Day 24- My Favorite "Go To Meals"

I've been asked about this a lot lately so I'm putting together a list of my favorite food ideas that I've loved since the beginning of the year. Some of them require a recipe and some of them don't! I'm not a strictly clean eater but I've found some regular meals that are liveable, realistic, and delicious! We can still eat healthier and modify our meals without feeling like we're "dieting". It's about finding ways to make a better choice....

BREAKFAST FAVORITES

• Oatmeal
• Shakeology
• Honey Chia bread toasted (Costco)
• Eggs (vegi omellete, hard boiled, or scrambled)
• Special K with Red Berries and  Almond Breeze milk
• Grapefruit and Plain Greek Yogurt
• Any Greek Yogurt for that matter with fruit.... :) 

LUNCH FAVORITES

• I pair sandwiches with a small pile of kettle cooked chips and fruit (apples and plums are my favorite with sandwiches!)
• Turkey sandwich with avocado, tomato, lettuce
• Turkey sandwich with lettuce, tomato, pickle
• Leftovers from the night before (chicken/rice, soups, chicken tacos, and steak are all still good the next day!)
• Anything curry... really hits the spot! During the school year I look to buy the curry meals in the organic freezer section. 
• Dole Cesar Salad kit with rotisserie chicken from Costco. 
• Eggs
• Tuna over sliced tomatoes
• Arugula and spinach salad with feta, mandarin oranges, walnuts, and balsamic vinaigrette
• Spinach salad with dried cranberries, almonds, and poppy-seed dressing 
• Chicken with a slice of ham and a slice of swiss cheese on top- baked- vegetables on the side
• Vegi burger with a Thinwich for a bun, dressed with avocado slices and salsa.(TRUST ME)
• Fruit salad (berries, grapes, banana, apple) on the side of a lean protein
• Turkey roll ups- place feta or goat cheese with avocado inside a slice of turkey and roll up! 
• Open fajitas- cook steak strips, peppers, and onions with fajita seasoning and olive oil. Place a little cheddar cheese on top at the end. Use one small tortilla and tear into pieces and throw it on top! 
• Orchard Chicken Salad- "Our Best Bites" Cookbook/Blog

Dinner Favorites

• Rotisserie chicken pieces mixed with Dole Cesar Salad
• Grilled Baja Citrus Chicken with a mango/avocado salsa on top, served on rice- Life As Mrs. Larson Recipe
• Tin Foil Chicken Dinners- Recipe
• Grilled chicken tacos- with either lettuce or broccoli slaw, fat free sour cream, fresh salsa, pinch of cheese
• Lemon Pepper Tilapia- frozen tilapia cooked in electric frying pan with evoo, lemon juice, and lemon pepper.
• Whole Wheat Spaghetti with EVOO and Parmesan cheese
• Tortellini Soup- (with or without sausage) Our Best Bites Recipe
• Steak- (marinades, bbq, rub)
• Chicken breast stuffed with feta and pesto- slit the side, insert filling, bake
• Grilled Chicken/Steak Skewers- pieces of steak or chicken on skewers with zucchini, peppers, onion
• Grilled Pineapple Chicken Skewers- pieces of chicken, drizzle of soy sauce or teriyaki sauce, and pineapple chunks

SIDES

• Green Salads
• Cooked Zucchini
• Avocado/Mango/Red Pepper mix
• Baked potato slices with EVOO, garlic, salt, pepper
• Asparagus
• Grilled pineapple
• Fruit salad- berries, banana, apple, melon
• Green beans
• Cubed orange squash- baked
• Corn on the cob
• Rice
• Whole grain pasta with marinara, evoo, or homemade mushroom sauce
• Tomato slices with fresh mozzarella and basil on top
• Sauteed mushrooms with garlic and onion
• Cooked carrots with evoo and parsley
• Cooked broccoli
• 
  

Day 21- "Cafe Rio, we're breaking up!"

.... As Taylor Swift says: "It's Over. It's SO OVER"

Like I said in an earlier post, Shane and I don't eat out as much anymore. It just doesn't taste as good anymore and I feel crummy afterwards.

Let me preface this with the fact that Cafe Rio was my favorite go to fast food. I know a lot of people don't consider it fast food, but I do. I mostly would get it as carry out. I started my love of Cafe Rio when I was 19 and living up by the University of Utah. It became a special place for my roommates and I. Even after graduation, we would meet up there to chat, laugh, and eat over glorious sweet barbacoa pork burritos and salads.

