I think I need a Diary

No, this post isn't about exercise or weight loss. This post is just me, getting some thoughts out.

I think I need a diary. I have a blog, I have my instagram account, facebook, pinterest and then my Ladies and Literature bookclub on Goodreads but I really don't have anywhere that I can legitimately put all my thoughts no matter what they are. I don't want to post thoughts that have the potential to offend someone. I'm not saying that I'm deliberately offensive, but everyone has thoughts that have the potential to offend. So I think I need a place to release the thoughts that I can't release anywhere else.

Do any of my readers have a journal or diary? Do you enjoy it? How often do you write in it?

Love Feeling Sore

The title reveals it all.

I love feeling sore.

It has become a game for me recently. How hard can I push my body today where I can feel it all day tomorrow? It makes me feel like I'm getting somewhere when my body aches and burns no matter what I'm doing the next day. Feeling sore is a high, and working out has become my drug of choice. Have you ever had what I like to refer to as "runner's high"? You don't get it from running up the block, it takes a little bit of distance. I normally start to feel it about half a mile in. It's this intense rush that hits me all of a sudden and makes me feel invincible. Once that high hits I can run faster, longer and harder. During this "high" I push myself harder than I do any other time. I have to. If I don't push when I'm at the peak of my run, I will never break any of my own records, I won't get any better. I push to make myself better than I was yesterday.

I used to be obsessed with being better than everyone else. I'm pretty competitive. I want to be the best. Honestly, the older I get though, the more I realize that I don't need to be better than everyone else. I just need to be a better version of myself today than I was yesterday. I've been given one life on this earth. One and one only so why should I waste it chasing unrealistic goals? There will always be someone who is better than me at something. But it's up to me to make myself better with every day.

This seems silly but I used to think that if I ate healthy and worked out one day then the next day I would jump on the scale and be 5 pounds lighter. Okay, that may be exaggerating a little bit, but I'm sure you know what I'm talking about. Everyone is looking for the "quick fix" or the "easy solution" when it comes to losing weight and being healthy. People give up because they look at how far they still have to go instead of how far they have already come. It doesn't matter if you can see the changes on the outside. Every single day that you make decisions to be healthier or more active, you are changing your body from the inside. Results take time but they do come. Don't get discouraged when the scale fluctuates, when you don't lose any inches one week, when you somehow gain weight one week. KEEP WORKING HARD.

I promise you, no one got a six pack sitting on their butt looking at other people who have six packs and wishing it was theirs. The ones who have the fit, healthy bodies are the ones who put in the time, dedication and hard work. They chose the gym over the bar. They chose the veggies over the potato chips and they are in what you might consider your "dream body." You can get there too. And so can I.

I'm working hard everyday to get there. Are you?

If you aren't, what's stopping you? What is holding you back? Let's get there together.

It only hurts ME when I cheat

It's been a rough 2 days. It's that "female time" of the month when everything that is terrible for me sounds amazing, my cramps are so bad that I just want to sleep all day and I am bloated and miserable. But, instead of going running after work yesterday, I let myself make excuses. I was too tired, cramping too bad, it might rain, etc. You know, all the same excuses that we give to ourselves all the time to get out of things...

Last night I went to bed thinking "in the morning, I'm getting up when my alarm goes off and I'm going running." Well, this morning rolled around and I was once again too tired, cramping too bad, etc. I let myself make excuses again. I was thinking about this while I was in the shower, why do I keep letting myself make these excuses? I know that exercise helps with menstrual cramps, so why didn't I just go run? I'll tell you why. Because I have two little voices in my head. Now, I'm really not crazy and you don't need to check me into the loony bin just yet. Hear me out on this one.

I have the voice of the girl I've been for the past 6-7 years. The one who would rather eat chips and burgers than salad and veggies. The one who would rather lay on the couch all day than go for a run. The one who was miserable with her weight, the way her body looked and her attitude about herself.

Then there's the voice of the athlete inside of me. The one who pushed me to start this journey, the one who speaks up on the days that I actually get my workouts in and eat right, the one who has lost 25 pounds and 5 pant sizes since March, the one who is happier now with her body than she has been in 6-7 years.

Now these voices fight, a lot. They go back and forth on what I should eat, whether or not I should go running, mainly health and fitness related things but sometimes other little things as well.

