It's Been a Whole Year....

I cannot believe that it has been a whole year since I committed to a healthier lifestyle and like the rollercoaster of life this journey had its ups and downs with some unexpected twists and turns. But, no matter what I stayed on this ride and I have been having so much fun on it that I hope never to get off.

February 2011 is when I put my foot down and decided that I did not want to feel tired, sick, blah, weak and bloated anymore and I took my heath back into my own hands. I watched my diet and started a well rounded cardio and weight lifting routine (P90X) and it not only transformed my body but also my spirit and mind as well. It is amazing how great you really feel after a workout and the happiness you gain on the inside knowing that you can do it!!! Thanks to Beachbody/ P90X/Shakeology I have met so many positive people who really do inspire each other to keep pushing play everyday and that positive attitude has definitely helped with this process. When you have negative thoughts about your limits or negative people in your life telling you that you cannot do it or want you to cheat on your diet then you will limit yourself and have negative results.  But, Beachbody has such a great community of positive people who really want to help you with the process and by seeing other peoples transformations really does keep you focused which is the only reason why I decided to become a coach myself.

I am a real woman and a mother of 2 so do I cheat on my diet and share pizza or ice cream with my family…yes. The key is that I do not do it everyday or even every week but when I do have an occasional splurge it is no big deal because I know that I ate healthy all day, worked out and I will eat healthy for the remainder of the day/night/week. Do I get lazy and want to stay in bed or am I so tired because my kids woke me up several times in the middle of the night….yes. But, most of the time I wake up anyway and push myself to do the workout because I know I will feel better when I am done and you know what….I do!!! I have more energy by working out then I would if I got an extra hour of sleep.  It is all about perspective and the way I look it I am not on a diet, I am not working out for only 90 days…. This is my new lifestyle; this is my new life.

I really cannot say how many rounds of P90X I did this year (1 full round I know I completed) because yet again my ulcerative colitis flared up and I was so sick for a few months that I was only able to do a workout here and there when my body allowed me to. But, by eating healthy and working out (taking my meds) I know that I was able to get into remission a lot faster and bounce back into my routine/lifestyle then I would have if I ate junk and did not do P90X.  So, from that point until after the holiday’s I was averaging  about 3 workouts a week and I ate healthy about 80% of the time. But like most people out there I decided to get back on track after New Years and so far so good. I am now averaging a workout about 5 days a week and I feel amazing….the thing about it is that you can too!!!

So are my results crazy like you see on TV where I have like no body fat…lol…hummmm….no. But, I am so proud of how far I have come and to know that I am still on this road to a healthy life. This really has become my new lifestyle and I know that myself and my family are reaping the benefits of it.  I can not wait to see how my body will transform in another year of being on this path….It may not be perfect but it will be strong and healthy and that is good enough for me.

I will be posting my new after pics to my website http://www.fitwithmeliss/ on Feb 5th (The full year pics) so stay tunedJ

Great....Life Gets in the Way Again

Great....Life Gets in the Way of working out again. A friend and I are starting P90X Classic Version today and I vowed that I  would wake up at 5 am to be sure that I get my workouts in everyday. Well Day 1 and already I am off schedule so at 5 am instead of sweating and doing P90X I was caring for my sick little girl.

So why am I telling you this???? Because life does get in the way of keeping any schedule but it is up to you to fit it in. Instead of saying "I will do it tomorrow" which turns into the next day, which turns into the next....then the next thing you know it is almost the weekend and for some reason you can not start a diet on a Saturday so you think that I will start fresh again on Monday. So do not wait until after the holidays or after the next party....START TODAY!!! Because the longer you wait the more weight you can gain and the harder it will be to get moving.

So yes.....Life did get in the way but I will get my workout in!!! I will not let myself nor my friend down. We are starting P90X Classic Version today NO MATTER WHAT OBSTICAL TRIES TO STOP ME.

POSITIVE THOUGHTS=POSITIVE RESULTS

http://www.fitwithmeliss.net/

Why is it so hard to get back on track???

You workout 6 days a week for months then get sick, or vacation, or something in life throws you off track so you think to yourself "No problem I will get back on track next week or tomorrow..." but then that day comes and it is so hard to get back on track and get refocused....but why???? Why is it so hard??? You know when you workout that you feel great, you have more energy, you are toned up and just feel good; so what is it that stops you from pushing forward???

I guess I ask because I want this question answered so I can get back on track. I still get in about 3-4 workouts a week but that is not good enough and I want to get back on track to 6 days a week. Let's be honest...you work so hard to get your results so you slack off a little and the next thing you notice is that you are gaining weight....WHAT?!?!? I worked so hard to get the weight off why does it come back on so easy!!!