I was about three months into Beach Body when I decided to treat all of my DECA students to Cafe Rio while we were competing at our State Competition. I ordered my usual. It wasn't as good as I used to think it was. Several days later my body decided to go through an intense cleanse. I was sick for 48 hours straight. No breaks. Nothing stayed in. It was miserable. Our downstairs bathroom became a hazard zone.

Right before we went to Moab last weekend, we ordered Cafe Rio so we didn't have the dirty dishes to deal and could just focus on packing up the car. I ordered my usual. Not impressed anymore at all. I did feel noticeably uncomfortable afterwards. Several days later..... intense cleanse- The SEQUEL! This time it only lasted one day, but it ruined my Memorial Day. Shane and I had plans to get all sorts of stuff done and to do some fun things with Taylor!

That evening I was feeling well enough to go celebrate my good friend and old roommate (Catherine) graduating from Med School.

While we were all together we were reflecting on our love and history with Cafe Rio. I shared with them the recent shortcomings of Cafe Rio that I had experienced. My friend shared with a story as well: Her last trip to Cafe Rio ended up with her finding a moth in her salad and Cafe Rio accusing her of putting it there! They then tried to make up for it by offering her a free meal.... uh... no thank you!

So it's official- IT'S OVER. No more Cafe Rio for me. No more "extra meat"! No more of their salsa fresca or creamy house dressing. I'm done and I'm ok with it.

I can do better. My body deserves better. :)

Visiting Teaching is Inspired

My good friend Catherine also happened to be my first visiting teacher when I moved out on my own. She actually came to my house to visit teach my roommate who happened to  not be there at the time. I invited her and her partner in and they stayed to share and listen. I was having such a bad day and going through some really rough times. She was trying to care and comfort me and barely knew me! 

When I moved back to Bountiful to go to Weber, my visiting teaching companion and I had a really good system. Because we were all single, we would trade off hosting dinners each month with the girls we visit taught. I loved it. They almost became like a second family since we were all on our own. It was nice to have that sisterhood and support. 

After Shane and I got married, we moved into his parents house while they served a mission in California. I was blessed to have Lisa and her daughter in law April as my visiting teachers the entire time I lived there. They were so great about visiting and checking in with me often. They became good friends of mine and are such wonderful examples of selfless and loving women. 

Here in our new home, my first visiting teachers came soon after we moved in. They immediately befriended me and helped me to make friends in our new neighborhood. They introduced me to Zumba and continue to lift my spirit with their friendship and example! 

I love visiting teaching and know that it is an inspired program for Heavenly Father's daughters. It allows us to reach out of our comfort zones to look after and friend one another. It encourages us to serve and to let others serve us and our families. Visiting Teaching helps me to share my testimony and brings myself and the sisters I have the opportunity to serve closer to Christ. 

Day 19- I'm the CFO at my house! (Chief Food Officer)

Shane and I have this joke (since we're business nerds and all) that I'm the CFO of our house- CHIEF FOOD OFFICER. I'm strangely overprotective and controlling when it comes to menu planning, food storage, recipes, food for Taylor, or anything that has anything to do with food. Sadly, I even try to tell Shane how to season his own food.

Part of it is that I like to be in control and I like have a plan. One of my favorite activities is to plan out meals and grocery shop. Lamesauce I know. I also really am a food junkie- cooking shows, exploring recipes on pinterest, looking at pictures of food, and going out to eat at nice places. Can you see where I had problems once I had a job and a license?

Since the beginning of the year I have made a lot of changes. I'm just talking about the scale, but how I plan, shop, prepare, and eat food. For instance, we eat less beef. I rarely fix potatoes. We rarely go out for fast food. We eat less bread. We eat a lot of spinach, arugula, and romaine lettuce. We go through about two bags of Cuties a week. We don't buy soda and rarely buy juice. Through these changes and more, I've seen a big difference in how I feel and our weekly menu.

This week I've made everything from Cod tacos to steak with spinach, grape tomatoes, and a balsamic dressing. I still love food! But, I'm getting better at loving quality food and making healthier food for my family!!!

Seriously- if I ever made a recipe book it's title would be CFO!

Day 18- My Favorite Job of All...

So while I was busy at school today thinking about all the things I needed to do this week to get my classes ready for their final tests, what I needed to do to clean and organize my classroom, and what I needed to start doing to prepare for next year's classes- I started thinking about my FAVORITE JOB OF ALL!

