Hot Mom/Body After Baby Challenge

Hi y'all! It's Lindsay. At the end of June, I put out a feeler on our Facebook page about hosting a "Hot Mom" Challenge, starting in September. This is both accountability for me after having Everett, but also a way to get other moms involved who are self-conscious, having trouble, not feeling how they want to feel, or just wanting to be healthier after having a baby. There was a HUGE response, so I'm definitely moving forward with the challenge!

Below are the details....everything you need to know! You will have until August 31 to sign up to be a part of this.

Hot Mom/Body After Baby CHALLENGE

• Starts September 9th and runs for 90 days, ending December 7th. 
• You must commit to the following:
• Exercise program; both at-home and gym programs will be offered, but you have to commit to an actual program/schedule. 
• 80/20 Clean Eating (Eating clean 80% of the time, with some wiggle room 20% of the time)
• Taking before and after measurements and pictures (You don't have to share them, but I want you to have them to track your success!!)
• In return for your commitment, you will receive:
• Exercise AND nutrition support, guidance, and coaching
• Private Facebook group to share your victories, challenges, concerns, whatever with myself and the other challenge members 
• I will be logging my food on MyFitnessPal (free website/app) and will give access to anyone who wishes to see how and what I eat. I will also gladly monitor and give feedback to anyone else who logs their food.

There is no charge for participating in this challenge. Yep - this is FREE. Only costs will be related to if you need to purchase an exercise program. 

To sign up, please comment below or message us on Facebook your email address. I'll contact you that way and invite you to the private Facebook group. 

We've hosted challenges in the past with great success...challengers always lost weight/inches/sizes, but more importantly, established healthy habits and felt better about themselves!

LET'S DO THIS!!

In Health, 

Lindsay

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The Evolution of Our Healthy Lifestyle

People throw the phrase around a lot...

"It's not a diet, it's a lifestyle change."

But for us, it is now 3-4 years later, so it clearly was a lifestyle change.

Typically, it is a healthy thing to look back once in a while, to see how far you've come and/or to see how things have changed and evolved. Our commitment to fitness and nutrition has certainly changed a lot over the last several years:

• We are much more in tune with our bodies
•  We know when to take a break before it gets to the point of an injury or exhaustion
•  Along that same line, we can see the true value of rest days
•  We are gaining a better understanding of what works bests for us nutritionally
  
• Less focus on calorie counting, more on actual nutrition
•  Initially, it was all calories in versus calories out. NO LONGER! Now, the focus is on nutritional value. Your body processes 100 calories of vegetables completely differently than a 100 calorie Chips Ahoy pack. (Sorry for the mini-rant, that's a whole other post topic!)
  
• We aren't stuck in a box and afraid to experiment
•  At first, anything that didn't involve a workout DVD (Lindsay) or a gym (Timothy), we wouldn't touch. Since then, we are constantly experimenting with all different kinds of training and can definitely say that cross-training (working out in a variety of ways) is the most effective.

Things have evolved in others ways too:

• Our inner circle of friends has changed dramatically
• This was a hard pill to swallow at first and we certainly felt lonely. But time has allowed us to let those people go and focus on connecting with those that we better relate to now that we've made this lifestyle change. BUT we are always hoping to have a positive impact on people, including those from our past, and help them become healthy with us. 
  
• Our outlook on our future has a different focus 
• At first, a lot of our healthy eating and working out was wrapped up in numbers, sizes, and looks. As our knowledge of nutrition and fitness improves, and with moving into different phases of our lives, the focus is less on sizes and looks and more on doing this to live longer and avoid chronic illnesses. Mid/Late 20's is not "old" but it is a time to be concerned about your future.  
  
• We cut ourselves way more slack
• Everything was so strict in the beginning: missing a workout was unfathomable and eating had to be on point at all times. Now, if life interferes and we miss a workout, it's okay. If our eating isn't clean or we have a food that is fried or has HFCS in it, it's okay. We know it doesn't happen often and we know we can fall right back in line immediately. *This isn't for people who are just starting. This came with time!* 

Overall, we are pretty darn pleased with the evolution of our healthy lifestyle thus far. We look forward to seeing how future life events will impact everything, particularly having a child. We'll keep you posted ;-)


In Health,

Lindsay and Timothy
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No Money, No Problem - Workouts

If you want to get started working out, but you are *really* (and we mean REALLY) strapped for cash...or if you want to "find your workout niche" before investing a lot in equipment or programs, we have some options for you!

Never fear - the Farrars are here! (Not actually us - Timothy's hair isn't nearly that wafty, hehe!)

Option 1: Tear out workouts from fitness magazines!

