2014 Recap

Wait? What? Yes...I've not been very good with my blog other than update race pics. :P Forgive me? Seriously, it's just so much easier to post to Instagram.

HOWEVER...we have officially ditched our satellite which means the kids have their cartoon DVDs and Disney movies to watch OR whatever I can find online and hook my laptop up to the t.v. So, this should allow me to have a bit more "down time" to get some blogging done. Maybe. ;)

So for my lack of posts, here's a quick recap of January-April of 2014, pics included.

January 2014

New Year's Eve; My husband actually had the night off and for the first time since I can remember I got dolled up and we went out. The next morning I took this picture and put it together with an old one. I was astonished by the change in my face.

Finally my friend Kayla got me on the mats for Krav Maga after CrossKick class. I had so much fun and discovered I have much more strength than I realized. Later on, during the kids karate class, I discovered a battle wound. We had worked on gun defense and it's likely the "gun" scratched me open during one of our drills. I text it to Kayla and she was relieve to finally know where the blood came from on her body. LOL. She was freaking out because she couldn't find a scratch on herself.

This place, Premier Martial Arts - Kansas City, became my second home. We spend 5 days a week here between CrossKick, Krav Maga and Karate for the kids.

January hit me in the gut. I had developed a great friendship with Kayla, and I helped her weight train as she prepared to join the Marines. We bonded over our fitness and self defense classes. The kids loved her as her karate instructor and she just "fit" in our family. Then I got a text that she was shipping out the next morning, unexpectedly. Two weeks before she was supposed to and it just killed me. Not being able to hug her goodbye, wish her well...it just tanked my mojo.

Soon after she left, her mother and I began training together and we have become great friends. We rely on each other for motivation during our lifts, we take her puppies & the kids on walks, and I have her running 5k's with me...and soon her first 10k in September. It has been great to have her around, yet I still miss my dear friend. Soon enough she will graduate so I can give her that damn hug.

February 2014

February sucked hairy balls. Seriously though, my training was great. However I have to admit I cannot out exercise that bad food choices. They weren't mistakes. They weren't cheats. They were decisions I made and have to live with. Too many meals, like above. Too many pizza's. Too much of the kids treats. You name it. Food has haunted me.

I did find a new healthy love, which I still have to tighten my reigns on so I don't eat a jar in one sitting. You Fresh Naturals, it's an easy way to add some healthy almond/coconut fat to my nutrition plan. I typically have a tbsp on my Ezekiel bread for breakfast or a tbsp on my sweet potato. Yummo!

And then I have to keep telling myself this, despite my terrible food choices; How am I to know what I can achieve if I quit? It's something that is sticking in my brain despite any "bad" choices I make.

March 2014

Being down on myself is taking its toll. Not seeing the scale move is a real motivation killer, so I did this pic up for Transformation Tuesday. So, I haven't seen much weight progress in a long time. I have seen muscle definition, muscle mass and added strength. I have seen my pants becoming bigger and bigger and baggier and baggier. Clearly what I am doing is making a difference regardless of the scale.

I also have to note that my husband was floored by this collage. He looked at me and said "I did not realize you had gotten that big." He didn't see it, because he loves me, his wife. He saw me day in and day out...but there have been some obvious improvements over the last two years for certain, even if I am not seeing what I think I should be. ;)

My new BFF. I purchased my ISObag from Flex Till You're Famous and it was one of the best decisions EVER. This baby is so flipping useful. It really helps on Wednesday's when we go from class to home, to pick up the kid, back to their classes. It makes is a LOT easier to stay on point and keep me out of Subway where those damn cookies find their way into my belly.

April 2014

And this my friends is day 6 of poison ivy. I contracted it the day before my birthday and after a massively swollen/stiff arm, two trips to the doctor, two scripts for steroids, a script for anti-itch and a script for an antibiotic, it put me out of the workout zone for the past few weeks. As long as it was weeping I wasn't allowed to workout. Sweat irritated the condition and of course that agitated me. I am nearly healed at this point. I still have visible scars, and one wound trying to heal over; I am cleared for workouts now. I have to wear long sleeves when I run outdoors for a while to keep the sun off me, but at least I can get my mojo flowing again. And, no I did not touch the ivy. My dad was cutting vines with his chainsaw in a fence row.  The oils went airborne (which I didn't think of at the time) and poof! I've always been super sensitive to it and I pray I never see the stuff again.

So I am back to sweating my booty off during CrossKick, hopefully I can hit up Krav on Thursday. Easter was hard on me, no matter what I tried the kids Easter candy kept jumping my mouth. So I'm trying to locate my will power again. Today was day 1 with no candy!

