FREE March Workout Calendar

I’m am thrilled for March!  In Minnesota, it is like the last hump before we finally get into Spring weather.  Well, we’ve got another massive storm on the way first, but that green grass is hiding somewhere under our massive piles of snow here in Minnesota.  We are setting records this winter with our snow…and it is no longer fun.  

One thing that has helped me this 2019 has been my workout schedule.  My family knows that everything they want to do has to go on our Google calendar and to be honest, it fills up fast.  I MUST carve out time for myself and put that on the calendar too…because if I don’t, it just won’t happen.

Watching my progress on paper is important for me too and I am loving these workout calendars!  Every time I get on the bike, do some crunches, walk, lift weights, or hit the bag…it gets written down.  I try to write how I felt that day or during that workout too.

I’ve got my binder ready and created a free calendar for March that I have already started using.  You can use it too!  Just click to get the pdf – March Workout Calendar 2019

What do you use to track your workouts?  I’d love to hear it!  Send me a message on my Facebook page (click here) or DM me on Instagram.

• Jessica

Thanks for being part of The Journey! Take a sec and follow our blog so you don’t miss our posts coming up.  You can also find us at the following places:

• Jessica’s Facebook Page
• Jessica’s Instagram Page
• The Journey on Facebook

FREE Workout Calendar – February 2019

We’ve got a new month and now is a great time to regroup and refocus on those goals!

Ok, maybe that is just my own little pep-talk because right now, it feels like I’ve been taking a step forward and then going back two more.

Progress is hard to see at times and I find myself doubting at times how much change or improvement has actually happened.  Feeling like you are going backwards – it is so frustrating when you are trying so hard.  That feeling is pretty normal but the reality is…you might actually be making bigger steps forward than you think!  One way to watch that progress so you can see it is by writing those steps down.  This free workout calendar can help!

My January started with an awesome workout for me…but just a few hours later, my entire month of goal planning went another direction.  I was sick and recovering from surgery most of January (still am actually) so taking small steps was actually what I needed to do this month.

FYI – this was not easy for me.

I had some moments where I was a bit frustrated with my progress.  Even today, my schedule was a bit too full and my body is saying, “Hey overachiever, you overbooked yourself today and your body isn’t ready for this yet.  Go slow and go small.”. 

Keeping track of my progress is important for me so when that frustration hits, I can see how much I’ve improved in the last month.  To help with this, I started using the January 2019 Workout Planner last month and am keeping it going in February.

I’ve got my binder ready and created a free calendar for February that I will be using.  You can use it too!  Just click to get the pdf –February Workout Calendar 2019

What do you use to track your workouts?  I’d love to hear it!  Send me a message on my Facebook page (click here) or DM me on Instagram.

• Jessica

Thanks for being part of The Journey! Take a sec and follow our blog so you don’t miss our posts coming up.  You can also find us at the following places:

• Jessica’s Facebook Page
• Jessica’s Instagram Page
• The Journey on Facebook

Top 5 Workout Songs For December

When it comes to exercise and getting that workout in, it is an absolute must for me to have music.  In other words, forgetting my headphones is not an option.

I put together my favorite songs for December and what I have downloaded and waiting for me in my workout playlist.

1. Little Drummer Boy by For King & Country.  Not only is this Christmas themed but it is absolutely amazing.  The beat of that drum is great for a cycling workout and a pretty good pace to try to keep up with.  If you need more of a challenge, just turn that knob of resistance a bit to the right…it will get you there.

2.  Zero by Imagine Dragons:  I’ve heard this a few times on a pretty amazing radio station where some friends of mine work 😉 – 106.9 KROC – but also heard it when I saw “Wreck It Ralph 2” in the theater.  This song is great for some sprints or jumps.  You gotta feel it and that rhythm to get the jumps down but if you can’t feel that, just go all out on speed during the chorus.  Let the verse be your recovery and just slow it down a tad so you can catch your breath.

3.  Desperate Man by Eric Church.  This is under the “country” category but really, it reminds me a bit of something older and with a whole lot of soul.  You will want to sing along.

