Lil Joneser’s BodyBlog

One year ago today I started my 12-week transformation. I gained a good amount of weight after my transformation ended in January 2009, but I’m working on coming back down. Here are some ideas of my weight gain and loss:
November 2008: 128lbs
February 2009: 123 lbs
April 2009: 130 lbs
August 2009: 133lbs
Today (11/03/2009): 125lbs.

I am SO happy to be 125. I’ve been consistent about eating clean for the past 6 weeks. I keep hearing from smart people that "90% of good bodies are made in the kitchen". I decided to get serious about what I was eating before I was adamant about working out. It’s funny how you come to learn things about yourself over the years. It’s taken a lot of trial and error (mostly error) for me to realize that I’m the kind of person who has to ease myself into certain things. When I jump in feet first, I pretty much screw myself over.
I do have a new running partner, which makes me very happy! As long as I can discipline myself to eat clean and work out at least 3x a week; I’m happy. Here’s the plan for the future though:

From now until December 31st, the goal is to:
-eat clean Mon-Fri; let myself eat whatever I want during the weekends. This is when the majority of my socializing goes on; so if I want a Guinness, I’m not going to keep myself from it. Just based on the last 5-6 weeks though, I pretty much eat the same stuff on the weekends that I do during the week.
-go running 3x a week. My running partner and I are committed to doing this together for reasons of accountability and safety. I love running on Boise State’s campus–especially because I’m a SENIOR now and will be graduating in May so I won’t have that much longer to be a student who runs on campus. After May, I’ll just be some weird lady that runs on campus.

From January-May 14th, 2010:
This is when it’s going to be more disciplined. I’m only giving myself one cheat day instead of two, and I will also be adding weight lifting 3 days a week into the program. Why you wonder? Because like I said, I’m graduating COLLEGE on May 15th, 2010 and I want to look dazzling by the time my family comes into town. I’m so excited already!!

Please feel free to send me your tips/criticisms/etc. Thanks!

Ok confession: I totally let myself gain weight over the past 6 months and it’s stupid. I was in such good shape there for a while and I allowed outside circumstances (school) and inside circumstances (hypothyroidism) to get the best of me. Part of the problem is that I have had the most difficult time tagging down exactly what I want. When I try to think about things that are motivating to me, they seem dumb and I feel like I should change them to what other people are using as motivation. Then I realized…that was ridiculous. Everyone is different and we are all motivated by different things. I had a conversation with my girl Dannielle (I love you!) and she just asked me to list out all the things that I wanted. Here’s what I told her:

I want to bend over without having my stomach roll. I want smaller breasts. I want no backfat. I want rounded shoulders. The athletic look is what I’m shooting for. I want to be comfortable with myself and not feel blah all the time. I want to physically feel good. I want to make the fact that I’m a non-smoker count; by doing all the things that I couldn’t before because I smoked. I want to run a marathon. I want to ride my bike to school with all my heavy books in my bag without gasping for air. I want to go clothes shopping because I’m too small for the ones I own, not too fat. And…if I do run into people from my "past"; whether that be going back to my hometown, or just running into people i used to go to school with…I want to look amazing.

She told me to make small goals at first. So I decided that by September 1st I want to:
Lose 5lbs
Consistency with running training.

I joined a womens running group that’s training me to run a 5K. I realize that doesn’t seem like a far distance, but ya gotta start somewhere. I just started the training on Saturday, but I’m liking it so far. My sister-in-law is in the group as well, so I get some "fam time".

I’m set up with a trainer that I really respect. I’ve only worked out with him once so far and I’m so sore! I LOVE IT THOUGH!!! So here we go again…"for reals" this time though. No more excuses. If I make any excuses—punch me in the arm. Or, actually…just tell me I’m not funny. That will be hitting me where it really hurts.

My good friend Elise gave me this recipe, and I love it! It works great for a little snack between meals. We call them "Peanut Butter Flax Balls"…because that’s what they are.
Hope others enjoy this as much as I have!

1/2 c. natural peanut butter
3/4 c. powdered milk
1/2 c. ground flaxseed
1/2 c. pure ("uncooked"/"unheated") honey

Mix together well, then make into little balls. These will stay good in your fridge for 3 months.

My 12 week transformation has ended as of last week. I intend to write a full-length article about it, but I just wanted to post a quick blog today. Thank you to everyone who has helped me through this whether that meant training me (Kris), telling me what I should eat (Kris), funding the project (Ryan), and/or supporting me in other ways (um…everyone else, lol).
It’s not over though–now I’ve learned how to eat clean, how to train smart and I’m going to apply it! I started a Yoga class last week and I’m pretty excited about it. I did learn so far in that class however, that I am not as flexible as I thought I was. I plan on keeping with this lifestyle.
Good luck to anyone that is undergoing a program similar to mine. And please let me know if you have any questions.

