Happy to be me!

Good Monday morning all! I hope that everyone is well and that you are still on your incredible journey to health and well-being. People decide to lose weight for various reasons: to be healthy, to be skinny, to fit into some clothes they once could fit in, and the list goes on. I embarked on this journey of health and well-being because I needed to be healthy and happy.

I am please to say that I have learned to be happy with who I am. There is no one like me. There may be imitators, there may be those who even look or act similar to me, but there is only one "me". The same is true for you. You are unique. If you are on a journey to health or about to embark on a journey, please know that you are one of a kind. You cannot and will not be like anyone else, so don't try. There is a quote that I really like by Dr. Seuss: "Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You.”

Love yourself! Celebrate yourself! Change what you need to change. Know that change is possible and that you can make changes in your life. Find what works for you and stick with it. Know that you can respect and hear the opinions of others without adopting them as your own. Be yourself.

Okay, I guess, I'm done now. Sorry to be preachy today. I hope you have a wonderful week and that you reach the goals that you have set. Love to all.

xoxoxoxoxo

The dreaded elliptical.....dun, dun, dunnnnn!

Good afternoon all. I hope that you are doing well. I may not have shared this with you, but I DO NOT like the elliptical. I understand that it is a good way to get in cardio, but it's just boring to me. I try to use it as little as possible, opting for Zumba (for wii), exercise dvd's and exercise tv.

Yesterday, I decided to try it again to see if maybe I wasn't giving it a fair shake. Well, I stayed on that thing for 50 minutes and the best thing was finishing. Yep, I still don't like it. My husband has decided that I just don't like any exercise machines, but that isn't the case. I would much rather have a treadmill. With that being said, how do you feel about the elliptical? Is there any way to make it less boring? I put on my ipod and listen to some great music, but I just can't get into it. Oh well, I guess it's no big deal. What I'm doing seems to be working and you know what they say, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!"

In other news, I tried on some pants yesterday because I told my husband that I could fit them, and guess what....I almost do!!!!! They only come as far as the middle of my butt, but hey, that's a start. So now my goal is to get into these pants (all the way). They are a 7/8. I will post a pic when I can wear these pants comfortably. :)

Welp, that's all for now. One more thing, if you are on Facebook, it would be great if you could like my new page, "New Me/Healthy Me". Thanks everyone.

Love to all. xoxoxoxoxo

How did you do it??????

Recently I posted a before and after pic of myself on Facebook. I'm happy to say that there is a HUGE difference. I'm not quite where I want to be, but I have come a loooonnnnggg way. :-) The question on everyone's mind is, "How did you do it?" I'd love to tell you that there is some magical, secret formula to my weight loss, but that would be a lie. Honestly, I just made up my mind that I didn't want to be fat and unhealthy another day and started on this journey that has now become my "new life", my "healthy life". Yes, I am a vegan. No, I haven't always been a vegan, but I am now and I love it. Yes, I workout, A LOT!!! Is this the magic formula you seek? Probably not. My advice to anyone is this, make up in your mind that you want to be healthy, set a goal (short term and long term), find a lifestyle (notice I didn't say diet) that works for you, get moving and most importantly, STICK TO IT! That's the hardest part for a lot of people, I believe. Many of us have been there. We start off with so much gusto and slowly, but surely our momentum is slowed until we finally just stop. To change your life (not just with weight, but anything) you have to have a resolve within yourself that this is what I want/need and whatever it takes, I'm going to do it and FINISH IT! I can post what I eat, when I eat, how often I workout and all of my struggles (and I probably will because I love this blog), but in the end, it's going to be up to you to do the work. No one can do it for you. I will not say, become a vegan and all of your problems will be solved. I will not say, workout twice a day and all of your problems will be solved. What I will say is, look at yourself, evaluate what you have been doing and honestly see what is wrong, how it went wrong and what you can do to change it. Then do it. The hardest part may be being honest enough with yourself to say you have a problem. Whatever that problem is, you can't get help if you don't admit that you need help. (Sound familiar?) Stop making excuses for why you can't eat healthy, why you don't have time to workout, blah, blah, blah. I don't have a gym membership, I workout in my home and outside when possible. That's it. We have an elliptical that I rarely use. Honestly, I workout with the wii and with exercise dvd's. Yep, so there is no excuse. Well, I'll stop preaching for now, but you can be sure, I'll be back. Also, look for a book some time in the future (accountability). :-) As always, thank you so much for all of your comments, encouraging words and words of wisdom. I truly do appreciate everyone who takes the time to read this blog. Love to all xoxoxoxoxoxo

Issues.....

Hello friends. Sorry I haven't been here in a while. Things have been quite hectic with the children going back to school. My little one started pre-K this morning. Very exciting. That means all of my children are officially "school-aged". Love it!

I have a question for those of you who are on this journey and have lost a significant amount of weight so far. How do you deal with loose skin? I am really struggling with this right now. It's mostly my arms and stomach. Ugh.....I know that I've come such a long way, but when I have to look at myself, I'm sometimes discouraged because I want to look different. Don't get me wrong, I am extremely happy about how I look now compared to how I looked 10 months ago, but I wish things were a lot "tighter". Strength training and toning aside, I am going to need surgery. Yes, I said it, SURGERY. Oh well....

