Weekly Wrap - May 27

Linking up with Holly and Wendy for the Weekly Wrap. Be sure to stop by their blogs to see what everyone else was up to last week.

Another Sunday came and went. I may just need to permanently move my Weekly Wrap to Mondays. 🤔 Of course, then my Mondays have been a little crazy lately, too. Thank goodness today is a holiday!

Happy Memorial Day, everyone!

Today marks the start of Week 4 of the Tone It Up Bikini Series! I'm looking forward to pushing myself this week. Partially to make up for Week 3, which was kind of rough. There were a couple days that I simply wasn't feeling very good, so I had to skip my workouts two days in a row. 😒 I still kept to my meal plan {for the most part}, so it wasn't disastrous or anything.

Monday

Weekly Wrap - May 20

Linking up with Holly and Wendy for the Weekly Wrap. Be sure to stop by their blogs to see what everyone else was up to last week.

Note to Self: Do not try to do the grocery shopping and meal prepping and laundry on the same day. It simply takes too long and then you don't have time to post your Weekly Wrap on Sunday evening. 😜

Week 2 of the Bikini Series was another great week! I dropped another 2.4 pounds, which means I'm already halfway to my goal of 10 lb weight loss. 💃 My coworker brought me back a coffee cake from San Diego, which I snacked on all week! It was delicious, even though it probably wasn't the healthiest. All good in moderation, right?

I did have to take a complete rest day on Thursday and may have raided the candy bin at work as well, but it's all good, because one day didn't lead into multiple days. :)

Monday

Weekly Wrap - May 13

Linking up with Holly and Wendy for the Weekly Wrap. Be sure to stop by their blogs to see what everyone else was up to last week.

Week 1 of the Tone It Up Bikini Series is now in the rear-view mirror! It was a big success. I stuck to my meal plan. I got in all my workouts including 3 runs. I dropped 3 lbs on the scale. Definitely a good week and a great start! I can't wait to see what the next 7 weeks bring.

I'm switching up my Weekly Wrap format a bit throughout the #TIUBikiniSeries challenge. I want to break down my week day-by-day, probably more for my records than anything else. I'm including what I did for my workouts each day plus what I ate. I'm also waiting to post until after dinner, so I can more completely record my Sunday. :)

Monday

I didn't sleep well Sunday night. I was too excited for the Bikini Series to start! I woke up several times throughout the night thinking It must be time to wake up! only to find out it had only been 1.5 hours or so.

Despite the sleepless night, I had a great Day 1!

Workout
2 rounds of 15: Biceps Curls | Shoulder Pulses | Reverse Flys | Pushups | Plank Up Downs
Cardio Arms with Tori - Yeah, I got no dance skills. 🙊
TIU Flex Friday - Arms were really burning after this!! 💪

I also went for a midday walk during lunch.

Eats
M1: Morning Mocha Smoothie | M2: Apple with cinnamon | M3: Kale Salad | M4: Strawberry Shortcake Mini Muffins | M5: Thai Veggie Stir Fry

Tuesday

I slept so much better after a successful Day 1!

Workouts
2-mile run | 10:33 min/mi pace | Perfect weather, but I still took it slow and easy.
2 rounds of: 15 squat+press | 15 curl+reverse lunge | 15 bikini walkouts+tummy toner | 20 squat jacks | 15 bicycles

It was such a beautiful morning that I took my daily moves out to the patio after my run. I really want to/should do that more often!

Eats
M1: Morning Mocha Smoothie | M2: Clif bar | M3: Kale Salad | M4: Strawberry Shortcake Mini Muffins | M5: Thai Veggie Stir Fry leftovers

7 Goals to make this year's #TIUBikiniSeries the BEST EVER

I just finished Day 2 of the Tone It Up Bikini Series! This is gonna be MY YEAR!!

Last weekend was spent really preparing for it, because I really want to see some amazing results at the end of the 8 weeks. Since I want this to be the best Bikini Series, I went to bed Sunday night with #allthefeels. So much excitement and nerves. Like when you know something super fun is happening the next day. Tell me you know what I'm talking about!

As a result, I didn't sleep very well Sunday night.

It didn't matter because Day 1 was a smashing success! And I slept much better Monday night. I rocked Day 2 as well. I'm pretty confident I'm gonna rock all 8 weeks. 😆

Weekly Wrap - May 6

Linking up with Holly and Wendy for the Weekly Wrap. Be sure to stop by their blogs to see what everyone else was up to last week.

