How I lost 15 pounds!

 

I want to give you the timeline of how long it actually took me and I want to lay out some very simple tips that helped me do this.

First, I’ll give you the timeline to help put things into perspective for you. I started my LIZGETSFIT journey October 23, 2017. I chose this date because this is when I seriously started to work out consistently and eat healthier than I had before.

Before that date I had worked out yes, but not consistently. Before that date I was trying to eat healthy, but again not consistently. I found myself in a cycle of trying to lose weight for a special occasion and then always letting myself go after the event took place. Whether it was my wedding or a special vacation, I literally always found myself going back to eating junk and not working out consistently.

Honestly, I got tired of it and decided on October 23, 2017, I am not stopping this time and this IS NOW MY LIFESTYLE.

Currently, I am now at 20lbs down and I’m still working on losing body fat. Note the bottom picture is taken almost a whole month ago. My body has changed even more since then but I wanted you all to see what my body looked like at only 15lbs lost.

I will be posting more updated pictures along with other posts on my journey. So lets talk about those tips that helped me lose my first 15lbs in my LIZGETSFIT journey.

 

TIP #1: Attack your getting fit & healthy journey as a lifestyle change and not just a diet or something you’re doing just for something special you have coming up.

I know it sounds simple and now you’re pissed because you’re like “really that’s all?!” But hear me out.

I did this so many times and as soon as I came back from that vacation I would stop being conscious of what I was eating and go weeks before heading back to the gym. I would lose any progress I made, gain weight back, and then get back on it when the next vacation was getting close. THIS IS SO BAD! You convince yourself its just temporary and then you justify bad eating or not getting to the gym. As soon as you make that switch in your head that this is now a lifestyle, your entire perspective will change, I promise.

@Mama2boys_getsfit has lost a total of 51lbs in a year timespan which is honestly amazing! She definitely took her journey as a lifestyle change as well. Check out her journey on instagram!

Below is what she had to say:

“As a mother of 2 young boys, it’s easy to get lost in the chaos of life, I knew I needed to create healthy habits that would last a lifetime, not only for myself but as an example for my children. No more yo-yo diets for this MAMA! The journey to a healthier lifestyle takes dedication, consistency, and most of all patience. I tell myself all the time, your in this for the long haul, “never let a stumble in the road be the end of your journey. Oh, and as a mom it’s not selfish to make your health a priority. “

Tip #2: Get yourself an accountability partner. Or do something where you feel you are being held accountable.

This one is so simple and can be a friend, boyfriend, husband, mom, dad, just ANYONE! You just need someone that is also getting healthy & fit, where you can encourage each other and do check-ins. You can share sweaty gym selfies, what you’re eating for breakfast/lunch/dinner, your current progress, your frustrations/temptations, what is working for you, and the list can go on. Often you may feel as if you are alone but many people go through the same thing when they are on this journey and it will make you feel better to know someone else is there for you.

Also, PLEASE pick someone that is serious. There is no point in picking someone who is going to encourage you to skip the gym and hit up happy hour with them. Pick someone with similar goals as you!

The second part, and optional, is do something where you feel you are being held accountable. For me this was signing up for a boot camp style class. I tried out Orange theory Fitness and I really enjoyed it. Orangetheory is a high-intensity work out that includes: treadmill, rower machine, and a weight section. You rotate between those three areas and workouts are 60 minutes long. You wear a heart rate monitor in class and your heart rate along with the number of calories you are burning is displayed on the screen while you do your workout. This was extremely motivating for me as I am so so competitive. I was legit always trying to beat someone or even beat my own record from the previous class.I stopped going to Orangetheory the first week of December because I felt I no longer needed that environment. I was motivated to hit up the gym all on my own and I was consistent with it.

Now this is not something you have to do, but I did it because I knew I needed a jump start. I just know myself and knew this would work for me. I was paying I would say a hefty price to attend classes, and I made a commitment to attend every weekday.

