VIVE Weight Loss at Elase

I am beyond excited to have been introduced to the VIVE weight loss program at Elase. I am just starting my 12th week and have lost 20.2 lbs (17.3 of that being body fat!). After losing 7.5 lbs the first week, I knew I needed to keep doing it).

 Me with 1 lb. of body fat. Add another 19 of those and that is what I have already lost after 12 weeks. 

 

While I know that shake replacements are not for everyone, I have found that for me, it is exactly what I needed. I love that the shakes take the aspect of food out of the picture for me. Me and food have obviously had a great relationship throughout the years but sometimes relationships aren't always good for us even if in the moment we really enjoy them. In this case, me and food needed a separation! That separation has been the best thing that has ever happened to me.

I see food in a different light. Instead of thinking about what I am craving or what I might want to eat, when I am hungry, I just grab a shake. For dinner, I always make a great salad and have a lean protein or fish with it.

I won't lie, the first week I wondered if I could really keep it up. It took a few shakes before I figured out how to make them the way I like them. By day 3 of having mainly shakes, I was really feeling like a ravenous beast. I felt like I could have eaten a horse. Granted, I didn't. I stuck to the approved veggies and even stooped as low as buying a can of pickles (sorry, pickle fans!). I needed the crunch and salt aspect of it after drinking shakes. I also started chewing Extra Dessert gum (the lemon bar is my favorite) to try to curb the sweet tooth that is always plaguing me.

The other thing that has really helped keep me on track is the InBody scan that I weigh in on every single week. Thinking of it as weighing in really doesn't do it justice! In fact, I am certain it should have some super-stealth, cool name. But, let's just call it George. It does indeed tell me my weight but also tells me my body fat, lean muscle mass, and water levels. It plays music for you while you stand there for your scan and it scans all of your limbs. When it is finished, it prints our your body composition analysis and you can see exactly what your week entailed. Nice and neat on one little sheet.

What is so great about the InBody scan is that it can totally make me feel better than just the scale can. For example, on one of my weeks where I knew I had done so good staying on track, I had only lost 1.5 lbs (which is still great but I was hoping for a bit more). But with the InBody scan, my VIVE coach was able to point out that while the scale only reflected 1.5 lbs, I had actually lost 3.5 lbs of fat that week and gained almost 2 lbs of muscle and some water. All of a sudden, I felt much better about that 1.5 lbs on the scale.

So each week, I meet with her and she does the scan, talks to me about my concerns and my progress that week and measures me. We talk about all sorts of things from how I am feeling, my slip-ups that week, ways to stay on track, things coming up the following week, etc. I love talking to Brittney. She is so nice yet keeps me on track and keeps me accountable in the areas that I might start to slack. I track everything in the binder she gave me including my meal tracking, scans and weekly lessons.

I am excited to be doing the VIVE program and I feel so much better than I have in a long time. I am looking forward to seeing where I am at after I finish the whole program. My husband's 40th birthday is in November and my goal is to lose 40 lbs. by then. 20.2 lbs down, 19.9 to go. This is going to be awesome!

Full disclosure: While I am privileged to work with Elase and they let me try the VIVE program for a week, I have chosen to continue it on my own. My opinions and results are all my own.

Make It Happen 2013 Theme

My theme for 2013 is Make It Happen! When I chose my theme it seemed to fit so well with my goals for the year. I knew it was perfect because while I know what I need to do, it can't just happen all on its own (granted sometimes it is nice to wait around and hope it could! lol) I need that reminder to take that next step and do whatever I can do to reach my goals.

My motto in sterling silver. You can purchase it here.  

Five months into the year so many things have happened that have nothing to do with the goals I had in mind from the beginning of the year. In fact they are things that have to come first before anything else. Yet all along the way I am reminding myself how my theme is the perfect reminder that I can follow my gutt and do what I know is best for my kids and for my family and I can make it happen regardless of what others think should happen! After all, being proactive feels better than waiting to see what someone else will do.

