It has been a while since I have posted a new blog huh! I forgot how to log-in to this thing! I hope you all enjoyed the beautiful weather, summer treats and got outside to do some outdoor activites. My summer has been really busy between weddings, weekends away, birthday parties ect. To catch you up on anything you may have missed...well I regretfully left Body Ambition. Firstly, I love my BA girls, Janelle and Janie! Body Ambition was such an amazing experience and I would recommend it in a heartbeat for anyone looking to compete or just join a great lifestyle program.
I left mainly because I wanted a change. I don't want to rely my entire existance on a plan and felt like I need to ditch the rule book and experiment with different workouts, food portions ect. I stopped competing for many reasons but one of them was to let go of this super strict lifestyle I was trying to maintain. When is my next meal, how many minutes of cadio am I doing today, did I hit my macros...AHHHH! I couldn't do it anymore and needed to just live my life and realize I wasn't going to just blow up if I stopped this routine. Fear was such a big factor for me while competing. The fear of losing the body I worked so hard for. The fear of being self-conscious in my building phase feeling like people would think I looked big and let myself go. These fears helped me realize that this is not a healthy path for me to take and I needed to take a step back.
So what am I doing now....? I am just happy as can be! I joined SLS Fitness in Lowell, MA. The term less is more really applies with this place. I enjoy SLS for many reasons and a few being that the classes are only 30 minutes. I am typically not a class person because I always feel like I never get that great of a workout but it is the complete opposite here. Thirty minutes is all you need as they power pack these workouts with real high intensity metabolic exercises. I also really enjoy it because it has such a diverse group of clientele. You have men, women, young, old and people of all fitness levels. I also purchased Amanda Adams meal plan which has a total different approach than I was currently doing for the past few years. I follow Amanda Adams on Facebook and Instagram for the fact that she is an ex-competitor and still drinks margaritas, eats burgers on a weekly basis. These are not cheat meals...these are flex calories that you build into your everyday meal plans based on your goals. Her plan is based on 3 lifting workouts and a few days of cardio. I find myself taking up to 3 rest days some weeks and as strange as it feels it is kind of nice!
The biggest thing I enjoy with not competing anymore is the fact that people are not asking me… when is your next show? When I was competing, my life was SO focused on shows, workouts, meals that I don't think people knew what else to talk to me about besides shows. I would post on Facebook how hard I was working, my 20,000 meals I was prepping and I guess I don't really blame people for not knowing what else to talk to me about because for a while that is all I knew. My life has a sense of balance now that I did not have for a few years. I work out when I want, eat what I want and enjoy my friends and family. I know what healthy options are and I know when I want to indulge but the true key is finding that balance in-between the two!
I took some progress pictures this morning because pictures mean way more to me than a number on a scale! I love my body and of course who wouldn't want to be shredded but guess what, I know how to get shredded and I have no desire to do that! Staying in shape is not rocket science..or a mystery potion or pill....it's understanding your body, eating natural healthy foods, being active, enjoying that birthday cake with your family and having cocktails with your girlfriends!