There are several boot camp style classes out there and everyone is different in terms of what motivates them. Pick something that works for you.

Tip #3: Do your Research

For me this meant I was on youtube watching videos on anything related to health & fitness.

Gaugegirl Training was my go to channel if I wanted to learn about something.

Gaugegirl training has videos like: meal prep mistakes, why you’re not losing body fat, weightloss tips for beginners, how much protein do you need, what is flexible dieting, how to get sustainable results, macros 101, and the list goes on.

I watched so many videos, learned so many things and applied what I learned in my journey. Christine, the owner of Gaugegirl training, consistently talks about not just losing weight but changing your body composition, which is my ultimate goal. Yes, I am ecstatic that I lost 15lbs but more so that I can see my body actually changing and not just “shrinking.” She talks about this in several of her videos if you want to check out her channel.

I also started looking up several videos on gym work outs. This would help me get ideas and even teach me how to use certain machines. Even now I am constantly watching videos and learning new things so I feel confident when I get in the gym. You should add several fitness accounts on Instagram and save fitness videos so you can refer back to them.

Tip #4: Preparation is KEY. My favorite quote is “Failing to prepare is preparing to FAIL.”

This applies to two things: NUTRITION AND WORKOUTS. It is very important to understand your body and how much food you need to maintain your weight, gain weight, and of course lose weight. I watched several Gaugegirl training videos to figure out my very on macros. Macro nutrients are what makes up the caloric content of a food. The three categories of macronutrients are carbs, fat, and protein.

Now there are so many online calculators that can help you figure out your macros if you don’t want to figure this out on your own. Keep in mind that you can play with your macros and adjust as necessary based on your progress, especially when you’re using those free online calculators. Once you have your macros you can use a free app to help you track them. Its easier and less tedious as opposed to you looking up the macros of the food you eat. Trust me this takes awhile.

Many people I know use Myfitnesspal, which they have a built in calculator to figure out your macros so you don’t have to look it up separately. I used the app Lifesum because I heard you can customize your macros on the app. Since I had done this on my own I wanted the ability to personalize. You cannot do this on Myfitness pal unless you pay extra, you have to go with the macros they calculate from their app calculator when you first sign up. Both these apps are great tools when you are just starting your journey. You input what you eat for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and it helps you stay on track.

It’s important to meal prep ahead of time so you are less likely to eat out. I alternate consistently with every category and I go with what I am feeling that week.

Below are my favorite foods when I meal prep:

My favorite proteins: eggs, chicken, ground lean turkey, tilapia, and Salmon.

Carbs: oatmeal, brown rice, white rice, quinoa, sweet potatoes, and whole wheat pasta.

Veggies: broccoli, asparagus, spinach, mixed greens, green beans, zucchini

Fats: almond/peanut butter, avocado, extra virgin olive oil, almonds

AND WEIGH YOUR FOOD. Buy a cheap scale at target or Walmart and weigh your protein & carbs, as well as measure your fats. For females, recommended protein servings per meal is anywhere from 4-7 ounces and carbs 2-4 ounces. Everything of course depends on your goals, your current weight, your height, age, BMI, activity level, etc etc. Most information online gives this average for both but you can calculate exactly what you need through the online calculators I talked about.

On the weekends when eating out, I go to places where they have healthy options and pick meals that are similar to my meal prep meals. It’s best to stick with food you cook to stay on track since you’re not sure everything they use to cook your meals at restaurants.

WORKOUTS:

Please make sure you are doing your part and doing research. Plan out all of your workouts at the beginning of the week or atleast before you hit up the gym. You never want to hit up the gym and have no clue what to do.

Figure out what days you want to hit up legs, booty, biceps, triceps, back, abs, cardio , etc etc

Now being prepared is not just, “Today I’m doing legs.” You need to prepare your exact sets, reps, machines, and how much time you want to spend if you’re limited on time. When you are just starting it can be extremely overwhelming to show up and not have a clue on what to do first, so it is best to come up with a plan.