4.  High Hopes by Panic! at the Disco.  This is a song that will get you in a great mood really fast but could also keep you smiling during a fast hill climb on a bike or as you are on a treadmill.  The pace stays fast but has a great chorus.  If you are looking for a tip, use that part right around the 2 minute mark to take a quick recovery and then use the momentum in the song and beat to hit the top of that hill.

5.  Roots by Imagine Dragons.  I know I already included this band but could seriously include a bunch more of their songs.  This one though…I could put on repeat and just blare out.  Actually, I have done that.

What’s your favorite workout song right now?  I’d love to hear it!  Send me a message on my Facebook page (click here) or DM me on Instagram.

If you are looking for some Christmas songs to listen to right now, listen with me from 10 am until 2 pm on Y105FM!  I also go country from 12 pm – 6 pm on 103.1 KFIL!  So much free stuff on those websites too…just check out the “Win Stuff” tabs!

• Jessica

Thanks for being part of The Journey! Take a sec and follow our blog so you don’t miss our posts coming up.  You can also find us at the following places:

• Jessica’s Facebook Page
• Jessica’s Instagram Page
• The Journey on Facebook

The MOM Challenge – FREE stuff but must register by September 7th

All the moms in the world are posting their back to school pics of their babies.  Their little ones are off for another year of learning, a year of growing and being a sponge of everything they can.  My kiddos go back on September 8th…so I have a little time still to treasure their sweet faces and messes they create and they live each day.  I have stepped on 1,001,563 Legos this summer.  I know the mess that comes with the word “boy”.

Moms…I have a challenge for you! (Hold your horses, cause I know the “mom” word doesn’t apply to everyone…If you aren’t a mom, you are a woman, a man, a person in this world that is watching all this learning going on around you.  Follow the lead of the kids that are starting those new educations and watch their minds expand and their creativity challenged in new ways.)

Here is the challenge:  (2 parts)

#1  Own up to the phrase “I will get back into/start a workout routine when the kids go back to school.  Seriously.  I have heard this phrase a kazillion times from moms and individuals all summer long.  All.Summer.  Kazillion.  It’s driving me crazy.  Reality is though…your body doesn’t really care when summer and fall starts or what that school year time frame is.  Your body does not use the “First day of school” pictures as a guide on when exercise should be added in.  Your body needs you to take care of it right now.  Not in 2 weeks.  Not when you have another 30 minutes free.  Not when you have a different schedule.  You are important enough to put the words “EXERCISE” in your Google Calendar and find 30 minutes or more.  You are.

I did some math.  If your summer is like my summer, you had

• 13 weeks where kiddos were out of school.  13.
• 13 weeks is 1/4 of your year.  25%.
• If you are only making your health a priority for 75% of the year, know that you need to be ok with progress not being 100%.  
• Taking care of yourself for only 75% of the time is like saying, I am going to drive from New York to California.  I’ll keep enough food and water for myself and take my car to get serviced for tune ups and gas up until around South Dakota.  After that…I’m just gonna cruise.  I’m gonna hit mountains and have bridges to cross, but I’ll be fine.  I’ll just deal with all that when I get to California.  You can’t expect to make progress in your destination if you don’t take care of everything that is needed the entire distance.
• In 13 weeks, you have 91 days.

#2  Follow your kids’ leads.  Every child has something that they truly fall in love with in school and there seems to be this joy as they get ready to learn.  Some…science.  Others…art.  I know kids that just love to be around everyone else and learning is the other reason they are in school.  😉

