michellepruu

[michellepruu]

July 21, 2016

I had to wake up at the butt crack of dawn today because I had to open at work which means I had to be there at 5:50 am. The worst part about working at a breakfast diner. After a couple cups of coffee I was feeling pretty good. The weather was in the 90s with a heat index of 100 which in Wisconsin is dramatically warm. This heat caused work to be fairly slow, which I didn’t mind. I work all weekend and I know that (as usual) it’s going to be ridiculously busy. 

Nutrition: I’m happy with how I ate today. My macros are Carbs = 271g Fat = 51g Protein = 102g. A while ago I did an IIFYM test to see what my goals should be for my macro amounts. My goals are 91g Protein, 40g Fat, and 315g of Carbs. The carb load is insane! I don’t think that I’ve ever hit 315 but I do my best everyday. I am more motivated to make sure I am hitting my protein and fat goals. It amazes me how quickly the fat sneaks in your diet. Majority of my fat does come from eggs, avocados, etc. BUT I do have my occasional fault like Sunday when I went out to eat and had burgers and fries. :) 

Workout: So I attempted to go to a workout class today, Butts & Guts, at JAM. Since it was so hot, my instructor didn’t feel like it was “safe” to have a work out even in the air conditioning. Class ended up being cancelled. Fine whatever okay. I decided to take a cat nap instead and then headed into school to do some work in my research lab. I’m currently finishing my master’s degree in Molecular Biology. The goal is to graduate in May. Almost there. 

Mental Health: I’ve been groggy today. Sleepy. I want to go to bed early tonight and try to get a good nights rest. I can always feel the difference when I don’t get enough Zs. I did have a fault with my belly. My shorts I wore to the gym were a little tight, and my belly was rolling a little over the top. Still consciously battling the self image, I kept having to tell myself “You have fat. You are NOT fat.” 

[michellepruu]

[michellepruu]

Fitness and health on We Heart It - http://weheartit.com/entry/139587934

[michellepruu]

[michellepruu]

Healthy and happy is not mutually exclusive. If you’re constantly wishing to lose weight, you’ll never be satisfied or happy 🌼💛🙏

Instagram: annesmiless

[michellepruu]

Today’s post was graciously submitted by Gena C. who came across The Happy Project and was inspired to share a story of her own. I grew up in uncertainty. I spent the first 18 years of my life in a cycle of temporary rootings and uprootings. Friendships were never permanent. The place where I felt the most at home was the escalator going down into the customs area of the Vancouver International Airport; the one with the waterfall on your left, the faint smell of chlorine wafting over. To this day, if I close my eyes, I can still hear and smell it. 

Uncertainty bred stress, stress bred worries. Worries soon turned to constant, turbulent thoughts that I would only discover years later to be anxiety. The revelation came in my second year of university, and it was probably the most difficult year of my life thus far. I felt hopeless, cried almost every night, and my anxiety raged on, nearly sending me to the emergency room when it felt like the world was ending, that my head would explode, the thoughts kept going, it wouldn’t stop.

I could go on about the pain I went through, but what matters most to me about this story is how I put the pieces of my shattered self back together, in a different arrangement than before. I reached out, sought help, and came to terms with what I was facing. I didn’t rush myself, but I fought hard. Mental illness is a ravenous monster. 

Then new people entered my life, and important, healing friendships were born.  I spent more time listening to myself and paying attention to the things that made me happy, whether it was reading a book, having genuine conversations, or the smell of fresh, salty ocean air. I made mental notes of those things. 

By no means am I “recovered”. I’m just stronger. They say that once you’ve experienced something that makes you feel good, dopamine increases in anticipation of it. I feel happier when I’m on the bus to go to the beach, because I know that soon, I’ll be filling my lungs with that smell I love. 

Find your happiness.

[michellepruu]

FACEBOOK on We Heart It - http://weheartit.com/entry/162658486

[michellepruu]

[michellepruu]

Just as I say I plan on writing more about my health, I almost forget to the next day. Very typical of myself, starting things and not finishing them. This is definitely something I’ve started and plan on finishing. 

