6 WEEKS TO YOUR BEST SELF FITNESS CHALLENGE

What was I thinking?
Okay, here it goes.....

As a health and fitness blogger, I'm actually quite embarrassed to post these pictures;

I'm embarrassed that I don't look like other female athletes who promote fitness.

I'm embarrassed that after 4 years as an avid athlete, I still haven't toned up.

I'm embarrassed that I still have extra body fat sitting in most women's trouble spots.

I'm embarrassed that I still have a "belly pooch, jiggly arms, big thighs, and a flat butt".

But I won't let that stop me.

Since starting my fitness journey 4 years ago, I've learned a lot about myself;

I learned that I could set personal records.

I learned that I could finish a 1 mile run in under 11 minutes.

I learned that I could lift a 20 pound dumbbell with one arm.

I learned that I could calf press 110 pounds.

I learned that struggle is the path to success.

I learned that the body can achieve so many wonderful things.

I learned how to push myself when I wanted to give up.

And I will continue to strive.

I am proud of myself.

I have lost a grand total of 43 pounds. While the number on the scale is not everything, it is something. I have sweat, cried, laughed, and tried for the past 4 years. The funny thing is, that one day, health and fitness just became something I did; it became who I was. There was no question whether or not I was going to workout or eat right, I just did it.

I still have stretch marks on the inside of my thighs.
I still have stretch marks on my "love handles".
I still have stretch marks on the back of my underarms.

I am not perfect.

I could sit here and shame my body, hate it, show absolutely no love towards it. Or I could appreciate what it can do; I can love my body and I can take care of it.

I am the daughter of God.

Simon loves all of me, including my beauty flaws. He likes to remind me that my stretch marks are there to let me know how far I have come because I am not who I used to be.

He is the backbone to my confidence.

I decided to enter into this competition because it was the added umph to my daily triumph. I've been working out extremely hard and I had plans to get in tip top shape before my summer vacation.

I got my first gym membership on May 12, 2014 and I started training with my boyfriend. It was only 3 days later that I would receive an email from BodyBuilding.com, reminding me to join their Best Self contest sponsored by BPI Sports.

I didn't want to enter it at first. I didn't want to embarrass myself and show the world my imperfect body.

But than I started thinking...

I could 1) use this as an added incentive to achieve my summer goals 2) I could show myself and others what we can do for ourselves if we stick to the goals we set in our minds.

Plus, that added winning prize incentive looks pretty nice too.

So I talked to Simon about it and he said he would train me, if I really wanted to enter. He was very supportive about it and that's something I have always loved about him. He's always been supportive when it comes to my dreams and goals.

We decided to stick to our workout split and would obviously train harder. Sometimes we have to switch around days due to work schedule but we never skip a workout.

I have to stick to a nutrition plan for the next 6 weeks.

I am not going to count macros, calories, etc.

I will continue to eat healthy and nutritiously.

WORKOUT SCHEDULE

• Monday (High Carb): Legs, heavy lifting // Abs
• Tuesday (Low Carb): Upperbody, light lifting + HIIT
• Wednesday (Low Carb) Heavy Cardio, 30 mins // Abs
• Thursday (High Carb): Upperbody, heavy lifting
• Friday (Low Carb): Legs, light lifting + HIIT // Abs
• Saturday (Low Carb): Full Body
• Sunday (Low Carb) Light Cardio 20 mins

NUTRITION SCHEDULE

• Minimum 1 gallon of water a day (that is SO hard)
• 6 meals/snacks every 3 hours
• Carb Cycling: Low/High

Some of you might wonder why I decided to enter.
Some of you may think I look completely fine.
Some of you may think I don't look like what I preach.
While this entire post pretty much explains all of why I entered into this competition, it all boils down to one thing- I want to push myself, mentally and physically.

I want to see just how much I can achieve mentally and physically.

I want to see all of my handwork and dedication in and on myself.

There is nothing greater than setting a goal and coming out of the long, hard working, & sweating challenges, as a completely new person.

I love living an active lifestyle and whether or not I "win" this competition, I will always be an active person.
This is my lifestyle, this is who I am, and I don't care what anyone else has to say about it.

The registration for the challenge has ended but that doesn't mean you can't challenge yourself.
Take a moment to think about what areas in your life you'd like to improve on and for 6 weeks, commit.

What will you do with 6 weeks?

xo,

BURT'S BEES NEW BRIGHTENING LINE REVIEW

Truth be told, I don't have any dark spots but when Burt's Bees sent me their dark spot corrector from their new Brightening line, I was excited. It's never too early to give your skin some good tender loving, right?

Their brightening line includes items such as daily facial cleanser, eye cream, refining tonic, even tone moisturizing cream, and dark spot corrector.

It's always difficult for me to find beauty products that don't irritate my skin so I was a little hesitant to try it out at first. But, when I did try it out, I found that I liked it.

Pros:

• smells awesome, daisy extract!
• gel serum
• made my skin softer
• dries quickly & doesn't leave a weird/greasy feel

Cons:

• not really a con but it's too early to tell if any dark spots have diminished, although it has brightened up my entire face
• May not be good for people with oily skin since it is more of a gel serum than lotion application

As you can see there's not a lot of cons and those "cons" are going to be personal preferences. So far I really like this product because it seems to make my face softer, brighter, and doesn't irritate my skin!

