This motivates me!

I absolutely love this, because it hits so close to home! I'm not doing this only for myself, but for two pairs of eyes watching me intently. THIS video motivates, inspires and puts a tear in my eye - because THIS is what keeps be going when I don't have an ounce of strength left in me.

Inspiration

I thought this was incredibly true, incredibly powerful!

September Progress

The first month of Spring went by in a flash, it was a super busy month. I did not even get a chance to update about my journey during September.

I started the month out with the T25 Focus workouts and following Reboot, and although I enjoyed the workouts and the way of eating. This time it just did not work for me how it should have. The workouts were fast paced and I loved it, but after following the BBG guide, two weeks in it felt like I was losing muscle tone. Plus the scale was standing still.  Then on the 22nd I started a 3-day Soup detox. My third day was right on Braai Day, and it was tough, but I persisted.  I really enjoyed the detox because the soup recipes were divine - I made 4 of them and enjoyed them all. (link for future use ). I never went hungry, halleluja!

After the detox I went back to the IIFYM way. I recalculated my macros and went to the IIFYM Women FB community for help and validation. The ladies there are kind and compassionate and they helped me on my way again. This time I have much lower macros than what Laura worked out for me originally, but they are in line with someone else's who had her macro's calculated by a professional and who is the same length and weight as me. I feel much more comfortable eating 1600 odd calories vs 2200, that is for sure. I think if I persist with this macros I will get the scale to move again. I am now on my 7th day in, BUT I got sick again, so I'm not exercising right now - which is a bit of a downfall...again. I can't control when I get sick, but luckily I can control what goes into my mouth - so I have to be strong and keep that in check.

I did however restart Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred and I completed the first 5 days before getting sick. I also started working out, doing deadlifts and swings with hubby's 12 kg kettlebell. So can't wait to get going with that again.

At the end of August I bought myself new denim shorts and I bought them a tiny bit too small. I could barely close the button, my tummy bulged as I tried to squeeze into it and the zipper didn't go to the top. It was my goal during September to get into those shorts properly and thank goodness I succeeded and it fits better. I won't wear it quite yet, but I'm hoping by next month I will feel more confident to put it on. I just need a tan to go with it!

So today is the first day of October and it's going to be another busy month. My plans are to continue with my new macros and as soon as I feel better I will continue with the 30 Day Shred and kettlebell workouts. Strong is the new skinny!

A friend sent the following to me and I can't begin to explain how much this means to me, because it is so true, it's so me. I will keep fighting this fight. And I am winning - not cm by cm or kg by kg, but rather mm by mm and gram by gram. Slow and steady - Rome was not built in a day. I can't re-sculpt my whole being, my whole body in a few weeks. The butterfly is emerging!

Spring Fling!

I am so excited for Spring starting tomorrow! I look forward to mornings at the beach in glorious sunshine, picnics outside with the kids and wearing summer clothes again! But then again, I have a lot of work to do before I would feel comfortable in my strappy dresses and I would love to wear shorts again some time in the future, hopefully this summer!  I actually went out and bought myself a pair of denim shorts yesterday and they are horribly to small for me - I can barely get the button done and then my tummy bulges - it ain't a pretty picture!  Think as soon as I'm done posting this I need to go take a photo and use this as a progress pic - would love it to fit properly soon!

Yeah I know, I have ended each sentence with an exclamation mark!!! That's how pumped up I am for what has started today :)

Today I started a brand new 30 day challenge.  I'm doing a modified Reboot. The only modification at this stage is I am allowing myself half a cup of milk today and my whey protein shake - it really boosted me and I don't want to stop with it at the moment, but I will monitor and see over the next 10 or so days and if it's not working I will stop taking that too.  This is where my focus will be in September - eating clean again!

Talking about FOCUS - I have started Shaun T's Focus T25 programme. It's a series of wonderfully short workouts (25 minutes plus cool down). Even though it's short, it is power packed and I look forward to doing it. I have done the cardio part during my cardio days this last month so I am already a bit familiar with that part.  Fridays I'm supposed to do a double session and Saturdays is called Staturday when you measure your progress and weigh in. On Sundays you do stretches.  I am amped for this and will follow this for two months - the Alpha and Beta part.

Okay, ready... set.... here I go! Gonna super charge this next 30 days and see what can be done in 1 month! Fingers crossed.... but don't wish me luck, wish determination for me, and strength to keep strong for Reboot. It's been two years since I've done a Reboot.....eeeeeek!

Winter Challenge Complete!

