There is no Magic Pill

Let me start off by saying I wish there was some magical pill, shake, supplement, diet that makes things easy.  I wish I could just wish away fat and have the body that everyone dreams off.  I wish, I wish, I wish.  But here's the thing if someone tells you that they have found the perfect formula and all you have to do is drink their shake, or take their supplement then they are LYING to you.  And deep down you know it. 

As someone who takes their health and fitness very seriously I can get angry at seeing others promoting fads that will fade or that may even be unhealthy for those trying it.  I get angry because I know what I want to do is actually help people change their lives.  Help people learn about proper nutrition.  Help people start an exercise regimen to not only lose weight but rev up their metabolism and build up their bone density.   Help people be the best they can be physically and hopefully in doing so build up their self-esteem and give them a community of women who are doing the same thing.

It is not easy for some of us to lose weight and keep it off.  It takes diligence.  It takes building strong healthy habits.  It takes exercising and moving our bodies.  It takes making smart choices in the kitchen.  This is what I want everyone to know.  It isn't always easy but it is possible and it does get easier the longer you practice your healthy habits.  It does get easier knowing you have a support group around you building the same habits you are.  

I choose to become a Coach and help others because I have a passion for fitness.  I have a passion for food.  And I have a desire to see others succeed.  I run challenge groups every month.  I have free groups for both clean eating and exercise.  I want everyone to benefit from the things that I know work.  I have the tools and I want to share them.  

Yes I want to share them with You!

Sugar Sugar Sugar

Question for you.  Do you know how much the daily recommend sugar per grams is?  I actually had no clue till a few weeks ago.  My husband is an avid listener to Joe Rogan's podcast.  And he frequently has guest on that are involved in health and fitness.  So Dane mentioned it to me a while back but it just didn't stick in my head.  Then the other day I started thinking..hmmm... What did Dane say the sugar allowed per day?  So I asked again and then decided that I would try to follow that guideline.

So for woman it is about 25 grams or 6 teaspoons of added sugar per day.  That may sound like a lot at first.  Six whole teaspoons of extra sugar.  I'm not talking about sugar in the fruits that you eat.  I'm talking about sugar in the processed foods.  Here is a good example of hidden sugar. A can of soda may contain up to 10 teaspoons or 40 grams of sugar. A tablespoon of ketchup has 1 teaspoon of sugar.  Say what?  I mean you probably aren't drinking soda if you are trying to have a healthy lifestyle but still 40 whole grams of sugar in one can.  That is just craziness.

Well, I decided I would try to follow the guidelines without going crazy. It was a little harder then I thought.  Here's what I found out this past week as I tried to watch my sugar intake.  The creamer I use if I drink coffee has 5 grams per serving and this creamer is suppose to be "natural".  My whole fat greek vanilla yogurt had 27 grams per cup.  Ummm WTF?  I will now be switching to the plain whole fat greek yogurt which has 6 grams per cup.  Salad dressings have added sugar, peanut butter has added sugar..... it seems life has added sugar. AHHHH!  Needless to say I haven't had a day where I stayed below 25 grams. (I was using up my yogurt that I had bought.)  But I definitely was having less sugar then normal because I was paying attention and the great thing is I felt better and started to see a little difference in my body.  Little less bloat.. hmm interesting. 

Everything was still going great this week.  Monday was good, Tuesday even better but then today. Uh oh.  A very sweet friend who is also gluten free (she has celiac disease) brought me some goodies.  And I mean a bag full of goodies.  And if you know me then you know my downfall is having things in the house.  Well, in this case in the car.  I proceeded to munch my way through a few bags of cookies on my drive home from the gym. Yes I said gym and the drive from the gym is under 5 minutes.  Oops!  So when I got home I added up the extra sugar I had just consumed and we were will over 35 grams.  Uhhhh no good.  But there is no going back so from this point forward no more sugar today and tomorrow we shoot for 25 grams again.  There is no point in beating myself up over a binge.  It happened and now I move forward with the intent to not let it happen again.

But I challenge you, reader, to try this.  Try to see where you hidden sugar lies. If your trying to eat clean there shouldn't be that much of it.  But it will be amazing how it stills creeps into our diets.  Americans are obese because of this.  Don't be a statistic. Fight the trend of obesity with me.

