Truth be told, I
was blessed with a good metabolism and pretty fit build my entire life. I was
active & never really had to work out to get that flat tummy or needed to
lose a few pounds. In high school I remember being overwhelmingly hungry all
the time. Literally I would buy a meal out for lunch & eat my entire packed
lunch too…. fatty & owning it. I pushed it off that I was an active
teenager, playing soccer, swimming, running, and that my body needed the extra
energy. I never saw that my body was gaining any weight and since I never had
to pay attention to my weight before, I went along with my life as usual.
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| Early Years. 2007-2008 (why did I cut my hair so short ?!?) |
In college,
especially freshmen year, I gained a few pounds, but nothing major. Life
continued, I grew out of clothes {just like normal} and then grew back into
those same old clothes. In between my junior and senior year, Jack and I were
interning & we decided to have a pool party/cook out with some friends. I needed
a suit and ran to Target to grab a new one. I will never forget the feeling
when the medium bottom was too tight on me and I had to get a size Large. LARGE,
are you kidding me, I had never dealt with in all my years! I was really upset
and embarrassed and Jack convinced me to buy it and not to worry saying “they size
their stuff wrong anyways.” Side note:
There is NOTHING wrong with a size large- it was for me something that I was
not used to and when I noticed a change within myself.
 |
| 2009-2010. |
During the fall
of 2010 something happened one morning that I will not forget. Some weekends we
would wake up early Monday mornings and drive from Jack’s parents’ home town we
were visiting back to Boone for our 9:30am classes. On this particular morning
I was exhausted, like had to take a nap in the car on the way back to school exhausted.
When we arrived, I was still tried & decided to sleep instead of going to
class. I was tired like this for a good 2 or 3 days, when finally I decided to
go to the infirmary. After multiple tests, trips back home to my actual doctor,
they determined that I had Hypothyroidism, which thankfully was not something
worse.
 |
| 2011-2014 |
Hypothyroidism
(under-active thyroid) is a condition in which you thyroid gland does not produce
enough of certain important hormones. My
body was not producing the hormones that run my body’s metabolism and simply
put, my body was hungry, but could not process the foods fast enough I was
feeding it {why I was eating 2 lunches at a time}. The cure: I would need to
take a pill every day to regulate my thyroid.
Fast forward a
few years, I have lost some weight, and started regularly going to the gym. I
realized that yes my thyroid needed help, but that I also needed to actually
pay attention to my health/body. Part
one of this journey: I joined Life Time Fitness and have been going regularly
for the past year and a half in addition to an occasional bar class. I have been really happy with the way I look
and feel, have gained muscle along the way and know that I am stronger that I
ever have been, but I have not changed the way that I eat… which is Part 2!
Starting Monday,
July 6th, I am starting Tone It Up
(TIU) with the Bikini Series program, and I am super excited. Not only will TIU
be a good workout and nutrition program, but ultimately it is a life style
change. Work out, Eat Right, and learn some more on how/what to cook. Between today and Monday I am trying out a
few of the recipes and preparing myself for the journey ahead.
 |
| First TIU day trying out new recipes and workouts!! |
xx
