Getting fit and losing weight is always on my New Year’s Resolution list. I’d love for it NOT to be on there one year but I’m guessing there will always be room for improvement. At this point, I need to lose weight for my health and to feel better about myself. I’ve already taken several steps over the past months but there is still a long way to go. Over the next few weeks and months, I’ll be sharing what has been working and what hasn’t been working for me. Hopefully, you will share how it’s going for you too!
One of the easiest and inexpensive ways to get healthier is to reduce sugary drinks and up water intake. I used to be addicted to diet soda. I would probably drink a 2 liter of diet pop a day. Hey, it was diet, right so no harm done. Studies have shown that you trick your brain when you drink diet drinks can actually make you crave more sugar. I do think this was the case with me because I’d had to have some sort of chocolate along with my diet drink.
Studies aside. I know from personal experience that since I’ve eliminated my diet drink run from my daily routine, I have felt so much better. I mostly drink water with the occasional coffee or sparkling water type of drink. I’m also saving money by not spending that $2-$3 on soda pop a day.
I’ve also been running quite a bit. I’ve improved my 21 minute jogging mile to my personal best of under 11 minutes. This has taken several months to accomplish. I started in August jogging even if it was a very slow job – obviously at 21 minute per mile. However, by keeping it on it, I was able to improve. I’d like to improve to under 10 minute mile. My normal run is around 12-13 min/mile. I normally do 2-3 miles per day, 4-5x per week. If I can improve my speed, then I can increase my mileage.
To keep myself motivated, I’ve signed up to do several 5Ks in my area. Doing these with friends is so much fun and a great Saturday or Thanksgiving Morning activity. We also did the Santa Hustle, which was super fun with decent weather in December.
Things I need to work on to achieve goals:
- Take vitamins on a regular basis.
- Add another serving of vegetables a day.
- Drink protein shake in morning on a regular basis.
- Reduce chocolate intake. (LOL – I’m on a post-holiday sugar detox at this point.)
- Increase mileage to 3 miles per day and try to do it in 35 minutes or less.
So what are your fitness & healthy eating goals for 2013?
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