Let’s talk health and fitness!
This is something I haven’t really talked much about before, but when I asked for content input, many of you requested I create posts related to this, so I’m excited to start sharing more with you! Now, I feel like I need to preface this with: I am in no way an expert or any sort of trainer so, take this post with a grain of salt. My intention is to inspire you to create a (possibly similar) routine/lifestyle with the goal of your overall health and wellness. When it comes to fitness, I believe in pushing yourself but remaining well within the realm of your limits and safety level. Consult a medical professional if you have any questions as to what that is!
Backstory
As a little back story, I grew up playing sports and have always considered myself an athlete. I started my athletic endeavors with t-ball when I was 4, graduating to fastpitch softball as the years went by. I played varsity softball, varsity volleyball and was a varsity cheerleader in high school. I’ve always loved the benefits of team sports and believe they were integral to my social life, overall fitness growing up and even my self-confidence. For softball, I’d spend summers with my teammates in the gym at our high school conditioning in the weight room, running on the track and persevering through stadiums.
Why do I tell you this?
To share with you some of my mindset and motivation behind being active and making fitness a part of my routine. Also, I wanted to share so that you know where my starting point was. Although it’s been many years since high school, it’s not as though I went into my adult health and fitness journey as a total ‘beginner’ – does that makes sense? It’s sort of always been a part of my life. All that to say I just want to encourage you to start your fitness journey (or continue) at a level that you are comfortable with – whatever that may be.
Alright, let’s get to the good stuff.
My take on food
As we all know, a large portion of your overall health and fitness begins with food. As someone who isn’t necessarily trying to lose a lot of weight (I’m more trying to maintain and tone my muscles), my focus isn’t so much on portion control or calorie limits (although still important), but on balance and nutrition. Here are some things that I follow when it comes to food:
Weekdays vs. Weekends
The general rule I go by when planning our weekly meals is this – and it makes eating ‘healthy’ a lot more manageable: Eat right during the week and have fun on the weekend. Now, that doesn’t mean on the weekends we binge on potato chips and Ben & Jerry’s, but it does mean we give ourselves the freedom to cook (or eat out) meals that wouldn’t necessarily be considered “healthy.” Chick-fil-a? Sure. An order of wings and a big basket of fries at the sports bar? Yes please. A big batch of homemade buffalo chicken dip and jalapeno peppers for homegating during football on the weekends? YUP. There are the occasional weeknight splurges, but overall we try to go by this.
Finding Recipes
Most of my weekday meal recipes come from one of the Skinny Taste cookbooks, Cooking Light recipes or from searching “healthy dinner recipes” on Pinterest. I realize this isn’t a super scientific method, but I try to keep our meats lean (turkey, chicken, fish) and our sides without a whole lot of butter (unless I’m making mashed potatoes – then I’m going for it ;))
Substitute!
I like to make simple substitutions whenever I can. Things like swapping coconut oil for canola or vegetable when possible and we rarely use ground beef because I almost always swap with ground turkey.
Meal Plan & Prep
Trust me when I say that eating healthy is SO MUCH EASIER when you take the time to meal plan and prep. Purchase fruits, veggies and healthy snacks and then take the time time to wash them, chop them and make them easily accessible throughout the week. I also like to pre-wash and chop the veggies and ingredients I’m using for dinners and have them all ready to throw into a pot or pan at dinner time. It takes the guesswork out of ‘what’s for dinner’, saves SO MUCH time on a weeknight and removed the temptation to order takeout! Also, whether you go to work or stay at home, prepping healthy lunches and having them ready to go is such a life and time saver!
In my opinion, it doesn’t take a whole lot of work to eat semi-healthy. And even if you consider the above to be so, your body and your family members’ bodies are worth it! Remember your food groups, build meals full of color and omit the starchy, buttery, empty calories whenever possible!
My Fitness Routine
Okay, let’s get to the fitness part. As a quick preface, my fitness routine includes a membership at our local gym – Lifteime Fitness. If you have the means and a good gym nearby – I fully endorse a gym membership. It not only benefits me, but they have childcare and children’s classes too, so Fischer does a 30 minute education course on Mondays and a Toddler Training exercise class on Wednesdays. It’s so good for both of us and gives me some much needed me-time for the hour or so that we go.
However, if you don’t have a gym membership, I fully encourage you to check out the many free resources online! YouTube is a great resource for videos and you can find lots of free at-home workout guides on Pinterest!
A combination of classes and self-training.
My goal most weeks is to make it to the gym 3 days a week – usually Monday, Wednesday, Friday. I like to keep Tuesdays and Thursdays open for either playdates or getting work done at home.
Gym Days
Mondays: I like to start my week off by going to a cycle class. We ride and do choreographed workouts to some bumpin’ music and it’s SO MUCH FUN. The calories I burn from one class (usually somewhere between 550 – 750) are crazy and it’s just such a great way to set the tone for the week!
Wednesdays: Depending on what I’m in the mood for, I’ll either do another cycle class, (which, on Wednesdays includes weighted exercises) or I’ll attend a Glutes workout class. I have to admit – I almost always choose the spin class because it’s just that good!
Fridays: This is the day I usually do some self-training. For me, that usually starts with a 30 minute run on the treadmill and then some weightlifting. Since the Wednesday cycle class incorporates weighted dumbbells and works out my tris, bis and abs, I’ll usually do legs exercises on Friday- squats, leg presses, leg raises and lunges.
At Home Days
On Tuesdays and Thursdays I like to give myself a little leeway. If we’re having a busy day or if I’m trying to catch up on work, I’ll let myself skip one of both of these days – or I’ll wake up early and get them done in the morning. Either way, its low key and low pressure. My ‘at home workouts’ include a choice or combination of:
– Morning run (20-30 mins before Fischer wakes up)
– Morning walk with Fischer
– 30 Minute workout video (I have some Beach Body 21 Day Fix DVD’s from back in the day) or I’ll find something on YouTube!
– Targeted workouts via Pinterest (like ab challenges, etc.)
I’ll try to share more of my workouts and details on my Instagram stories from now on, so be sure to check there for a little inspiration/to see what I’m up to!
Specific requests?
Alright, y’all I think that’s where I’ll stop for now. I have some ideas for more health and fitness posts moving forward, though so stay tuned! As always, if you have any specific content requests, ideas or general questions – feel free to send them my way and/or comment in the space below!
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