Memorial Day Weekend!

We had an incredible weekend.  Kyle, my oldest, along with his best friends came for a visit.  It was so much fun and we ate entirely to much but I would do it again tomorrow!!!!  It was a very short but I would not have traded it for anything!!!!!

 

I also discovered that I have actually not KILLED MY PLANTS!!!!!  I try so hard to grow something just about every year and it never fails that they will die.  The green thumb my brother and father have was not given to me.  THIS YEAR just might be my year.  My Dad planted these when they were here a couple of weeks ago and I actually have a tomatoe on one and several peppers on the other!  I was SHOCKED!!!!  I could not believe my eyes.  Of course when something so big happens, you must take a picture for proof!!!!!  

Of course since it was the beginning of summer, it was time to switch out the clothes.  Bo REALLY needed to switch/clean out because half of his clothes don't fit anymore!!!!!  I pulled all my sweaters out and folded as much as possible to get in the totes and bags.  That HUGE pile in the back.......All of Bo's clothes that are way to big and he can't wear anymore!!!!!  

Last but not least was my training run for the race in September.  It was actually not nearly as bad as I thought it was going to be.  Time was good but I'm not running for the time.  I just want to run and enjoy it.  Yes, enjoying 13.1 miles sounds NUTS but I do enjoy it.  It was a great day.  Slightly overcast and the occasional mist before the rain would start later.  It was just perfect!!!!!!

I hope you had a wonderful weekend!  It's Tuesday and I'm having a hard time not thinking its Monday!!!!!!  Better get to it and get this week done!!!!!  I'm so READY!!!!!

Coach Pam

Memorial Day Meltdown

Memorial Day Meltdown is going to be so much fun!!!!!  How many of you just love a good cookout?  I know I absolutely LOVE THEM!  I also know that at those cookouts, there is a lot of food that probably is not going to help me out on my focused journey but we are always allowed to have a cheat meal.  I'm good with at least one cheat meal but we always have to be careful not to make it a CHEAT WEEKEND!!!!!!! 

So, what are we going to do during this FREE 5 day Meltdown????

1- Lots of recipes that will be awesome for cookouts.  I have discovered some new ones and can not wait to share them.  

2- I'll even share some meal plans that you can use to kick start your own journey and you can change them around.  There is nothing more boring that eating the SAME THING EVERYDAY!!!!!!

3- You will have accountability.  Log in daily to share what you have tried, what you have successfully accomplished and you can even share when you didn't have such a good day and you totally blew it.  We are there to encourage you!!!!!!  

4- FITNESS CHALLENGE!!!!  You know that I can't do a group without some type of FITNESS involved.  They will be simple and easy but I will also share how to PUSH A LITTLE HARDER and get the most out of it.  You will be able to post how you did with the Challenge and if you were able to complete it!!!!!  

TAG YOUR FRIENDS!  

TAG YOUR FAMILY! 

IT'S GOING TO BE A BLAST!!!!!!!!!

Sign up is easy!!!!  Click " I WANT TO BE INCLUDED" tab on the right and you can sign up quick and easy!!!  

Don't miss out!!!!!

Leggings vs Pants

So the other day I posted on Facebook and asked the question of which one do you prefer or wear.  First, let me explain.  I own leggings.  I have at least 5 pairs.  Yes, I love them. Yes, I wear them. Yes, I even sleep in them during the winter.  I am NOT against leggings or anyone who sells them.  They are wonderful.

Lets get back to the point of the question and why.  I posed this question mostly out of curiosity.  You see there was a time that I wore "leggings" but at this point in time, they were not called leggings.  I had an entire wardrobe of "Links" that were sold by Hamricks.  If you are from the south, you know what Hamricks is as well as probably know what Links are.  Links were made from knit and were elastic waisted pants that were worn loose fitting and VERY COMFORTABLE!!!!  Yes, I loved them.  I had them in every color and the different shirts, whether solid or print.  This was also a time in my life when finding clothes was VERY difficult for me.  I was in a state of denial and didn't want to look at clothes that had a waist or buttons, or zippers or were fitted.  That was unbearable to consider going to a department store and trying to find them.  It was just easier to wear these LINKS.  I could basically hide in them if you will.

