October 3, 2012 - What is it about new jeans?

Hi everyone! Happy Hump Day! :) We've made it half way through the week and now we are on the downward slop. Hope everyone is doing good this week.

So last week at weight in I lost one pound! I was very happy with that result because now I am down a total of 45 pounds from 331 to 286! Like I posted on Facebook one pound is still a pound in the right direction.

I'm sure you're curious about my title this week. Well like I said in last weeks post I went down two pants size from a 22 to a 18 and ordered a new pair. On Friday they finally arrived! I had to wash them because of the dark die, so I finally got to wear them on Monday. And let me ask you, what is it about new jeans, AND new boots? Makes you feel sexy ;) Well I sure was strutting myself around the office that's for sure! The jeans looked amazing and I was wearing some new boots that I got for a trip to NYC next month! I wanted to break the boots in now and not be dealing with blisters when I'm in the City. :) The last time I went to the Big Apple I was not in the shape I am now and I paid dearly for it. Beginners mistake, wearing high heels to Time Square. I will not do that again. I ended up with blisters on the bottom of both my feet and felt like I was walking on fire for the rest of the trip. Needlessly to say NYC kicked my butt and I came back hurting. But this time NYC look out, I'm in the best shape and ready to take you on! If my readers have any suggestions of places to see let me know. :)

I haven't been able to get two a days in this week due to the weather. Its been storming here since Monday. I finally was able to see the Sun today. :) I've been watching what I eat and making smart choices. I even went to a baby shower on Saturday night, (yes I said night) they had an open bar and it was during the FSU/USF game, I was VERY good and drank only water ;) My Mom on the other hand was introduced to a drink called "Baby Guinness" (AB made me think of you, miss you from across the pond) she had two ;) I did taste it and it was very smooth. I mean you can never go wrong with Patron Cafe. ;) (Thank you CA for introducing that to me one Thanksgiving many moons ago) I hope to have some good results on Friday for weight in so I'll let you know how it goes.

Well that's all for now, hope everyone has a good rest of the week and weekend.  :)

Until next time remember to stay focused and stay motivated.

- The Dish

September 26, 2012 - What a successful week!

Whoo Hoo we’ve made it to Hump Day!! Hope all my followers out there are doing well J So this past week was very productive for The Dish. Let me share with you….

This past Thursday Kelly almost killed me, ok maybe not for real but she did for the first time make me cry and I couldn’t breathe. She pushed me to my limits. She kept chanting there’s the athlete in you I see her she’s coming out, keep pushing yourself. As I’m standing there crying saying I can’t breathe she says to go stand in front of the fan then she says there it is, that’s what I was wanting to see. I’m standing there thinking she wanted me to cry?! I’m sure she can read the expression on my face; she replies I wanted to push you to your breaking point so you know how far you can go. Well let me tell you I reached it and it was very instance getting there. Kelly informs me that we will be working out this hard three days a week. Can I tell you I wanted to slap her at that point thinking she’s insane! Ok maybe not really insane or slap her for that matter, but in that moment working out that hard was the farthest thing from my mind. Kelly kept telling me the rest of the day and the next morning that I kicked ass in that workout. That she was very proud of me!

