fitness

December 20, 2012

#Cinchspiration Month 6 Video Update: I’ve Made It!

Six months ago, I started my weight loss journey with Cinchspiration with high hopes, but not really sure if I could believe the hype. Six months later, I feel like a new person inside and out, 45 pounds lighter, but more importantly, with a much stronger spirit and self-confidence through the roof! Take a look at my video update for more:

And just because I always share, here are my official final measurements, happily, a pound less than I weighed 10 days ago:

measurements1220

I started at a snug size 20/22, and I’m now between a 14 and a 16 (14 fits, but not with as much room as I’d like, and 16 is a little too big). Still though, I have clothes in my closet in size 12 and 10 that I’ve bought recently as motivation to keep going. And I’ll get there. I have to. Because there’s no going back!

I’m hoping to be chosen as next year’s Cinch Blogger Spokesperson, ready to step in and motivate a new group of women to push themselves past the challenges and their self-imposed limitations, so wish me luck!

Disclosure: I was chosen by Shaklee to be a #Cinchspiration blogger. As a result, I received a 6-month supply of Cinch products along with online support and incentives as I documented my journey. This is my final post for the program. As usual, all opinions are authentic and mine. Results and experiences are unique for each person, so results may vary. People following the weight loss portion of Shaklee 180 can expect to lose 1-2 pounds a week.

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December 10, 2012

#Cinchspiration: Six Months In, I’m a Changed Woman

Life sucks when you’ve given up. But I thought I’d be addicted to sugar and fast food for the rest of my life, and I’d resolved myself to being obese. I thought I just didn’t have the energy to eat healthier foods or exercise regularly. So I decided that I’d wrap my body, 80 pounds overweight, in clothes that made me feel good and that I’d learn to love myself just as I was.

But then something amazing happened. I threw my name in the hat for a chance to be one of 50 bloggers who’d get to use the Shaklee 180 program for 6 months. And I was selected. And 6 months later, everything is different. See for yourself:

Please forgive the fact that these after pics are so pixellated. Unfortunately, today is a dark, gloomy day, so the room was a lot darker than usual. But there’s another special photo I can’t wait to share:

You read that right. I’ve lost a total of 44 pounds on the Shaklee 180 program in a little less than 6 months! If you want to know how I did it, feel free to scroll through all my Cinchspiration posts to see the transformation. My goal for the 6-month period was 40 pounds, and I still have more than a week left before it’s officially over, so I’m pretty darn proud of myself! Here are my current measurements:

My inch loss is the same as last time, but I’m completely cool with that. I still feel like a million bucks, and then some! Not just because of the weight loss either. I feel like a completely different person on the outside, but more importantly, on the inside, too.

Six months ago, I was defeated. Today, I’m shopping for clothes in smaller sizes than I currently wear because I KNOW I’ll get there as long as I keep pushing. Six months ago, I skipped breakfast nearly every day, and when I did eat, I typically ate crap loaded with sugar, simple carbs, fat and failure. Today, I’ll pass on cookies to have an apple instead, drink water instead of calorie-loaded juice, and I couldn’t eat a huge plate of food if I tried.

I’ve learned to control my portions and make better choices, even when I’m busy and have to grab food on the run. The Shaklee 180 smoothees and meal bars are convenient, but the thing about the plan that helped me more than anything else was having to choose my own, healthy, dinner. After doing that for the first few months and waiting for my body to get used to the reduced calorie intake, I learned which foods to choose, so that even on days when I’m away from home and not able to grab a Cinch meal, I can still choose healthier options.

I’ve learned that I can make dishes at home that not only taste better than the restaurant version, but that are lower in calories, sugar and fat, too. I’ve learned that I don’t have to starve or deprive myself to lose weight, and I’ve finally. Finally! Learned the meaning of the word “moderation.”

I’ve broken habits that I’ve complained about on this blog since I started it in 2009. And I have Shaklee, team leader Sommer Poquette and the 49 other ladies who began this journey, and the 30+ who have completed it. I especially want to thank women like Maribel, Brooke, Maggie, Mandee and a couple of others who were particularly supportive and always trying to motivate all of us to do our best. They’ve all taught me how to push people to their limits without making them hate you, and I’ve been able to do the same for friends — online and in real life — who have seen my transformation and asked what I’m doing and how they can do it too.

I’m sincerely emotional, because in addition to the new friendships, this program has helped me fully rediscover some things that I thought had been lost to me forever: Self-love and confidence.

So though I still have nearly 40 pounds more to lose before I reach my goal weight and a healthier BMI, I still feel like a winner. I went from a woman who almost never allowed anyone to take full body photos (the one shown above is one of only a handful) to one who proudly, excitedly posts outfit of the day photos each week. In a few short months, I have transformed from a woman who was faking confidence to one who actually is confident.

