Let's take a walk of confidence...

Amen! Amen! Amen! Hallelujah & A Praise the Lord!  I couldn't have seen this at a better time in my journey. It can be so easy to focus on your goal and what your final end point that you're fighting for is that you get so wrapped up in it and forget to be thankful and proud of where you are, the things you've overcome and how much victory you've had since you started. This blog is attributed to that. This will give you a slight idea but really, I'll be honest, this blog is a selfish one. It's for myself. A walk down my journey of weight loss and fitness to remind myself of the amazing things I have done and where I have come from. It only infuses hope for what is to come!

I wish I had more pictures to show you of me from when I was a little girl but that was before the digital age and they are all in boxes back in NC! This is me in 8th grade. I believe I was a size 16 or 18. I now can put on my eighth grade strapless prom dress and it falls straight to the floor. When I was a senior in high school I was a size 22 and lost weight for prom. There was this stunning dress I wanted to wear. I got down to a size 18. 

Me in High School

 

Senior year of High School

 

 Freshman Year of College

 (I make an awesome Ginger Spice!)

 

  

Other College Pictures

I couldn't even get my feet off the ground here now I can do box jumps!! We also took pictures in a tree and I  just leaned against it because I was terrified to try to climb up!

This blue choraleers jacket was so tight I could barely breathe but it was the biggest size available. It would barely go over my boobs as you can see here. Now it swollows me and I keep it just to remember! 

 

After College

Then I made the decision and chose Victory! 

 My first picture after loosing some weight! 

 This was my Halloween costume but this is truly how I felt! Strong!

The two above are after Try Sports had sponsored me! Free shoes and gear and was included in their running club! 

Started to get adventurous! Started playing games like flag football, ultimate, etc with friends when before I would'nt have even tried.

Organized a 5k race in memory of my student bailey who passed away. She was wheel chair bound and was the one who inspired me to first run the bridge without stopping!

My campers at camp joy couldn't believe it! Most of them cried once they realized it was me!

This was my friend virginias dress that i was in love with. She gave it to me b/c it now fits me perfectly! 

 

Ran a full marathon in Feb 2012

Hiked in LA 

Trained with Billy Blanks to get certified to teach TaeBo in July 2012 

Several modeling gigs

Been in several magazine articles

Learned to Salsa Dance

Participated in Petal For Pattisons 4 hour spin-a-thon Twice!

Photo shoot for MUSC and HCC program- got to mentor and speak to people who are starting out where I started!!

Learned how to SUP

Officially got certified as a TaeBo instructor and have been teaching classes with James for over a year

Ran a half marathon in January 2013 with a PR of 2 Hrs and 28 min

Getting stronger daily!

My first mud-run in preparation for the sparatan beast in Nov 9 (Half marathon with 28 obstacles!)

...a really cool girl with a wild sense of adventure, unshakable confidence, and a pure love for herself (finally) that is developing every day as she explores, seeks, grows & fights all under the shelter and protection of a loving & faithful God & Father!   

Lift, Dance & Sing!

I am so thankful for opportunities to be free and adventure out and figure out who I am and learn more and more how strong I actually am; physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually. We all have more inside of us than we give on a daily basis. I truly love pursuing excellence and seeking to be better each and every day than I was the day before. I don't expect to be perfect but to progress is such a sweet satisfaction. I praise God and give Him glory for even the small amounts of progress that I make on a daily basis. I am entering into some new type things with Robert at Crossfit Discovery that are incredibly awesome! I am truly loving the experience and how he is helping me get better and stronger daily! I can tell such a huge difference in my muscle development! It's phenomenal! It's definitely not easy or something that comes naturally but I am so stoked to fight for it and get better! Below are some links to some videos of some things I am working on! I am stoked to work for what I want through blood, sweat, tears. I will not be denied!


