30 Days to Greatness, Day 25.

Wow, I can't believe it is my 25th day already. Yet, when I think of how much stronger I am, I can. Today was phenomenal. It was a truly transcending workout in both mind and body. I feel really good. I also had a great day overall. had an audition and a great lunch with my hubby at one of our favorite spots. I have also enjoyed the weather in L.A. today because it seems Chicagoan. It has been overcast and humid. Hot but not boiling. There were even some drizzle drops this afternoon... anyway, back to it! Here are today's stats.

Today's Workout:
P90X Yoga as dictated by their lean plan.
This was the best P90 Yoga practice yet! I went way past my previous boundaries. I was able to hold more, longer, and stretch farther. I was sweating like crazy and felt like a million bucks coming out of it. It was GREAT!

Today's Nutrition:
Breakfast pre workout - Steel cut oats with ground flaxseeds, blueberries, strawberries, and almonds. 3 cups of coffee.
Lunch post workout - 2 slices of margarita pizza (tomato sauce, cheese, and basil) 1 glass of pinot noir, 1/2 a baby greens salad.
Dinner - Peanut butter and jelly sandwich on a toasted English muffin.
Water all day.

Tomorrow I have an audition at 11:45 am. Due to this, I have my alarm set to 6:45 to give me time to workout, eat breakfast, get ready, etc. before I head out. I would much rather get my workout in before noon. Today I also signed up to the Beachbody community. I am not sure how active I will be on there since I blog post each day here but it is nice knowing I will have a place to mingle with others taking this on. I am also wondering about adding more components of the meal P90X meal plan. If I do, I'll let you know.

If you are thinking of taking on your own fitness challenge, DO IT! You are so worth it. <3

30 Days to Greatness, Days 17 & 18!

Hi there, hope you had a great 4th of July. I apologize for not blogging on the 4th I had a DJ gig which is why I didn't blog. I can tell you that I did work out and as for my nutrition I'll fill you in on what I remember... Here we go:

Day 17 Workout:
Arms & Shoulders with Ab Ripper X as dictated by the P90X Lean Plan.
I enjoy this workout very much. So far, I have been using resistance bands and they have been working although I will soon buy dumbbells because I think it will make the movements more fluid and I will not have to worry about setting up the bands for each exercise.

Day 17 Nutrition:
Breakfast pre workout - Cream of Wheat with ground flaxseeds, almonds, and honey. 3 cups of coffee.
Lunch post workout - Open faced tuna sandwich, with tomato, onion, and spinach on cracked whole wheat sourdough bread. Low Sodium V8 to drink.
Dinner - Tuna (leftover from lunch) in an open faced sandwich. Water to drink.
*Water all day. I usually have 10 cups+ but this day I didn't because I had cocktails at my DJ gig. I had 3 vodka cranberry drinks. I'm noticing that drinking is not what it used to be. My night's sleep was terrible and I am starting to wonder if drinking is really necessary at all. Perhaps it's because when I am eating and drinking good things that fuel and nourish my body, it feels so good. So now, when I have drinks it may be fun for a bit but I don't enjoy the feeling afterward. My body just doesn't feel top notch when I do that. I'll share more on this when I come to a more of a conclusion.

Because of last night's sleep and the fact it was overcast I was tired most of the day. I also did not set myself up for success. Still, I did get my workout on. I also got myself part of the reward I set up for myself when I took on this challenge. Here's today's 411.....

Day 18 Workout:
Yoga X as recommended by the P90X Lean Plan

Day 18 Nutrition:
Breakfast - 3 cups of coffee
Lunch post workout - Fresh juice made of carrot apple and lemon. Egg scramble of tomato mushroom onion and spinach along with a buttered cracked wheat sourdough toast.
Snack - Bowl of cherries.
Water all day.
* Not eating before my workout was not good. I was already feeling sluggish but didn't eat because I wasn't hungry. My energy during the workout and after has been lacking.

However, I did got to Sport's Authority and got one of my rewards!! I am so excited, I absolutely LOVE my purchase and I signed up for a free rewards card with them (Not a credit card, it's like a Ralph's card) which means I am going to save $5.00 when I go back for clothes!! Plus, I had gotten blessed with a 20% off coupon for Sport's Authority in the mail so I got these for 20% off! Check it out, my swanky new workout kicks:

"Success doesn't come to you, you go to it." - Marva Collins 

Go after it!!!

