LOVERS or HATERS

I might or might not have gotten in a dog fight. Well I didn't get in a fight with a dog, but Augusta did. Harley started it. 

We take our dogs to the open space behind some houses in our neighborhood. Augusta and Harley love it out there. They can roam, sniff and run free. Augusta particularly likes to flush out and chase rabbits. She is actually pretty good at it. Luckily she has never tried to gobble one up. I really think she just likes the chase. You should see her, she pounces and jumps and runs as fast as she can looking for rabbits. It might be her life calling. Harley spends his time sniffing with his pig nose, marking his territory and trying to keep up with Augusta.

Today it was just me on the walk. I was running along the path while the dogs did their thing. We came upon off leash dog #1 and his owner with no problem. Then came dog #2. The two owners immediately put their dog on a leash and the wife stood in front of it. I should have taken this as HEY STUPID gather your dogs, they are afraid their dog might attack yours. But I didn't. Augusta approached first and she immediately knew to keep going. But Harley... Poor Harley... He didn't know to keep going. He walked right up to the dog and of course the dog on the leash with the scared owners tried to pounce on him. Augusta being the protective female jumped in and they started to brawl. 

Basically a lot of teeth and noise. The owners were freaked out and cussing at me. They wanted me to stick my hand in there and grab Augusta. No way! Plus they were all moving around and I didn't have a clear shot at Augusta. 

To make matters worse their dog's collar came off. The owners freaked out even more. The fight broke up, but the owners still had some choice words for me. They thought my f'in dogs should be on f'in leashes. Sorry but no thanks. 

I understand that the owners can't control what my dogs do so that in turn makes them scared. Preston says I should have noticed that the owners were uneasy and I therefor should have crossed the ravine. I know he's right.  But the words that the guy called me infuriates me and makes me a little bull headed. 

I'll continue to take them to the open space and allow them to run off leash (there aren't rules that you must have your dogs on leash). But next time I will pay more attention to the other dogs and owners out there. Lesson learned. 

Oh the dogs are fine. There was no blood or bite marks. Just a lot of noise and teeth.

Lovers or Haters?

Obsessed.

I am officially obsessed with Celestial Seasonings Green Tea.

I drink caffeinated during the day and decaf at night.

I usually have 3 cups a day.

I tastes so darn good.

Ashley and I are going to tour Celestial Seasonings in Boulder sometime very soon.

It's on our Bucket List.

Hot Tea is very filling and sooting.

I am starting to like hot tea over coffee.

You Vote

What should Preston's fake blog name be? Please vote on the right.

I'll give you a little background on each option.

1. The Hustler: Preston loves to play pool (billiards). He is actually pretty good.
2. P-Dawg: my sister gave Preston this name.
3. Mr. Schnaz: what can I say, Preston has a big nose.
4. George: this is what I call Preston (he calls me Barbara). Don't ask why. We have no idea why we call each other this.
5. Efren: one of Preston's favorite professional billiards pool player is Efren Reyes.

*I have ran all of these possible names by Preston and he is okay with them all.

5 Things

ONE
Sunday the husband and I made the journey out to Calhan to visit the folks. I love it out there. It is so quiet and peaceful and most of all homey. I always come back thinking I could live out there. The husband thinks this from time to time as well. But deep inside we both know we have become too accustom to the conveniences of the city to honestly make the move to the country.

Taylor, Lindsey

Me, P

Mom, Dad

TWO
Saturday night I made the cupcakes that Curtis Stone made on The Biggest Loser. The cake part wasn't too bad, but the cream cheese/banana frosting was awful! I already threw the recipe away.

Harley with flour on his nose.

Curtis Stone Cup Cakes

THREE
I finally won at BUNCO! This is the first time I have won since us group of women started playing. I wish I had a picture to capture my excitement!! In case you have never heard of BUNCO it is a dice game.  There are many different ways to play, but basically you have three dice and try to roll as many sixes as possible. You keep rolling as long as you roll a six or three of a kind. If you don't roll a six the dice goes to the next person. You are paired with the person across the table from you. Once the head table reaches 21 points you total your points and the winning team moves up to the next table. The goal is to reach the head table and stay there for as long as possible.