I’d say I’ve done pretty well, and I’m more proud of myself about this than I’ve been about anything in a long, long time. Shaklee 180, thank you. My 30th birthday is in four days (gasp!), and my health is the best birthday present I could ever receive. This program gets my unequivocal stamp of approval.

Disclosure: I was chosen by Shaklee to be a #Cinchspiration blogger. As a result, I have received a 6-month supply of Shaklee 180 products along with online support and incentives as I document my journey. As usual, all opinions are authentic and mine. Results and experiences are unique for each person, so results may vary. People following the weight loss portion of Shaklee 180 can expect to lose 1-2 pounds a week.

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October 26, 2012

#Cinchspiration Four-Month Video Update

I know things have been quiet around here this week. Life has gotten crazy busy all of a sudden, but I wanted to share how I’m doing on my Shaklee 180 journey to this point. Check out this video:

I also owe you some measurements. They haven’t moved nearly as much as I’d like, but progress is progress, right?

I also sucked it up and invested in a FitBit activity tracker. The FitBit is tiny and discreet, and it will track my steps, how many flights of stairs I climb (which will be interesting to see, since I live in a third-floor walkup), how many calories I burn throughout the day, and even how well I sleep. From what I’ve read, FitBit isn’t perfect, but it does a good job of letting wearers know how active they are overall, and I think having a way to track my activity level will really help me keep pushing to do better. I’m really hoping it works well. I’ll let you know once I get it. (aff)

Plus, when I went to a doctor’s appointment with my daughter this week after not having been there in about 2 months, the nurses — who all know my family really well — were all gushing about how much weight I’d lost. When you have to look at yourself every day, the changes can seem really small and disappointing. But my encounter with the nurses reminded me of how far I’ve come and that I should be proud of that. I feel better about myself and my progress today than I have in a very long time!

I’m also watching all the other ladies who are participating in this Shaklee 180 challenge blossom into confident, self-assured women, and it is amazing to witness! They sincerely motivate me to continue even on days when I just don’t feel like it, or when I feel like eating lots of pizza or cake. I’ve said this before, but ladies, thank you for being so awesome!

Disclosure: I was chosen by Shaklee to be a #Cinchspiration blogger. As a result, I have received a 6-month supply of Shaklee 180 products along with online support and incentives as I document my journey. As usual, all opinions are authentic and mine. Results and experiences are unique for each person, so results may vary. People following the weight loss portion of Shaklee 180 can expect to lose 1-2 pounds a week.

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September 24, 2012

3-Month #Cinchspiration Video Update

It’s hard to believe that I got started on the Shaklee 180 program more than 3 months ago! The time has come and gone so quickly, and I’m happy to say that I’m still losing pounds and inches. Of course, like any journey toward better health, it has not been without its hurdles. Check out this video about where I am today:

What are you doing to get healthier? Are you on a weight loss journey as well? Have you incorporated more fruit and veggies in your diet or more exercise in your routine? Share your tips for healthy living in the comments below!

Disclosure: I was chosen by Shaklee to be a #Cinchspiration blogger. As a result, I will receive a 6-month supply of Shaklee 180 products along with online support and incentives as I document my journey. As usual, all opinions are authentic and mine. Results and experiences are unique for each person, so results may vary. People following the weight loss portion of Shaklee 180 can expect to lose 1-2 pounds a week.

{ 2 comments }

September 12, 2012

#Cinchspiration Update: Getting Back Up

Remember a few weeks ago, when I talked about how easy it was to stick the Shaklee 180 program because the shakes and meal bars were so quick and simple? Well, apparently, I got a little too comfortable with this routine. So comfortable, in fact, that I screwed it up. In the two weeks since my last weight loss update, I hadn’t been doing my best.

I got busy and let my eating schedule go completely out of whack, skipping meals a couple of times
In subsequent days, I was so ravenously hungry that I ate a lot of crap I shouldn’t have (ie. french fries, tortilla chips, etc.)
I wasn’t drinking nearly enough water, and I became dehydrated
Of course, all of this left me not wanting to exercise, so I didn’t

The combination of these things left me feeling completely out of sorts, cranky and just generally crappy. Some days, even getting out of bed was a challenge. It’s amazing how quickly your body adapts to drinking water and healthier eating. As soon as I fell back into old habits, my body revolted.

The good news? I figured out what I was doing wrong and I’m back on the horse. I’m now eating regularly and drinking as much water as I can stand. I have started exercising again, and I feel so good afterward that its hard to remember why I stopped. And these photos gave me a new dose of inspiration:

This is the first set of before and afters that really made me say “Whoa!” The difference is really, really starting to show. Even my afro is smaller! Lol! These images reminded me of how far I’ve come and how far I still have left to go, and I can’t wait to reach my goal!

