Seven weeks ago I introduced you to this guy.
On January 14th, I started the program, Transform 20. It was 20 minutes of intense exercise, 6 days a week. It was tough. It pushed me past my limits. I was sore most days. It made running a bit difficult at the beginning. However, all that hard work has paid off.
I am down 3lbs, AND 10.5 inches. I lost 2 inches around the bust, 1 inch on each arm, 1/2 inch off the waist and 3 inches off of each leg! I did this by showing up each day, eating 80/20 and plugging into my accountability group. Tomorrow the journey continues, as I continue to train for races and keep up my strength training. I am reigning in the nutrition just a little bit more, as in a month I will be back in Disney. 😉 Never doubt yourself. Put your blinders on and just get to work. You can do it! My inbox is always open if you are looking for that accountability partner. You just have to take the first step!
Oh and that running.. just this past week, my running has become stronger and faster!
I read and listen to a lot of personal development. I am always trying to grow my mind, my career, my business, etc. One of the things I have read over and over again, is successful people have a morning routine. It has been shown that having a morning routine sets the stage for prioritizing, more-effective time management and greater productivity. It helps eliminates the stress caused by chaotic mornings. I would read this over and over again, yet I still was not implementing it. Yes, I would wake up and work out, but that was it. I did that and then rush to get the kids off to school and then head to the office. It is something I just keep putting off. Then, I received a e-mail. I listen to the Rise Podcast by Rachel Hollis. Rachel is a New York Times best-selling author of Girl, Wash Your Face. If you have no read this book, I highly recommend it. She is a motivational speaker and helps women, in particular, become better versions of themselves. This week she has a new book coming out called Girl, Stop Apologizing. I pre-ordered the book and can’t wait to get on my hands on it. I am sure I will be done with it by the weekend. As a thank you for the pre-order, she sent out a worksheet and some tools on how to create an “empowering” morning routine. I am taking this as another sign that I need to implement my own morning routine ASAP. So starting today, I am starting a morning routine. It is going to look something like this.
- 4:45am – wake up & make coffee
- 5:00am -journal and write down my affirmations
- 5:15am- workout
- 6:00am-7:05am- get ready for work, drop off kids and head to the office.
- 8:00- pull into the parking and do a 5-7 mins of meditation before walking into the building.
Now this schedule may vary a little bit, in the the days I work from home, I get up a little later, but in general this is what I aiming for. I will report back at the end of the month and let you know how it goes. In the meantime, why don’t you give it a try. I would love to have an accountability partner.
Today I had my last long run before Princess weekend. The boys and I are headed down to Disney World in a week and half. We plan on having some fun and then Mama is going to run the 5k, 10k and half marathon. The end of my training plan called for 12.5 miles, but I figured why not 13.1. I know many of you are out doing some long runs for your spring races. I am always interested in hearing what others take on their long runs, how they fuel and how they recover. I thought I would share what is currently working for me.
First things first, I always run with my Garmin watch. I do have a FitBit I wear everyday, but my Garmin is mere accurate and does a bit more than my FitBit when it comes to running. Second, I need go be listening to either a podcast or a book while running. I use Aftershokz headphones. These are bone conduction headphones. They sit outside of your ears. I am aware of heat is boing on around me at all times and can still her my podcast or book perfectly fine. I also wear them grocery shopping and cleaning the house. The final gadget I carry around with me, is this cool device my husband bought me called Wearsafe. As the website states “It is s modern-day mobil panic button designed to get you the help right away.” If you are out and about and get into some trouble, you press the button and I sends an alert to all your emergency contacts. The alert includes your GPS location and audio of what is happening around you. I find it to be pretty cool and a lot better than carrying around pepper spray. Too many wild animals were being sprayed.😂 So that is it for gear.
As for fuel, before I head out the door, I put a pack of Energize into my water and drink it up. This is my pre-workout drink. It increases my energy, improves m performance, increase muscle power and delays muscle fatigue. Then during my long run,  every 4 miles I take 2 salt tablets and a couple of Honey Stingers. In the dead of the winter, have been known to bring candy cane Hershey kisses with me. I also carry a handheld water bottle with some Nuun. I make sure I run past somewhere to refill the bottle. When I get home from my run, I make sure to get some protein I my body and usually do that by drinking my Shakeology. Not only does it have a nice amount of protein, it is filled with lots of super foods and  the only thing that keeps the post run headache away. So there you have it, my must haves during a long run. Tell me, what are your must haves when you are out there putting in the miles?
A few weeks ago, I introduced you to my BFF for the next six weeks. Remember this guy?
Well he and I have had our moments. He, along with my trainer, have pushed me way out of my comfort zone. First, learning how to workout with the step was a challenge. I am not the most coordinated person. Second, it may be only 20 mins, but I am moving for the full 20 mins at a crazy pace. At the beginning, I had a hard time keeping up. Even now, three weeks later, I still will rewind and see what the heck is going on. I am not ashamed to admit that sometimes, I fall to the floor and cry. Why do I do it then, some may ask? Well, I am not a quitter. There are always going to be things in life that are hard or impossible at the moment. However, I put my big girl pants on, straighten the crown and jump back in. The mental changes that occur with finishing a program, running a hard race, etc. are just as, or sometimes, even more important that the physical ones.
Since starting this program, my core has gotten stronger, as have my shoulders. I am modifying less and most of the time, I do not dread the 20 mins. Lets face it, unless it is running, cardio and I will never love each other. We have a mutual respect for each other, but that is all. LOL! As for any physical changes that one can see, I have lost 4lbs and 1 inch off my waist.  I will take it!
I am excited to finish up the next three weeks and see my overall results. If you are looking for a great workout, only 20 mins a day, 6 days a week, send me a message. This may just be the program for you.
