When Andrew and I started our cleanse the initial purpose was to replenish our bodies with nutrients we felt we missed from our trip to South America. Secondly, it was to kick start our motivation to hit the gym and get our bodies Summer ready.

The cleanse happened and by the last day Andrew dropped 16 pounds and I dropped 7 (o why do boys have it so easy). Immediately post cleanse we went down to NYC to eat a bit more then we needed to but it could not be helped as our hands were tied (no they weren't, we are just gluttons and feel we have to eat everything since we don't know when we will be down again). As vegetarians it would be assumed all we eat is is vegetables, which we do, but we can get lazy and stick to the same few over and over again and go heavier on the grains. So, upon returning home I promised myself to try a new recipe every few days and expand the veggie color palette some more. We also started measuring our grain portions as we knew we were over eating (typically eating 2-2.5 cups of rice instead of 1-1.5 during lunch).

A week after the cleanse Andrew gained back 6 pounds and I gained back 4, which is what we expected. That afternoon I purchased my tickets to visit my best friend in Florida. Motivational Goal engaged. I now had a reason to hit the gym and make the most of the cleanse and get "beach" ready. Since then, I have gone to the gym 11 out of the last 13 days. I have been taking a day off per week and really pushing myself (who knows maybe this is my last summer to have a pre-baby beach body). Every workout has 25-30 minutes of cardio (running, elliptical or jump rope) and an ab routine. In addition I do another body part or two, which keeps me at the gym for 1-1.5hrs. Almost two weeks in and my workouts have been getting easier so I have increased the weights on the machine and adding a medicine ball to my ab routine. I still hate running because it is the devil, but so is body fat so I guess two negatives make for a positive result. While my weight has stayed relatively the same with maybe a loss of a pound, I have noticed that my pants have a little wiggle room. Yeay! It is easy to get focused on the number on the scale, but nobody sees that number except for me, so I try not to let it be the judge on if I have made progress.

Now, the challenge is to keep this up for next 35 days. I have a tendency to workout consistently, and then stop a month or so prior to what I was working out for. Whether it was pre-wedding, pre-bachelorette or just pre-summer. I have asked Andrew to stay on top of me to make sure I see this one through, which should be feasible since he has his own goals in mind. Another driving point is that our gym membership will be on hiatus June - August. During the Summer we tend to head to the lake or just go out more, so I would rather sleep in and enjoy my afternoons outdoors instead of having that nagging feeling that I am paying for a membership I am not using.

I would share a before and current photo but that feels so vain. Maybe later. After a drink or two.