Week 3 Finale! Move, Nourish, Believe Challenge with Lorna Jane Active

Weeks 1 and 2 were fairly predictable...move, ok. Done. Nourish...ok, done twice. Believe...ummm, can you repeat the question?!
I thought this week was going to be full of inspirational quotes and motivational speak. Yes, let's go! I love me a good quote!

Turns out the "Believe" Portion of the challenge had a very different slant than I was expecting.
Day 1, spoil myself. Ok, don't have to ask me twice! But how is that "believing." Well, I'm not gonna ask too many questions. Pamper away!
Day 2, meditate for 5 minutes...Ummm, uhhhh...No, wait! Ommmm...Ok, I digress. Getting this kid to sit down for 30 seconds is a challenge, and what does that have to do with believing? But 5 minutes of meditating, I had my marching orders. So I did it. And wow, that 5 minutes of zen on my peaceful back patio, looking at the stars and feeling the cool night air...stopping. Yes, stopping. Something I never do...it was refreshing!! But wait, back to reality. This isn't what I was expecting for Believe...!

I thought the believe challenge was going to be something totally different than it was. Believe in yourself, believe in your dreams, believe in your strength...all that is great. But it's all been done already.
Thank you lorna Jane Active and Fit Approach for mixing it up! I think we are going to get along quite well!
Stop the rat race!! Believe in what is important and refocus. This week was about believing in the things that truly matter. Time for myself, time to be quiet and simply sit. Time to practice gratitude and appreciation. Do I believe in myself enough to take time for myself?
This life is a blessing. This life is what you make of it. This life is all about being appreciative for what you have and giving thanks. Stop comparing, stop envying, stop wishing away the present moment. You are uniquely you and you have a story to tell. You tell that story by the way you live your life, is it a good one?

Life is short, but your legacy is forever. How will you be remembered?
I choose to BELIEVE I will be remembered for my joy. Remembered for my passion for life, for my love and acceptance of all people. Every day I am humbled by the blessings I've been given, especially the love of my incredible husband and the gift of my 2 amazing sweet kiddos.
In the words of Max Lucado, "outlive your life." Live in a way that your legacy will carry on long after you're gone.
And with all this in mind, as I tried to choose just ONE person that is my biggest supporter...I couldn't do it. And in realizing so, I was overwhelmed with thanksgiving. For the things that truly matter in this life. Not fame, not stature, not wealth.
Love, encouragement, forgiveness, grace...yes, THOSE are the things I BELIEVE in!

What do you value, what do you invest in? WHAT DO YOU BELIEVE IN?!

Week 2 in review mnbchallenge-NOURISH

You get fit in the gym, you get skinny in the kitchen.

Have you heard those words before?
Week 2 was all about nourishment. Giving your body good, clean, natural foods. I LOVED this week, because nutrition, in my opinion, is an under emphasized pillar of fitness.
Do you know how to eat?
I am not talking about the physical act of putting food in your mouth. I'm talking about knowing HOW to make good choices, HOW to select foods which will nourish, replenish and energize your body. What your body can do with processed turkey cold cuts on enriched white bread with mayo is completely different to what it can do with fresh sliced veggies on organic whole grain bread with sliced avocado.
Why do we eat, when do we eat, what so we eat? Are we truly hungry and selecting good nourishing foods to fuel our bodies? Or are we bored, upset, lonely...Or do we go to an hour of Zumba and then celebrate with a grande white chocolate mocha with whip cream, because hey! We EARNED it?!
Would you drive your car without any gas in the tank? What happens to said car if anything foreign is out in the tank? (Sugar, I'm looking at you!)
Your body is the same. It cannot run without fuel. And it deserves the proper fuel so that it may function at peak performance.
This week was a good opportunity to REALLY focus on my food choices. I am pleased to say that my habits are fairly sound already, but that ACCOUNTABILITY for eating raw, meatless and so on was a great motivator again.
So, pop quiz...
What percentage of weight loss is diet and what percentage is exercise?
Answer, between 70-80% DIET and a mere 20-30 of exercising. So I say again, you get FIT in the gym and you get SKINNY in the kitchen.
You work out hard, FULE and NOURISH your body. Don't sabotage your hard work at the gym!

Food logging

0630- wake up, 12oz water with lemon
0700- 4oz Odwalla vegan Superfood Smoothie
0730- 2 eggs from free range, grain fed non gmo chickens
          1 slice organic whole grain bread with 1/2 an avocado on top
0900-1000 lead first spin class, woohoo!
1015- handful raw almonds
1030-1200 massage! <<sigh, deep breath!>>
1300- salad: homegrown lettuce. Tomatos, other half of avocado, and "chicken" strips on top (meatless, made from plant based protein) and drizzled with olive oil
1400- handful of the kids' popcorn while watching Team Umizumi
1600- cheat food!! Havarti cheese on sea salt and cracked pepper Triscuits. I allow this indulgence because...
1800- spin class, round 2!
2000- steamed broccoli on 1/2 baked potato with olive oil
          1 glass of red wine
And, goodnight!

Week one's challenge, MOVE.
There are 10 birds sitting on a power line, 3 think about flying away. How many are left?

It's funny how life will teach and reteach lessons when you least expect it. What I learned from the challenge this week is the power of accountability. It's one thing to say you are going to do something, but there's a different motivation when you have accountability to DOING it. Were any of the challenges hard? No, not really. Can I say yes, absolutely I would have made each daily challenge a priority? No, not really. But knowing I had to tweet a picture of each day's challenge, that there was some element of accountability to "answer to"...now THAT made a difference.
The importance of accountability is nothing new to me. In fact, it is one of the pillars of my fitness philosophy. Accountability was one element of every.single.flight brief. Before we walked out to those jets, we briefed every flight member's role and responsibilities. We all knew our part of the mission and we all knew everyone else was going to hold us accountable for DOING it. That's what debriefs were for. After every flight.
So I say again, accountability is not a new concept to me. But by this week's challenge, I was reminded how powerful a motivator it can be. It was refreshing to be on the receiving end, too. It clarified for me how important it is for me to keep my clients accountable, in order that they will better reach their fitness goals. And the timing is serendipitous, as I start with a new group of Bootcampers tomorrow.
Thank you, Fit Approach and Lorna Jane Active. For not only motivating me to move, but motivating me to motivate! This week was fun! Among other things, I finally tried box jumps. And I planked, with help :) But mostly I gained a new appreciation for the importance of not going things "alone." This refreshed perspective is going to make me a better trainer.
What challenges are you considering? Have you taken any steps to conquer them? And do you have any one to keep you accountable for actually DOING?

Back to those birds on the power line...did you figure out how many were left?
10.
That's right, alllll 10 of them.
Read the line again.
3 were THINKING of flying away, but it never said they actually DO fly away.

Stop thinking. Start DOING.
Decide what you want to accomplish, and make a plan with someone that will keep you accountable.