Accomplishments, Balance, & Celebrations. The ABC's of Success!

Whoa. That title makes it sound like this is going to give you all the answers about weight loss and how to make a life changing journey.... I wish that was exactly what I could give you. Instead, I'll talk about some of those in my life that has taken place this last week! 

On Tuesday, the UM Staff Senate had a FREE Power Hour at Title Boxing Club for all UM Employees. I was excited to try kickboxing for the first time and actually take a group class again. I was warned ahead of time by one of the workers about how my heart rate would go up and that the workout and first 15 minutes would be the hardest part. I understood that kickboxing would be a challenge, but for a split second I was intimidated and I was considering leaving. I stuck it out. I kept up & was sweating harder than I ever have before. It was tough. A whole hour that felt like 2 hours. I learned so much & walked away feeling strong and powerful. 

Such a hard workout!

Had so much fun! 

On Thursday, it was the one day I've been waiting for the past 4 months!!! MACKLEMORE & RYAN LEWIS in Missoula! I have been working my tail off so I could feel awesome in the outfit I wore to the concert! I had a tough time shopping for the outfit because I didn't know what I wanted to "look" like. I finally landed on the idea of skinny jeans, boots, and a nice flowy top. I didn't get a full body picture but I felt AMAZING and I was so happy! I enjoyed the concert so much & it was worth the hard work and dedication. Macklemore & Ryan Lewis put on the BEST show I've ever been to! I danced the night away! 

Me & Alesha!

Karla, Me, & Aislinn

This weekend I decided to have some fun! I didn't eat that well and didn't workout, but I had fun and my soul needed some friend time and no stresses! I didn't do horribly, but I could have done better! The best part? I keep looking at myself in windows or in pictures and am amazed at how far I've come and I know I could never let myself go again. 

So, since tonight is Sunday night I did some grocery shopping & wanted to share some ideas! I found some dark chocolate almond milk (sweetened) and compared it to my normal unsweetened almond milk. I posted it on IG and so many people started bashing on the sugar content. I agree, it is higher...but it's not as high as most chocolate milks out there. Plus, my sugar in take is VERY low (natural sources only) so the fact that I will only add splashes of it on occasion in my smoothies. I took a couple sips and enjoyed it! 

Here is some meal prep ideas! Click here for the full recipes! 

Egg Muffins

Red Potatoes

Crock Pot Chicken "Fajitas"

Find a Balance

What Brings You Peace?

If there is one thing that I've found most important during this whole journey is to find a balance. Not just pertaining to exercise or food. You need to have a balanced life, I know, easier said than done. It takes a lot of practice and sometimes it feels like a big FAILURE but other times you feel such peace that you are reminded why you started this crazy journey. 

I am a Christian, I'm sure you have all picked up on that if you've been following my posts. I was raised with my Native American traditions passed down from my great grandmother, but I was also raised in a small church. When I was a teenager, I attended a church camp for 7 years and it was a big part of my faith and identity as a Christian. 

So, when it comes to finding a balance it's important that you take time and turn to an area in your life that heals, rejuvenates, and motivates your spirit. If you are Catholic, Buddhist, Muslim, Christian, or if religion is something that you may not lean toward, find something. When I am home or am able to go to a Pow-Wow or sit with an elder, I always feel at "home" and peaceful. It's a large part of who I am and it puts my life into perspective. I am also reminded of the traditions I hold close and it reminds me to stay connected to that part of my life, even away from the reservation. 

Comparison Picture.

So many of us find losing weight is difficult and all your time and energy is spent in the kitchen or at the gym. Yes, that is a majority of it, but if you're not taking time to really find inner peace and balance, all your hard work can go unnoticed or your progress can be delayed because you're not in a "right mind". I highly encourage you to reach out to a friend, group, or organization that brings you happiness. 

I spent the weekend at a women's retreat and I found myself not focusing on my weight or what to eat next. Yes, we ate meals and there were options of bad and healthy food, and I felt amazing when I had healthy food on my plate but also allowed myself to eat a donut hole. I didn't fret because I was in a positive mind set. I knew that all my hard work the past 7 months wouldn't be rouined with a donut hole. I also reminded myself of the simple fact: this journey is to prepare us for the future. 

Everyone says to take it one day at a time. Yes, that's so true; you can become very overwhelmed. But there comes a day, and I promise you, it will come; you aren't just focusing on the hour you're in, you aren't worried about the decisions you're making that second. You look to tomorrow, aware of what challenges come and you have such confidence to get through anything thrown your way. That's when you know this challenge has become a lifestyle. 

October 21, 2013. Meal prep for work & an update picture.

 Be confident in your ability to change your life. You can spend days and hours talking yourself down and talking yourself out of a decision, but you're only hurting yourself. Stop holding yourself back, lift your spirit and mind higher than you ever imagined; progress will take place. You may not like your body, but until you accept it and realize that changes can be done, you will always be stuck where you are. Accept it, look at it, touch it, know what you're working with and start the improvements. Once you see progress, you will fall in love with your imperfect body. Remember, we all have imperfect bodies, it's how we fall in love with them each day that makes us successful. 

Wishing you peace, acceptance, joy, and understanding in this crazy journey. Lean on me, ask questions, find someone who you can be accountable to, and never give up.

xoxo

Need Support? Accountability? Motivation? Sisterhood?

My friend Amber and I have talked about starting a fitness group on Facebook for some time due to the fact we are asked the same questions over and over and over....We decided to start it a couple of weeks ago.

We thought it would be a nice place to keep one another motivated and offer support. We decided to clarify that the group is NOT for the two of us to have a "meal plan" or "exercise plan" for the group members. We are not licensed nutritionists or personal trainers. We simply know what works for us and know how our bodies respond to certain types of food and exercise.We believe that our fitness journeys are completely TRIAL AND ERROR and that what works for one person may not work for another. There are no rules! Simply ways to modify a "bad" way of eating to "clean" way of eating.