What happened last night and this morning both is that the first little voice was stronger than the second. The second little voice didn't try to talk the first voice out of the excuses. Who's fault is that?

MINE.

It's as simple as that, it's my fault that the first voice is the stronger influence on my life. She has been the stronger inner voice for so many years that it's hard to shut her up.

So, it's time to retrain those inner voices. I have to get to a point where that second inner voice is louder than the first. She needs to be the stronger influence in my life because she will help me reach my goals and be Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger.

Until next time,

Meagan

It's a Lifestyle

If there is one thing that Visalus/BodyByVi  has taught me over the past 4 months, it's that getting healthy, losing weight, keeping weight off, etc. is all a lifestyle change. There is no easy fix when it comes to losing weight and keeping it off. There is no quick fix, not miracle products, it's all about learning how to change your lifestyle.

I have made it a point to be healthier, I start everyday with a Vi-Shake which fills me up, replaces a meal and gives my body all the nutrients I need to make it through the day. For lunch, I have another Vi-Shake. At dinner, my husband and I have a healthy dinner. Generally that's chicken or fish and vegetables.

After work, I go for a run. Motivation doesn't last. I have to find new ways to motivate myself day after day after day. I can promise you I don't get home everyday thinking "Oh man! Let's go run! That sounds like fun!!!" No, it doesn't happen that way. Yes, I do enjoy my runs, once I actually go out and start running. But when I get home and my couch is calling my name and I'm exhausted from work, have a headache, would rather snack or take a nap, I have to make myself lace up my shoes and go for a run. But, once I get out there, I feel amazing. I never regret getting a run in. In fact, the only regrets I have anymore are the days I slip up and eat like crap, or the days I miss a workout.

It's not easy, but they say after 21 days that it becomes a habit. I'm not far from that 21 days. I'm loving the life I'm living. I'm healthier, happier, earning more money and helping people get healthier on a daily basis.

Until just a few short months ago I never would have dreamed that I love helping people get healthy so much. I never realized that this could be something that I could love doing for life. I get told almost daily now that I inspire others to get healthier, that I motivate them, that I have helped them change their life in some way. Nothing is more rewarding than that for me.

What's better, is that I have the tools to help you do exactly what I'm doing. All you have to do is ask. :)

Tomorrows Plan

Tomorrow morning I am waking up an hour early, going running for awhile, doing my NAEB 30 day endurance challenge workout, having 2 visalus shakes and a healthy dinner and going to bed early! I will make healthy decisions tomorrow. It's my time to do what's best for me.

Back to the Grind

Well, I did it. I got up an hour early this morning, went on my run and then did my workout for the NAEB 30 Day Endurance Challenge. I must say I can already tell that I have more energy today and I was actually craving a healthy breakfast. I could get used to this feeling. I need to remember in the morning that I felt like this yesterday.

That's something I've learned this past week, motivation doesn't stick around long. You have to be constantly finding ways to keep yourself motivated until it becomes a habit. Until you are in the habit of doing something, you won't keep doing it without continuing to motivate yourself. So, I am setting goals and laying them out here for all of my readers. I don't think there are many of you right now but, I will know that there are readers and that someone out there is expecting me to reach these goals.

So, here they are, my 30, 60 and 90 Day Goals:


30 Day Goal: Participate in the NAEB 30 Day Endurance Challenge and keep up with it every day for 30 days.


60 Day Goal: Be able to run a 5K without stopping and in under 25 minutes


90 Day Goal: Complete another Visalus 90 Day Challenge without cheating :)




Now, if these goals become easy before the time is up to complete them they may be re-evaluated to add more to them to keep me motivated. But this is a great starting point for me.

If anyone is looking for a challenge to do with me let me know!!!!

Starting Over

I feel like I'm constantly starting over. I get really motivated for a few days and I'm all about it. I make calendars and work out plans and food diaries and I do great for a few days. Then I have one bad day where I wake up exhausted and don't get my work out in. Next thing you know, I'm irritable because I didn't work out so I have a rough day at work and then I come home and eat my feelings. It's a vicious cycle and I continue to fail. But I've made up my mind. I will not stop this time. No matter what. I'm refocusing, resetting my goals, and restructuring my plans. I'm going to set 30, 60 and 90 day goals, which I will post tomorrow from work but all 3 of my goals and challenges start tomorrow.