30 Days to Greatness, #16

Could you change your life by creating a healthy habit in 30 days? That's my mission and I am on day 16. Today, was really cool because I did something totally different. With no food in the house and having slept late, I wanted to get a jump on my day so upon arising and having a glass of water, I dove right in and worked out! Here are today's stats.

Workout:

P90X Cardio X as dictated by their lean plan. 

Nutrition:

Brunch post workout - Egg, cheese, and zucchini shreds with 2 cups of coffee.

Lunch - Subway 6 inch Veggie Delight with Avocado on Whole Wheat no cheese, bag of Lays Salt and Vinegar chips, water to drink.  This was my first time trying this sandwich and I really loved it. It was refreshing and healthy. Thumbs up!

Dinner - TBD :)

I am owed a reward of a new workout outfit which I will get since I did not like the options at Target. I am happy to say I had bought a scale though so now I will be able to factor in those numbers as well. I am now 115 lbs which is 3 pounds lighter than when I started two weeks ago.  I am trying to keep things short and sweet. My hope is that any readers will stay, go through the content, and be inspired!! So with that, I'm off!! 

Big hugs.....

30 Days to Greatness, Day 11

Ever feel like you could just dream forever?? That's how I awoke this morning. Had to be up and at 'em for 2 auditions and other business. Fit my workout in between it all and now, at 7:08 pm, I'm beat. I can feel myself getting stronger already though. There are exercises that are getting easier and muscle groups that are not burning so badly. Also, I am noticing less soreness which is wonderful. Night's are great because I am genuinely tired and I don't have to work to get to sleep. I am also noticing freedom from back pain which is something I used to feel regularly. I posted about it in my 1st 30 Day Challenge post. My back is where I hold my stress and I know that working out is helping me release stress. It's great to get physical every day. With that said, here are today's stats...

Today's workout:
P90X Yoga X as dictated by their lean plan.

Today's nutrition:
Breakfast - 1 egg on a piece of sourdough toast, 2 cups of coffee.
Lunch pre workout - 2 blueberry waffles with syrup 1 cup of coffee.
Dinner - Chipotle Bowl with romaine lettuce, black beans, fajita vegetables, carnitas, light sour cream and light cheese. Chips and guacamole.
Lots of water all day, I am averaging roughly 10 glasses a day now.

Today's workout tip:
I had posted about working out on my facebook page and asked people when they like to work out. It was then that Luis let me know he was still trying to get started. In honor of him, here's a tip!!

How about approaching a friend, family member, coworker, and seeing if they will work out with you or lend you their workout DVD so you can get your fitness goals started! This can help make you accountable because you will have a partner counting on you and can save you money if you are not interested in joining the gym  or purchasing DVDs right now. Where there's a will, there's a way. So go and find your's today!

;)
See you tomorrow...

30 Days to Greatness Day 10

Today was hard. I just finished a bit ago. These last two days I have been doing my workouts later in the day and while I am happy to say that I can do it if I need to, it just is harder for me when I do. I prefer to get my workouts in before noon. That said, I did complete and I am feeling good about that.

Today's workout:
P90X Arms & Shoulders along with Ab Ripper X

Today's Nutrition:
Breakfast - Cream of Wheat with almonds, ground flaxseeds, and honey along with 2 cups of coffee.
Lunch pre workout - Tuna sandwich on cracked wheat sourdough toast with some Lays Jalapeno Kettle Chips.
Dinner post workout - Fresh juice made of carrots apple and lemon with Thai fried rice and vegetable medley leftover from last night. I satisfied my sweet tooth craving with a Jello pudding cup.
Water all day.

And now, I'll leave you with this. have a great rest of the day!

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit.

- Aristotle

30 Days to Greatness, # 9

Today was so good I sweat my heart out!! :D

Today's P90X Lean Plan dictated I do Core Synergistics.

This workout is targeted for all the muscle groups in the torso. There were moments I was burning! I took a lot of water in throughout the workout and pushed through the pain. There were a couple of exercises I am not strong enough to do yet. A specific one that comes to mind is the push up knee kick. I did as many as I could and then held the plank position to continue working out my core while they stayed on that exercise.

As for today's nutrition so far:
Breakfast - 3 cups of coffee, 2 glasses of water, and a fresh juice consisting of kale, cucumber, apple, lemon, and ginger.
Lunch pre workout - Grilled chicken breast half, raw spinach light mayo and mustard on a piece of cracked wheat sourdough toast. My favorite salad on the side (cucumber, tomato, feta cheese, and olive oil.) V8 to drink.
Since working out I have only had water so far because it is only 5:33 pm. I plan on having something high in protein or fiber and possibly another fresh juice.

