Last Day of 30DS and Results! AND Spilling the Beans

Today is my last day of 30 DS and while I havent done my last day YET, I did take after pictures which I will post in a minute.

I will say that yes I can see some results so that is very promising.

And I will be continuing onto a new challenge which will be Jillian Michaels Ripped in 30. I am hoping to get even better results from that.

Yesterday night I went to the gym and did a 2.8 mile walk on the treadmill then CX. I skipped my Flow class last night because it wasnt actually Flow. Vicki who teaches it must be sick or on vacation or something so it was Yoga instead. I am not a HUGE yoga fan, so instead I walked again on the treadmill, did some ab work and some leg work before doing RPM. By then I was pretty tired but I pushed thru RPM.

In total at the gym last night, not including 30DS and yardwork, I burned 1167 calories. Not too bad!

This morning my weight for today was 174.5. Happy with that. Tomorrow will be my final weigh in for 30DS.

So onto the fun- Pictures!!

Sorry for the side shot not being the same direction. And as you can see, I had to take them myself today because Aaron was at work but I wanted to get them done first thing in the morning like my other ones.

What do you think? Can you see some results?

I wouldnt call myself "Shredded" but then again, I didnt follow Jillians meal plan. Thought about it but of course they want you to sign up with a credit card even though you get 30 days free. No thanks.

I still have a saggy stomach and I took some pictures of it but that will be a starting point for my review I am going to do. 

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And what review am I going to do???

I have to share. I cant wait anymore. I am HOPING it comes in the mail today or tomorrow, but actually I am going to wait to use it until Sunday and blog Monday because of the junk food and drink I will be having this weekend. (Think Friday night Feta Bread, Beer Tent, Pampered Chef Party etc).

Ok...Here is what it is....

The product is from It Works. The website is here

And I will be reviewing their wrap pack which is their ultimate body applicators (set of 4!!) and a sample tube of their defining gel.

Remember before the wedding when I was asking about wraps? Well I found this one day while looking on Pinterest and I contacted Angela and asked her if it really works. Since then, we have been conversing back and forth. She added me as a friend on her FB page so I can see some pictures of results people have had. 

Here are a few:

After 1 applicator

I wont be using the Greens but that is another product I am interest in. The thing that got me wanting to try the wraps was that these are supposed to release the toxins that your fat cells store. This is not something that is going to just take off water weight. If that were the case, you would have MORE loose skin. LOL. And results are supposed to last at least 2 months going up to 6 months and beyond with proper diet and exercise which I do already!

Now as much as I would LOVE these results right away, I am realistic that I do have quite a bit of skin to tighten BUT this is TONS less expensive than having a tummy tuck and isnt painful. LOL. And the applicator pack comes with 4 wraps and these pictures are after 1!! So I have 4 times to shrink the belly skin. One wrap works over 72 hours even though you only have to leave it on for 45 minutes so you can use one wrap every 4th day.

And these wraps are HUGE! And the cool thing? You can cut them up and use them on different parts of your body. SO I will probably try them on my thighs to see if I can reduce those bumps.

With these you should only do one area at a time. So you dont want to do your tummy and legs at the same time (for example).

And if things go well, (which Angela assured me that it would), I will be getting a full sized container of defining gel, Greens (which you mix into a drink to get 8+ servings of fruit and veggies in one serving), and Fat Fighter (which will help absorb some of the fat and carbs that  you eat when you go off plan so your body doesnt).

The defining gel itself is referred to as Liquid Gold. It is supposed to diminish the look of cellulite and tone areas of your body. Here is one girls picture who JUST used Defining Gel:

Can you see why I am excited about these products? They could be the answer I have been looking for to tighten and tone my belly skin WITHOUT surgery!

So stay tuned folks. If all goes well, next Monday I will be having a guest blog by Angela and the first 24 hour results of my wrap with measurements and pictures.

Angela did say that it may take many wraps (like 8) to get the results I want. I get that. Everyones body responds differently. I dont eat a ton of crap food so I may not have as many toxins as what some of these other people have. But I am going to stay positive.

And if you are interested in these products too, you can sign up for free as a loyal customer. You get almost a 50% discount and you just have to buy products once a month for 3 months. After that, I think you are under no obligation but Angela could probably explain that further.

Here is the Loyalty Program explained (from their website):
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It Pays to be Loyal!

Special Savings

Save up to 45% on all It Works! products with Loyal Customer pricing.

Automated Monthly Shipments

Your favorite products will be conveniently delivered to your doorstep each month with our flexible auto-shipment service.

Easy Customization

Create the perfect order when you mix and match the productsyou want each month. Change your auto-shipment anytime you’re ready to try something new!

