Journey to Competition

In six years I've managed to set several fitness goals.  Goals I set and achieved include;

• Losing 60 plus pounds

• Learning Muay Thai

• Complete a half marathon (2)

• Complete a 15K Trail Run

• Master Pull-ups

• Become an RKC

My goals for 2015-2016:

1. Graduate January 2016 with my Bachelors in Kinesiology Major Fitness Management and Personal Training and Minor Health Education. Can't wait! Only three more classes remaining plus my internship.

2. Compete in April 2016 in my first Bikini competition.  

It's important to have goals in order to keep you motivated.  Is it necessary for them to be something big?  NO! Goals can be as simple as; I will train four days a week.  This is a simple goal for someone who wants to see more results but only goes to the gym once a week.  Goals are prioritizing something you want and working towards it with a plan.   "I want to go on vacation to Europe."  When do you want to go?  How are you going to pay for it?  Set the plan and put yourself into action to achieve the goal.  

My goals aren't for everyone and that is okay.  Don't discourage anyone if they tell you something they desire to achieve.  If you don't agree with their goal it's okay.  Be there to support them and give them encouraging words.  Listen don't speak.  Sometimes people just need you to listen without giving input.  I am putting my goal out there because if I don't I won't do it.  I will bail out because I am terrified or don't believe I can get myself ready.  

Road to training Workout

Hex Bar Deadlifts     Set 1 195#/12 Rep

            Set 2 - 205#/10 Rep

            Set 3- 21115#/10 Rep

Step-Ups         Set 1 - 88#/ 12 Rep

            Set 2 - 88#/11 Rep

            Set 3- 97#/ 8 Rep

Renegade Rows    Set 1- 35#/ 12 Rep Rt/Lt

            Set 2- 44#/12 Rep

            Set 3- 53#/ 8 Rep

Floor Press        Set 1- 35#/12 Rep Rt/Lt

            Set 2 - 44#/ 8 Rep

            Set 3- 44#/8 L/ 9R Rep

Double Kettlebell Cleans

            Set 1- Dbl 35# / 12 Rep

            Set 2- Dbl 44#/8 Rep

            Set 3- Dbl 53#/6 Rep

Single Kettlebell Press

            Set 1- 35#/12 Rep Rt/Lt

            Set 2- 44# / 8 Rep Rt/Lt

            Set 3 - 44#/ 8 Rep Rt/Lt

Cardio- 53# Kettlebell One Arm Swings 100 Reps in 5:00 minutes

Skill- Turkish Get-up 10 minutes 1 R + 1 L , 5 Sets with 5 second pause each transition

30# Kettlebell

Preworkout- 8 oz coffee

Post Workout- Beverly International Muscle Provider (1 Scoop) 8 oz water

1 Small apple

Time for New Goals

In all my fitness and nutrition classes one thing that is repeated is without a specific goal it's going to be difficult to achieve anything.  It's true I mean what would you be working towards? It would be like running down the street blindfolded you're probably not going to make it far before hurting yourself or worse being hit.  

How can you change your lifestyle without a goal?  How can you continue being healthy without goals? Yes I reached the healthy life I wanted to achieve and for me it's little things I want to do.  I would like to get over my fear of bicycling and do a triathlon.  I would like to learn and master Olympic Lifts. I would really like to compete in a CrossFit competition.  I like setting new goals but I also understand I need to focus on one at a time. 

This is true when you begin a weight loss journey or try to improve your health.  I have clients that want to eliminate their type 2 diabetes because they know it can be reversed.  What action plans should you take?  Well the hardest part for people to understand is diet and other poor choices like smoking and alcohol can be huge factors.  Only beginning an exercise program isn't going to give you the results you're looking for so you need a plan for eating. 

I hate the word diet! I didn't diet instead I set a goal to eliminate my sweet tea addiction.  I went from two or three a day to one a week and eventually none.  I implemented a no fast food policy which meant fast food would be eliminated to once a week but only specific restaurants.  I added drinking a gallon of water a day and carried a one gallon jug so that I could actually see my results of reaching that goal.  As I got more confident and was able to successfully achieve these goals I began to add more. You don't want to put all these rules and make changing your life miserable because you won't want to continue.  

