Hey 30, I see you, let’s do this!

The time is now 12:09am and that means that I am officially 30 and some change. I have to tell you, I had not been looking forward to this birthday. I know how most of you will react to me saying this, but 30 sounded old to me. It seemed so far off for so long and now here I am!

But truth be told, I also wasn’t looking forward to a new decade because I couldn’t imagine how it could possibly live up to the last. I LOVED my 20’s. I spent a quarter of them living in Manhattan– transforming from a sheltered Grosse Pointe girl, to a fast-moving, I-can-handle-anything kind of woman. I made great friends and had an absolute blast. My 20’s brought me love; the kind of love I dreamt of all my life. They brought me a little family, with 4 sweet furbarbies, and eventually a beautiful son. How could things possibly get any better from here?

And then my birthday actually came and you guys, I was blown away. I’ve always had lots of well-wishes on this day, but today, on this birthday, that number had multiplied by 100. And I’m not going to sit here and say that the number of Facebook messages you receive equates to the relationships you have. But I know for a fact that I spoke to so many more people today because I have finally come to a point in my life where I am one hundred percent comfortable with putting who I am out there, completely unapologetically. Sure, some people may not like what I have to say or what I represent, but the fact that I’ve taken this step has brought the most positive, supportive people into my life and today was a big reminder of that.

Sitting here tonight, I am also more confident than ever in my purpose. I know that a lot of people struggle at this point with, what they call, the quarter life crisis, but not me. Not today. I am a mother and wife first. Spending this day doing ordinary things for and with them suddenly felt so special. I love my role in this family. But outside of that, I am called to help people change their lives. I was put here, with these characteristics, this knowledge, and the capability to help people improve themselves from the inside out. I don’t question what the future holds for me because I can see it quite clearly. I was given the opportunity to share my passion and pay my complete self transformation forward and I will do that as many times over as I possibly can. That makes this next chapter incredibly exciting!

Yes, my 30’s certainly have some big shoes to fill, but I am absolutely confident that they will. In fact, I might need to get some bigger shoes for these goals! Here’s to everything that was, but more importantly, everything that will be. Tonight, I stepped out of the shower and saw something amazing. I looked 30 right in the face and thought, “let’s do this!”

When Weight-Loss Leads to Bigger Things

If you read my last post then you already know that three weeks ago, I committed to a 21 Day Accountability group in an attempt to get motivated and back on track with my health and fitness. What I didn’t …

Showing Myself Some Love

It’s hard to believe that the day of love is upon us again. Last year at this time, I had just found out that I was going to be a mom.  This year, this little munchkin is my husband and my sweet Valentine.  Does it get any better?  I mean, look at that silly face.  What’s not to love?

But this post is not about our newly acquired love.  It’s about rediscovering a once great love that I had for myself.  You see, before I got pregnant, I was in the best shape of my life.  I was active every single day and intentional with my eating. I was down to six percent body fat and felt like a rock star.  Then all of a sudden, pregnancy took over.  My body started holding onto fat like it was its job (it may have been,) the exhaustion had me on the couch whenever possible, and I made two new friends named Ben and Jerry. I remember being asked repeatedly by a family member how much weight I had gained as my pregnancy progressed.  I told them over and over that I didn’t know, but the truth was that I did.  I was steadily gaining weight and developing new stretch marks. At my last appointment before delivery, I was up a total of fifty pounds.  Yes, five zero.

Fast forward almost four months and I’ve got about fifteen left to lose. It doesn’t sound like much, but it feels like a ton. Up until this point, the weight loss could be attributed to breast-feeding and generally decent eating. For the most part, my days and nights have been consumed by baby. This was to be expected. But now, as I’ve become more comfortable with the demands and unpredictable schedule that being a mom requires, I am ready to recommit myself to well, myself.

And so, I’ve joined a group of women on Facebook in what we call an “accountability group.” Each of us has committed to spending the next twenty-one days following a fitness program, eating healthy, and encouraging each other’s journey. It has only been one day, but I can already tell that success lies ahead.

Please don’t misunderstand. This isn’t about the percent body fat or the six pack abs. This is about the way I feel mentally and emotionally when I feel good physically. This is about not having to rotate the same three outfits because they’re all I feel confident in. I want to take my son to the lake this summer and not waste a single moment wondering what my thighs look like in my bathing suit. But most of all, this is about showing myself the same amount of love that I show everyone else in my life. I deserve that much.

In the coming weeks, I will be sharing updates on my journey with you. I hope to connect with other people who have gone through this before or are in the midst of it now.

Until next time… Happy Valentine’s Day!