For anyone looking to do a 30, 60 or 90 day challenge let me know and I will find a challenge that is right for you!!!!

Some Motivational Pictures that Keep me Motivated

Hey readers! Just thought I'd take a minute to add some pictures that help keep me motivated. Enjoy!!!


Also, I'd love any and all feedback! Let me know if there's anything specific you want me to write about! I'll answer any questions!

Getting Back Into the Swing of Things

I started the Couchto5K running program on Monday. It's a 3 days a week program where you basically run/walk intervals and at the end of 8 weeks you'll be able to run a 5K without stopping. The first day was pretty easy overall. I didn't understand what I was supposed to be doing for the 5 minute warm-up and I actually wore myself out too early but I still finished the 30 minute workout. The second day, which I did on Wednesday, was not as easy. I had done the first day on Monday and I was still excruciatingly sore on Wednesday doing day two. It wasn't easy but I pushed through. Let me tell you, I was feeling it about 15 minutes in though. 

Tomorrow is day 3. I'm still sore from days 1 and 2 so I'm sure tomorrow will be a little rough but I'm looking forward to it. I enjoy my time in the mornings when I get up and run. It gives me 30 minutes to myself to clear my head. Most of you probably already know this, but for those who don't, my husband and I work together. We also spend every minute outside of work together. We have the same friends for the most part and we play co-ed softball together on Sundays. We are together 24/7, 365, so my mornings that I get up and run are a nice little break to have time to myself. 

My Workout/Running Playlist

I have to admit, I'm one of those people who can no longer run without listening to music. I used to be able to run miles without any music at all, I actually preferred it that way. Now that I'm older and more out of shape, I just can't seem to run without listening to music. I get bored and start slacking. Well, I had a girl earlier ask me what songs I run to so I figured I would share my workout playlist. Now, don't judge me by my taste in music. I need things that are upbeat when I run. :)

Workout Playlist

If I Had You-Adam Lambert

For Your Entertainment-Adam Lambert

Crazy Rap (Colt 45)-Afroman

Smack That-Akon ft. Eminem

I Wanna F*** You-Akon ft. Snoop Dogg

Dirty Little Secret-All American Rejects

Skater Boy-Avril Lavigne

Cyclone-Baby Bash

Single Ladies-Beyonce

Boom Boom Pow-Black Eyed Peas

Imma Be-Black Eyed Peas

Pump It-Black Eyed Peas

My Humps-Black Eyed Peas

Teach Me How to Dougie-Cali Swag District

Emotional Remix-Casely ft. Flo Rida

F*** You-Cee Lo Green

I Can Transform Ya-Chris Brown ft. Lil Wayne and Swizz Beatz

Super B****-Christina Aguilera

Fighter-Christina Aguilera

Dirrty-Christina Aguilera

Good Girls Go Bad-Cobra Starship

I Wanna Sex You Up-Color Me Badd

Sexy B****-David Guetta ft. Akon

Get Back-Demi Lovato

La la Land-Demi Lovato

Bootylicious-Destiny's Child

Survivor-Destiny's Child

Soldier-Destiny's Child

Out Here Grindin'-DJ Khaled ft. Akon, Rick Ross, Young Jeezy, Lil Boosie, Plies, Ace Hood, Trick Daddy