Bicep Curls

Bicep Raises

I’ve been keeping up with the two a days. SR and I worked out twice on Saturday. I even made sure I got my workout in before the ‘Noles 8pm kick off against Clemson. Boy what a game that was to watch and to not be able to drink anything was very hard. Kelly suggested that I have water with lemon, I reply that I need something stronger she says ice tea with lemon, I tell her oh sure I’ll have Dragonfly Ice Tea with Lemon no problem. You see Kelly didn’t know what Dragonfly Ice Tea is. (For those of you wondering just the same it’s a brand of Sweet Tea Vodka) I tell her not to worry I’ll just stick to the water instead. Needlessly to say I ended up going to bed by 10:30pm when Clemson scored on us again, so when I woke up and saw that we won I was glad my Mom had DVR the game so I could to watch us kick Clemson’s butt! The next day on Sunday SR and I went shopping. I had tried on some old pair of pants in my closet the day before and I fit into some slacks that I use to wear in college. I was soo happy one for fitting into the pants and two for not having to buy any work slacks right now. All of my old jeans where too big so I knew going shopping on Sunday with SR I would have to buy some jeans. SR and I make our way into Lane Bryant; we head straight to the jeans. I go ahead and grab a 20. I was wearing a 22 before and I knew that I could put my arm down the inside of my pants like I do to my work slacks. SR and I go back to the changing rooms. I am able to slide the pants on with no problem, I walk out of the dressing room and SR says that those look great! I say yes they do but look, and I show her that I’m still able to put my arm down the inside of my pants. The clerk is standing there asking how everything fits and she says those look ok but I should try a smaller size, I nervously ask her to pull an 18 for me. She brings me back the 18 and I’m able to pull them up and over my butt (which many of you know is very large) and button them with no problem. I check to see if I can fit my arm inside my pants and no go. I step out for SR to see and her mouth drops! SR’s like those look so good on you, even your butt looks smaller! I’m jumping for joy I’m so happy to fit into the size 18 pants. I have to give a very proud shot out to SR who tried on pants with me; she was able to get into a size 16!!!!!!!!!! :D Way to go SR!! We’re doing it one step at a time ;)

Trying on and then buying my size 18 jeans :)

On Monday after my workout with Kelly I tell her that I need to take my measurements to add to the Isabody challenge. She says let’s take pictures since you have on the same outfit from the first set. Kelly takes the front side to side and back. I couldn’t believe the difference from the first pictures we took until now. It’s hard for me to see the 44 pounds that I lost until I look at pictures like these. I see myself every day and I still see my rolls, but after seeing the difference it just motivates me more to continue to reach my goals! Here are some side by side pictures to see the difference.

Front

Back

Right Side

Left Side

Well I hope everyone has a great rest of the week. And remember to stay focused and stay motivated!

-The Dish

September 20, 2012 - Gaining Momentum

Hi everyone! We are over the hump and have made it half way through the week. It started out a little rough but its shaping up nicely now. J Ok so I’m sure you all want to know what I did on the scales last week…

Drum roll please! I lost another 5 pounds for a total of 42 pounds! I am down from 331 to 289! I cannot believe that I am under the 290 mark! I am 5 pounds closer to my goal of 250 by December 2^nd.  I know I can make it as long as I stay focused and keep my eye on the prize. For those of you that are friends with me on Facebook, thanks for all the love on Friday for my post about losing the 5 pounds. J Its nice to know I have so many people supporting me on this journey!

This past weekend I hosted a nutritional cleanse tasting party. Thank you for those of you that attended. It was nice to see Kelly outside of the gym dressed up with her hair and makeup done. We usually see each other at 6:00am looking like we both rolled out of bed.  I know it’s not usually my best look ;) I think everyone had a nice time and learned a lot of the program that I have been on since Memorial Day. If you have questions about it please let me know J

Like my friends and I say it’s not a diet it’s a life style change. I have changed the way I eat and look at food. I know on Sunday for dinner we had Carolina BBQ and some fried chicken strips from KFC. I had the BBQ and just one small strip from KFC. Halfway through my stomach was hurting and I was thinking why did I eat that?! One it didn’t taste good and two now I don’t feel good. Today for instance at work my coworker offers me a cheese Danish. I look at her like are you serious, and she says no I can’t let you have any. I say thank you, now can you please hide those before I come up here. She says yes no problem. I come to her desk and what is out, the cheese Danish. I go are you trying to kill me. She says no and puts them in the cabinet. I tell her I saw where you put them, but its ok I’ll sit here and enjoy my dark chocolate and 6 organic almonds. She laughs, but says she’s proud of me for sticking to my program. Let me just say that the chocolate and almonds tasted so good ;)

So my girl SR got on me yesterday about my pants. I was wearing jeans that I can fit my whole arm down the side like my work slacks. She said you look like you have a well I won’t say it but you know what I mean between your legs. I go I know all my pants do that. “/ SR said girl its time, you need to buy at least one pair of pants. So I made her a deal, I said if you go shopping with me this weekend I’ll buy one pair of jeans and one pair of slacks. So I’ll let you know how the shopping experience goes next week. I also saw that I have smaller jeans in my closet. I’ll have to get up my nerves to try them on and let you know how they fit. Maybe I will only have to buy one pair of slacks. ;)



Pre-workout picture! This is before we did Cardio and left glistening. ;)

How we looked after our workout.