2014 has been rocky to say the least, but I am a stronger person for it and I will keep forging on.

Fluctuations

It's amazing how the body can react to certain foods in our system. Just for giggles, here my August weight time line so far. :P

Where did August Go?

Where did August go? I just spent a few moments updating the last three weigh ins... I swear I'm not a slacker. But rather I've decided to change my navigational beacon and attempt for create some income for my family. With that being said I'm officially an Independent Distributor for It Works Global!!!!

Personal Testimony/My Story

You're probably wondering why? Why It Works!? Well... because it really does work. In June 2012 I had already lost a significant amount of weight through eating properly and exercise. I had come to the point that the skin folding over, plus sweaty work outs, were leaving me with unsavory rashes. Most uncomfortable and embarrassing. My friend, and now Ambassador, Shauntel had just started selling It Works! and I thought... why not? I emailed her and asked if she thought the wraps could help my skin/rash issues. With a resounding yes, I followed up with ample questions. What is in the wrap**, how does it work, what precautions need to be taken with my thyroid medication. The list went on. We chatted back and forth for probably a good week before Adam and I jumped on board and I signed up as a Loyal Customer.

I waited for what seemed like a month for the wraps to arrive. At that time they had had such a boost in purchases they were having trouble keeping up production. But the wait was well worth it. Immediately I noticed my rash disappeared and the proof was in the pudding. The pictures were all the proof I needed. The difference was astounding. I continued to wrap for a few months and then money got tight and I had to stop. That was a big mistake. As I continued to lose weight the skin continued to bag and hang. Once again I found myself needing those wraps.

By now my bff since pre school, Krissi, had jumped on board. I was in a tight spot financially. We are a one income family and I have been wracking my brain trying to figure out how to help out with bills around the house, and quite honestly it's stressful. So after several weeks of Krissi asking me WHY NOT? I gave her my reasons of WHY. Funny enough, that's all it took. What did I have to lose? More loose skin and saying good bye to our debt? Sounds like a win-win to me.

So I have begun wrapping yet again and it still amazes me what a difference it makes. The top picture was my before. I wrapped right after that and for the next several months, inconsistently.

The bottom is "currently" where I'm at. I can honestly say the products do what they say they do. I cannot imagine how my mid-section would look if the skin was still completely loose. I have no idea how many wraps I've used now, but I do know that consistency is key. 

• Consistently eating healthy and clean
• Consistently exercising 6 days a week
• Consistently wrapping once a week
• Consistently using the Defining Gel after every shower.

I am telling you... these wraps are worth their weight in gold. Are they a quick fix? For some maybe, for most probably not. They are a supplementation to a proper nutrition plan and exercise program. But if you're like me and have a lot of weight to lose, you'll need some way to repair that skin that doesn't cost you $50,000.00 like a full tummy tuck would cost.

So I ask you... WHY NOT?!?!?!

I 110% stand behind the It Works! Body Contouring Wraps and line of Supplements. I also believe 100% that it all starts in the kitchen.

** I personally am 100% behind this wrap as all of the ingredients are botanical in nature, otherwise I would not be using it on my body!

Payday In A Boot

Yesterday was payday and of course that means GROCERIES!!!! So I got silly and snapped some boot pics at each stop along the way. :P

First up, me and Bubba waited for Sissy to get a hair cut. Then we made a pit stop for lunch followed by a trip to Sam's (stocking up on those proteins). Next up was Price Chopper, then Dick's Sporting Goods. And last was my parent's kitchen. :D

**I forgot to take one in Aldi's :(

Happy 4th of July!

Baby Girl and I made cupcake cones for the party...yes I did indulge. :P

Yes, I know it's after the 4th. Now that things have calmed down some I can update the blog. For those who don't keep up with me on Instagram, I am now benched. :(

As you know Thursday I ran the 4 on the 4th race. That evening I sat down to relax and when I went to stand I started feeling pain in my right foot. As I tried walking on it, it hurt worse and worse. By Friday afternoon I was in tears trying to walk on it. That evening we had plans to party with our neighbors and celebrate the 4th on the 5th. I assumed my doctors office still had Saturday hours, but I assumed wrong.

Icing it down before the party

Saturday morning we got up and I couldn't bear pressure on my foot and even while sitting it began to throb in pain. So after calling the doctors office, the husband drove me to the ER and dropped me off. I didn't feel like having them stick around because a) we have two small kids b) I knew I wouldn't be a priority c) it was kind of nice to have some "me" time, even if I was in pain.

Showing off my new ER jewelry.