Woweeee August was a tough month with a lot of sickness, sadness and bad luck, but through it all I completed my 12-week Kayla Itsines' Bikini Body Guide workouts. It got freaking TOUGH! And then again, so did I :) I feel quite an achievement completing it, wanted to give up so many times, but somehow kept going, I still don't know how!  I kept eating the IIFYM way, although found some weekends in August tough and fell off the wagon sometimes, but Monday to Friday I kept at it 100%.

Herewith my results - most importantly what I physically experience:

• I feel so fit, I definitely improved my fitness level immensely.
• I see a lot less cellulite on my thighs.
• I can see and feel my tummy and bum sculpting and getting a lot slimmer. My bum lifting and my tummy getting flatter, pouch getting smaller.
• My calves are also taking shape.
• Boobs are getting smaller  - yay yay yay!
• Double chin diminishing and face looks thinner to me.
• Even though I get the bare minimum sleep and is a walking zombie I somehow supercharge my workouts and get through them and afterwards feel more energized and that gets me through the day... well until 8pm when I fall asleep involuntary on the couch or my husband's lap during cuddle time.
• See muscle definition forming in my arms, very slightly. Unfortunately I still have a lot of fat around triceps, so it still looks yuck.

Then my measurements.  I have lost a total of 36 cm.  12 From my tummy, 6 around hips, 5 around thighs, 5 around bust etc.

Less importantly the scale. It did not move in August, and I see a small gain for the month after I lost a little bit during June and July.  Yes, we've talked about how the scale does not indicate fat loss or increase of lean muscle mass, and although I would love to get out of the trucking 80's (which bothers me a freaking lot), I made peace with it, because my 3 month progress pics are incredible!  I am proud of my Winter progress, I did not rest on my laurels and it paid off.  Without further a do:

Remember = 3 Months from now you will thank yourself?  So thank you, dearest Debs. With love from your body <3 We made great progress and are much healthier and that's a humongous win!

Does it end here?  No, it certainly does not! From Monday a brand new, super-charged 30 day challenge!  Will blog about it more next week!

2 out of 3 months completed!

My first thought when opening my blog to write is that I must really change the name to my blog, because I am really not an ex-chocoholic... I've been eating chocolate (albeit dark) almost daily for the past 2 months, within moderation of course and I still got great results, so until I feel I am in a slump I will continue to indulge ;)

Wow, so 2 months have passed.  Two thirds through my own personal winter challenge and I am happy to say I made it through without any setbacks. The only setback I had was 1 week when I was sick, and after a weekend with a sick toddler in the hospital, so I took a week off from training, but kept my eating on track (mostly).  I made it through my boy's birthday party, through his birthday and through my birthday 2 days ago and I have not lost focus.  I had birthday cake and treats, but straight back on plan the next day.  My main goal is still to make it through 3 months and see what a difference 3 months of extreme focus can do.

So... yes... I am 35 now, which was a bit sad for me, because I originally wanted to be at goal weight at age 35, this was my long-term goal and I have not made it, not even closely.  But then again I am a lot closer than what I was.

Here I am two months in and still following IIFYM and completed 8 weeks of Kayla Itsine's programme (I did weeks 5 and 6 twice), so have another 6 weeks to complete.  I hate her workouts, I truly dread it before hand, suffer through each and every one, but when I'm done I feel good and am on a bit of a high, so not all bad.  I love the results though, so that helps me get through it.

I have not weighed today, not after a visit to a chocolatier on my birthday, but I have weighed a week ago and my weight shifted, but not that much - by only 2.7 kg, which is not great for a week less than 2 months.  That being said, I do not measure my success by the scale any longer. On Fridays I ask myself two questions: 1)  Have I exercised the way I wanted to i.e. 4 to 5 times that week?  2)  Did I stay within my eating plan and macros.  If my answer is yes on both that questions the week has been a huge success in my eyes, no matter what the scale (which we already no is a lying son of a gun sometimes).  My other measures of success is taking my measurements (which I will take at the end of the 3 months) and photo-progress.

Here's my pics comparing my progress from 1 June until today:

I felt so ashamed after taking this new set of 'before' photos.  That tummy was bothering me so much... I still looked pregnant after my baby turned a year, it was enough to make me cry.  Today I wanted to cry happy tears, because I had living proof that it is busy disappearing.  

These photos will help a great deal to carry me through August. Yes! Let's do this. I vow to make August a HUGE success and I aim for it being my best month!