• Be a kid.  Find the joy in what you want to do to help your body be better.  If running is your form of awesome and your body likes it, do that.  If your body likes to start talking to you in ways that say “I hurt” as you run, find something else that you think is fun.  You don’t have to be a runner in order to check off that box that says “exercise” in your to-do.  I’m a big fan right here of not running.  😉
• Try to remove the fear associated with the term “exercise” or a type of exercise and just go in with the attitude of “Let’s just try this today.”  If you never try, you will never know if that is what you love to do.  Here are a few ways I tried new things… 😉  This might take time (once took me 3 weeks to get enough courage to try a power rack)…and that is ok.  But…you have EVERY RIGHT to try new things.  Not one person, not one body type, not one gender has control over a specific area of a gym or sport.  Not one.
• It’s time to play.  🙂  Every time I talk with the cancer survivors that I work with I share with them that we will be playing in the fitness center and starting with baby steps.  Playing.  If I tag the word “exercise” or “cardio” to the room…it doesn’t seem as fun.  But IT IS fun…if that is what you like to do and you change your mindset a bit.  I also let them know that if something hurts or doesn’t feel quite right…don’t do it but DO go find something else that works.
• Soak up the info.  Teachers bring some amazing info to the minds of our kids.  We also have the library, Google and other outlets and credible sources.  See that word “credible”.  I learned that one from my 13 year old.  She can’t use sources online in her classes other than specific ones…and fyi…that does not include blogs.  Her teacher is strict about this and I am SO glad she is learning that a blog someone writes doesn’t equal credible.  Yes, I know, this is a blog.  😉  We need to follow the lead with our kiddos in this aspect as well and pay attention to what we are actually soaking up as adults in regards to info related to health and fitness.  There is a bunch of crap out there that will fill your mind with false hopes, info and stuff that just doesn’t pertain to the body that you have.  Monitor what you are reading and looking at as inspiration otherwise you will just be repeating history when you need to start your next “diet” since the one you read about didn’t work the way you thought it should.

Moms…it is time for YOU.  It is time to get the kids out the door, off our arms and legs clinging to stay with us for just one more week.  It is time to show our kids that no matter what our schedule looks like…WE are important too…and just as important as their little lives and packed schedules of activities and homework.

• Moms…if you don’t do this for you now, there will be a time in your life when you will look back and wish you did.
• Moms…if you don’t do this for you now, there will be a time in your life when your kids look back and wish you did this for you…as well as showed them how to make living a healthy life a priority.

Moms…are you ready?  You in?  Those who want in…I have some fun stuff planned for you!  FREE workouts.  FREE recipes.  FREE accountability.  FYI…it is free.  😉  Sign up at this link by September 7th!  LINK -RIGHT HERE – DON”T MISS IT!

Now…go tell all your other mom friends.  🙂  Go ahead…sharing takes like a second and I know you will be on Facebook or Twitter…or snapping those back to school pics and posting them all over social media way longer than it takes to share this post.  😉

*Jessica – mom to three kiddos who somehow grew to be 13, 10 and 7 years old.  Read more about my story and how I made ME a priority again.  I’m also a StrongFigure Ambassador, fitness instructor, wife and owner of a very large, yellow lab. 🙂

Thanks for being part of The Journey!  Take a sec and follow our blog so you don’t miss our posts coming up.  You can also find us at the following places:

• Twitter at @thesmallchanges 
• Pinterest at www.pinterest.com/thesmallchanges/
• Instagram at thesmallchanges
• Facebook at www.facebook.com/smallchangesbigpicture
• Sign-up for the Monthly Newsletter
• E-mail at smallchangesbigpicture@gmail.com

Pinny Pig 1 month-aversary!! Pinterest reviews from Shannon

Happy Month-aversary!  I feel like I should have gotten you candy, but that seems like it would defeat the while purpose right?  LOL!  Well, I want to start by thanking all of you for your thoughts and prayers last week with my Dad.  We are very happy that the doc gave him a clean bill of health, and he doesn’t need any further treatment.  Makes my heart happy that his is healthy(ish).  Doc said that he isn’t as young as he used to be, so he will have a little more in the “aches and pains” department, but that it is always better to be safe than sorry, so we can now all really breathe a sigh of relief.

Workout fun this week…I have to say, I have been killing it with my at home workouts!  I am really proud of both the hubs and myself!  We have been taking time to make sure we each get our workouts in, we are listening to our bodies about when we need to do a little more or a little less and we are making sure we incorporate a rest day every few days.  I even tried after two weeks, to get my feet “looked at” or “checked” or whatever they will call it when someone is free to help me at the running store, to no avail.  This week though it wasn’t for lack of trying.  So I have decided to move on with that as a Pinny Pig goal  as I never thought about the retail side of it, silly me, assumed I could just walk in and they would be waiting to help me with no other people around to consider.  Hopefully SOON I will have magically fitting running shoes!