Perfecting My Snatch

Bear Complex

 

So, I grew up as a dancer! I have been dancing in studios and troops since I was the age of two. It was my love and what I wanted to do. At a very young age, I also developed a serious unhealthy issue with laziness and overeating. I wanted to dance and that was my  limit. I gained weight quickly and struggled with being overweight my whole life. I am currently smaller now than I remember being in fourth/fifth grade. I can remember my parents trying to get me to quit dance and go to soccer or something that may involve a little more running but I refused. I was sold out to dance. I loved it and it was something I desired to be good at. I am not a perfect dancer by all means and I definitely have to work hard to succeed or to be able to perform well but I love it and I believe have at least some natural abilities. I'm not completely a white girl! (though I know plenty white girls who truly got mad skills!) Dancing growing up, I desired to be a part of the competition troops and be included among the elite dancers from my dance academy but my weight got in the way. I never felt good enough. Things were hard because of my weight. I never felt pretty enough. But you know what, even though I had more mass and ass (sorry for my language!) to shake than everyone else I was pretty darn good. There are so many industries where looks overshadow talent. I let myself get discouraged and kept myself from auditioning for things that I wanted. I am so thankful to have found Robert (who runs Crossfit discovery) and Angel (who runs Peace Love and Hip Hop). Angel has given me an opportunity to finally tap into something that is my heart, my love, and my passion. Now that I have lost the weight and am fit, it's a new chance to start over and achieve some fun things that I love. Last nights hip hop class was so stinkin' sick! The dance was amazing and I am so stoked about practicing it until I bleed! I want to be able to hear that song drop and rip it anywhere I am! Angel and Robert, for some reason if you get to read this or stumble upon this, thanks for bringing a part of me who is so much of who I am back. It gives me such freedom!

It kind of makes me emotional thinking about the opportunity to dance again and now to sing again too. It's amazing how we allow one area of our lives to hinder other areas where we may have phenomenal talent. Not only did I let my weight keep from dance, I also let it (and sometimes other people let it) keep me from going after my dreams as a singer. I cannot tell you the number of times I auditioned for roles in shows and was told I was the obvious choice for talent but I just did not "look the part." That destroys a girl piece by piece; time after time. I remember when American Idol came out. Everyone was trying their hardest to get me to go and I refused because I just knew the judges would tell me that I was fat and imply that I was not beautiful enough. I have let so many opportunities pass me by. I am thankful now that I have gotten my health and weight under control but Lord, I wish I had done those things anyways. This leads me to my upcoming audition. If I hadn't met people in my life that encourage me to look at what I dislike and focus on the solution rather than the problem and fix what I don't like I would have never learned to overcome. I am empowered and full of strength. I know I can accomplish anything. So with that, I have decided to audition for The Metropolitan Opera Company in January for their regional auditions in Columbia. I may not please their eye. I may not please their ear. But I will be well pleased in my courage, boldness and faith and that is all that matters. 

One of my heaviest weights.

Now :)

I don't really feel like posting...

I really don't feel like posting. 

Sometimes, a lot of the times really, we are called to do things and we just don't feel like it.
And Sometimes, a lot of the times, we don't.
 We don't do what we don't feel like doing. 

Feelings. Def: 1) An emotional state or reaction 2) a belief; usually a vague or irrational one.  

Irrational. Def: Unreasonable, illogical, groundless, unjustifiable. 

Ground. (v)  Def: base, foundation, root.

So lets really look at this. Reaction? Often, most times, reactions are not good. They are usually based on emotions that are not built on truth or solid perspective. They too often are not focused on the goal or end in mind. Usually we let our feelings which are definitely fickle control our decisions which then in turn control our circumstances. In reality, we have the power the ability to do just the opposite. When we make irrational decisions, they are without reason, unjustifiable or groundless meaning that they do not have a good ground, foundation or root. Are you picking up what I am putting down here?

Man, if there is absolutely anything that I want in my life it's to bear the light and love of Jesus and to bear good fruit. If you are not grounded on a solid foundation and have deep roots in every area of your  life it is hard to flourish. It is hard to produce a good harvest. 

