Bree Bond Guest Blogging!

I want to start off by saying that this blogging thing is actually much harder than what I thought!  New and fresh ideas almost every day is difficult especially when all you do is work, kids, and fitness, and healthy eating!  Yep, I lead a boring life!  So, I wanted to gift you all with something fresh, new and exciting and I asked a twitter friend to guest blog!  I was ecstatic when she accepted!  So without further ado, here is the YOUNG, FRESH and BEAUTIFUL BREE BOND!!!!!!!!!!!!  Show her some LOVE folks!

I’m just going to dive right into my guest post by first saying thank you to Mrs. Kim for asking to feature me and this post on her blog! I’ve always wanted a blog and think it’s the coolest when people ask me to a guest post, so thank you Kim. 

I’ll tell you a little about me. My name is Bree Bond; I’m a 20 year old from Texas, relocating to California to pursue my dreams of becoming an actress.  I am a National Academy of Sports Medicine certified personal trainer and self proclaimed health geek. I just recently received my NASM personal training certification after starting my fitness journey September 2011 through the Tone It Up nutrition program (which I HIGHLY recommend).  Anyways, when Kim asked me to do a post I had no idea what I wanted to write about… She asked me about a week after I had gotten my certification, which was also the exact time where I discovered an injury in my right hip flexor and lower abdominal muscles.  I was in severe pain and I am no baby when it comes to pain so when it hurt as bad as it did I knew I needed at least a week of complete bed-rest. *siiiiiiigh* Needless to say I had a lot of time on my hands…

So here I am sitting down to write this post-one-week-bed-rest. I went through so many emotions last week while lying in bed, all day every day.  (See, you use your core for EVERYTHING so it wasn’t an injury I could really just work around, I knew I needed to seriously let it rest) So, going from working out every single day (6 days a week) sometimes twice a day to a completely bed ridden was a hard pill to swallow for me.  I hurt my ankle when I was in 4^th grade and ever since I’ve had muscle imbalances on my right leg, as much as I tried to strengthen my right leg to match the left I was still left with an overcompensation usage in the right side of my core to make up for the strength differences.  This lead to overload of those muscles, which lead to inflammation, which led to my body saying, “woah bro, no more…” Yes, my body talks like a California surfer dude.  To avoid making you re-live my experience by describing every grueling detail, I just want to share with you all what I learned.

                  I knew all of these things but I am very  hardheaded  and sometimes think I’m superwoman,  this rest only solidified the knowledge I had and I see now that I needed something like this to snap me out of my stubbornness.    

                  I am all about pushing through plateaus, high intensity training, setting goals and having relentless determination to see them out, however… we are not indestructible.  I am constantly seeing things on Twitter like “#TeamNoDayzOff” or “#NoExcuses” and the list goes on and on. People on Instagram constantly making their training seem like torture because of how exhausted they are.  This makes me think, “Isn’t this supposed to IMPROVE our lives?” Now hear me out, I am a work out fool, it’s one of my passions in life, I would work out three-four times a day if it wouldn’t eventually kill me, but that’s just it, my body would absolutely give out.  We aren’t made for constant destruction which is exactly what working out does, it breaks us down so we can rebuild stronger. People ask me all the time how to push through a plateau.  A lot of people will say have a cheat meal, do empty stomach HIIT cardio blindfolded on one leg while wearing a top hat but you want to know my new found advice? Oh you’re going to hate it, I know I did but here it is; Give. Yourself. A. Break.  This is a personal trainer speaking; someone whose income depends on YOU wanting to get your butt to the gym but still I am telling you, give yourself a break.  Take a few days off; throw your body for a loop without shoving a Big Mac down.  Cheat meals only reinforce you old bad habits and aren’t conducive to fitness goals in my opinion. This brings me to the next thing I learned; Eating is everything.  You’ve heard “Abs are made in the kitchen” yeah? Well, here I am to reinforce that idea.  I changed nothing about the way I ate while completely resting, clean eats, 6-7x a day and I barely lifted a finger.  Here I am a week later to tell you that I did not gain a pound. Yes, some days I felt bloated.  Yes, some days I retained water and yes, some days I even ate more than I should have.  But you know what? I’m unchanged by it! How great is that?! One of the many benefits of being FIT, you can take time off, let life hit you and still maintain your fitness progress. Your body is smart, it knows how to work, and it knows how to adapt.    It’s impossible to lose your progress by giving yourself a break! Am I saying give up? Am I saying go “easy” on yourself? No, push, work, drive and then rest… J  You’ll actually come back completely restored and ready to work at your full potential.

Today is my second day back to training and I feel like I am actually making progress again! I am sore! I feel like I’m actually doing some work while I’m lifting! Before I was pushing myself to the point of exhaustion, my muscles to the point of severely painful inflammation and I wasn’t getting anywhere.  A rest day wasn’t the answer, a rest period was. 