Swing-DJ Nasty

2 Step Remix-DJ Unk ft. T-Pain, Jim Jones and E40

U and Dat-E40 ft. T-Pain and Kandi G

A** Like That-Eminem

Not Afraid-Eminem

Love the Way You Lie-Eminem ft. Rihanna

Lose Yourself-Eminem

Shake That A**-Eminem ft. Nate Dogg

I Like It-Enrique Iglesias ft. Pitbull

Drop It Low-Ester Dean and Chris Brown

Right Round-Flo Rida ft. Ke$ha

Hand Clap-Hurricane Chris

Pretty Girl-Jarvis ft. Ludacris

Ridin' Solo-Jason DeRulo

Whatcha Say-Jason DeRulo

Run This Town-Jay-Z ft. Rihanna and Kanye West

Down-Jay Sean ft. Lil Wayne

Imma Star (Everywhere We Are)-Jeremih

My Ride-Jeremih

Down On Me-Jermih ft. 50 Cent

Back That A** Up-Juvenile

California Girls-Katy Perry ft. Snoop Dog

Hot 'N Cold-Katy Perry

Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)-Katy Perry

I Kissed A Girl-Katy Perry

Your Love Is My Drug-Ke$ha

We R Who We R-Ke$ha

TiK ToK-Ke$ha

Boots and Boys-Ke$ha

Get Outta Your Mind-Lil Jon ft. LMFAO

I'm In Miama B****-LMFAO

Shots-LMFAO and Lil Jon

My Chick Bad-Ludacris and Nicki Minaj

Up Out My Face-Mariah Carey ft. Nicki Minaj

Cooler Than Me-Mike Posner

G.N.O. (Girl's Night Out)-Miley Cyrus

Start All Over-Miley Cyrus

Party In The USA-Miley Cyrus

7 Things-Miley Cyrus

Gunpowder and Lead-Miranda Lambert

Jack Daniels-Miranda Lambert

Crazy Ex-Girlfriend-Miranda Lambert

Air Force Ones-Nelly

Batters Up-Nelly

Country Grammar-Nelly

Hott In Here-Nelly

Promiscuous Girl-Nelly Furtado ft. Timbaland

Patron Tequila-Paradiso Girls ft. Lil Jon

I'm On Patron-Paul Wall

U and Ur Hand-Pink

Raise Your Glass-Pink

So What-Pink

Becky-Plies

Buttons (remix)-Pussycat Dolls ft. Snoop Dog

The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia-Reba McEntire

S&M-Rihanna

Crank That-Soulja Boy

Turn My Swag On-Soulja Boy

Midwest Swing-St Lunatics ft. Nelly

Dirty Picture-Taio Cruz ft. Ke$ha

Should've Said No-Taylor Swift

Lolli Lolli-Three 6 Mafia ft. Project Pat, Young D and SuperPower

Bottoms Up-Trey Songz ft. Nicki Minaj

Boy Shorts-Treal

Billionaire-Travie McCoy ft. Bruno Mars

Say Aah-Trey Songz ft. Fabolous

LOL :)-Trey Songz ft. Gucci Mane and Soulja Boy

Hey Daddy-Usher ft. Plies

Lil Freak-Usher ft. Nicki Minaj

OMG-Usher ft. Will.i.am

Black and Yellow-Wiz Khalifa

Peaches and Cream-112 and P.Diddy

Just A Lil Bit-50 Cent

In Da Club-50 Cent

Get Low-50 Cent ft. Loyd Banks

Lighters-Bad Meets Evil ft. Bruno Mars

On The Floor-Jennifer Lopez ft. Pitbull

Better With The Lights Off-New Boyz ft. Chris Brown

Moves Like Jagger-Maroon 5 ft. Christina Aguilera

That is my full playlist as of right now. Typing it all out made me realize that I really need to update it though. What are some songs that YOU listen to while working out?

How Body By Vi has Changed My Life

Every single person I know has something in their life that they want to change. For the most part people either want to lose weight, be healthier, or make more money. Those are three extremely common goals. In fact, all three are my goals, which is why I started the Body By Vi 90 Day Challenge. I have been on the products and promoting the products now for a little over 2 months and I am LOVING the Vi-Life. 

Since starting the 90 Day Challenge I have lost 23 pounds and 4 pant sizes. I have results pictures that are incredible and I have so much more energy and just FEEL healthier. I am in love with the products and the company is INCREDIBLE!!! I'm making more money and should qualify for our free BMW by the end of May which is so amazing. This company has blessed my life in so many ways. Within the next 3-4 months I will be in a position that I could legitimately quit my job if I want to and with 6-8 months I will be promoting The Challenge full time. 

It really helped me jump start my weight loss goals and changing myself into a healthier person. Without BodyByVi I would probably still be at my miserable, scary weight and I would be continuing to eat fast food 4-5 times a week. Now, I'm only 8 pounds from my goal weight and still losing, I have made some amazing friends through this company and am making extra money just by social networking and talking to people about my weight loss. It's incredible.

Honestly, since my products come FREE every month, I don't see there ever being a time where I would go without at least one shake a day because they make me feel so amazing. I'm in love with this company and these products!!!

Until next time,

Meagan

First Post of a New Challenge and a New Life Ahead

Since this is my very first post on my blog I figured I would start off by telling my story. So here goes nothing...

