Monday Musings: 3 Months

Hello All!

It's a wonderful Memorial Monday and today also marks about 90 days that I have been on my fitness journey. I'm in shock at how much I have accomplished in the last 3 months and I can't even believe that my body is actually mine. I have completely transformed my lifestyle to one that has made me much happier and healthier in the long run.

I thought I would just try this for a few months and see where it left me or I would just drop it within a few days, but the results I've seen and the knowledge I've gained has invaluable. This has been an amazing learning experience and the knowledge I have will stay with me forever. I only hope that I can continue to learn more about my own body, my limits, my strength as well as teach others who wish to learn. This journey is not over by any stretch of the imagination though i think now this is almost purely just my lifestyle. I no longer believe that this is a "plan" or a "diet" or anything like that. This is just me.

I don't think i will always be training as diligently or as often and I don't think I will always be as strict with my nutrition, but I do think I will stay healthy and not allow myself to ever go back to the unhealthy life I was leading.

Well, I have a personal announcement to make. I'm done with my 90 day journey, but that doesn't mean I'm done. I could just stay healthy, but I'm setting some new goals for myself. Here, today, with all of you as my witnesses. My goal was to always be in a size twelve. I wanted to be in the average. The normal. Well, I'm pleased to announce that I made that goal! I went from a size 16/18 down to a comfortable size 12! Though I know this isn't the best way to track your progress, it is a good way for me to track my progress without using the number on the scale or using super expensive equipment to track fat loss.

I know I'm never going to be stick thin. I enjoy my curves and I'm so much more confident in my body. Hourglass figure. Check. No thigh gap? Don't care! I'm just happy I'm healthy and I'm so happy that I'm setting my new goal! Are you ready for this? Okay.....

I've always said I wanted to be a size twelve. Well, I'm there. So what's the next step? A size 10! Oh no! Craziness! Yes, I'm going to do it! My goal is to be in a size ten before I go back to school in August. That is about three more months from today. You think I can do it? Well I dropped almost 3 sizes in the past 3 months, I think I can go one more in the next 3. I'm a goal oriented person and I think keeping this goal will even further set my clean lifestyle and help me keep going. If I have something to work towards, I know I'm not going to be lazy. I know I can do it. Can you?

I sure think you can! I challenge you to do it with me! Set yourself a goal of one size difference or a couple inch difference or even just a piece of clothing that you want to fit into and feel fabulous. Make it a goal that you want to reach by the time school days come again. Make it a reasonable goal and then let me know what it is. We will do this together and end up more fabulous and confident than we already are!

I will keep you up on my progress and you can do the same with me. If you set yourself a goal, let me know what it is by leaving a comment below, tweeting it to me, or send me a shout out on Instagram. I'm hoping that your goals will motivate me and my goal/progress will do the same for you.

So go out and grab life by the horns. Let's do this!

This is me as a new Leah:

Thank you guys for reading!

My Plan...

Hello all!

As some of you may know, I posted some of my progress pictures yesterday. As a result, I got an overwhelming response from people asking me what I am doing to lose and keep off the weight. As I have said before, there is no magic or miracle involved in what I'm doing. There should be no mystery to the whole weight loss thing and it is not just one thing you can do. It is a lifestyle choice.

Before I go any further, I should put the disclaimer on this that I am NOT a doctor or a nutritionist and I am not a trainer. Every body is different and mine is no exception. So though this works for me, you may have to tweak things for it to fit you, if you so choose to do anything. 

Now that is out of the way, I feel that I should start out with my workout. I have been using the workout calendar from blogilates.com. This website is run and updated by a pilates instructor named Cassey Ho. She posts a free calendar every month with what exercises to do every day and she posts her workouts on youtube. So I usually just make a playlist of videos to do everyday and just do them. Her attitude is great and her personality is so infectious. I never get bored with her workouts and she kicks my butt. I love it! You can visit her website here. I figured I would also save you some time and post this month's workout calendar:

Because it is summer, I have also decided to add in some biking during the week or other forms of cardio during the week. This is inspired by lovemeganalexis and also the fact that since school is over and I'm not dancing anymore on a daily basis, my largest source of cardio is gone.