FOUR
Ashley and I are eating clean starting tomorrow. Ashley and Josh are doing the Beachbody workout Insanity by Shaun T. They just finished week 2 and are seeing great results! Ashley, though, will admit that she hasn't been focusing on her diet. She recently decided that if she is going to put in the effort to do Insanity than she might as well give it everything she has starting in the kitchen. I decided to support her and eat clean with her for the next 10 days. Have you seen Ashley's post P90X pictures? If you are wondering she still looks like this!

Ashley post P90X

FIVE
I ordered the fabric for my dinning room curtains on Sunday. I am so excited to get it all put together! Luckily, my Grammie agreed to help me sew them. Here is the before and after picture of the wall that I painted and the picture that I am basing room around and the curtain fabric (the white is actually more cream). Do you think it will all come together?

Before

After

Inspiration

Curtain Fabric

What is a "Coach"?

So you hear me talk all the time about how I am a Beachbody Coach. I am usually talking about the post workout drink called P90X Recovery Drink, or the delicious meal replacement drink called Shakeology and workouts such as P90X, Insanity or Turbo Jam. Let me give you an idea of what a Beachbody Coach is and what all is involved.

First of all let me be clear, to be a Coach you DO NOT have to be fit, skinny, a male or female, a gym rat or health nut. When you sign up to become a Coach, Beachbody does not screen to see if you meet some preconcieved criteria. So if you have ever thought well I don't workout everyday or I just started on my fitness journey and I still have x amount of pounds to lose STOP!! Anyone can be a Beachbody Coach. Let me say it again, you don't have to be extremely fit to be a Coach.   

Okay now we can move on. Being a Coach has a couple of purposes. And it will be differnet for everyone. First of all, as a Coach you receive 25% off of all products and suppliments including Shakeology. This is one of the reasons why I became a Coach. I had bought Turbo Jam and was getting ready to buy P90X when Monica (my Coach) mentioned the Coaching opportunity and what I would save on my order if I was a Coach. Then Beachbody came out with Shakeology (the most amazing meal replacement/weight loss shake ever). The sticker price is $119 for a months supply (we will go into why it is so pricy later). But as a Coach I get it for $96 after tax and I don't have to pay shipping because I am on Home Direct. I also drink the P90X Recovery Drink after hard workouts. So I have bought 3 workout programs and I drink Shakeology every day and the Recovery Drink after every hard workout. So for me the discounts I get on the products is reason enought to be a Coach.

The second reason why some people become a Coach is the potential to earn a primary or secondary income. I have met people who have been able to quit their full time job and support their family with their Coaching income. I have also met mom's who were able to stay at home with their kids because of the income they are receiving from their Beachbody business. This does not happen over night, but it does happen. Beachbody is always saying if you want to succeed treat your Beachbody business like a business.

So how do you make money? In a nut shell you receive a percentage of your customer orders. The percentage varies by the product. Also as you get Coaches in your downline, you receive a percentage of what they sell as well. Beachbody has all of the tools available for you to suceed it just depends on how much time you want to put into it and what you want to get out of it.

The third reason why people become a Coach is they enjoy helping others. This is the most rewarding part of being a Coach. It is humbling to know you are inspiring others to make a change in their heating habits or motivating someone to start a workout program. It also makes YOU, as the Coach, more accountable. When you know people are looking up to you for guidence you are less likey to give up on your fitness journey.

People become Coaches for different reasons. Beachbody is a great company to work for and their products are some of the best out there. The transformations people have made in their lives because of Beachbody products are truely amazing. I truely believe in the Beachbody products so it's not really about selling anything. It's about telling people about this amazing shake called Shakeology and what it has done for me and my health and millions of others.

