It's been 3 months since I started this LKM Beast Mode journey. And it has also been 2 months since I last wrote anything about it. There has been sporadic trickle of #sweatyselfies and #food pictures. However, heart stuff (which is the most important part to me) has been fumbling around churning up new realities as well as new confusions daily.
Awesome healthy choices surrounding a belgan waffle night with friends. It's been that kind of variety that i'm evaluating lately... :) | #healthychoices #balance #freebienights #veggielover
I have lost 8 lbs in the last 3 months. I'm a dress size smaller. And the way I may have jumped about 5 feet in the air to hop over an ENORMOUS lizard the other day tells me "vert" has improved tremendously. The balance between the extreme and the moderate continues to be a hard one. I enjoy food. And i think that is a good thing. Saying no is also a good thing. And rediculously hard when your sitting in front of mouth-watering dishes like beer-battered fries and all you want to do is smother every fleck of parmesian and crispy flecks of catastrophe across your face.
In June I traveled a bit for business; shot a wedding in San Jose and another in Portland. We made awesome weekends out of the ventures and ate very well. My scale told me I was being counterproductive but my love for experiences and memories told me to chill out a little and stop trying to achieve so much that I miss out on the NOW.
One of many wonderful meals while traveling :D | Vancouver, WA
So the eating part has been touch and go. I've provided a few more freedom day's than I probably "should" have. As I face these last 5-10 lbs I'm worried about saying "no" more. I have no answer as to how to find the balance between enjoying treats at special times and just living a life away from sugar and carbs as much as possible. It's super murky water because i'm trying this crazy thing called "balance" but I keep falling off that beam into mashed potatoes or second helpings or glass of wine with girl friends that just sounds so wonderfully adult-like and fun. I'm trying so hard to find a line of moderation that that in itself has started to master me. It might actually be the next better step to go cold turkey on sugar again. Possibly carbs. I think my body has been trying to tell me that for a while considering that this sticky, dumb muffin top is as delectably perched on my hips as it was before.
My work out routine has been more satisfying. T25 kicked my butt and having a 10 week goal and varied work-outs every morning shook things up and became a system that worked well for my family and the kids over the summer. (See my last post on "7 Things You Might Be Wondering About This t25 Thing") I did have to take a break with #t25 a couple weeks ago. My achilles tendon was getting super tight and the high impact wasn't feeling so hot. I also was getting bored. I battled the boredom for a while. Invited friends over to keep me accountable and sweat with and laugh with, but I knew I needed to mix things up before my plateu got worse and I started begrudging the journey.
Sweaty Selfie Overload | Also finding strength and consistency in getting friends to join me...
So I started running AND i've joined a few friends at the gym. AND AND AND...I have to tell you...cardio performance has jumped to a new level since going through T25! My speed and agility is legitimately improved! I did a cardio kick box class last Tuesday at Chuze Fitness and I thought I was going to jump through the roof! High Jumps that otherwise felt like mollases 2 months ago were familiar and I. FELT. STRONG. It was absolutely satisfying.
So I'd like to lose another pant size. I've got that dumb muffin top that won't go away. While my diastisis has been healing, I know I have some core work to do to continue pulling all those prego-devestated muscles back together again...I would like to work on speed for Tucson's Color Run coming up in November. I have a pair of skinny jeans that I have hanging up in my closet eagerly waiting. patient. slightly taunting.
In some ways I wanted something more impressive to show by the time August rolled around. But then I got called out on my need for men's approval and realized that I was caring to much about what others thought. I chilled out a little.
So here we are. I get to go on vacation in a few weeks and will be spending some solid time on the beach. Let's just go ahead and own that hashtag #beachbody and aim to lose 3 more pounds in the next 3 weeks. Yes? Yes.
Also, how about we salute freedom? Running in the mornings has renewed my soul--reminded me to quiet a little and look up and breath--taking a day at a time. Relinquishing some of the crazy concern in the name of bold, hopeful patience. Consistency. Self-control that surrenders with joy. So cheers to brazen honesty and healthy lifestyles and encouraging workout partners and brave goals and living in community as you meet them. | LKM