Kelly has been kicking my workouts up a notch, doing intense circuit training. I also am trying to do 45 minutes of power walking at night, even on the weekends. I know from the squats, lunges, and sumo squats we did this morning I’m aching. But I know in the end it will all pay off. I will look and feel fantastic! I can’t be overwhelmed by the big picture of reaching 180 pounds, I have to focus on the small goals and take one step at a time. I know I will reach 180 and eventually get down to 150. It is hard for me though to picture myself at that weight but I know I can do it. :D

Taken this morning before Kelly pushed me to my limits.
I'm all smiles now but afterwards I wanted to die.

So until next time stay focused and stay motivated.

- The Dish

September 12, 2012 - 90 Day Challenge going Strong!

Hi Everyone! Hope everyone’s week is going good. I’ve been going strong with the 90 Day Challenge. I was able to get two 2 a days in last week.  J The other nights SR has boot camp so I can’t workout with her at her gym and it was thunder storming when I tried to get a workout done outside.

So Kelly and I are back on the schedule of weighting in on Fridays. I was a little nervous to see if there was any change since she had just weighted me on Tuesday. Well I’m glad she did. From Tuesday I was down 1 pound! J  I was good on Saturday and didn’t cheat. But on Sunday that was another story. It was my one cheat day and I made the most of it. It also was my Dad’s birthday so we went out to celebrate. I won’t bore you with what all I ate ;)

This week I’ve been going strong with my workouts in the morning. I’ve been too tired to try and workout in the evening, but tonight I will work out with SR at her gym J I’ve been sticking with the cleansing and watching what I eat. This morning Kelly asked how I’ve been doing so far this week and I’ve said well. She got the bright idea that she wanted to weight me. She told me not to worry that she wouldn’t tell me the number to just look forward and step on the scale.  So I did, 4 times! When I got off she had a look on her face that I couldn’t read. I asked her what that face was for, was it good or bad? She said it was good, VERY GOOD! She said she won’t tell me but she can’t wait for me to get on the scale on Friday. That she was surprised at the number! She didn’t tell me what my number was so I can’t wait to see what it is on Friday. Not to worry I will let you know what it is ;) Fingers crossed that it will be good news, but at the same time I don’t want to get my hopes up too much.

Sorry no photos or videos this week. I will try to take some and post them next time. Hope everyone had a great rest of the week.

So until next time remember to stay focused and stay motivated.

-The Dish

September 5, 2012 - 90 Day Challenge

Hi everyone! Hope you all had a fun and safe Labor Day Holiday. I sure know I did ;) On Saturday for TD birthday party I felt like a college kid again, playing beer pong and doing jello shots. No worries I walked/jogged a mile that morning so I could enjoy myself during the party.  I was able to complete a mile in less than 30 minutes. I felt really proud of myself. I was going to go longer but the heat was really bad. I found out later that where I was staying was under a heat advisory of 105 degrees. No wonder I was dying out in the sun.

For my trip this past weekend while I was packing I was deciding on what FSU shirt to bring for Game Day on Saturday. I went to get my TRUE Seminole Shirt and saw my old Alumni shirt that I haven’t been able to fit into since I moved in January 2011. I thought hum I’ve lost over 30 pounds let me see if it will fit. So I tried it on and I was able to get back into it, it’s an XL! I was so happy! I packed the shirt and wore it with pride on Saturday! J

Here is a picture of me in my Alumni shirt. Go 'Noles!