Inactivity leads to MORE INACTIVITY

I can't blame this on myself.  I didn't choose to be inactive for this week.  I was forced to heal and recover from an infection in my hand.  And I do know that while healing a need extra time to rest.  But having said that boy does inactivity lead to much more inactivity.

While recovery I have pretty much been at home these last few days.  I'm not allowed to workout, I'm not allowed to ride my horse, I'm not allowed to go to work.  To some of you this sounds amazing... it gets boring pretty fast.

And here is something I started to notice.  I started sleeping in a little more each day.  I wake up still tired after getting over 9 hours of sleep.  Then I do some playtime on my phone or computer and go watch some tv and take another nap. (again I do understand I needed extra rest to heal).  But this pattern started to emerge.  This pattern of laziness that leads to tiredness.  How does that even happen?  How can doing nothing make you want to do more of nothing?  I'm not quite sure how the chemistry in the brain works or if maybe I'm just the odd man out here but for me it totally did.  And ding that's when it dawned on me that activity leads to more activity.

Just like I'd been forming habits to get up and workout every morning and it got easier the more I did it or at least it was habit enough that I would get up and start moving which would wake me up enough to enjoy my workout.  I have now been forming habits of inactivity, of sleeping in, of watching tv for hours.  AHHH this has got to stop.

The good news is I am healed enough to slowly start doing things again.  Today I am going down to the barn to groom Bella.  Still can't ride her because my hand won't fully make a fist yet but maybe a light ride tomorrow!  I can now take a walk.  The infection is, from what I can tell nearly gone and I think some light exercise may be in order.  Now I will still listen to my body if my hand starts to hurt or I do need to actually lay down for a nap because my body needs it, I will listen.  But enough inactivity.  It is time to be active and to start building up and getting my body back into the groove.

For those of you who have never done a fitness routine and feel like there is noway you can add it into your life.  Let me tell you start small.  Start building.  Get the momentum rolling.  I promise you activity leads to more activity.  You will start to crave doing more.  If you need someone to be there for you.  If you need someone who is going through it too and is trying to get back on track then please reach out to me.  Email at Kellyrose.kcr@gmail.com  I have groups starting every month.  I have a group of women who committed to staying the course and amaze me with their results. Be one of them!

Sugar causes massive cravings

I'm not sure about the rest of you but boy do I have an addiction to sugar.  And if the above image doesn't spell it out I'm not sure what will.

I've been back from vacation for a little over a week now and I'm still struggling with my need to eat processed, sugary, unhealthy foods.  If you've been reading my blog then you know I went a little over board and ate some ultra yummy, fattening, sugary foods on vacation.  I tell myself that it will be okay because we are on vacation and I will only do it then.  The problem comes in when I get back home and all I want to eat is bad food.  And I mean I WANT to eat all the time.  Thankfully our house isn't full of bad things because my husband, who does most of our shopping and cooking, has been on a great health kick thanks in part to Joe Rogan's podcast.  But I will rummage and search for things to eat to satisfy this insane craving.

The other huge bad side affect of eating processed, sugary foods is tiredness.  I just don't want to get up in the morning.  And I will say before vacation when I was eating ultra clean and healthy it was no problem getting up at 5:30 to get my workout and run in before the day started.  Now I can't even think through the fogginess in my brain at 7:30.  I literally want to lounge in bed until I'm forced to get up because I have to get ready for work. This has got to stop!

I thought I could handle these Luigi's Italian ice treats, but I can't.  I want to eat one everyday and not just one but two and then I realize I start looking around for more food shortly after I have one.  So, I think I need to go cold turkey! NO more sugar... NO SUGAR.  Say it with me "NO SUGAR".  Okay well today starts trying to not have any extra sugar.  I will eat my fruits but beyond that I'm going to really try to not have anything extra.  I'll update you soon.  Oh and here is my weekly progress.

Get Real.. I need to take it one day at a time!

I'm not sure about you but I know for me it can seem so overwhelming to think about the long long super long road ahead that is staying in shape, looking good, feeling confident, eating healthy, exercising consistently.  So for me I set little goals.  I try to break it down into 7 days and then each morning tell myself I only have to worry about today, not tomorrow, not next month... just today.

When I do this I feel like I can complete my goals for the day but not just complete them Conquer them.  I set myself up for success.  That's not to say I don't have long term goals but I try not to let them become my main focus. I see them in the overall picture but I break them down to manageable pieces.  And when I complete those pieces then they fit together like a perfect little puzzle.