Ok. Now that the easiest part is over (and yes that is the easiest part to explain) it is time to talk about clean eating. What the heck is it? Well in the simplest terms it means you are trying to get as close to the food source as possible. This is really difficult to do in this day and age sometimes as many things are very processed before they hit store shelves. So, needless to say, the food I end up buying goes through a vigorous test before it ends up in my cart. Here are the criteria that my food has to meet before I eat:

• I have to be able to read most everything that is on the label: Honestly this is a little vague for my liking, but it is the simplest way I can state it outright. If you're like me, you can read everything on the label, but that doesn't mean you can understand what all of it is. So, I have to be able to read and understand what exactly is in the food I am buying based on the label. If I don't understand, I can usually search really quick for what it is.
• I can't have any artificial sweeteners, high fructose corn syrup, artificial colors, msg (monosodium glutamate), artificial preservatives (especially benzoate preservatives like BHT, BHA,...etc) and I have to try to stay away from genetically modified ingredients (GMOs). This is really difficult because companies are not required to list any GMOs that might be in their products. Thankfully, I have an app called "fooducate." It scans barcodes and tells you if there are artificial colors, sweeteners, preservatives, and GMOs! It is very handy and I recommend it to everyone.
• If I can make it, I try to do so (I say this because it does not always turn out the way I want it especially on the first try. I tried to make mayo and the first time, i failed miserably). So I make my own Italian dressing, marinades, soups, sometimes bread...etc. They usually turn out better than store bought things. It goes without saying that there are some things that are non-negotiables because of convenience. Like OJ. I can't live without it and juicing oranges every morning is exhausting (and now mayo. I've given up). But I try to stay away from too many things like that.
• All-in-all everything I eat must be minimally processed (the fooducate app also tells if something is highly processed. Awesome, right? I know).
• I also try (notice I say try because it doesn't always happen) to eat roughly six meals a day. I do eat every 2-3 hours.
• I also have a cheat day once a week. This is important. You should not be afraid of eating. It is fun and necessary for life. If you allow yourself a cheat meal or some chocolate every now and then, it can jump start your metabolism and keep you from going crazy. 

This is all daunting. I know. To see it written out is scary to me too, but the first step is the hardest. After you take it, everything eventually becomes second nature and you just do it. It becomes a chore no more. I started out by using Cassey's 90 day meal plan. Note that I used it as a starting point and I do not follow it exactly. Because every body is different and every life is different (I will say it till I'm blue in the face). I have changed small things to fit my own life and my own tastes. :) If you would like to start with that, I have provided the link below:

Blogilates 90-day meal plan 

*you will have to download the plan. It is an excel spreadsheet and has multiple pages. I just printed it out and hung it on my fridge to refer to C:*

I honestly do not count calories. I tried it. It is exhausting and I hated every minute of it. AND I didn't see any results. I am more free and happy with myself. I see more results and it doesn't feel like work. It just feels like life. Thus why it is a lifestyle choice NOT a diet. 

I know I wrote a lot, but there still probably a million questions floating around out there. So if you have any, please do not hesitate to comment and ask me. I will answer you as soon as I can and to the best of my ability. Plus it is always great to hear from people.

Okay, now that all of that is written out I challenge you to go out and do it! If you want it, you gotta do it and remember the first step is the hardest. If you take it, you are already one step ahead of all those couch potatoes. Drink more water, eat more veggies, and change your life! 

buh bye for now!

It's Marvelous Monday!!

Hi Everyone!

It is Monday once again and I thought that since in my last post I talked a little about my journey and what led me to starting this blog, I thought I should talk about what who inspired me to start this journey in the first place.

So let's start by saying my weight has always been fluctuating. It has always been an issue and in the last few years. it has been a crazy ride. Just a few months ago in December of 2012 I tore a ligament in my hand and had to have surgery. Around this same time this woman I knew from high school started talking about changing her life around. 

While I was going through physical therapy, I watched as she bravely took the first steps towards changing her body and I saw how she actually started changing. I saw her turn her body and life around in the simple things she was doing and it made me believe I could do it too! And so when I finished physical therapy, I made the change because of the inspiration her progress gave me. And I will never be turning back.

So who is this wonderful, dare I say, marvelous woman?