We ask the group a daily question and have recently started to include a fitness challenge daily. We are starting them off simple and fun because a lot of the women are beginners and we all have to start somewhere!

You're welcome to find our group, join, and participate. We are simply two girls on two different journeys but we have the same goals in mind.It is a closed group and only members can view what is posted. There are women who have PCOS and women who do not! Lets educate one another.

Feel free to introduce yourself, share pictures of the meals you eat, share recipes, health related articles, ask questions, participate in conversations. This is a group that depends on your participation and what you are willing to give it and take out of it. I've met some amazing women from mine and Amber's Instagram accounts and I'm thankful I get to know them better on this page.

We are all in different parts of our journeys and I think that is why we are able to offer so much to one another.

Click HERE to view the group.

With Hard Work... Comes AWESOME Success!

First: I want to apologize for not posting for a couple of weeks. Life really has picked up, or maybe my activity level has picked up? I'm enjoying my summer & not giving up! So much has happened it feels like. Of course, this month has been NO SCALE JULY so that's been an experience. No weighing in once a week was weird to get used to, but I had to find ways to keep focused. This month, I've learned to look more at myself in the mirror and focus on clothes. I didn't realize the amount of time I spent daydreaming about the numbers and focusing on the numbers. Obviously, yes, the numbers decreasing is motivating because I have a lot to lose, but now that I'm finding a healthier relationship with the scale, I'm focusing on other aspects of this journey and at the end of the day I go to bed feeling proud and content with myself. 

So, you guessed it more progress pictures! Why? Because I'm changing!!!! On New Years Eve, I went to a party and the picture on the L is then :) A couple weeks ago I wore the same shirt (hadn't done laundry in a few days so I wasn't able to just pick anything I wanted to wear). On the R is what it looked like. A few people at work mentioned how I was "swimming" in the shirt. After taking a picture and comparing it, I was shocked! I had the realization that even though I had sold a lot of my "fat" clothes (sorry for those of you who don't like that term) but I still needed to get rid of the other clothes currently in my closet. 

So, I had gone to a local clothing shop ReStyle Clothing Exchange a few weeks prior where you can cash in your nice, used clothes and even buy new items. I had bought some workout pieces, and thought that if the owner was willing to take my plus size clothes I could maybe find new clothes there, or even go somewhere else in town with the cash to go find a couple new pairs of shorts. After washing four large loads of laundry, I had two huge bags of clothes to be sold. I didn't realize how much I had sitting in the back of my closet! So crazy! 

I had called ahead prior to going in to make sure she would take some of the larger size pants that I found in the back of my closet and some tops that were XXL and some plus size from different stores. She said she would, so I went in cashed in my items! For in store credit you get 50% of what she will sell it for in the store or you can take 40% of it in cash. I took the cash. 

I immediately headed to Old Navy (obsessed with store!). Now, I started at size 18 pants and usually 20 shorts (to hide the love handle area). I had been wearing a size 14-15 in pants depending on the style. So, I got a size 16 and 14 and headed to the one place I absolutely HATE....the dressing room. I put on the first pair without looking at the size.

That's right, a size 14 in shorts....probably haven't been that size since about Freshman year in high school. My hate for the dressing room changed. This was a huge mental transition to me. I had smaller clothes in my closet that I've started wearing recently, but going to a store and being able to pick out a smaller size....actually 4 sizes smaller is so exciting. 

 Here's a little Flashback Friday (from this past Friday!). On the L i was 245ish lbs on February 1st, 2013. On the right: July 19 somewhere around 200...maybe less?! (I'll find out soon!). This picture is such a huge motivator. I didn't think in February that I could do it, I tried but gave up after a few weeks...but look at me now! 

 

Core & Arm workout!

First time using my watch! I did a circuit and hike behind my house! Whooo hoo!

Just a little core workout in the living room :)

Last night's Biggest Loser Max Cardio and Fitsugar workout!

This week I bought a Polar FT4 Heart Rate Monitor Watch off of Amazon for $62.00. I did a lot of research prior to purchasing it. I had been following so many people on Instagram that count calories and use it to determine their calories for working out. I DO NOT COUNT CALORIES so I had the idea that I wouldn't benefit from it (although seeing how hard your workouts are is a positive). After a lot of research I found out that it doesn't just tell you the calories you burn, it also tells you your heart rate. Based on my weight (I put 208 down), height, and the heart rate monitor it keeps track of when you're "in range". The "in range" section lets you know when you're burning the most calories as possible (that your body lets you) while maintaining a healthy heart. I was born with a few heart problems and it's so important that the weight is gone that I strengthen my heart and not damage it. This really was the deciding factor in purchasing the watch. After a few workouts, I'm so happy with my decision. Honestly, I live on a tight budget and I was able to affoard it by saving up a little every couple paychecks. I really like the feature that tells you how long during your entire workout that you were in rage. It really makes you want to become stronger and spend more time "in range" to get the most out of your workouts!

I wanted to share two videos that I used last night! :) A friend of mine introduced me to FitSugar, a great FREE online place to get workout videos targeting all areas with some of the most known celebrity trainers! I also did a favorite Biggest Loser Max Cardio workout :)
Here are the two videos!
 

Here are a couple of pictures of some love handle and bum progress. This is exactly 8 weeks a part. :) 

 I'm so excited for the end of July to see what kind of progress I've made. I'm honestly hoping to be in ONEderland....so that's -8 lbs in a month. I know my body is changing and I see that daily, but we shall see! 

I hope everyone is staying cool, the summer is really getting hot! If anyone in the Missoula area would like to get together to workout or hike, let me know! :) 

xoxo