Progress!

So I FINALLY broke that little plateau I have been riding for the last couple of months or so. At the end of December I will post my end of month weight and I should be a little more than half way to my goal since I started posting my progress on here, so I will also post my midway stats! Exciting, right? I know, not really, but I have to do this because I find that it really does help me to stay on track. Thank you for bearing with me while I get back into fighting shape. :) Love always! MEL

Oct. and Nov.

Hey all, if you're following my progress on here I just wanted to let you know that I've hit a plateau for these last couple of months, probably because I STILL haven't changed my diet and I also have sort of been slacking on workouts, but here's the deal, today is Thanksgiving, so after I have my delicious meal and some pumpkin pie I am re-dedicating myself to my goals. So, stay tuned and have a very Happy Thanksgiving, or as some New Yorkers say, "Have a blessed day." :)

For August

July

Here is my end of July weigh in. I made my goal! woohoo! Let's go for 145 by the end of August.

June

Here's my last weigh in for the month of June. Sorry it took me so long to get it posted, I was in Chicago. Woohoo! This next month might be a bit slow as far as weight loss goes, because of vacations, but it will pick back up again for the month of August. I didn't quite make my goal for this month. :( BUT, I did lose another four pounds. :) Let's be conservative and say I could lose another couple of pounds by the end of July putting me at 151 lbs. and see how that goes. Wish me luck!

Update

Hey, Melissa here, just thought I'd post a mid month update for you all.

I've lost 6 pounds since I started recording my weight on here and 20 since I've been home from my mission. I'm halfway there guys! Woohoo! I tell you what, it's a slow process, but it's SO worth it in the end. Keep up the good work at home! :) Love, MEL

End of Month

So I've been a slacker about posting my weights and stuff, but I figure once every couple of weeks or so is fine. I have been tons better at working out, this last couple of weeks running 6 miles a day with a friend of mine, but my diet is still lacking and therefore I did not reach my goal for the month of may, but I did lose 4 pounds! I'm happy with the small gains, because they add up to big gains! Or should I say, losses? By small and simple things... Here are my stats for this last month:

37-291/2-41

So my goal for this next month is healthier eating, more sleep and dare I venture a goal weight? Yes. I will lose 8 pounds this next month which will put me at 148. I'll give an update in a couple of weeks, until then, wish me luck! P.S. I taught the young women today. The lesson was on missionary work, go figure. Went great! :) Glad it's over.

Beat the System

Many women make the mistake of starving themselves when trying to lose weight, but eating too little does more harm than good! Your body goes into "survival mode" by hanging on to every ounce of fat that it can, because it thinks you are in famine. You can "trick" your body into letting go of that extra fat by eating enough. In order to find out how many calories you should be consuming daily follow this link and go to BMR calculator to calculate your BMR. (Basic Metabolic Rate) That is, how many calories you would burn if you stayed in bed and didn't do anything. Once you have your BMR you can figure out how many extra calories you can consume and still lose the extra weight through exercise. Never ever eat less than 1200 calories in a day! The healthiest way to eat is small meals spaced throughout the day about every three hours. Don't skip meals! When you skip meals your body holds onto fat AND you become ravenous by your next meal causing you to overeat. Last of all, make sure you are drinking plenty of water. Your body needs water for all of it's functions, the thirst mechanism is so weak it is often mistaken for hunger, so don't let yourself become dehydrated! Also, when you are dehydrated your body holds onto excess water making you appear bloated. That's all for today, get out there and make it happen! :) Love.

Weigh In Day

Sunday weigh in results: Woohoo! I hit my goal of 159! My goal for this next week is 157. Wish me luck! :)

Friday

I had a rest day on Thursday and today I did Leandro's Bum Bum Rapido and arms and abs of steel. Gotta love mixin it up! I've been sore all week! That's a good sign I figure. :)

Small and Simple Things

Today, (Wednesday) I did Leandro Carvalho's High and Tight workout and Billy Blank's Cardio Bootcamp. (I love those guys!) I'm feelin' pretty good! :) My Jeans will be fitting better in no time. I always have to remind myself of my motto, "By small and simple things, are great things brought to pass." This is true in all aspects of life. It's all the small things we do every day that add up to great things down the road. I am now going to bed, it's late! Maybe one of the things I will work on in the future will be going to bed earlier and getting more sleep. Have a good one!

MEL

Finally

Hey! so Monday I totally worked out! I did a full body weight circuit and today I can't move! haha I guess this thing really will be baby steps. I took a little rest today because of the not being able to move very well, but I will be picking it up again tomorrow. On Monday I drank a little over half a gallon of water so that was good, and I ate healthy for the first half of the day...(dang easter goodies, constantly in my face!) My goal is to be down to 159 by my sunday weigh in. I hope I don't over do it trying to get there. Today I finished up my finals, so I am free for the summer! Woohoo! Party time. -MEL

Oh, P.S.

I have decided I want my legs to look like Carrie Underwood's. Look at that definition!

Um...