Perks Points with Every Order!

With every order you place, you’ll earn Perks Points equal to 10% of the subtotal of your order before taxes and shipping. For example, if the cost of your order before taxes and shipping is $100.00 USD, you’ll earn 10 Perks Points. You can start using your Perks Points anytime after your fourth consecutive auto-shipment.

Bonus Points for Being Loyal!

In addition to the Perks Points you earn with each order you place, you can also earn bonus Perks Points by simply continuing to place an auto-shipment order each month. After your sixth consecutive auto-shipment, you will receive 50 bonus Perks Points, and after your twelfth consecutive auto-shipment, you’ll receive 150 bonus Perks Points. That’s a $200 shopping spree on us!
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Very cool and something I will definitely think about. It would basically pay for itself within a few months just from the savings.

Whew. Ok. Enough for today. Time for me to get the kid around for camp. Then I come back and do my last day of 30 DS, hose myself off, go meet the new pediatrician, get Landry lunch and nap, pick Xavier up from camp and then tonight is Neighbor walk night with K and possibly S. Busy day!!

Have a great Wednesday everyone!
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 Tip of the Day:

Eat (clean), Drink (water) and Be Merry!

First I want to say thank you to a friend for posting this this morning. I saw it and I knew that I had to share it with you all today.

Yesterday was the first day after my carb and bad eating binge on Sunday. I truly believe sometimes you have to screw with your body to keep it on its toes. If you dont, it becomes used to what you are doing making change all the more hard. This is the first part of the title of this post...Eat Clean, and Drink Water. It helps to flush out the bad that you (well "I") did over the weekend.

That being said, yesterday I completed day 28, then I worked in the yard.

Now- we still have debris in our yard. Not so much chunks of siding and insulation (we have a bit of that that still comes in from the houses under construction from the wind) more like pieces of glass. So you cannot walk barefoot in the yard. Not so hard for me to remember, but it is hard for the kids. So I suited up in my swimsuit and thick chunky waterproof birkis and went outside to work.

I started by trimming the bushes around the house. They were getting a bit unruly. We have let the yard go this year because the grass is getting replaced anyways. Unfortunately it has also translated into the trees, bushes, flowers, weeds, etc.

Then I got a rake out from the garage and started pulling out all the crap from under the deck that was never cleaned out. Shingles, siding, glass, tyvek, you name it. I even found a big piece of metal in the bush I trimmed up. Crazy! Then F&%$!!! My foot started to hurt. Sure enough, somehow I must have gotten a sliver of glass in my shoe even though I wasnt standing in the mulch I was cleaning out but in the grass. My foot was bleeding. Talk about putting a hamper in a chore. I cleaned it up and kept going.

Then last night I went walking with K and S. Nag, Nag, Nag by me though not much arm twisting was involved. LOL.We had a great time and picked up a 5 mo old black lab puppy named Kai to walk as well. She is staying at a different neighbors home in the sub while her owners are on vacation and the "sitter" just cant walk her. Not that Kai misbehaves on a leash, just if she sees a dog, she pulls and the "sitter" is older and is worried about being pulled down. So K and I offered to walk her when we go for walks. At one point, I think I got another sliver of glass in my shoe even though this time I was wearing tennis shoes. What the Heck?? This time it was in my heel. Doesnt feel bad now but the spot where I got hit the first time is still a bit tender.

Now onto the meat of this blog and why I titled it like I did.

Last night after we were done with our walk, K asked if I could help her move stuff from her car back into her house. Hey! More cardio for me and I am all about that. So a few flights of stairs and checking out her house and we were back at my house. We both got out of the car because she was picking up a carpet cleaner from my house that she borrowed from a different neighbor (can you feel the neighborly love in this sub?) and when I turned around, K was gone! What the heck? And I walked around the back of the car and there is K. On all fours on the ground laughing. She fell. I felt bad but she was laughing and I started laughing. Then we were laughing HARD. She was ok. Hurt her hand, and skinned her knee just a tad but OMG we laughed!

After she left she texted me: "Ive fallen, and I cant get up!"   Too funny!

This morning, she posted on FB a pretty cool article that I wanted to share with you. She thought about this last night/this morning after her "incident". It shows that you can get exercise and burn calories in ways that you really didnt think about before.

This comes from Livestrong.com
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How Many Calories Do you Burn when You Laugh

Everything we do throughout the day, including sleep and rest, burns calories. Laughing burns calories by causing your heart rate to rise by 10 to 20 percent. As your heart rate rises, your metabolism increases as well, which means you'll continue to burn calories once you stop laughing.

