Need Motivation? Here ya go!

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Happy Birthday To Me!

Did you know that I feel better at 42 than 32?

THAT is what eating clean does for you!

I look younger.

I feel younger.

I am happier.

I am in WAY better shape.

 I used to take my birthday as an opportunity to be lazy and eat sugar-laden treats! Hey, I LOVE a good cupcake...BUT this year I am IN THE ZONE. I LOVE the way I feel when I exercise, so YOU BET I had a great sweat session this morning. And you know what? NOTHING tastes as good as feeling lean, healthy and toned. That is SO MUCH better than a few minutes of deliciousness.

So I have a plan! Yep, we ARE going out tonight to celebrate. I get a free surf n' turf dinner. YUM. But I will SHARE a dessert with someone. AND I will not take this weekend off of my goals! 

HOLD ME ACCOUNTABLE! Deal?

Where To Find Me!

Beachbody Coach Summit 2014

I just returned from my first "Beachbody Coach Summit" 

in Las Vegas. 

I had an amazing time! 

Here is just the tip of the iceberg. 

MY OWN SUMMIT MOMENTS

My "Summit Moment" was when Emma Lee Whaley stood on stage and spoke to 10,000 people about HER health story and how she has changed the course of HER life with it. I knew how amazing she was one on one, but at that moment, I KNEW THAT HER PLACE was in front of thousands and millions. Thank you, Emma, for changing the course of MY life. I am so proud to be a part of your life and team!

My "Most Inspirational Moment" was listening to Diana Nyad and her story about NEVER GIVING UP! This is just a small portion of the wonderfully amazing story that is her life!

My "Most Visionary Moment" was seeing Briggite Linford was awarded the Leadership Award. She has only been a coach for two years and has an amazing story!

My "Most Defining Moment" was when the Beachbody Challenge finalists were awarded their $25,000 checks and the winners their $100,000 checks. Each of them have inspiring stories of health and weight loss! Find their videos and watch!

Go here for their stories! 

My "Most Surreal Moment" was meeting members of my time, who I have grown so close to, for the first time in person.  Each one of them have blessed my life and we so missed the rest of our team who was not there. This is all about people!

My "Most Adrenaline Pumping Moment" was doing the Combat workout live with the trainers! We were working so hard that they had to tell us tiles were falling off the first floor ceilings...we were on the THIRD floor! I love this workout!

OH! Working out live with 10,000 other people was pretty dang awesome too!

My "Biggest Regret" Moments were not running into or qualifying for celebrity trainer meet n' greets. I would love the chance to meet Tony and Shaun T. There is something so emotional about working out and they really are inspiring! This WILL BE different next year!

TOP TEN TAKE AWAYS FOR MY TEAM!

1. If you have even one coach under you, you are a leader! They signed up with you, not me!

2. Don't let failures DEFINE you, let them REFINE you!

3. There are many ways to be recognized in this business. (Rank, Elite Millionair Club, Financial Freedom). Choose one that speaks to you and make a plan to get there.

4. You are a valuable MEMBER of Team Inspire Ignite, but YOUR team should be your main focus!

5. My clear vision: my business through the three vital behaviors, challenge groups and my personally sponsored coaches AND teaching my team to be leaders for their team!

6. "There is no 'bad' fitness, but there is 'bad' nutrition. EVERYONE can benefit from Shakeology"!

7. Being face to face with team members, even in casual settings, can be as beneficial as the workshops!

8. Live workouts with the trainers made me realize how far I've come in my fitness and confidence.

9. "We are not a product company. We are a people company"!

10. Even $300 is SUPER CHEAP for a three day, jam packed event full of this much inspiration and information.

SEE YOU ALL NEXT YEAR IN NASHVILLE!

I am a Recovering Pessimist

If you like this, you SHOULD read "Failing Forward" by John C Maxwell! Completely turned me into a recovering pessimist!

BEST JOB in the world!

I am SO excited! I am booking a trip today! You guys know that my family and I travel quite a bit (we are blessed to have those opportunities through hubby's job) BUT THIS trip will be different!

WHY? Because it is going to mean SO MUCH more to me because it will be FREE! I am earning my all paid trip to CANCUN by doing what I love, which is helping people get healthy and happy. I told you my job IS THE BEST! This is just one of the many things I LOVE about Beachbody...I get rewarded for ENDING THE TREND OF OBESITY!