I love being a mom and wife! I love grocery shopping, making dinner, giving Taylor a bath, the satisfaction of a clean house after a deep clean, going on walks with my family, reading with Taylor, family scripture reading on weekday mornings when I'm on a school break, folding laundry, planning meals, planning our week, planting flowers, watering the flowers, wiping Taylor's hands after a meal or snack, teaching her and showing her something new, hanging out with Shane, improving myself, educating myself, working out, inspiring others, taking pictures, and writing about my life and family.

Yes, I enjoy teaching and my students. I love business/marketing and DECA. My favorite job of all is being a mom and wife though. I am excited because I have found a new passion which combines teaching and nutrition/fitness- coaching! This summer I will get to stay at home and be a full time mommy while I continue to coach and help others reach their fitness and health goals.

I'm going to love what I do every day this summer! It also makes me look forward even more to when I switch to part time or completely leave teaching to raise my little ones.

I feel peace and comfort about this decision. I just can't wait!!!


Tonight's dinner was pretty good and would make a great dinner for a camp out!

Chicken Foil Dinners-
raw chicken breast, cut into strips
red pepper, chopped
onion, chopped
thyme
sea salt
black pepper

Wrap completely in foil! Bake or grill for 25 minutes!

Day 15-17: Everything has its opposite...

Day 15: Friday is My Favorite Day!

I love Fridays! Shane is always singing this song about the days of the week and how Friday is the favorite day. I honestly don't know if it's real or if he's made it up. He sings it with such confidence and pizazz! 

Today is our last activity for DECA. I am ordering pizza for the kids and we'll watch a slideshow of all of our pictures from the year. It's bitter sweet. I've loved the year, the students, and the fun memories we've made. I'm sad to see this year of DECA be over. But, I'm also excited for next year's presidency and competitions. Nationals will be in DisneyWorld! Woop woop! Can I feel the magic? Yes I can!!!

Tonight we helped our some of our neighbors pack up their truck to move up to Logan. I'm really going to miss their family! The mom and I really enjoyed talking and our kids had a lot of fun playing together! I got a good workout in with taking boxes out to the truck and back. Workin on the muscles!

I'm super excited though because our fence was put in today so we now can let Taylor run loose without fear of her running towards the alley or the street. We won't have random people walking through our yard as a shortcut or thinking it's community property. It looks so good and we're already spending a lot of our extra time out there! BBQ anyone????

I've also made the spontaneous decision that we're going to go camping on Memorial Day weekend with all the other crazy people who have the same great idea. We're going to go down to Moab and hike Arches National Park. I've never been! We've extended the invitation to our friends and some of them will be joining us as well! This will be our first campout with Taylor. Wish us luck!

Day 16: Everything Going Great to What Else Could Go Wrong? 

Shane woke up and headed to the basement to take his practice test (4 hours) for his first CPA exam he has next week. While he did that, I fed Taylor breakfast and worked out. AWESOME WORKOUT BTW!!! We're going to ready and head to the store I tell myself. We ended up going outside to peak at some of the yard sales that are going on. My neighborhood hosts a huge community yard sale. It was like Halloween out there. People going house to house for goodies. I heard about some awesome tamales down a couple of blocks so I went and bought what I could with my sad little $5 bill, stuck them in the fridge, and then headed out for our errands. 

First stop- Home Depot! I was in the search for shade flowers and no one seemed where they were. I finally found this awesome associate who looked younger than I am. She answered every question I had after I told her I was a yard virgin. I found shade flowers and all the things on my list. I even lifted four bags of mulch by myself into the car. Taylor was not a happy camper and needed a nap so we headed back. I stopped by at the tamale house now that I had more change. She was all out of the meat tamales so I couldn't get any for Shane. First Bummer. 

While Taylor slept, Shane and I went out to work in the yard. While Shane was digging up grass to start putting in the mulch around the perimeter of the fence he noticed that our sprinklers ended up on the outside of the fence... Uh oh! It's only by a couple of inches but the posts are cemented in. We called and left a message so we'll see what will happen. Second Bummer. BIG BUMMER.

After cleaning up and throwing stuff into the garbages, Shane went to close the garage door and it hit a piece of wood hanging out from one of the big cans. It made a grinding sound and wouldn't go all the way down even after Shane moved it. It took Shane and a friend both on ladders to get up there and fix the thing. I was scared we broke our garage door motor! Third Bummer. 