I am making things happen all over the place and although at times we are taking tiny baby steps, we are still making progress. So while it sometimes feels like all of my time and energy are focused on one guy around here, it is a good reminder that making it happen doesn't need to be one giant leap or one certain thing at a time. As long as we are headed in that direction and keeping it in mind, we are making progress.

We are having a great year of making things happening and celebrating all along the way. How about you?

Tri'ing Hard

You may or may not have noticed on my side bar that I am training for the Women of Steel Triathlon at the end of May.

It is coming up quicker than I dare admit.

Let me back track a moment to the 1/2 marathon that my friends talked me into because that is really what got me started.

THE SHORT STORY

Our team didn't get into the lottery for the 1/2 marathon and I have to say that I was somewhat relieved even though I had already started the C25K. Some of our family (L's birth family) did get in and a few of my friends still ran in charity slots. They just amaze me.

I started cycling for some extra cardio to go along with the C25K for the 1/2 marathon training (which let's be honest...I should have started with the coffin to 5K. lol). I wanted a reason to get back into shape and it definitely gave me a reason. I fell in love with cycling and made some great new friends from class that I am so lucky to have gotten to known. These fabulous friends talked me into signing up for the sprint triathlon. And so the training began.

Cycling. Running. Swimming.

A few things you should know:

1) I don't know how to swim.

2) I hate having water on my face even in the shower.

3) Swimming is something you should learn as a kid when you have no fear.

4) Clip in shoes are hard to get used to.

5) You should always carry tools when cycling.

6) Running with "the girls" is hard.

7) Running shoes don't come girly in monster foot sizes. Especially when said running shoes should be a size bigger than normal.

I never thought in my entire life that I would be learning to swim in my 30's. Let alone signing up for a triathlon. It has pushed me to 'tri' things that I never would have. I am almost feeling like I may not drowned in the first 10 minutes and might actually make it to the parts that I feel like I can survive.

Oh the stories I have to share.

Not sure where I have been seeing that this isn't a new song but it is very appropriate for my cycling class where I was introduced to it.

Listening to it in class, I almost lost it. Way too appropriate for my life and not just because I was climbing a hill at the moment.



Miley Cyrus, "The Climb"

I feel this way on so many levels. Training for the tri. Adoption. My businesses. Juggling so many things in my life.

I can almost see it
That dream I am dreaming
But there's a voice inside my head saying
"You'll never reach it"

Every step I'm taking
Every move I make feels
Lost with no direction
My faith is shaking

But I gotta keep trying
Gotta keep my head held high

Sometimes I feel like I should just set one thing down and walk away.

And the part that I need to remember when I am feeling like I just can't keep going is that...

There's always gonna be another mountain
I'm always gonna wanna make it move
Always gonna be a uphill battle
Sometimes I'm gonna have to lose

Ain't about how fast I get there
Ain't about what's waiting on the other side
It's the climb

The struggles I'm facing
The chances I'm taking
Sometimes might knock me down
But no, I'm not breaking

I may not know it
But these are the moments that
I'm gonna remember most, yeah
Just gotta keep going

And I, I got to be strong
Just keep pushing on...

There are so many times that I wonder if my life will ever be as I have envisioned it. Am I ever going to make it where I think I am headed? As hard as it is, I just need to remind myself that the journey can be as great as the destination.

And really does it matter how fast I get there as long as I am heading in the right direction?

Whoa....is right.

Let me introduce you to Freshwater. It fits for so many reasons. First of all, she's white, she is shiny and rock solid. Like a freshwater pearl, she is the smooth part of our ride and I am the bumpy imperfect part. Let me introduce you to Freshwater's friend...pearl. Pearl is Christine's bike and this is us on our first outing on our new bikes. Christine was smart and left Pearl's pedals in place. I on the other hand knew I needed to get used to my cycling shoes before our Goldilocks ride on May 8th and the triathlon. So, I swapped Freshwater's pedals out with new fancy ones and was ready to clip away.

Clip in shoes. To make Freshwater and I one. It is a bit tricky to say the least. I should have gotten use to Freshwater before making any changes to her. But I jumped on, clipped in and was ready to go.

