Why I Took a Break From Blogging

A few months ago, i had a very interesting response from someone (a woman I highly respect) in regards to this blog. 

"Well, I enjoyed reading your blog until you started posting pictures of those girls with zero body fat and glorifying them like they are the ideal woman. I doubt most of those girls even have a period." 

Her words were disheartening. My intentions were/are not to make "normal" women feel "bad" about their bodies; only encourage and inspire us to all pursue health and fitness. For me, pictures like this:

 @laurasykora

Don't make me feel bad about my body but motivate me to get to the gym and work it out. hard; and NOT because I want to be skinny but desire to maintain long, lean, defined muscle. In my opinion, muscle says "yeah, I work hard and I care." 

And when I say muscle, I mean this...

 

And not this...(even though the dress is fabulous)

And NOT this.... 

 

When we eat healthfully and exercise 5 days a week, our bodies DO become harder, and more defined, with smaller fat cells. It's just what happens. And while the "perfect" body is 100% unattainable for me, a healthy toned body IS attainable (at least until I have kids! lol.).

And it's really, really not about what is on the exterior. 

Someone who is super health conscious and stressed out about it is most likely doing more harm than good, because of all the horrible things that stress does to the body. A healthy heart and mind is JUST as important as eating consciously and getting that heart rate up. SLEEP is super important too! And probably my biggest weakness. I am addicted to staying up late! It's terrible. 

We all have things we are working on. If the images on my blog cause you to feel insecure, or hateful, or obsessed, please send me an email and I will take the picture down. I don't want to create unhealthy thinking in the pursuit of an "ideal". God created your body to be your body, not Miranda Kerr's. You were created for a specific purpose, and your body was crafted for a specific purpose. 

If you are overweight or feel overweight and hate yourself for it, try to reverse your thinking.

Try to focus on what you are putting inside your body, instead of what the outside looks like. 

You will begin to love your body for what it can do rather than how it attracts people to you. 

You'll begin to love yourself, and instead of eating that piece of celery because it only has like 10 calories a stalk (exaggeration, I know!), you'll be eating it because of it's rich vitamin C content. 

You'll drink a green smoothie and appreciate all of the vitamins and minerals that are nourishing your system, and when you're hungry at 3pm you'll reach for some almond butter and apples, because you'll actually be able to taste the real sugar and enjoy the healthy fat. 

Work on the inside, and the outside will come with time. You won't feed your dog chocolate because it's bad for his digestion, so why do you put processed chemicals inside your stomach when you KNOW it is terrible for you? 

Yo Yo dieting is all because of your MINDSET. I used to do it when I had an eating disorder and STILL feel the temptation to do it, but the mentality is sickening. It's so vain! It's all about losing five pounds here, ten pounds there, and it's not about inner holistic health.

Quit the yoyoing. think about your BODY and what you are putting into it. Think whole foods, ones that aren't processed, ones that have a readable lable. If you can't read the ingredients, don't buy it. Stay away from sugars that will spike your stress levels. Pray. Relax. Go for a walk and enjoy the weather. Read a book. Laugh. Be with people. Make friends. Turn off the TV.

Cultivate a spirit of humility, 

a smile of joy, 

a calm center, 

a servant attitude toward the world around you, 

and you will begin to FEEL amazing. 

You'll be full of energy. 

You will look forward to your day at school, or the office, or your children, because you will soak in every moment and appreciate this beautiful life.

After a couple months contemplating the future of this blog, I will continue to post pics of women doing amazing things like kipping pull ups and handstands, because those women are amazing and they are an inspiration regarding how I want to live my life to the fullest and perform everything to the best of my ability. It's not about how they "look," but about their commitment and resolve to live a passionate life.

Take a deep breath. 

<3 Beth

I Lifted Weights!!!

Breakfast this morning: 

It has been a crazy week! Luckily, I have been able to be very consistent with my nutrition and training schedule to fit into my bridesmaid dress on March 22...only a half inch in my chest/ back to go!

On another note...I LOVE that Jamba Juice gives out Competitor Magazine for free!! It is such an inspiring read. Next time you are getting some juice (remember to stay away from the sugar infested smoothies!!) grab a copy of this mag...it might motivate you to sign up for a race!

There is a really great article in the current issue about race training for speed.

Dinner Last night: 

Eggs, Tomato & Mango salsa, bell peppers, steamed asparagus, 1/2 avocado

My Breakfasts and Lunches have been looking like this lately: 

Hard boiled eggs, salsa, celery, chicken, fruit, avocado. 

