Operation: Body Fail - and PLEASE Join MY Challenge

Yesterday, The Sisterhood announced the monthly project for February.  We're no longer doing weekly projects - that was just for January - now we're doing a project once a month...and working on it all month.

For February, the project is called Operation, Body Fail.  The objective is simple.  Find a way to completely exhaust our bodys during some kind of exercise - be it running, or lifting weights, or whatever, and then push to beat that number (or time) each week. 

This project really couldn't have come at a better time.  The past couple of days, I've been in this rut.  I'm frustrated - and it's bugging the crap out of me.  I've been eating pretty well, I've been working out (somewhat) but when I step on the scale?  I'm seeing a GAIN!!! Usually, I don't mind too much.  But, now, I'm really starting to get upset that I just can push past this teeter totter that I'm on.

For the past few weeks, I've been going back and forth - 219 then 220.  219 then back to 220.  I just don't get it!!

Yesterday morning, I read a blog post that really got me thinking.  It was from my dear Sisterhood Sister, Christie O.  She was declaring her weekly mantra of "No Regrets".  As I was reading the post, I started to wonder if I was really putting everything I have into this journey.  Can I stand on the scale each and every week and know that I have done everything in my power to get the number to come down?  Have I worked out hard, eaten everything right?  The short response: No.

Am I working out every day? No.  Most days? No.  A couple of days? Yes.  Could that be why I'm not seeing the results I'm craving for? Well, duh!!

I can say that I'm eating right - for the most part.  Last week, due to the snow storm, I did eat out a couple of times.  Did I make the best decisions at the restaurants? No.

So, this morning, I read a post from the amazing Fit Bee.  She describes the people that commit to a weight loss journey, but fall into temptation at the drop of the hat...bringing up excuses... and I couldn't help but feel a cringe (OK, a crippling punch to the gut) of guilt as I read the words.

Long time followers of this blog will know how many times I've posted about whimsical excuses - but am I guilty at falling prey to them?  Most definitely... guilty as charged.

With Christie O and Colleen (a/k/a Fit Bee)'s words - I've started to discover that I really have no one to blame but myself for not seeing that number dwindling down on the scale.  The weeks that I've seen a gain - I know it's because I didn't work out enough and/or didn't eat everything right.  The weeks I've seen a loss?  I've been more dedicated to working out more and keeping my eating on track... simple.  No other reasons.

Now, with this monthly project, I have an opportunity to challenge myself to total body fail with some form of exercise.  I could make it about my running - trying to run further or faster each and every week.  With the current weather situation, however, who knows when I'll be able to get back out and run.  I thought long and hard about what I could do - lift weights? Hmm..maybe... but my track record hasn't been the best with keeping up with weight lifting.  Nope, I got my plan - and I totally stole the idea from Christie O.  I'm going to focus on push-ups... the MANLY kind.

While in boot camp last year, I started out not being able to do a single push-up.  Just 6 weeks later, I could 9 PROPER push-ups in 1 minute.  Not a huge amount - but 900% more than what I could do when I started out.  I'm back down (as of this morning) to being able to do 3 push-ups before I couldn't do another one.  I could get up into plank - but when I started to go down, I just couldn't hold myself.... I reached that body fail moment.

Now, EVERY SINGLE DAY this month, I'm going to try and beat that number each and every morning.  If I don't get any other exercise in - which I hope that's not the case - then I can at least say that I pushed myself to do as many push-ups as I could do.  Maybe it starts out with 3, maybe next week it's 5, maybe by the end of the month I can do 10!! It's all progress.

I'm also starting my own challenge - just for this week - starting tomorrow, after another (no doubt) pitiful weigh-in.  This week, I'm going to do the NO REGRET challenge. 

Every single day this week, I'm going to get in my 30 minutes of exercise.  I'm going to eat right EVERY SINGLE DAY.  I'm going to drink at least 60ozs of water every day... even if I'm chugging cups of water before I leave work and when I return.  It's balls to the wall - let's see if pounding it as hard as I can makes the difference.

Feel free to join me - I love company.  Leave a comment below about how you're going to participate.  Lay out the 2 or 3 or 10 goals that you want to accomplish... just this week... so that you know by next Wednesday, you did everything you could to have a NO REGRET week.

Till next time. ;)