I really can’t believe I am already done with week 3 and starting my active recovery week. I really can’t tell you how excited I am for this “break”…my body definitely needs it!
My Struggles
Diet was a struggle this week…for both Chad and I. Things just seemed to be a little more stressful this week with the planning of my trip out to Washington to host a fitness event. I feel like I had a huge urge to stress eat. I was craving sweets and I rarely do that. It really was incredibly frustrating and I gave in way too many times…ugh! On top of that, I am just struggling to eat enough. I have a lot of allergies and the kids keep me so busy that I just “give up” on eating sometimes…or more specifically, I don’t eat enough at each meal. I talked to Chad about it and he was having the same issue with cravings. We just seemed to have lost our focus when it came to nutrition.
My body also felt a little extra worn down this week. I knew I wasn’t getting enough sleep and I was going to bed too late. So, the I only got up 2 times at my normal 5:45am workout roll out. That was disappointing to me since I really prefer to get it out of the way so it doesn’t weigh on my mind the whole day. Still, I recognize that sleep is just as important when it comes to muscle repair and the release of the fat burning hormone so I made sure to allow myself at least 7 hours of sleep. I still got my workouts in but it drove me crazy until it was done.
FIX IT
So, we committed to each other to refocus on the nutrition guide. We have the workouts down and we haven’t missed any so it is time to really focus on the other piece of the puzzle. He convinced me to cook up a whole bunch of chicken ahead of time and stock up on my Lara Bars…so I am never without a snack. I also went back to making a weekly dinner schedule so that I know exactly what I am eating every night so I can’t skimp on dinner…it is already planned. When it comes to sleep, I promised Chad that lights would be out by 10:30 every single night, period!! I made that promise to him so I will stick to it:)
SUCCESSES
Hmmm…we were both feeling pretty down about this week so it was hard for me to focus on a positive. However, I forgot that I was able to go up in all my weights. I was able to do all my biceps with 15lbs and did some sets on my back with 25lbs. I also have noticed a huge increase in my pull-ups. Even more, Ab Ripper is night and day for me since day 1…my core has improved the most:)
weight: up 2lbs 125 but I know I am retaining some water since it is that time.
body fat %: went up to 17 but again, the time of the month throws of accuracy…still, i will take 17% any day.
Miles this week: 36 (workouts) + 6 (Shakeology drinks) = 42 miles
CALL TO ACTION
Please take a second to share you struggles and successes for the week and don’t forget to report your miles:) Many of you are not following the P90X program and that is fine. However, I want you to consider taking an active rest week periodically as your muscles really do need that time to fully recover and build…which in turn speeds up your metabolism and burns more calories for you at rest. Many people never take that rest and it is a huge mistake. Even when I have people take before and after pictures for Beachbody I stress how important it is to take the after picture after 1 week of program completion. The body will transform that much more…all because those muscles had a chance to rebuild and fire up that metabolism. I always take an active rest week every 3rd or 4th week. How many of you commit to a rest week?
Real Fit Training- Team Courage 
Thanks for being so open and honest about your personal struggles. What do you mean by active recovery?
I am constantly struggling with my nutrition. I am always going back and forth between eating something I want and something my body will benefit from. More and more often i eat what I want and then after working out I feel awful.
I have had success that I have increases my lower body weights. I also learned how to do real push ups. I have been doing the girl style forever … I started at 8 then up to 12 then 15 and then I did 2 sets of 10. I am very excited about my physical improvements. I can see changes in my arms.
I know once i overcome my issues with food i will go to the next level. I have made improvements this week in this area too. I brought my lunch to work 3 of the 5 days. I kn
Hey Girl…active recovery is a light week. So for me, today was yoga, tomorrow core synergistics, wed is kenpo x, thursday is stretchX and friday is core again. You need those week breaks to let you muscles and body full recover from the stress you put on it for 3 weeks…you body will transform in the recovery week. It is just as important as the workouts. I have a friend that is going to do some light running and stretching this week. Does that make sense?
I know I will do this! So excited about the challenge!
I love your attitude, Audra! Just keep doing the small things everyday and you will see an huge reward. Great job!
