BEST SELF FITNESS CHALLENGE: WEEK 2 (5/26 - 5/31)

Mentally, week 2 was much harder than week 1.

I got so caught up in wanting to see my body change, that I got stressed over the little things.

I had to tell myself to kick the "quick fix" attitude; I should know better than that!

Naturally, I vented out to Simon about my struggles and he said some very meaningful things that switched my thinking back around. He told me that the woman I was 4 years ago would be so proud of who I am today. It really helped and I'm really glad I have someone to support me emotionally during this contest.

It's really important to have someone or a group of people who will be able to support you emotionally. Because it will get tough and it won't be easy, but it will be worth it!

I truly believe that nutrition is key to losing weight/body fat. I've always ate a clean diet but when this contest started, I switched it up; I'm carb cycling now.
My low carb days are harder and I'm not all sunshine and rainbows. My high carb days are all sunshine and rainbows. However, I'm not miserable on either days because I still eat enough food to fuel my body for workouts. Some days I find myself more hungry than other days, but isn't that anyone who likes to eat?

You'll read in a few moments under my proud moment that I lost 1 pound and 1/2 an inch off my waist, that happened in only 1 week!! My waist has not changed in at least the last 6 months and BAM, it suddenly changes. How? Nutrition, that's how.

Oldie but a goodie: You can't out train a bad diet.

You can see the full workout here: Angel's BodySpace Track Page

What I learned this week:

Set small goals and conquer them. When I conquered small goals I was able to feel proud of myself and keep moving forward towards my big goal!

Proud moment:

Losing 1 pound and 1/2 an inch off my waist! Take that, body fat!

Boxing three, 3 minute rounds (9 minutes total)
Deadlifting 75 lbs.

Personal record:

Running 1 mile at 9 minutes and 12 seconds!
Adding 70 lbs. to my calf raises (180 lbs)
Adding 75 lbs. to my squats (180 lbs)

What I could have improved:
Stretching more after workouts

WEEK 2

Monday: Upperbody (heavy lifting) + Abs + Cardio

• Abs
• Crunches
• Reverse Crunches
• Leg Raises
• Sitting Crunch Machine
• Chest Padded Crunch Machine
• Upperbody
• Bicep Curls
• One Arm Dumbbell Row
• Pushups
• Bent Over Weighted Pick Ups
• Tricep Pull Downs
• Chest Press
• Wide Grip Lat Pull Downs
• Cardio
• Boxing 15-30 minutes

Tuesday: Lowerbody HIIT

• X Jumps
• Weighted Step Ups
• Donkey Kicks
• Deadlifts
• Sumo Jump Squats
• Split Squats
• Goblet Squats
• Burpees

Wednesday: Abs + Cardio

• Abs
• Crunches
• Reverse Crunches
• Leg Raises
• Mountain Climbers
• Planks
• LIIT Cardio, 9 minutes (1 mile)

Thursday: Upperbody (light lifting) + Cardio

• Upperbody
• Push Ups
• Standing Military Press
• Side Lateral Raises
• Reverse Flys
• Incline Dumbbell Curls
• Dropset: Tricep Dumbbell Kickbacks
• Cable Hammer Curl
• Dropset: Overhead Cable Tricep Extensions
• Bicep Curls
• Dropset: Lying Close Grip Barbell Tricep Extension aka Skull Crusher
• HIIT Cardio, 10 minutes

Friday: Lowerbody (heavy lifting) + Abs

• Abs
• Decline Leg Raises
• Chest Padded Crunch Machine
• Decline Reverse Crunches
• Sitting Crunch Machine
• Hanging Leg Raises
• Lowerbody
• Weighted Calf Raises
• Abductor Machine
• Adductor Machine
• Clean Deadlifts
• Padded Squat Machine
• Lying Leg Curls
• Leg Extensions
• Leg Press
• Prowlers

Saturday: Upperbody (HIIT)

• 1:00 minute warm up jog
• Hanging Pull Ups
• 1:00 hour boxing

There you have it, all of my workouts posted for week 2!
I'm ready for week 3 and can't wait to see what other changes I will happen. I have approximately 4 more weeks of this competition.

I'm having a difficult time accepting that progress is progress, no matter how small.
Simon has a favorite quote that says "progress is never swift nor easy."
I'm trying to keep that in mind.

xo,

BEST SELF FITNESS CHALLENGE: WEEK 1 (5/19 - 5/24)

Last week, I announced in this post, that I entered into a competition on BodyBuilding.com

I remember Simon telling me "if it'll help bring you closer to your goals, do it."
He's so supportive and I'm so thankful.
I'm extremely excited & determined.

