Take it in STRIDE

I weighed myself today, and I'm down 10 lbs!!! This weekend was one with many cheats. Friday we had a pizza party, and Saturday we went to a birthday party... Both were at dinner time. Soooo this lead me to my point for this blog post. It's short and sweet! 

I follow this Facebook page named "Stay Healthy Fitness" and it's jam packed with motivational quotes and recipes. On there I seen this:

 Most people get that backwards and thought it was neat!

It dawned on me... It's all about how I eat! I felt SO bad for having my cheat days this week, but that's good! I learned cheat days without conviction means you will go nowhere, but cheat days where you feel conviction means you actually care about what you are eating, and that's 80% of a healthier lifestyle. 

When I weighed myself today I seen 226 on the scale and I'm not going to lie I haven't seen a number under 228 in over 3 years! What a great feeling! Even after my cheat days it didn't ultimately effect my outcome. 

When I was thinking hard about this it brought me to a couple conclusions. 1) You can eat clean 7 days a week for 12 weeks and be sadly mistaken when you step on the scale because you've lost the weight, but now you can cheat and you put it back on... (Which will happen because you're burnt out on this strict diet) OR 2) You can eat in moderation 100% of the time, but treat yourself and enjoy the fact that you are human, and this isn't a 12 week course, this is a long term goal! As we all know, we have birthday parties, and pizza parties to attend every once in awhile!

I've put this in my mind, I want to see what I look like in 1 years time, not 12 weeks time. If I wanted to know what I could look like in 12 weeks I'd be on the biggest loser.

Now this is not an excuse to cheat all the time! To lose weight you must be mindful of everything you eat, and every exercise you do. I suggest looking into getting a "My Fitness Pal" account if you don't already have one. It takes discipline to fill this out every day all day and figure out calories for homemade meals, but it's so worth it because you won't over eat this way. I've done it every day (Minus Sunday's) for 20 days now and it's not that bad. I know at some point I'll know most everything and wont really need it, but until that point it's 100% worth the work. 

My Fitness Pal User Name:

Nickybear131

Recipes I have made this week and we agree are great:

Note: I do not take credit for these recipes or photos I've searched the internet for them, and they are Thompson household approved.

Roasted Shrimp on Spaghetti Squash

Pork Chops Stuffed with Feta and Spinach

Introduction :-)

Hey Fans! Welcome to my weightloss journey! I hope you find inspiration here. This year like most; I have made the goal to lose weight and drop inches. As an accountability, and because I know most of you can become discouraged (including myself) about the world of unknowns; I thought it would be smart to start a blog. I will go more in depth with more posts. I wanted to be vague and encouraging in this post. What you can expect from future posts will be progress photos, recipes, workouts, snack ideas, encouragement and much more! I want this to be an enjoyable place for everyone in my position looking for more tips, tricks and techniques to a healthier lifestyle. Please subscribe to this blog so you get updates on new posts.

Meet Nicky!!! I'm a 25 year old mom of 2 boys. My Oldest son is 4 and my youngest is 2... I also have a stepdaughter who is 9. They have a lot of energy and although you'd think that would keep a mom fit... it sadly doesn't. I weighed 236 lbs at the start of this year. I stepped on a scale Jan 1, 2014 to see my start. I am thankful it's just that "A Start" because where I finish will be much more exciting! I am in size 18 pants and XL shirts. Bra size is 42D... Yes some people don't care but I do! Again this is an accountability for myself and hopefully for you as well.

Caption: I think my photographer made me look skinnier in this photo, because I look fairly fit there!

 

Caption: Don't judge it takes a lot for me to show you my body, but I want it to be encouragement for those who rock the same boat as me... that you CAN do this. It's not a today or next week thing this is a lifestyle change that needs to take place. That means find stuff you like to eat that is healthy and search for recipes you like that are good for you. Don't just eat fresh fruit and veggies and think that's all you have. There are tons of recipes and snacks that are good for you that are yummy! 

Eat smaller portions at MIN of 6 times a day. NOT huge meals. Think little! As a wife and mother I try to eat less than my physically fit husband and more than my kids (perfect for me). I bought a 16oz cup for water and I just drink on it all day. Let me tell you... If there is a "worlds worst water drinker" it's me. Prior to this journey I would go weeks without water... yes I said it WEEKS. I would drink everything BUT water (not soda never been a fan) but I loved Juices and milk and all sorts of things BUT water. So if I can drink water so can you! See HERE for some neat ideas on flavoring it so it's not plain.

About 6 years ago I was in the USAF I was enlisted for 2 years and in GREAT shape! I didn't try very hard at staying in shape just did the minimum but still carried a size 8 pants and medium-small shirts. Inspiration I'm telling you! I am determined to be that general size again. I gained weight like most other moms during pregnancy because I sold myself the lie that it was okay to eat anything I wanted "I was pregnant". I have a great friend Desiree who has been working her tail off in the gym for 2 years and it never dawned on me until the New year that "Wow that could be me". I am also blessed with an amazing husband who has been dedicated to the gym for the last 6 years and is an amateur bodybuilder. So my foundation is set with a great support system... NO excuses! Now it's up to me to change things in my life.

Okinawa Japan 2007

October 2008

Today is Jan. 14th 2014, and I've been going strong for the last 2 weeks I'm down to 229 (which always fluctuates) but either way that is 7 lbs in 2 weeks and I'm proud. Don't beat yourself up at any point during your journey; everything shifts and fluctuates. Learn to love yourself and be encouraged by where you want to be. Working out is not a short term goal... you have to think in 1-2 years, and  every day living like this... what will I be like? (Not in 4 weeks what will I be like). If that's the way you are thinking, then in 4 weeks you will be sadly discouraged and probably quit. I've learned so far that I don't want to, and shouldn't expect 15 lbs in 2 weeks. That's reaching for the stars... I'm more content with the 7 lbs than I would be with the 15+.. Why? you ask! Because I'm doing everything right.

The biggest thing to losing weight the right way is lowering your intake during meals from a HUGE portion (the American portion) to a smaller more nutrient packed portion, and raising your heart rate every day. Yes it's important to get an #Epic workout in, but it's also just as important that if you can't get an awesome circuit in just do something. Desiree told me that when you're eating your meals focus on your protein (meats) eat those first and then your sides. You want to eat less sides than protein. Let me tell you it works... I almost NEVER finish my sides which is a good thing ;-)

The heart is a muscle... this didn't dawn on me before like it does now. It's a muscle... if you never exercise it.. well it becomes weak. Weak hearts can become an issue to your health... so if that's not reason enough to exercise everyday I don't know what is!!

Search my Pinterest for some encouragement, inspiration and recipes. There is so much on there it's crazy!

Thanks for reading!
Nicky Thompson