My Weight Loss Journey #2
Just over two months ago, I had a lower back injury (lumbar strain) from doing cardio intervals on the treadmill. I had been doing cardio for a while and decided it was time to up the amount of times I was running on the treadmill so I started doing intervals of running for one minute then walking for one minute. After doing this for a couple of weeks, I noticed that my lower back was getting a bit sore so I lessened the amount of times per week that I was doing my cardio intervals and started doing lower impact cardio as well as the stairs at the gym to supplement my higher impact cardio until my back was feeling better.
About a week or so into changing up my cardio to a lower impact routine due to my lower back pain, I was at the grocery store doing some shopping when I bent down to pick something up off the bottom shelf when I felt an extremely painful shooting pain going up my spine and into my sciatica. I immediately had to leave the store, and in tears struggled to get into my car because of the extremely amount of pain that was effecting my lower back. I could barely sit without being in horrible pain and I didn't even think about bending over or twisting my body in any way. The only relief I felt was standing up or laying down on my back.
As soon as I could I went to see my primary care doctor who told me to that I had a lumbar strain and that I should put some heat on it as well as taking some pain medication to subside the pain until it went away on its own. I was also given some at home exercises to try to loosen up the muscles that were tight due to the strain. Unfortunately, this didn't help the situation as much as I would have liked. Over the last two months, I have still had lower back pain although the sharp pain went away so I had normal movement back but I still had dull pains all the time so I couldn't do much intense exercise like I wanted to.
Fast forward to yesterday while I was at work, I bent over to grab something off of the floor that I had dropped off my desk, and I had the same shooting pain that I had at the grocery store going up my spine and into my sciatica. I work at a doctor's office so I immediately clocked out and went to see one of the doctor's where I was told that I again had strained my lower back (lumbar strain). I am now taking a steroid to try to repair my back as soon as possible as well as I just started physical therapy today in the hopes that this will once and for all heal my back from this injury so I can get back to my workout routine.
This whole experience has been very disheartening because nothing is worse than wanting to reach a fitness or health goal and then injuring yourself which puts a pause on the whole situation. I am hoping beyond hope that the medication as well as the physical therapy will help me to get back into good enough shape to start my regular exercise. I will keep you updated on my progress as well as the exercises that I am going to be doing that is prescribed by my physical therapist. If anyone has dealt with any kind of injury during a fitness journey before, you will know how hard and discouraging it can be on you. Prayers for a fast recovery are appreciated and I will pray for those who are also suffering from any time of injury.
God Bless!
Tuesday, November 15, 2016
Saturday, November 12, 2016
Personal Development Tip
Personal Development Tip
After listening to a podcast by Chalene Johnson (The Chalene Show which can be found on iTunes for FREE so make sure you check her out!), she was discussing the thought of focusing on one area of personal development at a time.
The analogy that Chalene used to promote the theory of focusing on one area at a time was this: when you try to do small tasks in all areas of personal development (i.e. health, faith, finances, relationships, career, etc.) you get a little amount done while using a lot of energy in the process. This is much like cleaning small areas of each room through out the house before having people over. When the people come over to your house, it would still look like you didn't really clean up because only small areas were cleaned so the house as a whole is still messy. The house is much like your life when you try to focus on too many areas of your life in personal development.
Instead of spreading yourself thin by trying to improve all your life's areas at one time, pick an area that needs the most work in this time in your life. Chalene likes to refer to this as "the priority in this season in your life." What is the area that you need to focus on right now? Put your energy into that area until you are satisfied with your improvement then move on to the next area that needs the most work.
Let me know if you would like me to go into more depth about what you can do to achieve your goals by liking this post, or let me know what you would like to see next.
Photo by: the_real_houses_of_ig
After listening to a podcast by Chalene Johnson (The Chalene Show which can be found on iTunes for FREE so make sure you check her out!), she was discussing the thought of focusing on one area of personal development at a time.
