So in order to keep myself motivated I want to track my progress here! I'll post my "before" picture below and set up my exercise plan. The first Friday of every month I'll post a progress picture and in between I will give tips and advice on workout routines, how to lose weight, what the safe amount to lose per week is, smoothie recipes, and so on. I figure if I commit myself to posting progress pictures I'll be more motivated to stay on track and be healthier! And I want you guys to start with me. Anyone who wants to get healthy this year I want to hear about it! Post comments, positive thoughts, progress of your own healthy-success! Let's keep each other motivated! It's always easier to workout with a friend, so even if we can't exercise together in person we can motivate each other here!

If you're planning on sharing the same New Year's Resolution as me, here's a basic plan!

• Plan to exercise 3-5 days per week at a moderate intensity
• Moderate intensity will increase your heart rate but you should still be able to hold a conversation with your friend next to you without huffing and puffing. If you can't talk without wheezing, slow it down.
• MUSCLE GAIN = focus on more strength training exercises like lifting weights
• FAT LOSS = focus on lower intensity exercises like brisk walks and jogs but also incorporate strength training but with lower weights and more repetitions
• Be sure to always incorporate a little bit of both!
• Start slow! Don't over do it in your first week. It can take up to 2 days for you to feel the pain associated with muscle soreness after a workout.
• When you do begin to feel muscle soreness just remember: PAIN IS WEAKNESS LEAVING THE BODY. It's a good thing, push through it, as long as you are not causing injury to yourself
• Want to start drinking PROTEIN SHAKES? You should drink your protein shake within 30 minutes of finishing your workout, but you can drink it up to 2 hours after. The sooner the better though
• Do not "carb load" before a big workout, it will only upset your stomach and proper carb loading before a big event (marathon, triathlon, etc) actually needs to be done DAYS in advance for your body to efficiently use all those carbs!
• If you hate running (like me), you can actually just walk at a brisk pace (3.5-4mph) and it will still burn fat as you walk! Just make sure your walk lasts around 30-45 minutes at the least.
• When STRENGTH TRAINING only work on one or two muscle groups at a time and give yourself 2 days rest before working those muscles again. Here are the main muscle sets:
• Back
• Shoulders
• Arms
• Legs
• Chest
• Abs
• Cardio (only choose to focus on EITHER cardio OR other muscles, don't over do it)
• CIRCUIT TRAINING is great for an overall workout but make sure to use lower weights and higher repetitions since you are exercising ALL your muscle groups rather than focusing on one or two.
• STRETCH before and after your exercise to help minimize muscle soreness and reduce chances of injury
• Don't weigh yourself every day to see if you lost weight. Your weight can fluctuate +/- 6 lbs throughout the day. Try to limit yourself to 1 scale visit per week.
• For the most accurate reading weigh yourself naked (or in your skivvies) first thing in the morning after you use the bathroom

I'll go into specifics in a later post but there's the basics. Here's my "before" info as of today!

||Female||

||Age: 24||

||5'9"||

||146.8 lbs||

||21.7% body fat||

||36.6% muscle mass||

||56.2% body water||

|||4.4 bone density||

01.02.2015

01.02.2015

*Just a quick note about BMI.

BMI (body mass index) is a horrible way to determine where you should be at physically. It is a calculation of your height and weight and it's what today's society uses to determine if you are within "range" of a heathy weight. It DOES NOT take into consideration how much fat or muscle weighs (muscle weighs more than fat) or how much of each you have. I'll give you an example...

My husband is around 5'11" and fluctuates right around 205lbs. According to his BMI (about 29) he is on the verge of being considered Obese (30+). I couldn't tell you how wrong this is. He is in the military and they have high fitness standards. When he uses the scale he is only around 15% body fat which is right in range with a fit male (but not quite an elite athlete) which means he actually has a lot of muscle! If you look at him he looks fit, not fat.

On the other hand, you could be 30% body fat (just a little higher than average, moderately close to ACE's standard of being obese) and since you have less muscle you could be in proper range for your BMI because fat weighs less than muscle.