I’m in my 12th week….isn’t that wild? I have mixed emotions about it; but the one thing that keeps running through my mind is how thankful I am to different people in my life for the role that they’ve played in this 12 week journey. For now though, I’d like to thank the women in my life for their support. (these are listed in no particular order…except for the first one, lol)
Evelyn:
My beautiful sister-in-law who has helped me by asking a lot of questions, making me feel like I can really do it, excercising with me and being her analytical self when it came to this transformation. She thought of reasons why this would be a great program for me to do that I would have never thought of. And it’s because she knows me so well that she knew how this would help to transform me in more than a physical way. Plus, the time spent with her while we exercised together was fantastic–now I have a permanent workout buddy! Evelyn, you are the most amazing woman that I’ve ever met and it actually gets me a little choked up when I think about how much I love you. Thank you for your constant support and your excitement with me during this journey.

Staci:
My supervisor/boss…though she would would say “We work together”. Thank you for your understanding, your patience with me and your support of this 12 week project. I can’t imagine that any other boss would be as patient as you have been with me during this thing. I’ve been emotional, grumpy, distracted…etc. and you’ve been right there to support me through it and even talk me through it at times. Thank you so much!

Dannielle:
OMG….Sooo sorry for being such a biznitch my dear….When I think about the way I’ve acted (at times) over the past three months and then I think about your response to it…I’m flabberghasted. I cannot believe how understanding of a person you are. You’ve helped me see the progress that I’ve made when I think I haven’t made any at all, you’ve never reacted defensively to me when I’ve “gone off” about this, that or the other thing. You’re an amazing friend and the word “supportive” just doesn’t seem to cover it.

JULS!! Not only have you been a good neighbor, haha, but you’ve also been a HUGE support to me. I love it when you call me “Skinny Minny”—makes me giggle. Thank you so much for your constant words of encouragement, reading my blogs, calling to make sure i’m doing ok, the list goes on… You’re such a great friend and I’m so glad that we were brought together in Comm 101, lol. Love you sweets!

Other women that I need to thank:
Jamie Whinery (soo sorry about the whining…) ; Rachael, my sister Elizabeth, my mother, all of the women in my department (ERIN!), and to anyone that I may have forgotten…sorry….

To my bodyspace girls:
RebeccaLynn–girl I miss workin with you; you need to get yourself back to Boise and come see me! Thank you for all your words of wisdom, your kindness and willingness to help a sista out.
SMorgan1227—what would I do without you? I’ve found an amazing friend in you and I feel so thankful that I have you in my life. I look foward to your bodyspace messages, your emails, and sweet notes of encouragment. I don’t think I would have made it this far without you. ((hugs))

There are so many others that I need to thank, I know. I apologize if I missed anyone. You can beat me later! Thank you all for your love, support, and for truly believing that I could make it through this 12 week journey. Here’s to you! (”clink”)

I have been incredibly discouraged for weeks now. I can’t seem to drop anymore weight and I’ve even gained a little. Last Friday (Jan 9th) I weighed 121lbs and then the following Monday I weighed 124lbs. I am experiencing quite a bit of water weight at the present moment, but it’s clear from my progress pictures that I’m stagnating.

When I was 11 or 12 years old, I was diagnosed with Hypothyroidism (an underactive thyroid). I took medication for this until I was 13 but then stopped taking it due to the fact that I was an adolescent and taking a pill everyday wasn’t that important to me. In all honesty, I forgot all about this thyroid issue until Kris and I talked about the possibility of me having a slow thryoid and that being part of the reason that I’m having trouble dropping the last few pounds. I went to the doctor and had my blood tested last week, and this last Tuesday I was informed that not only do I have Hypothyroidism (still), I also have low functioning kidneys.

I’m not really sure how this low functioning kidney situation will effect me in the long run, but I do know that a high protein diet isn’t necessarily doing my poor lil’ kidneys any favors. Kris has altered my diet a bit, and now I get to have crushed pineapple again, yay! (I love me some pineapple). Luckily, my doctor and I are actually close Church friends so I know that I’m receiving the best care possible. I started on Synthyroid this morning for my hypothyroid issue. We’re testing this out to see how my body responds to it and I’ll have another blood test in 8-12 weeks.

So let me say this to any of you out there who have been following this 12 week transformation–everyone’s bodies are different! I don’t want you to be discouraged or feel like you won’t see results or that you’ll plateau…blah blah blah. I would recommend that before you start any type exercise program or diet that you consult your doctor first. I know that everyone says that; but I’m living proof of why you should do that! Had I known from the beginning about this thyroid and kidney issue, my diet would have been different and I may have seen different results by now.