When I started on the running journey, I realized that I had finally lost enough weight and I could go and get a pair of jeans.  I went to Old Navy.  I grabbed about 6 pairs of jeans.  I thought I would at least try and see what happened.  I quickly realized I was VERY concerned about the SIZE-THE NUMBER!!!!  That is so not what I was expecting but I was there and this was actually going to happen.  I tried on a 14.  They fell off.  I tried on a 12.  They fell off.  I tried on a 10 and they were very loose but not falling off.  I tried on an 8 and they were AWESOME!!!!  I was so excited I could not stand it.  Only problem.......they were about 6-8 to long and the ones I wanted, they didn't have in my length!!!!  I ended up at Wal-Mart of all places.  They had Levi's.  I LOVE LEVI's!!!!!!  I went and found some "short" jeans and went through the same process because after all this was a different brand.  Same scenario.  I ended up in an 8.  I was STUNNED!  I bought 2 pair and I was in heaven.  I was so excited.  No more stretchy pants.  I could wear fitted pants!!!!!!!  WHO KNEW!!!!!!!  I immediately bought them and can remember going to Paul and Michelle's house (my running family) and showing them what I had accomplished.  It was just amazing.

I vowed at that moment that I would NEVER go back to stretchy pants and the hiding again.  That was not an option.  Fitted pants were all I wanted to ever wear again.  I was afraid that if I went back to the stretchy and the comfort that I would slip on other levels and that was not an option for me.  In today's world, there are "Leggings" like you can get in department stores.  Yes, I have some that I wear on a Sunday morning or for a dinner out with strappy shoes or boots and a dressy top.  I do have to be careful because it would be so easy to go back and wear them again because they are so readily available!  The main lesson that I learned is that while they are comfortable, I can easily gain abut 5-10 pounds and it's not nearly as noticeable because I am in stretchy comfortable clothes. Then the moment comes when I get ready to wear my fitted pants and they are tight or worse, won't button.  Then I'm in trouble and have to start all over again.

Why am I sharing this?  I'm sharing because this is my struggle.  I was curious to see if there was anyone else that had the same struggle.  It's super easy to hide behind the clothes and layer them to cover up.  I've been there.  I don't have any desire to return.  I do love my leggings.  I do love my jeans and my fitted pants.  I'm not hiding behind to layers or the stretchy.  It's not an option to go backward.  I'm moving forward!!!!!!!

NYC TRIP

 

We had an incredible time!  It was perfect weather and we arrived about an hour earlier than normal.  The day was just amazing.  Chelsea Market has stolen my heart.  I love the idea of living close and being able to run to the small markets and picking up the freshest items for dinner and being able to run home and prepare what we just bought and being at it's absolute freshest!  I realize that we have a lot of the farmers markets and they are wonderful.  At the same time we don't have a place that we can go and pick up fresh pasta/ravioli etc and prepare on the spot.  New York is just absolutely AMAZING!!!!!  It's still on my Bucket List to live there for 6 months so that I can go and do everything like Little Italy, China Town etc.  There is just so much to do.  I LOVE this place!!!!!!!!

Transformation Thursday

Transformation Thursday! 

Yes, I realize it is Thursday and not Tuesday but I choose to be different.....haha

I am stepping completely out of my comfort zone!  I mean TOTALLY out of my comfort zone!  I have been doing Beachbody Programs and drinking Shakeology for a while but I have NEVER shared all of the before and after photos because I thought I would literally throw up or die if I did.  I totally over analyzed what others would think and if family would totally disown me.

Starting in December- I was struggling with what all we had going on.  We were your typical busy family.  We had more holiday parties and gatherings than you can imagine. We had people over.  We had parties for work. We had parties for church. We had family and friends and it was hard.  I'm NOT making excuses.  I'm just telling you where we were!!!!!  We had seen and talked a lot about making a drastic change come January.  I agreed.  I had also made the choice to jump into 22 Minute Hard Corps with Tony Horton.  I had done it before and was ready to jump in.  Hubby said he wanted to do Whole 30 so we JUMPED! (Picture January 2017)

We jumped big!  It was a blast.  We walked through Whole 30 and I was 60 days of 22 Minute Hard Corps. I was amazed at how much better I felt.  I was stunned when I finished 22 Minute Hard Corps and we had stuck with Whole 30 until the end of February.  I took the pictures and I was stunned!  WHAT IN THE WORLD!!!!!  I had only lost 7 pounds but OH MY GOODNESS!  I was totally PUMPED!  (Picture March 2017)

March, I had chosen to go back to one of my most FAVORITE!!!!!  Insanity Max 30!!!  Shaunt T can push you past any limit that you thought you had.  I had signed up for the Virginia Beach  Half Marathon in September.  I had to do this.  I couldn't stop!  I went on Facebook and Instagram and stayed very public and therefore there was no stopping and no excuses and no quitting!  I FINISHED AGAIN !!!!!! (This was my 4th round!!!)  (Picture MAY 2017)

