My Fitness Journey: An Update

2012

Since it has been close to 2 years since I began my fitness journey, I decided to update my transformation story.

My serious transformation story didn't begin for any particular reason. I wanted to begin working out. I wanted to get into better shape. I didn't think there was anything wrong with the way I looked. I always felt loved, no matter how much I weighed. My husband never criticized my weight, nor did other family or friends. I was content.

Yes, my clothes were getting tighter, and I did notice the numbers on the scale going up, but I don't remember being bothered by that fact. I thought I was keeping active enough. After all, I had a 3-year-old boy that I was keeping up with. At least, that's what I thought. Looking back at the pictures, I wonder how "active" I really thought I was.

 

You know the saying "calories in, calories out"-well, my calories in were quite a bit more than calories out. Ever since our son, Isaac, was born, we were told he was small, and we needed to see a dietician. Heck, from the day he was born, the nurses were forcing formula on him, because they were concerned for his health! We continued to hear it up until only a few months ago, at the age of 6.

 

Well, my husband and I tried to remedy Isaac's weight gain predicament by feeding him donuts, and quite a few other fattening foods over the course of about a year. No wonder I had gained so much weight-I was eating as many donuts as Isaac. I wasn't the one who had a medical condition that prevented me from gaining weight-Isaac did. He was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in September 2012. His body wasn't able to use all the sugar that we were feeding him. Looking back, we're saddened, because although the sugar wasn't the cause of his diabetes, it certainly wasn't doing his body any favors. If you want to read more about my son's story, you can find it in previous posts, including this one.

 

Since that summer, I've lost close to 40 pounds, and my husband has lost about 20. About 5 years ago, I began using Jillian Michael's at home fitness programs, but I wasn't very consistent. The habit formed, but fizzled out for various reasons. I just wasn't motivated. I moved on to other fitness programs, and then did some month-long challenges. I did a burpee challenge, and various other challenges that focused on different parts of my body, and I slowly trimmed down.

P90X & Focus T25

Sometimes I would be consistent at working out, but I still wasn't motivated. I found my motivational soul-mate workout in P90X a little over a year ago. In fact, I was so motivated by this workout and my Beachbody coach, that I signed up to coach. At first, I didn't really want to coach others, but then I thought about how many lives I could reach, and how many others I could help to live healthier lives.

Nervous about starting Focus T25

After P90X, I began Focus T25, and faithfully did the majority of the workouts at 5:30 in the morning-before my brain knew what I was doing. The workouts were good, but I missed Tony Horton (even though he is a little annoying). I also enjoyed how short the workouts were, and since I was back in school, 25 minutes was a better length of workout.

 

I like my short workouts

 

Clean Eating Support Groups

Around this time, I began hosting clean eating support groups. With these clean eating groups, I provide clean eating recipes, shopping lists formulated from the recipes, as well as providing support, tips, and advice about clean eating. These groups have helped multiple members lose an average of about 1.5 pounds per week just from eating healthier! It's exciting to see lives changed, and healthy habits established. You can learn more about these groups here. You can also check out some of my other clean eating blog posts, including this one, as well as get more healthy awesomeness at my 'like' page, Sarah's Drive, on Facebook.

P90X3

 

P90X3

I decided to try out P90X2, but didn't make it very far before P90X3 came out. My coach had invited me to join another challenge group with her doing either Focus T25 or P90X3, so I decided to snag P90X3 and go for it! Then, a month into the workout, our car decided to retire, and I hurt my back trying to push the car off a tow dolly. So, after a month of recovery, I jumped back into P90X3. And then, one month into Restart #2 of P90X3, my mom surprises me with the Beachbody Ultimate Reset. So, poor P90X3 was postponed for another month before I restarted it. And now, it's safe to say I will finish P90X3 this time...unless some other unforeseen event interrupts P90X3 for a third time.

 

Food for week 1 of the Beachbody Ultimate Reset

Beachbody Ultimate Reset

My journey through the Beachbody Ultimate Reset was a life-changing experience for me. I learned a lot about myself, and the unhealthy relationship I had with food at times. After my Reset, I feel more in control of my eating, and I think before I eat. Nowadays, weeks after finishing, I still don't drink water during most meals. Drinking water during meals dilutes stomach acid making it harder to digest.

 

Another tidbit I've learned, not from the Ultimate Reset, but from the research I do almost daily to become a better fitness and nutrition Beachbody coach, is that you should eat your meat first, and then your salad. This is because it's harder for your body to digest animal protein, and your stomach acids will need to work on that first, instead of being diluted with salad first. You can read about my Beachbody Ultimate Reset journey, beginning with my preparation here.

In the months leading up to my Reset, I had gained about 7 pounds, and I definitely wasn't happy about that! I didn't think I was doing anything differently, except that I was probably stressed, and sitting on my behind more than I should have been. I'd also started having some digestive issues. My mom has always had digestive issues, at least for as long as I can remember.

 

I mentioned the Ultimate Reset to my mom, since it's known for straightening out many of the digestive issues that can complicate our lives. I'd also told my mom about the digestive issues I was having, and how I hoped to, some day in the future, go through the Reset myself. Long story short (you can read about the long story in previous blogs), my mom bought a kit, along with one for me! My mom lost over 15 pounds, and I lost 9 (which was about 7% of my body weight). 