ANNOUNCEMENT:

I took a Body Pump class last night and finally tried weight training! 

I liked it except I wished there was more of a focus on abs/butt isolation...I'm also not that sore, which shows that maybe I didn't lift heavy enough? I don't want my arms to get too buff! Everyone tells me that my arms won't get buff by lifting heavy, but my arms are already pretty toned/buff and I don't lift at all!

I am going to try another class tonight and see if lifting heavier makes a difference. You would think after doing 150 (or more?) squats my legs/ butt would be sore...but no. 

I am going sign off and devour a bag of fruit.

 

Cheers! 

<3 Beth

Pinterest Fitness Inspiration

I hope you are all having a lovely Tuesday!

I have been spending quite a bit of time on Pinterest lately (perhaps too much?), and definitely too much time catching up on the third season of Downton Abbey (how DARE they kill my favorite character!!). Since I can't stream my favorite D.A. episodes on my blog, I figured a little Pinspiration might suffice to explain my happenings as of late (or, I suppose, what I would LIKE my happenings to be of late, since I have been sick in bed for the last few days).

Side Note for my Mom:  I don't endorse dressing like a hoochie mama while working out...I like these pictures because they display strong women who have worked really hard to achieve their fitness goals!

And here, my friend, is a glimpse at last night's Costco grocery run:

($3 giant bags of romaine!!! Costco is my happy place.)

Where do YOU shop for groceries???

 

Busy? 10 Ways to Maintain "Healthy" While On the Go

Let's get right down to it, shall we?

While I would like to be in Cabo San Lucas and sipping on Mint Iced Tea...

I am actually in North Orange County moving apartments and trying to squeeze in a few cardio sessions this week. Trying. At the moment Joel and I have no electricity and I can't cook, which means we are eating loads of fruit, celery, bell peppers, and cans of tuna.

Blah.

So here are some things that help me stay "healthy" when I am on the go and super busy.

1. Drink tons of water. Hydration helps in so many ways (and not just weight loss!). I try to drink my weight in ounces every day. 135 pounds (my weight) = 135 ounces per day. Of course, I am not able to drink this much water every day, but because my aim is high I usually get at least 100 ounces in, and I notice a huge difference in my energy levels and my skin when I do get the proper amount.

• "Consume part of the water required for proper daily hydration before your meals to control your appetite, according to a study by researchers from Virginia Tech and reported at the 2010 National Meeting of the American Chemical Society. Drinking 16 oz. of water before meals three times a day over a 12-week period increased average weight loss by about 5 lbs., compared with those who did not increase water intake" Livestrong  
•  "The researchers estimate that over the course of a year, a person who increases his water consumption by 1.5 liters a day would burn an extra 17,400 calories, for a weight loss of approximately five pounds. They note that up to 40% of the increase in calorie burning is caused by the body's attempt to heat the ingested water. The findings are reported in the December issue of The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism." WebMD

2.  Eat every three to four hours. If you're like me and have a naturally slow metabolism, you have to learn to "trick" your body into speeding its calorie-burning process. I like to pack veggies, fruit, and almonds in my purse to ensure that I always have something to snack on throughout the day. This also helps me to NOT overeat when dinner roles around. Of course, when eating frequently you have to consider what you are eating frequently...those 100 calorie packs that are full of sugar, salt, and chemicals are going to do you NO GOOD WHATSOEVER.

• Women's Health Magazine has a great article that features when to eat throughout the day. Check it out by clicking here.

 3.  Fill your fridge with lean protein, veggies, coconut water, cranberry concentrate, lemons, fruit, quinoa, almonds, almond milk (unsweetened), fresh tea, and hummus. Throw away all of the sugary and processed stuff...the more you see the stuff the more your taste buds will crave it.

4. Minimize grocery shopping time by making a list of what you need and sticking to that list. This will also help you save money! Don't wander down the cereal section (even the "healthy" cereals are usually loaded with chemicals/sugar), the chips section, or the ice cream section. Stick to the outer edges of the store.

5. At the beginning of each week, cook all of your meat and chop all of your veggies to save in prep time for your meals. This can seriously save you SO MUCH TIME. In the summer I also like to make a pitcher of green iced tea that I can pour into water bottles and take anywhere (this will also save you a ton of money from going to Starbucks in the middle of the day).