Also, do you ever have days where you just feel "huge"? Well, I do and I had one of those days Friday. I'm not sure why I felt that way, but I did.
Saturday was better, especially after trying on capris in way smaller sizes and having them fit! Yay!!!!

I bought a nordic track fitness ball this weekend and I love it. I'm hoping to see results soon. I'm amazed at how many exercises I can do on that thing. We also got another set of weights so I'm incorporating that into my "ball" workouts. :-)

My diet is still veganish and I'm still loving it. I'm still incorporating raw foods into most of my day and it's going well. I hope everyone is doing well. I appreciate you reading and commenting and hope that continue to do so. You help me on this journey, more than you.

Love to all xoxoxoxo

Food, food, FOOD!

Good morning all. I hope everyone is well and that things are going well for you on your journey to health. It has been a busy month for me and I realize that I haven't posted much, but rest assured, I am still here and the journey continues.

I bought a new book a few weeks ago, "Eating in the Raw" by Carol Alt. Sounds interesting, right? Well, maybe not to everyone, but for me it has been a big help in my efforts to eat a high raw food diet. So 75-80% of what I eat consists of unprocessed raw vegan foods that have not been heated above 115 degrees Fahrenheit ("raw"). WHAT??????? So what do I eat? Good question.

I eat lots of raw fruits and vegetables, nuts and seeds, sprouts, roots, root vegetables and squashes and fresh herbs. I have also found a love for green smoothies (I think I prefer kale to spinach). Yes, I know, you probably think I'm crazy. Oh well, it's not the first time someone has thought that, and it probably won't be the last. Trust me. :-)

That being said, if there are any raw foodist out there reading my blog, I'd love to hear from you. Looking for recipe ideas and some support. I'm not sure that I will turn into a die-hard raw foodist, as this seems a bit extreme for me (not judging, just saying for me). I will, however, continue to incorporate a ton of raw fruits and vegetables into my daily diet, because I love it!

My weight loss has been steady and I have been doing a lot more strength training. I can actually feel myself getting stronger and I have more definition in my muscles *smile* I have also been running more and I can really say that I'm getting better. I'm not winded as much and I can run for longer periods of time without feeling like I'm going to pass out.

So that's what's going on with me right now. I am really enjoying the journey and learning lots of things about nutrition, healthy eating, exercise and mostly about myself. I have a wonderful support system and am so very grateful for every reader, commenter, encourager, etc.

Let's continue to encourage one another and inspire one another to be the best we can be.

Love to all xoxoxoxoxoxo

P.S. I am working on putting up some pics (before and after). Hopefully I will get that done soon.

Fruits and Veggies

Hello good people. I hope that everyone is doing well. Things have been going quite well here. I'm loving the weights and the weight keeps falling off. :-) My food intake has changed a bit. I've been eating a high raw diet for about 2 weeks now and I'm loving it! I feel more energized, my skin is getting clearer, etc., etc., etc.

I'm not on a crusade. I just love to read, research and try what I think may work "for me". This is not an advertisement for a "raw food diet", it's just what I'm doing that is working for me. Fresh fruit and veggies have never tasted better. I'm also weaning processed foods out of my diet.

As far as exercise goes, I have incorporated weight training along with the cardio. I don't really have a schedule or a set workout, but I'm getting it done.

Lastly, my weight yesterday morning was 138. Haven't weighed myself today yet, so that's why I'm giving yesterday's number. At this point, I'm beginning to doubt my scale. The number doesn't match how I look to myself. Yea, I know that may sound crazy, but that's just how I feel. What to do? I want to buy a new one, but am scared that the numbers will be so different and I will be crushed! LOL!

For now, I'm sticking with the scale I have. I'm more healthy and happy about that. The number is important to me, but what's most important is my health. So we shall see what happens when/if I decide to buy a new scale.

Welp, that's all for now good people. I hope everyone is encouraged to continue on this beautiful journey. Remember, if I can do it, you can do it!!!!

Love to all xoxoxoxox

Weighty issues.

Haven't been here in a while, I know. Sorry guys. Rest assured, I am still alive and very well, I might add. Things are going pretty good. I think I've hit a plateau weight-wise, but I'm just going to work my way through it. I'm actually reaching my calorie goal most days and once I actually went over. :-) I've been experimenting with eating a raw diet for breakfast and lunch and having a cooked (vegan) dinner. It's actually going well and I enjoy it.

I'm really starting to enjoy cooking again. I have been baking up a storm and for those of you who know me personally, you know that's a BIG deal. In other news, I had a green smoothie the other day and I am in LOVE! Sooooo good. I can't believe it took me this long to make one. I also made black bean burgers the other day and they were delightful. I've got to cook more. I find that my food tastes so much better when it is freshly made, as opposed to prepacked, frozen, etc.

So what's up with the title of this post? Well, we bought our weights last night and began some serious strength training (well serious to me anyway). My arms feel a bit sore, but in a good way. I think I'm going to like this. Can't wait to see actual results. There is so much talk today about celebrity women being too buff. I'm not sure what all the hype is about, but I can't wait to see some definition in my arms and shoulders, some nice toned legs and glutes, and....well....you get what I'm saying. :-)

I guess I've rattled on enough. I hope everyone is doing well. Those of you on this journey with me, stay encouraged. It may get tough some days, but it is so worth it. You can do it!!!!

Love to all xoxoxoxoxo