Instead of giving myself a concrete number or a size to fit in, I've decided to become an all around healthier human being. In 2011, I felt that I fell away from the natural whole foods that we should eat. I found myself eating many frozen meals and entrees. While they are convenient for my time, they are not convenient for my body. My energy began to lessen, and my skin did not glow as much as it did while eating whole foods.
In 2012, I want to focus on eating meals consisting of mainly fresh ingredients, less meat and more fish, and smaller portions. I have grown up with huge portions my entire life, and feeling full and satisfied is something I struggle with. I want to train my stomach to feel full with less food, utilizing high fiber vegetables and drinking the recommended amount of water.
Beyond the nutritional elements of my new year's resolution of being a healthier person, I also want to continue working out adding new and interesting elements. In addition to group fitness classes at my local gym, I just joined a boxing gym! I've wanted to box for years; I tried it once, but I wasn't in the best physical condition. Since I've increased my endurance, these new boxing classes feel great and they challenge me to reach my max heart rate zones. I've attended four classes so far, and I am hooked, plus (side note) I love wearing the gloves!
My gloves look like these.
The gym I am attending is similar to this one. It was intimidating at first, but after just a few classes I feel like a regular. 
While talking to some of the women at the gym I asked them if the boxing classes helped them lose weight. They said that the boxing classes are the best cardio they have ever participated in, but if I really wanted to lose weight and become slimmer, I would need to incorporate strength training.
Solution: Les Mills Body Pump Workout from BeachBody! It is coming out this week, and I feel like it is going to be the new fitness craze for the resolution season. Les Mill Body Pump Workout uses light barbell type weights and quick reps to tone and sculpt your body while burning lots of calories, more so than some of your "cardio" classes. After watching the video, I am intrigued to try it out. You can watch it yourself by clicking the links above.
I have participated in similar barbell classes at my gym, but I tell you barbell classes are the hardest when on a packed floor with tons of bodies and equipment around you. Someone hit my shin once during a rep of lunges, and an other time someone dropped a weight on my foot when they didn't clip their weights in properly. Having the Les Mills Body Pump Workout DVD system would be a great at home experience. No traffic, no waiting in line for your barbells, and no crashing into one another during side lunges!
I am looking forward to reading reviews of this workout when it releases, because I have a feeling my father would love this. He's not fond of the group-fitness environment. Have you tried a similar pump class? Did you feel that it was enough strength training for you?
I hope you are having a fantastic week and keeping to your new year's resolutions!
(I was not paid or endorsed for this review. All images courtesy google images.)