Workouts this week we are going to try…I am going to try this thigh thinner from Self Magazines Calorie-blasting Kettlebell Kickboxing Workout.  Now, I don’t actually own kettle bells, so I am going to use a 10 pound dumbbell.  It seems like something I could easily incorporate into my regular circuit workout.  I am starting to see my legs take on a new shape, which is nice…slowly but surly I am getting there.  The other pin I am going to try this week just showed up in my email today from Fitness Magazine.  It is Alison Sweeney’s Couch Workout.  I am actually really, REALLY excited about this one.  There are days when I feel SO guilty about working out.  I leave work, pick up the kids, get home, make dinner, walk the dog (which is a fun family activity), then we get home and the hubs and I take turns working out, then its just about bedtime.  We squeeze in cuddling or bath time and then we are off to sleepy town, don’t even get me started on nights where the girls have their activities.   So this workout is one that I can do while sitting and chilling with the kiddos.  It doesn’t require me to overtake the TV to play my DVD’s and it requires basically a giant rubber band so I feel like the kids will get on board fast!  ha ha

Spa fun this week…I do love the way a good scrub feels!  The brown sugar and honey facial scrub was AWESOME!!!  I like to dress them up too since you make more than enough for multiple uses, sop we started with a trip to the trusty old dollar store to get a cute little jar, and went to work.  We had everything else we needed at home already.  My face felt so soft and smooth after using the scrub.  I highly recommend trying this, if for no other reason because its fun and soothing.  And after the week I had last week, soothing was a nice change of pace.  The other pin I tried was an at home whitening for my teeth.  Now, the link I found called for doing it once a week, and since I have had two weeks to play with this I think  the delay in the review was good.  I have to say though, I really don’t see that much of a difference yet.  The peroxide makes my mouth feel coated, but it is cool to see all the bubbles.  On a scale of try again to must do…this falls on the try again if I thin about it.

This week in Spa land…with summer coming (hopefully) it brings with it shorts and shorter skirt weather.  I am of Welsh-English-Scottish decent so the first few weeks of summer is hard.  My blazingly white legs seem dayglow at times…why not try to defeat that with a little DIY At Home Self Tanner?!?!  Before you get too scared, we will do a trial area on my tummy…the land that sun forgot (and that no one sees if I turn a weird shade of orange).  I am not a fan of tanning beds, and most self tanners are scary.  This is all stuff that I have at home and I just figure, why not?  Since I will have sponges out already for the tanner, I want to try this nail polish trick too.  I LOVE to wear my sandals, and I am religious about painting my toe nails from week to week.  The girls and I almost ALWAYS have perfectly painted toes in the summer and this ombre technique seems like it would be a lot of fun peeping out of my sandals.  Plus, added bonus, it allows you to use two colors at once, which is HUGE to my four-year old.

Have you seen any pins that you would recommend?  See you next week!

Yours in The Journey!
Shannon

 

 

Share the Luv!

I am a collector. It is much to my hubby’s dismay sometimes, but I like to keep things. Mostly things that have something to do with our girls. We will find a shirt in a closet and the conversation will go something like this:

Hubby: Does this still fit mini anymore?

Me: No, aw, she is getting so big.

Hubby: So we can get rid of it?

Me: NO! Don’t you remember, that day she went down that slide in the one playground and laughed so hard…she was wearing this shirt.

Then the headshake of defeat, because he knows there isn’t any arguing with me, and I squirrel it away. I’m not necessarily proud of this, so my admittance here to all of you is the first step right?!?! Anywho…this past holiday break from school we were all home (the fab four) so we started cleaning things out. I mean, we had to make room for all the cool stuff Santa brought after all. The hubs and I took on the basement and the girls closets. We ended up with 4 giant garbage bags full of stuff for the trash, and 2 more for donation. It was amazing! It was so cathartic, that I started to see things from my hubby’s side. Was that a great laugh on the slide that day, you bet your bottom it was, but it wasn’t the shirt that made her laugh like that…it was the moment.

This got me thinking about my collecting. I have all the truly important stuff in my cedar chest, but what about things I want to do or try or consider….enter Pinterest. I am an addict. My 12 year old is an addict. My 4 year old is NOT an addict but does like to see what kind of projects I have planned for her. Pinterest is the home for the hoarder. It is electronic hoarding, BUT I can keep whatever I want without filling my actual LIFE with clutter. So, with my home and REAL (non-cyber) life becoming clearer and less bogged down under stuff, I continue to add to my boards.