 

Even with all of my drinking on Saturday I still managed to lose weight! I got on the scale on Tuesday with Kelly and I had lost 3 pounds! That’s a total of 36 pounds now. My current weight is 295. I felt so good after she told me that! I was jumping up and down so excited to have lost weight and not gain after the shenanigans on Saturday. 

Starting yesterday (Tuesday 9/4/2012) I am on a 90 Day Challenge to lose weight! I know you’re thinking what do you mean, isn’t that what you’ve been doing all along? Well for the past two months I’ve been lax with the diet. Not being as strict as I could be. So starting yesterday Kelly and I gave myself a 90 Day Challenge to get down to 250 by the holidays. That’s 45 pounds. 90 Days from yesterday takes me to December 2^nd.  I’m going to work hard and stay focused and keep my eye on the prize as they say. I’m planning on doing two a days during the week. I will work out with Kelly in the morning and do cardio in the evening with SR on the days that she doesn’t have boot camp. The rest of the week I will walk/jog in my neighborhood weather permitting. I’m going to stick with the nutritional cleanse and follow the program strictly.

Quick shot out to SR for signing up for boot camp! I’m so proud of you! Keep up the good work! J

Sorry no videos this post. I will try and film some and put them up next week.

Hope everyone has a fabulous week! So until next time, stay focused and stay motivated!

-The Dish

August 29, 2012 - Keeping myself motivated!

Hi everyone! So I know it’s become a habit of not posting every week. And I’m sorry I will try harder from now on to get a post up for you J I know you guys love to hear about my progress and my struggles and I know it’s good for me to share what I am going through.  

So the last time I posted Kelly was having surgery. I am happy to report that her surgery went great! She took two weeks off to recover. Not to worry while she was recovering I was working out at night with my good friend SR. We did the elliptical for 30 minutes a day and ever mixed it up one day and went swimming.  

Here are two videos of us in the pool. I’ll admit not the most flattering but it’s for your entertainment right?! ;)

 

 

So last week was the first workout with Kelly and it felt soo good to see her again! I had missed her so much! I’ll admit she killed me. My legs from doing squats and lunges were killing me all week! Haha But it was a good feeling.  While she was recovering I didn’t do many weights I focused on cardio instead. So my workouts last week where a little hard to get back in the swing a things. And waking up at 5:25am was VERY hard. I had gotten use to sleeping in to 7am everyday J

The other weekend I got my nerves up and decided to go to Lane Bryant and try on work pants. The pants I wear now are really baggy and if it wasn’t for my hips (and butt) would be falling off ;) I’ll admit I was reluctant to do it, I’m afraid that I wouldn’t fit into a smaller size and that I might have set my expectations too high. Ok maybe not my expectations because I didn’t want or care to try on pants but everyone else who has been asking how many dress sizes have you gone down? So I go with my Mom and we pick up the same style pant in the next size down. (Also Lane Bryant has upset me since they no longer carry the “tall” size in the store, you have to order it online and try on the average size in the store.  As much they say they are the same I’m sorry the cut from average to tall is different)

So with a drum roll please…here are my before and after pics from trying on the pants!

 

I have finally gotten around to signing up for the Isabody Challenge. Wish me luck ;) Since you have seen my before photos already here is the most recent that I submitted when I signed up this week.  I had to take a frontal picture holding the news paper. When comparing it to my original frontal picture I can’t believe the difference. I know losing 34 pounds so far is a big deal but it’s hard to see it when I see myself every day. I know a lot of people tell me that I look skinny. (I tell them thank you, but in my head I’m thinking you haven’t seen the rolls I still have under my clothes, or that even though my pants are falling off I still feel big) That was until I took this picture with the newspaper. I asked a friend of mine do I really look like that in the photo or is it the way I took it (you know the ones, your hand up really high so you lose your double chin). She said NO, you really look like that, and we tell you every day that you look skinny!  I finally saw the difference!