I’ll leave you with these ideas.  Exercise and working out are two different things.  Exercise is playing with your kids, going on walks, riding your bike anything that gets your heart pumping a little more than usual.  Working out is for muscular endurance/strength.  It IS possible to live a HEALTHY lifestyle, maintain your weight and feel good without working out.  Working out does provide so many health benefits and I highly recommend it but, I just want you to understand that taking a break from working out and just living actively for a few days can be extremely beneficial too.  You cannot perform HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) everyday and not expect some backlash. Space them out; take into consideration the time, intensity, frequency, type and the enjoyment of your exercise and workouts.  They’re all dependant of one another. HIIT 2-3x a week is great but mix it up with some low intensity cardio too, work all your body parts (everything is connected), throw in core training, foam roll, stretch, rest and repeat. Rest is just as important as everything else I listed.  Be committed to your rest days/periods as you are to your workouts. Even more so be committed to eating for your goals.  As long as you’re putting clean foods in your body at all the right levels and not being sedentary, say hello to improved health levels and fitness maintenance during your rest periods from working out.  Strive for healthy, set goals and be determined.  You are worth every second of this fight for fitness, but sometimes it’s okay to put your sword down.

                  You can follow me on Twitter; @BondBree and also find me on Instagram @BondBree!  I am always open to questions and willing to help with what I can!  Stay strong and beautiful.  Now go workout ;) <3

weight loss apps and my polar

Most people, like me, start their weight loss journey by counting calories.  But like me, they are not sure how many they are suppose to intake and burn, etc.  Well, the first answer to that is it depends on the body and fitness level.  What I have found to be helpful is an app called myfitnesspal.  It's easy to use and since I was able to download it for free on my iphone, it's with me always!  I can take pictures of label instead of hunting for the item, create my own recipes, save my favorite meals, etc.  It is a very useful tool to me and I always know where I stand with my caloric intake, how much sodium I have had, as well as sugar and such.  This site lets YOU organize what you want to see, you can input your workouts and you can even interact with other people if you choose to do so.  I have tried other apps to count calories and workouts, but they just don't seem to be as user friendly as this one.  It also tell you exactly how many calories you have earned after a workout, but be mindful of what you intake.  Also something to remember is that, even though a workout is listed and it may tell you how many calories you burned during the allotted time, that is not accurate.  Each person burns calories at a different rate, so it's wise to use something like a polar hear monitor when working out to get your actual calorie burn.  I never workout without my polar!  There are all different types of polar's and the price range is from about $65.00 (low end) up to $200.00 (high end) and could actually be even higher than that.  I have the lower end model but it works really well for what I want!  I would like to find an affordable one that would tell me my time, heart rate, and calories burned all on one screen!  If anyone knows of one, let me know!  Here is the link to both tools that I mentioned!

myfitnesspal - http://www.myfitnesspal.com

Polar - http://www.polarusa.com/us-en/products

Guest Blogger Coming Soon!

I know that sometimes I get stuck on the same ole' same ole', so I thought, hmmmmm, I need to switch it up for my readers.  So that is exactly what I am doing!  Keep your eyes out as I am sure you will NOT want to miss this!  So excited!

Oh and yeah, that HIIT workout I did from Go Fit Gals?  Yeah totally sore today, but it's a soreness I LOVE!  If you haven't already followed them, do so!  They are on Facebook, Twitter, and they are launching a Nutrition and Workout plan in just a FEW MORE DAYS!


Dominate,and annihilate your workouts!

My HIIT workout and the affect 3 days off had on me

Today I hopped back on the saddle and got 1 of my workouts in.  I was going to do 2 back to back, but after I did a Go Fit Gals HIIT workout, I was wiped!  Man was it good!  I sweat like no other!  I did have to modify one thing but hey, that's ok!  This was still a calorie torcher!  Now, why did I have to modify?  Well, my personal belief is that I did have too many rest days.  I don't think my body can have 3 right in a row.  I felt like I lost some strength and stamina.  So, lesson learned, for me!  You may be able to take that many rest days and not feel any affect, others may not.  It's a personal thing and you have to be the judge.  Anyway, I wanted to share the workout I did in case you would like to try it yourself!  Make sure you follow these ladies on Face, Twitter, and youtube!

Here is the link to the video!

Now, GO WORK OUT!

Take a Rest Day!

Ever have one of those days where you are just exhausted?  Yep, me too!  Here lately, it's been more than usual.  I feel mentally and physically exhausted.  So, even though it's important to workout and push your body, it's also important to take a rest day or two.  Listen to your body, it will never tell you wrong!  Now that doesn't mean, sit around all day and do nothing, it means, don't push your body as hard!  Take active rest days!  I will admit that I took the weekend off, not because I wanted to, but because I was crazy busy and just couldn't fit it in to my schedule.  I usually only take one day off, but, this week, I am taking 3.  Today is day 3 but it didn't mean I slept in nor does it mean that I am sitting on my computer all day!  I have cleaned house and getting tons of laundry done!  Just keeping my body  in motion by cleaning, I burned over 500 calories!  Yep, that's right!  Tonight, I plan on going for a walk.  Nothing overly pushing it, but just a nice walk.  I have never taken this many days off in a row from my workouts (except when I was sick) and my hand weights.  I'm excited to see if this will also help me tone better and get through a plateau that I have been stuck at.  Will let you know how my body re-acts to this!