One of my favorite things to do is pin work out and home spa ideas. I mean, I am not a trainer. I have no actual training in my exercise routines or spa treatments for that matter, but I am willing to try things. I actually prefer to “try before I buy” n case you didn’t get that from my last post. So I thought, well lets make this even more fun.

I have a “Work it” board and a “SPAtacular Ideas” board and I want to actually start trying and doing some of the things I have pinned. We (as in the family collective because the girls want to try some of these) will try out a few new pins each week and then follow up the next Friday about how they worked or are going (for longer ones), if we liked them, didn’t like them, what to try differently next time).

Think of me as your Pinny Pig (see how I did that there…guinea pig…pinny, ok you get it). 🙂 If there are things you have been thinking about trying that you have “pinned” but aren’t sure about, let me know. Maybe I’ll try them and give them a “review for you. My big rule on this is nothing dangerous. If it falls into that category, I’m not gonna do it. I mean, safety first right?!?!

So for this first round I am thinking of starting smaller. Two workouts tries and two spa tries. For the workouts tries I am going to do The No Squats Belly, Butt and Thighs Workout  since I have been doing LOTS of squats with my Biggest Loser DVD’s, I thought this would be a nice change of pace. The other from my Work It board I am planning to try is 5 Yoga Fixes for Bad Posture. These both come from Prevention and I think are good ones to start with. Especially the yoga. I sit at a computer ALL day at work and I catch my self slumping over from time to time. For the spa side (because pampering yourself is JUST as important as working out and eating right) I am trying this idea I found about shaving with baby oil. I found this on Pinterest and thought it was perfect since my 12 year old just informed me she needs more shaving gel. The idea is to use baby oil instead of shaving cream or gels and it should leave legs smoother, softer, and possibly give you more time in between shaves. The other one I am going to try is wiping vinegar across dry, unpolished nails before painting them to make your polish last longer. My mini LOVES manicures and I love having nice looking nails (especially with spring coming), but again, I work a ta computer all day so they get chipped up fast. Lets see how this changes the game, if at all.

What pins have you been wanting to try?

Yours on The Journey!!

Shannon

_________________________________

Shannon Fujimura

Shannon Fujimura is known by many aliases’ Mom, Wife, hey you, office grunt, but likes the first 2 best!  Shannon is THRILLED to be joining The Journey!  I want to help inspire and motivate others the way I have been.  I am FINALLY learning the slow and steady wins the race, at least when it comes to the health of myself and my family.  Step by step we are getting healthier and stronger each and every day.

Our Top Posts

Did you know The Journey has a birthday coming up? We will be 1 this month! How exciting! We have a few things up our sleeve, so stay tuned for some new stuff around here. Until then, I thought it would be interesting to see what our top posts for the last year were. These are the posts people clicked on the most:

(The “pages” listed at the top of the page are all in the Top 15, but I’m only going to list the top actual posts. The pages are great resources for finding information here, though, so don’t skip ’em.)

Here we go …

#1:  Eating Paleo for 31 Days (Days 1, 2 & 3 also made the Top 10, but we’ll just lump them all in here.)

#2:  Q&A Friday: What Measurements Should I Do?

#3:  Workout #1

#4:  The Beginning

#5:  14 Day Bodyweight Challenge … Day 1

#6:  Workout #2

#7:  Angie’s Journey … 100+ Pounds Lost

#8:  The Journey Meet Up and Virtual 5K

#9:  Kristi’s Story … One of Our Groupies

#10:  Change: Where Life Just Gets Jacked Up

So, there you have it … the most clicked on posts of 2013! What do you want to read about in 2014? Please let us know! We’re here for you! We really want to know what you are interested in learning more about. Leave a comment below or contact us through Facebook. And thanks for reading here! We are glad you are here!

_____

Cori is a wife, mom of three and random writer who is learning how to take small steps towards big goals. She tends to be an all-or-nothing kind of person, but a journey to learn how to run (something she always hated) has taught her a lot about gradual, slow change. She has a degree in journalism and enjoys doing research and writing.