This weekend will be a challenge for me.  I am going to visit some good friends of my JE and TD. Its TD birthday, Happy Birthday TD!! J Anytime at JE and TD house is a good time, lots a food and plenty of drinks! I am going to have to try VERY hard to eat right and not drink too much. And by much I mean only have 1-2 drinks. Plus doing cardio every day that I am there. Kelly has forbid me from eating the famous TD hotdogs wrapped in bacon. For those foodies out there that have had this you know what I am talking about. If not don’t worry about it and don’t try it. ;) I just have to remember it’s not about the drinking and the eating it’s about spending quality time with good friends and even better people! It’s about making the memories that last a lifetime. Not to mention it’s a through back to our college days ;) I will let you know next week how it goes.

Well that is it for now. Hope everyone has a safe and fun Labor Day Weekend!

So until next time, stay focused and stay motivated!

-The Dish

First week in August! :)

Hey guys! So I know it has been a few weeks since I've posted. I've been busy and honestly haven't been wanting to get on the computer for anything once I get home from work. So lets get down to business and bring you up to date.

I'm still cleansing and working out with Kelly 5 days a week. I also started last week working out with my good friend SR after work doing two a days. I'm able to do 30 minutes on the elliptical nonstop. I'll show you a video of my first time (thanks SR for filming) ;)

Kelly had surgery this past Friday so she is off all this week recovering. But that doesn't mean that I'm playing hooking ;) Me and SR are working out at her gym after work. SHOUT OUT to SR, SR has lost 6 pounds so far and I'm SOO PROUD of her!!! We motivate each other to eat right and push each other in the gym. Its been great having SR to work out with.

Me and SR working out together!



Ok so I'm sure you are wanting to know my current progress. Well before vacation two weeks ago I was down 34 pounds. I had finally completed my first goal of being below 300lbs. I was so proud of myself to weight 297lbs! Well I went out of town to visit my best friend KM. Her and I are foodies and love to eat. I brought my workout clothes and got a work out in with her in her neighborhood.

Power walking in Riverside Memorial Park

That was Friday, the rest of the weekend I enjoyed some adult beverages. I mean how can you not go to a baseball game and enjoy a cold beer or two ;)

Me and KM at the Jax Suns Baseball Game!

Kelly weighted me when I got back and I had put back on 3 pounds. I did two a days last week and was really focused on what I was eating. I am continuing to work hard this week. Even when I wasn't feeling my best I got a a work out in. Well that was the reader digest version of what has been going on. I'll let ya'll know how weight in goes next week.

 

So until next time, stay focused and stay motivated!

- The Dish

3rd Week: July 16, 2012

Hi Everyone! Sorry for the delayed post I know I usually update on the weekends but I was busy and didn't get around to it. I hit up happy hour with my coworkers on Friday, had to go shopping on Saturday for a baby shower and then on Sunday I had the baby shower to go too :) So as you can see I didn't have a lot of time to sit down and write a post.

Thank you for the comments from the weeks before. I did see a request to explain more about the nutritional cleanse that I am on. And I'm more than happy to share that with you! :) Right now I am on a 30 day cleanse, and to answer your question YES I can eat solid food! On shake days I'll have a shake for breakfast and usually a shake for lunch then dinner with be my one meal for the day. The meal consists on lean protein, 1 serving of whole grains (either brown rice, or whole wheat pasta), and vegetables. I'll have 6-12 almonds during the day and 1 serving of organic fruit. Plus my cleanse comes with delicious chocolate bars that I usually eat one with my almonds. It make it feel like I'm eating a Hershey's Dark Chocolate Hug :) For cleanse days I drink the cleanses liquid four times through out the day, have a snack in the early morning, then another snack in the afternoon. (My snack is usually the serving of almonds and 1 chocolate bar, then a serving a fruit for the next snack) In all honesty the cleanse liquid that I make with water is really not that bad, I've gotten use to it, but the first day I ever drank it was the hardest. In between those times I am drinking ice cold water. You are suppose to consume half your body weight in ounces. So as you can imagine I go to the bathroom once an hour. I feel like a pregnant women ;) If you are interested in starting the cleanse I am on please let me know. They have a 9 day cleanse as well as the 30 day. If you need more information or have any questions please leave a comment :)