Here's the product I received, it's being advertised as nature's retoucher!

Burt's Bees Dark Spot Corrector

Product claims:

• Visibly diminishes the appearances of dark spots and discoloration
• Evens skin tone
• Creates a brighter, more luminous complexion
• Dermatologist Tested
• Noncomedogenic

Before we get into the nitty gritty details, here's a little background on my skin type:

• normal to dry skin
• acne prone
• red undertones
• extremely sensitive

Check out more products from their Brightening line here. Be sure to print off your $3.00 coupon while you're at it!

DREAMS DON'T WORK UNLESS YOU DO

So I bought a camera.

A really nice DSLR camera...like this one.

But how does a broke college student buy a camera?

I'll tell you how...

So if you follow or are friends with me on Facebook, you might remember that one time I pretty much virtually shouted at the top of my lungs out of excitement.

No?

Here, let me refresh your memory.

It must have been late January or early February when I ran across this promotion by Keds. They were giving 50 girls each a $1,000 scholarship based upon each individuals brave career dream.

I shrugged off the scholarship for at least a week because I thought "I never get scholarship money and I don't really want to write another essay."

But then I got to thinking, I have absolutely nothing to lose.

I've been working my tail off to grow my blog as well as networking with as many people as I can. I knew that even if I didn't get the scholarship I would still have my blog, I would still have my fitness success, and I knew that I would still be surrounded by a wonderful group of supporters.

Keds asked roughly about three pages of questions and the most important one was "what is your brave career dream?" and "how would you use the $1,000?"

My brave career dream: I'm a health and fitness blogger who wants to empower women to live their best life possible through health and fitness. My brave career dream is to build a bigger and better platform for women around the globe to provide nutritional and fitness goals. I want to grow my blog and interact with women who need motivation or don't know where exactly to start. I want to grow as a personal fitness trainer and help women conquer their goals.

$1,000 grant: With the grant, I would be able to stop taking funny pictures with my cell phone and buy a DSLR camera that would provide better quality images. Not only will the camera help me start taking better quality pictures, I would also be able to make workout videos for the women that need it. I would be helping them engage in cardiovascular activities and they wouldn't have to pay a dime. Along with growing my love for food photography and creating workout videos, I will also be able to start writing my very first cookbook for women who need nutritional advice!

When I sent in the application I didn't expect anything from it...then....

I received this email after completely forgetting I ever even sent the application:

You could say I was pretty darn excited. It was like an early birthday present!

I was so excited because since December I was putting in $5 each time I worked out. I usually worked out 5 to 6 times a week so I was saving $25-$30 a week. By the time I received the email I had only saved about $360. I had already planned ahead of time that I would be able to buy the camera in late June but now that I've been blessed with this scholarship, things are moving at a much faster pace...and I'm totally okay with that.

Two days after I received the check in the mail I went to best buy and bought the camera I've been eyeing for a long time. I did a bunch of research and I feel like I made the right decision as a first time DSLR buyer.

I personally feel like I let a lot of my fears hold me back. Even though this is a post about taking chances, remember that I'm not perfect either.

I have fears of speaking to an audience, I have fears of singing in front of people, I have fears of not achieving personal goals; I have a lot of fears.

The next time you don't apply for something because fear is holding you back remember that you have nothing to lose. The worst thing that could happen is that you don't get it! When one door closes, another one opens.

Whether or not you're a religious/spiritual person, I do believe that we have far greater plans than we could ever imagine so long as we are willing to put down the footwork. 

Because after all,

xo,

5 TIPS TO SPRING CLEAN YOUR DIET

Well it's May and I'm extremely excited.

I'll be done with the Spring 2014 semester this Tuesday and you bet I'm going to celebrate!

I'll also be getting my very first gym membership. I've been working out for nearly 4 years and I've never owned a membership. I've always worked out at the park, home, or the school gym.

Simon goes to Metroflex Gym in Fort Worth and I went there once as a guest....let me just tell ya right now that those men are some of the biggest and tallest men ever. Okay maybe the tallest part is a little biased because I only stand 5 foot 2. But still...

So I'll be training with Simon this summer and we'll be doing a ton of awesome workouts and I'm super excited about that! I really enjoyed my time there last time and I'm excited to be in an atmosphere such as this one. Plus, it's just more fun working out with someone else.

To celebrate May I wanted to give you a jumpstart into your nutrition goals! It's the perfect time of the year to rid your kitchen of the junk and replace it with healthy options!

Taking the first step towards change is hard.

Trust me, I know.

But luckily for you I have 5 super easy tips on how to spring clean your diet!

AHNU SUGARPINE AIR MESH SHOES REVIEW

I wish I could say that I had perfect feet and any shoe I try on fits like a glove. But no, I have feet that need tender loving care. So, I'm always on the lookout for new shoes on the block but much to my dismay, some shoe brands, although super cute, just fall short of comfort.

Fear no more.

Ahnu Footwear sent me a pair of their colorful sneakers and I was happy to find out that these sneakers have just been named 2014 sneaker of the year!

First things first, I have never found a pair of  sneakers that fit me perfectly and true to size.