation challenge, and I am happy with how it is going so far! Currently I am enjoying watching my Sooners on TV after having my treat meal for the week. Burger, fries, and ice cream for dessert. It was glorious! It's funny how after eating healthy through the week, the treat is quite a shock to the system. I enjoy the treat, but I find myself ready to eat healthy again afterwards. The best of both worlds!
Overall things are going well. My water intake is progressing. Today I got off to a slow start. I still will have had more water than I used to, so it's been great progress for me. I completed all my planned workouts, and only cut one short this week. Again, progress. My nutrition goals suffered a little bit when we were running out of groceries late in the week. I got a Costco membership using a Living Social deal, and replenished our supplies today. It is a step in the right direction for setting me up for progress in this area.
I am already starting to notice muscle building in my legs, booty, and abs. My husband mentioned the other day that he was noticing slight definition in my pec muscles as well. I've been doing a lot of planks and push ups!
For this upcoming week, I will work to continue my momentum with water consumption and workout consistency. I want to give special attention to my nutrition to get more consistency with it. I also will be working to get more sleep. This is always easier said than done with a 7 month old in the house. I feel like it will help me have more energy and get better results overall.
I am thankful for all that I have in my life. Especially those around me that have been so supportive. It is a difficult process to look inside yourself and admit to changes that need to be made in your life. It has been very important to have my husband, my accountability partner, the ladies of the No Excuse Moms groups, and many others that have continued to cheer me on. This is so much more than a physical transformation for me. It is building consistency in my life that will bring even more confidence in myself. Thank you!
The last two days have been interesting. My water intake is definitely improved by quite a bit. I have consistently consumed at least 80oz of water every day since Tuesday. That's definitely a step in the right direction! I also found it easier to get back into the workout groove after my rest day on Wednesday. There were still a few thoughts about skipping Thursday's workout. It was good to see that there weren't as many, and it wasn't as difficult to get back to it.
The area that was a bit more challenging yesterday and today was my nutrition. I am not able to go to the grocery store until tomorrow, so we've been playing the game of trying to piece together meals with not a lot of ingredients to choose from. It's always interesting to see what your creativity comes up with, but I have found that times like these are when bad habits are more likely to creep in. The good news is that even when I did grab something quick, I made healthier choices about what I got.
An example of this was we had Jimmy John's delivered for lunch yesterday. Typically I would get one of the sub sandwiches. Yesterday, I decided that I would get the sub that I normally would want in their lettuce wrap ("unwich") form, have them go light on the condiments, and use the Ezekiel bread we had here at home. I also refrained from getting any extras like chips or a coke. It was proof that I could still grab a bite to eat, and not go completely off the rails from a nutrition perspective.
The other difficulty I had with less options in house was not meeting my calorie goal for the day. The calorie amount would have been decent if I was looking to lose weight. Since my goal is to build muscle, it wasn't ideal. No worries though, I'll be getting back on track tomorrow.
I feel like the biggest win for me out of all this is the fact that I didn't beat myself up over it. Things happen. My accountability buddy pointed out that sometimes we have to do the best with the options we have at that time. I did, and I feel awesome about that. Those are the little steps that make this possible. It is about a lifestyle, not a quick fix diet. We are going to run into situations where we need to made a decision in a pinch, and that's okay.
What I've been reminded of in the last few days is to set myself up to have nutritious options at home. Additionally, I was able to make the healthiest decision possible when the options at home had run out. Life is full of curveballs, and it's about what you do with them. As they say in my DDP Yoga DVD series, "only you control the way you react, how you adapt, how you breathe, and how you take action."
The last couple of days have had some good progress. The infused water pitcher I ordered arrived on Monday. I immediately opened it up and washed it. I added some strawberries to it, filled it with water, and let it infuse over night. I was excited to give it a try Tuesday, and filled my water bottle from the pitcher. I'm happy to say that it met expectations! I enjoyed the light taste of strawberry in my water. It was also successful from a water consumption perspective. I didn't have to remember how many times I refilled my water bottle, I could see how much I had left by the water level in the pitcher. I successfully got through the whole pitcher in one day! That is 93oz!
That's a definite step in the right direction! Today is the second day of using the pitcher method, and I'm happy to say that I am on my last 16oz of the pitcher! It's been interesting to see how my body has reacted so far. Of course there are more frequent bathroom trips, but I'm told that calms down after my body gets used to the new water intake level. Another thing I've noticed is that the more I drink water, the more water I want. It's like my body is saying, "hey, I like this stuff! I want more!" I went over my 93oz goal on Tuesday because of this fact. The last thing I noticed as a breastfeeding mom, I was a lot fuller this morning. I won't go further into it other than to say it was not a side effect I expected! lol
This is good progress for me. My goal is to keep the momentum, and take it one day at a time. It's overwhelming to think about drinking all this water every day from now on. If I only think about it one day at a time, it doesn't seem like such an obstacle to overcome. I'll be interested to see what other things I begin to notice as I continue to stay hydrated. I'm also excited to try new flavor combinations and keep the water interesting. We shall see!
