Progress!

Well, I started June 24th in a size 18 and now, 74 days into the challenge and I'm down to a 14.  So far I have lost 10 1/2 inches and 15 pounds.  Feels great to be getting back on track.  

Sitting in my closet is a box full of size 10s and 12s...I am itching for them to fit.  It is driving me crazy to wear the same outfits each week, but I don't want to go shopping because I won't be here long.  My goal is to be back into my clothes that are stashed away.....and no stopping there.  

So in 16 days, we are doing the 90-day challenge again.  I want to do it until the 90-day challenge transforms my body and becomes my new habit and lifestyle.  

I'm almost to my first goal (lose 20 pounds) and my second (wearing my closet stash of clothes) isn't far behind.  From there I'm excited to see how my new lifestyle will transform my body even more. It feels really good to actually be on track to meet my goals.  

Excuse the fierce "workout complete" expression in my 'current progress' pic.  Haha.  The before face on the left was the first part of July (two weeks into the challenge). 

Check out My amazing, supportive, loving, awesome husband!!

No Rest for the Committed

I've been fighting a cough for over a week.  I've had the chills for about half of that time and I had a fever over the weekend.  I feel tired and ready for sleep.  I don't want to sound like a martyr and I'm simply not a warrior.  That is not what this blog is about today.  I just don't want to have any excuses...even being sick.  That's where excuses start - come up with one and suddenly all the excuses start to "make sense."

Maybe it seems strange that I left work early to get some extra rest (I slept for 3.5 hrs straight) but I still went to the gym.  Perhaps if I explain it differently, it'll make more sense.  

As a full time employee at the same company for over 10 years, I have built up a stock of vacation days (which can also be used as sick days). I have earned that time over the course of the 10 years.  However, I have only been going to the gym 2 months.  I have not been there long enough to build up vacation (or sick) days.  

So even though I used lighter weights today, at least I was still there.  I gave no excuses and I went.  Illness, children, busy schedule, sore muscles are no longer excuses!!  My sister-in-law Kelly posted on her wall yesterday that she wet running late at night because "doing it tomorrow" is a thing of the past.  My brother, David, mentioned yesterday that we have been gyming Mon-Friday for 2 months (5 days a week).  There's no reason to make any excuses to skip a day.  It'll take doctors orders to keep me out of the gym!  Even my weird c-section incision issue hasn't kept me out of the gym.  

We are coming up on day 60 (Thursday). I'll be posting some progress pics very soon!   For now, here's a cute baby :)

My Why

Our shirts for the Challenge came in today.  So now I'm sorting through all the thoughts in my head to determine My Why.  My first reason why is that I am sick of being fat.  Basically my entire adult life I have been varied from overweight to obese. I am tired of feeling shitty about how I look.  I want to be a size 10!  the year before I got pregnant with Shay, Patrick and I both worked really hard to lose 50 pounds each.  I got down to my smallest size ever (size 10), I want to be there again!  Another reason why is because I want to look smoking hot for my husband.  No elaboration necessary, however somehow he overlooks my rolls...I just don't want him to have to "see through it" anymore.  My final and most important reason is to be an example of healthy living for my children. We did 3 minutes of planks together tonight.  I know my kids are watching everything I do...I want them to see how important my health is to me - actions speak louder than words!  

Who hates push ups anyway?

"I HATE.....no despise....push ups!"  Words that echoed from my lips even just last week.  Well, I take it back.  Not that I love them by any means, because I certainly do not, however they are far more tolerable now since I can actually do them.  That's right, I can do push-ups.  Not just a modified 'on my knees' push-ups either.  I can do both regular and modified decline push-ups, normal push-ups, incline push-ups, wide arm push-ups and as of last week, decline close-grabbing push-ups.  So I eat my words, they're not so bad now.  

Push-ups, of course, are not the only exercise I have seen super awesome improvements.  I've been upping my weights, I can do 20 leg lifts, sit ups and I can do planks on each side and front for 30 seconds, then modified for the other 30 seconds.  

Yes.  I am proud.  

So a couple blogs ago I was commenting on how I was having trouble seeing results.  Well, I need to just shut my mouth and continue to trust the process. Since June 24 and starting the challenge, I have lost 10 pounds and 7.5 inches.  53 days of 5-day a week gym, 3 weeks of mad-dance and 3 weeks of running, starting to really pay off.  Patrick and I have decided we are in for a second round of the challenge.  With school starting soon, fitting in gym time will become more taxing, but we WILL meet our goals.  

I was looking back at my measurements from our big lose in 2011 (before my 3rd pregnancy in 2012), and I have come to the conclusion that I am being too hard on myself.  It took us both approximately 6 months to get to the 50 pound loss that year, I'm just now Closing in on completing the 2nd month - plus last time all I did was run, I wasn't at the gym building lean muscle and toning.  

37 days left of this challenge. I'm excited to see the results continue....

Speaking of results, have you seen my husband!  Hot.