ready to go.

hey guys! thanks for all the sweet comments on my christmas posts. i really do believe it is the most wonderful time of the year. i love everything about christmas! hard to believe it has come and gone already. for the past two years (three if you include this year), post-christmas-season to me has meant one thing: beach body prep.

yep. my company takes me on a tropical vacation at the end of january/beginning of february. you may recall when i went to jamaica last year. you know, the trip where i got engaged? that was fun.

anyway, last year i did a really detailed, organized, structured 4 week eating and exercise program that i made up myself and called it my jamaican me bikini ready challenge.(thanks to deb for the catchy name!)

well, this friday marks 4 weeks until my trip. we are going to sunny playa del carmen, mexico.

yippee!

i looked back at my jamaica challenge and kind of laughed a little. i laughed because i saw the strict guidelines i set for myself to get in shape for a trip that i was taking with a bunch of people who really didn’t care what i looked like. i mean, aside from marshall, who already loved me for me (obviously, since he popped the big question), there was no one else for me to impress in jamaica. i suppose the person i was wanting to get “bikini ready” for was myself.

times change.

this year, things are different. no, i am not in tip top dream bikini body condition right now. actually, to be honest, i am probably in worse shape than i was when i started getting ready for jamaica last year. being a newlywed will do that to ya.. it will make you not want to go to the gym regularly and you will eat whatever you want.. and really just not care about working out 6 times a week and eating clean 90% of the time.  true story.  but guess what? i am already good enough for myself. just the way i am. and, of course, good enough for marshall.. (but that doesn’t even count because he prefers me to be 30 pounds overweight and have bigger boobs and a bigger butt. love him.) but, back to me, like i said.. i am already good enough for myself.

i didn’t realize this until yesterday… when it dawned on me that mexico is a month away. i looked in the mirror last night. in just my underthings, mind you (i hate any official word for underthings so i call them underthings.)  i hadn’t been to the gym in a week. i ate mac & cheese and chicken puffs for dinner. three of them. i had just polished off a cup of oreo frozen custard.  and i’d been eating christmas treats like it was my job for the past 5 days. and the only thought that came to my mind when i looked in the mirror was, “yep. ready for mexico!”

i am not sure when i decided i was already ready.. maybe it was because i adopted susan’s december goal of no more fat talk. i have made a conscious effort this month to only say nice things to myself about myself. and, what do you know, it has worked. no, i don’t look like i did here. but i also don’t look like i did here. (those “here”s link to my very best shape and my very worst shape, in case you aren’t into clicking.) right now i look strong. healthy. happy. and i don’t need a strict plan to “get ready” to go on a vacation.

i am not saying that i am going to stop focusing on exercise and clean eating. those two things are very big parts of my life! but i am saying that i am not going to bust my ass for the next 4 weeks just so my ass can look smaller in a bikini.

it’s funny how much i have lightened up in 2010. this year has been good to me. i have kept my healthy habits but really stopped being so rigid with myself and what i will and won’t do. if i don’t make it to the gym.. no big deal. and if i eat unhealthy meals a few days in a row—that’s ok. things will balance out.

i actually got a super sweet email from lindsay yesterday that made me smile and couldn’t have come at a better time:

“I am so impressed with your soda-less year! Way to go girl. I have seen your blog become more about being balanced with family, friends, health, and fitness. Its been inspiring and a JOY to read!”

by the way, thank you for that, linds. it is so nice to hear that my internal transformations are also visible to others. i feel more balanced and definitely feel happier overall.

looking back at my jamaica challenge wasn’t all bad, however. i did see some good habits that i kept and wish i kept now. and there were lots of great meal ideas, since i was planning 35 meals a week! just for fun, i decided to copy and paste the jamaica challenge guidelines into this post and comment (in italics) on the things i will and won’t be doing these four weeks before my trip to mexico.

JAMAICAN ME BIKINI READY FOUR WEEK GAME PLAN (originally from january 2010)

the meals.

drinks:

• consume between 1 and 1.5 gallons of water daily <—going to do this for sure.
• one cup of black coffee each morning <—i add almond milk or skim milk to my coffee these days and will continue to do so.
• drink unsweetened green tea as often as possible <—probably not. green tea was never my thing.
• NO other beverages other than these three (which=no booze!) <—i am sticking to this. i rarely drink booze.

eats:

• meal plan on sunday for the entire upcoming week <—hahahahaha.. i am not much for meal planning right now, but i want to get back into it!
• three meals + two snacks daily (designated as meals 1, 2, 3, 4, 5) <—yes, this is how i always eat.
• no starchy carbs after meal #3 (beans are ok) <—NO WAY, no how. why did i ever do this to myself?
• no cereal <—hahah.. no. i love cereal. i didn’t even follow this last year! it can’t be followed.
• no pasta <—yeah right. marshall’s favorite food is pasta. this is unavoidable.
• no rice <—only because i hardly ever eat rice…
• no nut or seed butters (PB2 is ok) <—to be honest, i only eat peanut butter once or twice a week these days. but by no means will i ban it.
• no full fat cheeses or full fat dairy <—i only eat full fat cheese these days.
• no eating after 9 o’clock PM <—i like this and actually try to stick to it when i can.
• no sweets/foods with added sugar (fruit is ok, of course!) <—i am a sweet monster lately, but i do want to tame that sweet tooth.. tone it down a bit per say.
• absolutely NO bites, licks, tastes (BLTs) <—a constant goal of mine.
• limit potato consumption to two per week <—haha wtf? what was i thinking? bring on the potatoes.
• one free meal each week (not free day~ free meal) <—these days, i just eat as healthy as i can. no free meals/days/etc.. just try to eat healthy but if i want to eat out, no biggie.

vitamins & supplements:

• CLA twice daily <—yes, i do this.
• fish oil twice daily <—i need to start doing this again.
• multivitamin once daily <—i do this.
• EAS muscle armor + 1 scoop protein powder after strength training (no more than 30 minutes after) <—i need to do this! also, i need to start strength training more often. workouts have been scarce this month.

the moves.

monday: cardio 45 min + abs 15 min<—i will be doing 30 min cardio and no abs (i do abs on weight days now)

tuesday: lower body 60 min<—45 minutes lower body

wednesday: cardio 45 min + abs 15 min<—see monday

thursday: upper body 60 min<—45 minutes upper body

friday: cardio 45 min + abs 15 min<—see monday

saturday: HIIT 20 min + total body strength training 60 min<—rest day

sunday: rest day no workout<—cardio if i feel like it.. or another rest day

totals
6 workouts<—more like 5 usually
6 hours & 20 min<—3 to 3.5 hours

everything in between.

• take documentation photos once a week <—no.
• get at least 7 hours of sleep each night <—yes, please.
• wash face twice daily, exfoliate/mask once a week (i am notorious for going to be with my makeup still on!) <—yes to the face washing.
• begin using sensitive paste (i got it from my dentist~i have sensitive teeth!) <—not necessary, woohoo!
• floss daily <—i do this nowadays!
• brush morning and night (this i already do religiously but it’s good to note) <—obviously.
• whiten teeth once a week <—yes, i need to do this.
• use jergen’s natural glow daily (helps build a faux tan!) <—yep, i will be doing this.

so, you see, i will be on the right track to being in good condition for a tropical vacation, but i really won’t be going crazy over every little morsel, move or detail.

because i am already ready to go.

Qs~

1. what do you love about yourself most when you look in the mirror?

2. how have you changed this year?

xo. janetha g.