Transformation Tuesday

As I’ve said before, I’ve been really working out and eating right since late December of last year. I’ve noticed a lot of changes in body: my confidence is a smidge better (still not great), my anxiety is better (thanks to exercise and my meds), I’ve lost 77 pounds, my energy levels are better, my body is smaller, and I am stronger – mentally and physically.

I don’t always notice the changes in my body in the mirror. I am more self-conscious with my clothes and showing off parts of my body. Despite getting more of definition in my waist, and wearing smaller clothes. When I really notice the changes are when I take photos. I really look at them now – I’m proud of the hard work I’ve put in. I can see the results of working out. I really noticed it this weekend after having a photo taken of Monster and me   – for once he is in front of me and mostly blocks my body. Do you know that has NEVER been the case? So, I went searching through pictures and I knew we had one of a similar pose earlier this year – it was Easter of this year. I’m pretty proud of my progress.

These are the things that help me push myself. When I want to give up and go lie on the couch and eat garbage I know I can’t – I’ve got a little boy watching my every move. He sees the results of eating well and exercising. We talk about proper nutrition and how good exercise is for our bodies. He has noticed the changes in my body as well. It’s still a long road ahead, but I’m also pretty pleased so far.

What changes have you made in your life? 

Monday Monday

Monster had a sleepover Saturday night and they had breakfast, played WiiU games and with all his Nerf guns, etc. on Sunday morning. After they got cleaned up I took them to Sky Zone to use up a Groupon I had bought a while back. It is an old warehouse that has been converted to an trampoline park. The boys had so much fun and it was a great way for them to burn off some excess energy for an hour. The place was really cool - lots of options, too. After Sky Zone, we were all hungry so I grabbed a pizza and bread sticks from Little Ceasars -- not the healthiest decision. I did, however, go for my Sunday workout while Monster hung out with his grandma. It's an hour and half water aerobics class - I really didn't want to go - I had a terrible headache. But, I went and pushed myself - I felt amazing through the workout. It was a really good feeling. Dinner was more pizza and bread sticks. :/ 

After dropping Monster off this morning I had to get gas and I was so hungry so I grabbed a ham, egg white and cheese flat bread at Subway. Lunch was a salad topped with half an avocado, cheese, homemade salsa, and a Morning Star Chipolte Black Bean Burger. I am truly addicted to these burgers! They are so good! I'm constantly looking at ways to up my protein in low-cal ways and those fit the bill. 

Tonight, I have my Aqua Zumba class and will follow it up with a healthy dinner. We're going to have turkey sausage and veggies. I need to come up with a menu plan and grocery shop too. Any good suggestions? 

Catching up...

Well, it's been a few days since I've rambled on here...it has been a busy week.

My eating has been terrible this week and my exercise has been sporadic, at best. I did my muscle definition and Aqua Zumba classes on Wednesday. Before I even got home Wednesday night, I was already sore. Thursday's I used to do a Hydro Boot Camp class - I've missed it for months now. I don't know why either, I enjoyed it. Time to buckle back down. So, Thursday I did nothing. Friday I only did one class because I had an event that morning. It was a good class but I was still so sore from Wednesday. 

After my workout, Monster and I met my old friend, Sam for dinner. I've known Sam for about ten years, but life got in the way. It was good to see him and catch up.

Last night I had to take some Aleve at bedtime because I was still so sore. I forgot to set my alarm for my workout this morning so no exercise again today.

Monster and I did go to a wedding today though. To be very honest, it was tough - for a lot of reasons. Mainly because there is a lot of tension in some of those family members and it was a big reminder of what used to be. We stayed for a while, but cut out earlier than everyone else. I got a few really nice comments about my weight loss. And, of course  everyone thought my Monster was so adorable!

Tomorrow is Sunday and sore or not, I'm back in the gym and will be cleaning up my eating. Going to try to meal plan for the week.

Ok, gotta get back to watching my CATS! #BBN

I'm allergic...

to EVERYTHING! 

Yesterday I spent almost four hours at the allergist having allergy testing done. It was not exactly how I wanted to spend my afternoon, but I've had chronic sinus infections for well over a year now. Meaning about every six weeks I am miserable, try to combat it, end up really sick and in the doctor's office. These doctors office trips result in prescriptions for antibiotics or steroids - or, both. It is miserable! Since I started exercising regularly and watching my calories the infections have been a little less frequent but this last one set me back with three doctors appointments, two rounds of antibiotics, a steroid, and a referral to the allergist. Despite having taken all the medication, I am still not better. 

The doctor did my intake/history and they set me up for the testing. If you've never had to experience the scratches, injections, pokes - consider yourself lucky. I sat in a room with my back itching terribly for what seemed like forever. After it was all over the doctor came in and asked me if I ever considered moving out of the Ohio Valley (allergy central) and that I was a huge mess (in more ways than one but that's another story for another day!). He went over everything they tested me for and where I scored - I think it would have been easier for him to just tell me what I wasn't allergic to. 