Happy February! So… how did month 1 of 2019 go? Was it a productive month? Did you get half way through it and realize you have accomplished next to nothing on your list. Even if that is the case, it is okay! Each new month gives us a chance to start over. I have to admit, I did not get everything on my list done. If you recall, last month to keep myself accountable, I shared my goals for January. At the end of the month or the beginning or each new month, I review my goals, check off what I accomplished, move what needs to go on next month’s list or just remove it completely because it no longer is needed or serves me. Let’s see how I did.
My 3 big goals for January -lose 5lbs -launch blog- and clean bedroom closets. Well, I lost 4lbs and a rather happy with that. I got all 3 bedroom closets cleaned and organized. The one thing I did not do, but almost there, was to launch my blog. Yes, as you read this, I have been writing for a few months so you all would have some content to read. The launching of a blog is not as easy as one would think. So this goal has been moved to February and fingers crossed it will happen. The other goals on my list:
- Read 1 personal development book ☑ I read “The Rise” by Danette May
- Start my European vacation scrapbook ☑
- Run a race ☑ Chilly Willy 10k
- Run 50 miles ☑ 57.6
- Start Transform 20 ☑
- Stick to my cleaning eating plan ☑
- Buy new bedding ☑
- Pay of Nicholas’s cell phone ☑
- Add to savings ☑
Overall, January was a productive month. This blog not going live, bothers me a little, but here is to getting it done in February. Speaking of February, here are my goals.
- Launch blog
- Finish Transform 20
- Set up my next online health and fitness group
- Read one personal development book and one book for pleasure
- Have a stress free trip to Disney with the boys
- Run 65 miles
- Organize kitchen cabinets
- Save additional money on top of what already goes into savings.
I would love to her your goals for the month and how you did in January. Drop me a note and let me know.
When I first started running, 6.5years ago, music was what got me through my runs. As my distance increased, music was just not doing it for me. Someone in my running group mentioned podcasts and I decided to check it out. 3.5 years later, it is just about all I listen to on my short and long runs. Some of my favorite topics, Disney, true crime, personal growth and development, running and more. Today, I am going to share some of my favorites and in return, I would love for you to share some of yours.
- American Scandal – this tells the story of some of our countries greatest scandals.
- Another Mother Runner- running, specifically mother runners.
- Be Our Guest- my favorite Disney podcast
- Best Case, Worst Case -true crime
- Best of Both World- a great podcast for working moms
- Build Your Tribe with Chalene Johnson -how to build a business
- Criminology- true crime
- Real Crime Profile- true crime
- Rise Podcast – Rachel Hollis- awesome personal growth podcast
- Style Your Mind-another fantastic business building and personal development podcast.
- The Chalene Show – personal development
These are just some that I listen to on a regular basis. There are others, but these are my all time favorites and highly recommend. Now it is your turn. Please share your favorites so we can continue to build our libraries. Remember, sharing is caring. Have a good one!
In a couple of days, I am about to embark on a new fitness program. In addition to my running, I workout to other programs. The length of the programs change from program to program. This new one is 6 weeks long, 6 days a week, but only 20 minutes a day. All that is needed is a step. Don’t let that fool you. This isn’t going to be your 90’s step class. I have a feeling those 20 mins are going to be the longest 20 minutes of my life. Wish me luck!
I did something that changed by life. I became a marathoner! Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think I would run a 5K, never mind 26.2 miles. However, when I saw that it was the 25th anniversary of the Disney Marathon, I just had to run it. It was hard, humbling, tiring, exhilarating and fun all at the same time. At mile 16 my IT band started to give me trouble. I began to panic. I had 10.2 miles left to go. What was I going to do? My good friends, Maria and Maura were tracking me. They noticed I had slowed down a bit. They, along with my friends Erin, Kim and my sister Jen, reached out to me. They encouraged me to keep going. They were with me every step of the way until the finish line. In fact, Erin met me in Epcot, right before I crossed that finish line.
I remember running around Epcot, passing all the countries and thinking I was really going to do this. All the training miles, early morning workouts, blisters, chafing, blood, sweat and tears were worth it. As I rounded the corner, heading toward Spaceship Earth, I heard the song “How Far I’ll Go” from the movie Moana. I lost it. I knew how far I would go to accomplish my goal and I did just that. Crossing that finish line was amazing. Though I have no desire to run a full any time soon, I will never forget the feeling of accomplishment. It is true what they say
“Everything you ever wanted to know about yourself you can learn in 26.2 miles. – Lori Culnane
Hi and thanks for stopping by! My name is Heather. I live outside of Boston, MA with my husband Bill, my 17-year old son Robbie, my 13-year old son Nicholas, my yellow lab Bauer, and our two cats, Tek and Oreo. I am an attorney and online health and fitness coach.
For a while now, I have wanted to start a blog. I have had a lot of change in the last six years. At the age of 40, I started running. I had always wanted run and finally took the plunge. What started as running for exercise, soon became signing up for races and running for bling! Two years later, I lost my 61 year old Mom to cancer. She went quickly and her death rocked me to my core. She was the center of our family and the loss is felt each and every day. Losing her in the way we did, made me realize how short this life truly is. Her death has helped shape many of the decisions I have made over the last 4 years. I have pushed past my comfort zone and have tried and done things I may not have had the courage to do, if not for losing her so young. I became an online health and fitness coach. I ran my first marathon! I have traveled more places with my family. Speaking of family, I can hardly believe it, but I have one child almost done with high school and another one that will be there in no time. There has been so much going on over the last few years, and so much more to come, that I find myself growing and discovering who I am outside of motherhood. I look forward to further self-discovery and sharing it with you all along the way.
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