Once you follow these small but possible goals you will begin to see the difference as well as feel more energy.  Then you will feel like tackling an exercise program or just becoming physically active.  My advice for this is find something you have wanted to do but was too fearful.  Mine was kickboxing, I always wanted to do kickboxing and not the cardio kickboxing class but actual Muay Thai Kickboxing like MMA fighters do. I went and tried it and fell in love.  I learned self-discipline and increased my confidence as well as shedding another 35 pounds! 

Just remember when you're talking to someone that you feel is fit and you think it's absolutely ridiculous they may have more goals or that they still control their eating; understand it's because they want to continue being healthy.  By continuing to eat right and exercise I'm increasing the longevity of my life and the possibility of enjoying and being active with my grandchildren.  Don't dismiss these people.  Also some people require exercise to control anxiety and depression so it may also be their medication.  

Good luck and set short term and specific goals to get started.  

Are you Determined?

I know from my own experience this is true, “there is no force equal to the strength of a determined woman”.  When I first began my journey to lose weight I was unsure of how I was going to achieve my goal.  One day I was told my goal might be unrealistic and I was possibly setting myself up for failure.  At that very moment I was more determined than ever to continue on and reach my goal.  I succeeded and I surpassed that goal.  Not only did I lose the weight I wanted but I became healthier than I’ve ever been in my life.  Also changing my life has opened doors to many new opportunities for me and I enjoy encouraging others to reach their goals.  I’ve met people who’ve inspired me along the way.  I train with some great coaches and my best friend is a huge fitness junkie like me.   I’ve watched moms just like me that had low confidence and just weren’t sure if they could achieve their goals, dig deep and succeed. 

Starting out I was terrified of the gym.  Now I break PR’s of my own and I train other women to be strong and not intimidated by the barbells and dumbbells.  These ladies embrace their strength and their defined arms, legs and booty’s they’ve achieved.  Focus on you and remember all the skinny, no muscle girls on television on magazines at the checkout aren’t who you want to look like.  Embrace your body and learn to listen to it!

Remember to stay focused and most importantly be determined to reach your goals.  Don’t let others discourage you!  If you fall off the wagon just get back up and keep going!  Find friends with likeminded goals and the best place to do that is a local boot camp or gym.  You never know you might find a mom at the park ready to change her life too. 

New Life Birthday

Summer of 2008 (180 pounds) 

Have you been on the weight loss train before like me?  If you are like most people you start out all gang buster and have the full intention of dropping a good 30 pounds; then a week goes by and you are back to eating unhealthy.  Your body is so sore from the one day you decided to exercise and you can't imagine doing it again.  Guess what you aren't the only person.

Do you know what a "New Life" birthday is?  Probably not but here it is; the day I made the decision to change my life and the first day I began my weight loss journey it became my "New Life" birthday.  I didn't just change my life, I saved my life and my families lives were changed too! January 12, 2009 a day I will always remember, a day I took my life back and a day that is permanently a part of my body; tattooed upon my right foot. When someone asks me if it's one of my children's birthdays I explain; no it's the day my "New Life" was born.

Like you before I made the decision to truly make a change, I tried several times to lose weight and failed miserably. I would buy all the latest exercise videos; if I didn't see the results I wanted by the end of the first week, I would give up.  Today everyone wants a quick fix to weight loss. I mean why not?  We have fast food, drive-thru oil change, Internet on our phone so quick and easy is the norm.  We live in a society today that truly has become a "fast" nation but the only problem is we are killing ourselves quicker then in the past.  More of our population of children are suffering from diabetes or obesity. It's time to take control of our lives and enjoy it with our children and our grandchildren.   Set good examples for your children and help them become active too.  The bigger picture is knowing that weight loss is a lifestyle change and it's not quick or easy.  You have to put good things into your body to get a good body.  If you've ever heard someone say, "abs are made in the kitchen" or "losing weight is 80% diet and 20% exercise" they aren't kidding.

