Happy Monday!
I am starting week 3 of the
Tone It Up Bikini series today, and I am loving it. The motivation is sky-high for me to continue. I am getting in way more cardio than normal, with about 4-5 runs a week (up from 1-3), a bike ride or two, and I am doing the TIU daily workouts.
My eating has been pretty awesome also, even when faced with delicious temptations. I have found that having an instagram account just for check-ins, food photos and sweaty selfies has held me accountable on the food front. I find myself choosing healthy options easily, making them look as enticing as possible, because I know I will be sharing what I've eaten online. I am all for something that keeps me from eating the garlic bread and all the cookies I made for Billy yesterday, when it smelled and looked so much better than my spaghetti squash and chicken patty.
You know what else is motivating and encouraging? Tangible results, aka WEIGHT LOSS! I started eating clean the week before the BS started, so since then, I have lost 7lbs.
In 3 weeks, y'all.
With my healthy eating alone, I lost 3lbs right away, which I am assuming was water weight and bloating caused by carb heavy foods and processed sugar garbage.
Talk about a drastic change in my eating habits. If you want to know what it is I am eating, follow me on instagram for photos and meal check-ins,
@tiu_adrian spoiler alert: it's a lot of fruit and veggies.
I've mentioned before that I track all of my food in
My Fitness Pal. That alone is so helpful in this whole ordeal. Before I switched to healthy, clean food, I struggled to keep my daily calorie intake even remotely close to my goal. I had no idea why it was so hard, I mean, I was eating healthy-ish and sometimes working out, so why was I always going over the goal? When I started tracking diligently, and cleaned up my food, it became difficult to even hit my daily goal, not to mention the added calories working out gave me. The best part is, I am usually too full to care. Dang veggies do that to you. Don't get me wrong, I have moments where I am feeling hungry or craving something, but it's usually for something I don't need, and I can substitute a healthy alternative and be just fine. Tablespoonfuls of almond butter have been a saving grace for me when a sweets craving hits. I sometimes pair it with a pack of frozen dark chocolate banana slices, and it's heaven.Quest and Think Thin bars come in handy too, but I try to get my calories from real food, and leave the bars for convenience options when I am busy.
Thanks to all that clean eating, I am actually seeing more definition in my body, and feeling my muscles get harder under the surface. Those TIU workouts are no joke. But thankfully they are usually under 20 minutes, so I have no excuses to miss one. The biggest surprise of this series has been how easy it is to follow. Now, easy is a relative term, because a few months ago I would have cried in outrage at myself for saying that. What I mean is, it's simple to get up, get my cardio or run in, do the quick daily workout, and be done for the day. I've committed to doing most of my food prep on one day, so I can have quick and healthy options to eat for a few days. Knowing what I have available is key to me making those smarter choices.
Are any of you doing the bikini series? Have you even heard of Tone It Up? What works to keep you accountable and motivated when eating healthy and working out?