Of course, Mark will be there with me, along with a lot of my friends! The best part is...ANYONE can get in on this action and starting now will:
- KEEP YOU FOCUSED ON YOUR OWN HEALTH GOALS
- Make you GOOD MONEY
- CHANGE your life because you are helping people everyday to achieve SUCCESS! (that is WHY I am SO HAPPY all the time!)

I am starting a new "What is Coaching" Bootcamp on Feb 2nd if you are interested in REWARDING your ACHIEVEMENTS and going to CANCUN with me in APRIL, 2015! Message me and we will chat!

From the BOTTOM of my heart

From the BOTTOM of my heart~

This quote is why I do what I do! It is the fiber of this page, my job and my LIFE. I feel like God has given me the gift of "putting myself out there" and I do JUST THAT. (See yesterday's post on @Behindtherefrigeratordoor:) My goal is to inspire, help and teach you to be the BEST YOU CAN BE!

I have made this my full-time job now, as you know, YAY! I take it just as seriously as when I taught kiddos. My whole heart is in it.* NOT TO MAKE MONEY OR SELL YOU ANYTHING* But to share my story, transformation and skills to help and inspire YOU. Please know that I will share my passion with you and offer you great deals. I will ALWAYS give you opportunities to grow, change and SUCCEED!

I LOVE what I do and feel so BLESSED to have found my passion! With that being said, I have THREE spots left for my next challenge that begins on Nov 4th, you ready to change your life? Grab those spots quick!

Need more planning? Prep now for my awesome challenge that will start after the NEW YEAR! IT is NOT anything like my other groups, this is an ULTIMATE RESET for 2014! What is it? Ask me! 

Thank you for your support! You make my life have purpose and joy!

My Nightmare With A Happy Ending

I have used many things to motivate myself. For example, I took bikini pictures (for my eyes only) and burned it into my mind. I have also used a "celebration board" for whenever I did something healthy I wrote it on a sticky and posted it.

 I have used many other tricks, but two nights ago my subconscious gave me some good motivation with a nightmare. I dreamt that I looked and felt like this again. . .

Please excuse my picture quality, I snapped this from a photo book.

The worst part about the dream was how I felt. I immediately felt sad, humiliated, depressed and hopeless when I felt unhealthy again. Do you ever have dreams where the feelings are so intense that when you wake up you swear it happened? 

That is how it was!

And it was horrible!

I NEVER want to feel like that again...what great motivation!

Hubby and I at my heaviest...thirty pounds from what I weigh now. 

 Hubby and I have been married for almost eighteen years. We have both gained and lost over the years, but at different times. This time we are both on the same path and we are in sync! I can't give you any tips on how we got on the same path at the same time. . . maybe the stars were aligned. 

 It helps so much to have a common goal of good health. Our methods may not always be the same, but our goal is...to be healthy and to stay that way! I can't tell you how much it has impacted all areas of our life and our marriage. 

Hubby and I last month at the Great Wall Mutianyu-
almost thirty pounds lighter than the picture above. 

I am pretty excited that I am only four pounds away from when he married me!

Stress Week: How Do You Relieve Stress?

Yesterday we talked about what is stressing us out right now. How did it feel to identify your stresses? Do you have both good stresses and bad stresses going on in your life? Are there things on your list that you cannot control? Of course there are. Much of what stresses us out is BECAUSE it is out of our control and we don’t like that feeling. I’ve never met anyone, especially a woman, who has said, “Being out of control makes me feel great!” But I have heard people say, “Once I realized that I cannot control it and I let go of it, I felt ________ (lighter, freer, relieved).”

Our goal is not to be stress-free, right? That is never going to happen, and let’s face it, when I think of someone with no stress it seems they might also be irresponsible…for responsibilities bring on stress.

The goal is to deal with our stress in a way where we can continue to be mentally healthy, physically healthy and emotionally healthy. 

What are things that help relieve your stress? (here are mine)

Socializing (hence the reason I started this blog)

Sleep

Whining/Self Pity

Running

Read or Watch TV/Procrastinate

Hot Bath

Reasearch (search the web, find a book about it)

Pray/Scripture Study/Meditate

Massage

A little lovin' in the bedroom;)

Shopping

Now look at your list and dicide them into two categories: 

helps us reach our goal or does not help us reach our goal. 

Keep in mind, you may have some of the same strategies on your list as I do mine. However, we may have them in different categories if our goals are different. My goal is to be mentally, physically and emotionally healthy.

I really would LOVE it if you would share with me how you deal with stress. Maybe you have a strategy that I (or someone else) can use!

Tomorrow we will talk about how exercise and our food choices directly affect our stress.

A Milestone Week

I now weigh the same as when I ran my 

half marathon! 

