11 weeks of summer

So I realize this is two posts in one day BUT, the first post was a draft from a couple weeks ago that never got posted- oops! I really am trying to be better about posting more. As I've been reading more of other people's blogs, I like how many of them take on a focus or a goal but not wanting to just snag all the other cool ideas, I've been trying to think of cool ones on my own. I've had a few ideas but nothing I've loved yet. I probably will change from time to time to keep things interesting and not get bored of myself but I do want something. In the mean time, this morning I was looking over the calendar and realized there are 11 weeks left to summer- 11! That doesn't actually seem very long and I realized all of my lovely summer intentions/goals/plans need to get a move on if I want to be productive this summer. So. I wrote out a list of specific things I will dedicate each of my 11 weeks left of summer to, which in one way or another will help me towards my goals for the summer. While each week has a different specific thing I will do, I'm hoping 7 days will be enough to start a habit so the following week I'll shoot to keep that habit going, while adding the next week's goals to my plate. make sense? I'm posting them here so I can't flake on them. Also, it will keep me posting at least weekly and keep me focused on my goals. So here's to 11 weeks of improvement! 


Week 1: 150 minutes of working out

2 years ago, I was fresh out of my first year of college. Everyone I knew was home for the summer and I was living back at home. I decided to fill my time with two part time jobs which kept me on my feet and busy all day most days. I ate less because I was busy but I never ate too little- I just realized when I am not so busy, I tend to spend more time thinking about what i need from the grocery store, what new recipe to try, what I'm making for dinner/lunch, etc. A couple months into summer, I found a good deal on a bike from Craigslist and started going on long bike rides, especially at night after work. It was a nice way to unwind and deal with any stress I had on my back. By the time I was ready for school again in the fall, I had lost probably 10 pounds and was down to a healthy 125 and was feeling great.
    Shortly after the semester started I began dating Steven who is very athletic but also eats terribly! He was used to eating out probably on a daily basis and loves getting treats and dessert. I started gaining some weight eating out so much with him (and not getting the kind of exercise he was) and was up to about 135-140 when we got married last august. Part of that was birth control and stress but I still wasn't eating much healthier or working out like I should. When school started up again, I would do class from 8-12, work from 1-6, and get home exhausted and very stressed with homework, errands, dinner, housework, and my new husbands needs to all take care of. From that point up until a couple months ago, I gained another 20 ish pounds!!! (YIKES) The day I stepped on the scale to read 160 pounds, I knew something had to change. My 5'2 frame is not meant for so much weight and I couldn't feel good about how I looked or how I felt internally.
   Since then, I've been playing frisbee and getting more active but I still have a long way to go to get back to where I was. While I have been slowly losing weight since the 160, I still have a ways to go before I'm back to that 125-130 range. More importantly though than the numbers, I want to just get fit and healthy because that is what really matters.
   With this novel out of the way, comes the reason behind my first goal. By not restricting myself to days of the week (easier to mess up and get discouraged), I'm going with minutes of working out which will give the same results but will allow for some flexibility when I have busy days. I also realize that 150 is not where I'd like to be at the end of the summer, but when 150 becomes regular I'll hope to increase it as I go and see just how far i end up!

This is scary for me to make this goal public because I have such a hard time sticking with a workout plan! I really want to have a healthier lifestyle though so I'm determined to make it work this time.

What goals do you always find yourself falling back on?

<3 K