Tracking- It Keeps You From Getting OFF Track.

What's up Kittens? How is your day so far? Good Lord, another crazy day. I might as well resign myself to the fact that I am a disorganized frazzled fool who will never be caught up have a lot on my plate and that this will not change, so GET OVER IT KELLY.

Isn't her tattoo adorable? I'm serious y'all. I'm gonna face my fear of ("How Much Will It Hurt?") and get my tattoo this summer. I'm doing it. NO FEAR.

Ok, now I have to just plain old PIMP OUT SOME COOL STUFF FOR Y'ALL. I'm all about sharing amazing stuff that I think you'll dig....why? Um, how did I find out about mostly everything I love, fitness-wise? Other bloggers. So- check this out. 

Not sure WHY I haven't shared this before, but if you want to get your butt handed to you Boot Camp Style, you gotta read on (oh and it's FREE! HELLO!)

Remember a previous Wednesday Woot! Factor with Bonnie Pfiester? Well, she and her equally gorgeous hubby (They look like there should be a Barbie and Ken doll set made after them, don't you think?) Steve, run a health club in FL and now they are part of our growing Sears FitStudio team. 

You can see their BIOS on their BCX page by CLICKING HERE.

That's Steveykins. And here's Bonnie the Babe:

I started seeing some posts on our FitStudio Facebook page about the BCX Boot Camp that Steve and Bonnie are doing but DUH on my part- I didn't realize that it was all ONLINE AND ALL SPELLED OUT and FREE for anyone to use and kick their own butt!

If you like Boot Camps and want to try a new workout every day-- CHECK THE GOODS OUT on FitStudio.com! 

Isn't that killer? I love how they've made it easy for you to print out the workouts too. LMK if you are gonna try it for a month. I'm certainly going to work these into my rotation! My BFF @sarahkayhoffman is doing the rotation to get in buff shape for a wedding coming up.....Cool.

For a little peek of how flipping intense Steve is as a trainer, check this:

Do you hear me now? Kids, if you aren't checking out the FitStudio Facebook page, you will be missing out. We have TONS of fitness peeps from trainers to nutritionists to - well, just plain awesome chicks like me- and then dieticians, etc. etc. all sharing workouts, recipes, articles, events, promotions (i.e. coupons! Deals! Giveaways!). I suggest y'all LIKE us if you see fit- and then, sign up FREE at FitStudio.com for workouts and MORE FITNESS STUFF that rocks.

Um. The weather is getting nice and I feel the urge to RUN again - outside. I do like running on the treadmill, but I'm just saying, I think I'd like to work some runs back into my activity. No overkill but definitely some running. Do any of you find yourself only running when it's nice weather out- because you don't dig the treadmill as much (for running)? 

Also- TODAY IS TUESDAY- which is weigh day- I stepped on my new digital EatSmart scale and I LOST ONE MORE POUND. I was a bit bummed, I have to admit it. But that's 4lbs in two weeks. That's SMART. I love that the scale shows weight to the decimal point- I talk about it in the vlog I shot today(which you'll see tomorrow, sorry, I have to share a vlog today that I shot last night, post-workout). So--- good stuff!!

Another pimp to the Kettlebell Bombshell DVD. Kids, I love it. Here is my review I did last night after the experience:

And- you'll see in my vlog tomorrow- I AM totally bruising and I love it. But I do plan to get some wraps and more gloves for the Kettlebell workouts. For sure.

HAVE YOU TRIED KETTLEBELLS YET?

Now, after all that pimping out, I guess I should talk about the title of this blog post eh? Tomorrow's vlog will talk a lot about how I'm tracking my progress. And this is just to serve as an example, we all have to do what works for us. But I'm sharing also--- because it is a HUJAZZ lesson I've learned personally that when I'm NOT tracking my body and my activities and my "diet", I found- the last two years that I'm MORE OFF TRACK THAN I THINK. 

This is just a random fitness calendar I pulled online, but I've shown you guys what I use- a calendar pinned up in my office, and each day I record my workout, how I 'rate' it 3-5 stars, and what caloric burn. Then I can look at a month and see it either FULL of activity or lacking. I can see as I look at each week, how my week is "adding up". It's in my head all the time. Then I used FitDay.com to record my daily "diet" (= eats) and my weight each week. It also charts what calories I should be consuming each day to lose weight as I plan to do.....safely at 1-2lbs per week. I also have this little dorky Excel spreadsheet to record my measurements and my weight- weekly.....because I think it will be interesting to see how they compare. 

