When you know its sticking!

So today I was BUSY! I had cakes to make...yes cakes. I bake cakes. Its kinda good though, I smell them and occasionally have to taste test them, but I never really want a piece of cake! I guess its like people that make pizzas all day get tired of pizzas. So back to what I was saying. Busy this morning, so I didn't get to go to the gym....but I had intentions of going this afternoon. Well...the weather was nasty. I mean icy nasty to where they closed the gym early. So guess what? Cant believe I am saying this.......I HATE I MISSED THE GYM TODAY! Crazy huh?! So that is when you know its STICKING! :)

Weigh in and inches lost

Been so busy lately, but still on the wagon! I have been able to get to the gym almost everyday. Eating has not been tip top but pretty good. Yesterday I was able to get weighed and measure at the gym. This is something they offer so that you can keep up with your progress. My weight was 229. This was after a work out and weight training too. So this morning when I weighed I was back down to 225. Which I am so happy with!!!! Only 26 more pounds and I can kiss the 200s good bye!!! Cant weight! <---he he

So since Aug 2012 I have lost 26 lbs. This is a total now of 69lbs.
I have lost 15 1/2 inches. A total of 27 1/4 since joining the gym in May 2012.

So what diet are you on............

So what diet are you on...............well.......its kinda like this, diets DO NOT work. They may help you lose weight for a while but it has to be a lifestyle change for it to last. So nope no diets here. Every change I have made is one that I know once I do reach my goal weight I will still be able to continue doing. I don't see anything wrong with jump starting your self. I am not good with that, I just take baby steps and work my way there.
For those of you who have ask me what I have done or what I eat here is just a few things I did in the beginning that may help.



Cut out sodas, diet sodas too. Water is the key.

No more fast food. If you have a problem with this one, do your homework on fast food. That alone will make you not want it.

Cut out whites. White potatoes, white rice, white bread and white pasta.

No more sugary cereals or pastries

Cook more at home! Even if you cook an "unhealthy" meal at home, It will be healthier than eating out.

Read labels. Don't be blind to whats in your food. Start with calories and fats. Then start educating yourself on whats in your food. I'm still learning this one, so as I find stuff Ill post it.

Shop the parameter of the store! Stay away from packaged, frozen and boxed meals. Again read the ingredients. Look at that long list of stuff you cant pronounce. If you cant say it, God don't want you eating it!
Stay as fresh as you can.

Im taking a class in the next few weeks about eating cleaner, so as I learn it, I will pass it on.

Pumpkin Banana Smoothie

Pumpkin Banana Smoothie

Serves 1 

3/4 cup almond milk ( or coconut milk) 

1 cup crushed ice

1/2 frozen banana ( I used a whole fresh banana too! ) 

1 tsp ground flaxseed

1/3 cup pumpkin puree ( fresh is best, but can will work) 

1-11/2 TBS maple syrup ( or honey) 

1/4 tsp of each, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger

Options: Add a handful of spinach! 

Place in blender and blend well! Enjoy immediately! 

I got this from a friend I have met at the gym, she is actually a health  coach. She is so full of knowledge! Be sure to like her on Facebook! 

https://www.facebook.com/CarolNeesHealthCoach

Made to Crave

Did you know our bodies were made to crave? God made us to crave......HIM. I have been a Christian for many years. Almost too many years to admit because I should be further along in my journey, but I have had some set backs. All due to my own sin getting in the way. Craving other things than Him. Please understand that being a Christian does not mean you are perfect. It means the devil works harder on you than others to keep you from God. Some are strong enough in their faith to not drop completely off the path. Me on the other hand, not so much. I am very ashamed of this. So if you are reading this and knew me at a time when I was living like the world, all I can ask if your forgiveness too.

So back to the topic, in the fall of 2012 I took a bible study with a friend of mine, Marlainia. We meet at her house once a week and had a book and a work book to go by. I made new friends and had a wonderful time fellowshipping and knowing I am not alone in this.
The title of the book is Made to Crave by Lysa Terkeurst. Wow.....lets just say my eyes were really open during this 6 week course. I realize I was a stress eater when I had my son. I think I have blogged this part before. What I didn't realize was that taking my problems and my stress to a bag of chip or brownies was not only harmful for my body, but SINFUL. Yea there is that word again.

Have you ever had a best friend or a spouse have a problem and not tell you. A burden that they have carried around for weeks or even months. And then finally it comes out. And you sit there and say, why didn't you come tell me! And that feeling you get of why wouldn't they tell me so I could help? That is how God feels when we don't take our problems to Him. He wants us to come to him. He wants to hear our problems, small and big. So anytime something else comes first, well, that's not so cool to Him. This has really struck me in the gut. How and why did I trust Doritos, Cheetos, brownies and cookies instead of God.