6. If you don't have time to drive to the gym, get your butt outside and go for a run, or follow along to any of the videos from these You Tube channels (click on the names to go to the links). Most of the videos are under 10 minutes and are totally do-able.

• Blogilates 
• Body Rock TV
• Sarah Fit
• Tone It Up

7.  If you must eat out, pick a restaurant you can trust. Try Chipotle, Jamba Juice (although READ the ingredients of the smoothies very closely. Some of them are just awful), Corner Bakery, Mothers Market, Whole Foods, Yard House, Cheesecake Factory (because they have every veggie and lean protein in the world and you can create your own meal), any organic fast-food place (they are here in Cali at least), Cafe Rio, or Flame Broiler (but stick to brown rice and no sauce with sugar in it).

8. Buy a few Lara Bars and keep them in your car for emergencies- these are all natural and have NO added sugar. They are made purely from fruit and nuts!

9. Plan out your meals! This will help you shop efficiently and also help you in deciding what you are going to eat that day/night. If you already have it written down your meals in a calendar you are probably less likely to splurge.

10. Just do it! Eating healthy can be difficult but it is so worth it, and your body will thank you in so many ways. 

I can't fit into my dress!!! AHHHHH!

Well hello there! 

I have been M.I.A. and super, super busy. 

Joel and I are moving, a couple girls and I just planned/executed a Bridal Shower, still doing youth ministry stuff, blogging elsewhere...

I have simply been on the go for six weeks straight!

My sister-in-law (pictured above) is getting married in four weeks. 

While this is all very exciting, I have one slight (okay, huge) problem: 

My bridesmaid dress doesn't fit!!!!

I ordered it in a size six, my normal size, but when it came in the zipper literally won't go all the way up by about 3 inches.

At first, I was worried.

But then I remembered that since the 30-day-Paleo challenge ended the last week of January, I have gained about four pounds (dang you gluten!!!!), so I know I have some weight I can lose to make the dress fit. 

And lucky for me, my fellow bridesmaid and sister in law is facing the same problem with her dress, so I concocted a nutrition/work out plan that will help our dresses zip all the way to the top :)

Below is a great view of the culprit that has created my most recent problem.

OPERATION: FIT INTO BRIDESMAID DRESSES BY MARCH 22 @ 3 PM

By Bethany Thompson

Basics of the Eating Plan:

1.      Clean Eating – NO processed sugar, alcohol, empty carbs, or saturated fats

2.      Water – DRINK 100 OUNCES PER DAY

3.      Green Tea (no honey) at 3PM every day (if possible!)

4.      Eat every two hours

5.      Main meals should be eaten until full (do not starve yourself!)

6.      No carbs after 6 pm (unless berries)

7.      Drink “Metabolism Boost” every morning upon waking up

8.      Exercise 5 days per week

9.      Sleep at least seven hours every night

10.  Go-to warm drinks are green tea and hot water with lemon (try to cut coffee out if possible)

11.  Don’t think about what you can’t have. If you have a craving, go for a walk, drink some tea, or just walk away.

12.  Try to dispose of all sugar/tempting foods – the less you have to see it the better (Emily – maybe ask your mom to put the dessert pile inside the cabinets so that you don’t see it every time you walk into the kitchen?)

Basics of the Workout Plan:

1.      Try to work out for at least 30 minutes six days per week. Three days of hard cardio, two days of strength training, one day of easy cardio/abs.

2.      Try to incorporate high intensity interval training (HIIT) into every workout. The higher your heart rate goes, the more calories you burn.

3.      Try to work out until exhausted (aka until you absolutely CANT do another rep or another jump, etc), give yourself a 30 second rest, and then go for it again.

4.      EVERY MORNING when first out of bed, hold the plank position for as long as you can. This will awaken abs, arms, butt, heart, and will get your metabolism going immediately, which is ideal for calorie burning throughout the day.

5..      Stretch your back, spine, and abs every day to slim the waist and make it smaller!