Drum roll.....

*fanfare*

TA-DA! Megan! Or lovemeganalexis as many of you know her. This beautiful woman right here has been my inspiration and the reason I gave up my fat pants and fast food for leggings and lettuce. Megan is an amazingly hard worker and somehow managed to juggle everything in her life while making all these changes. Talk about inspirational. Truly inspirational. Her positivity and determination are infectious and because of them I knew that I had to try changing.

In 90 days she has accomplished exactly what she originally set out to do, but she isn't stopping now and never turning back. She is a changed woman and thus so am I. I can't possibly thank her enough for being patient with me, answering all my questions, talking with me about my progress, motivating me, and just generally giving me help along the way. She deserves a shout out and a giant THANK YOU!

I would not be where I am without her and her constant advice. Along with that I would be nowhere without her friendship. It has been my honor to know her for some of the best years of our lives and I hope we know each other for many more to come. She is one of my best friends and, for that, I am extremely grateful. That is why lovemeganalexis is my Marvelous Monday Marvel! Congrats on all your progress and I love you!

Not only is she all these wonderful things, but she is a wonderful blogger as well. :) You can find her and all her info at her blog which you can read here. 

Well, that is about all, but I do have one more great, exciting, and equally marvelous thing to say. Not only do I have to say thank you to Megan for her help, but I also have to say I'm so excited to be linking up with her for a new featurette she is calling "Foodie Friday!" We are going to be sharing our delectable and healthy recipes with all of you for your viewing and eating pleasure. So on Fridays there will be a mouth watering masterpiece posted for your enjoyment. Be there or be square.

Alright!

buh bye!

Leah ♥

Here we go....

So here I am jumping on the bandwagon. I have debated started a blog for quite awhile just because I know there are people out there who would just consider me another bitchy whiney blogger who just wants attention and will bug everybody every waking moment to come read everything I post. Well fuck. screw. poo on them (I will try to control cursing on this, but I can't guarantee. I hope you all are okay with this. I am human after all and I just happen to be one with a potty mouth most of the time). I may ask people to come read what I write and I may not. When it comes down to it, it is everybody else's choice to come read this. So do not get mad at me if you don't like what you are reading, you chose to come here.

So now that that is out in the open, if you have stayed to read on then fabulous! Welcome! My name is Leah and I am starting this blog to track my fitness journey. I have already made progress, but I still have a good amount to go and I have already enjoyed writing about it for my personal enjoyment. Well I thought it would be nice to share my thoughts with others who cared to read and it is a lot faster to type than to always be writing with pen and paper. :)

Well, like I said above, I have debating doing this for awhile and what really pushed over the edge to actually doing it started with yesterday evening. I went to a theater production at my former high school with my friend and boyfriend. I saw plenty of people there I knew from high school, but have not really seen in a long time (which is to be expected). Well many of them commented on my progress and, of course, I thanked all of them dearly, but somewhere in the back of my mind I brushed it off. This having to do with the fact that recently I have felt really stunted in my progress.

This is not to say I have stopped seeing results because I do notice that my clothes fit differently, I have more energy, I can see more definition...etc. I just have been feeling hum drum about everything. 

Time lapse to this morning.....

After my workout I started looking through the pictures in my phone and I saw these two pictures of my face:

The left is from when I first started my journey in the middle of March and the right is from about a week ago. My first reaction, "Woah...." I think I may be able to see what people are talking about and this is just my face! One person told me they didn't even recognize me when they first saw me and I thought that might be just my change in hair color, but now I actually am starting to believe it. This inspired me to take a couple more progress pictures of myself so that I could compare to others that I took from the very start and from roughly the middle of my journey thus far (Hopefully I will be able to upload those soon too). 

Looking at all my pictures just made me realize how far I have come and that my hard work has actually been worth something. And, to top it all off, these pictures inspired me to write this blog that I have been itching to start for awhile. So hopefully this will end up being worth just as much.

I apologize for such a long first post, but there is so much to say about myself and my journey that just won't fit in a short, condensed post. As Elle says, "An essay's so boring and so much does not fit....." I guess I will say more about me personally later to save your eyeballs. 

Haha

buh bye!

Leah ♥