 

Now

Since the completion of my Reset, I took up running again, and do that twice a week in addition to my P90X3 workouts. I recently began using the MyFitnessPal app on my phone to map my caloric intake, as well as output. My husband bought me a heart monitor for Mother's Day, so I've been mapping my calories using that. Unfortunately, that heart monitor was having a few issues, so we purchased another one, so I could continue mapping the calories burned from my workouts.

I've completed P90X3, & have since then completed the 3-Day Refresh, which is a 3-day cleanse (kinda like a mini Ultimate Reset), Chalene Johnson's PiYo (low-to-no impact, but amazing sweat with Pilates, yoga, body weight training, & flexibility), and P90X2.

 Yes, I'm a free coach, and I take helping others seriously!

 

new heart monitor!

 

Do you want support?

If you want help getting started on your fitness journey, I would love to help you! Together, we'll help you make a plan, and find what works for you!

 

www.beachbodycoach.com/iib4

Day 4 of My Beachbody Ultimate Reset

Thursday

Take a 'Before' and 'After' Photos + Results = FREE T-shirt!

Today, was another good morning of being able to pretty easily get out of bed! And, I finally had my husband take my 'before' picture. These are so important! The scale can only speak numbers; it doesn't tell you if your skin has cleared up, or your tummy, butt, or arm fat has slimmed out a bit. Also, and I didn't realize this until a day or 2 before I started my Reset that I will get a free T-shirt for finishing this program, too! If you own a Beachbody fitness program, you can enter the Beachbody challenge, and submit your 'before' and 'after' photos, and results on TeamBeachbody.com for a chance to win money, and you will get a free T-shirt. I enjoy wearing my P90X and Focus T25 shirts, and am looking forward to wear an Ultimate Reset one, as well!

"Before" the Beachbody Ultimate Reset

Breakfast

For breakfast this morning, I had a fresh fruit platter consisting of cantaloupe, honeydew melon, kiwi, strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries. I also ate 3/4 cup of plain low-fat yogurt sweetened with 1/2 tsp. maple syrup! It was a delicious breakfast, but it only filled me up for about 1 1/2 hours. If you have been working out quite a bit prior to starting, like I had been, then you'll have more muscle to burn calories. It takes a little while, but my stomach is adjusting to the reduced calories. (I promise, as I'm writing this when I'm actually on Day 9 ;) your will power will get stronger!!!)

Snacking

The best thing I've done, and the guide recommends, is to drink water when you begin to feel hungry. Also, if you feel like you need a snack before dinner, wait at least 2 hours after you eat lunch, drink water, and if you are still hungry, they have a list of recommended snacks for each week. I also set alarms for myself, especially around the time I can have a snack. Then I gauge what will be going on before dinner, such as if an activity will delay my dinner, and if I feel like eating as late as a snack would cause me to eat. The guide recommends waiting 2 hours after you eat a snack before you can  eat dinner. I had to have a snack before lunch today, because I was studying hard for an exam, and couldn't concentrate without brain food!

Because of the hectic day I had yesterday with meal planning, I had the majority of my lunch and dinner already ready for today! I recommend reading through the directions for each recipe, since some of the require anywhere from only a few minutes to overnight for cooking or marinating. I'm hoping that today will be a time to relax after my exam is finished!

Lunch

I tried making the Nori rolls, and they are disgusting, nor would they stick right! It's like a seaweed sushi roll with tempeh...I hate tempeh, and can't get over the smell (although, later, I did find the Baked Tempeh dish from Day7 to be quite tastey!)! I've had tempeh before, when I was doing the fitness program Focus T25 and following it's nutrition guide, but I couldn't remember how it was supposed to look. I almost threw away an entire slab of tempeh, because it looked like it had mold growing, but it's not mold (I compared it with an unopened package, to make sure). I ate about half of the Nori roll like a hot dog, and then threw the rest away. The dish that went with the Nori roll also wasn't that great: lentil-lime salad. The flavor was really overwhelming, and I only ate a few bites, and saved the rest for later.

Dinner

I had the stir-fried veggies (you can read about my first time having them, and see the picture here) again tonight, and I loved it! They were cooked in coconut oil, which I'd never used before I started the Reset. It is so delicious smelling and tasting. It also leaves my lips feeling soft. I will be making this stir-fry a lot when I'm finished with my Reset! In a large skillet, on medium-high, heat sesame and coconut oil, then add carrots for a few minutes, then add broccoli for about 5 minutes, add the red pepper and zucchini last. Stirring constantly, so nothing burns. Tonight, I decided to leave off the Nori Gomasio, and instead, opted to eat a whole tablespoon of it! It wasn't the most pleasant experience, but it gave me some good vitamins, I'm sure :)

Temptation

My son requested to watch Willy Wonka today, which was a little painful, especially when Willy Wonka starts shoving an entire chocolate bar into his mouth. It didn't help that it was the part of the movie where they're in the room where you can eat just about everything! I wanted some chocolate!!! Now, my son is talking about his class's Valentine's Day party that I helped out with, and how we had donuts, and now I want donuts! Then, he said, politely: "but you're not going to be having any, until the end of your challenge." I will get through this!!!

I would love to give you the support you want to achieve your goals! Let me know how I can help!

http://myultimatereset.com/iib4