In like a lion...out like a lioness... :)

Oh where do I start?! March was INSANE!! God is soo good! Lots of changes some great some not so great. March started off with a bang literally. :) As most know, while driving down 210, my car decided to die on me. So, my baby was donated to Purple Heart, and I found a 2007 Ford Mustang, that is so much fun to drive. This was truly the month of new beginnings. First a car, than a job opportunity that has turned into a job that I adore!! My hours are ideal. I work 0600 to 1400 everyday, which means I'm in bed by 2030 and up by 0400 *out the door by 0450*. It's been an adjustment for sure, but it's been worth it!
The only downfall to the new life is trying to find the energy for the gym and staying motivated with my schooling. Joey, my angel, found time in his schedule, and we ended up switching gyms and times so that I'm not working out on Monday night's anymore. We now meet at WG in Prince Frederick~10 minutes down the road from where I work, and will still meet on Friday's at 1530. I also go during the week/weekends to do my cardio, and will slowly work that back in to more days a week.
Another one of the not so good changes, was that I picked up the habit of not eating again. This is a habit I developed in October and my body got so used to it, that starvation mode was normal for me. Well, this month as I picked up the nasty habit, I gained 6 pounds of "fluids" that Jojo said would come off WHEN I started eating again..and I'll be..he was right.
My weight at the beginning of this month was 261. Got down to 259, and then gained the 6 pounds. Before I gained that weight...I HIT 50 POUNDS LOST!!!! I'm back down to 259. That's insane!! My body is changing so much, the inches are just coming right off. I've gone from a size 26 to a size 18!! I haven't been in the "teens" since about 8th grade. I'm in XL shirts and can now shop in Old Navy and Target in the normal women's sections!!! I'm so excited!!!
I've also been having fun dating. I've met some great guys, and am having fun just chatting, going out and enjoying being 26. :) My ex and I are working towards getting our friendship back. The Marines are helping him and it seems to be doing a lot of good! I'm proud of him but I know that we won't ever be back to what we were before. I'm still working on being ok with that. I know what I deserve and am learning to "Love yourself like gold, and expect others to love you like platinum." ~Jojo quote :)

As always, I'm very thankful and blessed to have the family and friends that I do. You have been incredible to have with me during my "Butterfly Journey".

If you have something that you're trying to achieve...DON'T EVER GIVE UP!! You are worth the fight and challenge it may take for you to achieve your dreams and goals!!

End of February..ALREADY!

As I sit here on 1 March, I can't believe February went by as fast as it did. WOW. It was a good month overall. :) Subbing, school, and the gym was on hold all during the incredible amount of snow we got for the first part of February. So the end of the month was all trying to get back into the swing of things. During all this my ex worked his way back in the picture, so dealing with that has been an interesting ride. I've changed...we both have, but to lose 10 years of a best friend and a relationship is a hard pill to swallow. Life will work out the way it's supposed to. Keeping a positive outlook on life and making sure I don't stray from my goal has been key this month. For those who've been asking..my health is good. I've been keeping up with my annual appointments for scans and blood work so nothing can sneak up on me. I never want to hear the diagnosis I got 2 1/2 years ago...scary stuff. Any who...
February was a positive month as far as the eating and fitness goes. The middle of the month I went to one of my old friends from the old gym..and asked if he could train me. I could've done it myself, but no one gets the kind of progress from me that I'm looking for, except for my trainers. He's been a God-send and I actually look forward to seeing him at the end of my day! We work out twice a week, Monday's @ 2100 and Friday's @ 1530. It's been awesome to get to work out with the boys again. My competitive nature wakes right up..it's an awesome feeling!! Eating was interesting...I'm still trying to tell myself it's OK to eat. Somewhere over the course of the last 7 months, I had talked myself into not eating very much because I would just gain weight. My head was messed up when it came to eating. Joey looked at my food journal and said it sucked because I wasn't eating enough. I had to tell him, how scared I was that I was going to gain the weight back. It's not a great feeling, but I'm getting over it. Now when I'm mixing my cardio with strength training and writing down EVERY THING that I put in my mouth, I'm a little more confident about being able to eat the right things and still lose. I never paid much attention to calories or sugar..or ingredients..because I just didn't care! Now I know I HAVE to have control over what I eat in order for this to work.
Now down to the weight....I started February out at 269. As of 1 March, I'm now 261.5. That's 7.5 pounds lost in a month, and 47.5 all together!!!
Now that's progress!!! And it's only the beginning!!

Like normal..I'm very blessed and thankful for my family and my incredible friends who have given me encouragement and amazing support throughout the first "documented" 3 months of this journey. THANK YOU!! I LOVE YOU more than you'll EVER know!!
Have an awesome March y'all!!