Tired of being 'Sick & Tired'?!?

                When a person is TRULY tired of being 'Sick and Tired' ... They WILL make that change!  No matter what it is in their life that they are sick and tired of ...  NOTHING will stand in their way! 

                When you are TRULY. SICK.AND.TIRED. ~ Its a game changer!  There will be no more complaining. No more I cant's and what if's. No more but's.  It will just happen! .. And you will do EVERYTHING in your power to make it happen.

                  It wont happen overnight and it certainly wont go smoothly, without ups and downs, BUT it WILL.HAPPEN.!!




6.2002 vs. 6.2012

               You TRULY have to be SICK.and.TIRED. of being SICK.and.TIRED.!!

              'Believe in Yourself' so that you can 'Live the Life That You Love'!! :)

When you feel like Quitting ... Think about WHY.YOU.STARTED.!!

2001 - 2004

 

                 I posted these photos a couple of days ago on FaceBook.  It was interesting to see how many people said that I was just as beautiful then as I am now. (I truly appreciated all of those comments! :))  BUT .. I didnt feel beautiful then AT.ALL. .. Dont get me wrong, I think I looked 'pretty' in those photos ~ my hair and make-up was ALWAYS perfect, and good god, my teeth were as white as can be! lol! BUT inside, I was dying!
                
                 The crazy thing is that I cant even blame pregnancy on any of these photos because most of these were taken 4 years AFTER my second son!  Anyone who has known me for years knows that my weight has been up and down like a roller coaster my whole life!  When I look at these photos I see a broken person.  As a matter of fact, I dont even recognize myself.  I see someone who is hiding behind a fake smile .. Sad but True! ~ but NOT. ANYMORE.!

                  I am not perfect by any means now, and I will forever be working on myself MENTALLY and PHYSICALLY, but I am truly HAPPY. &. HEALTHY. inside and out ... And Im pretty sure it shows!! =)

                  Ive also posted photos of my handsome hubby, with myself, so that you can see the changes he has also made in himself along with me.  We are so blessed to have been able to make these changes in ourselves and most importantly SUPPORT and COMPLETE eachother in the way that we do!

              When you feel like QUITTING ...  Think about WHY. YOU. STARTED.!!



2001 - 2004



07.20.2012 =)
(BTW .. I just happen to be wearing my 'Live the Life You Love' bracelet in this photo!)

Loose Screw, Maybe?

            So Im starting to think that I may have a screw loose!!  I'll explain why ...
I just happened to finally watch an 'INSANITY' workout infomercial last night for about 20 min.  Can I just tell you that I. COULD. NOT. FALL. ASLEEP after watching that!! ~ I seriously could not wait till morning to get to the gym and do my Kickbox Fusion class today!!  It was like I was jonesing for crack!! LOL!!  It got me so pumped up and ready to go, that I could have seriously put on my tenni's and loud ass music and gotten busy doing some serious cardio and push-ups at 10:30pm!  Now you have to understand that the Kickbox Fusion class's and Bootcamp class I take are pretty much AS. HARD. or HARDER. than 'Insanity'!  So maybe now you see why I think that I may have a screw loose!! ... Who the hell looks forward to that PAIN?!?  ~  Apparently I. DO.!!! :)

            Ive said it before and Ill say it again, If I could only bottle and sell the rush & adrenaline I get from working out ... I'd be one RICH. MO. FO.!!

            So YA ... Im thinking that you could probably classify what I got going on as an addiction BUT at least its a 'GOOD. FOR. YOU.' addiction.   AND I dont do it for more than an hour to an hour and 20 min. 5 days a week! ~ So Im not too Crazy!!

             The other thing that Ive noticed that I do is, when I shop, I tend to go to the workout clothing department more so than the 'everyday' clothing departments!! :)  Speaking of which ~ I got a smokin deal today on some 2012. NIKE. LIVESTRONG. AIRMAX. at the Nike outlet!!  They are normally $175.00 ... but I got these bad boys for $109.00!!  ~ My kind of deal!!  
Oh, another thing ... I tend to spend more money on my workout shoes than dress shoes for myself .. That goes to show you whats IMPORTANT. TO. ME.!! ~ My workout shoes are MY. EQUIPMENT.!! ;)

Positive. Role. Model.

                         This morning I was getting ready to leave the house to head to the gym (for my Wednesday 'Booty Camp' class).  My 15 year old son, Corliss, said to me "Mom, can I tell you something?" ... "You look amazing and really lean right now" ...  "and I am so proud of you!".  He said, "I know you work hard and it shows!" :)
                   
                          WOW!! ~ Hearing those words come from my son makes it so worth while!  As a parent, you want to be the best role model for your children/teenagers as possible ... Knowing that they are acknowledging what I am doing, and supporting me as well, is PRICELESS!  It also gave me a sense of motivation that I cant even explain!  When your children/teenagers believe in you ... it makes 'believing in yourself' that much more important!

   I am so thankful that I can be a POSITIVE. ROLE. MODEL. in my teenagers life! :)

                     

Counting Calories ... Old School!

                  Today I decided Im going back to my 'OLD SCHOOL' way of counting calories.  I have a BODYBUGG, which a a great tool for counting calories and keeping track of calories burned, but I just dont use the calorie log daily like I should.  I personally think it is more of a hassle to use than actually looking up and writing down the calories that I consume daily.  I really enjoy the BODYBUGG for being able to keep track of my calories burned and steps taken, but the calorie tracker ... not so much!!  So Im going back to my old school ways! ... I feel like I have been lacking in this lately and need to get back on track.  Writing down what I eat daily, GOOD. OR. BAD., keeps me accountable and also helps me to make the better choice when deciding what to eat.  Its amazing how fast calories add up in a day!  ~  Getting the most out of your daily calorie intake is what its all about!

