28 Day Transformational Change - How Am I Doing?

Just to prove this whole idea hasn't been lost to cyberspace, I thought I'd give you a little update on my 28-day Transformational Challenge through Prevention magazine. :).

Since I posted about my plan a couple of weeks ago, I think I've encountered several situations that would normally throw a plan out of whack. Which it did, for a while.  First of all, we went on a trip, so we were out of the normal routine. We did soooo much walking and I did continue a teeny bit of floor-work in the hotel, but any benefits were probably counteracted by the fabulous food we had every breakfast, lunch, supper, and happy hour.  So I'd say we're a wash there.


Second, once we returned home, I got sick. Not sick in bed, but a really sore throat. I still functioned fine, but had zero energy to work out. So I didn't.

And third. We celebrated Thanksgiving Day (Canadian). We loaded up on turkey and all the fixings, making movement rather difficult!! Oh, and I just have to tell you, we had a tremendous TREMENDOUS Thanksgiving. We celebrated Sunday, because I really prefer the Monday to enjoy leftovers and just relax with the family. But Sunday? Oh, it was soooo much fun! We invited two other families who don't have extended family around to join us for dinner.  We laughed so much! We did the Turkey Trot dance and one of the adults donned a blonde wig from the kids play-clothes. So I mean, it was festive. There is something wonderful about community, isn't there?  This is the littles' table. Aren't they all so sweet? 

But I digress.

So my point in telling you about the different situations that threw the plan out of whack is this: It's tempting to just say aw forget it. I've lost a week. Why bother. Its so hard to restart. But I didn't, dear readers! I didn't! And you shouldn't either! I just got right back at it, hopped right back on that train and resumed my workouts. Hey, I wasn't about to lose any of the progress I've made.

And you know what? I am REALLY liking this method of doing short workouts in the course of a day. Its easy on the kids, you can fit it in when you have only a few minutes, and its mentally not intimidating to know you're going to go for a 10-minute calorie-buster. One of my favourites is to do this neat interval training where you run moderately for 30 seconds, then fast for 20s, then really fast for 10s and repeat for 6-7 intervals. It really pushes you and makes you sweat let me tell you. But I like it because its so doable. DOABLE.  Another one I like is where you start on your treadmill (or jog on the spot), but then you run up and down your stairs for a few sets, then back to the treadmill and repeat. And before you know it, that 10 minutes is over.  Often I'll add a few more minutes, because at that point 10 seems so short. However, in the past when I'd settle in for a 20-30 minute run it seemed like such a boring prospect.  Oh, hey, I know there are benefits to doing longer cardio in a single sitting, but you can't forget that even short bursts have benefits too. And it works for my family to do it this way. 

I typically do about 10-15 minutes of good cardio, and I fit in some floor work/weights at some other time in the day. The past few days I've done it right after the cardio, because the kids haven't been too needy at that time and I'm into it. Otherwise, I just seem to be able to find the time to do a few minutes of floor-work. Because it really is only just a few minutes.  I even pulled ketchup bottles out of the pantry and used them as weights because that's where I was at the time. Why not???

I have checked the scale and it hasn't moved. I think I need to buy a new scale. Its as old as our marriage! But sadly, it probably IS accurate. Still I'm not really bothered by the scale because I have to tell you I notice a CONSIDERABLE difference anyway.  I "feel" better, I really do. That's no surprise because we all know exercise is supposed to make you feel better in the big picture, however I didn't expect it to kick in so dramatically and so quickly. I feel like I cope better with the day to day crying little girls or sibling fighting (our family is not perfect!) or just all the tasks that need to get done in a day, so that's good, right? And I really notice a difference in my core - I'm looking better even after only a couple of weeks, I feel tighter around my tummy and I know the plan is working.  I pretty much do planks every day, and the length of time I am able to hold the plank position has tripled. TRIPLED. In such a short time, too. I feel way cool. 

Also, I picked up a fitbit while in New York so maybe I'll talk about that when I check in with y'all next week. 

Soooooo, I'm holding my own despite a few setbacks! I want to tell you, if you're joining me, don't give up!! I'm really seeing noticeable results in such a very short time and its encouraging. And if you haven't started yet, WHAT are you waiting for? If you've got ten minutes to sit down, then you've got ten minutes to move your body, too. 

Skin-ny jeans ... skin-ny jeans ... skin-ny jeans ...