May started a new Program.  P90X3!!!!  I love Tony Horton and his crazy humor but has me doing things I didn't know I could do.  Guess what?????? I'm not modifying so far!  That is NOT an option.  I
took my pictures and I have to confess.  I had a major amount of negative chatter!!!!!!!  I made a decision.  I HAD TO CHANGE THE CHANNEL!  I was telling myself......
"You finished Insanity Max 30! You finished 22 Minute Hard Corps! You did Whole 30! You signed up for a half marathon! You signed up for a 5K AND You have started training for a half marathon and now doing a round of P90X3 WITHOUT MODIFICATIONS!"
So, after changing the stat ion in my head and realizing that I AM CHANGING and I AM GOING TO ROCK MY RACE it only seemed fitting to share my journey since January 2017.  I can't wait to see what's going to happen from now until my race. If I can encourage one person, it was all worth it!!!!!
I hope you will consider joining me in my journey and we can do this together!!!!!  Just drop me an email at transformationcoachpam2013@gmail.com

 

That Scale!!!!

So I watched a video the other day of a Coach that was walking around with her actual weight written on her forehead. I stopped scrolling immediately because I could not wait to hear what she had to say and why she was doing this.  Her name is Jessica Bowser Nelson.  She is a cast member of the program that I was doing called Insanity Max 30.  She talked about what the scale can do to us and how those 3 little numbers can change our entire day.  She hit the nail on the head for me.  It spoke VOLUMES to me!!!  I sat down and looked through the file on my computer that I call......"Pam's Fitness Journey" and the other file called "Coach Pam".  Scrolling and looking through pictures and thinking about who I was back then.  I thought maybe this would be a good time to do a little bit of sharing.

In the picture above, the picture in the left top corner was my first passport picture.  I never told anyone that when I received my first passport back I was in tears!  We were feeling led to go on a mission trip to Ukraine and of course you have to have a passport and at this point in my life, I was always hiding behind the camera and NEVER wanted my picture taken.  It was my heaviest weight.  We had been through 2 rounds of infertility treatments and I had surgery and we were basically told we would never have anymore children.  It was a very difficult time!  I was depressed and so down.

The photo below that one is the "updated" picture that I needed in my passport on our first trip to India 2002.  I was a few pounds down.  I was still NOT exercising.  I was eating whatever, whenever and however much I wanted and life was life and I was still hiding behind the camera and taking the pictures and not being in the pictures.  I was in another country that I could not get the outfits that everyone else was getting and wearing because they (in India/Nepal) did not have them in my size.  It was a little embarrassing.  I didn't own a scale.  I didn't offer to ever get on a scale.  I even worked in medical offices and would NEVER get on one "just to see".  That was not a number I wanted to see and in my head, if I didn't have to see it, I wouldn't have to deal with it!  That is a normal reaction for most people.

In 2003, I believe,  I have incredible friends named Michelle and Paul that encouraged me to run.  We had joined a new YMCA and they were avid runners and she just wanted me to run on the treadmill so bad.  I gave EVERY excuse and she finally told me to run for 1 MINUTE and she would leave me alone.  I ran for one minute, I literally thought I would die on the treadmill,  and that was all that it took.  I was HOOKED!  I was signing up and running every race I could find!!!!  Running was GREAT!  Guess what????? The weight started coming off!  I was in HEAVEN!!!!

We were blessed with Kaleb and things were great.  I had run a full marathon and 2 or 3 half marathons.  Life was awesome and the running was just wonderful!

THEN WE MOVED!!!!


The weight started back.  I relaxed my exercise and the nutrition.  In comes Beachbody.  I was asked to join a "Challenge Group".  I had no idea what in the world a Challenge Group was.  I was in 110%!  Down 30 pounds and that was all it took!  I actually LOVED THE SCALE at that point!  I was happy to get on it!  I would actually look forward to it!  CRAZY!!!  I would weigh at the gym. I didn't own a scale at home and that was ok.

TODAY- The bigger picture- Current situation!  I love the camera. I will photo-bomb Kaleb's picture all the time.  We take LOTS of pictures in our family.  I still don't have a scale at home.  I had purchased one and found out very quickly that it was not a good idea for me to have it at home.  We had a weight loss challenge at work and it came to work and has been here ever since.  I determine how I feel based on my clothes, how I look in the mirror, the roundness in my face etc.  You and I both know that if the scale goes up by a few pounds here and there it will totally ruin your day!!!!!!

There is absolutely NO REASON for a number on a device to determine how you feel about yourself!!!!!

"Work Hard

Play Hard

Get Results Hard!" (Shaun T)

I now put in the work.
I know what to eat and how to eat.
I don't mind getting my weight at the doctors office.
I will weigh when I start a new program.
I DO NOT LET A NUMBER DETERMINE MY DAY!!!!

6 Simple Shrimp Dinners!

We LOVE SHRIMP!!!!!!  Tempura could for sure be a CHEAT MEAL!!!!!!