Caloric Burn

Research conducted by Vanderbilt University Medical Center revealed that laughing for 10 to 15 minutes burns between 10 and 40 calories a day.

Benefits

In addition to burning calories, laughter may also improve your quality of health in a number of ways. A study by Loma Linda University found that laughing raises the levels of immunoglobulins, which ward of disease, by 14 percent. According to research at Johns Hopkins Medical School, humor in the classroom improved test scores, while a study at UCLA discovered that laughing helps with pain tolerance.

Considerations

Laughter can't be used as a weight loss or exercise regimen. You would have to laugh for 12 hours to burn a single pound. Weight management requires a balanced diet and daily exercise routine. Laughing may contribute to your calorie burn, but not significantly enough to cause weight loss.

Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/308619-how-many-calories-do-you-burn-each-time-you-laugh/#ixzz22rLrv2ci

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Moral of the story....Have a great time, laugh it up. Get with friends, exercise and have fun! Soon you wont even realize you are exercising. The fun you have will become addictive- at least it has become that way with me! I look forward to our walks and I am exercising more in the evenings now then what I did before. Only it doesnt seem like exercise. Just walking and socializing with friends. And between the walking, socializing, stairs and laughing, we burned 475 calories.

The BEST part of the story (If it could GET any better?):

This morning the scale said 176.0. I lost 3.5 lbs since yesterday. So yes. Obviously I was bloated. Those damn carbs. Evil!

So onto Crazy Tuesday.

This morning I am dropping Xavier off at camp and coming home to do day 29 of 30 DS. Then I will be swimsuiting it up to work in the yard while Landry naps.

Tonight is CX, Body Flow and RPM. I am going to try running, but I am not sure how my foot is going to do. I have been trying to land more on the ball of my foot rather than my heel because I dont want stress fractures and of course it is the ball of my foot that hurts. So if running is out tonight, I will stick to speed walking. I will be burning enough calories with the other classes anyways.

Have a great Tuesday everyone!

Tip of the Day: 
A little slap back to reality and what we put into our bodies

Weekend wrap, failures and motivation

<--- This is exactly what I DIDNT do yesterday. And I didnt exercise either. Bad, bad bad.

Yesterday my mother in law and father in law came over and we went out to lunch to Coney Island. And I had a gyro and spinach pie. Something I usually dont get very often and I splurged.

Then my father in law left to head back north and Aarons grandma and uncle came over to join us and my mother in law for dinner.

For dinner we had grilled chicken, roasted sweet potatoes, parsnips, onions, carrots and brussell sprouts. Yummy! And Andi and the boys made pretzels. And we had italian bread. Lots of carbs. And I didnt say no. And I KNOW what carbs do to me. Then we had some cookies for dessert. But it is ok. Only temporary.

So no surprise with the carb bloat that I was up to 179.5 today. Not kidding. Carbs and I just dont get along and I LOVE them so much! But the weight has already started falling. Hard work this week will get me back down.

But it was still a big FAIL where the clean diet is concerned.

By the time family left and we got the boys to bed it was late and I still had to go and water the plants. It has been SO hot around here that everything is starting to die. And while I dont care about the grass dying because we will be replacing it, I dont want the plants to die.

It took me an hour to water all the plants.

And I am not going to work out at 10 pm. So I missed a day of 30 DS.

Another FAIL. LOL

Some might get discouraged, but when you fail it is all about how you recover from it.

I made up for it today and got my 30 DS in after I dropped Xavier off for his first day of camp for the week.

This afternoon after lunch I want to work in the yard for a while and prune the shrubs.

Tonight will either be a walk with neighbors or a run. It is yet to be decided.

So it is the start of a new week and the start over of the clean diet.

How did you do this weekend? What are your plans for this week?

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I know I have mentioned all of this before, but I think it is something that is important to keep in our thoughts as we go thru our weight loss journey.

What motivates you?

Are you motivated? Or are you disciplined?

Seriously.

Think about it.

I was talking with my friend K this weekend. She and I go for walks around the neighborhood. She asked that I help keep her accountable and motivated to get back into shape and stay active. So I bug her about walking with me. LOL. I love her lots and she asked me to do it. I warned her I could be a nag ahead of time.

One thing she told me after we walked on Thurs this past week was that she really didnt want to walk that night. But I nagged her enough and she felt guilty because she wasnt feeling well when we were supposed to walk another day that week. BUT by the time we were done, she was feeling so much better. Exercise really does invigorate you. Can turn a bad day into a good one. And we had a good time. We were able to talk and vent and we got a good calorie burn. Just over 400 calories by the time we were done unloading some stuff she had in her car into the basement of her house too.

Here is the thing though...