There just are not enough hours in the day to get in everything that needs to get done so for me I need to make additional time to get in my workouts...aka get uo before the kids. I want to/need to wake up at 5 am but I shut the alarm clock off everyday and rollover and fall back to sleep...I hate that I keep doing it and every few days I resolve that tomorrow will be the day that I start my "Routine" again then I hit snooze and my plan fails again.

So if there is a magic button to press to get me to refocus please send it to me. But, in the meantime I am still drinking my Shakeology everyday and I will try again tomorrow. A friend told me that it takes 21 days to make something into a routine...21 days!?!?! I can not ever get 5 days in a row nevermind 21!!!

So tomorrow is another day to shoot for 5am but I will get a workout in today (with Benjamin playing around me which equals a half of workout) and I commit to making healthy food choices and accepting me for the person I am today minus the abs:)

I'm baaaack....well almost

I know it has been a while since my last post and it was due to my UC flareup. It hit me hard this time and I started my Humara on Tuesday and I am feeling great!!! I am so happy that I can see the light at the end of this dark tunnel I have been on for a month. So I am rebuilding myself from the inside out. Next week, my daugther starts school and I start another Round of P90X. I was alomost done with Round 2 but had to stop and instead of picking up where I left off I am going to start all over again. so what will you be doing when the kids are in school???

I am writing today not only to give you an update but I really want to take a second to speak about Shakeology. I know it is expensive and it is but it is the best product by far that I use (and I do not say that without 100% believing in it!!!). It has helped me get vitimans and nutrients that my body could not get with food and it has helped me heel my sromach while giving me energy that I need since food was not an option. I know because of all of the probotics in Shakeology I am getting the added benefit of the good bacteria heal me a little faster. Hey, it is not going to take my UC away but it plays an essential role in my getting back on tract to my healthier new fit life.

So, I am back....taking baby steps but slow and steady wins thew race. So every good food choice you make, everytime you do some workout, every vitimin you take....you are one step closer to a healthier life. One good food choice can lead to another....you start feeling good because you are eating right you get more energy....more energy leads to physical activity....which leads to all kinds of great things....so happy hormones here I come!!!

You may not see another post from me until next week but know that I am still striving to reach my goal that I set in Feb 2011 to finally live a healthy/fit life and although I had a set back it did not throw me off corse. If anything, it made me fight harder to get where I want to be....HEALTHY!!! So please do not let any set back get the best of you.....do not let negativity over shadow your light.....do not circum to darkess....you are better than that and you are worth it to be the best that you can be.

I can not wait until Monday and start my routine again....set your goals today and change who you will  be tomorrow!!!

What is Ulcerative Colitis and how does it effect my life??

If you follow my blog you may have read that I suffer from Ulcerative Colitis and I mention it often. I was told last night by my doctor it was another trip to the hospital for me or to stop eating for 5 days to shut down my system and flush it with meds. In the past, this was a huge set back for me....but that was then and this is now. With my new outlook on my health this is just a minor bump in the road. But what is UC and how does it affect me and my goals....well that is what I will tell you about today. It is not a pleasent conversation and you may not be interested in it but I hope that if I tell my UC story maybe I can help one person with their "stomach issues" or I can help you keep a positive attitude through any road bump you may have in life.

Ulcerative colitis is a chronic (ongoing) disease of the colon, or large intestine. The disease is marked by inflammation and ulceration of the colon mucosa, or innermost lining. Tiny open sores, or ulcers, form on the surface of the lining, where they bleed and produce pus and mucus. Because the inflammation makes the colon empty frequently, symptoms typically include diarrhea (sometimes bloody) and often crampy abdominal pain. (For more information:http://www.ccfa.org/info/about/ucp)

So that is my stomach as I write this...I am flared up pretty bad this time. Flareups have no rhyme or reason. I know what foods to stay away from (FRIED), what to do when I start to see a sympton but this came from an infection that my son had and passed to me. Oh yeah, they forget to tell you that it is an autoimmune dease so you get sick so often that you loose count. But what the defination above fails to mention is how it makes you feel to loose blood and fluids during a flareup. They do not say that you are in the bathroom sometimes up to 40+ times a day and that it feels like someone is taking a knife and is ripping your stomach open. When you are done with several bathroom runs (oh and yes you better run)you are left weak, empty, in pain (sometimes unbearable). I mean not only am I loosing fluids but for me I loose a lot of blood.

So why I am telling you this??? As I said, I am on a new path to change my lifestyle to healthy and fit way of life and this is a major road bump for me. I refuse to go on Predizone again so I am taking every other medicine out there to try to get this under control. But I am not letting it get me down like I would in the past. I no longer feel sorry for myself. I just need to do what I have to do to get healthy and in the mean time I plan on sticking to my normal routine as best as I can. I have been sick for 2 weeks now but I still manage to work (at home), take care of a 3 and 22 month yr old, and workout. I may have to modify my routine a little but I get it done and I feel great afterward. I explained to my doctor about Shakeology and he said that it ok to continue to drink something "so beneficial".

