I won $200!!!

When I started my rotation back in December ... I joined a Biggest Loser Challenge with some girls on one of the message boards I visit. We each pitched in $5 and we had voting this past week. It wasn't weight loss, but visible results. Imagine my surprise when I won ... I've never won anything worth anything before! I am so stoked!!! Okay, I am gonna suck it up and show my pictures here. No laughing, okay?!? ;)


I tried really hard in each shot to hit the same pose with no sucking in and all that. I did two shots (not seen here) were I did flex, but that's it. I am more tan in the afters, but that is only because of getting ready for the cruise! Here are the numbers:

Total weight loss: 23.2 lbs.
Inches lost -
chest: 1.5"
R arm: 1"
L arm: 1.5"
waist: 3.5"
hips: 2.75"
abductors: 4"
R thigh: 1.5"
L thigh: 3"
total inches lost: 19"

For me the most noticeable change is in the side shots. In the before, my belly stuck out past my boobs (shudder) and now it doesn't!!! I am now at the weight (even a few pounds less) I was before having Braden. Once I lose about another 10 lbs., I'll be at the lowest weight I've been since having Aubrey ... THAT will be a celebration!!!

Other changes I notice are:

~My appetite is not as big as it used to be. I gave myself free reign on the cruise to eat anything I wanted. And I did, but usually I did not finish my plate and I found myself stopping when I was satisfied. It was nice to enjoy the food without being sick from having eaten too much. When I started the first CLX rotation, it was hard adjusting to smaller meals, but now I sometimes get full before finishing the whole CLX meal!

~ Huge strength gains. When I started I could barely do 2 pushups on my knees, and even then the form was horrible and probably shouldn't count. I can now do most of the reps, with good form, on my knees. I am not quite ready for a toes pushup, but I can tell that I am really close.

~ Seeing my muscle ... I am seeing muscles popping up in places they have never been sen before. Most noticeable are my tricep/delt muscles and my quads. I can't wait to shred another layer of fat and really be able to start seeing them! Even at my skinniest, I was never "firm."

~ Confidence ... I have such confidence in my body now. I proudly wore my swimsuits on the beach. Was there cellulite? Heck ya! Am I at my goal weight? Not yet! But it didn't matter. I felt great about myself and instead of being self concious and try to hide, I just enjoyed myself and had a blast. My mind still tries to play tricks on me sometimes, but that's when I tell it to shut up!!!

~ No more "ifs" or "somedays." We spend a lot of our lives looking for that someday moment when things are perfect, and really is it ever? No! I am loving this journey and appreciating where I am. At the same time, I no longer wonder "if" I will be healthy, but I know I AM healthy and that now is the day.

I started a new rotation and have updated my ticker to reflect a new start. I have set my goal weight to be the high end of healthy for my height, only because it asks for it. Honestly, I don't have a goal for weight but here are my goals:

• Finish 90 day CLX rotation doing 3 strength workouts per week and 2-3 bike rides per week (If weather is bad, substitute and indoor cardio), 2 ab/stretching workouts
  
• Follow CLX eating plan, allowing 1-2 cheat meal each week. (I have added in some of my own recipes so I guess it is a modified CLX eating plan)
  
• Continue to work on my body image/thoughts. This includes combatting the bad thoughts when they pop in and notice the good things about my body.
  
• Be able to do at least one push up on toes at the end of the rotation

I figure the weight will come off, but since I can't control how much will come off, I'll focus on the things I can control like what I eat, when I workout, etc.

Here's to the next 90 days!