I can be a motivating FACTOR. I can nag and bug and be an accountability partner, but I cant FORCE you to do it. I cant WANT it for you. Well I can WANT it for you, but that wont make someone succeed. LOL. Luckily the gals I walk with want it. It is just a matter of being an accountability partner for them. Right now with the construction in their houses still continuing, I am that voice that reminds them to take time out for themselves. To decompress. Unwind. Not stress.

I had someone else ask me how to get motivated. I really didnt have an answer for that. It could be wanting to fit into something, an upcoming wedding, a certain weight. BUT it is the discipline and habit that keep you going. If you dont want it, you wont succeed. You may start out doing it, but soon interest may wain and it stops. I think that is why when I dieted in the past the weight came back on. I wasnt dieting for me. I was dieting because I was told I HAD to. 

One of the things a couple of the neighborhood gals and I have decided is that this winter when it is too bad to walk outside, we will rotate gym nights at each others houses. Each of us have different equipment and it will help keep the body guessing. Good motivation. And I think it will happen. As long as the discipline takes over.
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This weekend should be lots of fun.

Friday night is Feta Bread Friday though this week we will be visiting the Beer Tent because it is Dexter Days. I am prepared for plenty of bloat. LOL

Saturday is my Pampered Chef party. Need anything please let me know! LOL And I have lots of healthy food planned for the party. So if I happen to overindulge, it wont be devastating
.
And Aarons mom has offered to take the kids for the night so Aaron and I can have date night. How nice! We will probably go see Batman. We have both been wanting to see it.

Then Sunday we are going to Canton to a place called FlyZone (I think). It is completely filled with trampolines. I mean the floors, the walls..everything. My mother in law heard you can burn 800 calories an hour at this place. I will be wearing my HRM just for the curiosity factor. LOL. And it is my chance to burn off all the bad stuff from Friday night.

Have a great week everyone!

Tip of the Day: 

Self Image, Self Confidence, Stereotypes and Music

<--- This is perfect for today's blog and it can refer to so many different things in my life. This is all what working out and getting fit has done for me- and more.

I am not sure how this whole blog post is going to write itself but here it goes.

Last night I was at the gym and I was running on the treadmill (as I always do) and I was listening to my iPod.

It was funny. As the different songs came on I started thinking about if someone got ahold of my iPod and saw what types of music I had on it- how would they perceive me? What would I look like?
How would I act?

Here are some of the songs that come up (in shuffle mode) as I go thru my iPod:

Stranglehold- Ted Nugent

Runnin' Down a Dream- Tom Petty

No Rain- Blind Melon

DOA- Foo Fighters

Sir Psycho Sexy- Red Hot Chili Peppers

Power- Kanye West

Bad Girlfriend- Theory of a Deadman

Mad Professor- Insane Clown Posse

The Hand that Feeds- Nine Inch Nails

Hot for Teacher- Van Halen

Land of Confusion- Disturbed

Dragula- Rob Zombie

Date Rape- Sublime

Been Caught Stealing- Jane's Addiction

Make Me Bad- Korn

We Made You- Eminem

Three Little Pigs- Green Jelly

She Hates Me- Puddle of Mud

The Beautiful People- Marilyn Manson

Sleep Now in the Fire- Rage Against the Machine

Aqualung- Jethro Tull

Superstar- Cypress Hill

Telephone- Lady Gaga

I am sure whoever might find my iPod would never have guessed that the person who listens to all this music (used to) look like this:

There is a lot of angry music on my iPod- great for working out to, but also kind of how I felt on the inside.

ANGRY

Dont get me wrong...I am a very nice person. It doesnt mean that I dont have a mean streak or have an alter ego. LOL. Or that I wasnt angry at myself deep down inside for how bad I let things get. 

BUT:

I also have a lot of fun 80's music on my iPod. Young MC, Eurythmics, Prince, Michael Jackson, The Escape Club, Salt-N-Pepa

And quirky, pop, artsy music: Coldplay, Beck, Weird Al, LMFAO, Jill Sobule, Norman Greenbaum

Classic Music: Johnny Cash, Dire Straits, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Rolling Stones

And music that doesnt really have a category like Herb Albert and the Tijuana Brass and ELO

It really shouldnt surprise anyone from looking at the music that I might like art, tattoos, piercings, if I were to fit into the stereotype of some of those groups- and I guess I do a little bit now.

I just never had the guts- BEFORE.

I never felt like my outsides matched my insides and that I could stand up to how people might stereotype me if I had them. My Self Confidence was very, very low. I may have SEEMED like I was confident, but I was anything but. And if I were to get something like a tattoo, what could I possibly get and be happy with when I wasnt happy with myself?

