I’ve had a love hate relationship with fitness for a long time. This love affair has its ups and downs. I’ve started routines and abandoned them. I’ve tried extreme fitness, home workouts and regular trips to the gym. Nothing really sticks. I get into a program and then as always life gets in the way and I fall of the right path.
When I was in my early twenties, I worked out religiously. The gym was my hangout and I worked out almost every day. I am the type of person that once I set my mind to something I really get into it. I watched what I ate and allowed myself an indulgence if I wanted. With that being said it was a lot easier to do so without kids and responsibilities. I had no problems with weight gain and never really worried about it.
As I got older and had Briana things changed. I was really determined to lose the baby weight. I am 5’9” and my average weight was about 128lbs. I gained 55 lbs during my pregnancy and never quite lost it all. While losing the first 30lbs was pretty easy the last 20lbs were stubborn. Through strength, determination and a few bumps on the road I did it. I finally was at my ideal weight of 136lbs.
And then my lifestyle changed. A demanding career, a busy family life and the sudden discovery that I like playing Martha Stewart in the kitchen pushed fitness aside. As my passion for cooking and eating grew stronger, I started noticing the changes that came with it. At first I didn’t mind a little gain and embraced my new curves. I brushed the weight gain off and continued on. “It will fall off” I thought to myself. But the weight didn’t fall off, it kept coming on. I think I finally had to stop myself when one morning I stepped on the scale and I was 20 lbs heavier again at 156lbs. And that’s when I finally committed to change what I ate, what I served to my family and my attitude towards fitness.
Instead of diving in head first, I made small changes – baby steps. I went back to my roots to rediscover what I loved about making healthy choices and how good that made me feel. I am not perfect and there are times when I give up and eat what I want. I recover, get back on track and continue on. I get a lot of inspiration of the internet, pinterest and Tone It Up girls. I love how simple the program is to follow and how I can customize it as I see fit. Of course I am always watching what I eat, drink a lot of water and work out whenever I can.