Why is it important for rest days?  Your muscles need time to heal and repair.  You've been ripping those babies for days and they need healing time.  Another reason to take a rest day?  Burn out!  You don't want to get burnt out on doing good for your body, if you do, you will relapse and end up doing nothing and all that hard work goes to waste.  I get burnt out as well, so that is why I had adapted the following schedule:

Mon-Fri, I hit it hard with cardio for 30 min, then another 30 min toning session.  Sometimes each is longer than that, but that is a typical time frame for me.

Sat is a light day.  I will walk/run, yoga, or a toning session but nothing major.

Sunday - a complete rest day.  Sometimes I am active by hiking, walking, etc. but most days, I just veg out after church.  I deserve it!

If you would like, try my schedule out and then report back to me and let me know how it works for you!

Happy resting!

Journaling

Do you journal?  What do you journal about?  I journal my food and workout routines along with my weight and measurements!  Why do I do this?  It helps me see what foods I am eating, how much I am eating, how many calories I am burning, what workouts are giving me the most burn for the buck, and where I need to improve.  I ALWAYS journal my food in myfitness pal along with my workouts.  Today, I sat a new goal to journal my own personal routines, that way I can know what I did in the workout and be able to repeat it to keep that burn going!  Why haven't I done this before?  I wish I had an answer for that one but I don't.
Here is a picture of how I journal and what my journal looks like!

SO HERE IS YOUR CHALLENGE OF THE DAY!

Go out and purchase a really adorable journal and start journaling!  If you haven't downloaded myfitnesspal, go do it, it's free!  You can also scan the bar code of the food you are eating and it will input all the information for you!

Once you have started journaling, let me know if it has helped you!

Peace, LOVE, Sweat!
I came here with nothing, but I'm going to leave with a legacy!

Determination & Hunger!

Did you wake up this morning with DETERMINATION & HUNGER inside you?  I didn't!  I over slept, had to take one of my children to the ortho, then to school.  Needless to say, I didn't get my workout in when I wanted to!  At the moment, I am blessed to be able to work from home so when I finished my errands, I laced up my tennis shoes and was going for my walk.  Yep, I said walk.  I didn't WANT to run today, I just wasn't feeling it!  Well, I was no more than 10 minutes in to the walk when a song from my workout list came on and totally changed my attitude!  The only words I could hear from the song was dominate, annihilate, champion, be a better me, I am a CHAMPION!  I took off running with determination and the hunger inside me to dominate that run!  I kept that song on repeat until I ended 2 miles later!  That's what we need, determination and hunger to be a better us!  Not only in our health and fitness journey but also in life!  How we treat and view others, our family, and friends,  and those in need.  Today, I challenge you!  Go out and DOMINATE that workout, conquer the food demons, and be a better person to everyone!

Peace, Love, Sweat, and BLESSINGS!

So MANY Blessings!

First, I want to start off by apologizing to my followers for being SO absent!  There have been so many changes happening in my life, that I just haven't focused on this.  Again, I am sorry, and I hope I can be more consistent with this.

The changes have been such a blessing that I want to share those with you!  First, I have changed churches (this one was difficult!) and am now able to be involved with children's ministry again!  I have not been involved since 2010 and that took its toll on me because I intensionally moved from the west coast to be a children's minister.

The other big change is that I will be going back to work FULL time!  Yep, in an office 5 days a week!  I am still working for the band (I can't give them up!  Too much love and respect for them and the crew!)
But this is something that my family desperately needed!  I am excited to be going back and continuing to gain knowledge in the pharmaceutical industry!  This also helps me reach my goal to become a Personal Fitness Trainer!  My intention is to purchase my schooling by Christmas!  Once I get that certification, I am moving on to nutrition, then a certified Yoga instructor!  Yep, I am going to make sure that NO MATTER WHAT I am able to work, work, work!

Besides the changes that have been happening, I have started a fitness page on Facebook that I am MORE interactive with!  Follow me!  Ask me questions!  Recipe exchange!  Everything FITNESS goes!  My page is Kim Gets Fit!

Now, on to the healthy stuff!  Today, my husband and I went on a trail hike together, just us!  It was so awesome!  The weather was beautiful and I got to see God's wonderful creations in a new light.  I also got to see my progress in the form of stamina!  There is this HUGE hill that you have to go up in order to see the river, this time around, I didn't have to take a break in the middle!  To some, that may not seem to be a big accomplishment, but to me, it was HUGE!  I felt stronger and I could tell that my stamina is higher!
This is where I tell you to not give up on yourself because any little change is a HUGE accomplishment!  If you are able to do 2 extra reps, hold a plank 5 seconds longer, walk .25 miles further, YOU HAVE GROWN!  Don't compare yourself to others, compare yourself to the OLD you!

With that, I will do one more shameless plug for my facebook fitness page (Kim Gets Fit)!  Once I reach 100 followers, I am gifting someone with a yr subscription to a fitness magazine!  Then after that, I am hoping to do a challenge with great prizes!  Keep watching and join in!

Peace, LOVE, and fitness!