Not saying that music gives way to stereotype. I know plenty of people who break that mold. Heck. My mom likes Tool, Smashing Pumpkins, Red Hot Chili Peppers and some great Alternative bands but she is fairly conservative when it comes to her clothes and her looks.

But since my body has been undergoing change and I have been getting fit, I notice that my self confidence is increasing. My self image has been changing. My "likes" have been changing. I feel comfortable doing some of the things that I liked before. Acting on the things I always wanted. That I admired from afar.

For example:

I used to HATE the color pink. I mean I loathed the color pink.

Now, I buy more things in shades of pink then any other color. I feel girly. I feel like I can ROCK pink.

And it is a good feeling.

Also as the weight started coming off, the height of the heels on my shoes started going up. LOL.

Part of that is because I was lighter and could stand up on them easier.

But again, I started to feel girly. Started to like how my legs looked. How my muscles are defined (OMG- I HAVE leg muscles?!?)

My family makes fun of my "stripper" shoes. LOL. And yes. I have gotten some of them at Lovers Lane. LOL. But dont judge. Dont stereotype. I am just having fun. And I have a new passion for funky fun scary high shoes. LOL. And for once I feel that I can wear them and pull off the look. To not look like it is a forced look. Like I am trying too hard. To walk in them and have people do a double take at me because DAMN I look HOT and not DAMN she should NOT be wearing those!

I love shopping now. I can go into any store and know that I can buy anything off of the rack.

I LOATHED shopping before. I loved shopping at Lane Bryant but I hated trying on SO MANY things to find one thing that just looked ok. Also I was very limited on stores I could shop in. Shopping with friends who were "normal" sized just was not fun. I couldnt really pull them into a plus sized store and spend a lot of time there could I? And lets face it, Sears, Pennys, etc have had frumpy grandma style plus sized clothes.

Now- For once in my life I LOVE who I am becoming.

And I hope my family doesnt judge me. 

That they think that I have changed. 

I havent. This is the me I have always wanted to be.

That I have fallen and hit my head- hard. 

Well ok- maybe I hit my head one night, but I dont think that has anything to do with this. And I was drunk at the time...LOL

That they stereotype me. 

Oh she is BAD. Disrespectful. 

That they think- that girl has gone off her rocker.

Because if that is the case, I would rather be the girl who has gone off her rocker and is HAPPY with how she looks than be the stereotypical child my family thinks I am and be unhappy.

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Yesterday I rocked my workouts.

I did 30 DS, then I went to the gym and ran 5k, and did zumba. I burned 1115 calories at the gym. 

I did good after the concert (or so I thought). I had 2 pieces of feta bread and I had a grilled chicken sandwich and some onion shoestrings. And a couple mojitos.

And no surprise but I gained 1.5 lbs. I am blaming it on Mercury and the alcohol. LOL. I dont have too many more days to be blaming Mercury. LOL

Back up to 175.5. Ugh.

Today I went with K to pick granite out for her house so I didnt get to work out to Jillian Michaels first thing this morning. Instead I did it this afternoon. Which I think was a good thing because K and I went to an italian bakery and I had a calzone stuffed with cheese and spinach for breakfast this morning. LOL.

Then I went for a walk around the block with Aaron and the boys a couple times.

Tonight K is coming for a speed walk with me. Should be fun. And it is humid enough to get a good sweat on. We will see if my scale is kind to me tomorrow. I doubt it. Damn Mercury.

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Tip of the Day:

Oh Mercury...He is cruel

Have things been weird for you lately? A little off?

Has your weight been going up and down for no apparent reason?

Tempers been short? Frustrated??

About to kill your kids?

Not been able to sleep??

This has been a hot topic in my subdivision. Things have just been off- for everyone. My friend P even wrote her blog about it the other day- a bit more humorous then mine will be I am sure.

Then my friend K had a revelation.

The planet Mercury is currently in retrograde.

"What does this mean?" you may ask.

Well 3-4 times a year the planet Mercury decides to slow itself down- to the point where it looks like it is going backwards. Yeah really. I am not making this stuff up. It is an optical illusion but the truth non the less. All planets go into retrograde but for some reason Mercury tends to mess us up more than the others.

It is supposed to give us time to slow down, reflect. Something from the past returns in a different form. Yadda yadda.

It is also a time where you should err on the side of caution. Put off signing a contract, forming partnerships etc but in reality who has time for that? We are a fast paced society. Someone needs to tell Mercury to get with the current times and SPEED up, not slow down.

Mercury is the messenger, and in this time, legend has it that mail vanishes en route. Some people find that their computers go on the fritz or phone lines go down, printers dont work. If you're at all jittery about it, go ahead and back up your important files. That's always a good idea anyway, right?

