Happy Thursday friends! I hope you are well and if you’re on the East Coast, recovering from the snow! The sun is finally supposed to shine on us today with temps reaching the mid 60’s!!! Woot, woot!

Health & Fitness Goals + Complete Guide To My Favorite Gear

I’m going to warn you this is going to a long post so feel free to skip around but there is one overall message that is somewhat bittersweet…

TRUTH

I’ve learned a hard truth this past year and there is some good news and some bad news. Which do you want first? Bad news first, okay, here goes. I’ve realized that as we age ladies, and I assume for men to, it’s nearly impossible to maintain a healthy body and weight without eating well and working out…wait for it…WORKING OUT HARD!!! As I am now closer to 40 than 30, dieting here and there and going for a run once every couple of weeks is not going to cut it. There I said it. It’s all out on the table. 

FITNESS

After encouragement from some wonderful people (you know who you are), I found myself signing up for a CrossFit class, nervous, excited and terrified all at the same time. I’m now into my fourth month at CrossFit Cornelius (going 3-4 times a week) and I’m finally seeing some results. But let me tell you friends it’s one of the hardest things that I do. Period. For the first three months I dreaded going EVERY.SINGLE.CLASS and would often talk myself out of it. It was hard on my muscles and mentally challenging. I swear I’m working muscles that probably haven’t been used in decades!

There is some light at the end of the tunnel, though. I finally understand most of the workouts, movements and even the lingo. And, as of a couple of weeks ago the fear has almost subsided and it has become part of my routine. I finally look forward to going and challenging myself. So if I can give you one piece of advice, for any workout regime, stick with it past the three month mark and I think you will have a much higher rate of success.

Get more details on my favorite active wear by clicking the images below:

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I think there was an aha moment somewhere over the last month or so where I had to accept the fact that this was just going to be hard work, probably for the rest of my life. But if I want a strong healthy body there is no way around it. Sad I know but on the bright side I can feel myself getting stronger, more confident, and I can actually see some definition returning to my muscles. The scale is not going down yet, it’s actually going up, but I know it’s because I’m gaining muscle mass and I am feeling better when I look in the mirror. 

One of the main things that held me back from joining a gym or committing to a fitness program was because it’s not cheap. It’s rather quite expensive for me. But earlier in 2016 I decided I was going to spend my money on things that made me happier and healthier and cut out things and expenses that were unnecessary. Two of the biggest changes were my CrossFit membership and my housecleaner.

If you saw my finances you wouldn’t think that I would be one who could afford a house cleaner or belong to an expensive gym but I figured out how to cut down on shopping and spending so that I can work these important things into my life. The housekeeper helps with my sanity and allows me to focus on the blog, my day job and my son more. CrossFit is helping me get healthy so that my body is strong enough to run around with my son for many years longer than might have been possible if I continued down the path of little exercise and only a somewhat healthy diet. These things make me happy and therefore worthy of my precious dollars.

GEAR

Now are you ready for the good news? Okay, here goes. Once you start CrossFit or any other committed workout regimen you get automatically initiated into this little cult commonly know as Lululemon. Before you say anything I promise I’m not one who can afford to fill my closet with every Lululemon piece that I want. But I have been savvy finding things at in-store sales and I’ve gotten a few pieces as gifts. There are also websites and Facebook groups that sell and trade Lululemon gear!

I used to be on the front lines waving my weapon around yelling the battle cry, “paying this kind of money for THIS stuff is absurd!” And while I still feel like the prices are a bit outrageous I can no longer deny the fit and quality of some of what Lululemon is pushing, particularly the leggings. So, look out for sales and search Facebook and Google for locals buying and selling and treat yourself from time to time! It really is rewarding for all your hard work and if you are working out 4 to 5+ times a week you start to realize you’re basically living in your gear. The Wunder Under leggings are by far my very favorite and the high rise style is especially great! Oh and this is not a sponsored post by any means, I simply haven’t found any athletic leggings that come close to these in comfort, style and quality!

Get more details on my favorite leggings by clicking the images below:

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For sizing purposes I’m 5′ 7″ and I fluctuate between 138-143 lbs. Although I would love to be between 130-135 lbs I’m trying to focus less on weight and more on being strong and healthy. As for Lululemon, I find most of the their stuff runs a bit small. I’m usually a 6-8 or M-L and at Lulu I definitely am an 8 in leggings, a 10 in bras and probably a large in tops although I don’t own any tops. For Target, Old Navy and Gap I tend to stay in the M-L category, and I often lean towards large because I don’t want my active wear skin tight (other than leggings). 

