Fabulous Friday...late

I haven't posted in awhile because I've been very busy, but also honestly I was slacking off some. I have gotten back into he swing of things, and decided to take some progress shots. I started out the beginning of the year saying I wanted to lose 50 pounds this year. Well I have almost doubled that. I am trying to finish out the year strong to meet 100 pounds lost in 2013, and also to get a nice start into the new year. These shots have definitely motivated me to work harder. The first set is from the end of February beginning of March and the second set is from 2 nights ago.

Motivation Monday

Yesterday was my birthday. I spent a wonderful weekend with my awesome family. Which was exactly what I wanted. I tried to find pictures of my 30th birthday to look at, and I could only find about 2 of them. I guess I was not really into taking any pictures then. I remember having a great time at my 30th birthday with my wonderful family. They are always so great to me. This year was even better than last year. I really was not that upset about turning 31, okay maybe a little. I can tell you I was happier at my 31st than I was at my 30th. So I am looking forward to my 32nd being better than my 31st. This gives me some motivation to keep going and make this year better than last year. So here are a few pictures from my fabulous birthday weekend with my family.

Fabulous Friday!!

I like to look at my journey and see where I was and how far I have come. I try not to look at where I still want to go, but hey I am human. In my mommy fitness group one of my fellow mommies asked the question what are your fitness goals? I can think of some different things like run a race, do the mud run, do pull ups etc...but what am I working towards? What are my ultimate goals? I know I am not going to be losing weight forever. So I know that my goals will not stay the same. What is that perfect weight or physique I am trying to achieve? I say oh I want the scale to read this number, but does it really matter? I am much healthier at my current weight then when I was about 40-50 lbs lighter years ago, I showed you all the pictures yesterday. So when do I stop trying to actively lose weight? At what point do I say yes this is enough. I think that I am now taking my focus off of weight loss. Yes I would still like to lose some weight, but I am more concerned about my overall health. I would like that toned muscular physique, less body fat more muscle. So while I am working towards this the fat will continue to come off, but my focus is more on building muscle. I believe I will be changing up some of my training routines. I already focus on weight training more, but I think I will be researching some ways to increase that some.

I enjoy doing races, but in the end I am not a runner. What joy am I getting over paying a lot of money to run somewhere that I could do for free? So I do not think I have the desire anymore to try to run a marathon. I am getting ready to do a mud run, I am excited and nervous about this. I will be doing a few 5k's, but I do not think I will really sign up for more than a 5k. I don't know what the future holds and perhaps I will eventually run a marathon, but right now I can say I am not a runner and I am not training like one. I have all the respect in the world for runners. I thought I wanted to be a runner, but the more I train for things I find running is just not my forte. I actually, and this will be in the way future when I have much more confidence, would be much more interested in a fitness competition. That is more in my lane. Something like competing in weight lifting etc... So we will see in the future if I achieve this goal or not.

The other main goal I have is to educate and help train others. I would like to look into in the future becoming a nutritionist, don't worry hubby not as my main career but as a side project :). I think eating properly is the most important thing about a healthy lifestyle. I would love to be able to help teach people how to do this. I know I did not know how to eat properly. I had to do research and teach myself the proper ways. I am still learning and improving my nutrition all the time. 

I also would love to, and once again not as a main career, train people. I do not ever see myself being a personal trainer in a fitness club or anything, but I would love to be able to help train people and help them realize their goals just as I have done. I started my blog and my Facebook page for these reasons. I love inspiring and helping others. It actually helps me stay inspired and motivated.

I always love hearing other peoples goals. Please feel free to share any of your goals with me. I would be more than happy to try to help you achieve them in anyway I can. Also any tips you have for me in increasing my strength training are more than appreciated.

Motivation Monday!!

You know one thing that motivates me to keep going? To be able to go into a store, and buy any outfit I want and not just the ones that are in my size. I never again want to have to go to a "special" size or store. I do not want to see that little W after the number or an X in front of another letter. I want to walk into a store, and if I like something just get it. I do not want to just settle for the clothing that is in the larger sizes and will help hide my body.

Why??