Though I messed up the last couple of weeks, they weren’t a complete disaster. I still managed to lose a little. Here are my current measurements:

The pounds and inches are slowly melting away, and now that I’m back on track, I feel amazing again. If nothing else, this little episode was a stark reminder of what not to do. Simply put, I have to do the work to get the results I want. And what I want is to be my best, healthiest self, without losing my curves

I know I can do it, and I will be forever grateful to Shaklee for the opportunity to prove it to myself.

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August 20, 2012

#Cinchspiration Video Update & Cinch Starter Kit Giveaway!

If you read last week’s Cinchspiration update, you know that I’ve been doing pretty well, and I’d lost a total of 14 lbs. in 8 weeks. Well, I have good news! I’ve lost more weight since then! Check out my video update to learn how much:

And as you heard in the video, the great folks at Shaklee have a great offer for all of you. I’m giving away a Cinch starter kit !

The starter kit is a two-week supply with a retail value of $228, and it includes:

Vanilla shake mix canister (15 servings)
Assorted Cinch shake packets (14 packets)
3-in-1 boost™(42 count)
Assortment pack snack bars (10 count)
Energy tea mix (28 sticks)
Daily journals (2)
Cinch program guide
Cinch logo shaker cup
Cinch pedometer
Cinch tape measure

I need one of those pedometers myself!

Seriously though, if you’ve been looking for a way to lose weight and inches, but don’t know where to begin, you’ll want to enter. I was there 9 weeks ago. If it weren’t for Cinch, I can almost guarantee you I would be eating the same crappy way I had been for years. And even though I’d learned to love myself the This was the push I needed to start moving in the right direction. And now, instead of craving sugar and stuff that’s not good for me, I crave seeing the scale go down — not because I took a shortcut — but because I worked hard to get there. It’s an incredibly satisfying feeling.

Enter via the Rafflecopter widget below. If you’re reading this via email, you’ll need to visit the site to see the Rafflecopter widget. Just follow the instructions and get you some Cinch!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: I was chosen by Shaklee to be a #Cinchspiration blogger. As a result, I will receive a 6-month supply of Cinch products along with online support and incentives as I document my journey. As usual, all opinions are authentic and mine.

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August 15, 2012

Still Going Strong with #Cinchspiration , Even After I Failed for a Few Days (+Weigh In)

I am just starting the ninth week of the Shaklee 180 program, and I’d be a liar if I said it was always easy. It’s not. But then again, few things worth doing are easy all the time, right?

The week of my daughter’s birthday, I failed. I promised in my last post that I would have only one cupcake on my daughter’s birthday. I did pretty well there. We didn’t buy cupcakes, but rather a 1/4 sheet cake, and I had only one small piece. No problem there. However, my husband promised my daughter that we’d take her out to dinner for her birthday. Her choice? Red Lobster. Oh, boy.

My main meal choice was pretty decent: Salmon, steamed broccoli and rice pilaf. And I didn’t even eat the rice.

The problem was the other stuff. We have a saying in the Virgin Islands: “My eyes were bigger than my stomach.” I had one cheddar bay biscuit, which wasn’t terrible by itself, but I followed it with a side of shrimp scampi and a super sweet virgin daiquiri that had to contain at least 400 calories by itself. I couldn’t even drink the whole thing because it was so sweet! It was at that moment that I realized how much my palate has changed in these 8 weeks. In years past, there was no such thing as “too sweet.”

Even though I stopped short of eating everything in front of me, for the first time since I started Shaklee 180, I went over my calorie count. And not by a few. It was more like 200-300 calories over. I beat myself up for a minute, but then my fellow Shaklee 180 blogger buddies reminded me that every day is a new day and we all mess up sometimes.

I picked myself up. I thought. But then the rest of that week got away from me. I kept rationalizing that I could eat cake (we still had a lot left) if I only ate one small piece a day and stayed inside my calorie count. No biggie right? Maybe, but we also had takeout for dinner one night and pizza another. And the day we had pizza, my meal schedule was all out of whack.

The good news? I didn’t gain any weight. The bad news? I didn’t lose any either. For a whole week and a half. So while staying within my calorie allotment for those remaining days helped me at least stay stagnant, obviously, the crappy calories I was eating weren’t helpful. Drinking the shakes and eating the meal bars weren’t the problem, but my other choices were.

But last week, I got back on the saddle, and I did better and ate healthier. And what do you know? As of this morning, I’d lost another 2.5 lbs! So here’s this month’s before and after pics, along with my weigh in and measurements:

Can you see the difference? I can, finally!

I’ve lost a total of 14 lbs. and 14 inches. Woo hoo! I was hoping for 16 pounds by this point, but you know what? I’ll take it!

And even better, I went shopping with my family this weekend. I bought a pair of size 16 skinny jeans thinking they’d be my goal pants. But lo and behold, I took them home and they actually fit! They’re a tiny bit snug, but still, they fit! I haven’t worn a size 16 in years!

