Tag Archives: weight loss

Keto

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I have mentioned Keto briefly in s few of my recent posts and I posted about it last year as well but its something I wanted to make a more in Depth post about. as a disclaimer I am not a Dr or a nutritionist or any of those things.

When I first learned of keto I lived in a hotel with my ex husband and I lived on Brussel sprouts and eggs for breakfast, an avocado and tuna for lunch and chicken and Asparagus for dinner with a few other things sprinkled in here and there. I didn’t even know I was doing keto at fist. At the time I had tried so much. I Studied so many different diets. I went Vegetarian. I watched All the health documentaries, I exercised, I took supplements. I did it all. But keto was what worked. Why did I stop? I have no Idea.

Over the last few years (its been 4) I have often thought about going keto again but I didn’t have that final push to actually do it. maybe It was because I wasn’t ready to give up all the things I knew that I would have to or maybe because I was worried I wouldn’t have the support that I needed. Then My Dr recommended keto. I had my push. I started brushing up on my keto Knowledge. I watched lots of Thomas DeLauer videos on YouTube. I cleaned out my kitchen of anything that would tempt me or derail my journey. then I went shopping, Several times at several stores. My Initial plan was to Get as much Keto Foods as I could To get myself set on the path to success. By my actual first day on keto (April 5th) I had all kinds of good solid keto foods.

If you dont know Keto rules are

1.) No bread, pasta, rice, sugar

2.) Avoid Bananas and other fruits (berries are ok in moderation)

3.) Less than 20-25 cards a day

4.) Eat lots of healthy fats

5.) Electrolytes are important!

6.) Lots of water!!

There are probably more but Those are the ones I could think of. Its also super Important to take Vitamins as with almost any diet. Other things that can make all the difference are MTC oil and collagen (pill or powder) Although Mtc can be Tricky (you could say lol) I am learning so much about keto every day. In the beginning I didn’t know half of what I know now and I’m sure that right now I don’t know half of what I will in a month or two.

When I first started I focused so much on what I couldn’t have that I didn’t realize all the things I could have but once I shifted my Focus to what I could have I actually started to enjoy Keto. It was always fun to go find new keto things in the different stores near me and now I could tell you keto substitutes or a keto way for a lot of things. Now I’m 7 weeks in and I love my new carb and sugar free life style.

In the beginning I sat down and asked myself what I wanted to come out of keto. My answers were

1.) Lose weight

2.) Manage my pcos

3.) Fix my binge eating

Keto has done all of these thing for me and more. One big one is that now my teeth are not as sensitive. I have paired keto with an fasting schedule and I hope to add in some exercise as well (I’m lazy lol forgive me) but for now I’m just focusing on fine tuning my keto. I plan to post keto things on my blog often and give regular updates so stay tuned for that. I will add in some keto information photos as well. Before I go I would like to remind everyone I am not a dr, nutritionist, so before making any Health Decisions please consult you regular Doctor.

until next time,

The Curvy Dreamer

Challenge Time!

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I have been trying to think of ways to get myself into the swing of working out again. I have a trampoline and I like to jump on it but being blessed in the chest I have to wear my special Shefit bra and that can be a hassle. I was sitting thinking about my favorite you tuber Beatrice Caruso and all the challenges she does. I have done challenges before but haven’t for some time now. I also just received a Booty band in my April Miss Muscle Box so I decided that a booty challenge would be the best way to start. The problem was that when you search for these challenges on google they are far from beginner. So I made my own.

The tricky thing here is I hate squats. come to think of it I hate Lunges also. But I guess that’s why they call it a challenge. I Really want to accomplish this one because of my Extreme Dislike for squats.

My hopes for this challenge is

1.) Obviously to have a better butt

2.) To get myself into the swing of working out

3.) Gain some confidence when it comes to exercise that isn’t cardio

4.) have enough Discipline to do every workout!