What I kept thinking about while working out was winning. Not just winning the prize, but fulfilling my goal, which is a toned body. I know that might sound a little self centered, cocky, or materialistic, but I know I'll gain more than just a nice body. It is natural to want a nice body after putting all that effort into working out.

Our workout split changed from what I had posted last week and I'm fine with that. The important thing to me is that I get my daily workout done. It's also good to change things up so that you don't get bored and you keep your muscles guessing.

For the next 6 weeks, I'll be doing a weekly recap of what I did the previous week.
I'll be writing the workouts on the blog each week but if you go to my BodySpace track page you can see the workouts live in action with reps, sets, and pounds (adjust accordingly) and do them too!
If you have a BodySpace, add me as a friend! :)

I make sure that all of my strength and focus goes towards weight training, and then do my cardio last.

WEEK 1

Monday: Upperbody (heavy lifting) + Abs + Cardio

• HIIT Cardio, fasted, 15 minutes
• Abs
• Crunches
• Reverse Crunches
• Stability Ball Crunches
• Knee to Elbow Crunches
• Upperbody
• Preacher Curls
• Barbell Curl
• Elevated Cable Rows
• Incline Dumbbell Press
• One arm Dumbbell Row
• Triceps Cable Pull Down
• Band Assisted Pull Up
• Machine Bench Press
• Machine Preacher Curls

Tuesday: Lowerbody, HIIT

• Weighted Squats
• Donkey Kicks with Resistance Bands
• Weighted Side Lunges
• Weighted Calf Raises
• Weighted Butt Bridges
• Deadlifts
• Jumping Jacks
• Speed Skates
• Burpees

Wednesday: Abs + Cardio

• Abs
• Bicycle Crunches
• Mountain Climbers
• Reverse Crunches
• Heel Taps
• Ab Roll Out
• LIIT Cardio, 11 minutes (1 mile)

Thursday: Lowerbody, heavy lifting

• Hamstring Curl
• Calf Raises
• Smith Machine Squats
• Padded Squat Machine
• Quad curls
• Sprints
• Crab Sprints
• Hops
• Butt Bridges with 10 lb. medicine ball
• Lying Machine Squat

Friday: Upperbody (light lifting) + Abs + Cardio

• Abs
• Bicycle Curls
• Mountain Climbers
• Reverse Crunches
• Heel Taps
• Stability Ball Crunches
• Upperbody
• Wide Grip Lat Pulldowns
• Close Grip Lat Pulldowns
• Tricep Pulldowns
• Seated Cable Rows

Saturday: Full Body (mostly upper body, legs were still recovering from leg day)

• 30 Minute boxing
• Upperbody
• Push Ups
• Bent Over Dumbbell to Chest
• Abs
• Crunches
• Knee to Elbow Crunches
• Leg Raises
• Reverse Crunches
• Bicycle Crunches

Sunday is my off day and I really reccommend a rest day! If you overwork your body you won't be putting 100% into your next workout. You can even do damage to your muscles. It's okay to take a break when you need it.

What I learned this week:

If I believed that I could do something, then I could certainly do it. Don't sell yourself short, you are stronger than you think!

Proud Moment:

When I couldn't do one more rep or felt like I couldn't lift a certain weight, I proved myself otherwise.

Personal Record:

Cut exactly 1 second off from my 10 second prowler run.
Squatted 105 lbs.

What I could have improved:

Going to sleep earlier.

6 WEEKS TO YOUR BEST SELF FITNESS CHALLENGE

What was I thinking?
Okay, here it goes.....

As a health and fitness blogger, I'm actually quite embarrassed to post these pictures;

I'm embarrassed that I don't look like other female athletes who promote fitness.

I'm embarrassed that after 4 years as an avid athlete, I still haven't toned up.

I'm embarrassed that I still have extra body fat sitting in most women's trouble spots.

I'm embarrassed that I still have a "belly pooch, jiggly arms, big thighs, and a flat butt".

But I won't let that stop me.

Since starting my fitness journey 4 years ago, I've learned a lot about myself;

I learned that I could set personal records.

I learned that I could finish a 1 mile run in under 11 minutes.

I learned that I could lift a 20 pound dumbbell with one arm.

I learned that I could calf press 110 pounds.

