Tag Archives: goals

That voice in your head

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If you hear a voice within you say “you cannot paint,” then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced. -Vincent Van Gogh

Often times when we are reaching for a new goal or trying something new, fear and insecurities kick in and you tell yourself you can’t rather than you can. Don’t let the “voice” in your head tell you you can’t. Other people may be negative and discouraging, that’s expected (sadly). But don’t let your own “voice” be discouraging to you. Think positive and be your own biggest supporter! You’ll never get anywhere with a negative mindset.

Growing up I was always told “you can do anything you put your mind to.” If you have the drive and focus, you can accomplish so much!

Body Dysmorphia

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I found this picture a few years ago and was shocked at how tiny I looked! My arms were so scrawny! I remember thinking back then I was “fat” and had weight to lose. I would spend almost two hours in the gym some days. I wish I could go back and slap my former self! 😳

When I was a teacher, I always started our mental health chapter by showing this picture and beginning the discussion of body dysmorphia. I would explain that sometimes you can’t see what others see, especially when it comes to your body.

Body dismorphia by definition is the obsessive idea that some aspect of one’s own body part or appearance is severely flawed and warrants exceptional measures to hide or fix their dysmorphic part.

This was a topic I actually spent two days on in both my health and leadership classes. Body dismorphia has become so prevalent, especially with the amount of social media channels now available.

Two days may seem like a long time to discuss a topic like body dismorphia but you’d be amazed at how into the topic they got! Kids will tell you the struggles of social media and how it affects their view of themselves. It’s brutal for kids now days. Its just my opinion, but I’m thankful I grew up in a time with no social media and cellphones that didn’t take pictures!

One of my favorite discussion questions to ask was “if we did away with social media (yes I know we never will but let’s just say hypothetically) would body dismorphia be less prevalent?”

We then followed up with a question like….. “do you think social media makes kids/teens now days tougher or weaker?” This question led to a full day of back and forth discussion (most of the time). In my leadership class we actually used it as a debate question when we did our debate section.

I was so incredibly impressed by the raw honesty of some of the kids in my classes. I was pretty quiet in HS and was always afraid to share my opinion for fear of ridicule. Obviously that’s changed now! 😂

I have my moments where I’m critical of myself, but I think I’m more logical now. Maybe that’s something that comes with age. But I look back at old pictures vs current and I feel like I know what “healthy” looks like now on my body. I also use social media as a tool! I love to read what new recipes people are trying or how other moms are getting through similar struggles. Yes social media has negative aspects and some people use it to vent and complain. But if you ignore all of that there are some really fantastic people out there in the world talking about so many great things. Find those people who encourage you and follow them! Remember, positivity breeds positivity! 💙

Workout after being sick

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Today I went to the gym to try to get my body moving. It’s been over 24 hours since my fever broke. I always press for people to avoid workout when sick or right after sick. However, light exercise right after being sick is ok, depending on the illness. I took to a spin bike and did light resistance. Just a little to get my legs moving and blood flowing. 💪🏻

Ever wonder why they say not to workout while sick or before your fever breaks? Here’s a brief explanation why……

Stress of workouts creates these microtears in our muscles. These microtears from the stress are a normal process of damage and repair. The body uses inflammation to signal and start to repair the damage caused by working out. Inflammation in the body is maintained by the immune system. When you workout while sick or before your body has fully recovered from being sick you are diverting the immune system away from fighting the infection. Instead it’s working to repair muscles. If you were almost over the illness, you can actually cause it to come back!