Are you the WINNER?…and some Monday motivation

Today I am sharing a little bit of motivation through some quotes that inspire me.  I am working hard on something new and also had a bit of a yucky weekend and just need a great kick in the rear to get moving today.  More on that in a bit and even a few things that maybe you don’t want to do to a fitness instructor.  😉  First…we must talk about our giveaway and winner.

photo from puppylovepreschool.blogspot.com

We are on Round 3 of the latest winner from our Heads Up Bands Giveaway.  That’s right.  Round 3.  No, we don’t have more items to giveaway…be are still just trying to give it away the first time.  Will the winner PLEASE read the blog AND contact us so we can give this away?  We really want to see this great prize go to someone.  So far…2 different people have won but didn’t claim the prize in time.

Round 3…right here.  Let’s go.

The WINNER of our latest giveaway…If you see your name below you have won your choice of two headbands from Heads Up Bands!  They are pretty awesome.  I wore one just last night (it even had some bling on it).  Here is the catch…you have until Wednesday, October 30th at midnight (CST) to claim this prize and you must e-mail The Journey at smallchangesbigpicture@gmail.com to claim it.  A comment here is great and we love comments…but we actually need an e-mail because we have some specific info to send the winner.  If the winner doesn’t claim the prize in time (12:01am e-mail on Thursday morning means that you missed the deadline) we will be starting this giveaway all over and will give everyone a chance to enter all over again.

Drum roll, please.

And the winner is… Cara J.

The clock is ticking, Cara.  Instructions on how to claim this prize are above.

My need for some Monday Motivation was for 2 specific reasons…

1. because I am starting a new workout and today was day 2.  Part of the to-do’s on the exercise list for this morning was a bunch of exercises that really aren’t my favorites.  I am just working out by myself so I could skip some…but that won’t get me where I want so I just need to kick my own butt a bit and do it.  Helpful sayings to read or pictures with quotes help me and so I read quite a few before I did my workout this morning.  The pictures that I put below are from a board that is just outside of the room I teach in every Monday morning.  These are just a few of the signs that I get to walk by and read before I start the class.
2. Reason number is not so fun.  I really had a weekend that left me wondering if being a fitness instructor was worth it all.  I don’t usually feel this way but there was a specific person that was just downright rude to me in a class recently.  It left me with their attitude and I just couldn’t shake all the negative stuff that was thrown my way.  Not only were rude comments said before and during class but this person also moved my stuff.  My stuff…where I was going to be teaching the class, by my water, by the music, by my notes, and also by the clock so I could actually see it (I don’t have 20/20 eyes…and don’t wear glasses or contacts…and being where I placed the mat would have helped).  I left the class with people says “thanks” and happy about the workout but the attitude and the words from this one individual wrecked my weekend.  I know that I did a good job and that we worked hard in that class…I have no doubt about that.  I just wish that everyone who stepped in the room that I teach is fully open to different ways of having a class.  This person had an expectation to do specific things in class and I had a different and fun plan for the class that day…although they did their own thing anyways during the class.  I can teach…but I can’t teach those that aren’t wanting to be challenged in ways that are out of their norm.  I actually am starting to get over all of negative feeling that I felt from this person…so I’m getting there.  This morning I taught another great class of people that were ready to be challenged…and they did amazing!  I am working with women that are finding out that they are stronger than they thought and getting healthier each step that they take.

On to some Monday MOTIVATION!  I hope that these inspire you in some way today.  And…if you are the winner you really need to just e-mail us today.  K?  🙂

Thanks for being part of The Journey!  

-Jessica

14 Day Bodyweight Challenge…Day 5

http://www.smallchangesbigpicture.wordpress.com

Sometimes we just need a few words of encouragement to keep moving forward.

The other day I was teaching a cycling class and the comments at about minute 35 were just hilarious.  I’ll share those in a sec.  First you have to get a glimpse of what class is like…because I know that there are a lot of people here at The Journey that don’t belong to a gym or the thought of attending a fitness class sortof freak you out (I know…I’ve that that too so I’m right there with ya.).  In the classes I teach, these really are individual workouts although they are in a group setting.  I can tell you what you could do on the bike and direct where the class is going with different exercises we are doing on and off the bike…but the individual sitting in that seat really is the one who is in charge of the intensity that they want during class.

