Monthly Weigh In

It is finally time to give you guys an update on my numbers for my weight and my measurements. My previous measurements have been misplaced so I don't have those numbers to compare. I can say that clothes are fitting better so I know I have lost a good amount of inches. My starting weight was 298. Below are my current numbers as well as comparison photos. I see the biggest changes in my side and back pictures. Going forward I will try to keep the same clothes on to see how I transform in them.

My Weightloss Progress in Charlotte So Far

Hey Loves.....

I am trying to be consistent  again with posting so expect a new post at least once a week.

Ok so I have been living in Charlotte for 2 months now and although my progress has been slow I am still making progress. I do not know my current weight because I do not own a scale but the last time I weighed myself at my sisters house I was 295. That's a big jump from the 276 I was back in April and close to the 317 I was last year. I hate that I let myself gain 20 pounds back but I know how it happened and I am not letting it happen anymore.

I Moved to Charlotte!!!!...and Gained Weight

Oh my goodness guys you have no idea how much I needed a break from EVERYTHING. I finally made that move to Charlotte, NC with my daughters and I can breath again. Preparing for this move was way more than I bargained for, but the move was so needed.

My move to Charlotte was to have a better life for me and daughters and to be closer to my sisters. I was supposed to move years ago but always chickened out when it was time to start planning for it. Welp I didn't chicken out this time and the last week of June I got on the road to a better life.

I Taught My First Fitness Class!!!!!!

I taught my very first fitness class all by myself on Saturday. As you may know I have been promoting a twerk class and I am so happy about how it went. When I visit Charlotte, I usually teach a twerk class with my sister for her company Trophy Wife Fitness. After I taught one this past April, my friends in Syracuse asked for me to teach one here and I thought that would be a fun thing to do.

It was a breeze to plan everything, but I was still nervous. I've mentioned many times to people that this healthy journey has changed my mindset and I want to help others along their healthy journey. Becoming a certified personal trainer may be in my future, but I want to get myself in the best space possible to properly help others. I have a lot of people that reach out to me for tips and help and I think this might be a great career change for me. I understand what it is like to be over 300 pounds and trying to fight your way to a healthier body. I'll keep you guys posted on that going forward.

Anywhooooo back to my class!

Team No Sleep Over Here

There has been great things happening in my life, but I think it's causing me to have anxiety which leads to insomnia. I've never dealt with lack of sleep other than being tired from my anemia. My anemia tired is totally different than insomnia tired. With my anemia, it doesn't matter how many hours I get of sleep, I am still physically tired. That's the type of sleep when you don't want to move your body and your muscles are tired. Being tired from insomnia is simply not getting enough hours.

Being that this has never happened, I definitely think it is because I have my Twershop tomorrow, a 5k next Saturday, I'm going to Vegas the following week, and One other thing I am not announcing yet. These are all new things that I am doing and I am soooo excited about all of them, but nervous at the same time.

Counting Macros... Not Calories

Counting calories seem to be the norm for majority of people who are trying to lose weight and that is awesome. Weightloss is basically calories in vs. calories out. You want to be in a calorie deficit to lose pounds. That is why it is very important to keep track of what you eat to make sure you are staying on the right path when it comes to your nutrition.

I've been counting calories since I starting my journey but I have been having trouble with the amount of calories I should hit each day. Now in the beginning my goal was 1200 each day, but I found that I some times would get hungry and that lead me to making bad choices by the end of the day. The problem I found is that I was focused more on calories than the nutrients in the calories. That is why I am now counting my macronutrients versus my calories.

The Best Kept (Not So) Secret to a Flatter and Tighter Tummy

This post is both what you think and what you probably are not thinking. Everyone is looking for a way to get a flat and tight stomach. There are different supplements and workouts that people push to get that loose belly in shape and most ignore the biggest factor of getting the best stomach possible.

The NUMBER 1 thing you should be taking lots in daily is......... WATER!

Yup just plain ol' water is what you need to help with tightening your skin and to shrink your waist. I aim to drink a gallon of water a day and if you thinks that's too much then you are sadly mistaken. Through my weight loss journey I have shared what water has done for me. I hold on to water weight like it's our last days and I have to consume a gallon a day to keep my water weight down. Yes you have to drink water to get rid of water weight. Your body needs water to function and when you are not drinking it enough, it will hold on to what you have. Not to mention that water helps with digestion and releasing toxins from the body.