The reason why I am telling you all of this is a couple of reasons. One so you know and understand why I am always talking about eating clean or workingout. I have made a committment to myself to get in the best shape of my life and hopefully motivate others along the way. I realized how much I enjoy talking about my fitness goals and challenging myself to eat clean. It dawned on me, hey this is something I am passionate about. Beachbdoy has given me the workouts and suppliments to get fit and a reason to talk about my fitness journey and share what I have learned with others.

The second reason is from now until the end of December, Beachbody is making it easy for you to become a Coach. For this limited time, Beachbody is signing up coaches for FREE. Okay so what does FREE mean? They are waiving the $39.95 new coach fee while still providing you with the New Coach Welcome Kit. You also get 30 days free access to the Online Coach Office, a personalized Website for your customers to order from and backoffice support. After the first 30 days, if you still feel like this is something you would like to continue with, Beachbody will start to charge you $14.99 per month to pay for your website, payroll processing and backoffice support. That's it. No other charges are fees. Just $14.99 per month and you are a Coach. There is no contracts so you can cancel your Coach status anytime.

This is really great offer! If you have ever thought about becoming a Coach and have put it off for one reason or anther, now is the time to revisit the idea. Please let me know if you have any quesitons! You can also view my website at http://beachbodycoach.com/esuite/home/lhollis for more information.

Night Photography

Last photo class we learned how to take pictures at night while blurring the source of light. This is perfect for taking pictures of fireworks, cars driving by, the Balloon Glow, stars, clouds and lightening (any object that is a source of light). For the picture to come out sharp and clear you really need to use a tripod and a remote with a lock will also come in handy. To get the desired picture you will need to set your camera to M (manual) and turn the shutter speed dial all the way to the left until it reads Bulb. You will also want your ISO set at 100, noise reduction on and manual focus on. You might also need to adjust your white balance. To start out with set it in auto white balance and then change if needed. For example street lights give off an orange light so you might want to adjust your white balance to make the light more white.

With your camera on a tripod push the take picture button down until you hear a click, focus on your object and push the button down all the way. Hold the button down for as long as you would like. This is called leaving the shutter open. The camera is taking multiple pictures of your subject for as long as your button is held down. To capture the movement and light from stars or clouds hold the shutter speed open for a longer period of time. This is where the remote come in handy. Set your camera up on the tripod and using the remote lock the shutter open. You can keep it open for a long period of time such as an hour. 

Here are some examples. I didn't have a tripod so most of my pictures are blurry, but you get the idea!

Car tail lights blurred

Holding the shutter open while moving the camera.

WHERE IS THE HAPPY MEDIUM?!?!?!

Not eating clean is so not cool. I have put junk and more junk into my body since last Wednesday, after I won my share of the Work Weight Loss Challenge. YUCK!

I am going to start eating clean on Wednesday (I know why, not tomorrow? Tomorrow we are putting on an event at work which will involve catered in Salsa Brava. So yes I am waiting until Wednesday, wouldn't you?), the same day as day one of our 3rd round of the our Work Weight Loss Challenge. I am ready to start eating healthy again! Plus I have eaten everything under the sun so I shouldn't be craving anything crazy because I have already eaten it!!

This brings me to the second topic: WHERE IS THE HAPPY MEDIUM?!?!?!?! There has to be a happy medium... right?? It is ridiculous to eat crazy healthy and clean for 10 days and then completely throw it out the window on day 11. I vow to myself to find the answer...

Tomorrow I am going to paint the dinning room. I bought the paint and supplies, took down the drapery and taped it off. Stay tuned for before and after pictures!!

Around the House

This weekend I spent a lot of time changing and decorating the house. Emily at Trailerhood Aristocrats has inspired me to make my house more homey by decorating it exactly how I want.

When Emily and her John Wayne bought their house in Springs she painted and decorated every room just the way she wanted it. They just sold their house and moved to Wildhorse and you guessed it she already has every room decorated and just so.

I am so jealous. Preston and I have lived in our house for two years now and we still have an empty room, white walls and minimal house decorations. This weekend I decided enough is enough. There is no reason why I shouldn't decorate my house exactly how I want it. 

