I hope you had a good Memorial Day weekend.

I had a sincere paradigm shift this weekend. Before this weekend, I’ve never really connected to the meaning of Memorial Day. Fortunately, I’ve never lost a loved one due to the horrors of war. I’m ashamed to admit but before this weekend Memorial day was more about a “summer kick off”. It was a three day weekend. It was a “goal date” to be bikini ready.

Not anymore.

Our weekend started on Friday with a visit to Manasses National Battlefield. Saturday, we went to Harpers Ferry. Sunday, we went to Antietem National Battlefield. Yesterday, we went to Gettysburg National Battlefield.

After all that bikinis and BBQs seem inconsequential.

Freedom is not free.

With a sincere heart I want to say, thank you to all who have served.

It was hot and humid this weekend. In some ways, I think it made visiting the battlefields all that much more powerful. Walking 4.5 miles in cotton t-shirt and shorts during 90 degree weather is one thing. Walking 4.5 miles (Or more…much more.) in a Civil War soldier’s uniform of long underwear, shirt, wool hat, wool pants, and wool coat while carrying 45lbs of gear is another.

I have no excuses.

Week Four Results of Movement Matters 10,000 Steps a Day Challenge

5/22 – 14,009
5/23 – 11, 438
5/24 – 9,111
5/25 – 11, 095
5/26 – 11,395
5/27 – 8,022
5/28 – 11,933

Weekly average is 11,000 steps a day.

I’ve noticed that each week my steps have gone up a little bit. The funny thing is this has not been intentional. I think it’s the result of creating a habit. My highest day of 14,009 steps on 5/22 was spent in the campground but walking is mentally becoming such an important part of my day that I find myself wanting to get up and move more. For a slug like myself, this is quite the phenomenon.

Hugs and High Fives,
Jenn

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Walking 10,000 steps a day is challenge.

Even with my new walking shoes.

I’m all over being barefoot. However, that’s not usually practical especially in the city. So I went on an search to find shoes that were as close to being barefoot as possible that didn’t look like frog feet and could be worn with dresses. Hello moccasins. Best. Walking. Shoes. Ever.

Anyway…

Week Three Results of my Movement Matters 10,000 Steps a Day Challenge 

• 5/15 – 9037
• 5/16 – 15,410
• 5/17 – 6707
• 5/18 – 13,151
• 5/19 – 10,656
• 5/20 – 15,995
• 5/21 – 7747
• Weekly average – 11,243 (A little higher than last week.)

Love walking around DC with this guy.

Unless, I’m sightseeing getting in 10,000 steps a day takes effort. On sightseeing days I walk 10,000+ steps without thinking about it.

But during an ordinary day I have to be intentional to get in 10,000 steps. This usually means a walk in the morning and evening if I have errands to run that day. If I don’t have errands it means adding in a walk in the afternoon.

It’s a little embarrassing how much I sit on a normal day. I sit to write. I sit to eat. I sit when we homeschool. I sit to drive. I sit on the couch with Brent in the evening. Often sometimes, I sit and do nothing. (And you thought my life was exciting.)

Before we moved into the RV, I moved more by doing stuff around the house like cleaning. However, the RV takes about 15 minutes to clean and it is 18 steps from the front to the back. Four steps from the couch to the kitchen. (Dangerous.) I could clean all day and walk 1000 steps. Maybe.

Anyway, we left Washington DC yesterday and we are slowing down for a few weeks before we head to Philadelphia and NYC. I only have a battlefield and one museum trip planned this week so I’ll have to be intentional each day if I’m going to walk 10,000 steps.

Also planning some workouts for the week after almost 2 weeks off.

• Monday – Walk
• Tuesday – Walk + Kettlebells
• Wednesday – Walk
• Thursday – Walk + Kettlebells
• Friday – Walk
• Saturday – Walk + Kettlebells
• Sunday – Walk

I hoping to get to workout with this lady, Lisa from Workout Mommy. She loves kettlebells too! We had dinner with Lisa and her adorable family last night. So much fun!

Hugs and High Fives,
Jenn

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The post Movement Matters: Week Three Results appeared first on Girl Heroes.

This week has been a blur. We have been in Washington D.C and I’ve been trying to pack in as much as possible every day. The boys and I have been getting up every morning (except one) to go into the city around 9 am and returning home around 9 pm. While visiting D.C. has made it fairly easy to get in my steps, it hasn’t left me much time for blogging or editing videos.

Or workouts.

I didn’t get in the three workouts I had planned last week. I’m a little disappointed in myself but all I can do is admit I didn’t make working out a priority last week. My priority has been seeing and learning as much as possible with the boys. I had planned to get up early and workout before we went into D.C. but it didn’t happen. When we got home after 12 hours in the city I was just too exhausted.