My allergies include: 

• cat
• cockroach
• dog
• dust mites
• feathers 
• common grasses
• horse
• common molds
• tobacco
• common trees 
• common weeds 
• shellfish
• tree nuts 

Which means pretty much everything that surrounds me. I work in a very old building and I'm sure there is mold, dust and there are cockroaches in the basement the size of small puppies - what's great is they are usually dead thanks to the pest control people, but I'm also allergic to the bug spray. I left the office armed with several new prescriptions, a new Epi pen, an inhaler, instructions to see if my insurance will cover allergy shots and a follow-up appointment. 

I also left with a throbbing headache and overall feeling of ickiness. He said the headache would be normal. So I skipped my normal workout and hit the couch for the evening. My eating was not great yesterday but, I won't go back to the old days of waiting until Monday to start over. I've started over this morning...this is a daily struggle and daily choices. I hope that every day my struggles get a little easier and I don't battle the cravings of poor eating habits. 

Today, I'm spending my lunch break going to the gym.

Until next time...

What a weekend!

My eating has not been great since Friday. I had an off-site event that I was in charge of and instead of packing my lunch, a co-worker and I went to Beef O'Brady's for lunch. I had a bacon cheeseburger and fries. It was so good, but it put me on a tailspin of poor eating choices for the rest of the weekend. I was unable to make it to my aerobics class on Friday night because of my event, overslept on Saturday morning and just chose to do other things instead of exercising. I need to start being OK with doing things other than my classes - I need to just get out of my own head and do something every day. 

Saturday was a blast though. I went to my first ever University of KY football game and tailgating. If you follow me on Twitter and/or Instagram (@LisainLouKY) you'll know that we had a lot of fun. I met some Twitter friends for the first time in real life. They all were so awesome and so welcoming. We drank, ate, and most of all laughed. It was so good to be surrounded by new friends and I felt totally at ease with all of them. If you are reading this - THANK YOU! :) My food choices were not great on Saturday either and let's face it - the drinks were many. We even made up a new hashtag #TailgateTipsy. But, I feel like as long as I get back on track, one afternoon of tailgate foods and drinks won't hurt too bad. Despite my Cats losing, it was a blast. I'll definitely be back for more.

My game day selfie! 

A picture of Commonwealth Stadium -- so pretty! 

Sunday was a time of recouping from the lack of sleep, alcohol, and my voice. I slept in a little, ate breakfast and lounged on the couch all day. Until it was time to go to my aerobics class - I did a 90 minute class and I am sore today. I also went to the grocery and got veggies and stuff for lunches/dinners this week. My food choices were a lot more in line with my norm. 

Today is back to the grind! 

Have a great Monday!

What you don't see when you just look at me...

We've all judged someone based on their appearance. Whether it be the clothes they chose to wear, hair style, tattoos, body shape, etc. I think it is a natural thing to do, but when you audibly (or on social media) judge someone merely on their appearance - you have no idea what that person has going on in their life. 

A while back while in a gas station grabbing a drink and filling the gas can to go home and cut my grass, after I had just done two hours of water aerobics, a guy thought I was in his way (I guess) and called me a "lard ass". At first, I was mortified and embarrassed. Then after a minute, I was so mad that I got into my car and cried. 

I cried thinking that no matter how hard I work, no one can see at first look that:

• I spend six-eight hours a week doing cardio. 
• I maintain my calorie goal most every single day. 
• Each day I try to make better decisions regarding my health. 
• All of my numbers from my annual physical came back dang near perfect. 
• You can't see that since I first measured on 3/16 I've lost: 
• Arm = 1.5"
• Bust = 4.5"
• Waist = 2.5"
• Hips = 2.5"
• Thigh = 3.0"
• Neck = 1.5"

I've thought about this a lot when I judge someone else, based on appearance. I'm working on just smiling and going on about my business. I know how it feels to be judged on my appearance. I also know how hard I'm working and for once - I am doing this for me. For MY health - not anyone else. 

Just something to think about and something I'm working on too... 

Make today a good day! 

Blessings,

-lisa 

How did I get here...?

About two years ago, my world fell apart. Everything I thought to be true and what I always wanted crumbled in around my feet. I had life-altering decisions to make. Some were made for me. I won't go into all the details here for numerous reasons -- mainly, privacy. But, I was forced into a whole new chapter of life. One I had never been into before. I am not going to lie, it has been hard. Harder than I ever thought it would be - some days are better than others. I'm starting to have more good days than bad.

Overall, I can look back over the last two years and see that I am stronger, and happier than I was then. Do I ever wish I could go back? Absolutely. But, not to those dark, ugly times. My happiness is too important now and there was a lot of turmoil and bad days leading up to the last brick that fell in to cause my world to crumble. But, I chose to not reuse some of those bricks to rebuild my life. I chose some new ones - quite a few new ones. 