My mom is very, very creative. I on the other hand am not. Instead I turn into a perfectionist with no patience. What usually happens is I take on a big project and then get frustrated half way through and then either give up or hate every second of it because it is not turning out just like I imagined. This time around I am trying to remember that there is no right or wrong answer. So far it seems to be working.

I bought some fall decorations to make the house festive. It actually turned out well! The goal is to add to the fall decorations each year until I have a good collection.

The second thing I did is change out some old pictures and fill empty frames. I found a great deal at Michele's. Buy 1 get another for a penny. I hung the frames in the hall.

My next project is to makeover the dinning room. I am going to paint the wall that the window is on purple to match the color in the picture and sew some new curtains (if I can figure out how). I found the fabric on sale at Joann's today. I am also going to hang some black shelves on the opposite wall that I found at T.J. Max. Actually I have to bribe Preston to hang the shelves.

I DID IT!!!!

I won the Work Weight Loss Challenge!!! Actually Sheila and I split the winnings. 

This morning when I stepped on the scale I about had a heart attack when I saw the following...

I wasn't expecting to see this number. I just assumed I would see 132.9 lbs exactly. I actually had to step on the scale again, because my first thought was I didn't meet my goal. Once I realized  131.8 lbs is below 132.9 lbs a rush of emotions came over me. My first thought was I actually did it! I stuck with something for 5 weeks and saw it to the end. My next realization was I actually got below 133 lbs! I had somehow convinced myself that I would hit a plateau once I got to 133 lbs. Ridicules right?!   

 I am so happy I cut out all carbs Monday and Tuesday. I think it really helped. I also made sure to drink plenty of water. I love Smart Water. If you ask me Smart Water taste better than any other bottled water, especially Arrow Head. Arrow Head is the worst! 

The next Challenge isn't going to start until the 27th. The goal from now until then is to continue to eat clean and hopefully get to 130 lbs!

Fun Photo Shoot!

In the photography class two Thursdays ago we talked about photographing people.  The main take away is when taking a candid picture of a person it is better if your subject is not looking at the camera. Make sure foreign objects are not going threw the subject's head. When shooting a portrait the subject is the main focus point. Make sure the subject is not looking into the sun. When shooting a group of people stagger heads so the eye is drawn to all of the subjects in the picture.

In class we had the opportunity to shoot a "model"with umbrella lights and a flash. It was actually more fun than I expected. I totally turned into my mother. I had the model posing every which way possible.

Photography Lesson

Last class we talked about how to photograph animals, nature and macro items.

Animals

- The animal should be looking into the picture (face pointing in towards the left).

- If the animal is positioned in an S shape it is more pleasing to the eye.

- It adds to the picture if the camera captures the light flash in the animals eye. 

Nature/ Landscape

- Better to have shadows in the picture to show depth. 

- Use a polarizer to darken bright skies.

- Have a WOW factor in the picture that makes the person say "I wish I was there".

- Use foreground objects to create scale and depth. 

Macro/ Close-Ups

- Even lighting is better.

- When you are outside and its cloudy, look down. There is always something on the group to take a picture of.

- Use simple background with a shallow depth of field.

- When photographing flowers watch wind and dead leaves.

Here are the pictures I am showing tomorrow to represent close-up shots.

Is it Wednesday Yet?

Will this be me in the morning...

Or this..

This morning I was down 1 pound! I have eaten super duper clean these past two days and I have been working out to the Beachbody program Turbo Jam.

I have a really good chance of winning the Work Weight Loss  Competition!! Actually I am sure I will be splitting the winnings with one other person.  

Lunch/Dinner Ideas

Sometimes the hardest part of eating clean is figuring out what to eat. I have found some really great healthy recipes so I thought I would share.

*I cook all of my chicken on a George Foreman and season it with All Spice which has 0 calories and more importantly 0 sodium. I like to buy the individually wrapped chicken breast from Costco.  

