Loosing your fitness mojo

Lately It's been a little harder to wake up early in the mornings and going to the gym. I've been finding myself making excuses not to go and trying to "cheat" on my workout, usually with the promise of "I'll do double tomorrow".

Luckily, the only days I haven't gone to the gym are the days I'm stuck with tons of work, I've been able to convince myself that I REALLY WANT THIS. What I'm trying to say is... If you're going through something similar, KEEP YOUR EYE ON THE GOAL.

Here are some things I've done to keep my fitness mojo:

1. CHANGE YOUR WORKOUT PLAYLIST

Here are some options that got me back on track:

Korn - Freak on a leash

Fat boy slim - Rockafeller Skank

Becky G - Problem 

Rizzle kicks - When I was a youngster

2. USE TIGHTER CLOTHES

After loosing some weight you get comfortable on your old clothes and you can forget why are you doing this, using tighter clothes reminds you that you still have a long way to go. 

3. TAKE BEFORE AND AFTER PICTURES

It's not necessary you show them to the world, but they help you notice the change you've made so far and makes you want more.

4. CHANGE YOUR WORKOUT ROUTINE

After a while you get used to doing the same stuff over and over again and you don't see it as a challenge anymore. Add 5 more minutes to your cardio, add 5 pounds to your weight training, do 5 more crunches, anything that reminds you that you can be stronger than you already are.

5. KEEP YOUR GOAL IN SIGHT

With this I don't mean you should have a picture of Emma Watson on the door of the fridge, I mean have small reminders of the things you can do each day to get where you want to be. Change the wallpaper of your phone to a motivational quote, prepare your gym clothes the night before and place them where you can see them as soon as you wake up (or what I do is place them on top of my laptop), set an alarm with a nice message like "You can do it, It's gym time" (just an option). 

Like always, I hope this helps you on any level.

Read you later.

When it is obvious that the goals cannot be reached, don't adjust the goals, adjust the action steps.

Confucius

Going out on a diet??

So, it's around 2 a.m. on a friday night. I don't usually go out on fridays 'cause I work Saturday mornings, but I do go out on thursdays. Probably because it's ladies night on several places around the city or maybe just 'cause thursdays just fit all of my friends schedule.

Anyway, last night I went out with some of my coworkers and of course they asked "HOW CAN YOU GO OUT AND STICK TO YOUR DIET?"; I simply answered

"It's not that hard after you've figured out some tricks" 

This answer got me thinking which were those tricks I was talking about. I'd never really listed them, but I thought this would be a good time to do so. 

So... I guess here they are:

1. DON'T FALL FOR PEER PRESSURE.

• Most of the time your friends are gonna say something like "oh, come on! just have ONE, nothing bad is going to happen if you have ONE". I must say they are correct, not much is going to happen if you have only ONE, but... it's going to make it easier to say yes to the SECOND. Keep your goal in mind, it's a week of hard work worth ONE decision? 

2. TELL YOUR FRIENDS YOUR GOAL.

• Sharing your goal to the people around you really makes it easier. Don't be ashamed to tell them you're trying to get in shape, EVERYONE is trying to get in shape. So, most probably, they are going to feel identified with this AND they're gonna try to help you. When making dinner plans or something they will include you in the planning, from choosing a place with a salad bar to choosing one of your favorite healthy restaurants. So trust me, sharing is not bad.

3. ASK FOR VEGETARIAN OR LOW CALORIE OPTIONS.

• Nowadays most places have healthy options. If it's not on display, ask for it. I'm not a vegetarian, but I've noticed that asking for vegetarian gives me a lot more options, and then I just simply ask they waiter if they can add any kind of protein I want. If they don't have any of these options, I simply change the side dishes. You know, instead of asking for wings and fries, I ask for wings and vegetables. 

4. AVOID TEMPTATION

• If you cannot change the side dishes ask them not to put them on your plate. This really helped me during the first 3 weeks. As I've told you before I'd always go on a diet for a week and then just succumb to temptation. So not having it there while I was eating really helped me think it wasn't even an option.

5. DON'T BE SO HARD ON YOURSELF

• You CAN give yourself a break once in a while. If your friends are eating something you REALLY like right infront of you and you can't stop thinking that you want it, have a tinny piece of it, it's ok. Being so hard on yourself and not allowing you to enjoy what you like is what makes most of the people fall of the wagon. Allow yourself one of your favorite snacks a week and choosing this to happen when you're with your friends just makes it taste a lot better. 

