Bi-Weekly Check-in 3/25/15

I think this is a really important check-in, because I took my measurements 2 days after my birthday – for my birthday I counted/logged NOTHING, ate/drank whatever I wanted, and didn’t work out.  I have also continued to have a slice of that amazing ice cream cake every night since my birthday  - and guess what? I didn’t gain a million pounds!  Actually, for my bi-weekly I LOST 2 pounds.  Just goes to show that if you work hard and focus on healthy eating and training hard a majority of the time, you can afford some treats here and there without losing all your progress!

I think I actually benefited from all the carbs Saturday – check out that post-birthday pump!

Measurements are as follows:

Calf:  14.5 inches
Quad: 22.75 inches
Hips: 36 inches
Waist: 26.5 inches
Forearm:  11 inches
Bicep: 13.5 inches
Weight: 132.6

I know some people think it’s a little overkill to take measurements every 2 weeks, especially when someone is offseason and not prepping for a show or actively trying to gain/lose substantial weight for any other number of reasons.. I like it though, even though I am not seeing much change it is a chance for me to critique my diet and training and see if maybe I need to rework something.  It helps me to (hopefully) avoid plateaus and to stay accountable.  I may not be actively in show prep, but that doesn’t mean much to me, I still strive to the best I can be.

I like to do this too because I want to let you all know that even if you aren’t seeing changes from one day to the next – over time you will.  And it’s espceially nice after a celebratory weekend like this one to be able to check-in and know that a day of no fitness didn’t kill me – in the past I would have had a panic attack about eating (and drinking BEER), and would have at least had to go do a crazy workout before hand, but this year I didn’t, and guess what?

I'm still here.

I'm still strong.

I'm still healthy.

And I still look pretty good :-)

Fitness is weird, it can take over your life in a good way or a bad way – it is up to you which way it goes.  It can drive you crazy if you let it, or in can improve your life substantially.  I know there was a time in my life where I let it drive me crazy, but since I have really began to learn more about myself and my body – and the fitness world in general – it has finally started to really improve my life.  Don’t let fitness control your life – let it compliment your life!