Save money, LOSE weight!

Honesty is the best policy… And although I would love to say that I am somebody who LOVES to workout and go to the gym… That is totally NOT true.

Since I was little I’ve always played sports and was a very competitive athlete all of my life. For me, my “workout” came from jumping on the trampoline, climbing trees, making obstacle courses, jump roping, swinging on the monkey bars, etc. Even when I was a collegiate athlete I did not spend my days in the gym lifting weights or running the track… I just lived an active lifestyle and made the world my gym by doing fun activities to keep me fit. Don’t get my wrong, I had a minimum 3 hour volleyball practice every day and worked my tail off during those three hours, but when I wasn’t out on the court I wasn’t strutting my stuff in the “gym.”

Well, fast forward 7 years… And now I am a washed up volleyball player, turned mom, who has very little time for beach volleyball tournaments (heck, even a week-night rec league!). And, not only that, but I am a breastfeeding momma (in one week Faith will be a year old!) and, despite all the things I read and researched about breastfeeding and the thousands of extra calories you burn on a weekly basis, for ME the weight would NOT come off.

If we are being brutally honest, I only gained 25 pounds during my entire pregnancy with Faith and when I got home from the hospital I was 12 pounds lighter and dropped another 5 pounds within a week… HOWEVER, I then gained back 15 pounds by the time she was a month old and could not lose any of the weight until recently!!!!! Frustrated, yes! Was she worth it, absolutely!!! But is that the point???? No! The fact is, I love my daughter and feel incredibly blessed that my body miraculously created a sensational human being. In fact, I realized that I should be caring for my body and treating it more like a temple… Especially since I would love to have another little munchkin in the future and I now recognize that my body is the greatest instrument I will ever own!!!! That being said, let’s move forward to how I started losing the weight.
Well, since having Faith I’ve been admiring (Instagram stalking perhaps?) a beautiful mom and workout phenomena named Alexa Jean Brown (Instagram account @alexajeanfitness) and loved all of her little workout routines, because they are all at-home workouts and she is a super awesome Christian lady with an absolutely adorable daughter and a rockin’ hot body. Anyway, she came out with these e-books with 30-day challenges (which are currently on sale–HALF OFF, so $20 for the full bundle) and I thought, SURE! If I can get anything *close* to HER body and not spend a fortune on a gym membership that I know I will never use, or have to pop-in an hour-long DVD, then let’s get started!

So… I purchased the e-books (I did the package deal–I got it for less than $25–which I would highly recommend) and it came with an ab workout (#soretothecore), butt & legs, and arms! On top of that, I decided to do some clean eating (more on that later).

Holy cow, the results have been incredible!!! I’ve just completed the first round (4 weeks) and I’ve lost 14 pounds and 17.75 inches!!!!! IN 4 WEEKS!!!!!
No diet pills, gym memberships, crazy workout DVDs, I’m not on drugs, seeing a sports psychiatrist, drinking a special tea, or participating in any kind of multi-level marketing company! Hahahahaha 🙂 I was very tempted to join Fabletics to get some super cute workout gear… But then that little saver voice inside of me reminded me that we are still trying to furnish our new lake house… So I’ll have to make due of my faded sports bras and stained yoga pants! They function like they should so there is no need to upgrade, especially since I am NOT going to the gym and I already have a handsome hubby who would MUCH rather me save money, rather than spend cash on some foil print yoga pants and ultra-thin strapy-back sports bra.

Ok, so… What have I done to get these results?? I’ve been able wake up 40 minutes early, 4 days per week (honestly, that’s probably the toughest part) and I do two leg & butt circuits, three arm circuits, three ab circuits (all part of Alexa Jean Brown’s 30-Day Challenges), and I am clean-eating. If you are interested in my specific eating plan then leave me a comment below and I can write a separate post about it more specifically–it’s super basic but I do believe that eating clean is another key to success!

So, you might be wondering… what does this really have to do about spending less and saving more?? Well, let’s answer a couple simple questions:

1.) Do you know how much your annual gym membership is actually adding up to?

2.) Do you know you can exercise at home, for FREE, and still get incredible results???!!

The numbers: Let’s say you spend, on average, $29 per month on a gym membership. That’s $348 per year and $1740 over the course of 5 years!!! Not including any “one time membership fee” or the gas to get to/from the gym everyday… Or super cute gym clothes!

That being said, try saving some pennies by opting out of your gym membership. Go for a jog, take a mountainous hike, do some planks, throw your toddler into the air and do some squats while holding her (Faith looooves that!!)… A few burpies from the living room never killed anyone but they WOULD help you fit into your skinny jeans! Oh, and that would save you even more 🙂

Much love my friends!

The Tigert Momma

Instagram: @summerssilverlining