At the grocery store, Shane and I decided to divide and conquer. At this point we're just trying to survive the day. I was on a mission to buy all the things required to make the meals in the 5 Day Meal Plan for T25. It's meant to be used right when you start the program to get the best results. I'm determined to get the best results so I made a grocery list and that was what I was going to get! Shane took Taylor and went in search for half of the items. I did the other half occasionally checking in with each other. We're almost done when Shane comes up to me and whispers in my ear that Taylor dropped a glass jar of pesto sauce. It ended up all over his shoes, the floor, and Taylor. It smelled like pesto for aisles. I felt so bad that I was one of those people who spilled something and then had to have the employees clean it up. I would have done it myself but he insisted. Smelly Bummer. 

Finally, we were done for the day. I mean done. We mentally checked out. So we ordered take out from Olive Garden and I went to pick it up. They charged extra for bread sticks and the food didn't have the quality it consistently has when we go there. And they didn't include their delicious mints. Small, but Final Bummer. 

Yes, we went to bed early. 

Day 17: Sunday Is My REAL Favorite Day

This morning, I caught up on my training for BeachBody while Shane spent some time with Taylor playing. I'm not going to let myself get behind again on that because A) I don't want to do it on Sundays, and B) it would have helped to have that knowledge earlier last week. I started the T25 Five Day Meal Start today so I drank my fancy recipe for Shakeology and got my workout in. I love having Taylor near by while I work out. She claps for me and sometimes tries to do the moves. Also, it helps me not feel so silly when I shout out "yeah!" or "woo hoo!" or "We've got this!" or "Focus!". 

I played with my Tater Tot and read her some books. She's always finding books and bringing them to me! 

My AM snack: Nonfat Yogurt with grapefruit zest and honey

Taylor goes down for a morning nap (only on SUNDAYS...) and I rest or hang out with Shane. I took a bath today and read the Ensign. It was the General Conference edition so I was reading the Saturday morning sessions since that was the one that I missed. I love Elder Holland's talk. "Be strong", he says. He encourages us to continue to testify of Christ and to build our foundations on Christ. 

I get to dress nice on Sundays. On weekdays I'm normally looking for clothes in the dark because I don't want to wake Shane. I'm also trying to get ready in 5 minutes because I press snooze too many times on my alarm. 

Lunch: Veggie Burger (yes, that's what I said- but it was way good!) on whole grain bun, with avocado and salsa. Apples on the side. 

Get Taylor ready and give her lunch! Walk two minutes to church! 

I loved the talks today! Do I remember what they about now? Sadly no.  But I remember what I felt and how it motivated me to want to be better! I get the privilege of teaching the amazing three year olds. They are the cutest things ever and amaze me every Sunday! Today the lesson was on our hands and how Heavenly Father gave us our hands to do good! 

Taylor naps again... It is so needed and so appreciated by all. 

PM Snack: avocado, goat cheese, and walnuts wrapped in sliced turkey! THIS IS A KEEPER!

Relax with Shane. Taylor wakes up and plays with us while we fix dinner. 

Dinner: Grilled cod with cumin, sea salt, and lime juice. Shredded on a corn tortilla with cabbage, cilantro, and avocado. Taylor loved it! Shane rated it a 7!

We sat outside and enjoyed our flowers and wished our sprinklers were on the inside of our fence. We talked and were just at peace together.

I took Taylor on a walk to visit a friend. Taylor got out of her seat and got really wet in someone elses yard. I had to strip her down and do the rest of her walk in her knickers with her strapped in. 

We played more with Taylor then read her some books and put her down for the night. 

I just love Sundays. I feel peace, patience, and joy. Today, I was no longer bummed or upset about what happened yesterday. I just enjoyed the day, being at church, and being with my family. 

Day 13- I'm going to be a coach!!!

I'm so excited! Earlier this week I made the decision to become a coach! I will be trained by Beach Body to help others reach their fitness goals and to motivate progress towards a healthier lifestyle! Currently, I've lost 28 pounds and am still going! I am more active, energetic, and feel happier about body than I have since I started college! I love Turbo Fire and will be starting up T25 soon. Shakeology has seriously changed my appetite and my cravings for junk. Joining the Beach Body Challenge in January has changed my life by helping change how I take care of me!

Before picture... 215 lbs October 2014. 

10 Months Postpartum, Size 18, XXL

Progress Picture...28 lb LOSS. May 2014.
Week 17 of Beach Body Challenge.