My only concern is that I don’t know proper form when doing a squat but I’m sure we will work through that. I also Worry about the number of Reps on some of the days that’s another hurdle we will have to jump when we come to it. Along with this challenge I am also Doing a gallon a day water challenge mostly because I can sometimes go all day without drinking anything and as someone who only drinks water and tea I need to make sure I’m not dehydrating myself. I Also Would like to challenge myself to get outside more. I really don’t get out enough and I think getting out would be good for my mental health. I know I will be out more when it comes time for the garden to go in in a few weeks but right now I would rather stay in the house and I really don know why because I am happier when I am outside. Ill be sure to take lots of notes on how that challenges are going and post on them each week!

Until next time,

The curvy Dreamer

Let me fill you in

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Even tho I have been gone for some time and my mental health has been a little rocky I still refuse to give up on this weight loss journey. I don’t remember where we left off so Ill give you a run down of the last few months.

November/December: I injured my knee and then it was to cold to workout in my garage so i sold my equipment

January/February: My best friend and I joined a gym and were going several times a week. but after awhile schedule conflicts happened and we stopped going.

March/April: Near the end of march I wend to see my Dr and she suggested Keto. I have done keto before and it worked for me so i decided to give it a go once more. I started keto April 5th (day after Easter) I knew a bit about keto but I still dove in and started learning more about it. I learned lots of things and I’m still learning every day. I lost nearly 30 pounds my first month of keto.

So that brings Us to May. I’m still doing keto and I love my sugar and carb free life style. a lot of people tell me that it is a dramatic change and that they are not sure how I do it. but it almost comes natural to me. I never liked carbs that much anyway. Giving up sugar was a little bit of a challenge for me but I had such an Unhealthy relationship with food, mainly junk food and sugar that the change was incredibly positive for me. I don’t crave the things I use to and my old habit of binge eating is basically non existent now. Even though I lost nearly 30 pounds in the fist month keto is far from a quick fix. It takes a lot of Dedication and time.

There are lots of change that I still need to may in my life for my health and wellness. I’m constantly trying to get enough water and I want to add in some Exercise because there is always room for improvement.

Until next time,

The curvy Dreamer.

Goodbye October

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I’m late on typing this up by 5 ish days. (who’s counting tho?) I must admit the last few days of October I was cought up in the Halloween Festivities and Didn’t even have time to think about this post. October was good to me for the most part. I lost only 2 pounds but a total of 12 inches and if that’s not something to be excited about I’m not sure what is. I crushed my Monthly challenge to Exercise 4x a week. I could have done better with my nutrition but that’s a battle for another day. I wanted to share complete tracker page of my journal before I share my plans and goals for November so here it is.

In total there are 19 leafs filled in. There would have been more but I injured my ankle early in the month and had to take 3 days off. I probably should have taken longer but I didn’t want to go down a road of no exercise.

For November my Goals are

  • Continue to exercise 4x a week
  • Gallon a day challenge
  • Jump rope challenge
  • More Self care days

For my Jump rope challenge I decided to try to see how many jumps I could do before I just couldn’t go on. I got 50 in 5 min. Then I decided to just do time slots so for the first 5 days I’ll do 5 min and then on Day 6 and up I’ll add a min every day or every few days Depending how my body is handling it. I also decided to count and record how many I’m getting. Today I got 110 in 5 min. So I’m improving already.

Below are a few pages for this month

Hello November cover page
This months Quote.
November exercise tracker
What I’m thankful for. My husbands name is in spot one!

I also have a calendar page after my Quote page and a Reflection page in at the end of the month but They had some personal information so, I didn’t share. Next month I’ll be sure to get pictures before anything is filled in. Hopefully this month is as good to me or better than last.

Untill next time.

October Bullet journal

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I have been working on the content for this post for a few weeks now and because I’m a Perfectionist that ment I started over allot. But I think I’m finally happy with what I have. I was looking for motivation and inspiration to keep me going on this journey and I stubbled Upon A post on Pinterest of a Bullet journal page. I had never even heard of a Bullet journal before that. So I typed Bullet journal into the ser h bar and Holly crap the stuff I found was endless. People were using this style to track and log everything from dreams and goals to Everyday tasks. There was so much to look at that I scroll Pinterest for hours. Then I went to YouTube and found more and more information. I thought what if I could make my own journal pages to help me keep track of my workouts, to keep record of my weight and measurements, and to write down all my goals. So I got to work and after Weeks of working I finally have something I’m happy to show you.