Whew! I just spent about 4 hours meal prepping for the week. I sure hope it pays off because that's a LOT of time on my feet in the kitchen. I'm very excited to get started on the TIU Bikini Series tomorrow and am very hopeful that I'll see some really positive results over the next 8 weeks.

Workouts

I took it a little easy this week since the Bikini Series is starting next week. I focused mostly on getting in my 3 runs and doing yoga to prepare my body and mind for the upcoming challenge.

5 Things I'm Super Excited about this May

Oh. My. Goodness. May is already off to the craziest start! I mean cah-ray-zy! I hope things calm down because I've got goals for May!

It's the first weekend of the month, which means it's time for COFFEE! Well, every day is a good day for coffee, but let's take a few minutes to catch up during the Ultimate Coffee Date! Ok, coffee isn't required. Perhaps you enjoy tea, milk, soda, water. Or maybe something a little stronger. 😜

Other than crushing my goals, here are a few things I'm looking forward to this month.

Week in Review - 6/18

Today marks the end of the Tone It Up Bikini Series. It's hard to believe it's been 8 weeks already! It went by pretty fast. Probably because I was working so hard. :-D

Goal Check-In:
NO Fast Food ✔
Starbucks 1x per week ✔
72 oz of water a day ✔
Stick to the workout plan ✔Well, I did skip one workout this week due to time.
Sub 10:00 min/mile - Current avg pace: 10:24
Lose 10 lbs - ↓ 11.8 lbs

Week in Review - 6/11

I can hardly believe that I just finished week 7 of the Bikini Series! It's gone by so fast, though I will admit that this past week was a little difficult to focus. I'm kind of ready for a break after working so hard.

One more week to go!

But I need to start thinking about what's next, so I'm ready to go when the series comes to an end next Sunday. I definitely want to keep up with strength training but include more yoga. I'm sure I'll come up with something throughout the week.

Goal Check-In:
NO Fast Food ✔
Starbucks 1x per week ✔
72 oz of water a day ✔
Stick to the workout plan ✔
Sub 10:00 min/mile - Current avg pace: 10:27
Lose 10 lbs - ↓ 9.4 lbs

Week in Review - 6/04

OMG! Guys, when I stepped on the scale this morning, I broke the 160 barrier!! I could hardly believe it. It's been far too long since I'd seen a number under 160. It was definitely a nice surprise to start my day.

Only two more weeks left in the Bikini Series. I'm really excited about how well I've stuck to the workouts and how focused I've been on eating better. I'm hoping that much of it sticks around long after the series comes to an end.

Goal Check-In:
NO Fast Food ✔ technically, I was good this week, BUT I did break last Sunday after last week's update.
Starbucks 1x per week ✔ since I broke on Sunday with fast food, I decided ZERO Starbucks this week. Success!
72 oz of water a day ✔
Stick to the workout plan ✔
Sub 10:00 min/mile - Current avg pace: 10:20 with temps getting hotter and hotter, not sure I'm going to make sub-10 during this challenge. Maybe in the fall.
Lose 10 lbs - ↓ 8.4 lbs

Week in Review - 5/28

Ooph! This was kind of a tough week. So much more mindless snacking during the workday than in the first half of the series. FOR NO GOOD REASON! But isn't that usually the case with mindless snacking?! :-)

Work is still crazy, but it was a little less busy this week. I think that played into the additional snacking. Boredom. Whoops.

I did create the most delicious kale salad one morning. I'll share the recipe soon, but it was so good!

Goal Check-In:
NO Fast Food ✔
Starbucks 1x per week ✔
72 oz of water a day 😒 - I fell short both Tues & Fri
Stick to the workout plan ✔
Sub 10:00 min/mile - Current avg pace: 10:31
Lose 10 lbs - ↓ 6.8 lbs

Week in Review - 5/21

I can hardly believe that I just finished Week 4 of the Bikini Series! Halfway done!! It's going by so fast. Must be my hard work and commitment that's making it fly by. ;-)

The workouts have been TOUGH, but I find myself looking forward to them each morning. I like how there's a mix of videos, live workouts (I've only done 2, but they have 2 each week), and Daily Moves.

I meant to take some halfway done pics, but my day got away from me.
Maybe at the end of Week 5.