So here's a little something new that I'm trying to do to stay accountable.  I'm taking before photos every 7 days until I decide that they are my after photos.  I'll occasionally share them with you guys so you can see my progress whether its forwards or back.  It's a little scary putting it out there for the world to see but again one step at a time.  One day at a time until the results are in and then again we continue one day at time.

 This was taken on Day 1 of the new one day at a time attitude.  I was getting overwhelmed by my desire to know when I would see changes in my body from all the hard work I'd been doing.  But for me I have a very skewed sense of what I look like and I needed to start with a reference point.

So what was great is that I started seeing results pretty fast. I was consistently doing my new workout program T 25, and I was eating super clean and healthy.  It was starting to pay off and pretty fast.  Needless to say I was pleased.

Then vacation hit!

Well, I did workout 6 of the 7 days on vacation.  But let me say you cannot and I mean you cannot out workout a bad diet.  When we got down to the beach I weighed myself and I was down to 143.5.  That's a really good weight for me and I was happy to be at the beach a little leaner.  Still had a ways to go to get to my desired results but again I said to myself One day at a time.  Well, as you can see I ballooned back up.  The night we got back I weighed in at 153.  I do think a lot of that was water retention, but still AHHH that's a lot of weight.

We are 4 days back to our routine and I know I'm back on track.  The diet is healthy and clean.  I'm following my exercise program.  I'm getting out to ride my horse, Bella.  So let's so where I go from here.

If you need someone to support you.  If you need to find the right workout program for you.  If you need one easy meal a day that you don't have to cook.  Then you've found some one to help you.  I want to be apart of your journey and I want you to be apart of mine.  I think that when we surround ourselves with people who have similar goals then we succeed much easier!  Contact me at Kellyrose.kcr@gmail.com  I promise you that we can do this.

Started my 4th week on the 22 Minute Hard Corp program by Beachbody and got to try Resistance 3 for the first time.  Can I say I loved it.  

So I have totally figured out what type of program I like.   Fast paced, body weight or lighter weights.  Doesn't take a long time to do the exercise but is pretty intense during the workout.  21 Day Fix, 21 Day Fix Extreme, and 22 Minute Hard Corp are my type of programs.  I really wanted to love The Master's Hammer and Chisel but I had a very difficult time finding the motivation to do the workouts because of the type of structure.  I may try it again this summer we'll see.

Some short videos of today's workout. Loved it.

If you are interested in learning more about this program or any of the Beachbody programs please fill out the form below and I'll get back with you.  

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Free Shakeology Find out How!

I'm looking for 5 ladies who want to commit to getting fit. If 5 people join I will be doing a drawing for a entire bag of Chocolate Shakeology! Yes someone will win a FREE bag of Shakeology. So tell your friends because all I need is 5 people to sign up to give this prize away. Worth $130!!! (Purchase of Challenge pack required to win free Shakeology)

Give me 30 minutes of your day and we will tone you up. You will also follow a clean eating meal plan for the 21 day challenge. You don't have to count calories, you don't have to count points, you don't have to starve. If you focus on eating what is good for your body then you will see results.

The workouts are done in the comfort of your own home so you don't need to live near me you can be anywhere in the US to join us.

Start now because before you know it summer will be here and the bathing suits come out of retirement!! 

If you are interested in joining my next challenge group please fill out the form below and I'll get back to you soon and we will set you on the right path.

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Hubby joined the fun!

It was great today doing my workout with my hubby.  After playing with his new toy which is the "little secret" that I will be sharing with you in a post very soon, we got home and I still needed to push play and get my Cardio 2 done for my 22 Minute Hard Corp program.

Now I almost didn't do this workout tonight because I will say I was just plain ole tuckered out.  I had already ridden Bella and been to personal training and been outside with Dane playing with his new toy.  So when we got home it was late and I didn't feel like doing it but I told myself that if Dane said he would work out with me then I would do it.  So I went upstairs and asked him and he said yes and away we went.  It was actually a ton of fun working out with him and will say that I probably work out a little harder when he is with me which is really good for me.  But boy am I done now.  It is time for a shower and some tv and relaxation time.  I think I earned it!