After my post yesterday I worked out with Scott (my fiancé) and did chest and back. Here’s my routine:

Pull-Ups: 4 sets of 10 reps with 100lb on machine Lat Pull Down: 3 sets of 10 reps at 50 lbs Flies: 3 sets of 10 reps at 35 lbs BB Rows: 3 sets of 10 at 40 lbs Flat Dumbbell Press: 3 sets of 10 at 20 lbs

I’m sore today, I can feel it in my back but mostly in my triceps? I’m not sure if this is from the total power workout class I did at Jam or what. I’ll take progress anywhere tho! And no soreness compares to leg soreness so I don’t mind haha

I went grocery shopping today, and tried my best to get as much healthy things as possible. I bought organic brown eggs for the first time ever (they were on sale) and I also bought a dairy free frozen pizza by Diaya. I have a lactose intolerance, which is the absolute worst thing ever. These past couple months I’ve been splurging on dairy still but paying the price. Two weeks ago I decided to completely eliminate all dairy and honestly it’s amazing how much better I feel. I grew up constantly with stomach pains and I always thought it was from how much I went out to eat. (my parents are divorced and I grew up with my dad. Lets just say he wasn’t much of a cook) Little did I know it was probably the dairy that was really hurting me. ANYWAYS, I’m hoping the pizza is decent. I’ve had dairy free cheese before and I can’t say I loved it. eh. 

I used today as a rest day because I have work outs planned for the rest of the week and I am pretty beat. I’m heading off to bed right now because I have to work at 6 am tomorrow morning. I have work till 2 then plan on heading to a JAM fitness class in the evening. Until then, goodnight! 

#health #fitness #everyday #myroutine

[michellepruu]

[michellepruu]

Comeback Season

I have decided to actually use this tumblr account that I made many years ago to fulfill my need to keep myself responsible for my actions. 

My name is Michelle, and I love books, cooking, and anything fitness related. I dove head first into working out and living a healthier lifestyle earlier this year in March. The last year I had been dabbling in working out. I had gone to the gym, done plenty of yoga, even shared a personal trainer with my best friend. None of this held my interest because I’d be mega hardcore into everything, and then die off for months at a time. 

These last 4 months have changed that. I finally found the desire and motivation within myself to push through. I started doing Blogilates PIIT28 work outs in March, and I give so much credit of my commitment to fitness to this program. I did the program consistently for about 3 months. This past month I have been trying to do my own fitness routine, and I’ve changed my goals slightly. 

I have never been a big person. My weight has always been around 105-120lbs. I am only 5′2″ so I’ve always been considered small and tiny. My body shape is far from skinny though. I would consider myself a mesomorph body type. My legs are thick and my body isn’t thin. When I started the Blogilates workout plan I looked like this:

As I said, I don’t look thin. I felt like I had lots of weight to lose and wanted to start shredding the pounds. As I continued the programs and tried tightening up my diet I eventually got to this:

This was May 16. I was finally in the habit of working out and eating better. I even had some slight abs to show the world. I thought I was making great progress. I had improved with the workouts, and my cardiovascular system as improved tremendously. At the end of May I started working out with some friends at a gym called Jam Fitness. Its a gym that only does classes, and it’s pretty inexpensive so I bought 3 months unlimited classes. I enjoyed the classes so much, just a couple weeks ago I bought 3 more unlimited months. I attend 2 total body strength training classes and 2 stretch classes every week. 

Now I want to focus more attention on gaining muscle than losing fat. I’ve taken numerous body fat% tests and I always fall in a healthy or athletic range. I don’t know why I kept telling myself that I needed to lose fat. I’m not one of those girls who cares about a number on the scale. I care more about strength. I want to be strong. Being of a shorter stature, people always think I need help opening a jar or carrying something. I just want to show people I am capable of doing things myself and I’m not a weak helpless little girl. I’ve traded in my pilates/HIIT work outs for more strength training and muscle gaining. The last 2 weeks I’ve logged my food on MyFitnessPal. I’ve set my goal to maintain my weight, but if I start to notice changes in my body I will adjust as necessary. 