Now let’s move on to another important topic when it comes to gear for the ladies. The evil sports bra! I don’t know what I loathe more, shopping for bras or swim suits but either way it’s never a good experience. I usually end up buying the cheapest bra I can find as quick as possible regardless of the fit or quality. Well, this is also part of the philosophy of spending money on the things that are important and choosing quality over quantity. I decided to actually spend a little time and money on finding a quality sports bra and these are the two I’ve found. Of course they are Lululemon but again, you get what you pay for.

The Energy Bra is my top choice for good support that also has a cute factor! I mean who doesn’t want to wear all these cute strappy numbers?! This is the only one I’ve found in my hunt that offers enough support while still being cute. I scored this one on sale for $39 too!

Second is this full coverage bra called the Ta Ta Tamer, and rightfully so! There are no cute back straps but I promise it puts the girls in the right place and definitely keeps them there! I put this one on and was like, “heeeeyyy, that’s where they’re supposed to be!” Bahahaha… Getting old stinks :)

On a side note…guys you can scroll on down if you’re reading :)…but I found a great thong that is so comfortable it doesn’t even feel like you have one on. That’s a win in my book!

 

 

 

 

 

 

These are my favorite socks for training and running.

 

 

 

 

 

Also, I haven’t bought any new shoes for strength training and conditioning yet but I hear these are pretty good ones!

Don’t worry, Lululemon is not the only place I shop for active wear. Although their leggings don’t fit me very well, Old Navy is one of my favorite places to shop for affordable tops, especially their tank tops. All of Old Navy’s active wear is on sale for 50% off right now!!! Gap (also on sale!) has recently expanded their active wear collection with their new Gap Fit line and I have quite a few items on my wishlist.

Marshall’s and TJ Maxx are great for jackets and pullovers. My puffer jacket above is from Marshall’s but I found a similar one from the same brand HERE. And finally, Target is a go-to for workout gear that you can actually afford. I love their Champion line and it’s all 25% off right now online and in the store! I bought all of the items below on sale today but unfortunately not in time to photograph them. Seriously, you can snag some good stuff at really great prices, even for the kiddos!

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For the gentlemen, my other half LOVES the Russell line at Walmart and says it’s very similar to Lululemon style! So you guys who don’t want to shower yourself in Lulu check out Walmart!

**My gray open back shirt above is from Marshall’s but I found it here on Ebay! Target, Old Navy and Gap are all great for cute open back tees and tanks!

TOOLS

Like I said, I’m not an expert on any of this nor will I ever be a competitive athlete, but I’ve found a few tools that help me in my daily life that I want to share with you. I don’t have much problem drinking a lot of water but this infusion pitcher lets me change it up from time to time by adding fruit or veggies to naturally flavor my water. My two favorites are cucumber water and pineapple water!

I didn’t have a Fitbit until recently but I must say I’m really enjoying it. Whether it’s accurate or not, it helps me stay motivated and I love adding my workouts to the app and tracking my heart rate and sleep patterns.

I’ve also been trying to find and utilize more apps on my phone to help me with fitness tracking and healthy eating. I’m enjoying Paleo Plate for recipes, Mealime for meal planning and MyFitnessPal to track food intake and weight loss. I plan on trying Nom Nom Paleo (love the blog!), ShopWell and Platejoy too! If anyone out there is using the Nom Nom Paleo app will you let me know if it’s worth the $5.99? Pretty please?! Also, let me know any other health and fitness apps that you love!

I find that the heavier weight I lift at CrossFit the weaker my wrists are so I picked up two pairs of these wrist wraps from Amazon and so far so good! Of course I had to go for the leopard print! I will eventually invest in a back belt and weight-lifting gloves at some but I’m not quite there yet :) Just another side effect of aging I guess!

{Photos by Paige Winn Photo}

FOOD

I’m going to save our food journey for a later date until we’re a little farther along but basically, we started lowering our carbs, now we’re leaning more towards a paleo diet and hopefully will attempt Whole30 at some point. Basically we just want to eat more real food!

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So this has been my fitness journey over the last few month and I’m proud to say that I think it’s here to stay and I’ll definitely keep you updated as it continues! Also, I’ll be sharing the inside of our CrossFit gym on my Instagram stories later today so make sure you’re following! And if you have any questions about CrossFit and/or CrossFit Cornelius definitely email me! Again, I am no pro, this is only the beginning of my journey, but I can certainly help you find the answers to your questions!

Also, let’s cheer each other on and share the love! If you have any fitness products you swear by leave them in the comments and I’ll definitely check them out!

Cheers!