How to Improve Your Run

Happy Monday everyone! Today marks my first day of training for the Paczki Day 5K and as I begin to prepare, I am reminded of what it was like to be a new runner. There are so many things that …

Mapping Out My Fitness Goals

I have always been the type of person who is motivated by goals and deadlines. I loved planning parties at our house because I knew that it meant we’d get the house in order. Just ask my husband, who completed our …

Shifting Your Thinking for a Better Life

We’re one week into 2017 and boy, has it not been what I expected. New Year’s Day, I woke up to a sick baby, who was congested and uncomfortable. When his symptoms worsened, we ended up at the doctor. He …

Two Thousand Seventeen

With the start of a new year and all of this talk of resolutions, I am reminded of the reason that I started Snickled Pink. It wasn’t to get likes on Instagram or pins on Pinterest. It was to share …

The Truth About Your First Workout

It’s been just over 4 months since my last “work out.” The last time I went for a run was during my first couple of weeks of pregnancy. I got extremely sick afterwards, having no idea what my body was up to. Don’t get me wrong, my husband and I go on hikes through our property every week but I haven’t worked up a real sweat in far too long.

Finally feeling more like my old self these days, I was ready to get back on the horse. This morning I made it outside for a good run (okay, the dog would tell you it as a light jog) and finished up with some weights.  It was after all of this that I was reminded of some very good and very bad news about your first workout back. As it turns out, it’s one piece of news that swings both ways.

Your first workout is always the hardest. We’ve all been there. It takes everything in you to get into those workout clothes and even more out of you to actually get out there and do it. You feel like total garbage during and after your workout. That’s the bad news. The good news is that it can only get better and easier from there. That first hurdle is the worst. Before you know it, the motivation seems to come easier and your body grows stronger and more capable.

And so, let this post serve as a reminder that the first day is a tough one, but you are tougher! Once you get back on the horse, the rest of the ride will get easier, I promise.

 

Exploring a New Type of Gym

Over 5 years ago, when my husband and I first started dating, we lived half way across the country from each other. Thank goodness we had unlimited data at that time because we spent so much of our day talking and texting to compensate for the distance. Often times we’d dream of a life together in Northern Michigan, with a couple of dogs and plenty of room to roam. Just last week, we took one giant step toward that dream when we packed up and moved to our own slice of heaven on 17.5 acres.

Having moved from a pretty happening city to a town of about 1,800 people, I’m sure you can imagine that life will be quite different for us here. This was obviously the goal. We wanted to simplify our life and be able to spend much of our time outdoors. The first morning that I woke up in the new house, I awoke to a sound that I hadn’t heard in years-silence, absolute silence. It was such a peaceful way to start the day, at my own pace and with nothing but my thoughts to slowly wake my body.

One big change that I have been sorting out over the past few days is my workout routine. If you read my previous posts, you know that I recently underwent a dramatic body transformation through my (then) local gym. My husband and I belonged to the premier gym in our area. It was the place that “anybody who was anybody” belonged to but never actually visited, simply because their social circle was all members. (At least that’s what the gentleman told us when he took us on our initial tour.) The website describes the facility as being “more like a resort than a gym.” With their 4 pools, 2 basketball courts, spin & yoga studios, cafe, chiropractor, sauna, salon, and day care, it really felt that way. I’d be lying if I didn’t say that I loved that place with every bit of my being. Unlike many, I used the facility to its fullest capabilities.

My initial plan was to drive the 35 minutes each morning to work out there before going into work, but one week post-move, I’m realizing how unrealistic and downright ridiculous that seems. As I glanced out our window yesterday and looked out at all of the land we’ve acquired, it struck me that we just purchased a gym more beautiful than any I’ve ever seen. And so, I’ve decided to do a bit of an experiment. I’ve put my resort, I mean, gym membership on hold and am changing things up a bit. I will be doing my cardio in the woods, running trails that already exist and creating new ones as I go. I’ve gathered a plethora of pliyo exercises to continue my strength training. Honestly though, I have a feeling that our entire lifestyle is going to change at the new house, enabling us to be much more active. We’ll be outside often, chopping wood and hiking with the dogs. Heck, we’re 15 minutes from a ski hill now. If I wake up and decide that I want to hit the slopes, I can–pending Mother Nature decides that it is actually winter. I’d imagine it’s difficult to ski in 55 degree weather.

I certainly had some concerns going into this transition, as physical fitness has become such a big part of my lifestyle. I don’t want to lose everything that I’ve worked for. With workout number one under my belt, my confidence in my potential results is growing. My 5k through the woods forced me to lift my legs as I ran, in order to avoid the brush, and push harder to get up the hills. It was undoubtedly a challenge. What I can’t ignore however, is the fact that I feel so emotionally and spiritually refreshed. Being out in nature like that is incredibly powerful.

As I expand my non-conventional workout regimen, I’ll be sure to share the workouts that you too can do at home! Now if only I could get the forest creatures to appreciate the way my running shoes matched my Lulu pants, then I’d really be on to something…

Fueling Your Machine

“You can’t out-exercise a bad diet.” How many times have we heard this? Countless, I’m sure. So it should come as no surprise that when I began my journey to a healthier me, my starting line was in the kitchen. …