Learning to eat is the most important way to successfully lose weight. Another way to increase your success is to take multivitamins, Omega 3, and get your system running like a well oiled machine once again.  Don't think that you can't have the body you had back in your younger days.  I'm here to tell you it can be done.  After successfully losing over 60 plus pounds in eight months; I know it can be done.   I did it by incorporating healthy eating, supplements and exercise.  I went from a binge eater; who couldn't bend over to time my shoes without almost passing out, and I looked like I was six months pregnant, to a "clean" eater and looking like this. Most importantly I watched a very dear friend of mine go from being over 400 pounds and now he is around 225! He suffered from high blood pressure, Type II diabetes and other ailments. Now he no longer suffers from these health problems and this was achieved the natural way with proper diet and  exercise.

I am a fitness instructor.  I teach; kickboxing, strength and endurance.  I run a boot camp program during the spring and summer months for women three days a week; outdoors, rain or shine.  I coach women and men to lose weight and I have had proven success.  I have clients now they are great friends and some have lost 40 pounds or more.  I provide weight loss coaching online for people all over the Untied States and I've even worked with out of country clients.

Summer 2011 - Weight Loss Maintained for  three years now! 

My passion is to help make the community healthy again.  Everyone doesn't become overweight without some reason.  People aren't lazy and a lot of weight gain is due to events that happen in someones life that just takes over.  I know unfortunately I was one of them. I gained 50 pounds in about a year and a half.  I was a walking time bomb.  I suffered from postpartum depression because two of my four children were born so close together.  But all of that changed on my "New Life" birthday January 12, 2009.

I encourage you to contact me if you want a "New Life" birthday. I will work with you and help you reach your weight loss goals and get the real you back.  I don't want you to hide behind big clothes, or be embarrassed to go to parties or out to public places.  I know the anxiety caused from all of those situations.

Take the next step and contact me. Email me on my website if you are interested in learning how to lose weight and become happy again.
 www.skinnymomchallenge.com
http://www.advocare.com/11118654
Find me on Facebook at Skinny Mom Challenge Group page!


Ask me about the new 24-Day Challenge available!

Best wishes and Happy Thanksgiving Week!

Goals and Fat Blasting

It is time to dust off your goal sheet. If you haven't been faithfully looking at your goal sheet you really need to see just how far or close you are to your goals. You cannot successfully lose with if you don't make a plan! People who set goals have the greatest success with weight loss.

The holiday season is fast approaching and you do not want to get sucked into gaining your weight you have successfully lost. It is time to hit the gym and do some fat blasting circuit workouts, join a class, and find a workout partner to push you. If you don't go to a gym then purchase the Jackie Warner, XTREME TIMESAVER TRAINING DVD, guaranteed 30 minutes of fat blasting strength and cardio workout. This workout will tone your body and burn that fat!

Persistence Pays

When you are working on goals there are days you will find you have setbacks. Don’t get discouraged and quit, instead pick up and try again. Instead of always thinking how you want it now, start thinking of how you are going to get there. In time it will come! I love the saying Rome wasn’t built in a day, so don’t expect the scale to say you have lost five pounds in your first week, two weeks, or even three. Sometimes your body takes a little bit of time to get into the groove and once you’re in it’s on. Plus remember you didn’t become overweight overnight. Focusing on persistency instead of instant results will keep you from getting discouraged and quitting once again.

There are days you are going to be off your game. You will eat badly or you will just refuse to get out of bed. Don’t sweat it! Get up the next day and start again keep your focus on your goals and you will be sure to succeed. If you haven’t set goals then you are going to spin your wheels. It is very important to have many goals. Don’t focus on the BIG number; instead break it down into smaller and easier goals.

Daily goals: eliminate pops from your entire day. If you can make it through your first day then I’m sure the second will be that much easier.

Weekly goals: consistently hit the gym or exercise at home at least three times a week for no less than 30 minutes.

Monthly goals: lose 4-5 pounds and you’re thinking that’s it? Why only 4-5 pounds? Well because healthy, realistic weight loss is 1-2 pounds per week and since there are only 4 weeks in month average it out. Another great way to reach your goal is by taking your larger number of weight loss say 50 pounds and divide it by 2 (pounds per week) your answer should come out to 25 (weeks). Now you know it should take you about 25 weeks give or take a little to lose 50 pounds. This is totally doable I know this because I lost close to 60 pounds in 28 weeks!