This First page is My October calendar. (I drew the candy corn and spider web) I found the treadmill Stencil yesterday and decided that it would be fun to add it to days I worked out as one of may ways to keep track. Other than that it’s just a calendar lol.

The next page is a quote that is important to me at this time in my journey.

My third page is one I have spent a lot of time on and actually Re did it several times before I was happy with what I had. This is my workout tree. The idea for this one is to color a leaf for every day of the month I have worked out. It make me want to workout because I enjoy seeing the leafs colored in.

The next page is a weekly check in almost like a tiny journal so I can Wright down how I feel I did that week.

The last page is my monthly reflection it’s a place for me to record how my month went, weight lost, quotes, challenges and things of that nature.

I will have more pages to show soon but for now I hope you have injoyed these.

September reflection

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Lately I have been struggling to find time to Wright in my blog. I also have been struggling to keep to my September challenge. I have to say that my original challenge to walk everyday has been a bust. Between my husbands and my conflicting schedules and The basics of being a stay at home mom, finding time is just impossible. I haven’t given up but I haven’t been able to walk every day as I had hoped. Now Its the end of the month and the end of my challenge.

Even tho my challenge wasn’t exactly completed I still plan to give myself full credit for what I have accomplished this month because even though it’s less than planned I moved more this month than I have in the past and even as I type this I’m working on my Exercise bike.

In the past i have had a habit of giving up when the going gets tough or life tosses me off my path. This time around that will not be the end result. Maybe its because my support system is light years different or because I have more resources now but this time I’m in it till the end. I love how I feel these days, every day I feel stronger and every workout is Easier. This challenge has helped me keep my head in the game and stay more active than I would have. So how did I do this month? Well in total I worked out 16 days… Not to good, just a day over half the month but as I said I walked more than I have in the past. Also this month I lost 8 pounds!!! Eight!! I know it doesn’t sound like much but that’s incredible to me.

October brings 31 new days, 31 chances to be better, and a new challenge. My October challenge will be to work out 5x a week. I realize this is almost the same as My walk everyday challenge but it may be more Obtainable for 2 reasons. One.. Workout is a larger category in general than just walking everyday and two I’m giving myself 2 days of rest a week. I also have a few thing I hope to accomplish in October such as

  • Lose 5 pounds
  • Work up to 30-45 min workouts
  • Work on my self care

It’s a small list but hopefully all Obtainable. So here’s to the end of September and the beginning of October!

Changing the challenge

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Today marks my half way mark into my September challenge. If you didn’t already know I Challenged myself to walk every day of September. It’s been a Rocky start. But I’m hanging in there. Some days I counted my grocery shopping or laundry as my walk (lots of walking involved in both) and other days I walked a mile around my neighborhood in the rain…. Actually I did this 3 days in a row. Then I decided I wasn’t going to do that any more. I went on the hunt for a second hand Treadmill. I found a good one it wasn’t to old, it was digital, folded up, and Inclined. The best part only 25.00 I set up a time to pick it up the next day. I woke up and sent the seller a message that morning asking if I was still set for my 11 o’clock pick up. I got the response “It’s Sold sorry” I was devastated. I started looking again. Nothing. Then I came across an Elliptical. Digital display, works, 25$. I went and got it.

So if you haven’t already Guessed I’m changing my challenge from walking everyday to Working on my elliptical. I already got a work out in and it went a little something like This:

I went to the Garage where my Elliptical is currently at. I was ready I had my Alexa for music, I Created a small workout Playlist. I was pumped. I climbed up on my new machine with Full confidence. I started going and my knee hurt every time my foot came back down but I brushed it off as my creaky joints not being use to the motion and kept going after a minute or so my knee was OK. I was going a decent pace and my heart rate was in fat burn and cardio levels. I’m starting to breath deep and heavy. Fast forward a few min. About 5 min in and I’m breathing like I’m having a baby all over again. My heart rate is at Peak, and I’m doing all I can to push through. I reach the 8 minute mark, my heart is pounding out of my chest, The bottoms of my feet ake Like no other, my Legs are burning with the Intensity of a thousand suns and I’m Scream/Grunting my way through the burn as Eye of the tiger Is coaxing Me to just make that 10 min mark…. And I did it. The longest toughest 10 min of this Challenge but I did it. I got off that Elliptical and my legs hurt so bad I could have fell Right over but I felt Amazing. And I can’t wait to do it again tomorrow.