While working out is great for our health, in some instances it can be damaging. Listen to your body. If you don’t have much energy, or feel exhausted, the gym is obviously not a good idea. Wait until you are feeling a little more like yourself. Make sure you have an appetite, especially if you are like me and got that 24 hour flu bug! Make sure your body is ready to go back. When it is, ease into your workout to be safe. Better to start out slow than push yourself and do more damage! 😳

You only get one body in this lifetime! Take care of it! 💙

Bosu squats safety explained

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Recently someone asked me why I do bosu squats because everything they read said they are horrible to do and can cause injury. This is semi true. You should NEVER do bosu squats on the ball side. There is not enough stability for your ankle and leg. Performing heavily loaded squats, lunges, hip thrusts, or deadlifts with your feet on the ground is risky enough. Stepping onto an unstable surface while performing big movements like those only increases your risk of injury. When you are on an unstable surface, your body is working to keep its balance and because of that your muscles are “distracted” from the task at hand

Bosu squats on the flat side are ok to do. This is because you have a flat (semi) stable surface. You aren’t fighting to keep your balance as if you would on the ball side. Placing the Bosu with the flat-side up is great for building core strength ( abs/lower back area) and improving overall balance while toning abs

Hope this gave a little more clarity! Happy Friday! 💙

Leg day exercises

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Leg day! Y’all know that’s my favorite day! 💪🏻 I’m starting to change up my workouts this month. I typically change them every 6 weeks. These are 3 exercises from my new leg day workout for the next few weeks!

•Bosu ball squats 4×12

•Side lunges (both sides) 4×10-12

•Cable bar squats 4×12

The bosu squats definitely take some balance. I would try them without a weight first just to get your footing and make sure your comfortable doing them. If it’s too difficult for you to balance with the bosu ball, forget the ball and just do regular squats! Better safe than sorry! 😂

Good Side vs Bad Side

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Good side vs bad side. We all have them. No I’m not talking about good vs evil. I’m talking about your left vs your right side of body! We all have a side that “looks best” in our opinion so we typically turn that side to a camera when taking a picture. Some people do it without even realizing it!

My good side is my left. Which is weird because I have a big scar on the left side of my nose that I hate. That aside, I still like my left side better. If you notice, in pictures it’s always me turned to show my left side or my left arm is the one that’s out. That’s because I have nerve damage in my right arm and hand from years of gymnastics and cheerleading. It causes me a lot of pain making it hard to lift on that side. I strain a lot when working out because of the weakness of the arm and the pain from the nerve damage. My right side doesn’t build muscle the way my left does. So my left arm always looks more toned than my right.

I know it sounds ridiculous but it’s my little insecurity. We all have them and this is mine! Does my right arm look bad? No! Does it look oddly different from the left? No! I just prefer how the left looks to the right. So I know when I do pictures it’s always on the left side.

This may seem like a minor and stupid insecurity but it’s mine! Everyone’s insecurities are different. We all have them, we are human. The goal is to make sure you don’t fester on them. Work with or around your insecurities! Don’t let your insecurities, no matter how big or small, direct your life. God gave us two “cheeks” for a reason 😉💪🏻

Self Care

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Self care….. it’s any necessary human regulatory function which is under individual control. Basically something YOU need to keep yourself feeling sane and like yourself. It’s how you take care of you!

We all have things we do for self care. Me? I consider mine a cup of green tea, face masks, writing, workout and sleep. These are all things that keep me feeling grounded. They help me to relax. They are things that just make me happy and they’re for ME. I don’t have time to do each of them every day, but I try to incorporate each at least once a week. Green tea has become my go to every morning and of course my workouts in the afternoon. Sometimes I can sneak in a writing session and a face mask while Ryder is napping. But that’s only occasionally because his naps are when I get everything around the house done!

Everyone is different. Some people’s version of self care is a massage, facial, taking a bath, eating a treat, talking to a friend, going out to eat, or just having some quiet time. Do whatever works for you! Self care is important. We work so hard to take care of others around us we sometimes forget to stop and take a minute for ourselves. Especially moms!

Whether it’s once a day or once a week. Take some time for a little self care and do what makes you happy. 💙

Building back balance

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“Strength and growth come only through continuous effort and struggle.” -Napoleon Hill

I love this picture. It was taken in 2013 on Lake Lewisville just outside of Dallas. I got this crazy idea to do a handstand on the nose of the boat. I held it for a good three seconds before a wave hit from another boater and knocked me over the side. 😂

I used to love to do handstands anywhere, on anything. I got it from my father. He was a gymnast growing up and whenever he went to a new city he would pick a landmark or a cool location and do a handstand picture.

