Saturday Fitness Post: How to track your progress?

Many people think that you can track your progress only by stepping on a scale and trust the numbers. But let me tell you something, muscle is denser than fat. If you do a lot of body weight and weight training, you are gaining muscle and your number doesn't move or it even goes up slightly - especially if you don't have to lose so much weight. It is possible that your body composition is changing meanwhile your weight remains the same.

Source: Pinterest.

Your weight doesn't really tell your frame size - some people have smaller bone structure, lighter bones, some have bigger structure, heavier bones. It also doesn't tell how much % of fat do you have, which fluctuates during the year (we usually have more in the winter) and neither it tells how much muscle weight do you have.

Don't get discourages, I present you to other methods that can help you track your progress and achieve your goal (I already talked about them in the past, but sometimes you just need to publish again :)).

Source: Pinterest.

1. Take a before and after picture. Take a picture of yourself at the beginning of your weight loss journey and take a picture of yourself at more stages during the process - every 2 weeks or once a month is OK. Compare them side by side and see how your body has changed.

2. Another great method to track your progress is by measuring yourself. Get a measuring tape (it doesn't have to be anything fancy) and measure your body in different places - bust, upper arm, waist, hips and thighs are most common. Measure yourself at the beginning of weight loss journey and measure again every 2 weeks or once a month. I keep track of that in my workout diary :)

3. Focus on how you feel. Healthy food and regular exercise will give you more energy, you will feel much lighter, tighter (less jiggle-y ;)) and leaner, even though scale doesn't move. You should also feel much happier :). Also your skin will improve and you'll feel healthier overall. Which leads to another point ...

4. Focus on how you feel in your clothes and how do they look on you. Your clothes will fit better and you'll feel better in them. Or you'll notice that there's more space in your clothes than usual :)


Tell me, which is your preferred method? I hate the scale, but I like to measure myself and focus on how I feel.

Happy healthy Saturday!

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Sunday Fitness Progress: Cardio & Food diary

Yeah, I know, I know, I haven't posted Saturday Fitness Tip in 2 weeks and I didn't post progress yesterday. But I'm doing it today, because SFP can stand for Sunday Fitness Progress as well ;). Hope you don't mind!

You can check out my last Fitness progress post here. 

Not completely true, but good motivation still :) (Source: Pinterest)

I also started "new" workout program, I knew I needed to do more cardio, but just didn't find an exciting way to do it. So I ordered Zuzana Light's ZCUT Power Cardio DVDs, I waited 2 weeks for them to come, so I'm doing them for 1 week now and I can tell that I already feel tighter, lighter and I can perform better. Also, my muffin tops/love handles (however you'd like to call them) are smaller! I even weighted myself and I lost 0,5 kgs in one week, but weight is so inaccurate to me. Try to weight yoursell in different parts of the day and on different days in week. Sometimes even 2 kgs +/-. Or is it just me?  I still prefer measuring and focusing on how I feel.

I'll review DVDs for you after a month or doing them.


Now to the measurements:

	6 Apr 2013	5 May 2013
Upper arm	30,5	30,5
Bust line	95	95
Waist	81	81 - 82 (I swear it's always different)
Hips	103	102 (-1)
Thighs	61	61
Left calf	43	43

I refuse to post my "naked" pictures, just because changes are not major, I'll post them after few weeks of (mainly) cardio. Sorry, no nudity today :D

Anyhow, I was writting a little food diary from Monday to Friday, because it's good to have overall view on how much and what do you eat. And because you're curious what's on my plate :P


Monday, 29th April
Meal 1: I soaked oatmeal in soy milk over night, put some strawberries and half of banana in it
Meal 2 (post workout): cooked quinoa with mixed veg and flax seed
Meal 3: peanut butter with honey (this is like my favourite "dessert" and gives me instant energy)
Meal 4: hummus with mixed veg
Meal 5: pre-bed meal: few almonds (I was extremely hungry and I can't sleep when I'm hungry! :))

Tuesday, 30th April
Meal 1: smoothie: banana, soy milk, peanuts, cocoa powder
Meal 2 (post workout): salad, onion, carrots, hummus, pineapple as "dessert"
Meal 3: cooked apples ("čežana"), peanuts, cinnamon
Meal 4: sweet potato, brussel sprouts baked in oven

Wednesday, 1st May
Meal 1: cooked oatmeal in soy milk, strawberries, half of banana, cocoa, honey
Meal 2 (post workout): smoothie: spinach, hemp protein, strawberries, coconut water
Meal 3: sweet potato, cauliflower baked in an oven
Meal 4: 2 carrots, onion, green salad, hummus

