Operation: Caribbean-Part One

Wanring: This is not a cute update on Stone and Emerson. There aren't even pictures of them! This is a long, WORDY post (I rarely do those kind of posts!) on fitness and nutrition.

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Next month, Cliff and I are heading to Florida, where we will jump on a cruise, and I will photograph a destination wedding. STOKED. Ya think? I am absolutely thrilled to take my business to the next level, and I couldn't be more excited to shoot in the Caribbean.

Well, with the Caribbean, comes a swim suit, and comes "Operation: Caribbean", which I am calling my fitness and nutrition decisions and goals, and I thought I'd share some insights with you.

Let me preface this post by saying, I am NOT a nutritionist or dietitian. I don't think I call myself a fitness professional, although I'm a fitness ENTHUSIAST, and a group fitness instructor (I teach Zumba, "Just Weights" (which is obviously a weight lifting class), Spin, and I sub for several other classes). I've taught classes for several years, and I absolutely love fitness. So those are my credentials. Now, let's move forward.

I don't usually share my fitness goals with people. Not that I'm secretive about it, it's just not necessarily a regular topic of conversation. But I'll open up a bit throughout these next few weeks.

So my goal is to loose about 5-8 pounds. I hate to state it like that, because it's not necessarily pounds I'm looking to drop, although it's always nice to see the scale go down a few. I judge "weight loss" by the way my pants fit (literally). As you begin to work out, you loose fat, and simultaneously begin to build muscle. Muscle weighs more than fat, so you might not actually loose weight, but you are loosing fat. ....and that's what we want. If you have more weight to loose, then sure, you'll see that scale drop (think Biggest Loser), but if you're looking to just shape up a bit, don't judge your improvements by what the scale says.

"Weight Loss" (I put this in quotes, because again...it's not necessarily weight you will loose) comes down to ONE thing. You BURN more calories than you CONSUME. So essentially, there are 2 ways to accomplish this: 1. You eat less or 2. You exercise more.

Now, the two (nutrition and exercise) go hand in hand. To REALLY accomplish any "weight loss" goals, you need to make adjustments to both your menu and your exercise schedule. There are SO many ways to do this. Eating well is much easier for some than others, and likewise, sticking to an exercise schedule is much easier for some than others. Tweak either or both areas, and you can see results. I will share how I am doing it....

There are several different classes of people at the gym, but I tend to break it up into 2 groups of people. 1. Those looking to really loose "weight", and 2. Those looking to maintain a healthy lifestyle. For the most part, I fall into that 2nd category. I LOVE food! I have a sweet tooth. I love flavor. I love spicy. I love steaks. I love melted cheese. I LOVE Mexican food (which is the greasiest of 'em all!). I typically love the kinds of food that are bad for you, and NOT good for "weight loss". I don't buy soy milk. I don't add flax seed to my recipes. I don't eat hummus. And I really should eat more fruits and veggies. Last week, my family went through 3 gallons of milk and 3 loaves of bread in 4 days. Okay, you get the point. HOWEVER, I absolutely LOVE fitness. If I miss a day at the gym, I feel lazy and unaccomplished for the day (except for Wednesdays...that's my day off, and my day to sleep in!...and even on that planned day off, I still feel weird that we don't make it to the gym). So for me....I pretty much eat what I want, but I work my tail off at the gym! So it's a wash.

In Caribbean Part Two, I will discuss my changes to my eating habits. But in this post, I will talk about fitness, since that's my forte between the two.

I exercise a lot. Want to know my schedule? Mondays, I teach "Just Weights" (1 hr. class), followed by a :45 Spin class. Tuesday-Zumba. Wednesday-Day off from gym (I try to run in the morning before Cliff leaves for work, unless I choose to sleep in!). Thursday-Zumba. Friday-"Just Weights". I usually add some cardio exercise onto each day. ...running, elliptical, etc. So I'm usually at the gym about an hour and a half. I could be there longer (Mondays is a little longer), but my kids go with me, and for their sake, I leave at about the 1.5 hour mark (even though Stone sometimes asks me to stay longer. They've made some good friends there). So with this schedule, there's no reason I shouldn't be able to loose a few. But again--I eat what I want, so it's usually a wash. So the major change in my daily routine, will come to consuming less calories. Again--I will talk about that in my next post.

I figure I need to "up" the intensity of my work outs and try to burn more calories in that time I am at the gym. I am a runner, so I have decided to intensify my running schedule. Last week, instead of running 1 to 2 miles after my classes, I added 3 to 4 miles. Now, I know to non runners, that probably sounds crazy. But as a runner, adding 1.5 to 2 more miles than I usually do, is not impossible. It's just an extra 10-17 minutes. That's doable, AND it's beneficial. That's a handful of extra calories burned. It's just a little challenge--something I need to do to burn more calories. AND, I increased my pace to try to try to get more mileage covered in a certain amount of time (I have a little case of OCD when I am on the treadmill. I first decide if I'm going for time or miles that day. Do I want to just run as much as I can in 30 minutes? Or do I specifically want to run 4 miles? Whatever I decide, I always have to end the miles/time/calories on happy numbers. WEIRD, I know. So, if I decide to run 4 miles, and I finish in 32 minutes, I have to keep going until the treadmill says 35 minutes. But then if the calories say 416, I have to get it to 420, but then the mileage is at 4.15, so I need to get it to 4.2 if not 4.5. You get the idea. OCD.)

It all comes down to challenging yourself!

TIP: So for those that may not have an exercise schedule, I encourage you just to CHALLENGE yourself. You don't need a gym membership to loose weight. MOVE more than you do in a typical day. Work HARDER than you typically do. BURN more. You don't need to run 4 miles. But if you usually take a walk around the neighborhood, add on an extra 15 minutes. Or add jogging intervals. And if you're not moving? THEN START! Think you don't have time because your a busy mommy? Throw that excuse out the window NOW. Wake up before your kids do, and get in some exercise. It's not easy, but it's possible. And I promise you, as you exercise, you will be begin to FEEL good. As Elle Woods says, "Exercise releases endorphins. Endorphins make you happy. Happy people don't kill their husbands."

For the record: I lost 3 pounds last week. However, we went to Dallas, where we ate too much bad (and by bad, totally yummy) food, and I gained a couple back. But overall, I still dropped. This week, my goal is to eat better. And I will share those goals and tips with you next time.