My husband tells me I am a little obsessed over my fitness journey. The thing with me is that I get hot and heavy in something, and then will fizzle out. I have done it a lot with a lot of different things. I know that if I do not keep it on my mind everyday the same thing will happen. I am not dieting, I hear this a lot from people especially some family members, "oh your on a diet". No I am not on a diet. I chose to cut the unhealthy things from my life. I lost weight I never intend to find the weight again, and I never intend to add those unhealthy things back in my life. To me a diet is a temporary thing where I am depriving myself from certain foods just to lose some weight. Once the weight is off then I go off the diet. Of course when you do that you gain it all back. So no I am not on a diet, no yo-yo fad diets for this gal. I prefer to just eat whole clean foods.

So for me I must keep eating this way everyday. Also it is important for me to keep my motivation to talk about it with others. I get inspired by sharing my story with others, and hearing theirs. Or by motivating others. So why do I want to exercise and eat healthy? I am doing to make myself happy and healthy. I want to be an inspiration to others especially my children. I want them to have me as a positive role model, and have someone to look up to. I want to be healthy to be around for all the important things in their lives. I want to challenge myself everyday to do something to make myself a better person. Yes I am a little obsessed, but I say I would rather be obsessed over being healthy than some of the unhealthy things I was doing before. So why are you doing it? Why is being healthy important to you?

Motivation Monday!

While I was doing my workout earlier I kept thinking oh this is too hard. I do not think I can do anymore. I pushed through and kept going. Guess what I was able to finish. I did not die, and my body did not give out. It was my mind that was saying I couldn't do it. Not my body. That is what we have to learn to move past. Our bodies will keep going long past our minds say. So when you are doing your workout keep going. You can do it! Your mind is telling you to stop, but your body will keep going.

Get MOTIVATED!!

I know we have all been there it is late at night, and we think tomorrow I am going to start, I am going to get up and workout. Then we wake up and the motivation is completely gone. What happened in those 8 or so hours that we slept? Why is it gone now? How do you get yourself remotivated and stop saying tomorrow I will do it? Obviously just get up and do it is the first thing that comes to mind. Stop saying tomorrow and do it now. I know from experience, and I still have days where I do not feel motivated, that it is not that simple.

 

 

I think the first thing to get yourself motivated, or remotivated is to look at your goals. Yes look at your big goals and what you want to achieve in the big picture, but I think it is more important to look at the smaller goals. If you look at too many goals at one time you may get yourself overwhelmed and just get up, I know it has happened to me a lot. I like to list my goals out, and pick a small one and focus on that one until I achieve it. Run a 10 min mile, fit in a certain size, get xx oz of water in everyday, get xx min of activity in everyday, etc...Focusing on that one goal. Write that goal down, and look at it everyday. Write it where you will see it, in the kitchen, in the bathroom, in your car etc...Once you reach that goal check it off, and move onto the next goal. Focus on just htat goal do not worry about the other ones on your list. You will get very excited and motivated about being able to check goals off your list.

 

 

Find inspiration. Look for what inspires you, reading peoples blogs, starting your own blog, read books, find a goal outfit, research your goals, talk to others about it whatever inspires you. When you feel inspired you are more likely to want to achieve your goal. If you let other people know what your goals are you also will feel more motivated to want to achieve it because you want to be able to say yes I achieved it!

 

Talk about your goals daily. Trust me I know that people will get sick of hearing about them, but it helps keep you motivated to always have them on your mind. I am not saying you should be obsessed with them, but make them important in your life.

 

Find the time of the day that you have the most energy. Start working out at that time. I actually like to do it the opposite way. I know the times that I am the least energetic I try to workout then. Those are the times that I want to just sit there, and do nothing. I find that is the time that I need to get up the most. Find what works for you. Try to always work out at the same time everyday in the beginning. That way you know, "oh it is 12 o'clock time to workout". Schedule it. That way you will be more likely to follow it.

 

I think the one of the most important things is to find something you like. If you do not like strength training you are not going to be motivated to go do it, same thing if you do not like running you will not be motivated to go do it. Find what kinds of activities you like, and stick to those. You can slowly add other activities in when your motivation goes up. Trust me when you start reaching your goals you will want to start doing more and more.