What a day! I was just not feeling it at all today. Chickpea woke up several times last night, which is not normal for him. I think he's having a growth spurt or something because he also wanted to eat a lot today. He was tired, I was tired, and it was just a more challenging day than normal. I woke up with a headache, but it seemed to subside after I got breakfast. We went to church, and after we got home it was just one mess after another. I will spare any details and just say that we ended up with impromptu bath time this afternoon and a load of laundry to be done.
Overall I was feeling a bit grumpy and tired. Just felt stressed. In the midst of all this I did become aware of several things about myself. First of all, I am proud to say that while the DDP Yoga schedule allowed for an optional rest day, I opted to do a workout. I knew I'd feel better after doing it. I just finished, and can say that I'm glad I did it! I feel more relaxed and will have a much easier time getting to sleep, assuming Chickpea lets me stay that way!
The other thing I learned is that when I get stressed, I start thinking about all those comfort foods that tempt me. This gets even worse when I am feeling very hungry. It starts a spiral to where it impacts my decision making, state of mind, etc. I have a tendency to be hypoglycemic, meaning that when they made the candy bar commercials about "you're not yourself when you're hungry," they were describing me! Add these symptoms to stress, and you have a perfect storm leading me to less than optimal food choices. Luckily by this point hubby had come home from work, and was able to make me a quick protein shake to help get me out of the "hangry" situation.
The revelation about how stress impacts my food choices is a great one. Now that I'm aware of it, I can give myself healthy alternatives to those comfort foods. For example, I usually find some sort of potato sounds awesome when I'm in this state of mind. That's not necessarily a bad thing. I love sweet potatoes too, and that could be a great alternative. It would give the comfort food vibe, without killing my nutrition goals. Another option is to choose to allow myself a treat. In today's situation, I didn't want to burn my treat for the week on the first day. That's the beauty of it, I gain so much by becoming aware of my thought processes. I can begin to think through what is really going on, recognize it for what it is, and then make a choice based on what I know my goals are and the information in front of me.
In the past, I would have more easily said "screw it," and ended up diverting off my path. Then that diversion would give way to more, and then I'm nowhere near the path I really want to be on. Now I see the situation for what it is, own that situation, and then make a decision. Today I chose to stay on the path. That's a huge win for me!
We are at the end of the first week of the 12-week transformation challenge. I want to take a few moments to reflect on what is going well and where I can improve as it goes into week 2.
Having the fitness calendar in my dining room has been very helpful. I can see all my fitspiration images and remind myself of my goals. I also like only writing things down when I actually do them. It may be very childlike of me, but I enjoy it like a sticker chart. lol! Finally, it is right there for my hubby to see too. That keeps me accountable as well.
I have found myself continually improving when it comes to nutrition. Not only am I closer to my calorie goal at the end of the day, I also am seeing improvement in the balance of carbs, protein, and healthy fats. Even more exciting for me was the fact that I allowed myself a treat yesterday, and found it difficult to think of something I wanted. Things that in the past would have been a temptation, weren't as appealing as they used to be. I did have a serving of dark chocolate sea salt caramel, and enjoyed it. No guilt. It was an intentional decision, and part of my plan.
An area that I am going to focus more on this week is my water intake. Some days were better than others, just not quite where I want it to be. To help with this, I ordered a water infusion pitcher from Amazon. It holds 93 oz, so if I aim to get through the pitcher over the course of my whole day, I will be closer to my goal. Plus it will be fun to have different flavors of water to make it more interesting. I found a website that has flavor ideas, and I look forward to trying some different combos!
Another area that I will need to give more attention to is getting to bed at a reasonable hour. That can be easier said than done with an almost 7 month old, and a hubby that usually gets home after 9pm. I usually am doing my workouts when Chickpea goes to bed for the evening, and then I want to stay up to spend time with my husband when he gets home. There is still room for improvement here, and I will be working on it.
When it came to my workouts, I did have to battle in my mind over doing them a day or two this week. The great news is that I did them! You can read more about this topic in my post called Bumps in the Road.
With each area I know there is much more to be done. The important thing is that I continue to take one step at a time. This is just the beginning, and there is still the excitement and enthusiasm of starting the challenge. To help continued progress, I will need to find ways to tap back into that excitement when more difficult days pop up.