Here’s the part though that’s exciting to think about. Now that I’m aware of this stuff, I can make even more progress in the future! I can really implement the things that I’ve learned and make it more of a lifestyle!

Please, if anyone has questions about this medical stuff or about the 12 week transformation, please feel free to shoot me an email, a bodyspace message, smoke signals, whatever.

There are several women that I have met since I started working for Bodybuilding.com that I think are amazing women; that I admire. Some of these women include Jamie Eason, Christina Lindley, and Nancy DiNino. Jamie Eason is about the sweetest woman EVER. You would never guess by her attitude that she’s the worlds fittest model. She’s incredibly humble and treats everyone as equals. Christina Lindley and I met at the 2007 Olympia. She has consistently been an encouragement to me, not only just by reading her articles and looking at her amazing pics, but also when we chat. She’s always willing to give me tips here and there about fitness, nutrition and even skincare.

If I were to choose one (celebrity) woman that I admire the most however, it would without a doubt be Jennifer Aniston. Anyone who knows me is aware of the fact that I’m a "Friends" junkie. I could possibly quote every single episode…which may be somewhat pathetic, ha! I’ve had people tell me that I resemble Jennifer Aniston; so she’s a pretty realistic fitness goal for me. She’s 5"5 and I’m 5"3 and we have similar curves to our body. I love that she has that athletic, yoga-style body. So that’s my end goal, what I would really want to look like.

OH, and Jen and I have similar taste in men…because I’m pretty sure she dated Gerard Butler at one time. Though I think John Mayer is gross…but whatev.

The way my clothes have been fitting lately is WASSUM. I have a pair of jeans on right now that used to be tight on me…but now I’m struggling to keep them up! (nobody depants me…please….it’d be too easy) My chest has shrunk so now all of my bras are way too big for me. I actually thought I’d be sad about that, but I think it looks better—I’m more proportionate (sp?) now. I love that when I wear a short-sleeved shirt, you can see the rounding of my shoulders. How hot is that? (not conceited…seriously not) OH! And another thing! I went clothes shopping a couple weeks ago and I went down a size in pants, but it took me forever to get the pants up to my waist because my legs are so much bigger! I’ve joked around and told my girlfriends that i have Britney Spears legs (short, muscular).

I feel so confident about the way I look…it’s weird. I’m not quite sure how to handle it.

I have the tendency to make things seem better than they really are. I’m not really sure why I do this; but I will say that it’s a family trait. So here’s how I feel right now, in this moment that I’m writing, about this 12 week transformation.

I am sick of it.

I can’t wait for it to be over. I feel great, I know I look different, my clothes are way more baggy than I ever thought they would be and I’m even fitting into those clothes that all women keep in their closet "just in case" they ever fit into them again. I’m getting really excited for all the things I’ve planned on doing for celebration at the end of the transformation. I get to have a family dinner with my brother, sister-in-law, and sweet nieces (brisket baby!), I get to join in the church potlucks instead of just being a spectator, and I get to do less cardio! Don’t get me wrong—it’s not at all as if I hate this transformation thing, it’s just that these are some of the things that I’ve been missing. I’ve said it before—I am EXTREMELY social. I thrive on being with people and when I can’t really be a part of things…I hate it. It’s not even necessarily the foods that people are eating; it’s just being part of the people. (ok, how many times can I repeat myself?)

So let me say that I don’t have a bad attitude about the 12 week challenge. Promise. I’m just physically very tired (2 hrs of cardio a day + only having fibrous carbs = tired) and I’m emotionally worn out. Sheesh, what a whiner I am. But only for 18 more days.

So, I had my day of being super upset yesterday, but today is brand new. I felt really good after I did my cardio last night, and even better after I did it this morning. I’ve been cooking on my new George Foreman all morning and I must say…I LOVE IT!! I can’t wait to eat the foods that I’ve been cooking on it. I bought these little catfish fillets and they smell and look delicious. BOOYA!
So tomorrow is the beginning of week 10 of my 12 week transformation. I’m going to just finish this thing out with style. Ok, maybe not style but you know, whatev.

I keep forgetting to tell this story in my blog. I had an interesting first at the gym last week. I was training myself, doing legs. I had been on the hamstring curl and had completed two sets. I got off it to stretch, leaving my belongings right next to the machine and I was only one foot away from it. This incredibly rude guy came up and stole my machine! He didn’t even ask if I was done with my set. I know it’s not the end of the world but it sincerely pissed me off. I just thought how friggin rude…. So of course, me and my big mouth…I busted out with "Is this your first time to the gym?" And then I preceded to tell him in a not so pleasant tone (not yelling though) that there is such a thing as gym etiquette. He just stared at me blankly as if he didn’t speak English, but he didn’t try to steal anymore of my machines.

Ya I know I probably didn’t need to get as irritated about that situation as I did but he’s gotta learn, ya know?