Thursday, 2nd May
Meal 1: apple, peanuts
Meal 2: orange, almonds
Meal 3 (post workout): salad, cauliflower (baked in an oven), beans
Meal 4: smoothie: banana, soy milk, cocoa, peanuts
Meal 5: mixed salad, beans, peanuts

Friday, 3rd May
Meal 1: banana and almonds, one glass of coconut water
Meal 2 (post workout): pancake: 1 egg, 2 egg whites, flaxseed, almonds, 1/4 banana; topping: processed strawberries and diy chocolate (coconut oil, honey, cocoa)

 

Meal 3: salad with chickpeas
Meal 4: salad with chickpeas (yeah, I know, I'm extremely creative with my meals. lol)

Not everyday is perfect, but I do my best :)


Hope you had a great health fitness weekend, tomorrow is Monday, time to conquer the world ;)

Saturday Fitness Progress: Don't get discouraged

Another month has passed, time for another weekly fitness progress post!

 

Source: Pinterest.

Firstly, I'd like to say some words about "No Sugar Challenge". I can tell you it has helped me so much. I've come to the point when I don't even crave anything sweet anymore and when I think about it, I just ignore it. I never really craved anything sweet in a past few weeks, I just craved fruit - something more "watery" and sweet. Another great thing about no eating sweets is that my skin has cleared out. I still get pimples here and there, but I assume there has to be another reason for that. Talking about skin - overall appearance of my skin has improved, cellulite is less visible, skin looks more tight. Last but not least, I have much more energy. I think I also have to thank gluten free diet, although I think oats are not gluten free? (Well, I ate them coupe of times, when I wanted something warm and delicious :)).

Anyways, progress is not huge, but like I said before: 1 centimeter is still a progress (and 2 centimeters - even better! :)).

You can check out my last Saturday Fitness Progress post here. 
All measurements are in centimeters.

	9 Mar 2013	6 Apr 2013
Upper arm	30,5	30,5
Bust line	95	95
Waist	81	81
Hips	104	103 (-1)
Thighs	62	61 (-1)
Left calf	43	43

I measured my waist in different parts of the day and it varies about 2 centimeters.
I am trying new diet plan and will start with little bit different workout regime. Sometimes is good to switch things up a little and see if it works. I like to experiment with my body - in a helathy way, of course :)

No naked picture od myself today. lol! You get another hot girl ... :)

 

Source: Pinterest.

I want to encourage you, if you're on a "getting in shape" journey, don't get discouraged, if progress is little. Take a look at your whole progress (from beginning till now) and there are many more ways to know if you shaped up:

1. Weight yourself. I'm not a big fan of this option, because I think that people get scared when number doesn't move or when it shows that you gained weight. Guess what, muscles are heavier than fat, and if you workout you can gain weight, especially if you don't have a lot to lose. And people get easily obsessed with weighting myself. I've been there.

2. Measure yourself. My favourite technique as you may know. Much more convenient as weight.

3. Take before and after picture. Just don't take photos of yourself everyday. Once a month is enough and then you just compare them.

4. Focus on how you feel. If you feel lighter, tighter and leaner, congratulations, you're doing great, although number stay the same. I first start to lose weight three years ago, I started to feel more energized and I was happier. So, be aware of how you feel.

5. Lastly, if your clothes fit you better or they are loose, then my dear friend, you've lost weight and centimeters. Or your jeans just got bigger ;)

 

Source: Pinterest.

Hope you find this posts helpful and motivational. I would love to hear about your progress ;)
Have a happy healthy Saturday!

Saturday Fitness Progress: abs are made in the kitchen

Time for Saturday Fitness Progress! Yay! I measured myself yesterday morning and was quite satisfied with the numbers. Every little progress is still a progress! ;)

Source: Pinterest

As you may know, I started with the "no sugar challenge" last week. I try to incorporate as many detoxifying foods in my meals as possible and I haven't eaten any foods with artificial sweeteners, I just added honey to some of my meals. You can read last week's Saturday Fitness Tip post here: CLICK. I also want to write about foods that are sweet but healthy and help you satisfy your sugar cravings. Tell me if you want to read that ;)

And I also try to eat gluten free. I will blog about my experience and thoughts when I start noticing more changes. I also wanted to be vegan for one week, but was kinda idea-less what to eat instead of eggs and cheese. Need to educate myself more about veganism.

You can also check out last Saturday Fitness Progress post here: click.
Let's just start with the numbers. Measurements are in centimeters, as always.