What I wasn't prepared for everyone else stopping at the top of the hill while I was coming up the hill. All I could think about was my shoes...they were clipped in and I hadn't quite figured out how to unclip in the middle of riding. Let alone while going up a hill. Crash #1. Freshwater and I totally biffed it. Her seat bent back and my leg was attacked.

After stopping at a random house for some tools to fix Freshwater's seat, we got going again and rode quite a while before coming to a break in the trail. We went off trail to skip over that section and I am not quite sure what happened but the curb came faster than anticipated. I unclipped one foot as fast as I could and Freshwater and I tipped the other direction, foot still clipped in. Thankfully on some grass.

By far the best, we were coming down a hill which rounded a corner at the bottom. My biking buddy's son was in front of me and flew down the hill, rounded the corner without slowing or having any problems at all. My cautious self thought to brake but seeing how easily he went down, with a trailer in tow mind you, I thought for sure I could make the corner too. Bad idea. It was too sharp of a turn and at the last second I realized I wasn't going to make the turn. Realizing that my shoes were clipped in and there was no way I could get them out and save the turn, I held on for dear life and off roaded it. I went off the side into the weeds, bushes, rocks and trees. All I could think the entire time was that if I fell, my feet were clipped in and I wasn't going to be able to unclip without completely biffing it. Headed towards a tree, I put my head down so that my helmet would hit first and tried to get around, barely missing the trunk. I made my way back to the trail. When I got there I started laughing hysterically. Christine was behind me and watched the entire thing wondering what in the world was going to happen. Hilarious now. Not so much in the moment with the clip in shoes. I will get the hang of this. I am sure I will.

Canyonlands Half

Man oh man. I really can't believe that I actually just registered myself for the Canyonlands Half marathon coming up in March. I am sitting here wondering what in the world I am thinking and also telling myself that somehow I can do it. It is a lottery to get in and while a little part of me secretly (or not so secretly now) is thinking that maybe our group won't get in, it would absolutely be something so different for me to train and accomplish for.

I started the couch to 5K just over two months ago and seriously wondered how I would ever run a mile. Especially seeing that I haven't ran since highschool and even in highschool did it but didn't really love one minute of it. Needless to say, the C25K was hard for me. It kicked my butt. And I am sure I looked like a huge dork running on the track. What's a girl to do.

Five weeks ago, I decided to join our neighborhood gym to get my butt in better shape than I have been for the last 8 years. It is crazy how much I really can do and I am already feeling better and seeing results. I know I can push myself to do things that I never thought I could. And the half marathon isn't going to be any different. Somehow, I am going to drag my big butt acrossed that finish line and feel accomplished doing it. Even if I have to walk part of the way.

I will be running the half marathon with a group of some of the best friends a girl could ask for. They have promised me that they won't leave me laying on the side of the road and that I can do this. They are such an inspiration to me for so many reasons.

First of all there is Nakia...she is such an inspiration to me. She is bound and determined and is constantly inspiring me to keep going and to just give it a try. When I am feeling like there is no way I can ever do it, I just have to talk to her for two seconds, read her blog or FB her and she makes me feel like I can do it and we'll be there for each other cheering each other on.

Then there is Kimmie. Kimmie ran her first half marathon last year and it was her idea that we all get together and run a half marathon this year (Kim, what were you thinking. lol). I totally thought she was kidding until she started talking to me about running shoes and shorts and all sorts of other things that I really would have no clue about. Kim is a quiet giant. She has been through more than a person should really have to endure over the last year and a half and yet is always there for everyone else when they need it. She is such a wonderful friend to me. More wonderful than she will probably ever know.

And Lindsey. Lindsey is a runner. She has ran her fair share of half marathons. She is constantly telling us all that we can do it and that it is going to be so much fun. She does it in such a way that I almost start to believe her. lol She makes it so that I can envision it...all of us cheering each other on and waiting for each other at the finish line.

So as crazy as it sounds (which it still does for me) I think I can do this. We'll see how it goes and maybe by the time the lottery comes around I will actually really be hoping that we get in.