About Me

I've always considered myself a bit of a fitness enthusiast, hoarding stacks of Shape, Self, Fitness, and Women's Health until my husband gives me the side-eye and I have to purge.  There are so many great workouts and recipes I don't want to throw them away.  Yes, I realize most or all of them are on the internet, but I'm old school.  I'm tactile.  I like to touch the pages and be able to take them anywhere, even somewhere ::gasp:: without internet access!

Until recently, I never thought I was that terrible of an eater.  Sure, we ate out more than we liked but it was because it was the easy route.  I admit that.  I've never had a true weight issue, other than battling anorexia as a teen {and probably some in my early 20's}, so I turned a blind eye to our eating habits by consoling myself that we took family walks together often, I wasn't gaining weight, so it was ok.

::cringe::

In October, we welcomed our second child.  A bouncing, beautiful, baby girl.  From day one, she had digestive issues {as I had throughout my pregnancy but I never really gave it a lot of thought until recently} and was finally diagnosed in early December with a milk/soy protein intolerance.  Being the stubborn mama that I am, not nursing was just NOT an option, so I did away with all things milk and soy.  I knew that would mean a major overhaul in our eating habits, and my husband was 100% on board with it because he is just {{that}} supportive... but I don't think either of us truly knew what it entailed.  Until the dietitian handed us a stack of papers that told me what I could/couldn't eat.

The first few weeks had me in tears.  I was so frustrated because I honestly just couldn't figure out how or what to eat.  Reading all the labels on the food made my head spin, not to mention a headache.  There were ingredients I couldn't pronounce, other ingredients that frightened me a little bit {such as anything chloride - why is chloride in our food?!}, and more soy and dairy than I could ever imagine in foods that should never have soy or dairy in them.  Then, after a particularly frustrating evening in Target, I had a lightbulb moment.  I wasn't finding food I could eat, because I was trying to eat the way I've eaten for years.  Processed JUNK that masquerades as a healthy food when obviously, it's far from it.

After realizing this and turning to mostly home-cooked food {I mean let's be realistic, some mornings I still have a bowl of cereal, or I might eat some sweet potato chips with my sandwich... I'm a busy mom and I'm still learning} the pounds literally just started melting away.  I found myself 10 pounds lighter than I was when we found out about her diagnosis in only a month, and I hadn't even started exercising yet!

Another lightbulb moment: what if...the reason I had never lost weight before on short weight loss stints with awesome workout programs was because even though I was eating "healthy", I wasn't really eating {healthy}?! Let me explain a little.  I was doing the calorie counting thing - lean cuisines and 100 calorie snacks and light yogurt for lunch.  I was teaching, and you have no idea how quickly you have to scarf down your lunch in a tiny 30 minute window which includes walking your class to the cafeteria and retrieving them. 30 minutes? Oh, I meant 15-20.  I was eating processed food out my ears, not homecooked clean food like I am now.  And I don't count calories either.

By the time I factored in the fitness portion at the beginning of January, the scale wasn't moving much, but the inches were now going away.  It's amazing how your body responds when you're feeding it {real} food, and giving it at least 30 minutes of exercise.

Since giving up dairy and soy for my daughter, my skin looks better, I feel better, my headaches are basically non-existent and so are my digestive issues {that have plagued me most of my life}, I sleep better, and above all else, my daughter is a blissfully happy baby.  I'm not sure I'll ever go back to eating soy and dairy...

I'm not totally where I want to be yet, but I'll get there.

This blog is about my journey as a mom and wife, as a fitness enthusiast, as a Beachbody coach, as an ambassador to teaching people about the food they're putting into their bodies while still enjoying themselves, and anything else that comes along as I head down this path.  Thanks for joining me, and I hope we learn a lot together!! <3