So to follow up with my post from last week on Wednesday I completed half of my homework for Kelly. I did manage to get both of my walks in on Thursday however for Friday when I went to get up it was storming outside. Hence no walk. :/ (I did get to sleep in for an hour for the first time in a long time so that was nice) Whenever I tried to workout this past weekend, the sky's would open up. I also had more than one meal on Friday, hey I hadn't had a drink in over a month so the two Strongbows and one shot I had really did me in, I knew if I wanted to drive home I was going to have to put something in my system, I hadn't eaten since lunch. So my girlfriends and I ended up going to Smashburger. It was my first time, and it was really good! Not too healthy what I chose (single burger, with blue cheese, lettuce, onions, mayo and french fries plus a coke), but they do have healthier options that I will have to check out the next time I go. This moring was the first workout I had had with Kelly since she left last week. For those of you who are friends with me on Facebook, you saw my status this morning. For those of you who aren't let me share it with you "I may not want to get out of bed in the morning but the feeling I get after my workout is the greatest feeling :)" My friend JD and I were talking last week about the high you get after your workout. I love that feeling! It helps to keep me motivated and to want to continue to workout! For my friend SR (and those of you needing motivation) that first step is always the hardest, you have to prepare yourself mentally and not give up. There are going to be days when you don't want to get out of bed and go to the gym and days were you fall off the wagon and pig out. But remember that tomorrow is a new day and to keep going and focus on the end goal. You're going to have bad days and good days in life, this is a journey that I am on and I remind my self that everyday. I hope by sharing my highs and low on this Journey to Fabulosity that I inspire and motivate you to make the changes in your life!

Now for your viewing pleaseure here are two new videos :)

Thursday morning 7/12

 

 Monday afternoon 7/16

Well that's all for now, I will update you later this week and let you know how things are progressing! :) As I am writing my new post it is still thundering and lighting outside plus it has started to rain so no walk for me tonight. In the mean time, please remember to stay focused and stay motivated!

Midweek Update: July 11, 2012

Hi Everyone!

Hope you all are having a good full week. I know for me the week is dragging, but at least we are on the down hill of things. :) Kelly is off Thursday and Friday this week so we did the weight in this morning. So no need for drum rolls, I didn't lose anything BUT I didn't gain anything either. (Considering I had a small vanilla cone from Dairy Queen on Sunday) So I'm still at the 300 mark but I am still working out hard and hope to have much better numbers for next weeks weight in. (Must stay positive)

On Monday Kelly made me jog, not just to the end of her street, but the whole neighborhood. We did our warm up lap and then on the way back to the house she said she wanted me to do some jogging. I thought we where going to do like we did last week, but oh no, we get to the end of her street and she said oh baby keep going, we're going to jog the neighborhood! :) In my head I'm trying to get myself psyched up to complete it. Which I did! I felt soo good! Kelly was so proud of me too!

Post Jog with Kelly! :)

Yesterday I had a great workout with Kelly and felt so energize afterwards. We did 30 minutes of cardio on the stationary bike while doing shoulder presses with 6 pound weights for 20 reps for a total of 5 sets at the same time. Then while still on the bike we did lateral shoulder raises for 15 reps for a total of 3 sets. After cardio we had a few minutes left and I worked my triceps using 15 pounds, doing 15 reps for 2 sets.

My workout this morning we focused on big muscle groups. I did cleans with 65 pounds 15 reps for 2 sets. I wanted to die! The weather this morning was rainy so my left wrist that I broke a few years ago was causing me some difficulty. I had to take a few breaks in between reps due to the pain. But I was able to complete the sets! We also did squats, curl and shoulder presses and just curls.

And now for your viewing pleasure here is a short video of me! :) Enjoy!

