It's hard to imagine what life was like 10 years ago without children. When I think back, I remember to quiet time and being able to do what I want when I wanted. With children, our days and schedules tend to revolve around them and their activities and it is harder and harder to find time for ourselves. I workout now more than I did without kids and in a way I find it easier. It takes work to get it in but it can be done.

It needs to be a priority. When working out becomes a priority, it is easy to fit into the crazy schedules or wake up earlier or cut other things out to make it happen. I wake up every morning at 5:15 to get a run in before my kids wake up. They don't even notice I am gone.

Join a gym that has a great childcare. When looking into gyms, consider the child care there just as much as what the gym offers. We skimped a little on the gym to have better child care. The child care is included in the price of membership. Our kids enjoy it so much that it is not a battle to go there and sometimes they complain that we were not there long enough.

Reward your kids after your workout. We have made a deal that after I workout, I give my kids my undivided attention doing something fun and usually active. If I workout at the gym for an hour, than we will follow it up with swimming and I get in the pool and actively play and swim with them. We also may go straight to a park, rock climbing, bike riding, play in the sprinklers, play in the yard, do a craft, or really anything that involves all of us. I like the kids take turns picking what they want to do. Sometimes our schedule doesn't support doing it right after, we may do it before or later in the day.

Form a sort of co-op with friends. Trade kids off to get workouts in and join together at a track or park or house so the kids can play together and you have a partner to workout with.

Make you your partner supports you. With that support, you don't feel as much guilt and you can share responsibility.

Take advantage of your kids practices. If they have sports practice at a park, run or walk around or do a playground workout while they are there. Many times at soccer practice, I will run around the field and then do a body workout. I figure I have an hour to be there and it is a great opportunity to get a workout in.

Include your kids in the workout. Young kids can be pushed in a jogger or pulled on a bike. As they get older, they can join by riding their bike with you or playing independently at a track or a park. I try to include my kids in as much as they can to give them exposure and let them choose when they want to join and when they want to play.

Do at home dvd workout programs. My kids have outgrown naps so we have developed no mommy time while I am working out at home. I tell my kids I am closed for x amount of minutes and set a timer. Before I start, I talk with each of them individually and make sure they are all set. I also remind them of all the things they can do and play while I am working out. After this, I make sure I give them my undivided attention right away. I find that crafts work really well with my kids during this time. I always expect a huge mess afterwards but it is worth it!

Be flexible. I am a creature of habit and love routine. However, it is unrealistic for me to be able to commit to a workout schedule with the ever changing needs of kids. Everyday the time that I workout and the type of workout changes based on the kids. There are days when I am squeezing it in first thing in the morning and other times when it is after the kids go to bed.

Don't let kids be your excuse to not be fit and workout. Let them be your reason to!

Marathon Monday- Breaking through walls and increasing miles

It's hard to believe a couple of weeks ago, I was really second guessing my decision to run this marathon. I was feeling selfish about the amount of time I was investing into my training and my body wasn't feeling great. I didn't like the idea of cutting back on my lifting either but knew I had to because I was being counterproductive. I also felt like I had hit a wall both mentally and physically. Running was becoming habitual but I wasn't pushing myself because I just didn't feel up to it. There was even a part of me thinking that I would delay it another year. I knew I could do it if I wanted to and could change my attitude but I just wasn't feeling it.
I am not quite sure how it happened but last week it all got turned around and I am at a good spot mentally and physically again! I have learned that it is not hard for me to commit to things. I can take on a long run and have an attitude of just getting it finished to put it on the books. That attitude is great in a sense because I will get the training in that I need to. However, it takes away from what I am doing and why I am doing it.
With the changes in my overall nutrition and fitness, I have had a change of attitude and have really been pushing myself. My pace has improved, my body feels better after running, my long run days are no longer toast because of fatigue, my attitude is better, and I am enjoying it all while consciously pushing myself harder and harder.
Coming into this training, my goal was to run better than the average time. My goal now is to really push myself to the place where it feels uncomfortable. There have been very few times that I have done that in my life. I like to take the easy way out. Writing it down will help to hold me accountable. This week I have increased my overall miles and am paying close attention to my times. I am making sure each run has a purpose and I am pushing myself.

Push Up Challenge

Push ups can be done anywhere at any time and there are so many variations that no matter what your fitness level is, they can be done and be beneficial. Push ups strengthen your upper body and improve core strength.
My challenge to you is to do 30 push ups a day all week. You may do them all at once, all the same kid, or switch it up. I personally like to do as many as I can at once or pair them with my ab workout.
Pushups can be done anywhere! At home, at work, at a park. I use my furniture for equipment! 

Variations-
modified push up- place your thighs on the ground and push your body up
legs apart/arms push up
tricep push up- elbows tight to the ribs
Incline push up
decline push up

Modify or accelerate the push ups to your personal needs.  This is also a great activity to include the kids in! Push yourself a little further each day. Try to do less and less modified or more in a row.
A year ago, I could only do 5 regular push ups in a row. Today, they are one of my favorite exercises and I love to vary the styles!
 