If you are also on a fitness journey here are some tips:
1. Push past your comfort level but not to the point of damage. Ask yourself, is my ego leading? If the answer is yes, cool out.  Do a couple more than your body wants, and a couple less than your ego wants. ;)
2. Positivity really makes a difference. What are you grateful for in this experience? How strong, fit, thin, you are getting? Extra energy? Mental clarity? Think of that. So far, the hardest work out I have had just so happened to be the one I went in dreading. Give yourself all the mental support you can.
3. Make sure you stretch, warm up, cool down. This will help you stay flexible while you are getting stronger. You do not want to lose range of motion and end up stiff. You will feel sore when you are working muscle groups in a new way but you shouldn't be getting stiff. Help your body stay limber by stretching. Respect the warm up and cool down process.

Ok, I'm outta here. See you tomorrow. <3

30 Days to Greatness, # 4

"The difference between the impossible and possible, lies in a person's determination." 

- Tommy Lasorda

Today has been great! I chose 2 P90X workouts from their lean plan. Arms & Shoulders along with the Ab Ripper X.

I was able to complete both although I did quite a few modifications during the ab workout. Some positions hurt my hip bones and lower back bone. I tried layering my yoga mats on my floor but that doesn't help (my floor is Bamboo.) The pain was so intense during the ab workout, I almost wanted to cry at points. Still, I did it and felt very happy and accomplished at completing both workouts. On a whole, I feel quite energetic today.

Nutrition so far:
Breakfast pre workout - Spinach, onion, tomato scramble, with 1 piece of buttered whole wheat toast. 3 cups of coffee.
Lunch post workout - Open faced tuna sandwich with celery, greek salad (cucumber, tomato, feta, and olive oil) on side
Water all day. I am at 9 glasses so far and it is 4:35 pm.

If you are interested in making a life change and creating a habit, it takes 30 days. So get yourself a calendar, write out your plan, and START. You can do it.

30 Days to Greatness, Day 3

6:26 pm, my third day. I have to come clean and tell you that I did end up needing Advil yesterday. I took some right before bed because I was feeling quite stiff and sore from yesterday's workout. I am going to take some more tonight before bed. Nothing throughout the day, but before bed is good while I'm regenerating and getting used to this activity.

Last night, I decided to look into the P90X books that came with our DVDs. I was happy to see how far I have come nutritionally, I remember when we first got the DVDs 2 years ago a lot of what was listed seemed foreign and overwhelming. After doing grocery shopping last night and looking in the book, I realized I now generally eat well. Yes! I did decide to incorporate their hydration schedule. In doing so, I have already blown my average 6 daily cups out of the water. I am on cup 9 now and it is only late afternoon.

I am noticing great sleep these nights. I have enjoyed restful sleep regularly but something about these sleeps seems deeper, richer. I woke up this morning stiff and not as peppy and generally have felt less "up" today. It could be that I did not have any pressing appointments in addition to the fact it is my third consecutive day of exercising.

After breakfast, I chose the P90X Core Synergistics workout because it is listed in their Lean plan which is another thing I looked over after the nutrition booklet last night. Because I prefer lean, smooth, and strong over muscular, I decided I would follow the P90X Lean DVD recommendations.

This was my toughest workout yet. I was huffing, puffing, heaving, and grunting. There were some exercises I could not do completely so I decided to do modifications. Instead of some of the multi push up moves towards the end, I decided to hold the plank pose for the duration to work my core. I did complete though and also went the bonus round so I felt SUPER accomplished. I have to admit I almost wanted to cry upon finishing.

I was super impressed that my husband worked out today because he is not doing this challenge with me. He did the P90X cardio workout once I was done. Said I inspired him. <3

As for today's food intake:
Breakfast - Steel cut oats with almonds, strawberries, blueberries, and ground flaxseeds. 2 cups of coffee. 2 glasses of water. - Pre workout
Fresh kale cucumber apple lemon ginger juice, 1 sourdough toast with avocado, 2 glasses of water. - Post workout
Open faced ham sandwich with mayo, mustard, spinach, tomato, with a greek salad of feta, cucumber, tomato, olive oil. 2 cups water.
I have also had water in between these meals.

Until tomorrow, xo