New Year - Why Not?

I think we all get sucked into the idea of new year's resolutions.  I know, I should be able to do it any time of the year -- why wait until New Year's?  But I think it just gives us an excuse to pick a day to make some changes.  So every year I think I won't make any, but every year I come up a few.  And like just about everyone else, I have some that are focused on exercise, eating, and healthy living.  I did great this fall with exercise when riding my bike to and from work a couple days a week, but once the cold hit and it was pitch black when I left the house, I decided to give it up.  And out went all other exercise.  November got crazy busy and when the cold hit in December I went into hibernation mode.  All I wanted to do was eat and sleep.  And it was great.  :)  But the lazy guilt kept weighing on me, so I recruited my girls Leisa and Amy to start a new "super us" routine.  It lasted about 3 days and I fizzled out again.  :P  And yet again, I'm back with a new goal.

This last week I did a Shakeology cleanse - recommended by Amy.  It's 3 days of 3 shakes + 1 fruit snack + 4oz lean protein + plate of veggies + 80oz water (each day - about 900 calories).  It's recommended for losing a few extra pounds (not my motivation), to "kickstart" healthy habits, and to renew/energize.  My experience?  Day 1 wasn't too bad, but I was definitely hungry by dinner.  A salad had never tasted so good!  Day 2 I definitely got hungry earlier, and nearly passed out a few times.  Day 3 I was feeling more run down than ever.  So, renewed/energized?  No.  Drained/exhausted?  Yes.  My overall reaction - I'd rather feel shitty from eating deliciously bad-for-me food than for starving myself and eating good-for-me food.  But it was something I had never done, and I always appreciate new experiences.  Now I can say I've done a cleanse, and that they're just not my thing.  If you're trying to trim up a bit though, I can see the benefit.  I lost 3 pounds (a rough estimate based on near-cleanse-time weigh-ins at my mom's, since we don't have a scale) and some inches.  I actually did before pics with measurements.  These were both for pre-cleanse, and for my current venture - P90X (a big thank you to a great friend for lending us the discs!).

Can I just say, I'm totally loving the slogan.  You better b-ring it!  ;)

Now I'm not doing this to lose weight.  I'm back to pre-pregnancy weight and very happy with it.  I really am just looking for some exercise and would like to tone up a bit more.  I do have a gym membership, but I've had that same membership for the last year, and we can see how much that was used.  :)  So I'm challenging myself to this current exercise fad, just for s&g. ;)  And guess who is joining me - Loren!  So we had our first workout tonight.  Now, we definitely did a modified version, but I think we did pretty good for Day 1 (chest/back/abs).

My other goal this year is to start putting more things out there.  If I can find the time, I'm going to start a new series in my blog titled Confessions of a Working/Student Mother.  Now don't go getting too excited -- these aren't drama-filled juicy soap opera types of stories.  Just those things we tend to not share openly with others, even though I think we're all quite familiar with them.  Stay tuned for more to come.

Anywho, in the spirit of sharing, here are current measurements and my official "before" pics.  The P90X recommendations are that you take pics at the 30-, 60-, and 90-day marks (yes, they actually instruct you on not only the timeframes, but the poses -- FYI, I did not do the prescribed poses - rebel!).  I haven't talked Loren into the pic part, but I'm just happy he's working out with me. :)

Now, I have to put a caveat on these measurements.  First confession of a mom - I can't find anything in my house.  So we couldn't find a tape measure anywhere.  Nor could we find the yardstick.  So we went with a piece of yarn and my knitting ruler (a whopping 6 inches).  So these are not the most accurate measurements (we did find the yardstick by the second set, so those may be a bit more accurate).

• Thigh - 19.25 (pre-cleanse), 19 (post-cleanse)
• Arm - 8.75, 9.5 (I know, this makes no sense)
• Butt - 36 (36-24-36? Only if she 5'3"!), 35
• Waist - 24.5, 24
• Bust - 29.75, 28 (yep, this would be another downside of the cleanse - I don't think it was quite this dramatic of a difference, but still not a plus)

I got to have a beautiful model with me when taking my pics.  :)  I was also messing around with the photo editing software on my tablet.  And yes, I know you're supposed to do an ugly sports bra with some non-matching tight short shorts.  But my swimsuit is so much cuter!  ;)  Got it last year at Old Navy.  Great place to get separates for those of us who need an extra small top, but an extra small bottom ain't gonna cut it!

So in a month I'll post new measurements and pics.  We'll see what is to come!  :)