This week’s theme was all about being outdoors.  It’s really been great to get out of the home gym for a change.  When the weather is nice, take advantage of it and change things up.

The next round of Best Body Bootcamp opens TOMORROW, May 20th so be sure to get in on the fun.  I’m still unsure if I’ll be participating this next round due to travel coming up but we’ll see. I love the support and great strength workouts provided, it keeps me on my toes.

Tina has updated the bootcamp and will now have video demos of every workout, new beginner’s workout series, access to a group site for members only, additional 50+ workouts and much more!  You can read reviews and comments from others at the above link.

My workouts this week were pretty good.  I’m also on a roll keeping track of my meals in My Fitness Pal.  It’s been an eye opener for sure. I know that not every food tracking app is accurate but it’s been a huge help. Here were my workouts for the week:

Monday-

*Gardening
Time: 40 min.
Calories burned: 386

Tuesday-

*Cardio Dance (Get Jiggy workout by FitnessGlo)
Time: 20 min.
Calories burned: 164

Another fun workout from FitnessGlo.  Looking forward to writing my review and doing a giveaway for you all.  Today I have a migraine that I can’t seem to shake. I kept trying to talk myself out of doing a workout but figured the 20 min. workouts from FitnessGlo would work well and I felt like dancing so this was perfect.  I have a few more dancing workouts that I saved in my playlist over there so I can’t wait to do those.

Wednesday- Day off

Thursday-

*Mowing lawn
Time: 52 min.
Calories burned: 921

Friday- Day off

Saturday-

*Gardening (shoveling, raking, etc.)
Time: 1.5 hours
Calories burned:850+

I didn’t wear my heart rate monitor so I don’t know exact calories burned but I know it was hard work and I was a sweaty mess. It’s been really nice to take advantage of the great weather.

Sunday-

*Walk outside
Time: 1:13
Miles: 2.88
Calories burned: 588

Not a fast paced walk but a nice long walk none the less.  Really enjoyed it although it started to get real warm. But I didn’t forget to apply my sunscreen well in advance!

Did you happen to see my FitFluential ambassador feature?  And don’t forget to enter for some free Werther’s Sugar Free candy. Yum!

How did your week go?  What was your favorite workout?  What are your goals for this week?

 

I’m featured on FitFluential today! 

Back in 2011, I applied to become a FitFluential ambassador and haven’t looked back. It’s been such a great experience.  I have made awesome friendships and learned a lot about myself and my business. Today they featured me on their Facebook page. Take a peek.

I have grown and stepped out of a major comfort zone with a nice gentle constant nudge from our ‘momma’ and fearless leader Kelly Olexa.  I am now doing video on a consistent basis.  I was doing it before here and there but now I’m no longer afraid to embrace the challenge of learning all the tech stuff and getting out there and getting a bit more personal.  Most of my videos are not edited so what you see is what you get.

For those that don’t know me well, I’m 41, wife to an awesome hubby, Kevin, step mom of two and grandma of a sweet little baby girl.  Kev and I live in Chicagoland (Northwest burbs) and have been blogging here at Losing It and Loving It for over 5 years.  I have been working from home since June 2001 and in addition to this blog my husband and I have a family travel blog, other niche websites, local clients and I’m also a virtual assistant.  Plus I just recently started offering blog brainstorming sessions and am having fun with that.  That’s just a little about me!

My Fitness Journey

I’m real thankful for those who keep pushing me year after year.  I have come a long way and accomplished things I never imagined (walked a half marathon in Jamaica), lost over 80 lbs and much more.  I still have a long way to go but the fact that I have not ever given up makes me confident that I will hit all the goals I set for myself.

You can read a bit about my fitness journey in this older post.  I still have some of the same goals like losing 100 lbs and to get back on roller skates one day.

We have a home gym (video tour to come next week) and I love spinning and boxing the most. Now if I could only get my hands on a Nexersys and a rowing machine, the home gym would be complete.  Well, until I find the next awesome addition.  We don’t have much room left in there though!

FitFluential: Fitness Found

Back to FitFluential, you really should check out this awesome community.  If you love fitness as much as I do, get over there and join us for exclusive discounts and giveaways.  They will also keep you updated about events all over the world.  Connect with FitFluential on Facebook and Twitter.  You can stay up to date on their blog as well.

