Fitness
John
Well, a week later and here we are. No one has fallen off the bandwagon yet. I've got down the gym thing now I am working on increasing my knowledge of how to do resistance training and core exercises. If anyone reading this blog would like to chime in with some suggestions or websites I would be much obliged.
I've been sick with some allergy/sinus issues this week so Wednesday/Thursday I had no gym time. I start back up with some vigorous cardio tomorrow to get back into the routine. Currently my training schedule is M, W, F - Cardio; T, Th, S - Resistance; Sunday - Rest. With the Cardio I'm doing HIIT on an elliptical machine. I do some warm-up on a treadmill as it works a different set of muscles but just isn't good for the interval training because it's hard to burst to high speeds then suddenly go to a slow pace.
The food thing is still taking some time to get used to. I have been great for the most part. I have had a few meals where maybe the greatest decision wasn't made but overall every meal has been healthy and proportionate. I also have been drinking water like it is no body's business. I rarely drink anything but water anymore which seems weird to me because I used to be the person who hated water.
I find myself having more energy and overall I just feel better (even with the whole sick thing). I sleep so much better now that I'm exercising and I'm starting to notice that things that were once challenging me at the gym are now becoming easier.
Toni (The person former known as "co-worker") written by Toni
It's now day 4 of my 'diet' and it's been a slow start. Going Cold Turkey while dieting is too much of a shock for me. I have not changed my breakfast habits yet....still eating on the go. I make a quick sandwich on rye of either peanut butter and jelly, turkey or chicken and eat in the car with my Diet Coke.
Lunch is currently my most successful meal of the day: salad. I know I am still consuming too many carbs so I wil work on that each day. I have done better than I thought I would although I still fall back into old habits when I encounter stressful situations. Yesterday at work, I fell off the wagon and ate 3 (yes 3!) single Reese's cups.
Dinnertime has not been too much of a problem and I am happy with my success at least for this last meal of the day. I am eating about half of what I would usually eat......eating the same types of food, just half the amount.
I have not weighed myself yet..so I still need to do that .....once I do weigh myself, I will keep a chart in my bathroom and record my weight either daily or every other day. This method works for me and will keep me on track. I can say that after day 3, I do have more energy when I get home from work.
Katy written by John
Katy just received her Wii Fit and she's found herself working out at least 30 minutes a day on it. Already she's noticed a difference in energy level and is starting to feel the effects of the workout. She is enjoying it and made the comment that after doing several rounds of the "hula hoop" exercise that she felt it in her abs. Due to her just getting the Wii Fit this week this update will be a little short :-). More next time...
Finance
One thing that I do when shopping is use coupons. Many people think I'm wasting my time with it but in all reality I spend $20.00 on a Sunday newspaper subscription and maybe an hour before each shopping trip gathering coupons. I've saved hundreds of dollars in shopping trips and pretty much one trip to the store with coupons pays for my subscription.
Here are my person top 5 tips with coupons:
1. DO NOT USE THEM THE SAME WEEK YOU GET THEM.
One of the biggest mistakes I see people do is get their coupons on Sunday and turn around and use them on Monday. Somehow in the coupon world stores seem to know what products will have coupons in the paper and don't put those items on sale. Now, there is an exception to this rule - if it is a no brainer like $1.00 off an item that is going for $0.89 that week or it is something that you absolutely need and have a coupon for it (example - toilet paper). Instead, wait about 3-4 weeks and watch the weekly ads closely because you can normally match up a sale item with a coupon and get a lot more money off (or some free items!)
2. DON'T BUY SOMETHING BECAUE YOU HAVE A COUPON
Another temptation is to go to the store and walk down the isle with all your coupons and see an awesome chocolate brownie mix that is calling your name. You know in your mind that you don't need the mix so you stand there and figure out a way to justify it to yourself. You go digging through your coupons and see that you can buy it with a $1.00 off... well why not then? Yeah, you nor your body needs that mix so put it down and move on. If you're really bad at this, only take the coupons that you know you really really need. This way we eliminate temptation to buy everything in the store that you have a coupon for. Again, the exception here is with free items. I've picked up several free or $0.10 toothbrushes, band-aids, medicine, etc...
3. TALK TO PEOPLE YOU KNOW WHO SHOP AND TRADE
Many people out there are coupon shoppers; you just might not know it. Many people who meet me are surprised to find out that I use coupons. Once you find some people who use coupons then offer to trade them coupons you don't use or want. Don't have pets but have kids? Trade someone all your dog food coupons for diaper coupons. Most stores will allow you up to xx amount of items and you are able to use one coupon per item. I've got a lot of good coupons this way and also have found deals by talking to other people who may have caught something in the add that you didn't.
4. GET AN ORGANIZER
Yeah, I tried the whole, "I'm going to be manly and hold my 300 cut coupons in my hand or paper envelope" because I thought the plastic coupon holder wasn't the exact sign of masculinity. I found out that doesn't work so well. I finally sucked it up, went to an office supply store and got a coupon holder. Also, don't skimp and get one with three or so pockets. The more the better. I typically seperate all mine out by the layout of the store and then have a pocket in the back for miscellaneous and one at the front for "used coupons" that I move there once I have the item(s) in my cart.
5. LOOK FOR A "TWO-FOR" OFFER
Sometimes, depending on the store, you can get away with the following. You have two coupons. One that says, "Free Razor with Purchase of Blade Refills Instantly!". The second one says, "$2.00 off Blade Refills". You can use both. The trick is to not put the two coupons together. The $2.00 off coupon is going to be what I call an "Automatic Coupon" where it will verify the UPC against what the coupon is calling for. So have that scanned near the beginning then have the "Free" coupon near the end. The cashier has to manually make sure you purchased both items, refills and razor. They'll look the receipt over and find both items then giving you the discount. I've yet to been stopped for this because technically you aren't getting money "off" the refills just the razor itself. So keep this in mind that in this siutation the "one coupon per item" technically seems to not apply. However, don't go to the store and try this, get turned down and then tell them that JohnMassie.com told you so that you could do this because I'm sure that will get you NO WHERE with the cashier or manager.
Faith
Life is hard. That was the thought when I came to the faith section. I'm sure you're reading this going, NO DUH; thank you captain obvious. I think that we need to remember that though life is hard that God is bigger than this life. I was talking with my mom about this very subject that as we grow older as adults we forget that God is bigger. Like a song I like to sing...
"God is bigger than the air I breathe, the world we'll leave. God will save the day and all will say, my glorious. And all you ever do is change the old to new."
I think we need to remember that very first part especially. GOD IS BIGGER THAN THE AIR I BREATHE. Whatever you're going through, God's bigger than that. The first part is realizing that fact. The much harder part is leaving it in God's hands for Him to actually be bigger than the problem or trial you face. You have to trust Him to do what He says He will do. I struggle with this from time to time but recently God has put me in this spot and each day I surrender my life and will to God and I get out of bed knowing that He is bigger than anything I may face. Hopefully you can find some encouragement in this as well.
Well, there's update 2. Be on the lookout for the next segment in the series. Questions and comments are welcome. If you'd like to contact anyone in the post or myself please e-mail 31days <at> johnmassie.com!
God Bless,
- JM
