2011 Goals

Its going to be a New Year soon so I thought I would start working on my goals for this upcoming year.  Here is what I've come up with so far:

1.  Walking Goal- I figure there 52 weeks in a year and if I walk 2 miles a day 5 times a week then thats 520 miles a year but just to add in alittle challenge I'm going to say 600 miles.  So my new goal for this upcoming year is to walk 600 miles in 2011.

2.  Biking Goal- I haven't really been riding my bike that much but it is something that I want to start doing.  I'm not going to set this goal very high since its something new to me and I can always add to it later.  I figure 52 weeks in a year and if I ride my bike 3 times a week for at least 2 miles then thats 312 miles but I'm just going to round it off to 300 miles.  So my new goal for this upcoming year is to ride my bike 300 miles in 2011.

3.  YMCA Goal- I plan on hitting the gym at least 3 times a week to do strength training.

4.  Swimming Goal- I know the Y has a pool and I would love to add this to my workout.  I'm thinking I will try to swim at least 2 times a week.

5.  Crunches Goal- My stomach is a real problem area for me so I'm planning on doing crunches every other day.  Right now I'm at a 100 crunches but as I get stronger I will increase that.

I know this seems like alot of working out but this is what I need to do to get my body in shape.  We all know that when you lose alot of weight things don't spring back like they should and I can always alter these goals later if they don't seem to be working for me.

6.  Weight Loss Goal:  I'm still aiming for 2 lbs a week so here are my goals:

January 1, 2011- 211 lbs
January 25, 2011- 203 lbs
February 22, 2011- 195 lbs (under 200 for valentines how sweet that would be)
March 22, 2011- 187 lbs
April 19, 2011- 179 lbs
May 17, 2011- 171 lbs
June 14, 2011- 163 lbs
July 12, 2011- 155 lbs ( 2 days before my birthday what a wonderful birthday present to myself)
August 9, 2011- 147 lbs
September 6, 2011- 140 lbs ( this would be the smallest I've ever been)

At the rate of 2 lbs a week I should be at my goal weight in 9 months.  That may seem like a long time to some but as you get older time flies and 9 months is nothing. 

7.  Water Goal-  I had a goal in 2010 of drinking at least 128 oz of water a day but of course I never hit that goal so for 2011 I'm just going to work on drinking as much water as possible without setting a goal. 

8.  Eating Goals-  The following are my goals for my food intake daily:

Sugar- I have greatly reduced my sugar intake already but its still something I need to continue to work on.

Fruits- I love fruits especially sweet fruits like bananas, apples and grapes but I have learned that fruits have alot of natural sugar in them so you do need to watch how much you eat so my goal is to continue to keep my fruit intake to a maximum of 1-2 servings per day.

Vegetables- I have always been a vegetable eater but I have had to learn to replace some of my carbs like macaroni and cheese and mashed potatoes with vegetables instead. I am learning to try new vegetables that I've never had before to add some variety into my eating and vegetables really are good for you and help to fill you up. So I plan on continuing to try at least one new vegetable and make sure I get my daily servings of veggies in.

Carbohydrates- This is probably one of my favorite types of foods, I mean who doesn't love macaroni and cheese and pasta dishes and breads but if you aren't careful these types of food can put alot of weight on you. So I plan on continuing to really watch my intake of carbs.

Soda- I have mainly been drinking water but I have been sneaking in a couple diet sodas a week and I want to completely give up sodas again.

Fast Food- I try to pick the healthiest thing when I get fast food but like a friend pointed out to me no fast food is healthy. I'm only picking out the least unhealthy thing on the menu so this is definitely something I need to give up. So my last goal is to completely avoid fast food.

Recommended Daily Allowances:
(not really a challenge but something I need to keep an eye on)
Calories: 1760 to lose 2 lbs a week
Fat: 64 grams
Fiber: 25 grams
Carbohydrates: 300 grams
Sugar: 40 grams
Protein: 50 grams
Sodium: 2400 milligrams

I know it seems like alot but it all goes hand in hand with each other and I can always change up my goals later, I love a good challenge though.

Strength Training

I finally got around tonight to starting my strenth training.  The only thing I have to use at home is my husbands weight bench.  I did 3 sets of 12 bench presses with 40 lbs of weight, 3 sets of 12 arm curls with 40 lbs of weight and 3 sets of 12 leg curls with 45 lbs of weight.  I'm trying to figure out what else I can do with the weights he has.  He has a straight bar for his weight bench and a curl bar which is what I used tonight.  The leg curl is part of his weight bench so I used that to. 

Any other tips on exercises I can do using this kind of equipment?  I asked my husband advice on the weight and how many sets I should do.  Does what I did sound about right?  It felt ok and got harder with the more sets I did.  My husband said that if I wanted to go for toning and not building up muscles like a bodybuilder then I need to go with less weight and more reps, is this true? 

I also have an exercise ball that I plan on using and I have some resistant bands and some hand weights but they don't weigh very much maybe 8 lbs.  I want to start doing more toning along with my walking because God knows my skin is going to need all the help it can get as my body shrinks.

What I would give to look like this when I'm strength training.