 

Find a buddy. You guys can help keep yourself accountable. It is so much easier to get up and go if you know that someone else is going to be depending on you as well. It also feels great to achieve your goals together. You can talk about your goals with one another to keep yourselves inspired and motivated.

 

Stop making excuses. This is probably one of the hardest things to overcome. We always have excuses for not doing something. I'm too old, I don't have the time, I don't have the equipment, I don't have the money etc...Absolutely none of these excuses are valid reasons to not get in some physical exercise. I have seen men and women in their 80's lifting weights at the gym, get in a quick workout on your lunch break, before work, after work, as soon as you wake up, in the evening instead of watching tv, turn on some music and dance around the house, you do not have to have money or equipment to workout. Running is free, use some cans as weights, look on you tube for different exercise routines. So stop making the excuses. Take responsibility and get up and do it. If it is important to you then you will find a way to do it.

 

Some other things that can help keep motivation up are changing up your routine. If you do the same thing all the time then you probably will not be too excited to go do it again. Change it up. Also music is very motivational for me. Find a playlist that works for you. I do not get that motivated by the music they play at the gym so I listen to my own music.

 

So as soon as you finish reading this get up and do something active. If you feel unmotivated again come back and read this again and get up and move.  

 

 

 

What are some tips that you have to keep yourself motivated?

 

 



Motivational Monday

I think today's motivation should be about proper nutrition. Exercise is important, but if you are not getting proper nutrition then you will not be healthy. You are basically wasting your time working out if you are fueling your body with crap. So fuel it properly. You cannot out exercise a bad diet. So go eat something good for your body right now!!

Another shout out!

Margaret and I are in a mommy group together. Her daughter and my daughter are the same age. She has been one of my inspirations to my healthier lifestyle. We have a fitness group on facebook and she is always so inspiring. She started her weight loss journey in October of last year. She has lost 56 lbs during her journey. She loves Jillian Michaels and has done a lot of her different workouts. She also enjoys running, hooping, and kickboxing. She and I do some monthly challenges in our group. She also eats a very healthy diet. She has been a big inspiration to a lot of the ladies in our fitness group. She is at her goal and is now just trying to maintain where she is at, but I can say she has not really stopped working hard. She knows this is a lifestyle and not just a temporary change.

Another Shout out!!

This shout out is to my favorite person in the whole world, other than my babies of course :) He is the most amazing person I have ever met. He is my biggest supporter and inspiration. He works very, very hard for our family. He has stood by my side through everything. He is the love of my life and my soulmate. Obviously I am talking about my husband. After we got married we "enjoyed" married life a little too much, and we had both become very unhealthy. He is probably the pickiest person on the face of the planet. His mother told me good luck because he won't eat anything. He is a southern boy. Which means sweet tea and fried foods. I am so proud of him. With all the changes I have made he has never complained once. He is willing to try so many new things. I actually made him a salad last week with spinach and kale, and he ate it all. I could not believe it. He is my partner in training. I am so proud of everything he has done. He is the most fantastic person on the planet.

Shout out

My SIL had two children within her first 3 years of marriage, and like life happens she gained weight. She was focused on her family, like most of us moms are, and not herself. At her heaviest she was about 225 lbs. She finally decided she was done so she started walking and trying to watch what she ate. She lost about 30lbs in about 4 months. The she hit a plateau and did not lose anymore. So in February of 2012 she started doing Sensa. She would walk about 2-3 miles about 4-5 days a week, and did the walk away the pounds videos. She lost another 30 lbs in about 6 months. She is now at 162. She no longer does Sensa, but still walks and watches what she eats to maintain where she is at.

 

She said she feels better than she has in a long time. Hasn't she done a great job!

 

 

 

If you would like a shout out for your fabulous work please feel free to email me @sadie822@hotmail.com

Whatever works...

