Fitness Friday

As you read this I am probably in San Diego getting mani/pedis with the bride-to-be and getting things ready for the rehearsal dinner tonight.  Well, I guess that is if you are reading this on Friday morning/afternoon.  LOL!

So, Phase 1 of the LiveFit Trainer has come to a close and I am done with my first week of Phase 2.  In order to track my progress during the program, I am only recording my measurements at the end of each 4-week phase.  Here is a side by side of my initial measurements on day one of Phase 1 and my measurements at the close of Phase 1 before starting Phase 2.

You can just pretend that the line on the far right edge of the table exists.  I don't have the patience to go back and fix it now.

I'm not really sure why my neck got bigger, but as you can see, everything else remained the same or shrunk a little.  The entire first month there was no cardio in the program.  For the first couple of weeks I would turn some of my weight training sessions into circuits with 3 minutes of cardio in between every couple of exercises to keep my heart rate up, but once I started increasing the amount of weight I was lifiting, I realized I needed to save my energy between sets for the next set.

Phase 2 continues with the strength training, but starts to add in super sets (doing one set of two different exercises back-to-back before resting) and 30 minutes of moderate cardio 4 times a week.  In order to fit all of this into my schedule, I have started getting up at 5am to fit in my 30 minutes of cardio before work since I already get home after 7pm with my current workouts.  It's going well so far, so hopefully I can keep it up.  The hope in Phase 2 is that adding the cardio and trading in starchy carbs for veggie based carbs will result in super duper fat burning!!!

I think I mentioned before that we started a FB group for other folks in our area (and outside of it, we have someone in DC and someone in Jersey in the group.  We don't discriminate.) and it has really turned out to be a great source of encouragement and accountability.  Some of us have shared stats and pics and we are all talking about our routines, what works for us, and have been sharing recipes with each other.  I am really enjoying the program intself, but this group is what makes it better.

For your "enjoyment", and partially at the suggestion of Monica, here are my progress pics for the end of Phase 1 (No beginning pics, FAIL!):

Note, I cut my hair even shorter.  You like?  Also, I had to laugh because I realized as JB was taking the pics of my back side, I was still cheesin' at the wall.  LOL!!  I'm pretty happy with my upper/lower body progress, but that stubborn trunk is my main focus. 

Hope you all have a fabulous weekend!!  I'm off to tend to my MOH duties!!  Stay fit!

Wedding Wednesday: Pics of Us

 

 

I hope you know how much I love you guys.  This was the most.frustrating.blog.post.EVER.  I seriously had to save and refresh and upload pics like a thousand times.

Anyway, as you may be able to tell from the first few pics, we did a first look to get most of the pictures out of the way before the ceremony.  I am kind of sad we didn't do more pics of us together throughout the venue, but I am really happy with the ones we did take, and all I need are a few to frame, so whatevs.  Also, I had this idea to take a few in the fitness center onsite since we met at the gym and fitness is a constant in our lives.  I loooooove how they turned out.  Hope you liked them!


*Photos taken by Trizza Grantham Photography*

Birthday Blues

With my 30th birthday officially less than 3 months away, I am starting to get a little blue about it.  Not the fact that I am turning 30, because really I still feel like a kid most of the time (and my 30s are going to be awesome!), but the fact that I have no idea how to celebrate it.  A few things come into play here:

• My birthday is on Christmas Day, so obviously it has to take place on a day other than my actual birthday
• Every weekend in December is filled with holiday parties and family gatherings for everyone I know, including me.
• The weekend after my birthday is always New Year's and no one is around for that either
• JB's birthday is the 13th of January, and let's be honest, even though I love him, 30 is not a birthday I want to share with someone else (unless maybe it was another friend who was turning 30).
• We are pretty much working with a non-existent budget
• As much as I love the hubs, he's probably not thinking about any of this stuff yet, if he will at all.  But if he does, I don't want to step all over his plans because I need something to plan and I don't want to spend my 30th like I spent my 21st (in a sports bar with my BF at the time sharing a pitcher of Coors Light while watching the Kings/Lakers game on tv.  Granted it was the only thing open on Christmas Day... and I got a free bday drink.)

So, friends/readers, what are your thoughts here?  Do I wait and hope the hubs plans something for me?  Plan something myself?  Talk to him so we can plan it together and make sure all of these things are factored in?  And then what do I do for the actual celebration, given it will be mid-2012 by the time it even happens?

Help!!!

***************************UPDATE********************************

Thanks for your feedback on this!!  I talked to the hubs last night and he said, "Funny you mentioned it because I actually have been thinking about it."  I told him that it would mean so much more if he planned something for me for my bithday and he asked if I had a preference between something with just us or with all of my friends.  I told him that either way I would be happy, but if he did do something with just us, we could always have a joint celebration around his birthday a few weeks later at our house or something.

Yay!!  No more birthday blues for this girl!!!  Now I just have to wait 3 months to find out what it is.  LOL!

Cuteness Anyone?

A girl I went to high school with has a newborn and family photography business, Megan Squires Photography, and started a mentoring program for others aspiring to be amazing newborn photographers called "Mentor Me Baby".  She contacted my SIL to see if she wanted to bring my little Monkey in to model for the mentoring session and in turn gave her a few of the edited shots to keep. 

BEWARE:  EXTREMELY ADORABLE BABY BELOW.  HANG ON TO YOUR OVARIES LADIES!!

 

That last one is my favorite.  It's actually the new wallpaper on my phone.  It seriously bursts my heart how adorable she is.  I ruv her so much!!!  My bro and SIL send me pics and videos of her being cute all the time, so I am swooning on a regular basis. 

Just thought I would share these with you to brighten up your Thursday!  Keep your head up, friends.  It's almost the weekend!!