My story probably needs to start in High School...I was a long distance runner in the off season from playing Fastpitch Softball. It kept me in shape and it kept me sane. Running was my escape. When life got too stressful, I would lace up my shoes and go for a good long run. But, going into my senior year of High School I decided to quit playing softball and along with that, I got lazy and quit running as well. I gained weight my senior year, but nothing too drastic. I went off to college and lost most of the weight I had put on my senior year in the first semester because I was walking to all of my classes up multiple flights of stairs and I was climbing stairs to get my dorm room everyday, multiple times a day. Of course, the pounds didn't stay off once I left Christina College and went to Culinary School. 

While getting my Culinary Arts degree I actually didn't put on much weight at all, until of course, I got in a relationship and got comfortable. Well, getting comfortable in a relationship made me put on the "relationship weight." I wasn't obese but I was definitely overweight and wasn't doing anything to lose it. When that relationship ended I started to realize that I had been carrying too much stress in the relationship and my unhappiness in my relationship was keeping the weight on. When it ended, I started dropping weight and dropping it quick. Part of that is because I was actually happy again but another part was because I was working for FedEx Home Delivery and running packages all day 5 days a week. I went from a size 6-8 to a size 2 in around 2-3 months just from being happy again and running packages. 

When I decided to stop working for FedEx I went to work at a restaurant waiting tables and started eating 2 meals a day almost everyday at the restaurant. It was never healthy meals either. I was consuming close to 4000 calories per meal. I started putting the weight back on rapidly. None of my clothes were fitting right, I was unhappy with how I looked and how I felt but I wasn't willing to make any changes. I had absolutely no willpower to change whatsoever. I tried doing the Insanity workouts 2-3 different times and never stuck with them. I tried eating healthier and always fell off that wagon within a few days. I even tried extreme things like "The Master Cleanse" or "Lemonade Diet" and only made it around 24 hours before I broke down bawling my eyes out because I wanted food. 

I was addicted to food. Not just any food, though, terrible, unhealthy, processed food that was destroying my body. I stayed on this path of destruction for right around 2 years give or take. At my highest weight I was getting close to 170 pounds. At 5'2", 170 pounds was not looking good on me. I was up to a size 9 in pants and a Medium-Large in tops. I couldn't fit into any of my jeans. I decided to start calorie counting. I was doing really good with it. I lost around 15 pounds or so in the month and a half I stuck with it but when my husband and I had to move for our jobs, life got busy and we started eating crap again 3 times a day. I only put around 5-7 pounds back on but it would have been more had I not changed what I was doing.

Just over 2 months ago my husband and I were working on planning our wedding and I decided I had to do SOMETHING to not be so miserable on my wedding day. I didn't want to look fat in my wedding pictures, or on the beach on my honeymoon. I wanted to look slim and be confident and be proud of the pictures for the rest of my life. This is where it gets good...my husband and I decided to sign up as promoters for the Visalus 90 Day Challenge, or what's also known as BodyByVi. 

We started our 90 Day Challenge on February 27, 2012 if I remember correctly. I haven't worked out a single day since Feb. 27 other than co-ed softball on Sundays that started 2 weeks ago and have lost 22 pounds and 4 pant sizes in around 70 days. Now, keep in mind, that I went on my Honeymoon for 5 days and those 5 days I wasn't doing the challenge, so it's really been 65 days or so. I'm only 8 pounds from my goal weight of 125 pounds and I haven't felt this good since High School. I had a revelation last night though that I don't want to just be smaller and weigh less. I want to be healthy and fit. I want lean and toned muscles and I want to be in good shape. 

So, starting tonight, I will be working out. I will workout at least 4-5 times a week to start out, maybe more depending on how this goes. This blog is to hold me accountable. I will post motivational pictures, workout plans and things related to BodybyVi as well. Additionally, my next post will be entirely dedicated to BodyByVi. What it's about, how it works, why I believe it, all of that good stuff. 

As far as this post goes though, here's what I know:

I want to be fit, healthy and have toned muscles.

I want to live a fuller life because of these things.

This blog will help keep me accountable and hopefully inspire others.

My starting weight (as of Feb. 27, 2012) was 156 pounds.

My current weight (as of this morning) is 134 pounds. 

More to come :)

Meagan