Long time no talk

So obviously it has been a while since I have written anything on this sad little blog.  I don't really think anyone still looks at it or reads it, so now I am just going to write on it for myself in hopes of documenting this little journey of mine.  Since I wrote on here last I had a baby!  We love our little boy and he has stolen my heart!  But in the process of having a baby ones body isn't exactly great :) So here I am again starting over to get to where I want to be.  My husband made a deal with me that if I weigh 140lbs by the end of the year he will buy me a ticket to Japan to go and see my sister!  Woot woot!  So the little game I play in my head is "would you rather eat that or go to Japan?"  It for sure helps me to stay away from the junk.  I am also starting to eat a "whole food diet" or clean eating.  That means no processed foods and very few animal proteins.  A lot of where I have gotten my research/information from is a book called "Eat to Live" and a documentary called "Forks over Knives".  I HIGHLY recommend both to anyone wanting to just live a healthy lifestyle and in the mean time lose weight and feel great!  

This morning I started a new adventure by starting to go to Cross fit classes!  It was hard but felt so good at the same time!  I can barely walk now this afternoon and will be really sore by the time the morning comes but I love that feeling and miss it!  I am also starting to run because when I go to Japan next spring I want to run my first half marathon with my sister Stacey!  How cool will that be?!?!  So here is to the new me and I can't wait to see what I look like by the end of the year!!

Winner winner chicken dinner!

And the winners are.........drum roll please.............Stacey and Sarah!!! Congrats girls! Please email me your mailing addresses at stephaniehillman@gmail.com and I will get your gift card in the mail! Thanks for entering! Also today there is another winner and that would be me! haha. Today marks a major milestone as I am now down 40lbs! That is the same weight as my oldest child! And for me to achieve something like that is pretty exciting! I still have a long way to go, but man alive that is a lot of weight! Thanks to Take Shape for Life and my health coach Karli I am well on my way to the goal of optimal health. So I think I will go celebrate with a Medifast brownie and a good book on this rainy fall day! LOVE IT!

MIA and a Giveaway!

Why hello eveyone! I know it seems I have been MIA but I have been for good reason. We moved! And we are so happy about it. The Mr. and I are small town people so it is so nice being back in a little town with that Leave it to Beaver feel. So I don't have any new weigh ins or anything exciting like that to report. But I did discover an excellent new workout!!! Carrying a bunch of heavy boxes up the stairs! Man alive was that a bunch of work or what! So needless to say while moving over the last few days my eating and exercising have for sure not been what it has needed to be. So today was start over day. I am excited about it actually. I have set a few goals for myself and am working really hard to get to them. I think goals are huge! In order to get somewhere you have to know where you are going. So I've got them in my sights and headed towards them. And my reward is going to be a hot stone massage! And if you haven't had one in your lifetime yet may I suggest that it gets on your bucket lise because oh man are they WONDERFUL! I can't even tell you how amazing they are. The last time I got one I was in a good mood for a week! I think my husband really liked me that week. haha. And in celebration of my starting over I am going to give away two, that's right I said two, $10 itunes gift cards. All you have to do is leave a comment on this post! And for extra entries just mention this on your facebook or become a fan of my page on facebook as well. So that is a total of 3 entries per person! Just let me know you put it on your facebook so I can check it out! There is nothing better than a good workout mix to get busy to! Happy Monday!

Come and find out!

Hey everyone! So tomorrow evening I am having an open house for anyone who wants to come and find out about Take Shape for Life, the program that is helping me get healthy. It is located at 44419 248th Ave SE Enumclaw, WA (also known as my parents house haha.) You will be able to come and meet my health coach, Karli, taste some of the food, and just visit and have a good time. Even if you are on the fence about it just come and find out more! I would love to see you!

It's all about visualizing!

When I was in high school playing sports, I remember my coaches telling us to visualize the play, or ourselves doing well and the more we visualized what we wanted to happen the bigger of a reality it would become. I remember doing this and feeling like it worked. The more I pictured myself doing well, the more my confidence grew and the better I became. Well I think it works the same way with becoming healthy and achieving weight loss goals. I like to have something tangible and real to look at to help keeping me headed in the right direction.

My husband gave me this super cute shirt for Christmas last year and needless to say the tag is still on it and it has never fit. But it is really cute and I love it so it is my goal shirt. I keep it hanging in my closet where it is very visible so I can keep it in mind to help keep me going towards my goals. So set something out where you can see it to help you. Whether it's a shirt, a pair of jeans, or a swimsuit, whatever it is can be a great insentive. Then visualize what you would look like in it when you reach that goal. I promise it will help motivate you!

Also don't forget to if you are interested in finding out more about how I am losing weight and the program Take Shape for Life come to my open house on Thursday from 6-8pm. It is an open house style so come at any time during that period. You will be able to try some samples and find out all about it and what you need to do to get started on your journey to optimal health. Can't wait to see you there!

Treadmill...I'd rather not.

There are definitely days when the last thing on the planet I want to do is go running or pop in a workout dvd or get on a treadmill that is for sure! So on days like that, such as yesterday for me, I try to do other things that will burn just as many calories, but aren't your conventional exercise. So yesterday I got up, not wanting to exercise, so instead I mowed the lawn, weeded flower beds, washed my car, scrubbed the whole inside of my hosue and played with my girls. Did all of these things take ten times as long as a 20 minute Jillian workout? Of course. But I got a ton done and still burnt calories. And I feel really good today. I got to wake up to a clean house, pretty lawn and a clean car. But of course today none of those things are availiable to do today so I have to do one of my normal workouts! But that's ok because I will be doing it in a clean house. And man alive that makes me happy! What are some ways you burn calories that aren't necessarily conventional?

Just do it!

It's funny how that little Nike slogan can apply to so many different things in our lives! Of course the obvious, EXERCISING! The hardest part is just starting. Whether it's getting out the door for a run or flipping on the TV to do a video or hopping on the treadmill, we(and when I say we I mean I) need to just do it! Because we all know that once we have done it, those endorphins go shooting through us and we are happy and feel so accomplished! Because as Elle Woods would say, "Exercise gives you endorphins, endorphins make you happy. Happy people just don't shoot their husbands, they just don't!" That quote has so much relevance for me! HA! My husband could testify that I don't get after him nearly as much on the days I have worked out versus the days I haven't. So moral of the story. Just do it. That also applies to so much more than just exercising. So many times we tell oursleves that we can't do something. That whatever it is, is out of our reach or we are just not capable of it. But that way of thinking is completely false. We can do things that are out of our "normal". You are so much stronger than you think you are and capable of so much more. (I'm telling myself this as I'm telling you.) We just have to make that decision to get up and do it. One of my favorite quotes says, "Do accomplish things we have never before accomplished, we must do things we have never before done." We can't go on doing the same old things and expect different results. So I am off to exercise and get it done! And that my friends, makes me happy! What do you do to get off the couch and get moving?