Month: March 2015

Focus on Progress, not Perfection.

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  image   Let’s focus on Progress, not Perfection. Our Strengths, and not our Weaknesses. 
I’ve seen and heard so many people on Instagram and outside life putting themselves down or comparing their progress (in regards to both physical appearance and/or strength) to that of someone else. I’ve done the same, but am learning and trying my best not to compare! To focus on my own progress and strengths and be proud. Because We are ALL so different! Our bodies, our experiences, our genetic make-up, our past and present habits. Some people may be able to loose weight quickly, and get defined abs within weeks while some people may change their habits and find that it takes much longer. Some people may gain strength very quickly, while others may take months to build up the same. There are so many different factors as to why each of our results are so different from one another’s, but that doesn’t make our own results any less amazing! Be proud of what YOU have achieved, keep moving forward and give it Everything you’ve got!

  I made a huge lifestyle change Fall 2013, something completely different than I had every done before. I made a choice to cut out the bad things in my life and start working towards finding My healthy balance in life. I lost a lot of weight very quickly, mostly from just eating right and not drinking, and doing some cardio, then the progress became slower, but it was still progress! In the past 4-5 months, my body has significantly changed in the way it looks, but my weight has only changed by about 6lbs or so and lately it hasn’t changed at all. Most days that doesn’t bother me, because I know I am getting stronger and leaner and I know I am healthy, but there is still that voice in my head sometimes, wondering why the scale isn’t changing anymore. Lately I have been avoiding using the scale all together, as I truly believe that Not ALL Progress depends on the scale! We Are NOT Defined by a Number! We are MORE than a Number!

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October 2013~March 2014~March 2015

   This is a reason I believe it is Soo Important to take Progress Pictures. It’s a great way to track progress and help yourself stay motivated. The scale may not change by much, but side by side pictures can show you even little differences you have accomplished. These are pictures you can keep private or choose to share with the world. But it’s you versus you, when you put a new picture up next to an old. You should Only be comparing Your Progress to Your Own. Whenever I am feeling down about my Short Term Progress, I go look at pictures from last year, from 6 months ago, from 3 months ago and remind myself of how much I have already changed. I remind myself that changes take time, progress will and is happening but I must be patient for more results to happen, while also being proud of what I have already accomplished. I still have goals I am working hard to achieve, and I have dreams about how I hope my body will look one day. But I also know that it will probably never look like any other woman’s body, because it is Mine. It Is Unique. It has Experienced My mixture of Battles and Triumphs. And I can’t and shouldn’t compare it to anyone elses’.

   So instead of Focusing on what Hasn’t changed, why not Focus on what Has!? Physical appearance is one thing, but what about Strength!? Are you Stronger than you were Before? What about Confidence!? Are you more Confident when you go out, go to work, school shopping? What about Health!? Are you eating better and taking care of you Body? There are so many things to be proud of, positive changes that can’t be measured by a scale!

 image Let’s Love our Bodies for what they are and give them the proper appreciation they deserve for all that they do for us. You can still work hard towards your goals, but why not applaud Yourself along the way. You can want to change but still be proud of what you have Already accomplished. I still have goals I am working towards, but I am proud of what I have achieved so far and so excited to see what the future holds!

  Remember that we are all so different! And we will all SEE and FEEL a different kind of progress. It may happen quickly, it may take much longer than most. But as long as you are doing what is right for You and Your Body, and Finding Your own Healthy Balance, Your Choices are the most Important. Do your best on your own journey, take pride in your accomplishments and let others live their own.

Let’s lift up those around us, while not forgetting to lift up ourselves as well! Be Kind to Others and Be Kind to Yourself! ❤ Alena

Staying Hydrated in Style: Infruition Fruit Infuser Water Bottles

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imageFruit Infuser Water Bottles to get that Essential Daily H2O, Water, Agua your Body needs!

I see Water as an ESSENTIAL part of Life. Something that is  not only essential for my well being and survival but also to help me keep working towards my fitness goals. Lucky for me I like to drink water and have never been a soda drinker, but I have to admit, water can get a little boring sometimes and it’s hard to drink enough…

But thanks to these amazing new Fruit Infuser water bottles from Infruition, I have been staying hydrated in style and actually looking forward to drinking more water and trying new flavor combinations! I was fortunate enough to receive these bottles to try and test and have been loving them! They come in 4 different colors and two Bottle styles, a beautiful glass bottle or a Plastic Sport bottle. So I am set whether I’m going to work or hitting the gym!

Water is so important, It hydrates us and aids in detoxification, there are truly so many benefits: “All functions of the body require water; a crucial component of the biological make up of all human cells. Water helps flush out toxins from organs, it enables the liver to metabolize stored fat quicker, giving our overworked kidneys a break. The oxygen in water carried from cell to cell helps build muscle and increase cognitive and nerve functions Drinking water can help lose weight, reduce the appearance of lines and wrinkles, and maintain healthy skin and nails.” (source: http://bembu.com) By drinking Infused water, you are not only getting the amazing detoxification benefits from Water, but from the Fruit and/or vegetables and spices as well. Each fruit, vegetable and spice has it’s own beneficial qualities. The great thing about Infusing your water, is that you can mix and match, cut and chop and create combinations or simple one fruit Infusions of your hearts desire.image

Directions: Wash your fruit. Peal if necessary. Slice and dice to better release the flavors. Throw it in the Infruition Fruit chamber, but don’t pack it too full as you want the water to be able to move through the fruit chamber a bit. Fill your bottle with some quality H2O. Lit sit in the fridge overnight or at least 4-6 hours. The longer you leave it in, the stronger the flavor. I love to get the most out of my fruit, so I leave in fridge overnight or for a few hours, drink as desired and then keep refilling the bottle with more water throughout the day.

