How Progress Pics Helped Self-Confidence

For the past 16 years I've struggled with self-confidence and body image. By age 14 I was anorexic and suicidal and while it was only for a short time, the impact of those feelings has stayed with me over the years.

Always seen as "the skinny girl" and struggling with massive hormonal changes, I could never really figure out who I was or see myself as a woman God created in His image and likeness, and to this day there are still brief moments when I struggle with these feelings, but overall, especially over the past 13 months, my mindset has shifted in a far more positive direction.

I started my fitness journey 6.5 years ago to get rid of stress in my life. At that time I started, I'd managed to maintain my weight of 118 pounds for about 3 years and while I dreamed of having a toned body like the girls in movies and magazines (at the time I had no idea how airbrushing affected the industry) I didn't think I could ever come close to achieving those results without hours upon hours at the gym and limiting what I was eating.

So I worked out for 30 minutes/day, 4 days per week, pretty much ALL on the elliptical and I felt great! My energy was up, had almost 0 physical results, but I didn't have stress and that was why I had started in the first place so all was good :)

About a year after making fitness (aka the elliptical) a part of my lifestyle I started to get a little frustrated, I'd been in the gym for a year and saw tons of girls with toned abs and great thighs, why didn't I have that?? I was working out, I ate fruits and vegetables (and a lot of other things I didn't realize were total crap at the time) why didn't I have that body?

After 3 years of my elliptical journey, my friend introduced me to proper nutrition and balanced fitness with weight training! Within about 6 months I could see a huge change in my body, I was toned, I was lean, I was feeling AWESOME!

Fast forward 3 more years to January 1, 2014. I had ignored proper eating habits while overcoming a knee injury from August 2013 and I felt like I was in the worst shape I'd been in since before the elliptical days. I felt soft and did NOT enjoy looking in the mirror.  My clothes didn't fit the right way and I was 123 pounds, the most I'd ever weighed (something that was really bothering me at the time). While it's not heavy for most people's standards (including my own), what I FELT was not good. I was starting to hate my body...

 

   

About 13 months later, it's February 16th, 2015 and I am the happiest I've ever been in my entire life and I owe so much of it to progress pictures and tracking the little things for putting it all into perspective! I'm now between 125-126 pounds and I've never felt healthier! I have a balanced diet, read God's word daily, exercise 5-6 days/week, have quality conversations with my husband every day, listen to at least 15 minutes (usually more like 45) of personal development every day and work at least 50 hours/week. I don't say this to brag, I say this to SHOW you that SO much of your struggle is in your own head. It's you vs you! Stop looking at the scale to show you your accomplishments, look at yourself, look inside, look to your relationships with God and those you love! THOSE are the areas of life that help you measure and see if you're on the right track. Yes it takes work, it doesn't come naturally, but the small seemingly insignificant tasks are the ones that make the biggest impact on your life in the long run! 

Here are a couple areas where I made changes that helped me and I hope they can help you too:

1. Reading/listening to Personal Development (I'm going to be creating a tab of books I've listened to so you can get started)

2. Committing to follow the schedule of the exercise program I'm doing at the time 

3. Reading God's word/intentionally praying every day

4. Taking progress pictures in the same bikini at least every 60 days (I shoot for every 30)

5. Repeating to myself "Don't compare yourself to others, God made you exactly how He wants you to be" 

Like I said, I still struggle, but these 5 things have drastically changed my life for the better over these past 13 months, I hope they can help you too! And if they do or if you need help, would you please email me and let me know? I'd love to hear your story! 

samanthamarlett@gmail.com

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas! 

Enjoy your time with your friends and family and don't over think these next few days. Don't over indulge, but enjoy yourself, this day only comes once a year :)

4 Simple Tips for a Healthier Christmas Day
1. Get a Christmas workout in

2. Make sure to eat tons of fruits and vegetables before you head over for seconds or desert

3. Drink water between cocktails/alcohol

4. Don't over do it *moderation is key*

I hope you have a very Merry Christmas!

How to survive the Christmas parties

Here's a  4 step guide to how I survived 2 Christmas parties in 2 nights! 

Normally I give in, but this year has been my BEST year of health and I didn’t want to quit on month 12, so I created a plan. I knew I still wanted to have cookies and alcohol, but I didn’t need to over indulge, so I planned.

            Step #1: I planned to workout during the day of the party, extra goodies on top of no workout is a bad idea…. so make sure to get that workout in and go hard on party days
Step 2: The next plan was to eat well throughout the day of the party, I made sure to get my typical turkey bacon and eggs, fruits, veggies, etc J There’s nothing worse than eating terrible all day long then adding more bad choices on top of it…set yourself up for success and eat well that day

The trick is the next part…

Step #3: I planned to drink my shakeology about an hour before the party started. This was the WINNER! I’ve done the first 2 steps in the past and still failed at the party, so step #3 made a huge difference! Why did it make a difference? A couple reasons:

            1. It kept me full. When you’re full it’s a lot harder to over indulge and eat until your pants come unbuttoned.

            2. It curbed my cravings. I have a HUGE sweet tooth, but when I prep with shakeology, the sweet tooth melts away. I actually want to eat more healthy food instead of sweets.