I am an advocate for strength training and clean eating. In all my years of trying to get healthy this is the only thing that has ever worked for me, and actually stuck. I think it is important for me to continue this lifestyle for the rest of my life. I look forward to helping my children live healthy lives, and anyone that I may inspire in the process....but...the same thing may not work for you. I am a firm believer that part of living a healthy life is also living a happy life. Yes you can eat clean and strength train, but if you are not happy while doing it then this is not the program for you. I think what is important is that you get yourself happy and healthy. Whichever route you take is completely up to you. I read things all the time knocking this and that, but if someone is trying why would you knock them. I do not like cardio, but I am not going to knock it. It works for a lot of people. I do not count calories, I wrote a post about that the other day, because eating clean wholesome foods I really do not need to, but if that is what works for you then by all means do it. We should all be supporting each other in our efforts to get healthy, and not knock someone down because they are not doing the same way we are (off topic, but that is how I view everything in life by the way). Everyone is different, our circumstances are different, budget is different, values are different, goals are different, availability to foods equipment is different, knowledge is different, health is different, and motivation is different. So if you come across someone trying to get healthy, even if it is not how you "think" they should do it, applaud them for their efforts and offer support and encouragement. If they ask for your advice then by all means give it to them, but never say this is what you need to do because that is not your place to decide that for them. I have been telling about my journey on this blog through what has worked for me. I hope I will inspire some people, that is my whole point in creating this blog. If you follow the plan I am doing, which I am by no means a personal trainer or nutritionist, I am more than happy to encourage you and offer support and motivation for whenever you need it. Also if you decide to follow your own path to getting healthy I am more than happy to encourage you and offer support and motivation for whenever you need it. I think that is one thing that has made me successful is by surrounding myself with people that love, encourage and support me through everything. So if you do not have a person in your life doing that for you you need one. If you cannot find one then message me and I am always here to lend a hand. The point is find something that works for you and makes you happy and make that a success in your life.

Fabulous Friday

My son started school this week. I was not happy about him going back to school. I miss him while he is gone. :( Of course his first day of school we walked him in. It was a dreary, rainy day his first day, but we still walked him in. He was so sweet and held my hand down the hallway. He even let me kiss him goodbye in front of his classroom. I think it will break my heart when he will no longer let me do that. I felt much more confident this year walking him in than I did last year. I just feel so much better about myself.

Do something today that makes you feel fabulous about yourself!

Stop Counting!!

Everyone knows if you want to lose weight you should count calories right. WRONG!!!! Stop counting those calories. They really do not matter. Obviously yes we have all heard you should burn 3500 calories to lose a pound of fat. So we all focus so much on the calories we are taken in. Well stop doing that. Do not worry so much about the amount of calories you are taking in.

Healthy eating is complicated, no doubt about it. First you hear butter is bad, then it prevents cancer. First carbs kill you, then they make you lose weight. Even spinach is confusing… should one eat it raw or is that dangerous?  Nutrition labels, however, deceptively simplify healthy eating. Few calories = good, high calories = bad. Simple. Yet dangerous. This mindset just leads us to eating processed foods that are within our calorie range. I look at the nutrition label when I buy things, although I try to buy a lot of foods that do not have labels, but honestly a lot of times I do not even notice the calories or it is the last thing I look at. I pay attention to the ingredients list, serving size, and all the other nutrition facts available.

If you are nourishing your body with fresh, whole foods you do not need to worry so much. You are just stressing yourself out with counting calories. You do not love your food it is a chore. You should enjoy fueling your body. You should eat foods you love and enjoy, not just the ones that are "low-calorie" and are supposed to help you lose weight. Trust me if you put down the low-calorie processed foods and pick up fresh fruits, vegetables, lean proteins and complex carbohydrates you will get healthy and lose weight. So stop counting your calories!! Go enjoy your food.

Throwback Thursday

I find that I am torn with looking at my old photos. I like looking at them for two reasons. One to see the memories I have made with my amazing family. I am so happy that so much has been captured in my children's lives for me to cherish forever. Two to see where I was and how far I have come. I do not like looking at them because it is hard for me to see where I was. I cannot believe I ever let myself get like that. I do know looking back on these though that I will never be there ever again so they do help keep me motivated.

These two pictures were taken on a trip my hubby and I took with my brother and his wife. We had a fantastic time. I honestly can tell you that I did not feel as big as I look. I knew I was big, but not that big. These are hard to look at for that reason. These were actually taken just a few weeks before I started my journey. I said the whole trip when we go next year I am going to be healthy and fit. Well I can happily say that I am well on my way there. I am excited to see our pictures next year from our trip.