The analogy that Chalene used to promote the theory of focusing on one area at a time was this: when you try to do small tasks in all areas of personal development (i.e. health, faith, finances, relationships, career, etc.) you get a little amount done while using a lot of energy in the process. This is much like cleaning small areas of each room through out the house before having people over. When the people come over to your house, it would still look like you didn't really clean up because only small areas were cleaned so the house as a whole is still messy. The house is much like your life when you try to focus on too many areas of your life in personal development.
Instead of spreading yourself thin by trying to improve all your life's areas at one time, pick an area that needs the most work in this time in your life. Chalene likes to refer to this as "the priority in this season in your life." What is the area that you need to focus on right now? Put your energy into that area until you are satisfied with your improvement then move on to the next area that needs the most work.
Let me know if you would like me to go into more depth about what you can do to achieve your goals by liking this post, or let me know what you would like to see next.
Photo by: the_real_houses_of_ig
Wednesday, November 9, 2016
My Weight Loss Journey
My Weight Loss Journey
With one of my best friend's wedding looming in the beginning of 2O17 in Mexico, I decided I had some weight loss and toning up to do. Over the last eight months I have lost about thirty pounds of the seventy pounds I hoped to lose in a year's time. This was a great accomplishment thus far and I am proud with how far I have come in my weight loss journey. Aside from the fact that I have lost almost half the amount of weight I projected to lose in a year's time, my weight loss has seemed to slow down significantly since hitting about six months in, and I think I know why.
The first few months I was super dedicated to eating clean and working out constantly then I started to slip up here and there which I believe slowed down the amount of weight I was losing per week. Till this day (and over the last eight months), I have eaten pretty clean during the day for the most part including breakfast, lunch, and snacks. However in the beginning of my journey, eating clean was a lot less of a challenge and in the recent months I have found that eating healthy when I get home from work in the evening as well as on the weekends has been more of a challenge than I would like to admit. As well as, after suffering from an unfortunate lower back strain, my fitness has been less than great recently which has really made my weight loss journey suffer even more.
I am hoping from posting my weight loss journey, my ups and downs, my struggles and successes, and my real take on how it feels to try to become a healthier version of myself failures and all, that this will help me to meet my goals as well as, helping anyone else who is struggling to become a healthier or better version of themselves. And just maybe we can share tips, tricks, and support for each other along the way. This is all about keeping myself accountable to my actions and keeping things real because when it comes down to it, this has to be a lifestyle. Fads don't last and results are best attained when you are kept accountable so here is my first step in trying to create a better and more healthy life for myself.
God bless!
With one of my best friend's wedding looming in the beginning of 2O17 in Mexico, I decided I had some weight loss and toning up to do. Over the last eight months I have lost about thirty pounds of the seventy pounds I hoped to lose in a year's time. This was a great accomplishment thus far and I am proud with how far I have come in my weight loss journey. Aside from the fact that I have lost almost half the amount of weight I projected to lose in a year's time, my weight loss has seemed to slow down significantly since hitting about six months in, and I think I know why.
The first few months I was super dedicated to eating clean and working out constantly then I started to slip up here and there which I believe slowed down the amount of weight I was losing per week. Till this day (and over the last eight months), I have eaten pretty clean during the day for the most part including breakfast, lunch, and snacks. However in the beginning of my journey, eating clean was a lot less of a challenge and in the recent months I have found that eating healthy when I get home from work in the evening as well as on the weekends has been more of a challenge than I would like to admit. As well as, after suffering from an unfortunate lower back strain, my fitness has been less than great recently which has really made my weight loss journey suffer even more.
I am hoping from posting my weight loss journey, my ups and downs, my struggles and successes, and my real take on how it feels to try to become a healthier version of myself failures and all, that this will help me to meet my goals as well as, helping anyone else who is struggling to become a healthier or better version of themselves. And just maybe we can share tips, tricks, and support for each other along the way. This is all about keeping myself accountable to my actions and keeping things real because when it comes down to it, this has to be a lifestyle. Fads don't last and results are best attained when you are kept accountable so here is my first step in trying to create a better and more healthy life for myself.
God bless!