I have been fortunate to work with some great companies through FitFluential like Under Armour, BelVita, Diet to Go, Special K, Blue Diamond and more.  I look forward to many more years ahead.

Now if you want to stay accountable with your workouts/healthy eating, then you’ll want to join us over on my Losing It and Loving It Facebook page.  Don’t be shy, jump right in and share your workouts daily!  It will not only help YOU but your peers as well.  C’mon join in!

AND coming up in a few weeks is my 3rd June Better Healthy Living Challenge. This year will be a bit different, hosted on Challenge Loop. I’m getting everything finalized this week and next.  I have quite a few great donations and am always looking for more. Of course you’ll get free promotion here on the blog and social love too.  I really appreciate those who have donated!  Can’t wait for the challenge. Hope to see you all join in.

 

Werther’s Original Sugar Free Candy

This review and sampling kit is sponsored by Werther’s Original Sugar Free Candy.

Lots of creamy Caramel goodness in this one goodie box.  In the box came packages of Werther’s Original Sugar Free candy in a few different flavors, coupons and a candy jar.

We have been enjoying sampling the different flavors.  There is something for everyone!

• Classic Caramel
• Cinnamon Caramel
• Caramel Apple
• Caramel Coffee

In addition to 0% sugar, each piece has only 3g carbs and only 8 calories. That is 40% fewer calories than the Werther’s Original.  And one serving is FIVE pieces for a total of 40 calories.  They are smaller than I remember the original being but taste just as good.  I also love that they don’t have that funky aftertaste most sugar free candies have. Score! And it doesn’t hurt that they are pretty too.

Werther’s Original Sugar Free offers the taste satisfaction many people with diabetes crave.  And the reason there is no unpleasant aftertaste is because the caramels are made with the sugar alternative Isomalt and the sweetener Acesulfame-K.  Obviously I would not recommend having more than one serving at a time and I believe one piece is just enough to curb a craving.  I don’t eat a lot of candy anyway but this is the perfect treat for me!

My hubby Kevin really liked the Werther’s Caramel Apple the best. He said it truly tastes like a caramel apple.  I personally like the Classic Caramel and Caramel Coffee.  The Cinnamon Caramel is strong and you definitely taste the cinnamon.  I’m keeping a stash for Father’s Day so my dad and mom can indulge a little too.

Like I mentioned, I especially love the simple fact that I can have ONE Werther’s candy to totally satisfy my sweet tooth.  I have always struggled with dessert cravings after dinner and I’m most impressed that this tiny little candy takes care of that.

Overall experience? Great!  If you’re looking for a tasty little treat, I would recommend them.

Here’s a quick video I did about the candies, enjoy.

You can follow Werther’s Sugar Free candy on Facebook and use hashtag #WerthersSugarFree on Twitter to get in on the fun conversation.

Would you like to win some sample bags?

Just comment below telling me which flavor you think would be your favorite.  Have you ever tried Werther’s sugar free candy?  If so, what is your favorite flavor?

P.S. I’ll stop accepting entries Sunday 5/19 midnight Eastern and will choose a winner Monday morning 5/20/13 and then send out your goodies not to long after that.  I can only ship within the U.S. at this time.

 

Today was a fun day!  Our initial plans were to go walking and have a picnic but the weather here in Chicago was way too chilly for that.  Decided to pick up some plants and flowers at Home Depot instead and plant those.  Aren’t they pretty?  Probably shouldn’t have carried that big plant pot up to the deck because I pulled something in my shoulder/neck.  It was not light.

My plans for vegetable gardening this year when out the door. Way too much going on for me to plan and focus on that. Plus with travel how in the world would I keep all the veggies alive?

We just got our last phase of Best Body Bootcamp workouts.  Once again it’s been great but I had to take a break this week and get outside, away from the home gym.  Needed to change things up a bit because I felt myself losing interest. This happens a lot when I do the same things over and over.  I love the bootcamp because Tina changes it up so this has nothing to do with her/bootcamp.

The next few months will be full of travel so I’m most likely going to skip the next round of bootcamp.  But it’s sure to be a great one so you should definitely think about joining up.

