“What’s Next After the 12 Weeks?” (Manja Week 9/10)

Follow Manja’s Runtastic Results journey week by week here on the Runtastic blog. Manja is a mom, wife, works a full-time job and is ready to change her life. We know that her story is a powerful one and we look forward to sharing her journey one workout at a time. Now she’s on to week 9 and 10. In case you missed week 8, you can get a full recap here.

Dear Week 9,
This week a dear friend visited us in our little cabin. My favorite person in the whole world, Karen. She is so amazing and she has always been supportive of me my whole life. It was so amazing to see her.

Workout 1: I didn’t want to do my workout at all. I wanted to drink a bunch of coffee and chat with Karen. But, of course, I did my workout and Karen drank coffee and read her book. The workout was really hard and felt like it took forever. When I finished, I was exhausted and plopped myself down on the chair next to Karen and she looked at me and said, “Are you already done?” So I guess it really wasn’t that long. After the workout, we drank a bunch of coffee and had a looooooooooong chat. 🙂

Workout 2: Gosh! The workouts are getting really intense. But, then again, it’s week NINE now… isn’t that amazing? I cannot believe that time has gone by so fast. I feel like I just started. Today the question came up: What should I do when I am done with the 12 weeks? Should I go back to just running? Should I do the program again? Lots of thoughts about that going through my mind.

Workout 3: I have found the absolute PERFECT time to do my workout —> WHEN THE KIDS ARE NOT AROUND (for their own protection)! Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE my kids, I really do. And, it’s not their fault that I hate burpees and walking lunges. But, when I am sitting at the wall doing a wall sit, biting my lips so I won’t scream, just concentrating on my breathing and my little, loveable, blonde 9-year-old monster comes dancing up to me and says “Wow! That looks comfortable, are you taking a break from your workout?” I stop concentrating on my breathing for a short while and concentrate on, “Don’t kill the kids, don’t kill the kids…” Or, like yesterday for example, I was doing burpees and basically almost dying and the kids started arguing out loud about which color is best for a lunch box! “Don’t kill the kids Manja, not today…”

So, I have a really funny story to share. Recently I have been talking with my kids about using kind words and not negative words that can hurt people’s feelings. We have had a few conversations about which words you would not say to a person: like “fat,” for example.  I told my kids that I would be really hurt if someone called me fat. Then my son came up to me, hugged me and said “You’re not fat mom, you’re comfy.” Gosh I love them.

Sincerely,

Manja

Dear Week 10,
We are back home from our vacation in Denmark. It was a really great vacation, but it feels good to be back home and back to my routine. We have started a tradition in the house to talk about, as a family, what is on our plates at meal time. I am trying to teach my kids about protein, carbohydrates, fruits, vegetables, healthy fats and even sugar. I want them to know that it’s all about balance and even having sugar from time to time is totally fine. We take turns pointing out all the food groups on our plate – my kids really love it. I feel really happy that we are doing this as a family. Even doing this with my small children helps me a lot!

Workout 1: Today was madness. I think it might be a good idea for me to have a little snack after my workouts to give my body some energy back. Usually I eat a meal after my workouts but it takes some time to prepare. A little something could really help. By the way, flat out burpees should be called drop dead burpees!

Workout 2: I actually enjoyed a more core-focused workout today. Yeah my abs burned A LOT, but I liked it.

Workout 3: Oh boy! I know I am repeating myself, but THIS was the absolute hardest workout so far. I bet my arms will be so sore tomorrow. This picture below makes me laugh because I know I am thinking: “What the heck am I doing?”

Day after Workout 3: Nope! My arms aren’t sore today. I really thought that they would be. Maybe it’s because I really made sure to stretch well afterwards. I have forgotten to stretch after previous workouts and really paid the price the next day with really tight muscles.

Workout 4: Really? Jumping jacks again? Grrrrr…and 5 rounds? Not funny, not funny at all. But, I did it.

It was really hard for me to stay healthy the last 3 weeks on vacation. I didn’t want to be too strict with the eating during our vacation, but at the same time I was afraid to fall back into the old bad habits. So, it wasn’t the easiest to find the perfect way. In the end I gained 1 kg. Not that much, but certainly more than I hoped for. Back home I am finally getting back into my routine and healthy eating habits. I am aware of my weaknesses and know how to fight them! It feels great to be in control.

Sincerely,

Manja

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