Necessary

Advice from Candice Keene

We all hit plateaus in our journey, whether it be fitness or life goals. Know your end result. Period.
Each day will be different. Results may not be what you hoped for at that particular moment, but that's OK! Keep going! Don't stop! Push through any bad day or any plateau, even if that plateau is alot longer than you hoped for. You WILL surpass it. You must be PATIENT & CONSISTENT. **Consistency is Key**
The beginning is always the hardest. Most often it will get harder before it gets easier..but it will get better/easier..you just have to get through the hard first. Don't give up!
It WILL be worth it!!!

Be gone!

March motivation wall

The 7 Day Shredding Meal Plan

Meal Prep 101

Eating clean!  Motivation for April, May and June

That's it.  Eat well.

February month in review

What's the saying?  "The best laid plans of mice and men often go astray"
I planned to blog more. I planned to eat clean, consistently, plan and prep daily.

Good stuff:

- lost about 5 lbs
-worked out consistently
-planned meals and packed lunches


Not so good stuff:

-didn't plan enough and didn't pack enough
-still not firing on all cylinders when it comes to eating well
-eating too much of good stuff + little bits of bad stuff
-cheese has to become a once a week treat
-fruit needs to be an every 2-3 days snack


What's next?

It's March.   My goal for June is getting closer but I'm not making the progress that I want.  It's time to decide what I want to do.  Slow and steady ?  Take a more aggressive approach  to get quicker results?   Either way, I need to stop pretending that I'm eating clean and actually do it  99% of the time.

Happy Birthday!

Having a bit of of a cheat day today but getting RIGHT BACK TO IT tomorrow.  NO exceptions. NO excuses.
March... April... May.. June.  It's going to be here soon and I want to be ready for the summer.

Yo, Adrian!

I went to Title Boxing Club yesterday for a SERIOUS kickboxing class.  My friend Tammy is a member and I was able to tag along for a free session.   They provide tapes and gloves.  I'd heard some horror stories about how tough it was but I have to say that I made it through and only had to take a few short breaks to catch my breath.  If you have never punched a heavy bag before, I recommend it.  It was super fun!  I sweat buckets- a sure sign of a good workout.

Super Bowl Sunday

More monthly updates from Ms Olympia herself.

I WILL concentrate on the things I can control - EATING CLEAN

Also, it's Super Bowl Sunday.  Luckily (?) we are not going out so the temptation to eat won't be there.  I purposely didn't buy chips or snacks to have in the house and since my husband doesn't care about this game,  it's a win-win!

Secretly though, I hope to host a big Super Bowl party someday  when the Cleveland Browns are in it, so it could be a while.  Go Browns!

February motivation wall

28 days- go get it!!

EAT CLEAN

   

 

January month in review

New for 2014 is my month in review.  I'll write about what was good and not so good, what I did well and what I need to improve.  This will also help reaffirm monthly goals.

What was good:

• I went to the gym 22 times in January 
• Signed up for a TRX/Bosu class once a week
• Started meeting with a trainer once a month
• Cooked food in bulk to take for lunches
• Blogged
• Had a meeting with my wellness coach
• Got a shoulder massage

What was not so good:

• ATE too much of the right and wrong things.  
• Justified poor food choices by making excuses
• Shoulder still hurts making it hard to do upper body work
• Extremely cold weather makes it hard to get out but not impossible

I think that the positive things outweigh the negative ones but those are more important in the long run.  Food choices determine weight loss and this is something that I need to get sorted out in February.

I updated my weight loss and fitness goals so that by January 2015 I'll be down 60 lbs.  I'd love to lose 2 lbs a week and  I will start losing weight on a regular basis.

Skinny or Fries?

A few years ago, I used this question, "skinny or fries?" to help me make immediate decisions about what to eat, whether I was staring a burger and fries in the face, cake, candy, bacon, whatever.  It was shorthand for make the right choice now because you'll regret it later on.
After a great chat on Tuesday afternoon with my wellness coach, Kathy, I found myself saying it again.
Really- make the choice.  What is it that I want more?  I KNOW how bad I'll feel after eating junk so make the choice not to eat it in the first place.
I need some momentum now.  I think that I've been following my eating plan but there was that handful of chips..... and that spoonful of ice cream.... and some bacon....oh, and just a FEW chips and guacamole.  On one hand, it's better than I would have done before (try a heaping bowl of ice cream!) but it's enough to slow any progress to a crawl.
Time to stop trying to justify this way of eating and get down to business!  I have the food, it's prepped and ready to go, now it's just a matter of keeping laser focus on the goal and keep asking the question- skinny or fries?

 VS

Dream On

Cold!

The polar vortex has arrived in Cleveland and it's currently 5F with a windchill that makes it feel like -19F.
These are the days when all you want to do  (all you CAN do ) is stay inside and eat comfort food.  I could seriously eat mac and cheese, tuna noodle casserole, lasagna, meatloaf......   I've been looking at all the food porn on Pinterest.
BUT..
I am NOT going to do any of that.  It's too easy and I'm not going to give in already!
Instead, I'm thinking about my workout later tonight and prepping my meals for the day.

I will be stronger than any excuse!
I will stay focused!

Prep

We've been in the kitchen today prepping food for the next few meals.  It's not food for the week yet, but I have plans for dinners for the next few days so we'll be cooking once, eating twice from it.

Tonight's dinner- green beans,  1/2 sweet potato, 3 oz pork tenderloin

I've realized that I'm not drinking enough water when I'm at home.  Must be better about staying hydrated.

Also, new year and a new look for my blog. What do you think?

12 week challenge!

I just signed up for bodybuilding.com $50K transform challenge.  It starts on the 13th and goes for 12 weeks.
Before pictures to follow!

bodybuilding.com challenge


Food:

1.  1/2 cup oatmeal;  4 egg whites;  1/2 red pepper;  1 tsp coconut oil
2.  (post workout)   1 orange;  4 oz tuna, 2 hard boiled egg whites, 1/2 tbsp olive oil; lettuce leaves
3.  3 oz ground turkey; lettuce; green beans;  carrots and hummus
4.  protein smoothie- protein, almond milk 30 cal, flax seed, 1 tbsp peanut butter

1st workout

All glutes, all the time.  I'd take pictures but I don't have a photo worthy ass yet and also, it's super duper freezing so to say I'm bundled up is an understatement.
I learned some new things to do in the gym and some other things that I may not be able to replicate but it was a great start to the new year!  I've been planning for this day for weeks now and glad to report it was a success! Also, I'm going to be hurting tomorrow but it's the good hurt that lets you know you worked hard.

In the meantime, check this out.

I mean, come on.

January Motivation wall

This is my go- to wall for January

Plan, Prepare, Pack!  Having meals ready to eat and go are key to success this time.  

To be an "after" on bodybuilding.com

Happy New Year!

1. Diet/nutrition is my #1 priority. I have a handle on my workouts so I need to put that kind of dedication into my food.

2. Stop deciding! I've made the decision to make this work, so now I'm going to move forward and stop looking back. I don't need to decide over and over again to make health a priority.

3. I will be more positive and speak more positively about myself.

4. I will be consistent in my progress and understand that plateaus and small setbacks are part of the process. I will not allow this to derail my progress.

5. June 1 is my first mini goal to have some significant weight loss ( I have a plan in place and know what I'll be eating and when).

6.  Stop worrying about stupid shit.