Sommer! I do believe we lived the same week this week! I also had a very hard week emotionally and physically. Missing our guys with the stress of doing it all had me wiped out this week. I too, missed out on alot of sleep which definitely contributed to some poor picks nutritionally wise. Which in turn led to weaker more tiring workouts. the endless cycle, right?! My body was also screaming for my active recovery week and I’m definitelty due as it was in my schedule since i was going to be driving down to NC this week, a school vacation that i have cancelled but am still planning my active recovery. By yesterday my muscles were literally shaking for me to be done!
Other struggles I faced this week were lack of time since Leia is constantly screaming and always wants me to carry her around, the weather here is not nice enough to take her out walking and so I am forced to stay indoors with her, she has even taken to SCREAMING in her carseat where she would normally sleep! Poor Gianna craves all my attention once Leia is finally sleeping and Madison has so many activities and school stuff that im running around too. We did get to go to a fun school play though! Although I worked out each day some of the workouts were cut short by a child demanding attention!! Im really missing MItchell this week and am hoping for a better week coming up!
One of the reasons I’m not tracking weight loss during the 90 days is specifically what happened to you, as your body changes and meets demands it can fluctuate weight and so it is important not to focus on the scale and instead check it out at the end of this journey, there are so many other ways to track your progress, and a good old measuring tape is one of those, along with improvements in your overall health and fitness, Just a side note for anyone getting discouraged by the scale! The other reason is of course because my main goal is not weight loss right now (though will certainly be happy with!)
I do love the enjoyment Madison is feeling over this journey!
Im hoping after this recovery week i will feel renewed in more than just physical ways.
Sorry for the book, apparently I needed to vent my struggles this week!!!
Between cardio and strength workouts i got in 38.5 miles
Madison’s miles= 27 miles 2.5 hrs of dance, 1 hr horse back riding and 1 hr in the gym
I hope everyone else here has a more positive week and I’m looking forward to reading those posts!!!!
I can say I’m jealous of your weather…not a fan;) I agree, the scale can be discouraging and body fat % is actually the ultimate measure. Unfortunately most don’t have access to that. The way clothes fit is another good one. I did read a study though that those that weighed weekly made much better progress than those that didn’t when it came to their fitness goal. Knowing weigh in is coming seems to keep people honest in the kitchen…which can make or break our results.
And, I can totally somewhat relate to the screaming that interrupts workouts…mine obviously not as bad since Riley is older and I can get up early but nevertheless the screaming is EXHAUSTING. I went through the screaming in the care seat too…and the constant holding so I am so sorry you are dealing with that. I can’t wait until we get a break;)
Hope your rest week helps you to feel renewed:) Thanks for sharing everything…that’s what we are here for!
It has been a very difficult week for me! On top of being 36 weeks pregnant and having a deployed husband, I had to make a very difficult decision yesterday after spending 3 hours at the vet on Friday. We had to put our dog of 4 years down yesterday. It was extremely difficult to handle by myself…thankfully, I have a wonderful group of girls here that are willing to listen and help. I only got to the gym 2 times this week and walked 6 miles. Because I am pregnant, I am not really counting my weight gain/loss as anything. I gained a pound this week (normal for a 36 week pregnant girl).
i am so sorry to hear about your dog, what a difficult week for you. I feel your heartache on being pregnant without your husband, Mitchell left two weeks before Leia was born and hasn’t met her yet. Good luck this week on staying healthy and positive and working through such tough emotions. I don’t now you but will be thinking of you this week and hoping its agood one!!!
Girl, I have been thinking about you a lot lately. My heart goes out to you…I can’t imagine going through all that. And I think 6 miles is a huge success:)
What is up with this week? I too had a hard fitness week and was just venting about these very same struggles last night to my sister in law. I worked 16 hour days everyday, so by the time I went to bed at 11:30, I just could not wake up the next morning to get it in. It was also just a roller coaster of a week with highs and lows, for example, got a very scary phone from the CO’s wife. Kurtis is fine, but it took a while for me to process, and afterwards felt very guilty for the relief I felt, knowing someone out there is living their worst nightmare. I hate putting fitness on the back burner, but this week I did. I’m going to make it a point to do better next week. Fortunately, my body is still working for me and I didn’t gain any weight. I think I’m turning into a bear as all I can think of is eating and sleeping, I’m going into hibernation.:) It’s really sad when all u think about is when can I sleep again?