He looks sad and frustrated doesn't he? Poor thing, bless his heart. He probably forgot to put his pants on before he came to the gym and he wonders why everyone is staring at him. Anyway, why am I TRACKING so much and talking about it, sharing it with you? Because I truly believe that this is a HUJAZZ part of why the last 2 years have been sucky in my fitness journey. I want to help YOU learn the lessons I've had to learn and maybe save you some time. Because for me, it feels DANG GREAT to have finally "figured it out FOR REAL" and be able to move forward the right way. And make PROGRESS.

For those of you that are new to my blog- about 2 years ago this chick's body changed and not in the pretty way. It was like BAM weight gain and hormonal issues, I knew something was jacked but it took 3 doctors and 2 years for them to figure out it was early perimenopause. Basically, Hormones.com. But I spent the better part of that time PANICKING, FREAKING OUT and then trying to change OVERNIGHT what had happened. I kept thinking MORE was better and verged on either serious OVER-TRAINING or serious LOAFING and being depressed, wondering "Why am I not losing weight? I don't get it...." and then just plain STRESSING ABOUT IT. 

Over-Training + Stressing + Inconsistency in Diet and Training = MAJOR STALL. 

I wasn't tracking, even though I thought I was. I kept thinking- I'm blogging! I'm accountable. I wasn't. It wasn't until the very end of last year and early this year that I had some eye-opening moments, read some great books and started seeing what needed to change. The STRESS had to go, and I had to get back to doing FITNESS the way I enjoyed it. Eating in a way that I know I like and that works for me. NOT comparing myself or my workouts or my progress or my diet to anyone else. And tracking! Because--- when I don't have a visual in several places of what I'm doing....it sure is easy to OOPS not realize that I haven't worked out in FOUR days (when in my head I think it was 2)...but on the calendar, you don't miss that.

Also- when you are working out CONSISTENTLY, you are wearing workout clothes, right? Maybe not like the above, but most workout clothes are TIGHT and they, let's be honest they are designed to show off your body. If you are regularly putting your body in workout clothes, it is easy to see your physique. When you aren't working out regularly and spending more time in sweats or clothes the camoflouge your "tough areas", it's easy to ignore the trouble that is growing.

These are all things that were missing for me in these now bracketed two years:

• Consistency --- which I would have noticed more if I was....
• Tracking ---- Daily Food, Daily Workouts, and Weight/Measurement
• Peace of Mind -- the stress level in my life was THROUGH THE ROOF for myriad reasons but that much stress is DAMAGING.

Some of you might think- "That's too much work! I don't want to have to write down my workout or track what I eat! Life is too short...." I can see that, but here is my reply~~ first of all, once you get in a groove on tracking in a way that works for you- it doesn't take much time. I record in FitDay after each meal ~ that takes about 2 minutes max. Writing on my calendar - another 1 minute. Once a week I weigh myself. Big deal. Furthermore, life is short- exactly. For me, life is short and I don't want to spend any more nights before going out PISSED OFF that I can't just slip on my favorite pair of jeans and go out. Life is too short to not feel your best. That's MY VIEW.

Good Lord. Holy Long Blog Post. 

The other little Pimping-Out-Check-This-Out-Freebie I forgot is ---as I was wrapping up today's workout (Cathe Butts N Guts- KILLER! Burned 575 Calories! WOOT!) and doing the abs part, I remembered that one of my all time oldie-but-goodie workouts from CHER, yes CHER is on YouTube for free. Her trainer, Keli Roberts, now has a ton of workout DVDs but this one was one of my first VCR tapes yes VCR tapes I bought in the 90's. It had 3 parts- a Step workout then a 10 minute AB routine (featured below FREE on YouTube hello!) and then a like 30 minute standing leg routine that will make your legs shake, I swear- check it out and put in your favorites to use when you travel or at home! FREE! 

I remember watching this video and going out and buying the big slouchy socks to match my Reebok high tops. I owned that look bitches. You know I did.

Here is a peek at the lower body part:

If you want the whole video, just check out the others linked to that one and you can have the experience I have had. Enjoy. And seriously, I have ALWAYS ALWAYS WANTED CHER HAIR from these days:

Don't say you wouldn't rock that hujazz hair if you could. I would in a HEARTBEAT. So I have a little drag queen in me, apparently so. #ItWorks

QUESTION OF THE DAY: What is your favorite cereal-- doesn't have to be healthy? I was doing the Twitter Party tonight with Multi-Grain Cheerios and they truly have always been a healthy staple. I can't lie. I also like Capn Crunch. I cannot lie. 

CRUSHED IT!

Oh hell to the yea! I crushed it! I'm so doing a virtual happy dance right now you have no idea. 