Ditch your feelings.
Do what you decided you were going to do the day you 1) decided to lose weight 2) decided to run that race 3) decided you needed to change 4) decided to take the new job or maybe quit one you hated. 5) decided you wanted to be a better spouse/love 6) decided you wanted to love people more. 7) decided to build that business

I could go on forever. What ever it is for you... Decide. On day one just decide and NEVER no matter how you feel never ever let your choices go the opposite direction of that decision.

I didn't feel like writing this post. God has called me though to do so! So I praise Him for the roots that he is growing deep into Him. Hopefully it helped someone! 

"AINT NO BODY GOT TIME FOR THAT!" -- LIES!

7:15.

7:15 A...M.

That means in the morning.

Like... before the sun.

Before I function.

Which means I woke up at 6:30ish.

6:30....AM.

Not PM.

In the morning.

Before I function.

And it's dark.

For those of you who truly know me, know that this is such a big deal for me.  I do not do mornings well and I never have until now. I am choosing to. Ain't no body got time to waste anymore. It is worth overcoming. Usually we go to 8:15 but we are doing some 7:15 days to discipline us and help us achieve more in our workouts as well as be productive at work afterwards. This is not what I want to do. This is not what I FEEL like doing. This is not what feels good. I am tired. I am sore. I work out better in the evening than I do in the morning but I have taebo things in the evenings as well as building my business. If I want to move forward, I have to MAKE time. I have to CHOOSE to do it no matter what I FEEL.

I am not married. I do not have kids. I cannot even pretend to know what that's like but I do know people who do who choose to make time and choose not to make excuses. I used to be someone who said that they didn't have time for things. As I have surrounded myself with winners and overcomers, I'm learning something. Truly it's one of the most fascinating and mind blowing facts I have ever known.

We all have 24 hours.

[I just heard some explosions happen in some of your minds.]

i know right? Amazing. It's true. We all have 24 hours. God has not favored one person over another and given them 29 hours and one 12 hours. We all have 24. It's what you choose to do with it. So many people who say they don't have time sure do waste enough time on facebook (and I'm not bashing FB, I use it too...but what are you using it for? To share your passion, to build people up, to encourage, to inspire, or to gossip, tear people down, etc? Just another thought for another day). People don't have time to work out but they sure have time to watch an ENTIRE season of a show in one day. People don't have time to do all kinds of things. And honestly, I care about peoples health and I would love for them to make great decisions but I am not un-wise. God has given me great wisdom and he has also taught me that I cannot control anyone but himself so I like to call this O.P.P = OTHER PEOPLES PROBLEMS. You cannot fix them so stop trying. With that being said, focus on yourself and being better every day and focus on GOD! -- So due to that if you spend all your time on FB, or candy crush or TV or whatever 1) I don't care 2) I really don't care. It's your life- you get to choose. It does not affect whether or not I will succeed. Some of you probably think now I am mean after saying that. Do I want you to succeed of course? Can I make you succeed? NO so I refuse to get tied up trying to control people around me and wanting better for them than they want for themselves not just in health/fitness but in EVERY area. I cannot do it for you. SO- I don't care what you do- there is no judgement but please, I beg you. I am PLEADING with you. STOP saying you DON'T have time and start saying you aren't making time. You are choosing not to. You have plenty time and people do exactly what they want.

Choose your words wisely.

                 Spend your time wisely.

 God is no respector of person.

                    Those who are faithful with little 

will be trusted with much.

MUCH.

MUCH.

MUCH.

MUCH MEANS A LOT.

ABUNDANCE.

FAVOR.

BLESSINGS.

Who does not want that in ANY AND EVERY area of your life? Do small things consistently each day and choose your time wisely and he blesses you. God is so faithful! God be the glory and I thank him for changing my mind, my heart, my work ethic and my thought process. I want Him to trust me with much. Thank you Lord for giving me a traning ground/prep time for I know you have created me in inherent your kingdoms and develop your kingdom for your glory- you have made us to be kings and lords as you are the King of kings and Lord of lords. I praise you!