I did the same as a lot of people in January, and I decided time was enough to really make a go at improving my fitness and eating patterns.
I think I am most like a lot of people where they don’t struggle majorly with weight, but choices can be better and I felt less than what I had hoped I would be post pregnancy and life. You can read all about my changes on my past blog entries, and feel free to check those out for some of my lessons learnt.
Overall though I made two main differences to my lifestyle. I decided to put the results I had seen of HIIT training to the test, and train up to 4 times a week with a mixture of whatever activity took my fancy at the time (HIIT at home, gym sessions, running outside) and included in that was signing up to 1 weekly session with a Personal Trainer.
I hugely recommend getting professional help with any fitness program, as those weekly sessions will always push you out of your comfort zone to achieve more than you thought possible. I hate them, but I love them.
The reason for HIIT training being my preferred option for exercise is that I can do it at home, within 20 minutes, with a kettle bell or myself to set the routine. Just get yourself a HIIT timer on your phone, or set a clock for 30-45 second blocks. Put on your music, then give yourself challenges like do 30 seconds of burpees or kettle bell swings or running on the spot. Just keep going till the time runs out, and then enjoy the exercise being completed for the day. You can totally do that level of exercise at home without needing to join a gym, and even with young children.
How do I know this? Cos I have to fit this in within the life of working, family raising and resting accordingly too just like you. Sometimes it means I go to bed at 9pm so I can get up at 6am to exercise, but mainly I try to fit it in after toddler bedtime where possible.
The second major change as I have mentioned is that I looked to remove and reduce processed foods, and dramatically up my intake of water.
For a number of weeks even I only drunk water, which was a massive change from my potential addiction to diet drinks that I felt I needed each day. Now the reality is that I haven’t had a diet fizzy drink in nearly 9 weeks, and the related headaches and such have long long gone (lasted about 1 or 2 days maximum). The only time a full fat fizzy drink is in our house now is for a treat, and that is exactly the approach I wanted for myself and our family. A treat, exactly as it should be, not a daily occurrence.
What keeps you motivated though when changes seem to take a while? One healthy meal OR one HIIT session doesn’t make you fitter overnight.
Our personal trainer recorded our physical body measurements in various areas so we can see the progress exactly, but I do agree that you need something tangible to let you know how you are doing.
The reality is that you aren’t going to see changes in your body until at least the 4 week mark of consistent effort. And that is where the will power to keep going must last longer than just one week.
Anyway, here are my open and honest results:
January starting point
Weight: 58.5kg
BMI: 24
Body fat 25.13%
Waist: 79 cm
Hips: 96 cm
February measurements:
Weight: 57.3kg (loss of 1.2kg)
BMI: 23.5 (loss of 0.5)
Body fat: 21.91% (loss of 3.22%)
Waist: 78cm (loss of 1cm)
Hips: 94cm (loss of 2cm)
I recently found these inspirational words online that might be just want we need to hear sometimes:
“Keep going.
No matter what you do, no matter how many times you screw up and think to yourselves there’s no point in carrying on.
Don’t quit because a month from now you will be that much closer to your goal than you are now.
Yesterday you said tomorrow.
Make today count.”
Love MFF xx
#mblogger #fitmama #fitness