fit beauty girl: recent goals and challenges

i love participating in challenges and setting goals, especially when it comes to fitness. i think it's my competitive, organized-to-a-fault, must-plan-as-much-as-possible self that really finds comfort in them...

so i took on 2 fitness challenges {completed one, final week for the other} and they're both quite fabulous...

 yogadownload.com's 21 day yoga challenge* {similar to this yoga challenge i did last year with Yoga Journal} is the challenge i recently completed. through it, i was not only able to relish daily yoga practices, but also discover new styles and teacher's through the website. i mindfully pushed myself to my edge, risked failing {and succeeding} at more challenging poses and gave myself permission to back off on days i felt less than thrilled to add another push-up to the vinyasa...

ready for practice...

i'm currently in my final days of 28 days to great challenge* through the fabulous Barre3 {technically, it started on the 7th of january, but i discovered it late, so here i am}! the daily practice of ballet-meets-yoga-and-pilates has beautifully allowed me to switch things up in my fitness lifestyle, offering my body a new challenge and thus enhancing other workouts...

and it's been amazing!

squishy ball + light hand weights, a yoga mat and a chair are typical props needed for barre3 workouts; all videos can be streamed on any device {smartphone, tablet, computer, etc}

barre3 wristband ~ a gift when you sign up for the challenge

you may already know that i've been practicing yoga for many years. i started doing ballet/barre style workouts almost 2 years ago, and absolutely j'adore it. it strengthens and sculpts the body like no other workout and is gentle on the body. it's because of both these practices that i'm stronger and more flexible, not to mention they're a positive compliment to the other activities i enjoy {running, kickboxing, weight training, etc}; my brain is challenged, and i love the fact that, as i mentioned previously, i've been able to practice different yoga styles, try new workouts and "meet" new instructors.

waking each day to practice a new yoga style was so fun! so much so, i've started a new 21 day challenge. it offers less variety and is less time-consuming, but it's perfect for now by keeping me in a daily practice.

the Barre3 challenge has been so refreshing as well. yes, i've lost inches and feel changes i wasn't setting out to achieve, but i honestly didn't join the challenge to lose anything {without sounding completely obnoxious, i didn't really need to, but i'm also not complaining that i have}. i chose to participate because it's important to keep my body guessing, my mind from getting bored, and really just because i enjoy it!

by staying active, flexible, trying new things and setting fun goals for myself on a regular basis {along with eating healthy, whole nutritious foods}, i know i will continue to maintain my weight loss {30 lbs for 2 years!}.

oh, and keep my competitive, organized-to-a-fault, must-plan-as-much-as-possible self happy. :)

tell me: have you or are you challenging yourself this year? in what ways?

*both challenges do require financial investment for access to audio and video downloads