This week I’m going to shoot for one full body strength training workout.

One.

Impressive, right? Rather, than feeling disappointed when I don’t do what I say I’m going to do, I’m just deciding right now that one workout this week is enough. We are still in DC for a few more days and the workouts can wait. I workout consistently so two weeks of straying from my normal schedule isn’t going to hurt anything.

While I didn’t get in my strength training workouts this week I did ride my bike and walk.

Week Two 10,000 Steps a Day Results

• 5/8 – 14,518
• 5/9 – 14,035
• 5/10 – 3376
• 5/11 – 10,034
• 5/12 – 15,575
• 5/13 – 7904
• 5/14 – 10,444

On May 10, I only walked 3376 steps that day due to lack of discipline and planning on my part. I got up late and skipped my morning walk because the boys and I were meeting friends, another fulltime RVing family, we had met in Austin, TX. Traveling in an RV is such a trippy life. I love it!

On May 13, we were in the National Museum of Air and Space where it should have been easy to get 10,000 steps. However, I got an unexpected bad stomach ache and ended up sitting down for a large part of the afternoon. I was much more bummed to miss parts of the museum than I was not to get in my steps.

So I didn’t technically reach my goal of 10,000 steps every day but when I averaged out my steps I got 10,840 a day. It’s consistency that counts right!

I hope you are having a great week and do some kettlebell swings for me would you!

Hugs and High Fives,
Jenn

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The post Movement Matters : Week Two Results and Why I’m Not Writing a Workout Plan This Week appeared first on Girl Heroes.

A few weeks ago, I talked about  “the cobbler’s children have no shoes” syndrome”, i.e., I’ve been finding it difficult to make time for my own workouts.

Then, I read this post by Alwyn Cosgrove.  (He and his wife Rachel have written some of the BEST stuff about fitness out there.)  While I don’t agree about the 4th of July being judgement day, (Yuck…as if we women need that sort of pressure.) I do like, periodically, giving myself challenges within a set timeframe. Alwyns’s advice about 4-6 days a week of full body metabolic and interval training is spot on.  I’ve been working out like this for 3 years.  It was how I lost my initial weight and how I’ve mostly maintained.

Except as of late, I haven’t been maintaining quite like I desire.  I’m not out of shape by any means but I would like to be a little stronger and have a little more definition, i.e. a bit leaner, for summer.

To top it off, I read Mizfit’s FitAfterFitbloggin’ post poem and I want to play too!

So I’m joining Miz by doing my own 4 week Fit(ter) for the Fourth challenge.

For the next 4 weeks I will do four things to get fit(er) for the fourth.

1. I will do 2-3 full body resistance workouts a week using kettlebells, bodyweight, and my suspension trainer.

2. I will do 2-3 interval based cardio sessions a week consisting of sparring, sprinting, heavy bag work (kicking and punching my bag), heavy ropes, or kettlebells.  (I need variety when it comes to card work.)

3. I will be mindful of mindless munching, i.e., eating an entire meal while I’m cooking dinner.  Gets me all time!

4. I will also be mindful of  when I eat my starches by planning to eat  starches around workouts.  For me, this is a very simple change that always works.  It helps me build strength and lean out.

My goals for the next 4 weeks are

1. Multiple consecutive pull ups from a dead hang.

2. Improve my pistol squat.

3. Improve my endurance.

4. Reduce my body fat by a few percent. Nothing major. (Guesstimating by clothing fit will have to do b/c I don’t want to take the time to do actual measurements and the scale is not very accurate.)

My workout plan for this week is

Monday – Minute Full Body Kettlebell Workout – Done
Tuesday – Rope/Kettlebell Intervals
Wednesday – Full Body Workout
Thursday – Sparring Class
Friday – Full Body Workout
Saturday – Rest
Sunday – Rest

I haven’t made my weekly meal plan yet.  I’ll update later.

That’s it.  Nothing extreme.  Just a few weeks to focus on consistency because if I’ve learned anything it’s that, no matter how cliché it sounds, consistency not perfection is key when it comes to getting (and maintaining) fit.  Add an intense (and safe), not long workout plan with real food nutrition and it’s hard not to see and feel results.

Lastly, thank you so much for checking out my new site, Newschool Nomads!  Just to clarify, we aren’t taking off for about 4-6 months.  We haven’t even bought our RV but I wanted a place to talk about simplifying life and share the process anyone who might be insane interested in taking off on the road.

Hugs and High Fives,
Jenn

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