My stats: 6 shakeology and 2 hours of fitness, or 18 miles.
Kurtis: ran 10 miles and lost 1 pound; so 20 miles.
Oh my gosh…you are going through a lot too. I am so sorry. Hang in there and you can only do what you can do. I think you are doing awesome:)
This week I had 18.5 miles from Turbo Fire and another 11 from running/walking which makes a total of 29.5 miles for the week!!
Oh yeah, I forgot to leave my struggles. I thought of two things…starting with Valentine’s gifts. We have had a bag of m&ms around here that I keep snagging. I tell myself, send it to work with Jacob, but I haven’t had the will power to do it! Second, I MUST MUST MUST drink more water. I’m really going to work on that this week!
Me too…I am totally slacking when it comes to water consumption…and I know better…ugh!! Good job with your workouts:)
It’s hasn’t been a difficult week for me like everyone else, but I haven’t been able to do my normal workouts because I’ve been in Louisville taking care of my dad since last Sunday. I ate very healthy while here though and even got my dad and stepmom on Shakeology. I’m curious to see if the shakes help with my dad’s recovery (double knee surgery).
My workout miles : 18
Shakeology: 7
TOTAL: 25 miles
After having this week off my difficulty will be getting back into my workout routine. In the past when I get behind on the schedule I tend to lose interest and quit so I’m determined to make up the week I lost and continue on strong.
Good job reaching out and helping someone else take a step in the right direction when it comes to health. That’s AWESOME!!! Jump back in and keep me posted:)
So, overall I had a good week. I was really looking forward to Friday bootcamp because I knew Sommer would be checking our progress in 4 weeks. I was happy to see such improvements! My husband and I have been committed to doing P90X daily and that combined with the boot camps has been awesome! The most noticeable change is overall strength for sure! This is our recovery week as well and we’re both going to try doing the shakeology cleanse starting tomorrow. I’m a bit nervous about how we’ll be feeling by Tues. so I’ll fill you in next week. I’m hoping the cleanse will help me to get the last of my baby weight off for good!
I’ve been continuing not to eat 3 hours before bed but the girl scout cookies are a weakness… why can you not have a box of thin mints in the house without grabbing one every time you pass by. I’m hoping that eating well most of the time combined with the running will help make up for my love of girl scout cookies…
So, this week was YogaX, Shoulders and Arms, ab ripper on Monday, Wed and Fri bootcamp, Thursday Cardio, and 3 mile run on Sat.
So sorry to hear about the deployment struggles for you all. I know having a supportive group of wives is what always helped me to get through the hard times. Hope next week is much better!
You are doing so AWESOME!!! Your drive and dedication is just incredible. That cleanse will just keep everything moving in the right direction and probably kick it up a notch! Keep it up and keep me posted! Enjoy your rest week…you deserve it:)
Sounds like this was a difficult week for a lot of us and I struggled with my nutrition this week as well. Part of my problem resides in the crazy LA traffic. I left work at 6:15 on Monday and didnt get home until after 8:30. I was so stressed out and frustrated that i just snacked for the rest of the night instead of getting in a proper meal. I also struggle when I go to the gym in the evenings as opposed to the mornings as sometimes it takes me 30-45 minutes to get home from the gym and by the time I do make it home its late and Im not overly enthusiastic about making meals. Maybe I should try what you suggested and make extra food for the week so that I dont have to cook on those nights.
On to the results:
Weights: 22 Miles
Cardio: 24 Miles
Shakes: 5 Miles
Total: 51 Miles
Man…that is rough to be in the car that long!! Guess to there is a price to pay to get to jog on those beautiful beaches;) I thinking planning ahead and being prepared will really help me…hope it helps you too:)
I’m glad to hear that I am not the only one who struggled this week. I started out the week with a bang with my workouts and eating right, then as the week progressed I slacked off and ate bad and didn’t get my workouts in. I didn’t lose any weight this week, which is ok, glad I didn’t gain any though. I am struggling with the weather changes with my elbow. It has been bothering me all week which makes it harder for me to get a good workout in because it hurts. I am going to start tomorrow off fresh, and try to get up and do my workouts before work so when I get home I don’t have to try and fit it in.