If the challenge is not working for you then ask yourself, how committed am I to this challenge? Are you just luke warm and only going through the motions or are you really committed to making changes. Have you said, “I really need to make positive choices daily”. Do you find yourself saying, “I’m going to start working out tomorrow” or “I’m going to start eating healthy tomorrow.” Don’t put yourself off any longer. It’s ok the old you was the slacker, weak, and wanted pity for becoming overweight. The new you is strong, happy, confident, and best of all kicking some serious booty losing weight. Now which one are you?? Make a commitment, be persistent and suck it up! This journey is going to be tough and there will be a lot of blood, sweat, and tears but if you can unleash the stronger women inside of you it’s completely attainable.

Preparing for the Mini

The alarm clock went off at 5:15 this morning and I hit the snooze button only once, while thinking to myself, do I really want to do this? Today is the first day to help me reach my next goal. My goal is to run the Mini Marathon and finish it.

Going to the car I realized it's cold and drizzling rain and I am going to soon be running in this. I was nervous about how far I could even run. I do cross training cardio but I don’t run long distances. I love spinning, kickboxing and HITTS but this is the extent of my cardio. I am not a runner! I get to the gym and meet up with a few of my friends from there and we head out. My goal is to make it the 3 miles they have determined we are running. At this time I have butterflies in my stomach because I get a little nervous running outside and I'm more nervous because it's dark. I suck it up and off we go. We're running down roads and into neighborhoods, by about the 3/4 mile mark I am huffing and wondering what the heck was I thinking? I don't have running shoes and I am going to run 3 miles! I stopped to walk for about a minute and I continue on while Penny is saying, “you can do this, you're doing great”! I keep pushing and I'm pushing myself past my comfort zone. I think I walked about 3 times during this entire run but never long enough to really get my heart rate down. It really helped having someone encouraging me along the way and someone to talk to while running just to keep my mind off of running.

I didn't love the run but I loved the feeling of accomplishment knowing I just ran 3 miles for the first time in my life. I ran 3 miles and walked very little of it. Like I said before I want to achieve many more goals and this next goal is to finish the Mini Marathon. I believe with the group started at the Community Life Center and all of us training every Saturday morning I can reach this goal. Having others to encourage me and push me during our run makes me really push past my limits. I am looking forward to my next run!

When you are trying to lose weight you really need to set goals. Set physically challenging goals to help you accomplish what you are setting out to do. Losing weight is one goal but breaking your journey down into several goals will help you reach your potential and realize you can do so much more then you really think. I honestly don't run and I have always hated running but I know I have wanted to run the Mini Marathon and always put it off. Not anymore! New me, new life!

Break down your BIG goal. If you want to lose 55 pounds then take that number and divide it by 2. It should take you an average of 27.5 weeks to reach this goal. Now all you need to do is break this goal down by 8 week goals. This is about 3-4 Skinny Mom Challenges! During your 8 week goals set goals to accomplish a fitness goal you have wanted to achieve. Like taking up spinning and completing 8 weeks worth of classes. You will be amazed at what you will lose by adding spinning to your workouts on top of eating healthy. Try this out and let me know what kind of goals you are setting and how you are reaching your goals.

GOOD LUCK!

Dream Boards

Making a dream board is a great way to stay motivated during your challenge. Here is an example of Kerri's dream refrigerator, Kerri is a mom of two little girls, she has completed two challenges and just started her third challenge.

Here's what Kerri's dream board consists of and what it is in her own words.

