Change in Plans

So I am now making a serious effort to consume whole foods as much as possible. I really think that will help me drop. I hate eating meat, but I've got to cut back on the protein powder, too. I see lots of eggwhites in my future. I'm sure using the protein powder and eliminating all other dairy will help. Dairy will keep me bloated. Maybe I should look for other protein sources in powder. I love my Beverly International UMP so much. Maybe I'll try Hemp Protein. Anyone try this?

Goal tomorrow is to make all my meals whole foods.

Day 5

So today was Day 5. How have I done so far? Eh... not as good as I hoped. I'm frustrated. I am eating much cleaner than before and the weight is going up, not down. I'm sure the super long days, screwy meal timing and stress are making my hormone levels wacko. I'm retaining water like no other. I am hoping rest and the next few days off of work will help push a drop. I am fighting off another infection. Sinus and chest congestion. I am hoping that I can heal up and stop my hormonal mess.

I redid my blog layout. I'm going to be changing my flower picture soon, but I'm still working on collage. I felt like a new challenge needed a new look. :)

I'll have more later...

22 Weeks Out & some reflection

This is gonna be a quick one. I am already running late, but the thoughts are here and I need to write them down. My relationship with food has been a deviant one. A perverse one. A dysfunctional one. Just as people often look on drug addicts, alcoholics, battered women or even women who "just won't leave that a-hole", I am sure my relationship with food would be looked at the same way. Food has gently caressed me and told me everything will be okay. Its comforted me, its eased my rage. While it did all its comforting it was wreaking havoc all over my body. Just as any other addict turns to his or her piece of comfort, I chose food. Sure, food hasn't caused me to have black eyes, broken ribs, job loss, family malfunctions, etc. It isn't quite the obvious affliction that many other addictions are, but that makes it more dangerous. Its not as scary or seemingly as harmful as being addicted to heroin. Its just food... Right. I may not be strung out, hooking for my next fix, but I did sell my body. I gave it up when I said yes to sugar, salt, chemical laden crap-out-of-a-box. The years of abuse and addiction I gave myself has long term ramifications. I have to start seeing food as fuel and not as comfort. Its not an easy thing to do. When for so long my best friend has been something that comforted me through so much stress and rage. Its not an easy transition. That's why I fail time and time again. I learn something each time, so its not all lost... but its time wasted mostly.

I am 22 weeks out from the NPC Natural Ohio. For many, that's plenty of time. For me, the clock is ticking. I have a solid game plan. I do have some free meals or morsels allotted. I'm not naive to my prep being around the holidays. No hog-wild feeding frenzies. Just little bites. I love my mom's green bean casserole. So, a little bit isn't going to break the whole thing. I just don't have to have ridiculous portion sizes. Christmas will allow my traditional eggnog, but perhaps a healthier protein version will be concocted. After New Year's is 12 weeks out. I will evaluate what I can do for my birthday at this time. My birthday might just be a glass a wine with chicken and veggies. :P This is a process and I am hopeful this time. More hopeful than I have been. I am not relying on some trainer to just tell me what to do. (not that I am knocking that). I am just finally understanding how the pieces fit together. Things are clicking and I am proud to be doing this myself. I may hire someone a few weeks out to help me tweak if needed, but for now, I know what needs to be done. I WILL be hitting that stage in March!!

DAY ONE of 154 days (22 weeks) has begun!

Big Changes in Progress

So...
Job change on the front. Its going to allow me to actually eat on a schedule. I'm stoked about that. Eating on schedule means I won't freak out for carbs so bad.

I am now using a Tracking Program called The Carrot . It lets me track weight, measurements, mood, energy levels, exercise, food intake and more. It will give reports for each as well as put them together. It will be nice to have this program on my phone too. I highly recommend it.

There is a huge weight being lifted off my shoulders with the changes that are happening. Now I just need to push it and get the fat burning off too.

Quick Update & NEW Fitness & Nutrition Log!!