Goal Check-In:
NO Fast Food ✔
Starbucks 1x per week ✔
72 oz of water a day ✔
Stick to the workout plan ✔
Sub 10:00 min/mile - Current avg pace: 10:29
Lose 10 lbs - ↓ 5.6 lbs (yes, I gained a little last week, but it's OK.)

Week in Review - 5/14

This was a tough week. Work is going through a lot of changes, which means lots of meetings and conversations. It's exhausting.

The cherry, of course, was Wed morning, when my phone decided to turn off and never turn back on. Support was very helpful and is shipping me a replacement phone free of charge. Unfortunately, the timing was the worst. I submitted the order for the replacement around 7pm on Wed and it took until Fri morning to process the order. So, even though it was shipped FedEx Overnight, it's not arriving until tomorrow because overnight from Fri doesn't include the weekend. Boooo.

At least I had the Bikini Series to help keep me somewhat sane. 👍

Goal Check-In:
NO Fast Food ✔
Starbucks 1x per week ✔ (not even once this week!)
72 oz of water a day 😒 -  I was short on water both Fri & Sat
Stick to the workout plan ✔
Sub 10:00 min/mile - Current avg pace: 10:37
Lose 10 lbs - ↓ 6 lbs

Week in Review - 5/07

Another successful week of the Bikini Series! I didn't miss a workout and feel like I'm recovering a bit faster after them now. I still get sore, but it doesn't last as long.

Goal Check-In:
NO Fast Food ✔
Starbucks 1x per week ✔
72 oz of water a day ✔
Stick to the workout plan ✔
Sub 10:00 min/mile - Current pace: 10:41
Lose 10 lbs - ↓ 4.2 lbs

Week in Review - 4/30

I was going write a whole post on my goals for the Bikini Series, but since I haven't done that yet, I'm just going to share them in this post.

Week 1 of the Tone It Up Bikini Series was a SUCCESS! I stayed on top of my goals {for the most part} and am still looking forward to the next 7 weeks.

#BikiniSeries 6-week Check-in

Wow! Only 2 more weeks to go for the Bikini Series! These past 6 weeks have flown by. Maybe because I've been working so hard. :)

You can read my 2-week Check-in here.
And my 4-week Check-in here.

When I look in the mirror, I sure don't see the results that I'd like.

That's why pictures are so awesome!

The key to a good transformation pic it to look really
unhappy in the Before pic and be sure to smile in the After.

I can definitely see some progress. Whoo hoo!

They say that numbers don't lie, but I think they kinda do.

Here are the numbers:

	Start	Week 3	Week 5	Week 7
Weight	160.4 lbs	158.8 lbs	161.4 lbs	161.0 lbs
Waist	37.5"	35.5"	37"	35.5"
Hips	42"	41.5"	41.5"	42"
Arms	12"	12.25	12"	12"
Thighs	24.5"	24.25	24.25"	24.25"

I don't think they tell the whole story. I know that I feel great and that I'm getting stronger, so that's all that really matters, right?!

How am I doing on the goals I set in my Week 2 Check-in?

**Complete a Tone It Up HIIT video without any breaks**
I'm not sure about this goal. Certainly not the HIITy Bitty Bikini workout. That one still KILLS me! Maybe if I try a slightly less intense HIIT...?

**Jump rope for 1 minute without tripping**
Yeah. I haven't really been doing too many jump roping workouts. I've still got 2 weeks, though, so maybe I'll need to be sure to include some jump roping - even if it is just a little warm-up before a run or workout.

**Noticeably tone up my arms and belly**
Judging from the pic above, I think I'm well on my way to achieving this goal. I need to not be so hard on myself. :)

I've got 2 more weeks!! Let's do this!!!
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#BikiniSeries 4-week Check-in

I can hardly believe that the Bikini Series is already halfway over!

I've been loving this series so much. It's been nice to have some direction for my weekly workouts that I don't have to come up with on my own.

You can read my 2-week Check-in here.

I hate to admit it, but things definitely tended to slide a bit during weeks 3 and 4. I skipped more workouts than I would have liked and didn't seem to give my all to all the rest.

Sure, there were some workouts and some days that were amazing.

But there were more that just weren't what they should have been.

