A rare share of my weekend clothes. I got up early on Saturday morning, got in my workout, dyed my hair, fed the kids and then we were OFF!
I have been trying to switch my workouts to be in the morning. Not only do I dislike working out…I dislike getting up early at 5:45 am. I am a night owl. Unfortunately, those things that make us grown ups, like…feeding our kids, making sure they do homework, getting them to bed on time…tend to get in the way of an evening workout.
I also dislike gaining weight, which, unfortunately has been happening all too often lately. In December of 2009 through mid 2010, I lost about 20 lbs. I got into the 120’s, which was a sight I hadn’t seen since college, and then only briefly. It was more an early high school weight. Right now I am skirting around 137, which is the most I have weighed since I lost all that weight. Most of the time I have been pretty steady at 133. I would really, really like to be around 130, BUT that would require giving up things like cheese, chocolate, wine, and basically anything that tastes really good. I do not snack on crap like potato chips or drink soda. I love veggies and salads, and I cook meals from scratch most of the time. The less preservatives, the better!
It is hard in living a relatively healthy lifestyle where I cannot maintain my ideal weight, which isn’t necessarily skinny. Dang metabolism and growing older!
At least I am gaining MUSCLES!
I just really hope that at some point my muffin top starts to decrease, so I can fit into my pants better! I am fine with muscle weighing more than fat as long as that roll around my middle starts to decrease.
My workout routine:
Day 1: 3 miles on the elliptical, which usually takes between 37-40 minutes. Not real fast, but I am limited by the stride on my machine…and also the lack of caffeine at 6am.
Day 2: Strength training. I do my ST with my Bowflex, dumbbells and my own weight. Each day that I do strength training, I am doing mostly different exercises than the time before. Keeping with the same routine each time didn’t give me results that were tangible. I hate doing push-ups and side lunges, but they work!
Rinse, repeat for 4-6 days a week.
I have bad knees and a bad back from riding horses (a lot) and getting bucked off (not a lot, but enough). I can’t run and I am VERY careful when I am doing squats and lunges to make sure I don’t hurt my knees and my back. I am usually in some pain all the time, but I try to keep it to a minimum if I can.
Sweater and tank top – Von Maur
Leggings – Made by Me
Boots – Lassen
Hair – french braided on both sides, then I knotted the braids in the back and pinned up.
It’s good to have goals but know that you are lovely with or without those extra pounds. I look back on pictures of myself when I was younger and in better shape. What I realize is that I wasn’t satisfied then, so I wasted a wonderful time when I could’ve been happy. Now? I can only wish I looked like that. Lesson? Appreciate the moment.
We’ll never be younger than we are today. Yeah, I have room for improvement, but not at the expense of my happiness right now. When I’m eighty, I suspect I’ll look back and say, “I looked great at 60!! Why didn’t I appreciate it?!!” This is a lesson I’m trying to embrace. You are GORGEOUS!! Enjoy.