                                  

There are SO many health and fitness magazines out there and nearly all of them have at least a couple workouts in every issue! Common courtesy, though folks - if they aren't your magazines...write the workouts down rather than tearing them out :)

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Option 2:  God Bless the Internet!

Thanks largely in part to YouTube, wonderful fitness-minded people of the world post workouts online, FOR FREE! Take advantage of this! Here are some of our favorites:

Zuzana Light and her ZWOWs (Zuzana's Workout of the Week)
Body Rock TV
Vivace Fitness with Chelsea
Pinterest has a lot of pins that detail simple, quick, but effective workouts!

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Option 3: The Wild and Wondrous Outdoors!

If you have access to a local track (or just a plain ol' road) - do running intervals. 
Live in a mountainous area? - go hiking.
Have a 5'x5' space anywhere - do some burpees!

You get the idea - use the space and free things around you!

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And there ya go - plenty of options, even when you are strapped for cash! There really are absolutely, positively no excuses guys and gals. Find what you like (or can at least tolerate) and do it! Then do it again! Wash, rinse, repeat! :-)

In Health,

Timothy and Lindsay


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Nutrition 101: Part 3 - Carbohydrates

RARW - Evil pancake!

On one hand, we kinda-sorta get the whole “evil carbs” thing….but on the other, more logically-sound hand, we think it is bonkers.

In case you were wondering, carbohydrates are one of the main types of nutrients and one of the most important sources of energy for our body. When we eat carbs, our digestive system changes them into glucose (sugar) which our body then uses for energy for our cells, tissues, and organs.

Yeah Science!

Carbs are either simple or complex, based on their chemical structure. Simple carbs are those sugars found naturally in foods such as fruits, vegetables, milk, etc. They also include sugars added during food processing and refining (refined = BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD!) Complex carbs include whole grain breads, starchy vegetables, etc., and are often a great source of fiber (GOOD GOOD GOOD GOOD GOOD!)

Best time to eat carbs: early in the day! This way,  your body has all day long to utilize the energy from the gluclose, and it doesn’t just sit in your body unused (aka stored as fat).

Amount of carbs: We really feel this is individualistic. For example, Timothy doesn’t require a lot of carbs and can still maintain appropriate levels of energy and performance. Lindsay, on the other hand, can be noticeably sluggish without appropriate amounts of complex carbs. Take the time to play with this a little bit....be aware of your body, note how you feel when you up or lower carb intake, and find what works for you!

To K.I.S.S. it: limit/avoid the refined simple carbs (pretty much anything that comes in a box) and enjoy (in moderation) complex carbs, trying to consume mostly earlier in your day!


Please go "like" our Facebook Page for more tips, motivation, etc. HERE
Workout reviews/workout snippets on YouTube HERE
And as always, feel free to leave a message below or email us at fitwithfarrar@gmail.com

In Health, 


Timothy and Lindsay

We Can't Want it For You!

As we were making our weekly grocery run this Sunday, we had an in-depth conversation regarding the health of our friends and family.


In December, we moved back to our hometown and since doing so, we've had a renewed energy in helping others with their health and fitness. It's been interesting to see how people are reacting so far, and here are some of the big points of our conversation about this:

• People think because they aren't "as fit as us" that they can't workout with us or do similar workouts - NOT TRUE! Every workout, every move, can be modified! Do YOUR best! And keep in mind, we've been doing this for a few years now....STICK WITH IT, it will get easier!
  
• You can't just workout a couple times a week, or be really on schedule for a week or two, then give up because "it's too hard" or you're "too sore" or you're "not seeing results." BE COMMITTED - decide what you're starting this journey for (whether it's to be a better partner, better parent, to resolve medical issues related to being overweight, or just straight up vanity) and keep that in the forefront of your mind. When it gets tough (and it will), when life gets hectic (and it always is), STAY FOCUSED.
  
• All too often, folks fall into this all-or-nothing mind trap....it will set you up for failure!! Take it slow, with your workouts and your nutrition. Build up your stamina with your workouts....aim to push yourself a little harder each time. With your nutrition, cut back on the bad stuff little by little instead of jumping right into an unsustainable low calorie rabbit food diet. CONSISTENCY is the most important part of the equation!
  
• And the biggest take-away from our conversation was the hardest pill for US to swallow: we can't....we absolutely CANNOT want it for you. As bad as we want you to get healthy, as fearful as we are for your high blood pressure and diabetes risk-factors, our influence will only go so far. Making the change all relies on you. We want to be there every step of the way, giving you whatever support and knowledge you need, but YOU have to decide this is what you want and YOU have to put in the effort day-in and day-out.
   

We want to hear from you - please comment below or email us (fitwithfarrar@gmail.com) with any feedback, questions, or concerns!Also really easy to stay in touch on Facebook, like our page here!

In Health,

Lindsay & Timothy