Workout Wednesday

I think it is important to have a variety in what you eat. That will help keep you interested in the healthy foods you are eating, and you will want to keep eating them. I think it is just important to have a variety in your workout routine for the same reasons. If you are doing the same exercises all the time you will get bored with them, and want to stop doing them. Now we all know that I prefer strength training. That is what has gotten me to my goals, but the other evil (for me it is evil :) ) end of the spectrum is cardio. One great and fairly simply form of cardio is running. You do not have to have a lot of money to do it, belong to a gym, have equipment, or a training partner. You just grab some shoes and go outside and run.

Even though I do not like cardio I will never deny there are benefits from it. That is why I do incorporate it into my routine as well. I try to run when I can even if it is just for 15-20 minutes at least I got some in. I know a lot of people say that running is a great stress reliever for them. You can just get out there by yourself, and be alone with your thoughts. It is great for your cardiovascular health as well.

We cannot deny those are all great benefits. The best thing to do in running is try to incorporate interval training in. Run sprints you will definitely get that heart rate going. You will improve your mood, burn calories, and increase your cardiovascular health.

 

 

 

I try to do 45-60s of running then 75-90s walking. Repeat this for at least 15-20 minutes. You will get in a great workout for sure. If you can breathe at the end of it go for more :) Obviously you are not going to get off the couch today and run a 5k for your first time running. So just like with everything else take your time and do it at your pace. Start with a program like couch to 5k or something similar. Here is an easy routine to follow to get you started as a runner.

 

 

 



So go grab your shoes and raise that heart rate!!

Treat yo self!

I decided to treat myself yesterday because I felt very happy about myself, which I haven't in a long time. Looking at my progress I realized how far I've come. I still have a long way that I want to go, but I can see some progress and it made me feel good.

I know I shared both of these pictures here, but looking at them side by side made me feel good about my journey so far :) So with that good feeling we have to treat ourselves right. Well instead of going and celebrating in an unhealthy way I decided to do so in a healthy way. Last time I got some new running shorts, this time I went for something fun too. New shoes, a girls favorite thing right :)

I'm excited to wear my new treat to myself!!

So make sure you treat yo self too!

Shout out!!

My SIL and best friend, Megan has been working very hard on her fitness. She has found her love of running. She has done several 5k's and is going to sign up for some more in the next few months. She typically tries to run 6-8 miles a week. She also does water aerobics twice a week, and a strength training circuit 2-3 times a week. She has lost 20lbs and 2 pants sizes so far. She is looking forward to reaching so many more goals. She uses myfitnesspal to log all of her meals so she knows she is meeting the right requirements for her eating. She is also trying to get more water in each day. She has gained a lot more confidence from this. She started out a few months ago doing a health challenge at work, and has continued on her own journey. Her co-workers have been very supportive to her through her whole journey. She also has a great group of family and friends that surround her to help support her. She is a great inspiration to everyone that knows her.

 

Doesn't she look wonderful!!

 

 

 

 

If you would like a shout out for your fitness journey please e-mail me @sadie822@hotmail.com. I would love to give everyone a shout out for all their hard work.

Small victories

The hubby and I went out to dinner last night. Well in the past when we would go out I would get a soda with some sort of fattening, greasy dinner and eat dessert right afterwards. I said you know I think I want to have a "cheat" meal tonight. I was thinking a steak or hamburger sounded good or even some fried chicken. I looked over the menu several times, and those things just did not sound good to me. I decided to go with grilled chicken with grilled pineapple, grilled veggie skewers, salad and water. It was very yummy. I was happy to not have all the grease and fat of some of the other choices I could have made. I guess I have changed my mind on the cheat meals that I want. It is the small victories that we should be looking for in our journey's.

Fabulous Friday

We went to my sons orientation for school today. I felt much better about myself this year than I did last year. I still have a lot of goals for myself that I want to achieve, but I have come a long way.

Seeing our picture from last year to this year has definitely helped my confidence and motivation.