Size 12, Large

Read my story on previous posts to learn about what I'm doing differently and my weight loss journey. This has been an amazing experience so far and I plan to continue working towards a healthier body and lifestyle- for myself and for my family!  I'll be starting my second challenge soon for T-25! 

If you want to do a Beach Body Challenge to kick off the summer you need to contact me so I can get you on board!!!

                                      -------------------------------------------------------------

I'm going to make some Shakeology and plan a workout this afternoon while I wait for my students to kill it at their competition! We're in Atlanta, Georgia for DECA and I am so proud of my students! I think if they've worked hard and prepared we could have some awards coming our way! 

We walked a lot today and yesterday. That's been awesome! Standing in line for Superman at Six Flags for 3 hours was not so awesome. We spent 6 hours at an amusement park and went on 2 rides! Woo hoo! But the time I've spent with my students and laughed was so much more fun. Today they're starting to compete, but we'll go tour the CNN Center later. 

I miss Taylor and Shane, but I know they're having their own "fun" this weekend as Shane flies solo with Taylor. 

Taylor and Shane having "Daddy/Daughter time" for breakfast!

Day 11- Why be afraid?

So confession time... when I went to the IMC midwives earlier this week they weighed me as part of their regular routine. I remember that when I weighed in with them while I was pregnant their scale was ALWAYS 5 pounds above what I was weighing at home. Even if I weighed myself with the same clothes on and not eating or going to the bathroom in between, their scale always gave me 5 extra pounds. Sadly, my scale could be giving me a 5 pound kindness. Either way, consistency is what matters.

Consistently, I've been hovering between 190 and 195 for weeks. At the IMC, their scale put me at 200!!! I'm going under the assumption that I was probably at a peak for the day of 195 and their scale was giving me the 5 extra. I'm not crazy. I know that either their scale is wrong or my scale is wrong, but the two scales are always 5 off.

It doesn't matter that the scales are off, but what hit me at the IMC was that I still haven't dipped below 190. So I started reflecting on some of what I've learned from Turbo Fire. I asked myself, "Have I worked my hardest? If you don't know your limits, then you haven't been there yet. Can you push harder? Can you jump higher?"  I may have been saying that I care and want to lose more weight, but have I been acting like it? Nope. I know without a doubt, if were still doing the Beach Body Challenge with the motivation and effort that I was putting in at the beginning, I could've taken myself farther. Why not then? Why get comfortable? Why be afraid? Is it overwhelming? Yes. But the great success and changes I saw earlier this year were because I didn't care if it was scary, uncomfortable, or overwhelming. It only made me stronger. I don't regret it AT ALL so I need to be stop being afraid.

Even though today was supposed to be my rest day for the challenge, I did Hiit 15 and will be doing it again tonight. I ate one of my favorite salads for lunch:

Sunrise Salad:

arugula and spinach

cuties, peeled and segmented

glazed walnuts

low fat feta, crumbled

2 slices of bacon, crumbled

balsamic vinaigrette dressing

I'm calculating my calories and will be fixing a new recipe for dinner. I'll post it if it's a keeper!  I will reach my goal to get below 190 before school starts next Monday! 

Mommy bragging moment! Taylor has approached me today at least 15 times to want me to read to her. Different books and different times of day. My little girly loves me to read her books. She never is asking to get down off my lap to go play, she is instead saying "more, more, more" for me to keep reading to her! LOVE HER!!!!

Day 9- sprinng break 2014 woo hoo!

I feel so productive today! We started out our morning with prayer and scripture reading! I worked out to Turbo Fire for 40 minutes and then Taylor and I got ready to go to the park! She loved it so much! She cried when we had to leave. We did laundry together, made an art project with buttons, made some freezer meals, cooked Hawaiian Haystacks, read many books, played, repaired some broken picture frames, and even practiced going to the potty (not me, Taylor)!

It was such a good day. After Shane got home we ate (he said my Hawaiian Haystacks were delicious!) and then headed back to the park! I've  noticed a real difference in our home since we've been regularly reading scriptures and praying individually and together. The Spirit is stronger in our home and we are loving each other with a more Christ Centered love.

Above- Taylor relaxing after a long hard day of fun!

