implement resolutions - #gymshark66 challenge

Hello sunshine!

[unpaid ad, because of mentioning the brand]
Today I want to talk about fitness again. For me it is a big part of my life and I would really like to include this part in my blog as well. I would like to know what you think about it.

Today it’s all about the #gymshark66 challenge.

As you may have seen on Instagram, I’m currently taking part on this challenge. I want to tell you what it is, what my goals are and how I measure my achievements.

I posted this photo on the 2nd of January and qualified myself for this challenge. It denotes my “before”-picture and so a starting situation for the 66 days challenge.
Gymshark itself is a brand for gym cloths and active wear, which I like and wear almost every time.
For me this brand is mostly denoted by its ambassadors or athletes. Of course I know, that they are payed to promote the cloths but it motivates me to wear the same outfits as my role models and to know where I want to be. It’s inspiring and motivating at the same time.

What is this challenge?
The basic idea is: allegedly it needs 66 days to create a habit (I’m a different opinion but that’s why they say 66 days). And Gymshark invited everyone to upload a photo on Instagram till the 7th of January with a sign, to participate the challenge.
At the 8th of March I need to upload a second picture with the results I achieved (hopefully) to end the challenge. And if you are fast in calculating you know: it’s halftime!

What am I hoping for?
Certainly, I have resolutions for 2019 and lots of them are fitness related and so this challenge was a heaven-sent opportunity. Unfortunately, I was ill at the beginning of the year, but this could not stop me from starting the new year with all this motivation.

One of my main goals is to reduce body fat. It’s not about loosing weight that much, it’s more to build muscles, feeling strong and to see the results of this hard work. I’ve been working on my strength for a long time now and I finally want to see the results for that.
I already have good muscles, but they are still hidden under fat and this is what I want to change!

Furthermore, when I was in Scotland I created myself the habit of going to the gym 5 times a week. Back in Germany it seems to be impossible for me to keep doing this. That’s why I wanted to start with home workouts and to be active for at least 5 minutes every day.

And of course: the diet! During the holidays I granted myself a lot and I enjoyed it! But I know that I cannot lower my body fat on the one side and eat pizza on the other side. That’s why we (me and my boyfriend) decided to start with a low-carb diet at least for those 66 days. We still make one “treat” (cheat) day a week, because we don’t want to quit all the food we love but we want to change it in a healthy way.

What did I achieve so far?y
3rd of February was halftime and I think I’m on a good way. I cannot say, that everything worked as expected and I have to accepts (again) that I am not able to change everything at one time, but all in all it’s going well.
Diet-wise I’m in my fifth week of low-carb diet and I’m getting used to it. I have one higher carb day in the middle of each week with mostly whole grain food and my “treat” day, but besides that we are eating healthy and balanced.

I completely changed my morning routine and get up at 6:30am every day to do a quick workout before I go for a walk with my dog. This way I feel like I’m starting my day quicker and get in the mood of being productive. Currently, I’m one of those people who can work more effective in the morning instead of afternoon and with the beautiful winter-sun shining through my window, I’m so much happier while working.

In terms of weight lost about 2kg, which is not much, but what satisfies me a bit more is that I lost almost 4cm waist circumference. I notice that I’m getting more visible abs (still under my belly fat but anyway) and I changed my training a bit. To cut fat I incorporate more cardio and interval training and at the same time I try to challenge myself a bit more when I’m doing weight training.

We will see whether this is the perfect way to achieve my goals or not. But currently, I have fun when I’m training, I’m motivated to start each day and I’m satisfied with my diet. My weakness is and will be chocolate or sweets in general. Once I started I cannot finish, but let’s change one habit at a time.
I’m happy about how the challenge is going and that I’m still part of it.

I’m curious whether you knew about this challenge before or if you are part of it? What would be your goals if you would take part? Let me know in the comments below.

See you next time. ♥