Step #4: I planned to only have a small amount of alcohol. Alcohol will sabotage all of your progress if you have too much. I’m sure this is a step a lot of people would like to skip since it’s part of the season, but this step right here makes a BIG impact on your results!

I hope these 4 steps help you during your Christmas parties as much as they’ve helped me! If you want more details on Shakeology, be sure to email me (samanthamarlett@gmail.com) or leave a comment on this post. I truly believe it’s saved me from so many bad food choices this year! 

Q&A What is Insanity Max:30?

You know all about Insanity, the hardest workout ever put on dvd, well Shaun T decided to change things up a bit. It's still got that "Insanity Flare" but it's all about MAXING OUT. Here's a few questions I initially had with the answers I've found so hopefully they can help you decide if this program would be a good fit for you...

So what does "maxing out" mean? It means Shaun wants you to stop when you feel like you can't go any more, you go as HARD as you possibly can for as LONG as you possibly can, then once you can't go anymore you simple "max out" you stop, write down the time on the screen and hop back in and finish the workout. You may max out in 3 minutes, 5 minutes, 20 minutes, etc. The key to this program is your INTENSITY, there's no holding back, you give it your all and you track your endurance with your max out time. 

Can I seriously do this? That answer will be different for every individual, but unlike the original Insanity, Insanity Max 30 has a modifier, and not only does it have a modifier, but it has an option where you can see the modifier at ALL times! I was able to do a test workout a couple weeks ago and I modified the ENTIRE workout and still felt like I got an amazing workout! I have bad knees from years of being a catcher playing softball and using poor form so I make sure to keep everything low impact and the Insanity Max:30 modifier ensures I know exactly how to modify every single move

How is this different than Insanity? Each workout is only 30 minutes long and there are over 150 new moves. Insanity started out STRONG with a 10 minute insane warm up, then a stretch, then some circuits...Insanity Max:30 is built on the max out mindset so you make sure you go as hard as you can for as long as you can. 

How is this different from Focus T25? Focus T25 was built on a progression on movements, Insanity Max:30 goes from 1 move to a completely different move another completely different move in 4-5 minute intervals

Do I need to be in peak physical condition to complete this? It sounds Insane! No, trust me I was afraid before I first started the Insanity Max:30 workout a few weeks ago, but it was great! As soon as I couldn't go anymore I just wrote out my max out time and jumped back in, taking breaks when I needed to. I went at my own pace after I maxed out and still got a HUGE sweat utilizing the modifier. Don't let the name scare you, it's a brilliant 30 minute workout, you push play, work hard, max out, jump back in, finish the workout, then have 23.5 more hours left in your day for what YOU want to do!

The first support group is starting soon! Email me at samanthamarlett@gmail.com to reserve your spot!

3 Halloween Tips

I was sitting around thinking about how tough these next 3 months can be and Halloween is first on the list so I wanted to give you my top 3 tips to having a healthier Halloween and trick or treat season :) 

Recap:

#1: Load up on fruits and veggies. This is probably one that makes you scratch your head, but seriously, if you load up to the point that you're full you're not going to have room for candy :) 

#2: Track it. Simply use the note app on your phone and write out ever piece of candy or junk food you're eating. It will have you thinking twice pretty quickly

#3: Get rid of it! This is probably more difficult if you have children, but get it out of the house as quickly as you possibly can :) 

What are some of your tips? Comment with them below...

Weekend Sabotage

You've been killing it this week so maybe it's ok to relax a little this weekend, you've earned it, right?! Welllll...maybe not....

I'm all about moderation, but splurging on weekends is sabotaging your progress more than you think! Just take a second to think back to a weekend you really let yourself go, how hard was it to get back on track on Monday? or maybe even Tuesday? 

It's TOUGH to get back on the horse after falling off over 2-3 days....consistency is the key to most aspects of life so stay consistent with your eating habits, don't go overboard, and you're going to keep on moving forward!

4 Nutrition Tips for the Weekend!

let me explain...

#1: Figure out your options first! This part is KEY to having success when going out to eat or even eating a special meal at home. Know your options, don't go in blind and look at the nutritional facts online. We live in an age where you can find out pretty much anything about any meal at any restaurant so utilize this!

#2: 2 Drink Max...call me crazy, but if 2 drinks isn't giving you that "buzz" you want, it's time to lay off the alcohol anyways. This is HUGE for your progress, it's easy to forget just how much you're consuming and without the nutritional labels on the drinks, it's tough to realize just how many precious calories are being wasted while you get wasted. 

#3 Limit the carbs (trust me I shed a tear on this one) pizza, tortillas, cakes, cookies, oh my goodness carbs galore! This is where I say eat SMARTER. Choose multigrain and wholegrain options or substitute healthier complex carbs if need be, trust me I still enjoy my pizza and tortillas, but I don't feel guilty about them when they're nutrient dense :) 

#4 Ditch the "BIG" dessert. Super sad, I know, you wanted to celebrate during your night out with some molten chocolate cake with the hot fudge and ice cream....not worth it, I promise, that sucker is going to give you a HUGE stomach ache when you're through...instead go out for some fro yo (don't go overboard on this either) or have a few pieces of dark chocolate at home waiting for you :) 

Sorry if that was too harsh, but these are some guidelines that will help you get through the weekend temptations and feel AMAZING on Monday morning! :) 

Do you have any tips that could help? Comment below and share them with us!