Thankfully, I've got 4 more weeks to get my butt in gear and hit these workouts HARD! No more excuses. If I'm a little late for work, I'm a little late for work. It's not the end of the world. :) Thankfully, my boss isn't very strict about what time I get in.

Here are the numbers:

	Start	Week 3	Week 5
Weight	160.4 lbs	158.8 lbs	161.4 lbs
Waist	37.5"	35.5"	37"
Hips	42"	41.5"	41.5"
Arms	12"	12.25	12"
Thighs	24.5"	24.25	24.25"

My weight fluctuates SO MUCH! Which is probably why I don't really put too much stock in that number.

Didn't I tell you that I slacked a bit during weeks 3-4? You can tell because I didn't really gain much momentum with losing inches - especially in my waist.

I've got 4 more weeks! Let's do this!!
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Workout Recap + May 10 Meal Plan

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!

I did a quick Google search this morning for an image or something, since it's Mother's Day, but instead found this Ed Sheeran video.



Before I get into my workout recap, today is the last day to enter to win a free race entry to Run Laughlin in December. You can enter here.

Workout Recap

Sunday: Ride the Wind 16-mile race. Recap definitely coming this week!

Monday: Bikini Buns & Thighs.

Tuesday: Bikini Yoga Flow.

Wednesday: Mermaid Workout. Pink Flamingo Workout.

Thursday: HIITy Bitty Bikini. itty bitty BIKINI! Tone It Up AB Workout.

Friday: REST

Saturday: FroYo 5k.

I feel like my workouts were a little halfhearted last week. Time to kick it back up for the 2nd half of the Bikini Series!

What's for Dinner?

I know the key to success with both scale and non-scale victories is to eat right, and doing that usually involves taking time to prepare a meal plan. BUT I just didn't feel like it this weekend. So, we'll be winging it this week. Hopefully, we do all right with that.

It's been a while since we've been able to get Bountiful Baskets, but we'll get one this coming Saturday. It's so much easier for me to meal plan on the weeks we get a basket full of delicious produce.

What are you cooking up this week?
How were your workouts last week?
Any big plans for Mother's Day?
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Be sure to stop by Laura @ Mommy Run Fast and Jill Conyers to check out what everyone else is cooking up this week.

#BikiniSeries 2-week Check-in

Good morning, Fitfam!!

I'm going to stray off topic this morning for The Fit Dish to check-in with my progress with the Bikini Series 8-week challenge.

I kind of just jumped right into this challenge with no idea of how it was going to go and no real experience following a plan with the Tone It Up girls.

I'M HAVING SO MUCH FUN WITH THIS CHALLENGE!

I've been pretty good about following their workout plans for weeks 1 and 2.

I'm not so good about following their evening challenges, which are more mindful and less physical. Easier for me to skip.

One of their evening challenges the first day was to write some goals for the 8 weeks.

I drew a blank and skipped the goal setting. I wasn't sure what I wanted to accomplish - other than to look better good in a bikini.

After following along for 2 weeks, here are some goals I've come up with for the remaining 6 weeks.

**Complete a Tone It Up HIIT video without any breaks**

I'm loving all of the HIIT videos I've tried so far, but they are a struggle for me! Especially when they throw in burpees. I would love to be able to HIIT it up without any pause or mini breaks.

**Jump rope for 1 minute without tripping**

I did one of the workouts called Jump Your Heart Out, and I think the best I did was maybe 10-15 seconds without tripping on the jump rope. I definitely want to be a better jump roper. :)

**Noticeably tone up my arms and belly**

This is is my least concrete goal. I didn't want to put a number on it, because dropping numbers on the scale or even losing inches might not get me the overall effect I'm looking for. But I'll know it when I see it. :)

Speaking of numbers, here's what the first 2 weeks got me. I know, I know. I just said it wasn't about the numbers, but numbers can still be fun. :)

	Start	Week 3
Weight	160.4 lbs	158.8 lbs
Waist	37.5"	35.5"
Hips	42"	41.5"
Arms	12"	12.25
Thighs	24.5"	24.25

I'm really pleased with my results so far after the first 2 weeks, and I'm excited to see how it all comes together by the end!

Now, the actual topic for The Fit Dish today is What Makes a Woman Inspiring? I think it's a great topic, so now that you've read all about my #BikiniSeries progress, go check out our hosts Jill Conyers at JillConyers.com and Jessica Joy at TheFitSwitch.org to read all about how women find women inspiring.
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