Portions, Consistency & H2O

It's been one heck of a long day, and I really don't have the energy or the mental stability to put a lot of thought into a full on blog entry for today.
As I had already mentioned, I am doing the 5 Day Inferno meal & work out plan from TurboFire. I've been diligent in taking pics of all my meals as this is a GREAT way to stay accountable. People might tease or mock you for posting your food pics on your FB or your blog, but by doing it you're accountable now to a whole network of people! I highly recommend this to anyone trying out a new meal plan or who is just trying to eat healthier.
The one thing I know I'm learning is about my portion size. Now, the 5 Day Inferno is pretty restricted in calories, so I know that after the five days are up, I need to add at least another 300 calories to my daily intake. YAY FOOD!! Yes, I love food - especially good food! If it doesn't taste good, forget it! I'm happy to report that everything on this plan tastes amazing. It's great - it's five days with every single meal and snack recipe lined out for you and a work out (sometimes two) for each day. It doesn't really get easier than that. In any matter, I'm learning that this love of food I have causes me to eat to my hearts content instead of just what I need. Not that I go out and binge, but you get what I'm meaning. It's nice to make a small plate of food, consume it, and feel satisfied. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm sure I could just keep eating, but the thing is I DON'T NEED TO. And, some days, I will admit I've felt that feeling - "I'm not hungry but I just have this insatiable urge/need to eat/keep eating!" The only tricks I've learned are to keep yourself busy and to do what my Dad always told me - drink water. :) Water does make all the difference, but don't you dare go telling my Dad that he was right! In all seriousness though, as long as I've been eating every 2-4 hours I haven't felt that nagging desire to stuff my face or the burning in my stomach telling me I'm starved. Portions, consistency & H2O.

Simply Inspired

I've thought all day long about what to put in my very first blog entry, and I think if I entered all of my ideas, it would be one very very long post. The point is to inspire and motivate others by sharing my own inspiration, not to bore or overwhelm. So I will keep things simple... most of the time.

I came to realize this weekend that if I wanted to gain respect, and recognition from others and to be a leader, then I needed to act like one. In short, if you want others to follow you must lead by example. So before I can begin any sort of real coaching, I must first establish that I am worthy to be followed.

I had decided last week that part of living by example would mean that three aspects of my life would need to be shining examples. The first, my diet. I began eating clean as of today. If you visit my FB page and look at my photo album called "BeachBody" you can see a photo journal of the day's meals (minus a few snacks usually - sometimes I forget to take photos..). Eating clean means several things:
- eating fresh and non processed foods
- eating proper portions regularly
- no alcohol
- no added sugars or desserts
The hardest of the these for many of my friends and loved ones seems to be the "no alcohol" rule. And, don't get me wrong, I love a glass of red or and ice cold beer, but it has never been a necessity nor have I have I ever felt a strong urge to drink. I think I like sitting down to watch a show on the sofa just as much and it is just as relaxing.

The second area to work on, my fitness. I've begun following the TurboFire 5 Day Inferno eating & work out plan to kick start my metabolism and get me on the right track into eating cleanly. My starting weight this morning was 168. This was sad and somewhat depressing (as I've gained since summer), but it is also a loss for me in the last month (of 4lbs!) I'm looking forward to weighing in again Saturday morning. The first goal is 5lbs, with a second goal of 10lbs.

Today I ordered Insanity and will begin the program, shipping time willing, on Monday 3/5/12. These last few days I've had a new personal mantra flood my thoughts and help to push me into making the decision to attack the program Insanity - "Train Insane or Remain the Same." You can imagine now, how this blog got it's name. Ha! I decided that it didn't just have to apply to a specific program but to all training from here on out.

I also ordered "Push" by Chalene Johnson and it arrived today - a day earlier than expected! Don't you just love when that happens?? The only downside? It was pouring rain and incredibly windy and the mail man decided to stuff the cardboard envelope into our tiny mailbox (which opens from the top and not the front) which allowed our mail to become drenched and also for the edges of my books' pages to ripple. Sad day! Oh well.. worse things have happened, right? In any matter, I plan on beginning this book ASAP as it deals more than just in fitness and nutrition, but also in ones personal life... The third area to transform. I'm looking forward to a full transformation and to daily being inspired by Chalene.

Get ready to hear all about this physical and personal journey. As I am daily pushed, challenged and inspired, I hope others will also be.