I am Doing My First 5k!!!

I am super excited and nervous to be doing my first 5k but I am accepting the challenge. I signed up for it at the beginning of April because I always wanted to do a 5k and I want to do marathons in the future. Being that I have been taking vacations and will be taking more in the next few months I had to plan one during a good time so I had enough time to prepare for it.

I will be doing the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer 5k run/walk on May 16. I have received all of my information and I am all set to go! Now I am preparing for it by doing more cardio. I have not been the best at being consistent with working out but my main focus is to work on my endurance.

While a 5k might not seem like much to most, it is a big deal for someone who does not run, is overweight and battles muscle fatigue. I am working to be able to push past those obstacles and do my run/walk in a decent time. I do not plan on running the whole thing, but I do want to run some of it. This will be the first of many more to come and your girl is ready to knock this one out the park.

If you would like to donate to the race you can do it here.

I Signed Up for A Dietbet and FAILED!!!!

HI GUYS!!!!!!!!! I know, I know it has been a minute but just like the last time I am back. Sometimes we go through things in our lives that makes us take a step back to re-evaluate ourselves. It's good to take some time away to collect yourself and then get back into the swing of things. I have so much to update you guys on but I will share in different posts.

The first thing is I signed up for a Dietbet and FAILED miserably. I thought signing up for it would give me the push I needed to go harder and at first it did. In the beginning I was doing great, but life got the best of me and I slacked off and never reached my goal which meant I lost the $25 bet I put in. Was I mad about losing $25....Yes. Did I put in the work to get my money back......NOPE.

If I Eat Healthy My Kids Should Too

With cleaning up my diet...AGAIN, I have starting thinking about my daughters. I have always thought and have been told to let my kids live a little and eat food I can no longer eat. I agree with that to a certain point but in the long run I want my kids to understand and follow a healthy lifestyle like me.

A big struggle for me is saying no to the kids snacks and fast food I let them have. When I find that I am binge eating or having major caving its from the kids food in front of me. Not to mention how much of a fight it is to get the kids to eat baked foods and vegetables. It's no one's fault but my own. They are not old enough to buy their own food, cook, or even make selections so why would I get upset when they don't want green beans instead of fries.

The Struggle to Get Back on Track After You Fall Off

That's what I'm dealing with right now. I went so long without having a slip up and now that I am trying to get back to where I was it is a daily struggle. I have always been told it takes 21 days to form a habit and I am starting to believe them. I think there is a few factors that plays a part in my struggle but at the end of the day I am the only one that can make the right decisions for me. So what is my problem.

To be honest it is just easier to reach for that tasty piece of food I crave so much or binge on snacks. It's easier to not think about getting enough water or drink of any sort in. It is just easier to sit on the couch all day and relax than to push yourself while working out. But why do I do it when it's not what I want. I want to be in a position where I'm not tempted by foods and can say no. I want to be able to get up at anytime and get in a great workout without hating it. Soooo what the hell am I complaining about.

I'mmmmmm Baaaaaaack

These past few months have been an up and down roller coaster for me health and fitness wise. It started mainly when I hit my plateau, which I am still currently in. I have not been able to get under 273 and boy has that driven me crazy, but here's what I have been up to...

~ I did not complete the Whole30 challenge. I think that is part of what created my plateau in the first place. I strayed away from what was working for me food wise. I was pretty balanced with my food choices and although Whole30 isn't a bad choice it just shifted things for me. I think it may have threw me off of my balanced plan.

I Took the Weekend Off and It Didn't End Well

I have been at a weight loss plateau for little over 2 weeks and I could not figure out what I could do to get through it. I spoke to every fitness person I could to see what I can change and that is what I did. In my last post about weight loss slowing I talked about things I would be doing and after doing that it pretty much messed me up. Someone also told me it might be a good thing to not workout for a couple days to give my body a rest.

So on Friday I started to up my calories and didn't really pay attention to the calorie amount. That might have been my first no no]. I didn't go crazy and eat bad foods but it did lead to a binge day. Friday and Saturday was ok. I actually started to get a little sick by eating high calorie foods like pizza. Now did I have to eat pizza??? No! I chose to eat pizza because if I was going to up my calories why not treat myself with higher calorie foods. After Saturday I couldn't take it anymore and started to eat clean again on Sunday. It didn't last long though.