Day 10- We went to a park up north to meet up with some old friends of ours from where we used to live. Those moms are wonderful friends and I've really missed them! It was nice to see how their kids are growing and what they're up to! One of the friends at the park is my Beach Body Coach. She too has plateaued. For me, I think it's because I haven't been advancing in my workouts or in my nutrition. Change makes change. What I'm doing is maintaining. I don't want to maintain though. I want to change and continue to lose. Back to tracking calories tomorrow and working out hard even though it's supposed to be my rest day in the program.

I went back to IMC today about the IUD. Thankfully they were able to take it out... with a lot of yelling on my part. It really hurt! Hopefully my body will heal quickly and will be back to its regular scheduled programming in a month or two. My good neighbor watched Taylor while I had the appointment. When I went to pick her up she was all dressed up. Turns out her own little girl loves to dress up and had quite a fun time dressing up Taylor. I love having a girl because I too loved to dress up when I was younger.

I made cheeseburgers for dinner and should have made a salad with it but I didn't because of time. I should always prep a salad and eat it while I wait for dinner to finish. That used to work really well for me but I became complacent  and didn't think that it was necessary to continue that habit. I was wrong... I love learning lessons along this journey!

Day 2- Making the time

I learned today that I have to make the time for fitness. I have to make the time to read my scriptures. I can't just go throughout my day and hope that this magical window of time will appear where I have NOTHING else that is tempting me to spend my time with. I could always find excuses why now is not the best time to meet these important goals. They have to be more important than a TV show, checking Yahoo News on my lunch break, or surfing Pinterest. 

I wanted to have enough time in the morning before I left to work to read my scriptures and have personal prayer. I was dragging though... with the Monday blues. So I placed my scriptures in bag and told myself I would find the time during the work day. During the precious 30 minutes of my lunch break, I pulled out my scriptures. I didn't want to get my orange hands (I eat Cuties every day for lunch) on my scriptures. So, I hopped onto LDS.org and read where I left off from yesterday. I read chapters 2-6 of Genesis. " Therefore shall a ^aman leave his ^bfather and his mother, and shall ^ccleave unto his ^dwife: and they shall be ^eone flesh."  I love this verse! Having read my scriptures and saying a personal prayer really helped to kick the Monday blues!

My chicken patty and fruit lunch was good, but left me starving when I got home. I'm going to have make some changes there. Also, I want to drink more water tomorrow. I am going to try to go through two refills of my giant water bottle. Maybe that will help. 

Shane and I spent our evening with Taylor going out for ice cream. Seriously, ever since I've been counting calories, I've really come to appreciate GOOD food. The ice cream I had was so not worth it. Which makes it easier to say no thanks for the next time. I had the smallest bowl they had, but for $5 and probably 400 calories... um NOT WORTH IT! I could make a salad that tasted better for cheaper and probably 150 calories!

I put off my workout because I was tired. I need to remember, that I get more energy when I work out! Even on the Turbo Fire workouts, they joke about how people complain that they're too tired to work out, but that working out is what gives you the energy. It is so true! I feel so much better after! So tomorrow I'm going to do 3 things:

1. Drink 2 refills of my giant water bottle at work
2. Work out BEFORE 8pm
3. Go to bed by 10pm.

Also, I received a phone call today about the IUD. Yep- it's completely in the wrong place. They wanted to remove it tomorrow, but it's too hard to get a sub on short notice and more work than it's worth for something that might only take 2 hours. I have an appointment for next week during Spring Break. They're hoping they'll be able to remove it, but it might require surgery because it is damaging my insides. Either way, I'm hoping it will heal by the time Shane and I are ready to grow our little family. 

30 Days of FAITH & FITNESS

Thirty Days... Strengthening my FAITH & my FITNESS

Last night, I went to bed wondering why I always come up with goals and to do lists and always say to myself "I need to wait until X to start". Like when I decided to finally do the work to get healthy, I told myself to wait until the new year. But, even though my Beach Body Challenge didn't start until January 20th, I started working out every day. I just spontaneously started and kept going. I challenged myself to see how far I could go and what kind of results I could get in a set time frame. (With Turbo Fire it's 90 days) I recently bought new pants for work by the way. I'm down from a size 18 to a size 12!!!

So last night, I spontaneously told myself to set a challenge to not only increase my faith but my fitness as well. All the time you read or hear about how writing down your goals, what you eat, etc, helps you to be more accountable. I also know that sharing your testimony strengthens it. Whether it's writing something down or saying it out loud, you become more committed. Invested. It becomes more than a dream or a goal. It becomes an action. 