CHICKEN PITA POCKET
- 1/2 whole wheat pita (I like to buy the kind that is already cut in half)
- chicken
- mashed avocado or hummus
- romaine lettuce
- tomatoes, onions, green peppers

CHICKEN FAJITA PITA
- 1 whole wheat pita
- chicken
- mashed avocado or humus
- vegetables (onions, green and red peppers, tomatoes and garlic)
- saute vegetables with a little olive oil. Sometimes I add a couple spoon fulls of salsa and green chillies.
- Because I am not talented enough to cut a pita properly I just pile everything on top.

VEGETARIAN SWISS SANDWICH
- 2 slices of whole wheat bread
- mashed avocado and/or hummus
- reduced-fat swiss cheese
- sprouts
- tomatoes
- onion
- cucumbers

TACO SALAD
- romaine lettuce
- vegetables (onion, tomato, cucumbers, green peppers)
- cooked black beans or non-fat refried beans (always wash black beans when you take them out of the can)
- homemade or store made salsa
- optional: walnuts (walnuts and black beans taste very good together)
- optional: low-fat cheese (minus the sandwich above, I try to stay away from cheese and dairy all together)

TURBO AVOCADO WRAPS
- mashed avocados
- red onions
- dash of garlic salt
- cilantro, chopped
- roma tomato, diced
- whole-grain tortillas
- homemade salsa
- cooked black beans
- crumbled feta cheese
- Combine avocado, onion, garlic salt and cilantro. Spread avocado mixture over tortilla. Top with cilantro and diced tomato. Add salsa, black beans and feta cheese.

GREEK PITA SANDWICH
-whole wheat pita
- chicken
- tomatoes
- crumbled feta cheese
- hummus
- romaine lettuce

THREE- BEAN SALAD
- green beans
- kidney beans
- cannellini beans
- any other beans you like
- oil and vinegar
- salt and pepper to taste
- optional: diced onion
- Toss beans in oil and vinegar. Add salt and pepper to taste.

BLACK BEAN CHILI (4 servings)
- 2 chopped yellow onions
- 2 sliced celery stalks
- 1 yellow pepper, deseeded and diced
- 1 large minced garlic clove
- 2 14-1/2 oz. cans diced tomatoes (Rotel)
- 1 jalapeno pepper, deseeded and minced
- 1 15-1/2 oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
- 3 cups water
- 2 Tbsp. tomato paste
- 1-1/2 tsp. chili powder
- 1 tsp. ground cumin
- 1 tsp. dried oregano, crumbled
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 3 Tbsp. fresh chopped cilantro
- optional: 10 oz. fresh white mushrooms quartered
- Saute onions, celery, bell peppers, mushrooms, jalapeno and garlic (about 8 minutes). Add the tomatoes, beans, water, tomato paste, chili powder, cumin, oregano and salt, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the chili is thickened- about 45 minutes. Sprinkle with cilantro and serve.

Wishin & Hopin

I only have one full day left until the final work weigh-in. I honestly have no idea if I am going to make it. What I do know is I am doing EVERYTHING in my power to win the competition. I have been eating spectacular minus my cheat meal and Starbucks treat. Today and tomorrow I am cutting out all bread and grain. I am also drinking a ton of water. My back feels better so I have started to workout again.

I am trying to decide if I am going to weight myself in the morning... I need to lose 1.1 pound by Wednesday. I can't decide if weighing tomorrow will help or hurt me. Right now I am leaning towards weighing in. Mostly because I hate surprises and I'm a need to know type person! 

Sunday Treat

 Looking for a healthy treat?

Try these No-Bake Energy Oat Balls.

Very tasty and healthy!

INGREDIENTS

2 Cups Oats

1/2 Cup Raw Pumpkin Seeds

1/2 Cup Raisins (optional)

2 Tbsp Raw Sunflower Seeds

1 tsp Cinnamon

1/2 Cup Almond Butter

1/3 Cup plus 1 Tbsp Honey  

2 Tbsp Barley Malt Syrup (hard to find- optional)

1 tsp Vanilla Extract

1/2 Cup Flax Meal (give or take)

 DIRECTIONS
1. Combine oats, pumpkin seeds, raisins, sunflower seeds and cinnamon in large bowl.