Top 10 Bikini Bodies-because one of my big goals is to look hot in my bikini again
My favorite inspirational quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson "What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us" I AM strong, I CAN do this, and no difficult task lasts forever!
My very first before picture and my most recent after picture-I've made this much progress...why stop now???
Pictures of me before I got pregnant with baby #2-I was comfortable in my own skin then and I felt great!
Reasons to keep going: I'm getting healthier, I'm setting a good example for my kids, how great I feel after a workout, etc.
Motivational quotes from real people in my life that prove I'm working toward my goal. They can see it, too!
My "inspirational" card from you after the 1st challenge.
A run-down of when I should eat and some ideas for quick meals in case I'm in a hurry. Also, ways to save on calories.
Some strength exercises. These are handy when I'm waiting for lunch or dinner to get done-I can get in some strength while I wait!
My Ritter's magnet. I've written on it "Just say no!" Ice cream is my weakness, so I chose my favorite kind and looked up all the terrible nutritional info on it and posted that, too.
Dead center: my goal sheet! I see it everyday (several times a day) so I am reminded that I'm always working toward my goals. I also keep track of how many times I work out each week on there.

Kerri said it so well. This board has a lot of meaning for her and yours should too. If you are really passionate about making changes in your life and really reaching your goals a dream board will be a great tool. A dream board is very encouraging, inspiring and a great motivator. It's important to set goals and to see your goals daily. People who set goals are far more likely to reach their goals. Setting goals will help you achieve your weight loss and seeing them daily will help you continually work towards those goals. When you see your dream board it will help you stay motivated and keeps you accountable. I loved Kerri's idea to use the refrigerator because when she's making meals for her family she can see what her ultimate goal is and it also helps her refrain from getting into the refrigerator for unhealthy foods or just simply overeating.

If you have a dream board you would like to share please send me a picture, I would love to feature your ideas on the blog or our Skinny Mom Group Page. If you have other ideas I would love to hear them. Send you ideas or pictures to skinnymomschallenge@yahoo.com

Focus on Goals

In order to lose weight you must set goals. Without goals this won't be a journey it will be a struggle and you will continually focus on the negative instead of the positives. This will cause you to give up again. You must set realistic goals too. You cannot expect to lose 25 pounds in 8 weeks because realistically you will end up gaining more weight back. Healthy weight loss is 1 -2 pounds per week and that's it. You need to also realize that your body weight changes several times throughout the month, you will see the scale go up 1-3 pounds in a day. This is not physically possible! What is it you ask? Well most of the time it is water, salt and a lot of hormones. You just need to realize that being a women we sometimes get the raw end of the deal. I'm kidding! Just realize that our bodies change a lot and your weight will fluctuate don't sweat it.

Instead of focusing on the number focus on goals. Here are a few examples of some goals you should be trying to achieve right now.

1. If your waist measures over 35 1/2 inches you have a much higher risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, and diabetes. Set a goal to lose those inches and focus on getting below 35 1/2 inches try setting a goal for at least 30 inches to get you started.

2. Keep a calorie journal for 7 days. Can you set a 7 day goal? Sure you can! I hear a lot of my challengers say, "I just don't know what happened, I worked out really hard". Well maybe it was the food. Count your calories for a week and lets see what you might be doing wrong.

3. Set a goal to lose 5 -10 % of your weight. If you don't want to focus on the numbers on the scale focus on the percentages. Just remember if you have lost 2% great job! Think positive!

4. Eat breakfast every morning at least 1 hour after waking and drink two 8 oz. glasses of water. This should be your first little goal! You'll be amazed what your body will do if you just feed and re-hydrate it when you get up in the morning. I know, I know you say, "After I eat breakfast I'm always hungry." Really? You should be! It's because you have given your metabolism a jump start. At least 2 hours after eating breakfast eat a healthy snack, then 2 more hours eat lunch. You should be consuming most of your calories between breakfast, snack and lunch. Do not hold onto your calories till the end of the day and do not eat less calories then you need. Your body will keep all of your fat and eat up all of your muscles if you do this. Saving calories until the evening will cause you to graze and eat more calories then you are allowed. These calories will then be stored as fat. Focus on healthy breakfasts and lunches.

These are just a few simple goals you can set for yourself and achieve within the next 3 weeks. Focus on setting goals for the holidays. Just because it's the holidays doesn't mean you will need to go hog wild when you see all the wonderful food. Make healthy choices, use portion control, and most of all STOP eating when you feel full. Drink lots of water before you eat then you want tend to eat so much food.