MEALS FOR WEEK 1

Breakfast

Snack 1

Lunch

Snack 2

Dinner

Snack 3

Sunday

2 Eggs w/ Fruit of choice

Fruit of choice

Chicken, Romain Lettuce, lemon juice, balsamic vinigar, 1 tomato, cucumber

Vegetable of Choice & Cup of Green Tea

Out w/friends - some kind of protein and vegetable

Herbal Tea

Monday

Oatmeal w/almond milk, Greek yogurt, Banana, and Cinnamon

Fruit of choice

Open faced Sandwich: Ezekiel Bread, Chicken, hummus, spinach, tomato, cucumber, mustard, seasonings w/ side of raw veggie of choice

Vegetable of Choice & Cup of Green Tea

Veggie-tomato-sausage stew

Herbal Tea

Tuesday

2 Eggs w/ Fruit of choice

Fruit of choice

Leftovers

Vegetable of Choice & Cup of Green Tea

Baked lemon chicken w/steamed broccoli and brown rice

Herbal Tea

Wednesday

Smoothie: Almond milk, banana, cocoa powder, spinach, berries, Greek yogurt

Almonds & Fruit of choice

Leftovers

Vegetable of Choice & Cup of Green Tea

Protein-style burger w/ romain lettuce, tomato, red onion, avocado, hummus & half of a sweet potato

Herbal Tea

Thursday

Oatmeal w/almond milk, Greek yogurt, Banana, and Cinnamon

Fruit of choice

Leftovers

Vegetable of Choice & Cup of Green Tea

"Taco" salad - Romain lettuce, lemon, salsa, peppers, black beans, ground beef taco style, corn, red onions, olives

Herbal Tea

Friday

2 Eggs w/ Fruit of choice

Fruit of choice

Open faced Sandwich: Ezekiel bread, Chicken, hummus, spinach, tomato, cucumber, mustard, seasonings w/ side of raw veggie of choice

Vegetable of Choice & Cup of Green Tea

Pizza! Whole wheat crust, tomato paste, skim mozzerella cheese, peppers, olives, broccoli

Herbal Tea

***EQUIP is this weekend. DO NOT eat all the snacks!!! Pack

Saturday

Equip Conference: Fruit & Protein. NO yogurt as the yogurt they serve has tons of sugar

Bring some almonds to snack on

Whatever is healthiest at Equip. Preferably a salad and a protein (meat)

Vegetable of Choice & Cup of Green Tea - there will definitely be green tea at Equip

Out w/friends - some kind of protein and vegetable

Herbal Tea

***NOTE: You can eat as many fruits and vegetables as you want!!! No limit.

  

I also put Emily on an AT-HOME workout schedule. It is a compilation of the best You Tube workout videos and running :) No weights, no cost, and it is super convenient.

YOU CAN TOTALLY GET IN SHAPE AND NOT HAVE A GYM MEMBERSHIP!!

Below is her workout schedule for the week :) Enjoy!

Week 1: February 25-March 3

Monday:  Jillian Michael’s 30 Day Shred

                  Run 15 minutes

Tuesday:  5 of any videos from this link: http://www.dailyhiit.com/videos

                  Run 20 minutes

Wednesday:

Running Intervals – try doing these at a park or treadmill so you can sprint on grass (5 min warm up jog, run 2 minutes, sprint 1 minute, walk 30 seconds, and repeat that cycle for 30 minutes. Cool down: walk five minutes. STRETCH.)

Thursday:

Do these three videos:

1.      Tone It Up Butt http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DwEQ_HWwJKg&list=PLoF7Or9dN9vJfCgmP-abiDi8pCk4n4gAw&index=11

2.      Tone It Up Abs http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w4sEYZzFn2I&list=PLoF7Or9dN9vJfCgmP-abiDi8pCk4n4gAw&index=4

3.      Pilates HIIT: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WwjUMPoiAyk&list=FLIJwWYOfsCfz6PjxbONYXSg&index=10

Friday:

1.      Pop Pilates: HIIT / Abs

a.      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4xMGet6CpI&list=FLIJwWYOfsCfz6PjxbONYXSg&index=9

b.      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tX-rgPB0kS8

c.      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SILytLQf0JA

2.      If you have more time, try to do a 30 minute interval run (same as Wednesday), or even a 10 minute interval run if limited on time!

Below is a random picture I found on Pinterest and absolutely LOVE. 

(To follow me, click here)

If you want to participate with us and slim down in the next four weeks, comment below or email me and I will get the meal plan/workout plan to you!

DISCLAIMER: I am not a dietitian!! Please consult your doctor before starting any exercise or nutrition program. It is very important that you take precautions when changing your dietary and exercise habits! Everything I post is purely based on experience and my own personal research and therefore is NOT professional advise. 

SIDE NOTE:

 Joel and I recently celebrated our one year anniversary! Below are some pictures from our wedding day and our anniversary getaway to La Jolla ;)

Have a happy Monday!

<3 Beth