2. Stir in almond butter, honey, barley malt syrup and vanilla until soft dough forms.

3. Moisten hands (you will have to do this multiple times) and roll dough into 1-inch balls.

4. Roll balls in flax meal and place on wax paper.

5. Place in freezer for 20 minutes to set, then serve or store in fridge.

ENJOY!

Hardest. Workout. Ever.

Shaun T. & I

Today Sheila, me and about 100 other people attended Shaun T.'s Insanity Workout class. The workout was held at the Aurora Police Academy Gym. This was kind of cool because Insanity was taped in a gym. It added to the atmosphere and experience.

Let me just say this was one of the HARDEST workouts I have ever done! We started the workout by doing Shaun's famous warm-up. For those of you who have done Insanity know the warm-up is as hard as the actual workout. The warm-up consists of 3 rounds of cardio exercises. With each round you step up your intensity. This is called Max Interval Training, which is the science behind Insanity. After the warm-up my lungs were on fire and I thought I was going to get sick. But I stuck it out. 

We then stretched and went right into the hour long workout. Shaun was super motivating as he walked around the room helping people with form or pushing them a little harder.  He came around and helped me twice. Once while we were doing the "mummy kicks"and again when we were doing a jumping exercise. It was a really cool and an
unforgettable experience!

After the workout we had the opportunity to get a picture with Shaun T. and talk to him for a bit. He was a great sport about all of the women gawking over his body and begging him to take his shirt off.  
 
This workout/ meet and greet with Shaun T. is probably highlight #3 of the year!

You know what else I noticed... my BACK feels great! I am ready to get back into a workout regimen. I feel that my eating habits are in check and I am ready to really bring it!

If you recall I finished the 10 Day Eating Clean Challenge on Thursday. Sheila pointed out to me that this time I did it for myself. She's right! We didn't set a consequence. We said we were going to do it and we did! What a great feeling.

This past Friday I rewarded myself with a Starbucks non-fat vanilla latte and a reduced fat banana chocolate loaf. I ate clean for lunch and then Preston and I went on a love-cheat-meal-date to Salsa Brava. Today I am back to eating strict. The final Work Weight Loss Weigh-In is this Wednesday. I gotta stay focused!

Shaun T. in the House!

This is who I get to meet and workout with tomorrow morning! Shaun T. is coming to Denver and I will be in attendance! I am a little intimidated because this will be the first real hard workout I will have completed since I hurt my back.  

Shaun T. is the creator and instructor in the Beachbody workouts Insanity and Hip Hop Abs. 

Check out the crazy hard workout program Insanity by Shaun T.



If you have any questions or would like more information on Insanity just let me know!

Morning Treat

In the morning I am going to tread myself to a Starbucks non-fat vanilla latte and a banana chocolate loaf. I absolutely cannot wait!

I remember when I was a yuppie in college I boycotted Starbucks. I was all about the local coffee shops. In Boulder there are a lot of good local coffee shops. Now that I live in Springs and out of college I visit Starbucks frequently. I got sucked in.

Speaking of Starbucks I recommend you read the book The Starbucks Experience by Joseph Michelli, PhD. Very interesting book about how Starbucks provides the customer an extraordinary experience.

Moving on, I am going to continue to eat clean (minus Starbucks and a cheat meal sometime this weekend). I tell you, I am going to win this office weight loss competition! 

True Life Story

I woke up last night at 11:30pm to dogs aggressively barking. I realized our dogs were not in the room which meant they were probably the ones barking. I walk downstairs and yell, "Harley". He comes in from outback, but in a scared and hunched over position like mom it's not me. The barking still continues so I call Augusta. Sure enough it's Augusta. This strikes me as odd because Augusta hardly ever barks. If any of our dogs are barking it's usually Harley. But compared to the other neighborhood dogs Harley is very quiet.