Also it affects specific people who work with their minds or their wits:  writers and orators, consultants, commentators and critics, gossips and spin doctors, salespeople, teachers, travellers, tricksters and thieves.So fair warning to you. And thankfully you may not get pick pocketed during this time.

The key issue here is one of focus. Mercury's retro phase tends to bring unforeseen changes and blockages, but the aggravation and frustration that many of us experience during these periods is often due to our own inability to roll with the punches. Is this due to our ego-fixation? Have you found like you cant complete a sentence, cant have a coherent thought? Gone into hermit mode? Blame Mercury.

If you have friends who are Gemini and Virgo stay away from them during these periods  have more patience with them these periods because those signs are ruled by Mercury.

Right now we are in retrograde until August 7th. The next retrograde is Nov 6th to Nov 26th. So be prepared people. Have your mace and your rope handy for fending off all the crazys out there! And can you just imagine the psych ward? They must be crawling the walls!

Mercury messing with me has been very evident these past couple weeks. Kids are driving me nuts. I just cant focus. Kids are up at all times of the night to the point I feel like I have newborns.

AND

Mercury messing with my weight.

You heard me right.

Remember how I was down to 175 a couple days ago.

Then for whatever reason yesterday I was up to 177 when I didnt really change a thing?

Well today I was back down to 174.5. I didnt do anything different. I did 30 DS and went for a walk. Had some wine, ate normally. So WTF? Talk about messing with your mind!

So thankfully I dont put much stock into what the scale says anymore.

This morning because my mind was all a whack from the up down of the scale, I tried on my favorite pair of jeans. The ones I couldnt fit into after the tornado and I gained weight back. The ones I got from my skinny sister and when I got them I could do them up but had muffin top galore.

Today they slid up just peachy with just a slight hint of muffin over the tops of them.

That made me feel so good. What a great NSV. I couldnt fit into those jeans until I was in the low 160s. This must mean that muscle is adding to the weight. I am cool with that. Toning is what I want.

So I keep at it. I have already done 30 DS today. And for the first time, I was able to keep up with jumping lunges. Not that I didnt want to curse out Jillian the whole time for it- but I did it.

And today I am going to laugh in the face of Mercury and do something I have wanted for a long time. Get another piercing. I am very excited. I saved my birthday money when I didnt buy anything at the Wyandotte street fair.

And tonight means zumba and dancing in the streets with my Mercury friends and of course Feta Bread Friday!

So burn those extra calories and indulge in something. We can just blame some of the weight gain on Mercury.

Tip of the Day: 
From http://galadarling.com/article/how-to-survive-mercury-retrograde

A quick & dirty guide to
surviving Mercury retrograde!

(Print it off & stick it in your diary or on your wall!)

Be sure not to take things too personally. People will often say offensive things they didn’t mean around this time, because their thinking is clouded & their communication skills are on pause! If your best friend suddenly became the most insensitive person in the world, give her the benefit of the doubt.

Back up your data!

Don’t purchase any big ticket items, because they will often have flaws or issues that you weren’t aware of! Of course, life doesn’t stop just because of wacky planetary movement, so if you absolutely have to get that car, computer or iPhone, TRIPLE-check all the paperwork, & make sure you have a warranty!

Take things with a grain of salt. Everyone is a bit confused, & people are much more inclined to change their mind once Mercury goes direct. Mercury can be a bit of a trickster — could it be that the next few weeks are a big karmic joke?!

Read the small print on any contracts. Ask lots of questions. Again, you can’t put your life on hold just because of some silly planet, but adapt your lifestyle a bit so that things run more smoothly. Communication can be a mess right now, but do your best to get as much information as you can.

Finish things you started a while ago. Home improvement projects? Wardrobe re-organisations? Short stories? Love affairs?! This is an excellent time to tie up loose ends & file things away forever.

Get together with old friends, reminisce & laugh!

Double-check any information you’re given, especially as relates to travel arrangements! During one particularly formidable Mercury retrograde, I actually caught a cab to the wrong airport! Check times, delays, baggage allowances, reservations… everything!

Allow Mercury to nudge you in unusual directions. If you seem to find yourself “back to the future”, don’t just try to wriggle out of it — look at what the universe is trying to show you. What can you learn from this situation? This is a fantastic time to re-examine, accept & move on.

Use the things you’ve discovered in the past to create a dazzling new vision so that you’re ready to blast ahead when Mercury goes direct!

Body Image issues and self discovery

Today I want to kind of continue what I blogged about yesterday but go onto a different subject- One that most of us who have lost weight face every day.

