So I started making the Cut on Monday. This book is great for anyone who is really serious about loosing the last 10-20lbs. So far I have learned that I am a balanced oxidizer. Which means I should be eating a ratio of 40% carbohydrates, 30% fat and 30% protein.
The workouts are super challenging and the meal plan is even a little hard to stick too. I am doing my best with both of these aspects. Today is day 3, which in the book is a day off 
Trust me I need a day off! My legs are so sore and my knees hurt to bend!
I have a little more then 2 months before the wedding and I want to look and feel my absolute best! I started a few months a head of time because with every new routine it takes time and learning to get the best results. With the circuit training it is hard to do because I am still learning all of the proper moves.
I will say I am glad that I started with the 30 day Shred. It really prepared me for this book. I suggest to anyone who is thinking about doing Making the Cut to start with the 30 day Shred first and then after you have completed that move on to it.
Good Luck! I will keep you posted of my progress ☺
I want to be in the best shape of my life for my wedding, who doesn’t? About a month ago I started training with Jillian Michaels 30 day Shred workout. The 30-day Shred workout is pretty tough! Today I am exactly at the half way point! I am 15 days in and I already notice my body feeling tighter and seeing positive changes!
I just purchased “Making the Cut” also by Jillian Michaels. My plan is to prepare myself for “Making the Cut” by doing the 30 day Shred first and then moving into “Making the Cut.” When I started working out consistently (about a 1/2 month ago) I was not in the best shape. I had about 10lbs to loose and I was only working out a few times a week and at a medium to low intensity and I was not eating very healthy.
Currently I am happy to report I am watching what I eat and I have already lost 2lbs!
The next step of my training program is to move into “Making the cut” it is also a 30 program but it has specific diet and nutrition instructions to stick too. The 30-day Shred is only a workout plan and does not include a nutrition plan. I am really excited to see the results from first doing the Shred and then moving into “Making the Cut” - I will keep you all posted!
Usually I write about all of my outdoor activities…but today I am going to write about an indoor activity that I just started. Since my wedding is only 4 months away it is time to get serious about exercise and nutrition. I have been running every other day but I am not seeing that good of results. So I have decided to step it up before the big day!
I am adding a workout video into my routine called The 30 day Shred. Now this is no ordinary work out video - this video’s main goal is to get you shredded and in 30 days! They challenge you to do the workout 30 days straight. It has 3 different levels to it. For the first 10 days you are supposed to do level one, then the next 10 days level 2 and the last 10 days you go to level 3.
Now I am only on day 2 of level one and I can tell I am going to get some good results from this video! I took all of my measurements this morning and weighed myself so I have a good idea of how I started this program.
I will keep you all posted on how I do! I am very excited to see some good results!
On Sunday March 15th I participated in my first community run. There were four people in our group my fiancé, my sister, a good friend of the family and myself. Our day started pretty early my fiancé and I got up at 6:45am and had to be out the door by 7am. When we got downtown the streets were packed with runners. It was amazing to see how many runners there are in Portland!
We got there about 5 minutes before it was our time to run. We all four lined up with hundreds of other people and as soon as the horn blew we were off! Our group chose to run the 5k. I must say the 5k races is a perfect distance for my very first time running in a community setting. About half way through the run I started to get a really bad side ache and had to walk a little, the good news is for the most part are whole group stuck together! We each took our turn where we needed a little bit of walking time, but we all crossed the finish line together, which in my opinion was the best part!
My wedding is 4 and half months away and I really want to stay focused! I am currently training for a half marathon in June. I do not know how I would do with a half marathon but I am willing to give it a try. My training will start tomorrow. I will keep you posted on how my training goes!
Have you ever had an injured toe? I never knew how valuable my toe was until I recently sprained and bruised it! The first question you are probably wondering is how do you sprain and bruise a toe? Well the way I hurt my toe I am sure could happen to anyone!
My fiancé and I had some friends over for dinner and I was putting away the left over food. When I opened the refrigerator a thick glass bottle that was on the very top of our refrigerator dropped and fell directly on my second toe.
Let me tell you is very painful to bruise and sprain a toe! The next day I could hardly walk and I had to keep it elevated and iced all day! My toe turned purple and was more swollen then I have ever seen it.
