Workout Wishlist

We are officially DONE with week 1 of #4weeksfit!!! How are your goals going so far????

I am doing pretty good and am getting excited to see what the results at the end of the month will be!

I feel like after a few months of really trying to lose weight and get healthy, I've got the food thing down. I still count my calories every day but I've really learned how to balance the good foods and the bad so that I don't feel deprived but am eating healthy the majority of the time. Of course, it's a constant battle, especially with all the wine calling my name {the woes of a liquor reps wife}. Now I am really focusing on getting my fitness in check. I'm signed up for all kinds of fun workouts this month and am still chipping away at the C25K training program. In fact, my sweet Kenley recognized how dedicated I am to my fitness so she gifted me an early Mother's Day gift...

...some new running kicks! I got the Adidas Element Refine and am OBSESSED.

Fun Fact :: My dad runs a competitive youth basketball program here in Minnesota and is sponsored by Adidas - so when looking for workout gear that's ALWAYS my first stop. I definitely like and wear other brands but you will NEVER see me in Nike - pretty sure I'd be disowned.

There is one MAJOR problem with all of this, however. The new running shoes prompted me to do some online browsing and now I want to spend a small fortune on cute workout clothes! I mean getting dressed is half the battle, right? I feel like I'd be way more motivated to workout if I had the following....

I signed up for tennis lessons this summer and am SO excited to get back on the court {I was actually a pretty decent player back in my day} but I really need to look the part if I'm going to channel my inner Maria Sharapova.

 

adidas Spring Adipure Jacket :: adidas Adizero II Visor :: adidas Summer Response Tank

adidas Summer Response Skort :: adidas Barricade Team 3 Shoes

Today I start week 5 of C25K. I'm proud of my progress but it's starting to get HARD! And running every other day is definitely putting my legs through the ringer. But I am determined to not only LIKE running but also be good at it. And to be an official "runner" I need official running clothes - that match my new shoes of course.

 

Hot Pink FitBit Flex Band ::  adidas Sequencials Long Sleeve Heathered Tee :: adidas Core Running Tank

adidas Element Refine Tricot Shoes :: adidas Supernova Racer Bra :: adidas Response Long Tights

Like I mentioned, I'm trying out all kinds of different fitness classes {like Zumba & Kickboxing} and need the duds to rock it out. And, let's be honest, an outfit like this is pretty much my mom uniform. See Jason, multi-use! 

 

Tzu Tzu Sport Sara Top Corona Blue :: Under Armour Still Gotta Have It Printed Sports Bra

Under Armour Victory Tank :: Under Armour Perfect Pant

Puma Cotton Invisible No Show Socks {aka BEST socks ever!} :: adidas Climacool Aerate 3 Shoes

Yoga is by far my favorite workout so of course I pretty much need anything and everything from Lulu.

But these pretties are my current favorites. 

Wunder Under Pant *full-on luxtreme :: Forme Jacket *cuffins :: The Hot (towel) Mat

Now I just need to drum up $932.88 - not kidding, I added it up. 

No wonder America is so obese, no one can afford workout clothes.

be sure to visit my friend:

Tips for Outfitting Family Photos

I have a brother, half-sister, two step-sisters, a sister-in-law, a brother-in-law, two nieces, a nephew, two niece-dogs and a dog sister....so when this fall I got a wild hair to get everyone together to take family photos to surprise our parents with for Christmas, everyone thought I was crazy. Thankfully we enlisted the help of my friend Sara of Sara Jayne Photography {as always} to take the photos and get us organized. Coordinating a date and time was shockingly easy what was difficult was coordinating the outfits. 

We knew we were going to be outside in the fall and we knew we had 5 families to coordinate and look somehow put together which included three kids and a baby. I have always liked family photos that are coordinated but still allow everyone to show off their personal style and individuality so that's what we went with and it really turned out great. 

With Sara's help I have come up with some tips for coordinating your outfits for family photos:

Stay away from the classic "white top (or black, or red, or any color really) and jeans". In my humble opinion it's super overdone and outdated and I personally think it makes the family look like one big blob and makes for some pretty uninteresting photos. 

Create a color scheme. Picking 3 or 4 colors allows everyone to coordinate without matching and gives some options in terms of putting outfits together.

Be wary of patterns. If you are going to do patterns make sure they don't clash or make sure they compliment each other OR be sure there's enough patterns so not just ONE person sticks out.

Layer it up! Utilize your color scheme with layers, for example, put the boys in a collared shirt in one of the colors with a sweater over it in another one of the colors. 

Pay attention to shoes! Even if they only show in a few photos a pair of bright colored shoes that don't match can take away from the whole photo. 

Stage it! Lay all of your outfits out on the bed so you can see if anything really stands out or doesn't "go". Obviously, this isn't always possible with a large group of multiple families, but if each family does it you should all be set. 

And when in doubt:

*neutral solid colors

*avoid stripes or bold patterms

*no words

*long or 3/4 sleeves

*pops of color in accessories

*if you're concerned about slimming - go darker rather than lighter

For our photos, we decided on tan, red, black and denim. This allowed everyone lots of options - red sweater and jeans, black pants and tan top, or as Jason said "red leather pants and a black shirt" which thankfully no one showed up wearing.