Tips and Tricks for Successful Weight Loss

Here are some helpful tips and tricks to help you reach your goals.

Step 1: You need to reach way down into your heart and soul and truly admit you have a weight problem. Don't deny it any longer and make the decision to lose weight. This will help you set your mind to your goals and really focus on the road ahead.

Step 2: Stop making excuses! Don't say I will workout tomorrow and I will eat better tomorrow. It's time to start eating healthy and living healthy today regardless of if it's convenient for you or not!

Step 3: Build a team. If you are part of my Skinny Mom Challenge you have reached this goal. Use your team as a way to support you and push you. This team is here to help you learn and everyone is struggling with the same issues you are. Also your family, friends, coworkers, trainers, exercise partner, and husbands can all be a part of your team. Having support will keep you on track and help you reach your goal.

Step 4: Clean out your pantry, office, car and wherever you stash food. If it's bad for you and you know it get rid of it! Don't leave foods that will tempt you and sabotage you from reaching your goals. These items will cause you to overeat. Replace bad foods with healthy choices like, fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean meats and low-fat dairy foods.

Step 5: Set goals and realistic ones at that. Break your goals down into smaller goals. Here is what I did and this is what I encourage all of my Skinny Moms to do. My weight loss goal was to lose 43 pounds so I took 43 pounds and divided it by 2. The 2 is for 2 pounds of weight loss each week. This is a healthy and realistic goal to achieve. This told me it would take me 21.5 weeks to achieve my goal as long as I was 100% committed to reaching my goal. Then I divided my BIG goal into 4 little goals. I broke the numbers down and decided my fist 8 weeks I wanted to lose about 15 pounds. This way I wasn't focusing on the big number. If you focus on the total weight loss you will be more likely to give up because it seems so hard to reach.

Step 6: Make daily changes to reach your long term goals. You can do this by making little steps for example eat extra fruits and vegetables a day, try a different exercise routine, work out an extra 30 minutes a day, play a game with your kids that is active like kickball or ride bikes. Focus on the day to day tasks not the big picture!

Step 7: Set up you calories. The best way to learn what calories you should be consuming based on what you are trying to achieve is visit www.webmd.com. On this sight there is a BMI calculator and you can enter in your age, height, weight, gender, pant size, goal weight loss and what type of activity level you are working at currently. This site will tell you what your BMI is, your calories you should be eating and what it will take for you to lose up to 2 pounds per week. Once you have your calories stick to them! Don't eat less than what you are supposed to eat. Why? Because when you eat less your body believes you are starving yourself and it will go into an emergency mode and store all of your fat just so it can survive. Think of your calories as a checking account balance. Do you want to spend your money on foods that will not fill you up and that are unhealthy or would you rather feel satisfied. Don't waste your calories on drinks! Yes, there are calories in drinks and if you didn't know this then I suggest you start reading labels.

Step 8: Plan to be active at least 35-60 minutes a day. If you are going to only work out for 30-35 minutes then make sure it is a very intense workout so that you are effectively burning calories. You cannot lose weight just by eating healthy sorry, it's time to get off of the couch and start taking control of your life.

Step 9: Don't worry about setbacks! When I first began my weight loss journey my first couple of weeks I didn't see the scale move at all. I was discouraged at first because I didn't understand how I could be working out 6 days a week and the scale wasn't moving. Well what I wasn't paying attention to was my clothes were getting loser and I was losing inches! Just remember it's not always going to be an easy journey. You will cry and want to stop but you need to make sure you remember YOU CAN do this and YOU WILL! Never give up and remember you have friends and other challengers here to push you.

Step 10: JOURNAL! This is a big one and if you're like me I tend to hold a lot in. Don't! Let everything out in a journal because this will help eliminate stress and stress causes weight gain. Trust me I know three years of stress and depression and I packed on 43 pounds to show for it. I want to write in your journal as much as you can and I encourage you at least once a month to go back and read some of your past journal entries and see how far you have come. You won't believe it when you do. You will become so much stronger mentally just by releasing all that you have in your head and you'll notice things won't be seem so difficult.