Well that's its for now, hope everyone has a great rest of the week and I will post again this weekend. Until then stay focused and stay motivated!

2nd week!: Friday 7/6 Weight In

Hi Everyone! :)

So I had a nice surprise on the scale on Friday, I am continue to lose and doing really good! So since I'm sure you wanting to know how I did here goes.....I lost another 5 pounds that's a total of 31!!! I'm exactly at the 300 mark, hopefully this week I will be under it! :)

I did cardio yesterday with my dog Diva she enjoyed being able to get out of the house and go for a walk. I was going to walk by myself but after she saw me getting ready she came and gave me those puppy dogs eyes asking Mama can I please go with you? She even did her sit pretty where she sits and raises one paw up. How could I say no?! So I was able to keep a good pace going with her, I know her Mommy (my sister) out in LA would be happy to know that Bebe got some exercise yesterday ;) Pretty soon I'll be able to take her out for runs which is her favorite and what she likes to do with her other Mommy (my sister).

My walking/cuddling buddy Diva!

So you are able to keep up with my progress here are my before pictures...not the most glamorous but oh well. ;) Trust me I'm not proud of them by no means, come on people its 6:00 in the morning!

Front

Right Side

Back

Left Side

I'll have Kelly take update photos soon! I can tell that my pants are getting really baggy. If it wasn't for my big butt and hips they'd fall down ;)

I was told I need to put a video on here, so please send me some suggestions! Let me know what you want to watch :)

I hope everyone has a great start to the work week and another full week at that. I don't know about you but having Wednesday off in the middle of the week really through me off. Thursday was another Monday and Friday felt like Tuesday. I'll take more pictures as the week unfolds and update you all on Wednesday!

So until next time, stay focused and stay motivated!

Let me start out by saying Thank you for checking out my blog…so here goes.

My name is Tiffani I’m 27 years old and I live in South Florida. I should start back a few months ago when I had a flutter feeling in my chest and at times felt like an irregular heartbeat or fast beat. I went and saw my cardiologist and he diagnosed me with high blood pressure and put me on medication. All other blood work and test came back normal. He said he felt my weight was what was causing my high blood pressure and once I lost it I would be able to get off the medication. He said I needed to make a change and lose the weight. At the time I was doing Weightwatchers online and trying to follow the program. In the few weeks that followed I slowly started to lose a few pounds. I wasn’t working out just following how many points I was allowed to eat in a day. My mom had come across a flyer advertising a personal trainer. I looked at her website and liked what I saw. But to be honest it took me over a month to get the courage to reach out to Kelly. I was scared, scared of failing and facing the lifestyle that I needed to change.

When I started my weight lost journey I was 331 pounds. (I am going to be honest and give my numbers I am not ashamed of how heavy I am, I love who I am inside and out but I know I am doing damage that will only cause me more problems later on in life) By the time I got to Kelly I had only lost 2 pounds doing the point system. (Not that it’s a great system because it is, but I needed more, more motivation and more discipline) Kelly put me on a strict diet of only protein and vegetables, no more carbohydrates or dairy. This was hard, I love my cup of coffee in the morning with French Vanilla creamer, and most people say I like creamer with my coffee, but whatever ;) I know how I like my coffee and I like it blond. Kelly also gave me the resources to check out a nutritional cleanse program that she recommended. With the program you could do a 9 day cleanse or a 30 days cleanse. I’m not going to lie I’ve never done a cleanse in my life and have never really dieted. I didn’t think I would be able to do a 30 day it just seem too overwhelming at the time. So I opted for the 9 day. I knew it was going to be intense; my sister had done the 30 day program before so I had an idea of what I was getting myself into. Headaches and hunger pains not to mention moodiness! OK ok it’s really not that bad, but you know how your imagination can get the best of you when you are scared. So like Kelly advised me to do, I did my research. After reading and watching some videos I felt more comfortable with completing the 9 day. I got myself mentally ready because I knew it was going to be hard. I finish my 9 day cleanse and that Friday Kelly took my measurements and I weight again. Just on the 9 day cleanse alone I lost 11 pounds! I couldn’t believe it!! I thought maybe I had read the scale wrong when I got on it, so I got on it again and couldn’t believe what I was seeing! With Kelly’s diet before the cleanse and doing the cleanse after I had lost 20 pounds! 20 pounds!!! I’ll say it again because I was completely shocked, 20 pounds!!! In 4 weeks’ time with working out with Kelly every morning Monday through Friday at 6:00am I lost 20 pounds!! I was beyond ecstatic!!!