What Happens When The Weightloss Slows Down

I was beyond excited when I hit 40 pounds down. Up until this day I have had a steady loss of a few pounds a week minus the moments in October and December when I fell off a little and gained some weight. Although they say it is not healthy to weight yourself often, I do. I find weighing myself helps me stay on track and push myself to see those numbers go down. Lets be real... my numbers have to go down by a lot at this point. I am still high in the 200s so seeing the numbers go down is very important.

So for months I have been seeing at least 2 pounds down a week but ever since I hit the 40 pound mark I am stalling out. I have not lost one pound since then. I am still eating clean and working out 6 days a week so what gives???? It is frustrating to see me hit a plateau and I want no parts of it. I spent the weekend reevaluating my food intake and workout regimen and I am implementing some changes.

Finding Time to Workout

What do you do when you are a busy body and need to fit workouts into your schedule? I was in that boat and I am still in that boat, but I have been able to figure out a plan to fit in the workouts I need. I am still currently doing the P90 series, however, like I stated in a previous post I do not feel it is enough for me. With this workout you will definitely get your sweat on, but the length of the workouts are what is lacking.

I was at a point when I was going to do them back to back, but I changed my mind. I want to follow the program to see how things go without altering it. What I am doing instead I feel with give me the rest of the calorie burn I need. One

Why It's So Important to Take Pictures During Your Journey

We have all been there when we know we are working hard towards our goal of weightloss, but don't see the changes we would like to see. I am in the mirror everyday examining my body to see if I find something that is different and many times I don't. When you look at yourself everyday it is hard to see the changes your body are making.

Well Saturday was my weightloss group weigh-in and I am officially down 40 pounds... whoot whoot! Although the numbers on the scale are steadily going down I still haven't seen a huge difference in the mirror. I have now started to try on clothes I couldn't fit and guess what?..... I can fit some of them again. Yyaaayyyyyyyyy!!!!!

The Difference a Knee Brace Can Make

So I am around 10 years old and I am riding my bike, out of no where a boy rams his bike into mine causing us to collide in a not so great way. The fact that I had to get help getting home, could not straighten my leg out completely, and was only able to ice it without any other medical care is the cause of my bad right knee. Since that accident I have had a few issues like my knee giving out during physical activities. I have never had my knee checked out, but I am slowly heading toward that way.

When I got pregnant with my twins, the weight gain changed my knee entirely. I went from my knee giving out here and there to knee pain and limitations. I am still dealing with the knee pain to this day and my huge weight gain last year only made it worse. It is very common that weight can affect your joints and mine definitely contributed to mine. Now that I am seriously working out, my knee has been a limiting factor in what I can do. I have modified as much as I can and took the initiatives to find a knee brace to support my knee and eliminate some of my modifications. I first went to my local pharmacies and places like Wal-Mart to find a reasonably priced one, but they did not carry anything that would fit my leg. I then went to my doctor and she wrote a prescription for me to get one. After the weeks of dealing with insurance requirements I finally got my knee brace yesterday.
 

My First Week of Doing Whole 30

I didn't even notice it has been an entire week of doing Whole 30. Whole 30 is clean eating to the next level. You will still eat lean meats, vegetables, and fruit, but you cannot have any dairy, grains, or sugar of any kind. You also cannot eat legumes, consume alcohol, and you are limited on ingredients in foods and seasonings. Whole 30 is free and takes you back to the basics.

What is the Whole30®?  

Certain food groups (like sugar, grains, dairy and legumes) could be having a negative impact on your health and fitness without you even realizing it. Are your energy levels inconsistent or non-existent? Do you have aches and pains that can’t be explained by over-use or injury? Are you having a hard time losing weight no matter how hard you try? Do you have some sort of condition (like skin issues, digestive ailments, seasonal allergies or fertility issues) that medication hasn’t helped? These symptoms may be directly related to the foods you eat – even the “healthy” stuff. So how do you know if (and how) these foods are affecting you?  

Wednesday Workout Mix Playlist

Now that the holidays are over it is time to get back on that grind! Here the new workout mix. Enjoy!