I WANT to have a stronger spirit in my home. I WANT my husband and I to look at and treat one another with Christlike love. I WANT to have daily personal and family prayer (which I currently don't do). I WANT to continue to pray with my daughter and for her to recognize Jesus Christ. I WANT to follow the commandments and follow the the guidance of the prophets and apostles. I WANT to attend the temple weekly. I WANT to read my scriptures daily. I WANT to read scriptures with my husband and daughter. I WANT those that are around me to know Heavenly Father's love. 

I WANT to end my plateau and get below 190 lbs. I WANT to stick to the Turbo Fire schedule. I WANT to track my calories and exercise. I WANT to make healthier meals for my family that are also budget friendly. I WANT to be able to run 2 miles without stopping. 

My goals and dreams for my faith and fitness are written out and said out loud. I'm committed. I'm invested. I'm taking action. 

This morning, I woke up to my cute toddler and played with her as usual. This time though, I did something different. I pulled out the iPad and showed her the LDS.org video "I am a Child of God". We watched it three times. She loved it! I then, opened up my scriptures and read a chapter with her. I told her we were going to say a prayer together before we started our day. She folded her little arms and cuddled on my lap while I said a prayer. I cannot recall the last time I said a morning prayer... I then proceeded to give her breakfast and I worked out. 

Why have I not been doing this every day? I don't know if I have an answer or if I do and I just don't want to admit the answer. It doesn't matter though. Just like on making the spontaneous change to just start a new habit and commit to working out, I'm making a change. Change will make change. I had a long list of wants written down. If I want those things to change, I have to change what I'm doing. 

For 30 days, I will be writing down my testimony and progress towards these changes. Every day. Thirty days. I have to jump in. No saying that I have to wait for spring break or next month. It's now. It's today. 

I love General Conference. I love hearing messages from my Heavenly Father. I know that when I pray with my daughter that she feels the spirit. I know that my family is sealed forever because of the priesthood we have here on earth and the covenants that we were able to make in God's Holy Temple. I know the scriptures are true. I know that when I read them this morning my testimony was strengthened and my mind was enlightened. I know that the prophet and apostles are called of God and are his messengers here on earth. Their messages today were inspired and their guidance will lead me back to the arms of my Father in Heaven. I know that I am not alone. The Savior knows me and my family. He knows my concerns and my heart. I am so grateful for this testimony.  

No longer someday... it's today!

I've thought about this post for quite some time. I've thought about why I wanted to write it and what I wanted to write. Finally, with courage and no excuses- I'm sharing my health journey and my goals to hold myself accountable and hopefully to inspire.

In college, I was staying up way late and sleeping in until noon on the weekends. I wasn't exercising or caring that I was eating out for most of my dinners. Highly processed foods seemed economical to me so that's what I bought at the store. Growing up, my family didn't cook a large variety of fruits, vegetables, or proteins so I didn't know what other satisfying options were out there for meals. Within one year, I gained twenty pounds. Each year, even becoming more aware of my weight gain, I continued to gain. My first year of college,  at 5' 10" I wore a size 4 and wore a size 8 my second year.


I was nearing college graduation at about 175 and knew something had to change. First, I joined Weight Watchers so I could learn how to eat and live a more healthy life. This was such an eye opener to see how I was eating way more than I needed and how my food choices weren't healthy. I would stay on program for a couple weeks and lose a couple of pounds and then get discouraged because I wasn't seeing the results I wanted and wasn't even getting to a 5 lb loss! I was going to the gym a couple time a week but never really got into it or had accurate measurements of how many calories I was burning.

 I joined WW a couple different times between the age of 20 and 22. I only lost 5 pounds once. Yes, if I stuck to my points I saw small losses but I felt that I was starving myself to get there and depriving myself of the tasty food I loved and craved. I kept binge eating and the process would start all over. At this point, I was wearing a size 10/12.

In 2010, I married my wonderful husband and the weight kept adding on. We started eating more at home and spent less dinners eating out. I got into a Jilian Michael's workout DVD, but that lasted only one month. I started experimenting with recipes and learning how to incorporate different vegetables and proteins in our meals. I also started to experiment with different methods of cooking. I participated in two different ragnars and completed a half marathon. However, the weight kept adding on.

In May 2012, I found out I was expecting our little girl. Weighing about 180, I told myself not to go over the 200 lb mark. During the first trimester, I only ate "little kid" junk food such as macaroni and cheese, spagettios, and top ramen. Those were the only things that sounded good to me. By the end of my second trimester, I reached 200 lbs and people would look at me and ask if I was having twins. My feet were so swollen and I felt so heavy that I didn't have the energy to work out and didn't believe that working out would make me feel better.

