It's paying off

So after body blast tonight, I stopped to talk to the instructor to tell her how much I enjoy taking her classes. She said to me, "Thank you so much! You're in fantastic shape!! This is all about maintaining for you. You have probably been this way your whole life!" Then I told her no I haven't, that I've recently lost 20lbs. She looked at me in such shock, "What's your secret!?"

It was so rewarding to hear that from her because honestly, this whole change has been a lot of work.

Note: Everyone’s body is different! I am not a doctor, nutritionist, or Registered Dietitian.  What works for me may not work for someone else. For specific questions regarding your diet & exercise, contact a professional. 


...but this is my break down.

My not so secret: A lot of research & dedication, support from a few & Turbofire.

First, I had to start looking into nutrition; & when I say I had too… I had too. I'm going to try & keep this part short, I'll write more about it later.

I have been back & forth to my Doctor. for the past two years because my body has just been off. No motivation, I'm always tired, cold & I was just unhappy. I finally decided to stop pushing it off & go get checked out (I'm as bad as a guy when it comes to going to the Doctor.). I've had blood work multiple times, been tested for everything under the sun; diabetes, anemia, et caetera. I've had an EKG. All they found was a Vitamin D deficiency & low blood pressure (When I was laying down it was 100/60… I sat up it dropped 90/50). I was told to take a Vitamin D supplement & eat more frozen meals, drink PowerAde or Gatorade. Then things got much worse this past summer.

I have had bad stomach issues that I started to notice a lot in High School. Me being me I ignored it of course, until it got extremely worse in July 2011. I was uncomfortable; my body looked bloated & packed on major poundage (22lbs) . Back to the Doctor I went. He started me on a ten day cleanse & told me during that time to remove certain things from my diet & try to reintroduce them. If I started acting up again, then we found the problem. I immediately started doing nutrition research. I was determined to find out what the hell was wrong with my body once & for all! I was tired of feeling the way I did.

Nutrition Research: A whole lot of it! From different books & materials (I started out with The Eat Clean Diet Recharged & several online sources). I decided to cut out processed foods & sugar as much as possible. This was very challenging, because I always looked for convenience with my schedule. Now, I'm not saying that I ate out every night. I just bought & made things that were loaded in preservatives. I refer to those foods as "toxic foods": the enemy. I also cut gluten from my diet after reading an article in Oxygen Magazine... I had most of the symptoms of a gluten allergy (I have not been tested, but I was advised by my doctor to remove things from my diet to see what worked. You should consult a Doctor before making any diet changes, like going gluten free.)

Clean eating is not a diet, it's a lifestyle. 
The easiest way I can describe it, is that everything is fresh! If it can go bad, I eat it. I follow most of the "rules", but not all of them. Don't let the word "clean" make you think that food has to taste like cardboard. I would not have lasted five seconds if it was. I love spice, I love flavor & food! That's why spices exist, so use them! I do still use condiments for cooking like Dijon mustard, salsa, hot sauce  et caetera, but I don't over use them & I buy the natural versions because they have less additives. Also, no salt-added! I can add my own salt, thank you.

More importantly, I have learned how to feed my body the right food it needs for natural energy & to function like normal; I eat six times a day (I have never been a breakfast person, now I eat it everyday), I have learned good carbs from bad carbs, certain fats are actually ok, non-fat is not necessarily better for you... I could seriously keep going.

Yes... I do allow a "cheat" meal or snack. Yes I said or.
I know it will make my body lag the next day, but I feel I'm aloud to treat myself. But, I also have to have self control. I don't have a full out cheat day, I have a snack or a meal once a week or once every two weeks. Mine are usually the meal, I just watch my portions.

With mild exercise (which mostly consisted of moving) I dropped 15lbs in two months. Yes, I thought it was pretty fast; but I realized my body was finally absorbing the nutrients it's needed & naturally detoxed itself. Now by exercising six days a week & strength training, I’m building muscle- which is burning fat, which is what helped me lose the last 5lbs.

The change in my eating habits hasn't only helped my body; it's had a huge impact on my mind as well. I’m confident in myself (which I have never been a day in my life), I have a positive mindset, I'm full of energy & I'm happy. I feel like a new person.

Conclusion: Processed food & my body do not work well together.

I will post about exercise later... this post was huge!

What I believe:

Figure out a game plan & make small changes one at a time so you don't get overwhelmed. (I should have done this because I was very overwhelmed with everything!)
You need good nutrition to get the results you want for your body. You can not out exercise a bad diet!
Do not starve yourself! Don't skip breakfast.

"If your food can go bad, it's good for you. If it can't go bad, it's bad for you!"

I don't buy anything if I don't understand the ingredients. I'm a hardcore label reader.

I do not buy all organic! Certain fruits & veggies yes, ones with thinner skin.