I will continue to benefit from the accountability that is obtained from writing here. I will begin adding things that motivate me to the mix so that I can read through them when I need a boost.
Today I have been thinking about nutrition. More specifically my attitude towards it. I purposely used the word nutrition, instead of diet here. For me, I feel like diet has gotten a restrictive and negative connotation in my own mind. I realized this when I was deciding to do the transformation challenge and immediately thought I better eat a bunch of stuff I "can't have anymore."
As that thought crossed my mind, I realized I have had unhealthy associations with food and with having a healthy lifestyle. The guidelines of the challenge even allow for 1-2 treats a week, yet my mind thought I can never have sweets again. It is simply not true, or realistic.
It is about balance in life. I should be eating the healthy good for me foods more often than not, and having a treat here and there is okay and completely normal. While I'm no expert, I have read in several places that having a treat here and there actually helps keep you on track. It's when the treats are happening a majority of the time that it becomes a problem.
Another thing I realized is that I had been rewarding myself with food in the past. For me, this is counterproductive and feeds into the thought process that a food plan is restrictive. I am working on ideas for rewards when I hit milestones that aren't food related. It's important to celebrate the milestones, while keeping myself on track.
My focus is now on balanced nutrition, and creating a sustainable, healthy lifestyle. Good nutrition is important for me. In my last 2 yearly physicals, I was told that my cholesterol was too high. You wouldn't guess it by looking at me, yet it's true. I want to get a handle on that now before my health is deteriorating because of it.
The other reason it is important, is because only by having healthy nutrition will I get to my personal aspirations. While I'll talk about my goals more tomorrow, since my overall focus is to build muscle and not lose weight, I'll have to track to make sure I am eating enough calories to support that plus the calories needed to breastfeed. It's a lot harder than I thought. Especially when trying to use healthy foods to reach the calorie goal with a good balance between healthy fats, protein, and carbohydrates. I've started using the MyFitnessPal app again to help track the calories and ratios.
When I think of my nutrition as adding more of the healthy foods instead of as a restrictive activity, it puts my mind in the right space. Even choosing to add one more healthy meal a day is progress.
The good news is that I can choose to make a difference. Through the challenge my focus is to be more consistent with healthy nutrition, choosing a healthy option more often than not. Enjoying treats from time to time, and using other options as rewards instead of food.
Today is Day 1 of the transformation challenge! Last night my hubby took measurements for me and we also took my before pictures, which I am posting below with much nervousness.
I keep reminding myself that my transformation is mine, and mine alone. The reminders are necessary as I keep hearing those old, familiar voices in my mind. They make me question myself and wonder what other people will think. They ask me "why are you even doing this?" They tell me that my transformation won't be as dramatic as others', so why even try? They ask me "how would feel if I fail, and everyone knows it?"
I'm fighting those thoughts, and will prove them wrong. You see, my transformation is about me now compared to me in the future. I should not compare mine to others' journeys. They have their own. I will still celebrate in their successes and be understanding of their struggles. I just need to also celebrate my own successes and fight through my own struggle. A dramatic change for someone else has no impact on my transformation, other than to serve as motivation and inspiration. Someone else's journey does not diminish my own, nor does mine diminish theirs. We all have our own journey and own transformation through that journey.
This point of view is what I am working toward. I still struggle with it as I type it here. I know it's true, and I believe it. I am working on shifting it from something I know, to thoughts that are part of who I am.
There is more than a physical transformation at work for me. My mind tries to work against me. It is easier to stay where I am, and so my mind tries to trick me into staying there, comfortable. Now is the time to make small shifts in my life to reach for what I really want, and achieve it.
I am taking it one day at a time. For my workouts, I am on week 6 of the 13 week advanced DDP Yoga schedule. I will also be adding in walks/jogs with my son, aka Chickpea, in the jogging stroller. The DDP Yoga plan takes me through 8 weeks of the transformation contest, so I found a 4 week program online that is patterned after what Gina Carano does. This gives me 8 weeks to warm up for that mentally, and get any equipment or accessories (or get to the gym instead of only an at home based workout).
The other piece is nutrition. I am not following a specific meal plan that tells me what to eat each meal. What I am doing is reaching for daily calorie intake goals, along with goals for my carb, protein, and fat ratios. My calorie goal is 1500 + 500 since I'm breastfeeding, bringing it to a total of 2,000. I will be monitoring the success of this goal and the ratios as I go, and will adjust as necessary. I track it all using the My Fitness Pal app on my phone.
I am excited and nervous! I am finalizing what will be my 6 goals/focuses for the duration of the transformation challenge in the next day or so before I submit them to the contest. I plan to share them here to keep me accountable.