Why is this important to me? Do you ever have a time that you look back on and say, "I felt so good back then" or "I was really in good shape then" or "I looked really, really good back then"? Well, almost three years ago was that time for me.

And NOW I am there again! Actually, I feel like now I am in better shape than I was back then. Sure, the numbers on the scale are the same but then I was solely running. Now I do run four days a week, but I also focus on weight training, cross training and core exercises. I feel I am a little more well-rounded (not literally) this time around.

What else has changed? 
A few things have stuck out in my mind this week. 
For one, eating is no longer my very favorite past time. Sleep has surpassed eating for me as my favorite way to spend time.  Thank goodness, sleep is healthy for me! 

Second, I don't dread long runs anymore! Why? I think it is because I just run more now. I took to heart that something gets easier the more you do it. Back home, I had to run everyday since I had no other source of cardio, now my four day a week runs are feeling great for my body. Really!

Third, while I still crave sugar every single day, I do not crave bread, chips, potatoes, crackers, etc at all anymore. It has been well over a month since I have had white starches and that is a feat when living in a place that is made up of rice and noodles. 

It really is true that your body is made more in the kitchen than the gym. I had been exercising forever with minimal results and once I cut out those white things from my diet I saw drastic results. 
Onward to the next milestone!
How do you reward yourself when you reach a health goal? Share with us in the comments.

So far, So good! Tips for Travel.

It has been a little while since my last post and all is working out very well. 

Focusing on eating more protein, low sugar and white carbs, has shown great results with me. I say white carbs instead of low carbs because I don't want to discourage myself from fruits. If I were on a diet, maybe I would omit fruits, but I am hoping to omit white starches and excessive sweets long term from my diet.

We recently returned from a week long trip from Sydney and Singapore. I was very dedicated to sticking to my eating plan. I wasn't tempted, very much, by the "food food" my family was eating while I chose salads most of the time. When I got a little resentful was when it was treat time. I found myself getting angry inside while they enjoyed ice cream, etc. So I modified and allowed myself one moderate treat a day. That way I didn't feel like I was on a diet. When others were getting two scoops of ice cream I got a junior scoop. It was perfect for the taste I desired without the resentment or calories. It paid off because I came home right on track on the scale. That is a first for me!

Another thing that helped me was the breakfast choices. We had access to the executive lounge breakfast buffet daily. Each morning I didn't even allow myself to think about eating the stale, mediocre danishes. Instead I chose yogurt and a hard boiled egg. If I was more hungry I would have some fruit also. I steered clear of the greasy bacon, bagels, and fake scrambled eggs. 

Despite the scale agreeing with my choices I did feel lumpy after not exercising for a full week. Don't get me wrong, we were walking a lot each day. However, I did not run once which I am so regretful about. Our hotel was right at Circular Quay on the harbour and it was the most glorious place to run, but leaving my family to do it was a sacrifice I just didn't choose to make. Regret!

In two days I am leaving, yet again, on a jet plane and heading to the US for three weeks! It will definitely be a challenge because for only five days of the entire trip I will be responsible for my own meals. The rest of the time I will either be staying at my in-laws or my parents house. I am determined to stay focused!

One big challenge about traveling for me is eating healthy on travel days (long waits at airports and airplane food). Do you have any tips to help with airport and airplane cuisine? If so, please share in comments below!

Wow! So that is why...

I have sat down to write this post numerous times and hit delete over and over. It is personal. And it has everything to do with the work that I put out on this blog.

So, it is no surprise that for two weeks out of the month I am on track, in balance and relatively rational. Then for the other two weeks I am depressed, unmotivated and pretty irrational. TWO WEEKS! Half of the month! Half of the year! 

I had been to the Dr before, but hubby and I were feeling it was time again to go. I am so glad I did. We now have a plan to try to get me more in balance. After reading this book I learned so many things about myself. 

• I learned the physiological aspect to my symptoms. It is real, just like any other physiological condition.
• I learned that exercise doesn't just help our self esteem. There really are chemicals that changes the make up of your system. PROOF that exercise is mandatory!
• I learned that there is hope and that I don't have to spend half of my month/year as Jekyll and Hyde. 

For over a week now I have stopped eating all white starches and sugar. I know it seems extreme but I have learned that these are poison to me. Before, I was sticking within a range of calories. But I would see what I could still eat while staying within those calories. Sure, that was great for maintenance but not for weight loss. So far, this is working well. The temptations are there but, for now, they are manageable. I keep telling myself, "I know what that tastes like." and "I've met my lifetime quota for that already."