I have been having a great week. I am so pleased. My workouts have been great and my eating MUCH cleaner. I hope to be back in the gym next week. It gives me more variety. My schedule has just been whacked this week. 12 hour work days are getting tiring. I love having 3 days off instead of two, but it seems like one day is half wasted because I sleep so much. By November I'll be in a new store. MUCH better boss... MUCH longer drive, but it will be worth it to reduce the stress. The drive time will give me a chance to listen to books or motivational speakers, etc. It will be some good self-improvement time.

Its about 7 weeks from KY Muscle. OMG. I'm so excited. I have to make some huge improvements. I don't want to be the fat girl I was last year. I am hoping to say hi to Julie again and I'll be taking pictures of our Diva Girls! Can't wait! I need to book a room soon....

Oh!! I have to do a quick plug for this: Fitbody Training & Nutrition Log . Its awesome. I just ordered mine today. I don't have a trainer right now and this is a perfect way to log everything in ONE place! :D

There are more pages, but I just wanted to share a couple quick pictures from Julie's FB. Awesome!!! I can't wait til mine arrives!!!

Failure?

Nah...

"Realize that there is no such thing as failure. Keep this in mind and you will achieve
all that you conceive in your mind. You never fail, you simply produce results.”
- Dr. Wayne Dyer

I love this. Its so much better than getting into a negative mindset. I am really working hard on mindset right now. I promise I'll do a real blog soon. I'm really pleased with where I am. I have much to accomplish, but everything is in the NOW. Positive thoughts playing in my subconscious are so much healthier than the negative. Whatever action I choose, produces a result. It may be in line with what I desire or believe, it may not. Its up to me to take the action that makes sense. ;)

Motivation....

Its been awhile. :)
Haven't been posting anywhere really, just facebook updates and that's about it. A lot going on in my world... anyway... Sundie posted this on the Diva Board and I thought it was SO good.

"

Every person has a dream, which he or she wishes to fulfill at some point of time in his or her life. It could be about anything – to build a booming business, become a successful model, go on a world tour, serving the less privileged ones or simply getting married to someone you love.

However, dreams don’t come true unless you are motivated enough to work towards your goals and strive persistently until they are accomplished. As the road to success gets tougher, most people lose heart and soon give up on their dreams.

The initial enthusiasm and determination withers away and it becomes extremely challenging to re-motivate yourself again to pursue your dreams with renewed vigor.

If you are one of those who follow their dreams for a while and suddenly lose interest if it takes a bit too long to attain them, then you can use the following tips to stay motivated:

* You need to develop a positive frame of mind and create a vivid vision about the dream. This vision must also portray you as an achiever who has finally got what he always wanted. You must also weigh your strengths and weaknesses carefully so that you can build an effective strategy to achieve your goals. You must also decide how badly you want to attain your goals because without commitment none of the strategies will work.

* Next step is to identify all those things that inspire you and the ones that de-motivate. You may find success stories of other people highly motivating or may have a role model who inspires you.

* Ask yourself if you have the passion, which is a vital ingredient of success. In the absence of passion, it will be difficult to achieve even smaller goals. Career consultants regard passion as the biggest motivator and if believe that if you have passion, NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE!

* You need to find out the reason “why”. Why do you have the dream in the first place? You want to find out the motivation that keeps your dreams alive. When the journey gets tiring, it’ll keep you going on. This process also allows you to have a greater self-awareness of yourself. What do you really want in life? And why do you want it.

* Now that you have found a way to stay motivated, you need to have a back-up plan just in case things don’t go your way. It happens to everybody at some point of time – you believe that by doing ‘A’, you will get ‘B’, however by the end of the day you realize that the outcome was just not what you had expected. This can he highly de-motivating, however, having a good strategy for a ‘rough day’ can boost your confidence in trying times. You may also seek peace of mind and tranquility through yoga or meditation. It will not only have a soothing effect on your mind, but also give you an entirely different perspective to look at problems and failures.

* Another important aspect you must take into account is the environment you are in. Environment includes the surroundings as well as the people around you. It should be positive and energizing or else it will have a negative psychological effect on you. Choose to be with people who support you and motivate you to move on.

So, declutter your mind to eliminate emotional drains and free up energy. It will lift your spirits and also help you to set your priorities right. Don’t lose sight of your goals, reminisce your visions and invent your own path to success! "

This was written by George Tee.