The wait wasn't too bad. But as I sat in the wheelchair my foot hurt so bad that no amount of adjusting could get it to stop. Soon enough they wheeled me back. Ran through the usual gamut of questions and eventually they sent in the lab techs for x-rays.

Essentially the pain is located on the outside of my right foot, just in front of the ankle. Kind of where it curves in. When I stand the pain shoots across the bottom of my foot and up my leg. It totally sucks.

Shortly after the x-rays the doctor comes in and checks it out, having already seen the x-rays, says there's no obvious breaks. He then pinches my foot where he thinks the problem is, and he was too far forward on the foot. So once he pokes and prods my foot some more he leaves to check the x-rays again. He comes back and says it's likely a stress fracture, they can't be seen until they've started healing (2-3 weeks), and/or a combination of pulled ligaments. Either way I have to see my regular doctor in 5-7 days and if it's not improving I'll likely have to see a orthopedic doctor.

No visual sign of swelling.

So he sent me packing with a boot and prescription for pain killers. They wheeled me out to the ER exit to await my husband to pick me up and let's say by then the meds they gave me in the ER had started kicking in and I was all but loopy and slap happy.

I most definitely cannot take the meds unless I am ready for bed. For starters I have two small kids and cannot afford to pass out on the floor leaving them unsupervised. LOL. Secondly it makes me loopy as all get out. I did get a good nine hours stretch of sleep last night and after two days off from working out I was jonesin'. 

So I hobbled to the garage and had the hubby help pull the erg out. I didn't think pushing to 5000m was a good idea, so I opted for a shorter 2000m. Eleven minutes later I was done but not satisfied. Since I missed back/shoulders Friday I worked on the baby back. When I was nice and sweaty, I was happy.

Sure I'm going to have to modify a lot of my workouts for the next few weeks, but I refuse to give in. My healthy habits are seared in my brain and my body just needs that sweat in order to feel good. I love it!

Tuesday Time Machine & Weigh In

As if my other post wasn't enough for ya. ;)

Here's a little trip in the time machine:

At my heaviest I was 277.6 after giving birth to Irish twins (13 months, 2 days apart) albeit I found out that number in 2011, so long after Baby Boy was born. When I began weight watchers in March of 2012 I showed up 260.0 on the scale. I'm proud to say as of today I'm down to 211.

The scale has been "stuck" these last few months and I've been bouncing in the same zone and it's really starting to wear on me. Although I can see physical change in my muscle appearance, I can feel change in the way my clothes are fitting, I'm still not seeing a ton of change in measurements either. So I'm sure you can see I'm frustrated by this.

But I'm still keeping on, keeping on. I obviously have to figure out what has caused this plateau and break through it. I don't know if stressing over it is complicating the issue or what but man this sucks!

Also, I've been tossing around changing the name of my blog. While I love "A New Me" I need to find something that will work so I can change the blog URL as well... I am no longer "Up The Creek" so.... suggestions? Let me have 'em. ;)

June

Well hello blog land! Long time no see? Sad that my last post was June 1st?

Have no fear I'm still working towards my goals. The last week and a half I had over 120 cheer bows to complete before a local HS took off for cheer camp, so that is partially to blame. ;) So hang on to your mouse and get settled in for a lot of pictures. LOL.

Let's start off with the weight update!

I'm still not seeing a ton of progress as far as the scale is concerned. Of course everyone on IG is all "don't worry about the scale." Easy for you to say when you're not the one paying for Weight Watchers!!! And I will keep paying until I can make Lifetime. :/

Why is the scale stuck? I have several theories, but I'm going to narrow it down to too many cheat meals with the hubby on weekends, right before weigh in, and lack of sleep. Seriously sleep should be my number one priority but I just cannot get myself in bed at a decent hour. Boo!

Moving on to workouts:

It seems I've slid into a bad habit of skipping cardio on weigh in day. Note to self: Get to it!

And here's a little fun one of me and the kiddlets showing off our new FTYF gear!

Keep at it Fit Family!

Flusterated

I've all but lost and regained my mojo... or so I thought. I started a new routine last week and well, I failed 3 out of 6 days. FML.

I know my problem...it's me. This morning I snapped. It wasn't pretty are bitched and yelled at my husband and he has nothing to do with it. But he stood there, took it like a good husband and let me walk away to leave for my meeting without so much as a comeback.

When I returned home it was kind enough to let me apologize for the way I acted. Seriously, he's not holding the fork to my head. He's not sneaking into the kids treats late at night after eating clean all day. He's not to blame. I AM. I allowed those snacks in the house and I allowed myself to indulge one too many times this week. Me, me, me.

So why cannot I not break past this mental block? What has changed? That's what I don't understand. :P

Trying to keep my head up... and move forward. ;)