Monday-

*Strength (moving bricks outside)
Time: 1:10
Calories burned: 956

Amazing calorie burn but I moved just about 50 bricks, each about 25 lbs and walking up and down the street with them in a wheelbarrow was not easy in addition to lifting them in and out out of it either. Phew!

Tuesday-

*Mowing lawn
Time: 1:18
Calories burned: 1305

Wednesday-Thursday- Day off

Friday-

*Strength Total Body (The Traveler’s Workout by Fitness Glo)
Time: 30 min.
Calories burned: 317

This workout was awesome.  I’m part of a sponsorship with the company and they have given me free access to review their site/workouts AND we’ll have a giveaway this month too so be on the lookout!

Saturday-

*Gardening
Time: 60 min.

Didn’t bother to wear the heart rate monitor but I’m sure I burned a nice amount of calories.  I really needed to get out of the home gym this week so that is why you saw a lot of out door work.

Sunday-

*Housework
Time: 60 min.

Lots of vacuuming!  Again not a normal workout but I kept myself moving.

So I was kind of all over last week with my activity but it felt good! How did your week go?  Did you have a fun Mother’s Day?

 

Start Your Day With a Healthy Breakfast

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. You have been sleeping for several hours overnight so your body needs some fuel to get going for the day.

Breakfast gets the metabolism up and running. Without a meal when you wake, you can remain foggy headed, lack concentration and feel sluggish all day.

You are constantly trying to catch up with no gas in the tank. Instead, have a nourishing breakfast.

We know that it can be hard to fit in breakfast when you are busy and it seems easier to hit the drive through but unfortunately, not all fast food choices are healthy for you. Plus eating at home is easy on the bank account.

Breakfast Tips

First, choose meals that are easy to prepare ahead of time. You can fix your breakfast the night before so that you just have to pop it in the microwave to warm it up. Or you can make a quick batch of overnight oatmeal.  This post is a few years old but still has great info.  I love overnight oats.

Make big portions of other meals and divide it up for the entire week. That way, breakfast is always easy for you and the family. This is smart for portion control too.  Planning ahead is smart when it comes to making sure that you get a balanced breakfast.

Breakfast Food Ideas

Here are some ideas for breakfast foods that will nourish your body and give you energy.

• Smoothies – fruit smoothies are full of antioxidants. They fill you with energy. Try colorful berries like strawberries, blueberries and blackberries. Smoothie ingredients can be placed in a cup ready to be blended with yogurt and ice in the morning.

• Granola cereal – Place it in a bag. You can top a cup of yogurt with it, add it to oatmeal, and make granola bars with it. Or, you can eat it alone. Whole grains give you sustained energy throughout the day. The fiber fills you up for hours.

• Eat whole fruit – When all else fails, eat an apple or a banana. Breakfast doesn’t have to be a big production BUT you do need to eat something good for your body. Fruits like apples and bananas are full of fiber so they fill you up and are much better than drinking fruit juice. Dried fruit can also be used as a quick snack later in the day but watch out for the sugar.

• Oatmeal – One of the best overall breakfast ideas, a hot hearty meal to rev up your engine.

Start your day right….with breakfast!

What is your favorite breakfast?

 

This week was a pretty good week considering that I took 2 days off.  My knees are not feeling great with some squats I have been doing.  Have to modify because I don’t want to get hurt or make it worse.

Best Body Bootcamp is going great!  I’m up in the air on whether I’ll participate in the next round (I have participated in them all so far) because I’ll be traveling a lot over the next one.  But I love the support and everything about it so we’ll see.

This week my favorite workout was spinning and the HIIT workout.  Doing well with keeping track of my food on My Fitness Pal although I get easily frustrated if I can’t find a food and I’m no good at math so figuring out servings is making me crazy when it’s less than the normal serving. I’ll keep working at it.

Had a little fun with the home gym chalkboard wall this week.  It’s on my You Tube channel (and yes I have a long way to go on the channel and videos).  If you have any vide/You Tube tips, I’m all ears. Feel free to tell me in the comments.

Here are my workouts for the week:

Monday-

*Weights (BBB pull workout)
Time: 26 min
Calories burned: 233

Tuesday- Day off

Wednesday-

*Spinning
Time: 30 min.
Calories burned: 410

Thursday- Day off

Friday-

*Weights (BBB push workout)
Time: 20 min
Calories burned: 214

*Dancing
Time: 10 min.