This!!!: 

And can't help but post this one, because my hubby teases me because of my love for squats, but squats makes out a huge part of Kayla's workouts and it yields results!  So I squat when I pick up Shae, squat when I check something in the oven, squat just for the heck of it!  One day I will squat with a bar as well! Working hard towards it

When the scale is being a bitch

Oh my scale is a bitch...or a bastard, or a frucking liar, it all depends on the day :-p

So many times I see a gain, or my scale stands still on the same number for weeks on end - and that when I worked out hard and ate healthy and definitely at a calorie deficit.  This bothers me every single time. Especially after last week's 300g gain when I did everything right. Yes, last week I worked out 5 times and ate healthy foods at a calorie deficit, but the scale was not in my favour.

That being said, the month of June was not a success when we are talking about weightloss, but cm loss was freaking fantastic.  I mean 8 cm around my tummy, come on, that's just great!

So I spent a lot of time online reading articles on weightloss vs fatloss and why the scale sometimes does not show a loss.

I want to quote a few phrases from this article, as it makes so much sense - and because I want to come back and read it again and again and remind myself regularly not to measure my success to the reading on the scale.

Link to article on Exercise.About website

• "What does your weight say about you? If you think about it, that number doesn't tell you a whole lot. The scale shows your weight, but does it tell you how much of that weight is muscle and how much is fat?  Or how much of that weight is water, bones or organs? A bodybuilder's weight could be off the charts because of extra muscle, but does that mean he's overweight or fat? Most of us would say no because we know that weight doesn't tell the whole story."
• "You now know that focusing on fat loss is much more important than focusing on your weight. When you lose body fat, you're making permanent changes in your body, shifting your body composition so that you have less fat and more muscle. When you lose weight, you could be losing water or even muscle. It's impossible to know if you're seeing real results or just the product of your daily habits, hormonal shifts and changing hydration levels."
• "When you talk about losing weight, what you usually mean is slimming down. But slimming down doesn't always mean losing weight."
• "It (the scale) doesn't reflect the changes happening in your body: If you're doing cardio and strength training, you may build lean muscle tissue at the same time you're losing fat. In that case, the scale may not change even though you're getting leaner and slimmer."
• "It (the scale) isn't always a positive motivator: If you step on the scale and you're unhappy with what you see, how does that make you feel? You may question everything you're doing, wondering why you even bother at all. Focusing on weight may overshadow the positive results you're getting such as fat loss, more endurance and higher energy levels."

This article on the Livestrong website is also great! 

• "If you continue to watch your calorie intake and exercise, the scale will eventually show that you’ve lost weight. The process may just take longer if you’re adding muscle as you lose. Ultimately, if you feel healthier, look leaner and have grown stronger – it doesn’t matter what the scale says."

Yes people, I'm trying to motivate the hell out of myself at the moment.  It's a long 3 months and only one third through now! I need to make it through the full 3 months knowing I gave it my absolute all.  I sometimes feel so alone on this journey, I sometimes feel so sad and yes, sometimes I feel like giving up, but every single time I find a way to keep going. It's just hard when you think you should have advanced further that what you already have. But hey ho, persisting and not giving up at this stage!

At this point I can say with all honesty I gave the first month my absolute everything, one down - two to go!

Fit & Fabulous

I did not get the time to update my blog this past two weeks, but my mini 3-month challenge is going well and it's doing me wonders.  I am already feeling so much more fit and stronger.  This is where I am at this moment:

• I completed the first 4 weeks of Kayla Itsines guide last Friday. One third through, yay!
• I am still following the IIFYM lifestyle and sticking to it 100% (I only took "off" on Father's Day to spoil my hubby with yummy treats though).
• The lady who calculated my original macros, recalculated it for me a little over a week ago due to me not being able to reach the amount of protein she wanted me to have. So she reduced the amount of protein by a little bit and it allows for some more carbs and fats.  My macros to reach at the moment is 199g carbs, 193g protein and 70g fats a day.

I had a fabulous weigh in on the 19th of June showing a awesome loss of 1.3 kg for that week.  Friday's weigh in did not go well as I showed a 300 g gain, but I'm not going to beat myself up about it because I know I worked out 5 times that week and stuck to my macros, so I did everything by the book.  It could very well just be my body adjusting to the increase of carbs due to the macro recalculation.  Laura advised me that it could take 2 weeks for our bodies to adjust to new macros.  So even if this week's weigh in does not go well, it will still be alright. 

On Friday, since it was my 4-week check in, I did an evaluation with measurements and progress photos.  I can definitely see I'm making progress in my photos, the evidence isn't "WOW", but it's there and I know it's going to be "WOW" when I compare my beginning of June and end of August photos - and that's what I'm working towards!  I lost a lot of cm - a whopping 8 around my waist, 3 from my hips, 3 from my thighs and a cm or two from everywhere else too.  I lost a total of 1.3 kg for the month.