Dog Sitting Joys

So this week we've had my brother's dog Ana with us.  He and his family are on a nice spring vacation.  This is our first time watching Ana and I just wanted to share what fun it's been to have her join us for the week.

Zoskia, my sweet needy doberman had a big sister when we first got her.  Kia was very attached to both myself and our adult dog Callie.  So, when Callie passed (the dog of my heart who will be missed everyday) Kia really attached herself to me.  While this can be very flattering it also is very unhealthy for Kia.

So enter into the picture sweet Ana. She is around 2 years old and needs a lot of activity.  When I got home the first day from work after she had been dropped off she was crazy!!  Crying and running around the house which in turn made Kia insane.  After I addressed Kia and calmed her down I then addressed Ana's behavior.  It took a few minutes to come down from the heights of crazy energy but she did and I was able to calmly pet her while she sat beside me.  My husband had run a few errands and got home soon after.  We then took the pups out for a walk.  Whew that was tough. Ana was super excited and just wanted to pull Dane everywhere.  We got the dogs to the area that is mostly enclosed and let them off leash.  They exploded with energy.  And every since that time Ana has been great.

I've taken her down to the barn and she has had playtime with the pups there.  She was introduced to the horses. (still figuring that one out, she thinks its ok to blast through the barn).  Once Ana gets a little exercise she is just about a perfect dog.  Now enter back into the picture my needy Kia.  Not so needy this week.  She has a buddy and is perfectly happy to play with her and hang with her.

Now don't forget this has to come full circle with my blog which is about health and fitness.  This is about fitness and exercise.  With the proper exercise the dogs are balanced and happy and healthy.  And if YOU get the proper exercise you can also be all of those things!

And the day starts with a wedding!

First I want to start the day off by saying congratulations to my very beautiful and lovely sister-in-law Allyn Rose on her wedding day.  No make that Allyn Oertel.  We were able to join her in this very joyous, and momentous occasion via Skype.  Got to love technology.  She married the very handsome Christopher Oertel in his homeland of Germany.  There is future date for a wedding that we can all attend in Germany for 2017.  

The wedding was on German time so we had to get up for a 5:30 AM to make it!  We all "dressed up"  At least the top half of everyone did.  I think my little hat thingy really pulled it all together for me.   It was very nice being able to see the entire ceremony.  I will say it was different that what I'm use to here in the US and I think I missed a few things in translation, but it was lovely and Ally looked so happy that I couldn't help but smile through the whole thing.  So again congrats to the Bride and Groom.

Now I wasn't quite ready to get up and at it after the wedding so I wiped off my lipstick and went back to sleep for another hour or so.  The furbabies really don't let me sleep past 7:30 so I was up and feeding everyone and getting ready for my day.  I am on week 3 of the 22 Minute Hard Corp program and today it was Resistance 1.  So I made myself an energize drink from the Beachbody Performance Line and pushed play and got it done.  It always feels great afterwards.  There are times when I just don't want to do it.  But every time I make myself push play and push through a workout I feel so much better. And I think it sets the tone for the rest of the day.

After having a good workout I took the puppies outside for a little playtime.  I am watching my brother's dog for the week and she and my Kia have really bonded and love playing and chasing one another.  Hmmm is it time for another dog?!  Then it was off to work for the day at the Spa.  I love my job and saw some new clients and some clients that have been seeing me for years and had a great time.  So in closing the day started off with a bang and just kept on going!

April Dates

Don't forget to make your calendars for our upoming events.  You have a few options.  A free 6 day clean eating challenge group, a 21 day Challenge group and a sneak peak into what being a Beachbody Coach is all about and if it is right for you.  If you are interested in any of these things please fill out the form below.  We would love to have you join any of the above.  Take your future into your own hands and be proactive.

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Wednesday was all about love!

Started the day off with a this great scripture verse and I think it set the tone for the rest of my day.
Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things, Love Never Fails.

I Corinthians 13:7

This Wednesday just turned out to truly be an amazing day.  So let me take you through it for a bit.  On week 2 day 3 of 22 Minute Hard Corp and I really want to stay committed to doing this program so even though I had a pretty active day ahead of me I still got up and pressed play because I mean come on I can do it for 22 minutes.  Did Resistance 1 today and I do like this workout until the very end when you have to do the bonus round of fast feet, burpee, pushups!  Did it and felt pretty good afterwards. 