                    Writing down my calories helps to keep me focused on those days that I dont workout.  Im sure Im not the only one who tends to eat healthier on the days I workout vs. my off days.  If you still have to be accountable for something on those days it keeps your mind in the right place! 

                     I suggest to anyone and everyone to keep a daily food log ... you would be amazed at what you eat in a day ~ GOOD. OR. BAD.!   I myself have a pretty good stack of journals that I have used over the years to log my food. 
Its kind of like working out, once you have made it a HABIT ...  it is NO LONGER a chore! :)

Now ... To practice what I preach!!  =)

Size WHAT??

 

            I still cant get used to my size of clothing now! ~ More so the size of my tops.  My pants have always ran smaller then my tops, so getting used to a size 4 pants seems a little easier.  But wearing a size SMALL in a womens top ~ seems so odd to me and Ive been wearing a size S womens top now for at least 8 months (size M if its a junior fit). 

            For example ... Yesterday I went to ROSS with my oldest son.  Not my favorite store ~ but he wanted to go.  Not that there is anything wrong with shopping at ROSS, I just dont have the patience for that store.  See when I shop ... I graze!  I have a hard time looking through racks of clothing ~ I prefer the clothing to be on display or have only one type of clothing on a single rack, not a variety of styles and brands.  Anyways, thats all besides the point!! :)

              So I was waiting for Corliss to pick out what he wanted and I started grazing!  Which like I said, is very hard to do at ROSS!  I happen to see a really cute BCBG hoodie hanging on an end of a rack with a pair of matching capris.... SO CUTE!  My first thought was .. I wonder if they have it in my size?.  The set I saw hanging was a size S and it looked SMALL!! ... Needless to say, I DID NOT want to look through all of the racks to see if I could find the set in a M so I tried on the S ... and to my surprise ... The outfit fit like a glove!!

               I just cant wrap my mind around the fact that I can wear a size S in ANYTHING! ~  It seems so foreign to me!  Never in this lifetime would I have ever imagined me fitting into these sizes.  I am programmed to look for size L or XL when I shop.  Ive worn a L, or larger, almost my whole life, from elementary school right on up through most of my adult life.  Even now, knowing I can wear a smaller size, I will still take the next size up with me into the dressing room ~  'just in case'!!

               It amazes me how some things in life are taken for granted by some people and for other people, those same things, are a daily struggle.  And its not just about the size of a persons clothing it could be about anything in life.

               Honestly, SIZE really doesnt matter BUT it kinda feels good for a change!!  It really threw me back yesterday when I saw this outfit as being 'so small' but it fit me just fine!! It goes to show that all of my hard work on myself, physically and mentally, is paying off !! 

Cute outfit, right?!?  Paid $45.00 for it ... tags said it retailed at $300.00 ~ WHAT??

Epidemic

              It has been a few days since my last blog ... Ive been thinking long and hard about this subject.  I feel that body image is an epidemic!  I know that this isnt a "News Flash" BUT it really has been a subject that has been on my mind.  I personally dont know anyone, male or female, that has not struggled with it.  If you really think about it ... Do you know anyone who has not had an issue with either feeling too fat or too skinny (what would that be like? see there I go!! :)), too weak, too flabby, too flat, too jiggly ect., ect.?? ... I mean the list goes ON AND ON!  How many people eat something throughout the day, or week, and are mad at themselves because it wasnt the best choice for them??  How many people wake up every morning and say to themselves "today is the day that Im going to start working out" ... and fail to do so??  I feel EVERYONE struggles with these issues, if not always, then at some time or another in their lives.

               There are soooo many quick fixes out there that people are so quick to spend their money on because they hope that it will help them to not feel "THAT WAY" about themselves.  There are so many companies and individuals making money off of this epidemic, that I feel we have, and there truly is NO. QUICK. FIX.!!  You have got to DO. THE. WORK.!!

               Truth is that we are all in this epidemic together and NO. ONE. IS. PERFECT.!!  Only a handful of people "GET IT" and even a smaller handful actually do something about it ... I feel mostly because people have no clue where to begin ~  and lord knows that the beginning is always the hardest!  I feel that everyone has a perfect image of themselves ~ but ... Is it really perfect??  ~  Is this image really doable??  Perfect to me, finally, is being comfortable in my own skin which includes working out not only to feel great but to also feel more confident about myself.  Exercise gives me confidence and adrenaline like nothing else can! ... I feed off of that! :)  I also workout to strengthen the most important muscle in my body ... MY. HEART.!!  Without my heart being in shape .. I wouldnt be able to do anything! ;) 

                    It has taken me YEARS to "GET IT" ...  And Im still working on it daily!  I have always tried to do something 'about it' but had failed over and over throughout the years.  I have learned that until you mentally get yourself together ~  physically YOU WONT get it together!  ~ Its a package deal!  I believe the epidemic is 90% mental and 10% physical. (I havent done any research on this .. these are ONLY my thoughts ...  I am speaking only from my own personal experience and belief.)

                    Everyone struggles with this epidemic!! ~ Its pretty sad!  BUT if you think about all of the GOOD that comes out of working out ~ YOU. CANT. GO. WRONG.!  ~ That is, as long as you are doing it for all the RIGHT reasons! :)  If you can make it a habit ~ It will then become a lifestyle that will no longer feel like a chore!

                     There is no 'quick fix' for this epidemic, and there probably never will be, but I believe that if you do the work, PHYSICALLY AND MENTALLY, you will feel better about yourself!  ~  Being comfortable in your own skin is PRICELESS!

                     "Believe in Yourself" so therefore you can "Live the Life You Love"! ... Lets get rid of this epidemic one POSITIVE. THOUGHT. about YOURSELF at a time!! :)