Wednesday, November 2, 2016
Fall Nail Polish Colors
Fall Nail Polish Colors
One of my favorite things I love to do to treat myself throughout the month is getting my nails done. It feels so good to look down at your hands and feet and see a beautiful colored polish. Wearing nail polish on your fingers and toes helps to make you look more put together and polished which is always a great thing.
Along with treating myself to the nail salon a couple time a month, my other favorite thing right now is FALL! Fall is by far my favorite season of the year. Nothing is more beautiful than the changing colors of the trees and plants. Fall truly makes me feel blessed to live in a place where natural beauty like the leaves changing on the trees can be admired for a couple months.
Putting my two obsessions (getting my nails done and the beautiful fall season), I decided to pull some of my favorite nail polishes from my extensive collection to share with you what my top fall choices are. Note: Some of these colors may be sold out or limited edition, however, with all of the nail polish brands and choices out there, it won't be hard to find a dupe if it's not available anymore.
Ravishing Red's
- OPI I'm Not Really A Waitress (cool red with shimmer)
- OPI Go with the Lava Flow (red-coral with gold shimmer)
- OPI First Date at the Golden Gate (brick red)
- Orly Red Flare (true red)
- L'Oreal He Read My Mind (true red with gold shimmer)
Rocking Rose's
- Sally Hansen So Much Fawn (light dusty rose)
- Sally Hansen Scarlet Lacquer (bright rose)
- China Glaze Sex on the Beach (light dusty rose with gold shimmer)
Popping Purple's
- OPI Suzi & the 7 Dusseldorfs (warm purple with shimmer)
- Sally Hansen Pat on the Black (deep purple)
- L'Oreal Violet Vixen (violet purple)
- L'Oreal Breaking Curfew (black purple)
Beautiful Blue's
- OPI Into the Night (true blue with shimmer)
- L'Oreal After Hours (deep blue)
Gorgeous Green's
- OPI Amazon... Amazoff (emerald green)
Outstanding Orange's
- OPI In My Back Pocket (bright orange)
Glamorous Grey's
- Sally Hansen Commander in Chic (taupe grey)
All Photos by Becky Schutten
One of my favorite things I love to do to treat myself throughout the month is getting my nails done. It feels so good to look down at your hands and feet and see a beautiful colored polish. Wearing nail polish on your fingers and toes helps to make you look more put together and polished which is always a great thing.
Along with treating myself to the nail salon a couple time a month, my other favorite thing right now is FALL! Fall is by far my favorite season of the year. Nothing is more beautiful than the changing colors of the trees and plants. Fall truly makes me feel blessed to live in a place where natural beauty like the leaves changing on the trees can be admired for a couple months.
Putting my two obsessions (getting my nails done and the beautiful fall season), I decided to pull some of my favorite nail polishes from my extensive collection to share with you what my top fall choices are. Note: Some of these colors may be sold out or limited edition, however, with all of the nail polish brands and choices out there, it won't be hard to find a dupe if it's not available anymore.
Ravishing Red's
- OPI I'm Not Really A Waitress (cool red with shimmer)
- OPI Go with the Lava Flow (red-coral with gold shimmer)
- OPI First Date at the Golden Gate (brick red)
- Orly Red Flare (true red)
- L'Oreal He Read My Mind (true red with gold shimmer)
Rocking Rose's
- Sally Hansen So Much Fawn (light dusty rose)
- Sally Hansen Scarlet Lacquer (bright rose)
- China Glaze Sex on the Beach (light dusty rose with gold shimmer)
Popping Purple's
- OPI Suzi & the 7 Dusseldorfs (warm purple with shimmer)
- Sally Hansen Pat on the Black (deep purple)
- L'Oreal Violet Vixen (violet purple)
- L'Oreal Breaking Curfew (black purple)
Beautiful Blue's
- OPI Into the Night (true blue with shimmer)
- L'Oreal After Hours (deep blue)
Gorgeous Green's
- OPI Amazon... Amazoff (emerald green)
Outstanding Orange's
- OPI In My Back Pocket (bright orange)
Glamorous Grey's
- Sally Hansen Commander in Chic (taupe grey)
All Photos by Becky Schutten
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