A Running start.

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I’m a big girl, Most of my life I have suffered from Asthma so me and Running is a no. But I want to push myself to achieve my goals. I am challenging myself to walk every day of the month of September. I decided it’s a good place to start in my journey to be healthier. So far I’m doing good. I’m almost a 3rd of the way into the month and I have yet to miss a day. I do tend to get creative. One day we went to the store and Were in such a hurry we Power walked around doing our shopping and I counted my walk for that day. Yesterday I had to do laundry and so I counted carry my laundry baskets as part of my walk because I didn’t use the carts at the laundry matt. Than the same day I had to take a tote full of my daughters clothes to the re sale shop and carried the tote the long way around. Every day I find a way

Today however I wanted to push myself a bit. So I decided I would add some running into my walk in a HIT style. I walked to the end of my block then turned down my side road where the blocks are smaller maybe about half a regular block. Anyway I lightly ran a block than walked than ran then walked then turned around walked the block again than ran, walked, ran. It was hard. My lungs were on fire. I forgot to bring water. And my shins Burned. The first block was OK but as I kept going it got harder. I found myself tired sooner in the block but I still pushed myself and didn’t stop until I got to the end of the block. I feel so Accomplished.

It’s the small victories that get us through challenges like this. The small victories That help us push even farther. The small victories that add up to our bigger goals. I know I can run a block. So now I’m going to try it again Mayne not tomorrow but maybe the day after, Maybe Ill try every other day. And maybe by the end of the month That block will be a Breeze to run. I’ll never know till I try.

Nature

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Yesterday My mom, myself and my Daughter had a mother Daughter day. We went to a Farm/petting Zoo about 20 miles north of my town. When you live in Michigan the more you go north the more beautiful and full of nature it is. We had a wonderful day. We pet and fed animals. We picked flowers, we walked around the farm. We went into the aviary. We enjoyed the sun. And we enjoyed the day.

I love nature. Fall is one of my favorite seasons to enjoy nature. It’s cooler and the leaves are all changing colors. My friends and I use to go hiking over the hills near the lake in the fall and it was so beautiful I could hike those trails every day and if I could drive I would but I can’t. (Controlling ex, long story) I hope to be able to experience all nature has to offer this fall and get back up on them trails and get some good hiking in. I crave nature. I couldn’t imagine living anywhere but Michigan.

Make that a challenge

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As we say goodbye to August and Hello to September I have been thinking about what kind of challenges I want to overcome this month. I live in Michigan and That means September brings a lot of Change. The leaves will start to turn color, the air will become more crisp, it will be time for Apple picking and Pumpkin patches, sweaters and Fall boots, and lots more things to love about the change of the seasons. And yet all the good that comes with September It also is filled with reminders of things I would rather forget. Things of my past that I may share with you later. This year I Want to stay focused on my journey and less in my past so I have decided that I will do a challenge this month. And by that I mean I will choose a goal to accomplish every day this month no matter what. I will make a promise to myself to Accomplish that one thing. Now Today I read some of the Rachelle Hollis book Girl wash your face so Im feeling a bit Inspired. She talks about how we tend to take promises serious when we make them to others but on the other hand will almost always brake a promise to ourselves. This got me thinking about it and she is 100% true.

I am going to make a promise To finish the challenge I chose to set for myself. The problem is that I have no idea what change to give myself. I have a few Ideas but I’m still on the fence. My first Idea was a water challenge but I’m really already doing that so It wouldn’t be much of a change. Next I thought of a work out change but It has to be more narrowed down than that. So I have came up with :

  1. Walking every day for a minimum of 10 min even if it’s walking in place.
  2. Do yoga every day

And that’s it. For some reason I thought I would be able to come up with more but that’s all I got. Sure there are more I thought of but I’m trying to have something that’s a little challenging but also Obtainable for someone just starting out. I would love to hear some of your ideas for monthly changes. If you have an idea please leave me a comment. But until then TTFN