So I underestimated my work load for school these last few days... :| I know that no excuse is good enough, but I'm using this one anyway. I WILL start on Monday though, and I will be posting my weight at the end of each week and I will post my measurements at the end of each month. My goal is to be down to 153 lbs by the end of May. I won't make monthly goals for my measurements because they are too hard to predict, but my ultimate measurement goals are 35-25-35. My nutrition challenge for this next week is to cut out junk food and excess sodium from my diet and to drink one gallon of water per day. Let's see how much of this junk is water weight! :) I'm always down for losing a few pounds just by cutting out salt and drinking more water. Make sure to tune in on Sunday May 1st for my first weigh-in! I'm excited! Oh and congratulations to my sister for cutting the baby weight gain down and getting back to her sleek self, and to my friend Bryn for graduating from BYU yesterday! You guys rock! Love ya. MEL

Day 1

So, today was crazy! I went to class and then took a Geology test and did horrible. :( 79.5% is not what I was hoping for. I even studied...a little. I drove home and when I got out of my car I smelled this horrible smoky smell, like the friction of metal on metal. Not a good sign. I called my dad and he met me at the mechanics shop to give me a ride home. When I got out, I walked around to the other side of my car and found out where the smell was coming from, my wheel was smoking! I thought it was a little bit on fire, but it wasn't REALLY on fire. What a day! Well, anyway, all this is leading up to the fact that I didn't workout today. :( I am, however, going to go to bed early so I will have tons of energy tomorrow and can hit the gym after class. :) Yay! Also, even though this is way embarrassing, I am going to post my current stats so that you can follow my progress. You guys love me right? You won't judge? Sweet. There is a quote by President Thomas S. Monson that I find fits this post perfectly, "When performance is measured, performance improves. When performance is measured and reported, the rate of improvement accelerates." That is why I will be reporting on here. Pretty sweet, huh? Finally, let's all remember I am a returned missionary and a mission is tough on the body, ok? great. Current Stats:

371/2-30-41

Thighs: 24 in. Yikes!

Accountability

So lately I have been majorly slacking on my workouts. :( I love working out, but sometimes with everything I have to do for school I'm just exhausted and it's hard to get myself to the gym or outside, SO I have decided to use my blog for the next little while to keep myself accountable for my workouts! I'm really feeling the energy drain that comes with poor nutrition and not getting enough exercise, and it's time to step it up and take better care of myself! So if I miss a post feel free to get on my case! I'll be working out 5 to 6 days a week starting tomorrow. (I know, I know, "when's the worst time to start? tomorrow." but I promise I will.) So, if anyone's out there, this one's for you. ;) Love, MEL

P.S.

Feel free to take this journey with me! It's never too late to start, and it's always a good time to take good care of the most precious gift God has given us, our bodies!

Death of a Blog

My sister has decided to retire from the blogging world. :_( I can understand her reasons, who really has time to blog? But, alas, her blog will be missed by many. R.I.P. It's a Love Story.

What the Devil?!

My sister has made her blog private. Invited readers only, and I was NOT invited... I say again, What the Devil?!

Epic Fail

So I already failed the blogger challenge. Oops! Oh well, it's the thought that counts. So, the semester is more than half way over and I am thrilled! Just a few more tests and papers to write and I'm done! (unless I decide to go summer semester... :/) I taught the lesson in young women's this last sunday and it went pretty well. I'm looking for a job, and hopefully will have one before the end of this month. Life is good, life is great, life is wonderful! Let us not forget. Mission reunion in three weeks...still undecided on if I will be attending or not. Let me know what you think. The End

Blogger Challenge

So, I was looking at a blog that I love and she posted a 30 day blogger challenge. Every day it tells you what to blog about, which is awesome because then I don't have to think about it. I figure March is the perfect month to take the challenge! So here we go: A picture of me and description of my day. Today was...early. That is the best word I can think of to describe it because I had to be at class at 8:30 am, bright and early. I stopped to get gas on my way to school and I noticed that it is definitely getting lighter earlier. Hurray for Spring! I sat through a good portion of the ballet Romeo and Juliet in humanities today and it made me want to dance. :) I came home and took a nap because I had a late night last night and had to be up early this morning = very little sleep. I went to the library to do research for my paper, and when I got in my car the temperature read 72 degrees! it quickly dropped to 57 degrees, though, after I had left the garage. :( I went to the computer lab at UVU to do more of the same. I came home, ate dinner, showered, did the dishes, blogged, and that's all! Now, I will be working on my paper and maybe go to bed early? We will see. :) Good day overall.

To Be Fair

I told Kate to post something on her blog, but I am kind of a hypocrite. I hardly ever post on here! So I thought just to be fair I would post something too. :) Today was a busy day of skipping class in order to get more sleep, going to the doctor, (everything is fine) and now to write a four page paper for my humanities class. At least it is a topic I enjoy studying, Frank Lloyd Wright. I love the simplicity of his designs. Clean lines and open space. I like squares more than circles. I really don't want to type four pages, but I guess I will bite the bullet and "Just Do It"-nike. I am currently, as I write this, listening to Good Charlotte, "I just wanna live" and it always reminds me of my brother in law. :) In other news, I had a photo shoot with Kevin and Brandon that was super fun for me. Nothing fancy, just snapshots, and because I believe posts are always more fun to look at if there are pictures involved I am posting a few of them for you to enjoy.

Love,

Melissa

Post

Dear Kate,
Please post something on your blog. I keep looking with a hopeful heart only to be disappointed. I miss your posts. :( Thank you.
Love,
Melissa :)

New Year

It is a new year full of exciting possibilities. I feel like it's going to be a great year. :) I think New Years eve is one of my favorite holidays because it's a good time to reflect on the person you want to become and what you need to do in order to get closer to your goals. It's a fresh start full of promise, and it's just plain fun! We went and partied the night away in Salt Lake and brought in the new year with a bang. Here's wishing you all a happy new year, and much luck with all your goals! Love you!