If you are the type of person that wants to be told what to do; go on youtube or Pinterest. You can write the workout on your notes or keep the video handy to follow and Pinterest always has really nice PDFS to follow. You can literally look up: leg day gym for beginners, or leg day at home workout and so many things will pop up.

Below is a sample of what a leg day workout looks like for me:

5 minute warm up on stairmaster/treadmill

Leg press machine 10 reps x 4 (wide and narrow stance)

Smith Machine Squat 10 reps x 4

Smith machine sumo squat 10 reps x 4

Smith machine cursty lunge 10 reps x 4 (each leg)

Smith machine Bulgarian split squat 10 reps x 4 (each leg)

Barbell Deadlift 10 reps x 4

Lying Leg curls machine 10 reps x 4

Leg extension machine 10 reps x 4

Cardio (always after weightlifting):

15 minute treadmill 30 second sprint/jog intervals

Or

15 minutes on Stairmaster 1 minute low speed/30 sec high speed.

*do not hold on to the rails ever!!*

Tip #5: DRINK WATER AVOID ALCOHOL AT ALL COSTS

Yes, you read that right, avoid alcohol at all cost. I’m sure you missed the part where I say Drink WATER.

First, I’ll go with Drink Water. I personally push myself to drink a gallon of water everyday. Of course not everyday is perfect and sometimes I don’t make it but it is a goal that I strive for. There is plenty of research that shows how important it is to stay hydrated. Drinking water helps boost your metabolism and helps rid your body of toxins. Drinking more water also helps your body stop retaining water, which helps getting rid of that excess water weight.

Refer to this article on Top 10 reasons we need to drink water if you’re not convinced it plays a big role in weight loss.

http://liz-laugh-love.com/drinkwater

Now the big elephant in the room, avoiding alcohol. I know this can be difficult if you are a social drinker and always go out with friends or co workers to get a drink or two, or maybe even three. BUT this made such a huge difference for me in my journey.

I want to be clear that I have not completely given up alcohol and still have alcohol on special occasions. This means on vacation or even for my birthday I had some alcoholic beverages. At the beginning of my journey, I gave it up completely. When going out to dinner with my husband, he would have a drink and I usually would join but I only would drink water. Even at this past Thanksgiving, what I would consider a special holiday with family, I was offered alcohol and didn’t have any. I usually would say yes. I remember my best friend and my husband’s friend came over for a game/movie night and they were all drinking wine. The old me would have joined them but I didn’t and stayed strong.

I was much more focused on my goals and the effects that alcohol has on losing body fat.

At first, my friends were thrown off, “You’re not drinking?!,”but after a while they got used it and didn’t push me on it. And my personality is also a little crazy so even with out alcohol people think, she must be DRUNK. HAHA

I looked up a lot of information and even YouTube videos that helped explain the effects of alcohol. Below is a video from Gaugegirl training that really helped make it crystal clear:

http://liz-laugh-love.com/noalcohol

Like I said, I still have a drink on those special occasions but its not the same as I would before. Definitely way more conscious and really avoid it all cost.

 

Now those are my 5 tips to help get you started on the right track!

Of course, I urge you to do your own research and put in the effort because you will yield much better results when you are invested. These are simply the tips that helped me and could be different for everyone else. With everything, it’s just always about balance & moderation. Before I used to eat super healthy and have cheat meals that would be extreme. But now that its a lifestyle change I am way more consistent on eating healthy and not going overboard if I want to reward myself.

Remember that progress is not always perfect and through out your journey you can maybe slip up or digress from your plan but its important to get back on track.

I know this was a long post but I wanted to give you valuable information that you can apply to your own life.

As always, please let me know if you have any questions, I would love to hear from you!

Thank you for reading!

It’s been real.

 

XOXO,

Liz-Laugh-Love