I learned that struggle is the path to success.

I learned that the body can achieve so many wonderful things.

I learned how to push myself when I wanted to give up.

And I will continue to strive.

I am proud of myself.

I have lost a grand total of 43 pounds. While the number on the scale is not everything, it is something. I have sweat, cried, laughed, and tried for the past 4 years. The funny thing is, that one day, health and fitness just became something I did; it became who I was. There was no question whether or not I was going to workout or eat right, I just did it.

I still have stretch marks on the inside of my thighs.
I still have stretch marks on my "love handles".
I still have stretch marks on the back of my underarms.

I am not perfect.

I could sit here and shame my body, hate it, show absolutely no love towards it. Or I could appreciate what it can do; I can love my body and I can take care of it.

I am the daughter of God.

Simon loves all of me, including my beauty flaws. He likes to remind me that my stretch marks are there to let me know how far I have come because I am not who I used to be.

He is the backbone to my confidence.

I decided to enter into this competition because it was the added umph to my daily triumph. I've been working out extremely hard and I had plans to get in tip top shape before my summer vacation.

I got my first gym membership on May 12, 2014 and I started training with my boyfriend. It was only 3 days later that I would receive an email from BodyBuilding.com, reminding me to join their Best Self contest sponsored by BPI Sports.

I didn't want to enter it at first. I didn't want to embarrass myself and show the world my imperfect body.

But than I started thinking...

I could 1) use this as an added incentive to achieve my summer goals 2) I could show myself and others what we can do for ourselves if we stick to the goals we set in our minds.

Plus, that added winning prize incentive looks pretty nice too.

So I talked to Simon about it and he said he would train me, if I really wanted to enter. He was very supportive about it and that's something I have always loved about him. He's always been supportive when it comes to my dreams and goals.

We decided to stick to our workout split and would obviously train harder. Sometimes we have to switch around days due to work schedule but we never skip a workout.

I have to stick to a nutrition plan for the next 6 weeks.

I am not going to count macros, calories, etc.

I will continue to eat healthy and nutritiously.

WORKOUT SCHEDULE

• Monday (High Carb): Legs, heavy lifting // Abs
• Tuesday (Low Carb): Upperbody, light lifting + HIIT
• Wednesday (Low Carb) Heavy Cardio, 30 mins // Abs
• Thursday (High Carb): Upperbody, heavy lifting
• Friday (Low Carb): Legs, light lifting + HIIT // Abs
• Saturday (Low Carb): Full Body
• Sunday (Low Carb) Light Cardio 20 mins

NUTRITION SCHEDULE

• Minimum 1 gallon of water a day (that is SO hard)
• 6 meals/snacks every 3 hours
• Carb Cycling: Low/High

Some of you might wonder why I decided to enter.
Some of you may think I look completely fine.
Some of you may think I don't look like what I preach.
While this entire post pretty much explains all of why I entered into this competition, it all boils down to one thing- I want to push myself, mentally and physically.

I want to see just how much I can achieve mentally and physically.

I want to see all of my handwork and dedication in and on myself.

There is nothing greater than setting a goal and coming out of the long, hard working, & sweating challenges, as a completely new person.

I love living an active lifestyle and whether or not I "win" this competition, I will always be an active person.
This is my lifestyle, this is who I am, and I don't care what anyone else has to say about it.

The registration for the challenge has ended but that doesn't mean you can't challenge yourself.
Take a moment to think about what areas in your life you'd like to improve on and for 6 weeks, commit.

What will you do with 6 weeks?

xo,

Booty Call Workout!

Happy Monday!!

How are you?? I hope you're doing awesome! I've been so inspired by all of the requests pooring in on Facebook and Instagram! Now you can follow me on Twitter and subscribe to SUTWU's YouTube channel!

Use #shapeuptowakeup on both twitter & instagram so that I can see all of your pics! :)

So many amazing things are happening this year and I can't wait to share my journey with you!

You can become a Shape Up To Wake Up Girl and receive all the latest posts, news, recipes & so much more! Did I mention giveaways?!

All you have to do is email angel.redefiningbeauty@gmail.com with the subject line "SUTWU GIRL". It's free, fun & fiercely fabulous!

I'm so excited today because today is the day I release my very first workout video! All the ladies spoke and mostly wanted a booty workout!

Click the video above & begin your Booty Call Workout!

Click "Read More" to get the Booty call Workout printable & a delicious post workout recipe!! :)