When you have a positive mind set you get positive results!!! I know this first hand and I living through pain and still manage to try to maintin some level of fitness into my life. I know that if I was feeling sorry for myself or circum to the pain, I would be on the couch and would not do much of anything. I refuse to live like that. Living feeling sad/bad for yourself makes you feel blah and it overwhelmes you where all you can do is focus on the bad and what you do not have or what you can not do. When you focus on your negative feelings you start to live in a negative unhealthy way. I know it easier said than done but you have the power to change the way you think and feel.

So I am on day 2 of no food and I am feeling ok....I went to the fridge about 5 times already looking for something to eat but I am going to go and make myself a protein drink. I am still going to fuel my body with Shakeology and protein drinks as well as lots of water, tea and chicken/beef stock. So I will tell you later how things are coming along but I am sure I will be just fine with whatever life throws my way (in terms of my health)

For more information about Shakeology: www.beachbodycoach.com/FitwithMeliss

Do All Diets Start on Monday???

I am sitting on the couch last night eating some ice cream thinking to myself this is my last horah because I am starting my "diet" again on Monday. After 2 weeks of vacation, weddings and fairs with the kids, I ate more calories in 2 weeks then I did in past 7 months. But I was thinking why did I wait until Monday to start again??  I mean I never hear of anyone ever saying that they are going to start a diet and workout plan on Wednesday at 3pm or a Saturday night....right!??! So why Monday??? I guess, Monday is the start of a new week the start of a new begining....like we can just wash the calories from the weekend away. It is the begining of a new week....so if I blow this "diet" by Wednesday do I wait until the following Monday again to get back on track or can I pick up on Thursday???

So today is Monday and yes I want to start my P90X routine again but I am so sore and sick that I am not sure if my body will let me. I did wake up at 5am but it was not to workout but to be hurled over in pain in the bathroom....limping back to my bed I knew that I could not even bend over to put my sneakers on nevermind do P90X. So it is almost 8am and I thinking how to do this....I mean how do I incorporate a workout when my body is so sore already??? How do I "diet" when I can not eat any salad, raw fruit or vegis....nevermind my nuts and grains. The Colitis diet is the anti weight loss diet so what will I eat??? I will figure it out!!!

Honestly I am joking because as I said in another blog I do not diet which is why I eat ice cream...it was just a crazy thought that ran through my mind last night about how many people actaully start a diet on Monday. For me, this is a lifestyle change one that I will incorporate into my daily life. My main goal of being healthy is a way of life not a short term thing....I am though a little confused on how to do this and incorporate everything I know while being sick....it is a new challenge for me but one that I know I will figure out and in the end be proud of the choices I made....weather it is to rest my body beacuse of the fatigue or to push myself to life some weights to keep my muscles strong.

How to get back on track...with UC??

I know that I have not written in a while but I was on vacation, dealing with sick kids, a wedding and a taking the kids on day trips all while my Ulcerative colitis is flared up. I hate to bitch and complain about it but I am so bummed out that I am getting sick all of the time that my energy level is so low that I can barely make it through the day nevermind do P90X. I was doing so well and on a natural high, transforming my health, body and soul through a process I started 7 months ago and now that I have been sick for 2 weeks it knocked me off of cloud 9 back to a ugly place. A place where I am sure a lot of you have been (even if not with UC or sickness) a place where you feel down, fat, well just....blah.

I want to get back into my routine and healthy mode but how do I do it??? How do I get up 3-6 times a night to get sick to wake up in pain then do P90X??? But I know when I do workout and drink my Shakeology I feel awesome....I know after pushing my body to perform even when my mind and body are screaming no that I can accomplish anything that comes my way. So do I workout dispite my pain?? Well I guess I can still take the advice of Tony Horton (aka my personal trainer..lol) I Will Do My Best and Forget the Rest!!!

So I guess this is just another set back and chapter in my life journey to better health and happiness....there are road bumps that will set you back but you have to keep making healthy decisions and every little thing you do to incorporate better health and fitness is a step in the right direction. I may not be taking leaps and bounds like I was a few months ago but each step in a positive direction is still getting me closer to my goals!!!

So yes, I am having some bumps along the way being this sick but I also make it a point to still enjoy life, my kids and my family. So being sick does not dictate me being happy....my attitude and the people in my life do!!! So I guess what I am saying when something is trying to pull you down grasp on to the good and do not let it get the best of you....enjoy the people and the good things you have in your life don't dwell on the things you don't!