When I got pregnant with Ryder I had major balance issues. It was a weird feeling. I was a gymnast and a cheerleader so balance was never a problem for me before. While pregnant I was constantly stumbling or running into things. It was almost like being tipsy drunk, just without the alcohol! My doctor said that happens to some people but it eventually goes away. It went away completely about 6 months after I had him. And thank goodness because it’s not a fun feeling to have regularly. I had so many bumps and bruises on my legs from running into things. It was not a pretty sight.

I don’t know that I’ll ever do a handstand on the nose of a boat again but I’d like to think maybe one day I could. I’m still building back my upper body strength and working on my balance. For now I’ll stick with on the ground handstands. But this will forever be my favorite handstand picture. I’ll keep it as my “goal picture.” Balancing on a boat just standing is one thing, but doing it in a handstand position is a whole other level!

Everyone has goals, big and small. It’s your focus and determination that will get you there!

A twist on cheat meals

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I went out to dinner on a cheat meal night and was craving a burger. The restaurant burger and fries totaled to 1273 calories. Mind you, it would have been a little less without the bacon and fried egg but some cheat meals are worth the extra calories!

During the week one day I was craving a burger but it wasn’t a cheat meal day. So I decided to make a healthier version of the cheat meal I love. The burger is topped with a little cheese, cilantro, tomato, onion and a tsp of chipotle catchup. The fries are lightly tossed in olive oil, pink salt, and pepper, then baked. The homemade burger and fries totaled to 599 calories. That’s less than half the calories of the restaurant version! This is a great trade for the restaurant version if wanting a healthier twist on a cheat meal!

When you’re doing a healthy diet, you don’t have to eat boring meals. Granted I wouldn’t recommend eating a homemade burger and fries every day. That’s a little more red meat than you need and there are better options than white potatoes. But this is definitely a great option on occasion. I love to take my favorite restaurant foods and mimic them at home in healthier ways. It beats eating baked chicken, rice and broccoli every day like I used to do! Healthy eating doesn’t have to be boring. You just have to be cautious of what you are putting into the meal or on the meal.

Happy eating!

The secret to losing weight

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I want to lose weight, how did you do it?” This is a common question I get from my friends and former athletes (I’m a cheer coach). There isn’t this huge secret of how to do it. I’m not wasting money on products that claim to make you lose weight. I just watch what I eat and I make sure to workout. That’s literally it!

If you aren’t losing weight and you have been trying, these are some reasons that may be affecting you!…..

1. You aren’t being patient. Losing weight won’t happen over night. It would be awesome if it did, but that’s unfortunately not how the body works. For some it takes weeks, others months. Everyone’s body is different.

2. You are comparing yourself to others rather than comparing yourself to where YOU started.

3. Too many cheat meals. Are you eating good during the week then eating everything in sight on the weekend? Or are you adding in too many cheat meals during the week? Cheat meals are great! They’re a good shock for your body. They’re also a great reward for yourself. However doing too many that are too high in fat and calorie will set you back.

4. Water retention. I’ve explained it before in a past post. When you lose weight your body depletes itself of fat cells. However the fat pockets that held the fat cells take a while to diminish so your body fills them with water till it can get rid of them.

5. Eating the wrong things. Some foods are deceiving. We claim them as healthy but in too big of amounts they can actually have reverse effects

6. You’re only doing cardio and not building muscle to burn fat. Cardio burns both fat and muscle. Cardio is fantastic for building endurance but it’s not the only thing you should be doing in your workout routine. Weight training builds lean muscle mass, which elevates your metabolism and burns more fat, even when you’re not exercising!

7. Calorie Deficit. By definition this is reducing the amount of calories consumed relative to the amount of calories required for maintenance of body weight. Multiple your body weight by 10-12 (depending on your activity level. I do 12 since I lift and do cardio weekly) Recalculate every 2-4 weeks as you lose weight.

If you’re struggling to lose weight, don’t give in and go buy diet pills or the teas that claim you’ll lose a ton of weight fast. Work with your body. You’ll be amazed what it can do on its own when you fuel it properly and workout!