Thanks to the Crew from Infruition Water I have really been staying on top of my hydration and have been enjoying coming up with New Flavors and Combinations the past few weeks. They are a company based out of London and have the sweetest staff, who have been very gracious and helpful. And they have generously offered my followers a discount. Use my code HLD20 for a 20% discount off your Infruition bottle purchase, http://www.infruition.co.uk/ Happy Hydrating! ❤ Alena

HIIT: High Intensity Interval Training.

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~Please keep in mind this article was written based on my personal experience, and my own research and findings. I hope this article will shed some light on what HIIT is and why it is beneficial. NOTE: Before beginning any type of intense training, it is highly recommended to consult your doctor or physician to get cleared for this type of exercise. If you have any questions, please comment ❤ Alena~

For all the women following Kayla Itsines BBG, you will see that HIIT sessions are incorporated from weeks 9 onwards. This means that at least one time a week you should be doing a HIIT workout lasting from 10-15 minutes. But that does NOT mean you should stop doing your LISS session, i.e. Low Intensity Steady State cardio, as there are Still benefits to doing this kind of cardio training. I will do another post about the benefits of LISS cardio training soon.
Cardio, Cardio, Cardio…

Most of us have experienced the Cardio obsession at one point in our lives. I.e. Spending hours on the treadmill or elliptical everyday, hoping to loose weight and see the results we’ve always dreamed of. The truth is steady state cardio alone will only do so much for most people, but to truly see a change in your body, and develop some lean muscle mass, you must incorporate a wider variety of training styles, pylometrics, weight training, and HIIT cardio to name a few. And DIET plays a huge part of course! Not restriction, but eating Wholesome, Healthy and Nourishing foods (but that’s a discussion for a different time..).

In the beginning of my Fitness journey, I was the girl who spent all my time at the gym doing cardio and I rarely ventured away from the Treadmill and Elliptical trainers. But after discovering Aussie Trainer Kayla Itsines’s Instagram account Spring of 2014, I began to realize that there were so many other forms of exercise to incorporate and try, including HIIT. I began incorporating High Intensity Interval Training into my routine around Summer 2014, and I have loved it ever since!

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HIIT aka High Intensity Interval Training is now one of my Favorite forms of exercise. But what Is HIIT?

HIIT is an enhanced form of interval training and form of cardiovascular exercise. It is an exercise strategy with alternating periods of short intense anaerobic exercise (strength or resistance training) and less-intense recovery periods, usually 30 seconds “on/active” time and 30 seconds “off/rest”, lasting between 10-15 minutes. HIIT not only burns more calories during the workout, but also continues after you’ve finished your workout. Because the workout is more strenuous, your body needs more energy to repair and recover, so you actually continue to burn more Fat and Calories in the 24 hours following your HIIT session. Meaning it’s an intense and effective workout done in a very short amount of time!

HIIT is known for improving health, boosting weight and fat loss, promoting HGH (human growth hormone) production, and improving strength and stamina, among other benefits. It can be done in a variety of form of workouts, so long as it alternates between intense bursts of activity and fixed periods of low-moderate activity or even complete rest. From my personal experience, I saw a greater fat loss when I started incorporating HIIT style training into my routine in addition to a few low intensity cardio sessions. HIIT is a great way to get in a solid cardiovascular workout in a short amount of time.

There are many different forms of HIIT exercises and different on/off ratios and they all have so many benefits! Sprinting, biking, using a variety of resistance training exercises at a fast pace. My personal favorite form of HIIT is Sprinting on the Treadmill, using the 30 seconds on, 30 seconds off method. Sprinting on the treadmill allows me to see how fast I’m going, see the time in front of me and I can easily hope on and hop off to the side during my rest period. I typically do 15 minutes of 30/30 sprints with a 5 minute warm up and 5 minute cool down period as well, for a total of 25 minutes. After warming up with 5 minutes of fast paced walking or a very light jogging pace, I increase the speed to a moderately high speed, but not my maximum. I do 2-3 rounds of sprints at this speed, then for the remainder I up the speed to 90-100 of my capacity, usually ranging from 16.3-17.0 kpm/.

This is what works best for Me and what I like the most. However, I do occasionally switch up my HIIT routine and do a session of a variety of high intensity exercises in a similar format. By combining a variety of body weight and weighted exercises, you can create your own High Intensity Interval Training routine. The key is to complete them in short 30 second bursts, giving your best effort, then have a short rest period. I encourage you ALL to do some research and find out what works best for you. If you are a newbie to HIIT training, I recommend starting out with 8-10 minutes of HIIT and gradually working your way up to 15 minutes total.

imageNeed IDEAS for HIIT? Check out my friend Mandy & Candy’s awesome Youtube channel for 2 different HIIT videos! A Jump Rope HIIT Video and a complete 15 minute HIIT routine, which incorporates 15 different exercises and a timer, meaning your whole Workout is planned out for you! Awesome right? Here it is:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eH2Eq4FPA0w

Need More Ideas? Check out these articles: 7 Minute HIIT sesh, 5 ideas for HIIT, Treadmill training

Now get out there and HIIT It!!! ❤ Alena