So now I am on my technically second week of the 30 day cleanse, it’s been hard this month with birthdays, vacations and company from out of town to stick with the program. I took a 5 day hiatus when I visited family in Virginia and North Carolina. But I only ate half of whatever I ordered when we went out and tried to stick with healthy options. I’ll admit I did have some sweet tea while I was there; it’s a staple in the south and its own food group, right? J Kelly kicked my butt when I got back in town and when I did the Friday weight in I was worried, I knew I had just taken 5 days off and was scared of what the scale would show. Well to my surprise I lost 2 pounds!! J So now we are at a total of 22! I was happy knowing what all I had consumed. I mean people we’re talking about the late night drunk munchies of Sonic at 3:00 in the morning. Again I only ate half of my chicken sandwich and tots. Hey we don’t have Sonic in South Florida and I’d missed it from my college days so I let myself cheat and have some J

Just yesterday I had my Friday weight in and I was excited to see what if any I had lost since last week’s weight in of 2 pounds. This past week we had company in town and it was great to have visitors but that meant that I didn’t always stick with the program. But for the most part I only cheated on 2 days and not 5. So drum roll please…..when I weight yesterday I had lost another 5 pounds!! That’s a total of 27!!! J I am 5 pounds away from finally being under the 300 mark!!!! I am going to be strict this week which shouldn’t be a problem because no birthday, vacations or company in town to derail me. So please stay tuned for an update of my progress.

I will upload pictures and let you know how the week is going. J So until next time, stay focused and stay motivated!

Mid Week Update: Happy 4th of July!

Hi everyone! Hope you had a safe and Happy 4th of July! I wanted to give you a midweek update on my progress and let you know how things are going.

Even thou today is a holiday doesn't mean that I didn't get my workout in ;) I did however change it from 6:00am to 9:30am since I had the day off I wanted to be able to sleep in just a little bit. Kelly and I did our normal warm up lap around her block, on the return she mentioned I should go inside on the bike since it was so hot out today. As we are making it back to her house she asks, do you think you could jog? I tell her I don't know, I'm not sure if I'm ready for that. She replays oh I think you're ready! I want you to jog to your car on the count of 3. So on three I went for it. I was actually jogging! Oh and we didn't stop at the car, oh no we kept on going to the end of her block and back! :)  I couldn't believe that at the stage that I am in working out with Kelly that I was jogging! I was soo proud of myself! Then to add to more of the workout high I did kick boxing for the first time. Nothing like getting a little aggression out ;)

Kicking some butt!

Yesterday Kelly and I did legs. Here is a pic of me doing sumo squats with 30 pounds.

I can't remember the name of this exercise but here is a pic of me doing it. I pick the bar up from the ground bring it to my chest the raise it above my head :) I know its only 5 pounds but after jogging and kick boxing I was tired ;)

I told you on Saturday that I was going to be strict, and strict I have been. I've been doing my homework of power walking at night for 30 minutes. I've been using my new watch that EN got me for my birthday to time myself.

Thanks E! :) And you know I LOVE the color ;)

Also I haven't cheated, I've been sticking with my shakes twice a day and one meal. I didn't even cave and have pizza yesterday when SR was eating it in front of me. I set there and enjoy instead my shake :)

SN's delicious and smelled SOOO good pizza and Coke!

What my yummy shake looks like :)

Well thats all for now. I will let you know how the rest of the week pans out and how I did at weight in on Friday! :) So until next time, stay focused and stay motivated!