My little girl was born on Christmas Eve. Even after warnings from the midwives, I was drinking half a gallon of eggnog per week all throughout December. I was craving liquids and sadly, that was beverage of my choice next to hot chocolate. I ended up at 240 lbs.

I didn't workout during my pregnancy so after I had my little girl I could figure out how to start working out again. My body was weak and I felt crummy. Looking at the pictures from my baby's blessing, I felt so embarrassed. There was a very special 4 generation picture that we took with my grandma, mother, and daughter... but I didn't want to get a nice print of it because of how I looked. During the summer, I would try and go on walks with the stroller or go on runs. My goal was to be able to run a mile without stopping. I never reached it.

Hovering at around 215 lbs throughout the rest of the year, I kept wondering how could I motivate myself enough to make the drastic changes that needed to be made. Obviously I wasn't at a healthy weight. I was wearing size 18 clothes, maternity pants, and a tired/old looking face. I started asking myself questions about the new year. What would keep me going? What food would I need to be eating? What kind of effort would be required? Would I be binge like I did before? Would I give up? If I ever reached my goals, would that mean giving up oreos and pizza forever? How quick would I see progress? What if I didn't see progress or I plateaued? How would I make time for the changes that needed to be made?

New Year's day came. I decided to buy some new jeans. Skinny jeans! I thought I looked funny, but I forced myself to stop wearing my maternity jeans.

Next, inspired by a post from my good friend Jessie Larson I sat down the chocolates at the grocery store and went straight to the DVD section and bought The Biggest Loser Cardio Blast DVD. Worked out to with Bob Harper and Dolvette Quince for the next several days.

Then, Jessie Larson invited me to join a Beach Body Challenge that she was going to coach. She sent me information via Facebook about it and while my motivation was high I decided to jump on it! It would be a 90 day challenge where I would follow a Beach Body fitness program of my choice (Turbo Fire), drink Shakeology daily, and give &receive support on our Facebook Challenge Group. It officially started on January 20th. Up until then I worked every day with The Biggest Loser Cardio Blast.

Once the challenge started, I was little scared if I'd be able to keep up, but I was ready! I learned the moves of the fitness program and got better each day. I've been tracking my calories and progress using myfitnesspal.com. I had my husband take a whole bunch of before shots so I can see the visual evidence of improvement. From all the hard work from the exercise plan, I only wanted to fuel my body with good things. I actually WANTED to eat more vegetables, less calories, more lean proteins, fruits, and less refined carbs. I WANTED to work out instead of watching my favorite show. I WANTED to push myself until my hair was wet with sweat. I started making challenges for myself and pushed myself to reach them. As of last week, I weigh 198.5 lbs which is a 7% loss and am looking forward to reaching a 20 lb weight loss soon.  On average I've lost 1-2 lbs a week.

What's changed? I'm about to start week 6 of the program and plan on getting as close as I can to 170 in the weeks that are left. I even brought my magic bullet with me on a 3 day trip that I took so I could have Shakeology. I have more energy, more stamina, and a love for working out! With TurboFire, I've been able to work out for anywhere from 10 minutes up 50 minutes here at home. I've been able to stay motivated and push through 2 different plateaus. Healthy, delicious meals are on my dinner table every night. I am constantly on the hunt for new recipes! I keep telling myself that I'm worth the change. I work out 6 nights a week and am fueling my body with healthy food.  NO MORE EXCUSES! NO GOING BACK!

What's next? When my 90 days are finished, I want to complete another 90 day challenge with either T25 or P90X3. This spring, I would like to be a Beach Body Coach to help others and to stay motivated!

Lessons learned so far:
1. Always stick to your workout plan even if you don't feel up to it. You will never regret it afterwards. Just push through.
2. Workout and stay active throughout pregnancy.
3. A lot of foods just aren't worth throwing away hard work. (Wendy's and Taco Time are not worth it!)
4. If you're going to eat a lot of calories make it worth it and be sure you won't regret it. (The Wild Rose, Red Iguana)
5. Drink lots of water and always early to bed- early to rise.
6. Stick to a schedule! Especially one that continues to progress and challenge you.

This is the only time in my life where I have stuck to my goals in regards to health and fitness. I feel wonderful and have loved the results so far!!!