So I would say I made good progress in this first month and I am happy and proud of what I achieved.  Now just to up my game even more in July as the exercise programme is going to get even tougher.  Persistence is key, especially since it's both my boy's and my birthdays in July!  And our dating anniversary anniversary on the 1st of August and hubby's bday on the 27th of August. So I will have to stay strong this next two months.

Note to myself:  Eat Clean & Train Hard! Water drops cut through a rock, not because of their power, but because of its PERSISTENCE!!!    Just like that I am going to persist, be strong and bit by bit I will shift my weight, get rid of it, build strong and lean muscle and feel fabulous by doing so.  I am working hard at a new me and I am NOT going to let my hard work go to waste again, this time I'm making it count. End of story, finish en klaar. This 3 months I am laying the foundation for the rest of my life!

A reminder to myself

After a week of working out 5 solid times, not deviating from my eating plan, not even last weekend, the scale shifted with only 300 grams.  That's pretty lousy, but that being said I know by now that if I work out hard I change my body and that change does not necessarily reflect on the scale, but I'm giving the fat a good nudge nonetheless and I'm sure when I'm going to measure I'm going to see the difference there.

I just need to remind myself of a couple of things and I need to put it in writing, so I can come back and read it again.

1. This personal challenge is for 3 months, I'm only in Week 2 now, so plenty more weeks to go.
2. Even if the scale shows little or no difference and I have worked out hard and have eaten well, it is a WIN. I'm working towards a healthy body. And it is guaranteed I'm getting leaner, and that's the most important.
3. What I weigh is NOT important.  My good friend Jess once told me nobody is going to pick me up and place me on a scale to see what I weigh - it is NOT important.  Being healthy is what's important to me - looking healthy and getting rid of the fat.
4. I am not fat, I have fat, and I'm working hard to change it.
5. I must not focus on the now, but on the end of this specific challenge.  The change I can make in 3 whole months is going to be incredible!  So I must just focus on 31 August.
6. I am a Winter Warrior!  Persistence is key.
7. Summer bodies are made in the winter!
8. I can do this, I will do this, I am busy doing this

3-Month Personal Challenge

It's been 7 months since I last wrote on this blog...7  roller coaster  months.  I have been quiet on this blog, not because I have not been continuing on my mission, life is just hectic being a full time working mom of two (three if you count my hubby) with no domestic help at home. So this blog was a little bit left behind.

Last time I wrote I said "She believed she could so she did" and I actually did - I did very well getting my weight down to about 83'ish.  But then December holidays came and I can't even remember how much I rapidly gained due to way too many indulgences.  Of course I went into the new year all guns blazing and I started Kayla Itsines programme with my dear friend Jess.  We did so well.  We finished the first 4 weeks pre training and then we went on to the intense programme and we got to week 5.  I did not lose a lot of weight, but I lost cm like it was nobody's business and my body got toned and I was so proud.  Then flucking life happened again and I got bronchitis as well as developed asthma.  I could barely breath for 2 months and I had to stop my workouts.  Eating went well throughout the week - I kept mostly to Paleo, but weekends were my downfall, and in between stressful work situations and sick kiddies and lack of sleep due to a teething baby I fell off the wagon for short periods of time here and there... mostly weekends, or for a day or so at a time.  My weight I must say kept steady at around 87'ish kg.

I feel as though I am wasting this year, so I decided as of 1 June I have to super charge my weightloss mission.  I learned about the IIFYM (If it fits your macros) lifestyle and I decided I can do this along with 90% clean eating and it would be easier to maintain and give me a little bit more freedom over weekends.  So I approached http://www.lauramelaniemuscle.co.za/ to work out my macros for me so that I could be sure it's done correctly.  Laura surprised me by allocating me 2200 calories to eat every single day according to my workout schedules and stats, but IIFYM is more about counting macros, so focusing on getting in 289g (gasp) protein, 114g carbs and 65g fat.  This is totally new to me and I am not near to reaching those macros yet.  My average calorie intake is about 1400 usually and protein rarely reached 100g per day.  But so far I am feeling good and strong, so giving this lifestyle a month to see if it suits me and more importantly if it helps me to shift the extra weight!

I also restarted Kayla Itsines Bikini Body Guide along with Jess and we already almost have Week 1 under the belt.  I'm sitting here with sore tummy muscles!

Hoping and wishing and praying to stay strong this three months.  I want to emerge from this winter and feel like a butterfly that just came out of her cocoon after being a fat caterpillar for far too long.

I have not set myself many goals - just to keep to it and keep going as hard as I can.  I don't know how regularly I'm going to weigh, if it is going to be weekly or monthly.  At this stage I'm just focusing on staying strong and be a warrior!  I will hopefully post soon with some awesome results :)