So, these are just some of the tricks I've used to keep on track while going out. Maybe when I'm able to identify any other I'll make a GOING OUT ON A DIET - PART II entry.

Hope this helps you on any level, Read you later.

Here, have some fitspo

It's the middle of the week! lets keep working on our goals and walking towards a fit life.
So...here's some dance inspiration. Don't run away from your problems, dance them away.

Have a fit week!

There's two of us!

Apparently its itme for introductions so I'll introduce myself. I'm Ssin's cousin: Geekycherry.
My story its not so different from hers at the beggining: I was a regular girl struggling with my weight since elementary school because I never really had control over it. This shouldn't be a sourprise to anyone who has seen our family before. If we where in Game of Thrones our house's badge would be a stache and our motto"With our bellys we'll rule".



 I knew I wasn't like all other girls who were small and skinny, I was tall (for my country standard) and fat but i didnt do anything about it until i was 14 years old. I started a diet and lose 9 kilos (19 lbs.) wich allowed me to enjoy normal life for a while. Then the usual hapened: since I never actually learned to eat, I gained back the weight I lost and gained even more.


Me on EDs

But then something changed. When I was 19 I started losing weight by controling my food intake, I used to do this to cope being in an ill relationship. Obviously, as my relationship got worst, so did my eating disorder. The history behind this period of my life is not so different from others. The depresion took over me and the only thing I could think about was food: I wanted it but i hater it so badly. I used to consume around 300 calories per day and had just enough energy to stay awake and look at thinspos all day. Around that time a big show was comming for my dance group so we used to practice from 3 to 6 hours a day, and I used to faint at least once a week.

Me in Spain

And then just as sudden as my ill relationship started, it also ended. I started to get better by finally being free and taking strenght from my friends. It took a lot of time and several relapses but at the end I was healthy and happy again. Then I left and moved to Spain for 6 months, and just as someone told me "hapiness makes you fat" I gained all the weight in the world.  I had NEVER been so big in my life, so when I came back I started to diet again and again but there was a problem: I quit everytime because every time I would freak out and started eating EVERYTHING. That lasted for 2 years until 2 or 3 months ago. I started feeling again like I used to at the begining of my eating disorders, though this time it was not because of a man, but because my life in general wasnt in control.
After a month reducing my calories intake I realized what i was getting into again but this time I stopped. This time im going to control my control. This time im going to change my life for health and im going to strive for progress and not perfection. I'll be fit and not thin. I'm gonna fight for life.

 

This is My [ssin's] story

Hello guys. It’s been a long time since I wrote anything on a Blog. So... I think I should start by telling you who I am and why I’m here. 

The name is Lucia, but you can call me Ssin. For as long as I can remember, I’ve been always struggling with MY WEIGHT. I would gain weight, loose weight, gain it and loose it again; but I’ve never been FIT. 

When I was a kid I wasn’t really FAT, I think I was just... “chubby”. 

But my Mom & Dad will always call me FAT and I think I ended up believing it. Don’t get me wrong; I don’t blame Mom & Dad for my weight, I know they just wanted the best for me, I just think a word like that can really have an impact on a child.

As I was growing up... my body started to put those extra kilos on the correct places, I mean I GOT BOOBS!! and big ones; so my body didn’t look as round anymore, but I was still carrying extra weight and I was still believing I was FAT. 

I would cover my body with the biggest sweatshirts I could find, baggy pants, baggy shirts, etc. The funny thing is... I think this was the best I’ve ever looked.

By the time I started high school I’d gained approximately 20 kilos (44 lbs), and after that... IT JUST GOT WORST. I wasn’t happy with that, I’d go on different diets and quit 2 weeks in, I’d join the GYM but never go, I’d loose 3 kilos (6 lbs), feel happy about myself and then gain them back DOUBLE. I was convinced I would always be FAT and I had learned to cope with it, you know, the usual stuff... awesome personality, being the funny best friend, caring for others because I wouldn’t care about myself, convincing myself that being single was a decision I HAD MADE.

This year three weeks before my 24th Birthday I decided I WASN’T GONNA LIVE ONE MORE YEAR LIKE THAT, and this time I MEAN IT.

[<--- This is me on my 24th BDay]

It’s been almost 2 months since I started eating healthy and one and a half months since I started training. I haven’t really lost much weight, 6.5 Kgs (14 lbs), but my body is starting to LOOK so much better. 

Anyway, long story short... Would you join me in this journey?