So that’s my cinchspiration this month. Those jeans. I’ve gotta beat them and get in a size 14 So I’m going to push even harder this time to meet my goal of 24 pounds in 12 weeks. Either way, my goal for the 6 months of the program is 40 pounds lost. We’re 1/3 of the way there, and I’ve lost 14, so I’m actually on track to lose a little more than that. Let’s hope it stays that way!

My girl Akilah of Execumama posted something today that really resonated with me. She reminded all of us to dream small sometimes. When the big goal (in my case, 80 lbs.) seems insurmountable, focus on a smaller goal. Eat ONE healthy meal. Aim for ONE workout. She also reminded me that I was already practicing this technique, even without realizing it. I swear, that woman lives in my head sometimes! Check out her ridiculously empowering words.

So instead of beating myself up about the things I didn’t accomplish this month, I’ll be happy about the things I did, and look forward to next month.

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July 11, 2012

#Cinchspiration Update & Weigh-In

It’s been three weeks since I started my Shaklee 180 weight loss journey, and I just wanted to let you all know how it’s been going. My plan is to check in with my weight and measurements every 2 weeks, but I’ve been so busy, I just haven’t had time to check in. Even though this one is late, I’ll still let you know how I’m doing at the 4-week mark next week.

What I’m Eating

The last time I wrote, I was getting ready to begin my journey. Now, I feel like an old pro. Each day, I replace breakfast and lunch with either a Shaklee 180 meal bar or shake. Some days I have two shakes. This was a huge challenge for me during the first week because of one simple fact: I hate milk. Hate may seem like a strong word, but for me, it’s not quite strong enough. This includes cow’s milk, soy milk, almond milk, coconut milk — ANY milk. So why the heck did I sign up for a program that requires me to drink milk shakes, right? I was asking myself that very question the first day.

To be honest, when I first tried these protein rich shakes, all I could taste was chalk. The combination of hated milk — albeit light vanilla soy milk — and much more protein than I’m used to was a shock to my taste buds and my body. And while some of the meal and snack bars are awesome (peanut butter chocolate or chocolate decadence, anyone?), some of them initially had that chalkiness that I wasn’t happy with in the shakes.

But in spite of the fact that the taste made me balk, I persisted, telling myself that it would get better. And you know what? It did! I’ve learned to add a variety of fruit and even peanut butter to my shakes to boost the taste, and there are a couple of combinations that I really like:

Pina colada

Vanilla shake with light vanilla soy milk, fresh pineapple chunks, and frozen, shredded coconut OR 1 tbsp. cream of coconut.

Vanilla with frozen mixed berries

Seriously, once I found some good combinations, I started looking forward to the shakes. They’re crazy simple to make, so I really don’t have to think about what to have for lunch.

For dinner, we are tasked with preparing our own healthy meals. I’ve been doing pretty good, I think. Some of my meals:

Whole wheat penne pasta with sauteed garlic shrimp and grape tomatoes with a raw spinach salad.

Green leaf lettuce with roasted salmon, ONE small serving of yellow rice and steamed broccoli.

And you know what else? I’ve rarely craved sugar. And when I do, I can grab a sweet Shaklee 180 snack bar to satiate my sweet tooth. Have I cheated ever? Yes, but I didn’t go crazy. Instead of sitting in front of the TV late at night with a bag of sugar- and calorie-laden chocolate chip cookies, I opted to eat a single serving of Pepperidge Farm Chessmen cookies — 120 calories and 5g of sugar. Just enough to let me feel indulgent without stuffing myself. And I do this maybe once a week, and ONLY on days when I have calories to spare.

Bumps in the road

Speaking of calories, it took a while for me to find the right number. I started off eating just 1300 calories a day (net, after exercise). I quickly learned that this wasn’t enough. Instead of dropping pounds, my body went into starvation mode and held on to everything. But once I boosted my calorie intake to 1800 net, I started losing weight. Not terribly quickly, but I was losing nonetheless. The higher calorie count also meant that I had to spread my calories throughout the day. So I eat a little something with breakfast and lunch and eat healthy snacks in between, like nuts, fruit and the occasional handful of low-fat popcorn.

So where am I today? Here are my current stats:

5.5 lbs. and 8 inches lost! My goal for 3 weeks was 6 pounds, so I’m pretty close, and therefore, very proud of myself. Especially since I got off to a slow start with a much-too-low calorie count.

Here’s hoping that next week, when I check in, I’ll be reporting 8 pounds lost total. Cross your fingers and cheer me on! If nothing else, I FEEL different. I exercise for at least an hour almost pretty much every day, and I’ve found that I have more energy and I’m starting to actually look forward to the exercise. What?! Yep.

You see this face? That’s me, happy about where I’m going. I feel and see a change not just in my body, but in my outlook on health, and that’s better than I could’ve asked for.

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