God made wonderful foods for us to eat. With lots of color and different taste. So now my focus is to eat healthy, and more natural. To eat things HE made. Not a scientist.

So this losing weight thing, is now something I know I can pray about and get help from. Get help from someone that is much stronger than me. Someone that can help me accomplish my goals. For the reason I do it, is to serve Him more. So I can raise my son to love Him. So the time I am given on this earth is to be a help to others and not a burden.

Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

One more thing, have you ever heard that phrase "Claim it!"  The Lord wants us to have goals too. As long as the goals are according to His plan, he will let us "claim it".

Proverbs 16: 3 Commit thy works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established.

God wants you to be healthy and eat right and get exercise . So this just means you need to claim it! Trust that God will help you in this journey.

Get on your bikes and ride!

 Today I did an hour long ride class. When I 1st starting the gym I would walk by that spin/ride class, I would see those tiny bicycle seats and think, oh no......NO Way!!! Well one of my friends actually taught the class and encouraged me to try it out. So I am in this "change of life" thing and thought I have to, I have to do this 100%. I have to try out everything I can here ( gym) to get the full benfit.   I will never know until I try right?

The only class he teaches is 545.....AM......yes AM.......So I go. I get on that bike.
OUCH! OUCH! OUCH! Its like sitting on 2 broom sticks. Sideways brooms sticks! So yea, get that in your head. OUCH! And even though I have a very very well padded rear, that does not come in handy here.

Well the class is about 50 min all together. I get about 30 into it, and CAN NOT take it anymore. I am hurting so bad. I couldn't sit down, my legs were too weak to stand up and I just got off my little bike, and tried to slid out the door! Never to look back at that class again.

Today, 45lbs lighter and stronger than I think I ever have been, I do this class 2 -3 times a week!!! I have got to where I dont even look back at the clock! :) I even used the money I had made during Christmas with my cake business to buy ride shoes! Yes ride shoes. Shoes that are only for ride class. I spent more money on them, than shoes I wear everyday! That is how much I enjoy it. And the ride is so much smoother! So if you have the chance to go to a ride/spin class, don't shy away. I get the best cardio out of there, and it really helps me when I got a pound or two I just cant shake off. So get on your bikes and ride!

Ill even get a picture of my shoes for you tomorrow!

Reason for the name title?

The reason for my blog title you may ask? Well its like this.......I have been carrying around all this weight for years. Almost ALL MY LIFE. It got to the point to where I didn't know any better. I thought it was normal for my thighs to rub and hurt, normal to have to squeeze into a booth, normal to have 2 big belly rolls. Normal to have to wear plus size clothes, and normal to eat all the time. Life evolved around food. I lived to eat, not eat to live. When I woke up each morning my first thoughts, what am I going to eat today? No lie! True story. Sad but very true.

According to my height I should weigh about 120. I think that is too thin and my goal is about 140. Which means at one point in my life I was carrying around 160lbs more than what I should. WOW, 160. That is a grown man. Can you see me carrying  a grown man around! No way. It has to go. One pound at a time, but it has to go. So far, I have lost the weight of an average 10 yr old!!! CRAZY! So this leads to one thing. THE FREE RIDE IS OVER! Get off! Go away!! Dont come back! Get lost.
The free ride is OVER.

Before and Now

Notice I didn't title this BEFORE and AFTER. I'm not done yet. I still have 80 more pounds I want to lose. But here is a little view of what I'm working on.

Before is about 300lbs and Now is 229lbs. The reason I say about 300lbs is that is the most I saw on the scale was 294lbs, but I am sure I topped 300. I weighed myself after I started making small changes.
I know these pictures are not the best, but I cant stop looking. The reason I choose the before picture was the look on my husband face. I know he was just goofing around, but I am sure all that 300lbs sitting on him didnt feel so good.

 It hurts to know I let myself go that far. That I didnt love myself enough to do something about it til now, at 35. Just think of what all I could have done 10 yrs ago! At least I am taking care of it now. I cant wait to update that picture on the right! :)

Quick Overveiw about my weight journey

Here we are a new year! Cant believe its 2013! We should have some flying cars and house robots! Where is my Rosie to wash my dishes?! Ok...showing my age.......Well lets get this in high gear!
I am so excited to say I weigh 52 lbs lighter than I did this time last year! It could have been more but I really didnt give a care till around May. So I am hoping this year will give me the time to get to my goal weight which is 150. That means I have 81 lbs to go! So do the math....yes Im at 231 as of today.
My highest weight was 294. Well that I ever saw on the scale anyway. So Im down 63lbs from my highest. Its amazing how that change can make a person feel. Now to only get under 200!! I cant wait to see 199 on that scale! I am going to PARTY!!!

