The only person standing in your way - February Fitness Challenge Week 2

I was writing an email to my sister yesterday about how challenging it is to fit in my workout. Basically, after my schedule changed last year & M started traveling more, it was obvious that working out at 5:00 am was going to be my only consistent option. However, I've protested, rebelled, dreamed up 1,000 excuses, & then of course. . . complained about not being able to work out regularly.

As I was typing the email, I realized that the reason I was so frustrated with my lack of consistent workouts was because - I had the power to change it & wasn't. The only person standing in the way of me consistently working out at 5:00 am was me.

I could go on & on about the challenges any given day presents (my work schedule, late meetings, M's travel schedule, not having family to rely on, kids activities, illnesses, last minute work scrambles, etc). But, very few things interrupt a 5:00 am workout. If I want it? It's there.

So this morning I set the alarm & actually got up & went for a run at 5:00. Was it my best run? Definitely not. It was the slowest I've been in a long time. I was dehydrated (hadn't had anything to drink in 14 hours), it was tricky to run in the dark (I was wearing a headlamp), & I just wasn't quite awake yet. But these are all things I can fix. I can wake up & drink a glass of water before heading out. I can bring water with me. I can get a bigger headlamp. . . it's all within my power. I CAN DO THIS. I can change my life and my schedule & build consistent habits that make me feel good.

Knowing that I can build my own consistent schedule has given me the feeling of control again, which makes me happy. Working out consistently is very important for my sanity and feeling good about myself, and if that means waking up at 5:00 am, I'm going to do it.

On to week two results of the February Fitness Challenge!

1) Track my calories in MyFitnessPal every day, & stay within my calorie allotment 90% of the time. In February, that boils down to 25 days. It's my birthday month, so trying to be realistic. - I've tracked my calories every day, and have stayed within my calorie allotment 84% of the time. Close!
2) Get 1,000 minutes of cardio. - I'm at 697 minutes, so well on my way to this goal!
3) Complete 10 strength workouts. - I'm at 2 workouts, & didn't have a single strength workout this week. This is a focus for next week!
4) Complete 7 stretching workouts. - I'm at 1, so this needs to be a focus for the rest of the month. Stuck at one. I know how important this is, but it's very hard to make the time during the week when M travels.
5) Bonus goal - attend a Pilates or Barre workout class. I have a Groupon for a local studio, but have never made it given M's travel schedule & the kids. I'd love to make this a priority. - I'm moving this off of my priority list for the month. It's just not realistic right now for me. The Groupon will expire without me using it (*cringe*), but right now, I need to set realistic goals for myself & worry about what I can accomplish at home with the kids.






How about you? How did you do with your goals? Are you standing in the way of your own success, workout or otherwise? Please leave a comment with a link to your post or include your progress to be entered to win one of the two $25 paypal drawing prizes at the end of the month!