Beachbody

I have recently decided to take on the role of Beachbody Coach. Over the last few months, I have seen and heard about success stories with Beachbody. I started looking into it and saw how many fitness programs there were through Beachbody, as well as the nutrition component. When their newest fitness program PIYO came out, I knew I had to try it. I have never been one to participate in fitness classes at the gym. Its just not my thing. I have done fitness DVDs before as supplemental workouts. I liked the idea of PIYO because I think I could really benefit from Pilates and yoga but am too chicken to join a class. I bought the workout as a challenge pack which included shakeology. I felt that my diet was super clean coming into this challenge. I cut out all sugar except for fruits and I don't eat processed food and rarely even eat grains. I have never taken supplements or vitamins besides my prenatal ones while pregnant. I always felt I had a pretty well rounded diet and was good.
Ten days into this challenge, the results have already been amazing. I almost instantly felt a difference from drinking the shakes and I realized that my diet definitely had some holes in it. The biggest difference was the increase in energy. The shakes can be used as a meal replacement but I am not really using them in that way. I add many things to them which increases the calorie amount. It wasn't a goal of mine to lose weight. It was really just for more balance in my nutrition. I find that the shakes are very fulfilling (especially with peanut butter)  so I don't really eat a traditional breakfast with them. I drink my shakes after my run and PIYO workout. After I lift, I have a high protein snack and then a normal lunch and dinner. I have found that I am not hungry in between meals and don't really snack much anymore. I don't eat at all after dinner which used to be my weakness.
I love the PIYO workouts because they are quick. In such a short time, I feel like I am really working myself and getting a full body workout. I have seen an increase in my range of flexibility and have been sore in places that running and lifting doesn't cover for me.
I wasn't trying to lose weight with this challenge and didn't expect my body to transform. I am in the middle of marathon training, lifting at the gym 5 times a week and eating healthy. I have maintained a weight of 133 pounds over the last year and am in pretty good shape. To my surprise, I have already lost 2 pounds and have seen my body start to transform. I didn't measure myself initially because I didn't think I would see a significant difference but did a week into the challenge because I already noticed changes in my body. Keep in mind I am the one that gained weight while doing the 10 day sugar free challenge and training for a marathon.
This challenge has made my running and lifting more enjoyable and easier!
I decided to become a coach because I want to help others. Beachbody gives the tools for anyone to get control of their health and fitness. They have motivating programs for people that  have never worked out before and they have programs that benefit people that are already huge fitness buffs. I am such a skeptical person and was so unsure of this but the proof is really in the product and I am amazed at how it has changed me in just 10 days. I look forward to my shakes after my runs and I crave my PIYO workouts.
Beachbody top products include:
PIYO- new- a combination of pilates and yoga. workout using your own body weight and easy on the joins- gives long lean muscles
Shakeology- a shake mix made up of superfoods, vitamins, antioxidants, proteins, aminoacids, enzymes, and probiotics. Increases weight loss, overall health, regularity, and energy
21 Day Fix- combines exercise and nutrition to transform your body in 21 days
3 Day Refresh- A cleanse that lasts 3 days to get toxins and junk out of your system but still allows you to eat during it. Great to jump start a fitness program or after a vacation.
Please check out my website and let me know if you have any questions or would like any more information.
beachbodycoach.com/ninapears
 

Chocolate Shakeology Bars

Tomorrow is the 4th and I am trying to stay as healthy as possible. We will be having a picnic at the reservoir.
For a treat I made Gooey Shakeology Oatmeal Bars
I licked the spoon and can't wait to have them for real!
Gooey Shakeology Oatmeal Bars-
4 scoops of choc shakeology, 3 cups gluten free oats, 1 tsp cocoa powder, dash cinnamon, 1 cup almond milk, 1/2 cup almond butter, 1/2 tsp vanilla extract. Mix it all together and press flat in an 8x8 pan. refrigerate for 3 hours and cut and serve.
I hope the bars taste as good as the mix did!
 

FittKidz: Homemade Snocones and Water Balloon Fight

FittKidz: Homemade Snocones and Water Balloon Fight: Whenever we see Snocones, the kids always beg for them. I have a hard time spending $5 on ice and sugar water so I always say no but they be...

Homemade Snocones and Water Balloon Fight

Whenever we see Snocones, the kids always beg for them. I have a hard time spending $5 on ice and sugar water so I always say no but they beg and beg. We experimented a little and made the best Snocones at home. We used our Vitamix to blend the ice to snocone texture. I filled the blender with ice and then filled it up half way with water. I then blended it for about 10 seconds and it was perfect. I am not sure how other blenders work. I am sure they can be used but the length of time might differ. To flavor it, there are a couple of different options. You need to use a concentrated amount of drink mix. To make it healthier, you can use sugar free but there are still tons of dies in them and artifical sweetners. My take on making this healthy was to use RW knudson 100% juice. The juice is very strong and in my opinion needs to be diluted so it goes well with the snocone ice. Other ideas would be to freeze juice into ice cubes and then just blend those ice cubes into the snocone ice. It was a hit at our family and very refreshing.
A fun family activity is a water balloon fight. I love water balloon fights but it is a pain to fill all the water balloons up and they disappear so fast!  We fill up a bunch at once and put them in the inflatable pool. Everybody gets one and then runs away at a blastoff count from 10 down. Then everyone is fair game. And the balloons are first come first serve from here on out. At the end of the fight, it always feel worth all the time and headache to fill them up. I personally love to see the different personalities of the kids come out with their strategies of play!