Adds & Edits

I added an "About Me" page and edited the "Meet the Blooms" page.  Thoughts?

So you get married, and then you turn into Betty Crocker?

Holy domestic diva weekend, Batman!!  Curious?  Here's a rundown:

Friday:
After work I went to the gym and the JB met me there so we could go to Sunflower Market and Costco.  Nothing makes me feel older than grocery shopping on a Friday night.  It just makes me think of the days when I would go straight home after work, chug a red bull/go girl/monster, eat some top ramen, and shower/get ready for a night out at the clubs/bars, arriving around 10pm.  Now I am mostly in bed by then...

Saturday:
Wake up at 7:30am, do bills, facebook (since, you know, I'm already online), have some coffee and breakfast while researching Hulu Plus as a viable option instead of (or in addition to) Netflix, finally decide to get off of our asses and get the yard work done.  Hit the gym around 12:30, get a car wash, return home at 2:30 to stuff my face eat lunch, and pretty much pass out in exhaustion on the living room floor.  Sadly, I was unable to enjoy a nap because I knew I still had to shower and would not be able to fully relax until I did so.  I finally drag myself off the floor and into the shower.  Some friend of ours came over to catch up and let us meet their new baby, so I had to wake up JB who managed to get a 45 minute nap in (lucky bastard).  After they left I tried a new recipe, Italian Turkey Burgers, that I got from the website of the fitness program.  Actually, everything I made this weekend was from there.  Anyway, we weren't really big fans of that recipe, and the bottle of wine we opened was gross (which is good since I shouldn't be drinking it anyway) so dinner was kind of a disappointment.  After we cleaned up from dinner, I made chicken meatloaf muffins for our lunches next week and then we watched some Arrested Development and were in bed by 10pm.

Sunday:
Woke up at 7:30am AGAIN (WTF)!!  Had some coffee and breakfast really quick and then rode with JB to the gym so I could do my workout while he trained his client.  Afterward we went to the meat shop to use our Groupon ($10 for $20, holla holla!) and then got home around 11am.  I whipped up a batch of 3 bean turkey chili and proceeded to finally upload wedding pics on to facebook.  I'm sure all of my friends care about the 400 pics I posted.  Oops.  An hour later, I decided to bake some cinnamon swirl protein bread.  It's super yummy.  I finished watching the San Diego/Patriots game (Pats win baby!!) and then made a giant batch of brown rice and cut up and packaged a bunch of veggies for work this week.  Just as I was finishing that up, JB decided to get dinner going so I cubed up some sweet potatoes to roast and he threw the meat on the grill.  Finally I was able to take a shower at 5:30pm, ate dinner, cleaned up from dinner, packed my gym bag, food, and vitamins for today, started a load of laundry, blogged, and THEN sat down to relax for the evening.

I can't figure out why I am exhausted today...

How was YOUR weekend, Blog Land?

Fitness Friday?

Sure, why not?

We are nearing the end of week three for the LiveFit Trainer program.  You can find more details here.  The first month of the program is all weight-training and no cardio, so it has been interesting to say the least.  I am taking in between 1300 and 1700 calories daily, with a lot of that being protein.  I really need to work in more veggies, but am not really good at selecting, prepping, and bringing them to work with me (any suggestions are appreciated).  I really want to get the most nutritional bang for my veggie and I just don't know enough about them.  I am working on cutting starches out of dinner since we usually don't eat until 8pm.  I am also experimenting with smoothies for breakfast, but they are often higher in calories and have more sugar in them.

Although I am not a fan of the scale, I have been weighing myself at the gym weekly and am down 2 WHOLE pounds (sarcasm) since the 29th.  I am not really expecting to lose weight in the first month since I am building muscle, but if that's what the scale is gonna give me, I'll take it.  I was doing really well with logging my food/exercise/water in My Fitness Pal until this past Saturday.  Kinda fell off until yesterday (with logging, not with food).  But the important thing is that I am back on track with it and moving forward.

I am taking the suggested supplements with the program which are whey protein, multi-vitamin, fish oils, and branch chain amino acids (I only take the BCAA before a workout).  I typically have 8oz of water with a scoop of protein poweder within one hour of waking and then have breakfast a little later.  I have another one right after my workout.  The idea is to get the protein to the muscles ASAP so they can start to build and repair.

This week we moved to a 5 day split for workouts so I have two days off this week (too bad I already used them) and next.  Once we hit phase 2 we go to a 6 day split.  Should be interesting to try to have a life while doing this program, but I want to follow through with the whole 12 weeks and see how it goes.  I am feeling stronger and more confident in the gym.  I have had a few issues where I got caught not knowing what the hell I was doing, but I know the trainers there so they were kind enough to help me figure it out or find an alternative.

Overall I am really enjoying the program because it is so easy to follow.  The gym I go to is small and doesn't always have the equipment I need, but like I said, between my knowledge and the help of the staff, I am able to find an alternative that serves the same purpose.  The workouts are laid out so precisely, with videos, which makes it easy to know what you are in for before you even get to the gym.

This post ended up being waaaaaay longer than I expected, but I guess it's 3 weeks worth of an update, soooooo...

Happy Friday!!  Hope you all have a great weekend!

Wedding Wednesday: Picture Extravaganza Kickoff Party!!!

Hello lovelies!  I finally got my wedding pics back and somewhat organized to post here on the bloggity.  Obviously there will be a picture overload, but most girls like this crap, so you're welcome.  Today I am bringing you the pics of us getting ready for the day.  The girls got ready at our house and the guys got ready at the house of one of the groomsmen nearby.  Notice how few pics there are of the guys?  Yeah, not a lot going on in that house.

Enjoy!

I have separated the rest of the photos into details, bridal party, us, ceremony, and reception.  Let me know what you would like to see next and I will post those next week....unless I can get to it sooner :)