Well all my life I have been overweight. The big girl. The one with the pretty face. We all know what that means. I guess the weight really started packing on in the 3rd grade. At least that is what it looks like from my pictures. It just got worse the older I got. I really cant remember my weight or size when I graduated from High School. Im going to guess and say around an 18. Im a 18/20 now, and I think I look like I did in my pictures. I really wish I knew for sure.

I grew up in a pretty poor family. We were feed, oviousley, but not with healhthy foods. All I knew was soda and sweet tea. Only health nuts drank water. Typical meal was fried something with a side of fried something with a side of biscuits and gravy. So of course that is what I learned to cook. When I was older maybe teenage , I knew something had to change. Yea right, making a whole family change the way they eat and live....forget that sista! So I gave in. Accepted it. This is what I mean to be. Im nothing more. There is no use.

In 2006 I met my husband. Im sure I was around 270 then. Why he even looked twice at me still puzzles me. He was from a different land. Different people. Not PACOLET. Not this small town where everyone thinks the same. He thought for himself and really opened my eyes on a lot of things. He isnt the healthest of the health nuts....but he did explain to me organics and natural foods. Never knew such a thing exsisted. I was 27 at the time. Sad. So that really made me think about what I was putting in my body. Well we were married and had a baby in 09. I still hadnt made much change. I had hit my all time high and tried to cut back and lost about 10 lbs by the time my son was born.
After my son was born and all he did was cry and scream and cry and scream, I noticed my self in the kitchen, torn slobby tank top on, tiny baby screaming his lungs out in the next room, and me finishing up the crumbs from a large size bag of doritos.....that I had just opened. It was like I blacked out. I eat the WHOLE bag! And didnt think twice. This was the first time I realized I was an emotional eater. It had never hit me before. All those times I was upset about my weight, I eat. The times I failed a test, I eat. The times I was left out , I eat. The horriable marriage I had went through before, I eat and eat and eat. This was more than just food. This was my emotions. Much deeper.

The starting of the summer last year 2012, my then 2 and half year old, was playing in the front yard. He then procedes to take off running. Yes running, towards the road. The busy road. Our drive way is about a 10th of a mile, so he had some time for me to catch him right? Ummmm....no. I couldn't. I could not catch my own child that was running toward a busy road. Now its Pacolet, small no where town, but still its a road with a car or 2 that could hit my child. He finally stopped. I finally caught him. Huffing, puffing, huffing, puffing. This is when it hit me, something has to change.
I cant live this way. Or not live this way. I cant out run my 2 yr old son. Which means I cant do a lot of things with him. I cant take him to disney world or carowinds. I wont be able to get on kiddy rides or take him swimming. Ill drop him off at school and they will all make fun of his big fat mama. So now this affects more than me. Something has to change. Its in my mind now. In my soul. In my heart.

So lets do this. Full speed. All feet ahead. No looking back. No stopping and smelling the flowers, or biscuits or cakes.

The eating habits had to change. I believe that making small changes that you know will stick are better than setting yourself up for failure. I let myself have ONE soda a day. I did this for a month or until I knew I could cut it out. Seems like it took about a month. Now I drink only water. This includes diet sodas. Food. Cut back! I would simply eat only half of what I would normally eat. Then I started to give up food. I gave up fast food. Read the ingrediants to most of this stuff and it will turn you off completley! Slowly I started eating more salad. More grilled veggies. Dont even bother buying

I lost about 20lbs making these small changes. By May I started looking into gyms. I knew I had to excersise. I knew that was part of the deal. I would walk the neighborhood. It wasnt getting it. I would go one day here, wait a week then go again. So I did my homework and chose a gym that had group classes and was close enough to my house that I knew I would go. A lot. Like 4 to 5 times a week.
I love the gym I choose. They were so kind and nice to me from the beginning. I was weighed and measured in the beginning. Ill be sure to get those numbers. And I just jumped in full force and started doing classes! And days I couldnt make a class, I would go get on that treadmill and walk! Each time I would go I would do a little more.

Now I am down to 231lbs. I feel great. I went from wearing lane bryant size 28 and 26 blue jeans to size 18. And acutally the 18s are big, but the 16s are small. I never would have thought I could have done that. Never. I thought I was just stuck at being this big ol blob.
I never thought I would look forward to go clothes shopping. I can actually see the "other side" of the store in sight. And some of my tops can already come from there. I can almost get in Old Navy Jeans.
That is a big deal for me!

I look forward to what this year brings. I hope that January 2014 Ill be posting with even better results. I hope that I can encourage someone by this blog page to know that they can do it. No matter where they are starting from. I also hope I can be encourage by others out there that know where I have been and where I am coming from!