This post is sponsored by Forward Fitness. All opinions, buckets of sweat and calories burned are my own.
We are officially over half way through the Drop 2 Pants Sizes challenge with Forward Fitness. I’d have to say this is probably the hardest thing I’ve ever done for this little blog. I’ve had to do a lot of mental resetting these past few weeks, and it is paying off. To catch you up to where we are, I’m doing an 8 week drop 2 pants size challenge with Forward Fitness. We just completed week 6 and I had my 3rd pants try on today, and let me tell you I was nervous, but today I finally saw a real visible difference – and my smaller pants fit – COMFORTABLY! Hallelujah!
We tried our pants 4 weeks in and I did a side by side comparison of the first day and half way, and I noticed a difference. My waist was trimmer, my face is slimming down and overall, I feel really good. People are starting to notice. Jeff took a picture of me at breakfast yesterday, and I had to laugh that he had a really good angle, and then he took another photo, and then realized well maybe it’s not the angle, maybe its me?
So since I’m not the most fit person (yet), and if you’ve been sitting on a couch for a long time like I was, I thought I’d share some nuggets of knowledge I’ve learned along the way that may help with your journey to something too! I’m just a mom who wants to watch her daughter grow up and for me, being more active and a healthier size that is right for my frame was my goal. I thought I’d share five things I’ve learned over these past few weeks and perhaps inspire you on your own journey. I know it’s different for everyone, and maybe this will give you a spark too.
- You Are Stronger Than You Think You Are – The first time I was handed a kettle bell, I looked at it like it had two heads. Slowly over the past few weeks, my coaches have been sneaky and swapping out my bell for a heavier and heavier bell. Guys, I was dead-lifting over an 80 pound kettle bell last week! Last week I started using a trap bar for the first time. I felt like such a BOSS doing those, I made my coach do a video. While it was hard work, I was lifting over 120 lbs all by myself. I’ve learned proper form and had help to make sure I’m not hurting myself. If you go slow and listen to your body, you can do it. If I can do it, you can do it.
- Throw Away Your Scale – This is probably the hardest thing I’ve had to do. I’m a numbers gal. I like analytics, charts and graphs. When your hard work isn’t showing on a scale, well that’s defeating. In our workbook, one of the very first things it said was to toss the scale. I’m also really good at listening, can you tell? After the second week, I gave up and stopped weighing myself and haven’t looked back. Growing up it was always about the number on the scale. It didn’t matter what that make up was in your body, the lower the number, the better. Resetting my years of learned behavior has truly been life changing for me. I’ve lost about 10 pounds, but my clothes are fitting so much different. Eating the right foods and putting the time at the gym will give you the results you want. I’m working on being strong and healthy and that I can be no matter what the scale says.
- Remember Why You Started – The thing I love about the challenge is that you have an accountability group. Meeting with Suzanne and your group really helps you refocus every week on your goal and get back to the original reason why I started. I set my accountability groups on Monday mornings after my first workout so I’m setting myself up for success each week. My accountability buddy has been great, I feel like even though we’re different seasons of life, we have a lot of the same struggles and we need to remember the why. For me, being able to play outside with Hattie or have the energy to keep up at Disney World in a few weeks is why this is why I started. My family is my number one and I wanted to be able to be the best version of me with them.
- Find Your Friends to Cheer You On – So, I totally lucked out and 2 of my favorite blog friends Melissa and Denise have been in this challenge with me. We’ve coordinated schedules to workout together, we have a group chat going on about our success and maybe a few food failures. Truly these ladies have been an absolute blessing. We’ve cheered each other on when we have our pants try-ons, or when we’re just too tired from a long day to get to the gym. We have also had some fun on Instagram sharing our workouts and heckling our coaches. I’ve gone a step further with a fitness accountability Instagram. I saw an article about posting “Swealfies” will keep you more accountable, and that’s what I’ve done.
- No Mom Guilt In Putting Yourself First – Ladies, let me tell you it is okay to give yourself some Me Time. You have to, otherwise you’ll implode. I think as moms we’re all conditioned to put everyone before yourself, I think it’s that maternal nature. When I realized I couldn’t pour from an empty cup, I set aside the gym time and I did the unthinkable – I asked for help. Now if you’re like me, asking for help doesn’t come naturally, we want to handle our own business. But, my husband adjusted his Monday work schedules so I could make gym time a focus. When he traveled my mom stepped in and watched Hattie so I could head to the gym for a mid morning workout. The team behind me is cheering me on just as much as my friends and they wanted to help me succeed too.
As much as this as been about nutrition and dropping inches, this also has been a great reset for me mentally and being grateful for the people in your life that want you to be the best you can be. Thank you to the team at Forward Fitness for reminding me to always switch my feet, stand up straight and tuck my hips. This has truly been one of the best experiences I’ve had.