	9 Feb 2013	9 Mar 2013
Upper arm	31	30,5 (-0,5)
Bust line	96	95 (-1)
Waist	82	81 (-1)
Hips	105	104 (-1)
Thighs	63	62 (-1)
Left calf	43	43

 

Well, you can't really see the difference, lol ^^

Left: February 2013, right: March 2013

I've been doing high intensity but short workouts every day. I actually started doing Zuzka Light's workouts from number 1 (because I was getting bored with putting together my workouts, lol). Check out Zuzana's web site here: click. She's an amazing woman in every way possible! :)

Hope you had happy and healthy Satuday!

Saturday Fitness Progress: 1 centimeter is still a progress

Hello, my Fit peeps! How are you doing today? It's snowing here again and I am sick and tired of this winter weather. I need sun, mmm-kay?

 

Source: Pinterest

Anyways, I posted my first Fitness Progress Saturday post exactly one month ago( you can read it here: click), and this month was hectic for me. I was studying and doing other assignments most of the time, had insomnia and my energy was low during the day. Highlight of the day was doing a workout, which sometimes wasn't the best performance because lack of energy, that's why I didn't exercise some days. Also, when I am tired I usually eat more, even though I eat healthy, I still need to stick to portion sizes!

However, this month taught me that sleep is your numero uno friend. I felt disgusting in the morning, skin looked dull, I felt bloated. Secondly, don't eat food just because you feel sorry for yourself because you need to study! Now that I passed my exam (still not finished with uni though), my sleep is back to normal, I eat healthy, energy for working out and for other daily activities is getting back to normal as well. And now to the measurement ... (measurements are in centimeters)

	9 Jan 2013	9 Feb 2013
Upper arm	31	31
Bust line	96	96
Waist	84	82 (-2 cm)
Hips	105	105
Thighs	63	63
Left calf	43	43

 
So measurement haven't drastically changed, now I can really see how stress and not sleeping properly effect my body. But still, one centimeter (two are even better!!:)) is still a progress. I mean, I could write down lower numbers, but I would be lying only to myself.

Good thing is that I feel tighter all over. Skin is better looking and my arms look buffer :). I haven't practiced any of the exercises I want to become pro at, but I'll be more consistent this time! Still doing a lot of planking (I hold plank for 1 minute 45 seconds now :)), squats, burpees and lunges ...

 "Before and after"

I wish you all a happy healthy weekend! You deserve it ;)

Saturday Fitness Progress: getting ripped

I decided to keep you updated about all my New Year's goals, you can read them here: CLICK. I'll start posting my fitness progress every second Saturday or even just once a month, I'll see how it goes :). 

source: Pinteres

Now, let's talk about my body shape a little. I thought I was full figure (an hour glass with wider waist), that was when I was wider all over, lol. But when I started losing weight (I lost 25 kgs total) I lost it mainly in my upper portion of the body, especially bust line, and I would call my legs and hips my "problem areas". If I gain weight, I gain weight in my lower portion of the body (and face). Also, my bum got bigger from a lot of bum exercises, which is not a bad thing, I had no bum before! So, I'm more of a pear shape now, I guess?

I didn't workout for almost whole month of November, I had Lasik eye surgery on 9th Nov, I took time to recover, I just went for walks every now and then, also I did yoga few times. And I felt like crap, so my diet wasn't the best, I just didn't feel the need to eat clean (it's a mental thing) or I even overate healthy food (I had problem with emotinal eating in the past). So, I lost some muscle definition and strength (I wasn't able to do a regular push up, just from knees). I started working out on 12nd Dec again, mainly high intensity interval training. I took measurements and I measured myself after one month. Here are my results (all measurements are in centimeters):

	12 Dec 2012	9 Jan 2013
Upper arm	32	31   (-1 cm)
Bust line	102	96   (-6)
Waist	88	84   (-4)
Hips	107	105   (-2)
Thighs	64	63   (-1)
Left calf	44	43   (-1)

That's 15 cm total, woohoo!
I don't weight myself, I have my own philosophy on that. And yes, I have huge-ish calves, left one is wider for 2 cm ^^. And I'm 1,62 meters high or should I say small (but I have a big heart!:)).

I started doing more cardio, leg lifts, squats, lunges and planks ... these exercises are great for defining abs.

I am still doing modified version for pull ups, but I can already see that my back muscles got stronger.

Head stand is still just a half head stand :P.

And cellulite? Well, still visible on my legs, but skin is a lot smoother!

And this is how I look right now:

Sorry for a crappy picture and of course I don't have the before picture, but I'll compare them with my next SFP (Saturday fitness progress that is :)).

Happy healthy weekend to you all!!