I am talking about distorted body image and self discovery.

When I was heavy, I looked into a mirror and saw a thinner me. Someone who I really wasnt. I think it was a way to not face fact. That I wasnt healthy. An excuse so I could eat what I want. If I dont face the truth, then the truth doesnt exist.

Now that I am thinner, I look into a mirror and see a bigger me. I see the person who was 260+ lbs.

Talk about playing with the mind.

I know the mind takes a bit to catch up to the body.

And that we are our own worst critic.

But I see every little flaw.

Every roll.

Every wrinkle of loose skin.

Yes- I know. It has only been two years.

I am far from what I once was.

I shouldnt be so hard on myself.

Blah blah blah. Yadda yadda.

It doesnt change the way that I feel about myself.

I grew up in a household that perfection was key. We always had to be the best, especially in school. 4.0 was expected though not always achieved. Cousins were grounded for less than perfection. Seriously. Academic competition between the families always simmered under the surface. At least to us kids.

It was a very hard thing to deal with though I know it wasnt done in a malicious way. Our parents were looking out for us. Wanting the best for us. Knowing that grades would be the foot in the door to a better future for us.

When I went onto college, I went into pre-pharmacy. I was repeatedly told by family there was no future in art which is what I excelled at. I thought "how hard is it to count pills all day?"

Life happened my freshman year. I joined a sorority, my grandmother almost died twice from lung reduction surgery, my grandfather was diagnosed with cancer.

Stress was elevated. Weight came on. I turned to food when I couldnt reach perfection. My chemistry grade plummeted. I just didnt get it. And I struggled because for one of the first times, I didnt excel at something. I failed at something.

That Christmas break was very tough for me. I was criticized for my grades. Harassed. Called names. Fat, Lazy, Dumb. You name it. I was told I had to quit my sorority. The one thing that kept me sane and going. Then I was asked- Why dont you go into something to do with art? Ha. What a laugh. I know it was anger that was directed at me. It wasnt really truth. I wasnt dumb or lazy. It was honest to God frustration that was just spewed from the mouth. I get that- NOW. Back then, I felt like I was just pounded flatter into the earth. Beaten while I was down.

At that time, Redux and PhenPhen were big diet pills. I went to the doctor to try to get on them. I was denied. I broke down in the doctors office and told him about everything going on. He put me on prozac (low dose) for awhile to help with the depression and also because of its ability to speed up metabolism. A twofer.

I went underground in my sorority. I refused to quit. I got a part time job and gave a sister cash so she would write me a check for my dues. Stress built, and more weight came on as I kept this secret. I switched my major to architecture.

Next semester I got a 4.0. I loved what I was doing. I was good at it. I built relationships with my teachers. I was still in my sorority. I was happy. I developed a "F you" attitude towards my family. Water off of a ducks back when criticized. But once the armor is cracked, water can still seep in. By then, damage is done and rust, mold, all the harmful effects start.

Fast forward years later to where I am now. After years of yo-yo dieting. I feel like I am finally working thru everything on my own. Facing the past. What made me who I am. I am doing this for me. On my own. No help from anyone. Not listening to criticism. No fad diets. Honest to God HARD work.

I am not going to say I had a hard life. I had a much better youth than others I know. I have parents who love me. Who saw potential in me and push me- HARD. And I wouldnt change what they did or how they did it. It made me who I am today. And I dont want this to seem like an attack on them or any family member who pushed at me. It isnt. AT ALL. I just wish I had known way back then how to deal with the stress. That I would have put that stress into something good like working out instead of eating.

Now I have refocused stress... and the Lord knows this year has been full of it. Enough to take me back to that breaking point.

But instead of eating myself back to where I was, I am putting it into working out.

Into trying to have the body I want.

The body I always longed to have.

And I am left dealing and struggling every day.

Thankfully I never went the eating disorder route. Frankly I love food too much.

This image is disturbing and extreme but a bit of what I feel when I look into the mirror (I had found a different image I liked better a while ago, but cant figure out what happened to it when I saved it).

I think this is a bit of what every one of us feels on this weight loss journey.

For me it is going to be knowing when enough is enough.

With being happy with the image I see in the mirror.

And not being a slave to the scale and what the number says.

This journey is about self discovery. About now having fun. About making up for lost time.

When I was trapped inside my old body.

Some may see it as a Mid-Life Crisis.

I see it as having fun.

Living life.

Coping with my body issues and becoming happy with what I see in the mirror.

 Today I am up 2 lbs. My weight was 177.0. Why? Dunno. My muscles seem a bit puffy and inflamed today. Sore. Muscle bloat? Dunno. Something I ate? Dunno again.