I did my first run today! Now, mind you I will describe for you kids what I did, and I'm thrilled to hear from you, those of you that have been running for a while, on tips and pointers to help me out. I'm reading a ton of good stuff HERE on Women's Health & Fitness, but I love hearing from you all, my blogger world of BFFs! ;-) 

So, I tried my Asics Gel Nimbus shoes (for a peek at these bad boys, you can CLICK HERE) I have to tell you all, these shoes are like running on a mattress. SO SOFT and so cushy. I'm wowed. I wore my Polar HRM of course, (stay tuned because I'm getting a newer one very soon and I'll be sharing a lot of exciting Polar stuff in the next couple of weeks! Yay!) and my new Under Armour bras! (Wow I kind of sound like a walking advertisement in this paragraph, but please note, I am NOT getting paid to mention this, I did not get any of this stuff from the supplier, I'm mentioning brands here because in this case, specific brands/styles help and are important.) Let me tell you on the bra note: OMG. These bras rock. First of all, it doesn't take 7 hours to get into the bra, because it zips up front. Second of all, the girls didn't rock all over the place. Here is the note of brilliance; I didn't even NOTICE my boobs. I wasn't even aware of them during my workout. These bras are incredible. Those of you with boobs know what I mean when I say how much of a big deal it is to not notice your boobs when running or with plyo...I'm used to always feeling my boobs, knowing that it was hurting in some way or worried that I was going to pop out of the bra. Yeaaaaaa. These bras are COMFORTABLE, easy to wear, and they do the job. I'll be buying a LOT more. 

So I looked up a high school near my house, because I thought it would be nice to run on a track. My neighborhood is very hilly, which is great for walking, but I think me RUNNING up and down steep hills as I'm starting off is maybe not such a great idea? So this high school is 1 mile away. I left my house, and ran down this hill and then crossed the street and ran UP a very steep hill. By the time I got to the top of the hill I was at 165 on my HRM and I got a cramp! This is my "thing" that I have to conquer...the cramping. 

**Now, I think there were a couple things here. This might be TMI but I think I needed to *pee* before I left my house and I didn't. Also I hadn't had any water before I left. Is this a cramping factor? Do you guys take water with you when you run? Also, I'm sure going UP that badass hill was pushing it.**

Walked the rest of the way to the high school, found the track and it is LOCKED UP. Rats. But, I didn't let that stop me. Right by the track is this huge parking lot and then there is a big STAIRCASE up to the high school. And this area is monitored by video cameras, so that makes my mommy happy. I plan to come back here but I think I will drive for a couple reasons. #1 is I can bring water and my phone with me. #2 when I'm running, I want to run. Not walk a mile there and a mile home. Not that this is a horrible thing but that's just my preference. I'm hoping to build up to the point where I can run all over the place, in my neighborhood, up and down hills etc. But I think it might be smart for me to start my runs on a flat surface; do you agree? 

I did one lap around the parking lot RUNNING. Then I did one lap speed walking. Then I did another lap RUNNING. Then I walked around to the stairs. I ran up the stairs all Jenny Lynn-like and holy hell, my Heart Rate was at 177! That's when I was wishing I had some water! Came down the stairs and did one more lap, then walked home. By the time I got home I was at 525 calories burned.

I did get cramps. After running UP that big hill at first the cramps under my right rib area were bad. The kind where I stretch my arm up away from that side over my head and breathe to get air into the area.....it took me walking a while and breathing right to get the cramp to go away.

Tell me your thoughts on my cramps; is it breathing or water related?? Cramping is the #1 thing that prevented me from becoming a runner girl before. I WILL CONQUER THIS. 

After all, my name is Kelly which means WARRIOR. (I'm not joking look it up. I'm so cool.)

So, all in all. I feel very good about my first try. My adrenaline rush was big! And then I came home and did a killer shoulder workout, followed by some planks. Total calorie burn of 875 Calories. WOOT!

So glad it is a holiday weekend. I'm home, I finally feel better. I'm going to work on the last pieces of my book, do a Massage and Movie tomorrow after church and then hang with the family on Monday. What are your plans??

Tomorrow I'm going to have a profile of a very cool new fitness friend who is kicking serious bootie. Stay tuned.

So, runners! Tell me your tips, your ideas for me starting out. How long do you run and how often? Do you do gym/treadmill or outside or both? Do you eat before running? Do you deal with cramps? 

Also, I had to share these two videos below. Don't laugh at the late 90's workout gear, but this video was one of the early "tapes" I bought to workout with at home. This CherFitness one had a step workout, ending with some KILLER standing leg work and glute work (which you'll see below) and then some abs work. It is Keli Roberts in the video training Cher and I tell you, these leg moves are really awesome. No weights, but this will work your lower body HARD. I love the idea of mixing up my workouts between heavy isolation training and then moves like this. My body reacts well in every way. 

**Gotta love YouTube people- no excuse for not working out, you can find killer workouts for free online any time!! Notice, on the first video, the leg workout starts around 1:22.