39

The other day... I turned 39. This is somewhat annoying to me. Not only am I inching to the big 4-0, but I'm realizing I wasted so much time being unhealthy. But, I'm gonna keep working hard & am happy to say I feel & {hopefully} look the best I ever have. IN.MY.LIFE. I didn't have this body at 19. I didn't have it at 29. But now, I'm enjoying the rewards of eating healthy, being fit, taking care of myself. It's most definitely my birthday present to ME. If you're thinking about starting... stop thinking. Start doing. You won't be sorry.

8 weeks

So today marks 8 weeks ago that I started photo documenting my progress of clean eating + exercise. It's been amazing. I'm still learning what works, what doesn't. I feel awesome, I'm seeing changes & am definitely determined. I can't wait to see where the next 8 weeks bring me. I've been so lucky to find some wonderful people to help & encourage me along the way. Thank you for all of you who have been there & I hope that somehow I'm encouraging you as well. 

before {left} 7.18.13 155lbs | today {right} 9.18.13 148lbs

I may not be seeing tons of movement on the scale, but I'm definitely seeing the changes in my photos. I never imagined 8 weeks ago when I took those photos I'd see what I'm seeing now. The key is to start. Just start. You won't regret it. I promise.

in just a month...

For much of my weight loss journey, I've stayed far away from taking pictures of myself in the mirror. As recently I've gone back to look for pictures to compare my before at 200+, I've found a few with my husband & family, but not much else. So, a month ago today, I decided I was going to make a real effort to try to get rid of the dreaded droop of my lower stomach. After lots of up & down weight over the years, 3 kids, 3 c-sections, it has been my nemesis. So, I put on my exercise clothes & with my iPhone & a bathroom mirror, I documented my starting point. Each week, on Sunday morning from July 18 to August 18, I took pictures. Even I am pretty amazed at the progress in that short of time. I can't wait to see what the next month brings! Take a look for yourself....

7.18-7.26

7.26-8.04

8.04-8.11

8.11-8.18

7.18-8.18

so seriously. no pills. no wraps. no weird stuff. I kept my diet as clean as possible, tried to reduce my carbs & increase my protein intake. I also put in the time to exercise most every day. I'm mixing up my workouts a lot more too. Instead of just my 45 minutes walking on the treadmill, I'm adding HIIT workouts in.

I'm not sure of the original source of this chart, but this gives a great breakdown of what happens to what you're putting into your body... choose wisely! 

To learn more about starting to eat clean, I've found this article that gives a pretty good basic idea of where to get started. There are lots of great internet resources to find food ideas {I'll be posting some here}. Great places to look are Pinterest & believe it or not, I've found some of the best ideas {& support) on Instagram! If you're interested in learning what HIIT is about, here is a pretty good explanation in this article  & you can find tons of great ideas on Pinterest too.