Then it was on to the barn for a lesson on Bella with Judy Whyte.  Needless to say we had a super awesome lesson and even went through a 3rd level test for the first time but I'm going to give Bella a post all to herself so I'll go into detail there.  But I was incredibly proud of my Bella for doing a test in a level that I never thought she would be able to.  Hard work has paid off there.

Then it was time for my personal training at Trinity Fitness with one of my favorite people my personal trainer Dona Batten.  I had a new workout today and was excited to see what was in store for me.  (the setup for my personal training is that I get a new program every month and build on it for the month)  I made a little video of some of my favorite moves today.  But I loved this workout and will be looking forward to doing it for the next 4 weeks!

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From Start to Finish

On Saturday's I have a hard time getting up early to work out.  It's my earliest day of the week for work.  My first client is booked at 8:30 so I need to leave the house pretty early.  Today the alarm went off and I just couldn't bring myself to get up.  I hit snooze and slept for a little longer.  It was bliss.  Then I started the day right with my daily dose of dense nutrition, Shakeology.  I love starting my day with my shake.  It taste delicious and I feel like I'm getting a treat.

Work was super busy, pretty much booked back to back with clients.  I had a quick lunch which was a great salad I had prepared earlier in the week and a snack of yogurt with granola.  Then I finished my day and started walking to my car.  Well, on the way to my car I have to pass a few cafe/pastry shops.  Today I didn't make it past The Dogtag Barkery.  UH OH. I walked in and ordered a delicious slice of raspberry cheesecake and can I say that it was totally worth it.  It was one of the best slices of cheesecake.  Now this is what I will say.  Do not walk past a bakery when you are hungry!

Now I shouldn't have had the cheesecake because I am part of a "test" group that is doing the complete program of 22 Minute Hard Corp.  But I had it and I wasn't going to let it derail me.  So I got home totally exhausted and pushed play.  Yep, you read it right I pushed Play.  I did the prescribed workout for today which is Resistance 1.  I did have to modify things because I was tired but I still did it because I promised myself that I would.  I promised myself that I would do the best of my ability to stick with this program.

So there you have it.  The day started off on the right foot with my Shakeology then veered off with the yummy cheesecake and got back on track with a good workout.  This is to say don't let a bad choice ruin your day.  See the whole picture there is so much more to it then one bad choice.

It does pay off..

So, I have permission to share this success story but the person will remain anonymous as requested. One of my challengers started her journey with me on July 20, 2015. She was inspired by the results I had with the 21 Day Fix. Trust me it was the leanest she or anyone else has ever seen me. So she moved forward and bought the 21 Day Fix. Now what I love is that her husband has been extremely supportive. He does a lot of the cooking and knew that in order for her to succeed he would need to follow the rules. And he has! Everyday he packs her a lunch according to the color coded containers and for dinner he makes sure that it is what she needs to eat to fuel her body properly. Now everyone will tell you that eating is half the battle but I would even say its more then half the battle! Eating clean and maintaining a healthy diet goes a long way in losing and keeping the weight off. But lets get back to my challenger. When she started the program she worked out at least 5-7 days a week doing the prescribed workouts with the 21 Day Fix program. She is not one to brag so she just continued eating healthy and doing the workouts through the summer and into the winter and through the holidays. Now fast forward to today. This week she tried on all her spring clothes and guess what? THEY DIDN'T FIT! They were to big. She couldn't believe it and neither could her husband (cause now she has to go shopping). With time and consistency all of her hard work has paid off. And the good news is that since this has been a full lifestyle change the pounds will stay off. This wasn't some quick fix diet. This was a life change and a change for the better. I am so proud of her and so proud of all of my challengers who have stayed the course!

Rock and Roll

Today was the Rock and Roll Marathon in Washington DC. Needless to say I'm not a runner/jogger/I'm never doing a marathon, but I knew that they would be running and that my way into work would be blocked. So I planned ahead and decided to go around. So here I am driving through Virginia and then suddenly I see blinking red and blue lights. Say What? They closed my detoured way into work. I had a moment of panic and then I turned on my lovely Waze and found another way into DC. But here's my thought process during my detour. First a little angst, then the realization that the people running worked very hard to accomplish this goal. So good on them. It may not be my form of exercise but I can appreciate that a lot of people love running. So Go Guys Go! Rock On!