In this particular class we had about 15 minutes left, which tends to be the part where you glance at the clock a bit more and wonder when the torture is going to be over.  I know…I’ve sat in that seat wondering the same thing (even though my instructor is awesome…I still had those thoughts!  Sorry, Melissa!).  Let’s just say that the words being expressed by a few sitting in the seats in front of me were pretty vocal and they were sharing their thoughts…in a nice way.  I wasn’t making them stay.  I wasn’t doing anything different than I would in any other class.  But, this did happen to be a class that wasn’t my regular…I was the sub…so I really didn’t know these people at all.

Imagine riding your bike up a hill that is pretty big and the words “are we done yet?” being screamed out at you.  Or,

I actually say “don’t cheat yourself…but this is close

“this is hard” or even “you can stop now.  I think this is the last song for class, right?”.

Those words can really ruin any motivation you have to finish the rest of the class…and not just for me but those sitting in the class may not push as hard because they are listening to the negative stuff.  You already did 35 minutes of class…you have just a few moments left and you are done.  That’s it!  Suck it up, tell yourself that you are going to finish this class and get moving.”  15 minutes compared to 35 is nothing.

We can think the same thing for challenges that we start too.  I think that is one thing that irks me about all of the month long challenges that are out there and posted on other fitness pages.  One of the latest ones that I saw was for plank month.  At some point in the middle of the month you were supposed to go to 3 minute planks…but you just started at 15 seconds at the start of the month.  I am sure this is possible for some…but if I am laughing about it and looking at those crazy numbers you want me to hold my body up (that is overweight and fluffy)…I can tell you right now that it isn’t happening.  (I know you are thinking the same thing about some of the crazy things posted out there…right?!  I mean, who finishes those?!)  I am guessing that the number of people who actually finish a month long challenge is 1%.  That’s my guess.  My research…I’ve never finished one…so it isn’t full fledged research but is based on a beginners perspective.  🙂  Why put all that effort and time in making something that most people who are starting won’t even finish.

That is why we are doing a 14 day challenge…to help you start developing the habits of moving more with some small steps…not a month long fitness schedule that adds more and more each day.  It just isn’t possible for a beginner…and shouldn’t be expected of you.  14 days…you can do that.  I know it!

If for some reason though the doubt is starting to pop up in your mind and the negative words are leaking in…DON’T LISTEN!  Don’t listen to that negative stuff!  Don’t let the CAN’T words beat you…and remember that you CAN do this!

So today, not only will we get Day 5 of the 14 Day Bodyweight Challenge (you can find it at the end of this post) but you will also get some of my favorite quotes on this post that have helped me on my journey and a few things that I like to scream right back (in a nice way) when I see people giving up on themselves during class…or those that give me eye rolls or like to verbalize their thoughts on exercises they hate to do.  😉

I also came across this quote the other day that has stuck with me…and is something I think we should all have hung up so we see it everyday.

“Eat like you love yourself. Move like you love yourself. Act like you love yourself.” -Tara Stiles

Thanks for being part of The Journey!  We would love to hear about your own journey…if you would like to share your own story and have it featured here, please send a message to us at smallchangesbigpicture@gmail.com

(If you missed the first part of this bodyweight challenge…here are the links to day 1, day 2, day 3 and day 4)

-Jessica

Jessica is a mom to 3, wife to 1 and a group fitness instructor at two locations in Rochester, MN.  Her passion is to help women gain confidence at the gym, learn how to move more and get healthy.  You can read about her journey as well as others that were willing to share their stories with others.

Day 5 of the 14 Day Bodyweight Challenge

We are back to that lower body.  Here are a few articles/videos to help you as you do these exercises:

Lunges

Calf Raises

Sumo Squats – it shows a weight but start off by doing these without weights and holding your hands in front of you

A few funnies for Friday!

We all need to smile…and if you think about it…more smiles and laughter really is important for a healthier spirit.  🙂 Every Friday we want to give you a few things to help encourage you to turn those frowns upside down. Here. We. Go!

Follow us at The Journey…more posts and Friday Funnies soon!

-Jessica & Cori