Miles this week:
Shakeology 6 miles
Workouts 12 miles
pounds 0
total 18 miles
Good luck to everyone for a better week this comming week!
That really stinks with your elbow…ugh! So sorry to hear that. Hang in there and keep at. Let’s talk again soon:)
Had a pretty good week except for the pool’s heater being broken.
Swim: 1 mile (way too cold to do anymore!)
Strength Training: 6 miles
Yoga: 7 miles
Total: 14 miles
Sommer, Thanks for doing this. It is nice to have some motivation!!
That is dedication to swim at all in a cold pool…that’s a deal breaker for me;) You did have a good week though…keep it up:)
Tough week for me. I only got 7 miles of running in. ‘
Thanks Sommer.
Hey…7 miles is 7 miles:)
I had a lot of cravings this week too, and I found myself giving in to them a lot more. I managed to avoid the Wednesday treats in the teachers’ lounge again, which was surprising since I was unable to avoid the candy dish in the secretary’s office. I was proud of myself for also choosing to go with a healthier option for a day out to lunch instead of going to Chipotle with most of my friends. I felt a lot less bloated this week, and I feel like I may be losing some inches (sorry to admit, but I don’t measure myself). Since I was feeling that way, I thought the number on the scale would go down, but it didn’t. It didn’t go up either, so that’s good.
Workouts: 4x 30=12 miles
Shakes: 3= 3 miles
Weight:0
TOTAL for WEEK 3= 15 miles
Good luck to everyone next week. I’m sure it will be better 🙂
I forgot to add the hour’s worth of competitive volleyball I played on Sunday. That should count for something, right? I mean, I’m certainly sore from it, so I’m guessing I got a good workout from playing. So, if it counts, add another 6 miles to my 15 to make for a total of 21 miles for week 3. Thanks 🙂
I started the week really good this week. I was proud of myself for getting to 120 after gaining a lot of it back the week before. I got candy from my students for valentines day but it was all chocolate and I don’t eat chocolate so i threw it all away. Temptation avoided! I ate well all week and my Thursday pm I kept telling Adam that I felt skinny. He keeps telling me how great I look. However, this weekend was a struggle. Fri night we went out with friends as soon as I got home from work so I didn’t get to cook dinner. I had a few drinks and some food out. The next day I was out of town for a bachelorette party and while I was only going to have 1 drink, the bride-to-be kept giving me drinks. Sunday we were still out of town for a baby shower and it was all much food and cupcakes. Nothing healthy. I’m hoping this week will be better. I’m a bit worried though because softball starts this week and I won’t get home until late but I plan to do some workouts with the kids and then some at home.
Miles this week:
I think I only got 12 miles this week. I had a busy week andidnt get all of my workouts in. I think I should take a recovery week soon. I haven’t done that yet and I am in week 7 of turbofire.
I am super late this week, but wanted to record the miles. I got 33.5 in which I am pretty happy about considering I made the trip from California back home to VA after 2 and a half months away. I think my saving grace for the week was that both kiddos were really good on the trip. Plus having awesome weather when I got back here totally helped! I had a few days of bad eatin with an airport all day and then no food until I could make it to the commissary, but the fridge is now stocked with healthy fuel and I feel back on track.
Awesome job, everyone! The theme of this week was clear, most everyone struggled with some sort of food craving…I will have to blame it on all the V-Day candy lying around. I know its all over the ready room here in my tropical vacation resort…Oh, and it didnt help that my lovely wife sent me my weakness, which are Reeses Peanut Butter Cups..thanks, a lot. 🙂 Anyways, keep up the good work. Make sure you take advantage of this recovery week and get back at it the following week. Good luck everyone!
OH GEE!!! Here I am late as ever! That must be my biggest struggle:) To busy to eat right. Have to get up too early and get home too late. Long hours working at the hospital and crappy food choices. I really need to get back to taking my lunch and snacks to work!!!! Have sure been trying to get on my treadmill 3 out of 4 of my days off, and I am pretty proud I have been getting that done.
Treadmill run/walk = 14 miles
shakes = 3
Have a great week everyone…..or what’s left of it!