Saturday-

*HIIT (BBB Full Body)
Time: 25 min.
Calories burned: 423

*Moved 25 lb rocks outside
Time: 44 min.
Calories burned: 619

I would consider that a major weights workout!

Sunday-

*Walking
Time: 1:28
Calories burned: 819

Today we did a nice long walk with a friend at a local forest preserve.  It was such a beautiful day and great to get out of the house.  We are thinking of taking a nice long walk like this every weekend at a different place each time.  Fun!

What was your favorite workout last week?  Got any goals this week?

P.S. If you want to stay accountable with your workouts, come join us on the Losing It and Loving It Facebook page.

 

Just in time for Mother’s Day, a fantastic deal for Mom – or for yourself! For ONE DAY only, on May 5, Sears is having its Family & Friends sale where all family and friends have a choice between receiving 15% off your purchase, or 25% in SHOP YOUR WAY REWARDS™ Points added to your account.

And, with Mother’s Day not too long after, it’s the perfect time to make sure you get Mom something real special when it comes to helping her living an active lifestyle.  The following deals will not only make Mom smile but will be great fun for the whole family.  OR you can always buy some goodies for yourself.  You deserve a treat!

Here are some great options:

• Nordic Track T5.7 treadmill is $599.99 (reg. $899.99)
• RCA 42” 1080p HDTV is $379.99 (reg. $499.99)
• Cannon® Egyptian cotton towels are $7.99 (reg. $15.99)
• JVC Gumy Plus headphones are $6.99 (reg. $9.99)
• Gym accessories including trampolines, steps and balls are 20% off
• ProForm® Cross Walk 397 treadmill is $379.99 (reg. $599.99)

Those are some pretty sweet deals wouldn’t you say?  I have my eyes on some gym accessories. Here’s the Sears flyer to check out the goods.

Can’t make it on Sunday? Shop these deals online at Sears.com TODAY May 4, from 8 p.m. CT – May 7, at 7 a.m. CT!

SHOP YOUR WAY is a free, Members-only program and shopping community that offers rewards, personalized deals, product reviews and services like e-coupons and e-receipts for faster returns and exchanges – join at ShopYourWay.com.

Happy Shopping!

*This post is part of a sponsored campaign as a member of the Mom Bloggers Club.

 

Oh gosh another week of ummm excuses.  I really did have good intentions but life once again got in the way. Moving on…

Best Body Bootcamp was fun this week.  I really enjoyed it although it was a challenge.  Lots of crazy pulses!

Just got the new workouts for the next two weeks and I am REALLY excited. They look like a lot of fun and are definitely more my style!

I’m also looking forward to better weather so I can start mowing the lawn again as part of my workouts.  I burn crazy calories doing that and it’s nice to be outdoors.

Here are my workouts:

Monday-

*Weights/Strength (BBB legs & shoulders)
Time: 23 min.
Calories burned: 199

*Spinning
Time: 30 min.
Calories burned: 415
Approx. miles: 9

Tuesday-

*Core (BBB)
Time: 9:38
Calories burned: 50

*Rebounding
Time: 20 min.
Calories burned: 252

Wednesday & Thursday-  Off

Friday-

*Weights/Strength (BBB Full Body)
Time: 26 min.
Calories burned: 367

Saturday-

No actual workout but we did walk around a lot looking for a new used SUV.  Great news….after a couple hours searching, we did find a beautiful used Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo.  We sold my car to my stepson’s girlfriend.  Mine was a Ford Fiesta, 2 years old with only 4500 miles.  They got a great steal of a deal lol  But happy we could help them out and I don’t hardly go anywhere so I’m really fine with having a used one.  IF we lived somewhere I could walk all over, we wouldn’t even really need a 2nd car (a bike with a basket would be totally cool with me) but that is not happening here in Chicagoland. But that doesn’t mean I don’t want that bike because a bike is still on my wishlist!

Sunday- Off

Definitely going to try hard to have a great week!  I can’t believe it’s the end of April already.  Where in the world did the month go?  It’s like we just celebrated our birthday’s yesterday.  It was a good month but it just gets busier from here. Lots of client work, added on more hours in addition to upcoming travel.