The pain, swelling and coloring lasted for a few days. After the first rough couple of days I started to feel more comfortable and was able to move around more. It has been two weeks tomorrow since the accident and I am still in pain! I have not been able to run yet and the race is right around the corner 
With the Shamrock run only being a month away it is very important to stay consistent with my training. I have been running 3 miles a day 3 times a week and I am getting very comfortable with this pace. My goal was to run the 8k for the Shamrock run but I am starting to think that a 5k might be a better idea for my first run.
You have to remember that I started running back in November so it has only been right around 4 months since I started training. I was doing really well with my best run being 4 miles at a pace of 9 minutes a mile, but I took about a week off and it really through my running schedule off. When I tried to run again after taking the time off I could hardly do my regular 3 miles. Since struggling I am really trying to not take any significant length of time off again.
I am excited for my run tonight because I think that I am finally getting back to the pace I was at before I took the time off. Hopefully my fiancé will go to the gym as well. Sometimes I have to drag him kicking and screaming and other times he is happy to go.
Last Sunday I decided that I was going to push myself to run 4 miles. If you would have told me three months ago that I would be able to run 4 miles I would have laughed at you. As you can see three months later this is an attainable goal. I decided to do the run on a Sunday because I am not as pressed for time as I am during the week. Well not only did I accomplish running 4 miles but I did it at a pace of 9.30, which for me is a very good pace.
I have had this last week off from the gym and I could not be more excited to get back to it. Due to some medications I am on I was forced to take the week off but I should be able to get back into the gym in the next couple of days.
My fiancé and I are only about six months away from our wedding date so it is time to really start pushing our self’s. We both have a goal to get into the gym three days a week. I usually go four days a week because I enjoy running on the weekends. But we are doing well if we go to they gym three days during the week together. He is a great workout partner and we both have some pretty good goals for the wedding. I will keep you all posted on how we are doing, as the wedding gets closer.
I have been running for almost 3 months and I am finally getting to the point where I don’t need to walk and rest in the middle of a run as much. I wanted to see how long and far I could run before needing to rest so I tested myself. I decided that I was going to run at a steady pace for as long as I could. I ended up being able to run for 25 minutes and I ran a little under three miles. This was a big step for me but now at least I know what I can do.
My goals from here on out are going to be bigger and better then before. This week has been kind of a crazy week and so far I have not made it to the gym. I really need to get in there so I will probably go tonight. I find it is easier for me to work out in the morning but sometimes I have a really hard time getting out of bed. I am sure you all know how that goes. Tonight my goal is to do a solid 3-mile run and then this weekend I would like to run 5 miles and see how I do.
My fiancé and I have been staying on track and getting to the gym 3 times a week and I want to continue with our routine.
This is what Darcy had to say about the Nike plus! Thanks for the information Darcy! You rock!!!!
Hey alyssa,
When I first got my Nike+ I had the same reaction. Bruno told me that out of the package it is 80% accurate, and a much better tracker then when you are on the treadmill. The most important thing about the Nike+ is that you need to calibrate it. Which means that you need to go to a track, like gresham High Schools, which you know to be a fourth of a mile and run that with the Nike+ in calibration mode, set at .25 miles. you can do this once in running mode, and once walking. This will give it a much higher accuracy percentage. Also remember that how Nike+ works is that it tracks your foot steps, so if you end up running with a longer pace one day then you did the previous it again wont be as accurate.
Dont get me wrong, I LOVE Nike+, it is a great tool for keeping track of your runs, graphing them, and seeing your progress. Congrats on your ongoing running!
Have you ever wondered what tracked more accurately a Nike plus or the treadmill? When I first started running I would track my time by writing down all of the stats the treadmill gave me after a workout. When looking at the numbers I thought the numbers were a little off, was I really only running at a 10 min pace mile? So I decided to use my Nike plus and compare it to the treadmill information. To my surprise the treadmill was off by .25 a mile! Now that is a lot to be off by! Yesterday when I used my Nike plus I ran 3 miles and it paced me at 9.5 a mile. Those numbers made me feel really good. I am running under a 10-minute mile! From now on I am only going to use my Nike plus. Also the great thing about the Nike plus is it keeps track of all of your past times so I don’t have to write anything down after a work out. If you are a runner and don’t have a Nike plus you need to get one! They are the best investment ever!