I feel like I've been on some sort of diet or "going to start on Monday" plan all of my life. I've always been bigger. The bigger friend, etc. Slowly, about a year and a half ago, I started making better decisions. I was always a binge eater. Someone who ate their feelings: happy, sad, anxious, bored, depressed...whatever, food was involved. You ever notice how that happens? We rarely celebrate without food -- good or bad. I would wake up in the morning and think about what I was going to eat for the rest of the day. $5.00 left in my checking account - what sort of crappy junk food could that buy me? It was a terrible cycle I was on - I hated to see myself in the mirror or in pictures. I couldn't count how many times someone told me "you have a beautiful face". Ugh. Please, for the love, NEVER think that is a compliment. Regardless if you think you're being kind - we hear, your face is pretty but the rest of you needs work. Anyhow, I started eating one plate/serving of something. If I opened a bag of chips, I got out a serving size, closed the bag, put it away and left it there. Same goes with most everything else I ate - I never took the container to the sofa with me. That only ended with me having a stomach ache, empty package and a lot of guilt. I knew that I had a little boy who was watching me. He would pick up on my cues regarding food (and, everything else!). I started logging everything I ate into the app My Fitness Pal and you know what happened? Pounds starting falling off. I started feeling better - physically and mentally. I wasn't letting food rule my thoughts. I started looking to food more as a fuel than a "reward" or a crutch. I'm not going to say I still don't struggle with emotional eating and/or cravings, but I don't give into them as much. If I do, I don't let it sabotage the rest of my day. 

I also went through several months of therapy: cognitive therapy to be exact. It was also life changing and I don't say that to sound cliche. It truly was -- it helped me work through the things going on in my life. How to address things that were happening to me and how to respond to those things. I will forever be grateful for those months of therapy and the fantastic therapist who helped me get through the really hard days. A few months ago, I surrendered to taking medicine for my anxiety and I can't express how much that has changed my life too. I still have episodes of anxiety or dark days, but they are few and far between. If you struggle with these things, please talk to your doctor and don't think of it as being weak to take the medicine. It helps! 

Last December, I bit the bullet and joined the YMCA, despite it not really being in my budget at the time. Somehow, God has provided for us and I never noticed the money being an issue. I started slowly taking a few water aerobics classes because I have a bad knee and let's face it -- I really hated to exercise and sweat. I started adding more classes to my week and now my norm is to exercise six days a week for at least an hour - some days anywhere from and hour and a half to two hours. It has made such a huge difference in my life. I have discovered a love of exercise. I notice that I'm not so winded walking up stairs. I choose to take the stairs (down mostly thanks to my bum knee) but, I am stronger. I have a rather large yard to cut - about three miles of walking - and at the beginning of the summer it was a struggle to get it done. Now, just a couple of months later, I cut it with no issue at all. It really makes me happy to see those small non-scale victories. I've recently added in a muscle definition class and I really enjoy it. I need to add in more weight lifting/strength training to my schedule. 

Lots of things have happened in my 37 years, but that's a brief (OK, maybe not so brief) introduction into how I got here...more to come later. 

To show the progress that I've made: 

The left was around my all-time heaviest weight -- the right was just a few days ago. The changes are not only physical though - my mental strength is better. Fueling your body with better choices in foods (most of the time), exercise, and taking care of yourself is life-changing. 


Thanks for reading! 

Have a blessed day, 
-lisa

Welcome to my world

Welcome to my first blog post for my new blog. This is going to be a place for me to journal about my life. 

Some random things about me: 

- I am a single Mom to my Monster - who is not my biological child, but he is my heart. 
- I am currently on a journey to lose about 175 pounds; I'm 76 pounds in as of today.
- I have fallen in love with exercise - mainly water aerobics and I just started taking a muscle definition class. Don't be so quick to judge the water aerobics as your grandma's class - these are fast-paced, awesome workouts. My most favorite it my Aqua Zumba - it doesn't help that I adore the instructor. 
- I am going through a divorce.
- I am learning a lot about myself and who I want to be.
- I am a Christian and I am learning what it means to follow Christ. I am no where close to a perfect Christian (news flash - there is no such thing!)
- I love social media - mainly Twitter and Instagram. I have Facebook, but it's mainly to keep up with my extended family. 
- I am a terrible writer, but need an outlet for both my thoughts and a journal of my weight loss progress. 
- I love my KY Wildcats. #BBN 
- I love fall - the clothes, the smells, the cool, crisp air. It is my all-time favorite season. 
- I struggle with depression and anxiety; mainly social anxiety. I hate small talk/networking events.
- I tend to wear my heart on my sleeve and can be way too emotional. 

Thanks for reading my first post. If you'd like to connect, share some things about you in the comments section. 

Have a blessed day! 
--lisa