Just a few more days and I will have done a video every day in April (FitVEDA on YouTube).  If you haven’t seen my videos yet, you can get to know me a bit better here.  This month I just did video to get the hang of doing them on a consistent basis and get more comfortable in front of the camera.

I don’t know that I’ll be doing a video every day in May but I want to learn how to edit and do a lot more with YouTube. If you have any video tips, I’m all ears.

Hope you have a great week!

What are your fitness goals for the week?

 

I didn’t have the best luck finding many May healthy living challenges.  Where are they all hiding?

I’m busy working on my annual June healthy living challenge and hope you will all join in.  If there is anything you would like to see in the challenge this year, please do share your ideas here.  I’m open to ideas and want the June challenge to be successful for all of us.

Without further ado, here are the May 2013 challenges I found:

Comeback Momma has set up a Healthy Eating Challenge over on Challenge Loop.  I signed up since I really need to work on my eats.  You can find Jenn on Twitter too.

Amanda at Run to the Finish, has a Daily PT Challenge starting up! The goal of this challenge is to take each day to do a few exercises that will keep you strong and injury free (mostly focused on running I think but it can help anyone who works out).  You can find Amanda on Twitter too.

I found the Sexy for Summer Challenge on Facebook. It’s a squat and plank challenge throughout the month of May.  Want a nice tummy and tush this summer?  This challenge will focus on those areas. Check it out.  I don’t think this one will work for me because of my knees and I already have these types of moves with Best Body Bootcamp but it looks like a great challenge for those of you that can rock it.

Editing to add more:

My friend Dawn at Bare It All Fitness is having another photo challenge. I totally dropped the bomb on the April photo challenge, will try better in May!

Jump into Summer fee based challenge.  You can touch base with Jessica for more info.

30 Day Paleo challenge with Scott.

Physical/Nutritional monthly challenge with Kyra.

Sugar challenge with Laura (part 2).

Pull Up challenge at Well of Health.

That is all I found as of right now but if you know of any May challenges please feel free to link up in the comments and I’ll edit and add them to the post.  Personally, I’m going to work on the healthy eating challenge and keep up with my Best Body Bootcamp workouts.  I did a miles and calorie challenge this month.  It was fun!

Again my 3rd annual Better Healthy Living Challenge is coming up in June!  I am accepting challenge sponsors and prize donations.  Plus if you have suggestions of what you would like to see or if you might want to partner with me, let me know.

What May 2013 challenges will you participate in?

 

I personally cannot workout without some great, upbeat music.  I know a lot of people don’t need music to workout but I am definitely not that person.  I love music period.  It gives me the energy I need to get my workout done every time.  I also listen to it almost all day at home while I work except for when I have to really focus on writing.

I love all kinds of music.  It’s fun when Chris sends over each month’s list of favorite workout songs.

He says, “Collaborations reign in this month’s workout playlist. Justin Bieber lent Will.I.Am a hand on the latter’s latest. Italian super producer Alex Gaudino turned the mic over to Jordin Sparks. Lastly, Pitbull and Christina Aguilera urged folks to seize the day–while seizing, for themselves, the hook from ’80s classic “Take On Me.””

The Top 10 Workout Songs

April 2013

Here’s the full list, according to votes placed at Run Hundred, the web’s most popular workout music blog.

• Alex Gaudino & Jordin Sparks – Is This Love – 129 BPM
• Miranda Lambert – Mama’s Broken Heart – 112 BPM
• Of Monsters and Men – Little Talks – 107 BPM
• Will.I.Am & Justin Bieber – #thatPOWER – 129 BPM
• Kylie Minogue – Timebomb – 128 BPM
• Afrojack & Chris Brown – As Your Friend – 128 BPM
• One Direction – One Way or Another (Teenage Kicks) – 163 BPM
• Pitbull & Christina Aguilera – Feel This Moment – 137 BPM
• Avicii – Silhouettes (Syn Cole Creamfields Mix Radio Edit) – 128 BPM
• Macklemore, Ryan Lewis & Ray Dalton – Can’t Hold Us – 148 BPM

To find more workout songs, feel free to check out the free database at his RunHundred.com website. You can browse the song selections there by genre, tempo, and era to find the music that best fits YOUR particular workout routine.

What is your favorite workout song right now?