I’m going to use this account as an outlet for everything health/fitness related. Not any of my friends are into fitness like I am, so whenever I try talking to them about articles and things I’ve read I get blank stares. I will spell out my work outs and food/macros even as mundane as it may be. I want to see if having this account will help me in my journey to strength. 

#fitness motivation health lifestyle journey mystory

[michellepruu]

Day 3

Typical day. I went to the gym this morning and did a 20 minute run following the color run routine I posted before. Afterwards I did Day 3 of the 30 Day Ab Challenge. Then I worked out my arms I used 3 different machines. 

Tricep Pulldown, 10 reps, 3 sets, 20 pounds Bicep Pull Ups, 10 reps, 3 sets, 20 pounds Chest Pushes, 10 reps, 3 sets, 20 pounds

I am fairly weak, but this routine was tough enough for me. My arms definitely feel sore and my abs are feeling it too. I love the feeling of working out though, and this soreness is kind of nice. Let's me know that I am actually doing something enough to make a difference. 

MEALS: Breakfast: 

Yogurt and Granola

Homemade Banana Bread

Lunch:

Homemade Tuna Salad Sandwich

Orange

Tortilla Chips with Taco Dip

Dinner:

Two Chicken Tacos on Corn Tortillas

Nachos

I did not keep track of my water consumption well today, but I did drink a lot more than usual. My food intake was pretty greasy though, especially the chicken tacos. Tomorrow I will do my best to keep on track with the healthy eating and even do an at home workout. WOOO. Day 3 ready for many more to come. 

[michellepruu]

Need A Little Motivation? : theBERRY on We Heart It http://weheartit.com/entry/50445520/via/yocharrlotte

[michellepruu]

Day 2

This morning my boyfriends car wouldn't start, so he took my car to work which left me at home. So instead of hitting the gym I did some at home work outs. I did a Julienne Michaels workout routine found here http://youtu.be/q5nyrD4eM64 I also did Day 2 of my 30 Day Ab Challenge. 

MEALS: Breakfast: 

Yogurt and Granola (Yoplait)

Oatmeal

Lunch:

Homemade pasta with kale and spinach

Dinner:

Mini Gyro with Fries

Late Night Snacks:

Banana Bread

Water Consumption: 5.5 cups

Work was absolutely freezing today so I was downing the tea like crazy. I looked up my BMR today and it said that I should only be consuming 1195 calories per day. I don't keep track of my calories but I don't think that I am consuming that little amount. My meals weren't the best, but the workout did feel good. Tomorrow I plan on hitting up the gym, lets hope everything goes as planned. 

[michellepruu]

Its gonna my year #workHard on We Heart It http://weheartit.com/entry/94795028/via/rabbitpig_1

[michellepruu]

[michellepruu]

January 20 2014

This is the start of my new dedication towards fitness. I think having a healthy lifestyle would be amazing, so I am starting my way towards it now. Using this blog will help me stay focused and watch my progress. 

Today's Workout:

Even though I am not doing the Color Run anytime soon, but I thought that this would help be get better into running. Today was my first day of the first week. 

I am also doing the 30 Day Ab Challenge, and today I started with Day 1. Today at the gym all I did was run and the short ab workout. 

MEALS:

Breakfast

Kashi Go Lean Crisp "Cinnamon Crumble" cereal with Lactose Free Milk

Apple

Lunch

Tuna on Whole Wheat bread with American Cheese

Kale and Spinach Salad

Peaches

Dinner

Vegetable Soup

Grilled Cheese

Potato Salad

Lots and Lots of Pickles

Late Night Snacks

Popcorn

Water Consumption = 5 cups