This approach is not for everyone. For me, it is helping me to focus on healthy foods like vegetables and protein. For once, I am focused more on what I eat rather than what I do at the gym.  I have been to three major events this week (one being a huge super bowl party) and I did not eat one piece of bread, potato or treat! Hooray!

I will keep you posted. 

Check In ~ 1/12/13

It's SO good to be back and to be back on track!

Day 5 of My 90 Day American Junk Food Detox!

Challenges of the Week: It has been great to be in a focused fram of mind! Of course, chocolate calls to me daily but I limited myself and recorded it. Saying no to social activities, to stay in my routine of going to the gym in the morning, is and will be a challenge. I love being social and seeing friends and I HATE being late for things. Some things start earlier than what allows me when going to the gym. 

Successes of the Week: The sub-freezing temperatures did not dissuade me from walking to the gym daily. In reference to the above, I did have to be somewhere this week that began at 10:30, on the subway with a transfer. I made it with still doing an hour work out beforehand. I logged my food every single day, and chose foods that helped me detox! I really thought of the mantra "skinny (which I HATE that word) results come from the kitchen, not the gym". My good friend left a comment on my last post talking about switching your mindset on your goals from looks to health. I really, really want to do this. It is difficult when that has been your mindset for over twenty years. Any suggestions on how to change your mindset, please leave me comments!

Weigh In:  down over 3 lbs.

Looking Ahead: Stay on this awesome cycle and work harder to focus on physical fitness goals instead of weight loss goals. In doing this I will reference those in my challenges and successes section in the future.

How did you do this week?

Check in ~ 10.12.12

Pic of the Week
My mandarin teacher and friend, Lily, treated me to a feast!
left to right: spicy noodles, rice "disks" with veggies, baozi with leek and mushroom, sweet and sour pork ribs, "chicken flavored" fish, jiaozi filled with soup. This is cantonese chinese food which is very different from Beijing style- much better in my opinion. 

Challenges of the Week: Getting back into the swing of things after a relaxing vacation is usually a challenge. I always want to spring right back into exercise and counting calories the second I land but I am learning that it often takes about a week to settle back in (and for my airline bloating to subside).  For me, the goal is not to panic.
This week had many opportunities for failure...treats at scripture study, lunches out. I'd like to say I was too busy to go to the gym, but I just simply chose not to on a few days. I simply stayed up way too late on many nights and was too tired in the morning.  NO MORE EXCUSES!
 I did about 50% good and 50% not so good...instead of looking at it as a failure, I see that this week was a step back to my 100% (which WILL be next week!)

Successes of the Week: Part of the 50% good included: I chose to split something at a lunch out. Stopped eating when I was full. On Wednesday I went to the gym and then walked for 2 hours and 40 minutes all around the city. 

Weigh In: down 1.4 lbs

Looking Ahead: This weekend will be the son's birthday party with pizza and brownies (he hates cake. . . my  child?). Have to come up with a plan because I hate pizza, but if I am hungry I will eat it. Must go to gym daily next week...

Hawaii countdown is on! I am using that trip as a road marker on my journey. I would really like to be 10 pounds down by then. 10 Weeks To Go...1 Pound a Week! Let's do this!

The Big Four Oh!

For a full analysis of how I am feeling to turn 40, click here. 

Can you relate?

Suggestions?

Friday Check In ~ 9.21.12

Just an example of how we eat out here in China.
It is tricky to count all the calories, although I did it this week!
Focus on veggies, less on rice and meats. Oh, and I always add extra oil to my log!

Challenges of the Week: Succumbed to the dreaded Dairy Queen, ate a small blizzard only to find out it was 600 calories! It wasn't even worth it. My ovaries feel like they weigh five pounds each, PMS sucks! Went out for Japanese Teppanyaki (all you can eat) for my son's birthday the night before weigh in!

Successes of the Week: Still sticking to my See's Candy plan. I've only had four since I got them! Amped up my running this week. Made healthy choices when going out. I tracked how much water I drink and found, on most days, I drink 1 gallon! Exercised hard six days this week and logged every single meal, except the one last night, it was just too much to even count. Back on track today though!


Weigh In: down exactly 1 pound. (Wished it was more, but happy it is something)

Looking Ahead: Hubby left for Africa today. I won't see him again for ten days...boo! Next Thursday I will weigh in instead of Friday. Leaving for a week in Thailand on Thursday night. I can do it!

Greatness

Enough Said.

Check-In Time~ Four months later!

Remember this post?