I went out last night with my girlfriend to Ruby Tuesdays but had one of their fit meals. It was only 350 calories. I had a salad with some slightly fattening toppings, a bit of potato salad. Fish. Grilled zucchini.

Honestly I dont really sweat the number on the scale anymore. It is more about the NSV. It is more about getting toned than being a certain weight.

This is quite a revelation for me.

I have completed my 30DS for the day. It is starting to get easier. So a definite NSV (non scale victory).

Tonight is either a long speed walk with neighbors or working out in the basement with them depending on weather.

I will just keep on keeping on.

On a positive side note...and something to look forward to...

I will be doing my first product review on my blog. Something that may help me get to the point where I am happy with my stomach and thighs. Only time will tell. I am very excited to receive it and use and review it. I will be having a guest "speaker" on here about it.

All good things to look forward to.

Because this year

Tip of the Day:

Two years ago today my life took a turn

That about sums it up. LOL.

Amazing how years ago when I was 260+ pounds, I hated exercise.

Then it was like a light switch was tripped.

And I saw myself for what I really was.

Not that I was a bad person. I just had a self image that I was skinnier than I was.

That I was healthier than I was.

Then my sisters baby shower happened. And I saw the pictures.

I looked like the pregnant one.

It was a slap in the face.

One that I desperately needed.

Thank God for it! Now I will be around much longer for my kids and for my husband.

As I was looking thru wedding pictures that my other uncle took, I Facebooked him and told him thanks for taking the pictures. That it was nice not to be a fat bridesmaid for once. His response to me was that I have always been a beautiful person.

The response was nice.

And I know that he genuinely feels that way. I was always a beautiful person.

But it is VERY nice to have the outsides matching the insides for once.

I may not be tightly toned, or have washboard abs, but I am way way ahead of where I was two years ago TODAY!!

When I was at that babyshower.

When I saw these pictures:

That is my cousin D next to me. She AND my sister were pregnant

Landry was already 1 year old so it was not "I recently had a baby" weight

When my life changed. And I said that I CAN DO THIS! I will not be another statistic. I will be fit.

That is the reason I am obsessive about my weight. I DO NOT want to go back there. That is why I try some of these crazy workouts, or "anti bloat" drinks. Why I push myself and do these extreme nights at the gym. Why I really want to work with a personal trainer. I want to be a better me. The best me I can be. This is why I want surgery. Why I want the flat stomach. I want what I have never had. 

But especially on days like today when it is a HUGE milestone, it is good to look at how far I have come. From the pictures above, to the pictures below. I may have felt that the dress was a smidge tight, but I rocked it. I looked good. And I LIKE looking at the pictures. And admiring myself. Not having to worry about "Oh I look fat in this one". It is a VERY nice change of pace. And it makes me realize that I am definitely a phoenix that has risen from the ashes. I am becoming the person that I want to be. And I have done it all myself. No surgeries, no diet plans like Jenny Craig or Weight Watchers (nothing wrong with them though). Just hard work, dedication, and me being the police for myself.

Ok...enough rehashing the past for now. Onto the current.

Good news. Down to 175.0 today. That means another 1.5 pounds gone.

Should be too. Had a major work out yesterday. 3 mile run/walk on the treadmill, CX, Body Flow, and RPM. I am SO sore today but in a good way. Calories burned: 1424 (and that doesnt count calories burned from 30 DS)

I already got day 3 done of 30 DS level 3. 7 days to go. I remembered to wear my HRM today too. Calories burned in one 28 minute session: 231. Not shabby at all!

Tonight I am meeting my friend M for girls night at Ruby Tuesdays. And I will be having a glass of wine and something healthy to eat. And then I will be coming home and going for a power walk with hopefully a neighbor or two. Got to keep the burn. Got to keep at it.

So now I have more fun pictures of the wedding. This blog entry has gotten a tad serious for me so time for some fun. Kids are always unpredictable for photos and we got some great ones. So enjoy!!

My family- New BIL Matt, Sister Joelyn, Niece Norah, my Mom, Dad, Landry, Xavier, Me and my husband Aaron

 

My Uncle says this is Xaviers..."huh are they gonna actually?" face. LOL Followed by....

Oh GROSS!! They just KISSED!!

Me giving my speech about tips for a Happy Marriage

Back at the hotel for the After Party. I didnt want to change out of my dress and wake the kids up. Really I just liked the dress and wanted to keep wearing it. LOL

Tip of the Day:

On your weight loss journey, remember to look back and realize how far you have come. You might have good days and bad days, but keep at it. The journey isnt just about your body changing, but a mental change as well. A mental strengthening that reminds you that you can do whatever you put your mind to!