Get Fit, Be Healthy + {Giveaway}

Get Fit, Be Healthy is a new series I am starting to hold myself accountable from week to week and hopefully motivate you along the way. I am not an expert in health or fitness, but I danced for 20 years of my life and cheered in high school. I have studied health and fitness, although I do not have a degree in either. My goal is NOT to LOSE weight but to get HEALTHY. According to this BMI chart, I am actually on the low end of the normal range for my height. I just want to get in the habit of living a healthier lifestyle and if I lose weight along the way, then great!

All through high school and my first year of college, I was a bit under weight. I blame it on dancing and cheering daily. I was constantly on the go and it didn’t catch up to me until sophomore year of college. I looked like I needed to eat a burger. Let’s be honest, I did gain some weight, but I was happy that I did because now I am at a healthier weight. Enough about that…

I’m going to be extremely honest with you. In the last couple of months (around Thanksgiving to be exact), I completely stopped working out. I have always really enjoyed working out and staying fit, but about once a year I go through a phase where I am tired of working out and I stop cold turkey. Well, enough is enough! This week, I started back and it was a bit tougher than I expected. I used to do the elliptical for an hour and felt great. Tuesday I completed 13 minutes on the elliptical and felt like I was going to pass out. NOT good. It was very humbling for sure.

I have always done better with a workout partner. It helps to have someone to that will keep me accountable and motivated. Lately, I haven’t found a good workout buddy because all of my friends are either pregnant, have moved, don’t have the time or just don’t want to. So it’s all up to me. That’s why I decided I would start this series so that you can help keep me accountable and maybe I can motivate you too!

Via

If you are working out for the first time or for the first time in a while, it is important to start out slow. Do not over do it because you can get over-heated, pass out, injure yourself or damage your heart. Slowly work up to your goal. I have issues with this because I really enjoy pushing myself physically. I get really frustrated when I can’t do something, and so I keep going until I can. That’s not always a good thing and can be dangerous.

Via Because what’s a good fitness post without Paula and Mean Girls?

Another important part of health is your diet. This is something I really struggle with. I love chocolate, Chinese food, Mexican food, and pizza. These are possibly the worst types of foods you can eat. They are packed with bad carbs, starches, grease, calories etc. The best foods you can eat are fruits and veggies in their most rare or pure form. I’ve made it a personal goal to eat at home more often this year and to eat healthier foods. I found a recipe for a Green Monster Smoothie by Neely at A Complete Waste of Make-up. I’ve made these for lunch every day this week because they are so filling and extremely healthy. The only thing I changed is that I do not add Truvia because the sugar in the fruit makes it plenty sweet for me.

Here are the workouts I completed this week:
Monday: 1.5 mile walk
Tuesday: 13 minutes elliptical, half mile walk, 10 push-ups, 50 crunches
Wednesday: 1.5 mile walk
Thursday: This yoga sequence by Mandy Ingber via Women’s Health

Goal for next week: To workout harder and longer than I did this week. Eat something green every day.

What are your goals this week?

I hope you find this new series motivating. Please let me know if you have any tips, advice, or questions (that I may or may not be able to answer). I’m very excited to get this started! Good luck to you on achieving your goals this week!

******************************************************************

Enter Paige’s giveaway in the rafflecopter below:

a Rafflecopter giveaway