It has been exactly four months of sticking to my plan! I am  15 pounds down. My goal was 20, but I am not complaining. Celebrating each and every success!

I checked to see what my weight needs to be to put me in the "healthy" BMI range. I need to lose exactly 20 more pounds. At first this seemed really daunting to me. I haven't weighed that weight since before I was married and it seems too skinny for me. But healthy is my goal and I would love to be healthy!

Since my last post I have been doing a lot of thinking. After I reread it a few times I realized how sad my thoughts were. As much as I needed to change my physical habits, I REALLY need to change my emotional habits too! 

1. My first step is to STOP comparing myself to anyone and everyone.
2. STOP making "how I look" my barometer for all emotions.
3. STOP judging others based on how they look on the outside. I am sad to admit this, but honestly don't we judge others based on our own insecurities? I need to focus on the other qualities of those around me. 
4. START looking at myself as a whole, instead of just focusing on my "trouble spots".
5. Focusing so much on my outer appearance (even though health is a huge part of it) sends the wrong message to my children and everyone else! Even having this blog puts so much focus on my worth based on my appearance. I am not willing to close my blog, but I will START to focus on other aspects of my life contributing to my worth.
6. It's all about balance. I need to work just as hard on my emotional, spiritual and cognitive health as I do my physical health. So from this point forward...this blog will be about ALL of these aspects, not just health and fitness!

So here is to the next four months of over-all healthy living!

Milestone Achieved! Funny (true) Story to celebrate!

Today I completed my 5K training. I use this app. That means for the last eight weeks I have run at least three times a week and today I ran a full thirty minutes without stopping. Yay! I am exactly 10 pounds down from when I started.

Next up...10K training. Running four days a week and another 10 (hopefully a few more) down in the next eight weeks. That will be exactly when I head back to the US for summer!

Me, just before my run, in the awesome
Marriott fitness center locker room. (One of the perks of living in China:) 

Funny story about this milestone of a run...So, I was done and inside my head I was doing a little "party dance" of celebration while walking on the treadmill to cool down. I guess I was also doing a "potty dance" too because as I was walking I felt like I had no control over my bladder and I felt it begin to trickle out! (Female runners: am I right that no matter if you went just before you run, you still have to go right after?) 

Anyhow, I began to panic because the treadmill was in full motion and there was a gentleman right behind me on the elliptical. In a split second I envisioned him seeing me pee my pants, from behind, and I did not know what that liquid would do, or where it would go, since I was on the treadmill. Instinctively I turned my body, thinking I could hide it if he saw the side of my body! Have you ever tried to turn your entire body while on a treadmill? Well, I full on biffed it! Headphones still in ears, Iphone nicely harnessed to the machine. Now pee is for sure escaping! I quickly yank the earphones from my ears and tread backwards to prevent falling flat on my face...luckily this was all managed and I made it without blemish, except to my pride. I hit the emergency stop button and said to the man, "that was scary". Then I headed to the bathroom...

These are the moments I cherish, I tell ya!

Happy New Year!

I have been back from my trip the the US for almost a month now. It was glorious! Oh and eating all the yummy food was glorious too! I even brought back a 6 lb souvenir of weight gain! Well, it was less than I thought it would be.

We recently joined a fitness center. When I say fitness center I mean a glorious Marriott hotel gym and indoor pool. It is at the City Wall Marriott. It is luxurious and smells so good! 

We had been looking for somewhere for the kids to swim. The temp is now below 10 degrees at times, and the air quality is really getting to me so outdoor exercise was not going so well....so we joined for the next six months.

For three weeks now hubby and I have gone. It is so nice to be back on a routine. I continue with my running training app and then do weights and the elliptical on my "off" days. It has been SO great! It is a refreshing 20 minute walk to the gym. Funny, back home I would NEVER have walked 20 minutes to go work out, but here 20 minutes is close-by. It is all about perspective I suppose.

I also went back to my tried and true "Lose It' App on my iphone. I had told myself that I cannot do it here in China because the food is so different...but that was just an excuse. There are plenty of chinese dishes in the data base and the key is to record what I eat. Even if it is not 100% accurate it is still preventing thoughtless eating. I can go on and on about how my perspective has changed...but I will save that for my 6 month anniversary blog post on here. Stay tuned.

EDIT~ I decided that this year I am going to begin something very courageous. On the first of every month I am going to take a picture of my front and back in a swimsuit.  I will use it for my own motivation. I am a visual person and this image is imprinted in my head. Also, it will be interesting to compare the pictures each month. Think I'll post them? NO WAY!