I get the dogs back upstairs, tuck them into bed... Let me stop here. I know what you're thinking. Did she just say tuck them into bed? Yes I physically tuck Augusta into bed with a blanket. She gets cold easily. Harley is tough as rocks. He prefers to lay on his blanket. Back to the story... Two seconds later Augusta is up again barking aggressively. P-Dawg and I look outside... nothing. We close the curtains- thinking this will stop her. SHE KEEPS BARKING AND GROWLING! She jumps up onto our bed and lays at my feet, Harley goes and lays at the top of the stairs. The barking keeps up for awhile and then I fall asleep. 

Another bark. I wake up and convience myself and P-Dawg that I hear something. He gets up, grabs his gun and he and the dogs go looking throughout the house. I stay upstairs and look out our bedroom window into the back yard. I see naked P-Dawg and the dogs go out back and look around. Augusta starts barking, but they don't see anything. They shut the door and go back inside. I am still looking out the window when all of a sudden I see a person in a white shirt run across the neighbors back yard and out the gate (I actually hear the gate open and close). At this point I am glued to the window waiting, watching. I finally realize what I just saw and yell to Preston, "I saw someone and he ran down the road!!"

We then throw on some cloths and get into the truck. We drive around the neighborhood looking for any signs of life. Nothing.

We go home, tuck the dogs in and go back to sleep. Augusta doesn't make another sound for the rest of the night.

The next morning I notice our shed door out back is open. Odd. I don't remember it being open yesterday or last night. Could be a coincidence... 

We think the neighbors have a son. The loud blasting Metallica music is what tips us off. 

So the question is... 

Did I see a burglar or a kid sneaking out of his house? 

In the words of The Nard Dog...

NAILED IT!

I met this weeks weight goal! This means I don't have to pay $5 into the pot! Actually nobody had to. Yahoo!

I weighed in at 133.2 lbs. To win the competition, I have to weigh 132.9 lbs on the 13th. Easy peasy!!

Right now there is $65 in the pot. More than likely I will be slitting the winnings with at least one other person maybe even the whole group.  



My Oprah Ah-Ha Moment

I have two days left of the 10 Day Eat Clean Challenge. I am amazed at how much easier it is this time around. The first time I did the challenge I had to constantly think about what I was eating and if it fell within the top two tiers. This time however, I have a much better understanding of what I can and cannot eat. As a result my meals are getting better (by better I mean more flavorful) and I am even trying new recipes. 

Let me be clear, I still have some odd cravings (such as a Starbucks non-fat vanilla late and low-fat banana chocolate bread) that I at times cannot get out of my head. The difference is I believe, I mean really, truly, deeply believe, that I have control over what goes into my body. There are 4 Starbucks on my way to work.  If I didn't have the willpower or determination to tell myself NO I could easily run to a Starbucks and satisfy my craving (without anyone knowing).

Tomorrow is the second to last weight-in at work. I have to be equal to or below 134.2 lbs. I am telling you right now, I have it in the bag. Not just tomorrow's weight-in, but the competition. I have put too much effort and focus into eating clean to lose. 

And now for my Oprah ah-ha moment... 

the light bulb finally went off (exhale). 

I am in control (of my actions). 

If I lose, it is no ones fault but my own. 

I hold the power.

I finally get it. I'm not saying I won't forget it ever in my life, but right now I get it. 

If you have forgotten then remind yourself.

I am in control of myself. 

I make the decision to exercise or not to exercise, to eat healthy or to grab fast food. The decision is mine.

All (don't you hate the word all. If that was all it took than you would have done it already!) what it takes is willpower. 

Now is the time to make a change. If you need motivation, encouragement or have questions I am here to help you.

How I Hurt My Back.

I hurt my back about a month ago. 

My theory is I actually hurt it falling out of this...

while chasing these two...

 at John Martin over Labor Day Weekend playing in the...

doing this...

pulled by this...

with...

Josh & Ashley

Ashley & I

Me & Preston

Lindsey

and Taylor.

Three weeks later my back is still bothering me. I have been to a Sports Therapist and a Chiropractor. I am still not 100%. As a result I have not been able to workout. To compensate I have been eating clean and drinking this... 

Shakeology

So for now all I can do it rest.