It's Not A Diet...It's a Healthy Lifestyle!

Turning 30 in 2011 was a big deal for me.  Well, so I thought it was.  It turns out that turning 31 in a little over a month is an even bigger deal.  Why?  I knew you would ask.  Well, here goes nothing, and everything at all once!

I will admit....gulp....that I am in the worst shape of my life.  Growing up, I stayed active.  I was always coming and going, either to cheer, basketball or softball practice.  In my College years, I was active at the gym and in group fitness classes.  Once joining the real world, I bounced from gyms to home work outs, to large fitness classes and back and forth.  I danced, punched, kicked and ran the inches off and looked and felt great!  It is now 2012 and I HATE, emphasis on the HATE New Year's Resolutions.  I will not be forced to join a gym or start a fad diet, just because a new year is upon us.  I did however decide that is was TIME FOR A CHANGE!  A change for ME and no one else.

For those that know me well, the amount of energy I have is pretty high.  I have never lost the energy to live life, but I feel drained like never before.  I will put partial blame on my work schedule.  You see,  I work shift work, which consists of 12 hour shifts.  I work 2 weeks of days then switch to 2 weeks of nights.  During my shifts, I am off for 2-3 days in between.  I work every other weekend and work most holidays.  Besides the stress and emotional toll that shift work brings,  It has changed the way I eat and sleep.  I don't think that my body ever really knows where to start and stop.  I let my will power fall very low and can no longer allow the temptations of the job to lead me a stray!  I ate anything and everything I wanted to, without guilt.  Little did I know, that guilt I speak of was brewing deep down.  Enough is enough.  I have to make a change and live healthier.

The reason for MY change:
To date, my cholesterol is high.
I can no longer fit into "those" designer jeans waisting away on my closet shelf.
My skin and hair feels dull.
I get winded very quick these days.
My self-esteem is low and others have noticed.
I am moody and easy to snap at others.
I am always worried about that extra weight showing through my clothing, so it's been a t-shirt and jeans kind of year!
I could go on and on, but that's the main points for my change.

With all that out in the open,  I know begin the first phase of the NEW ME!
I put a lot of research into my goal and decided that the best routine for me to follow came with "The P.I.N.K. Method."  I learned of this healthy eating and workout plan while sitting on the couch one day.  I was shoving one greasy french fry into my mouth after another when the popular TV show, The Doctors came on.  They had a segment on this P.I.N.K. method and let's just say that it got my attention.  I put down the french fries and got online to research all I could.  After a good week of thinking it over, I purchased the P.I.N.K. Method!  You can find more information on this amazing weight loss program by visiting their website at www.pinkmethod.com.

If you are wondering what the P.I.N.K. stands for, look below!

Power
Intensity
Nutrition
Kardio (yes, with a k!)

I purchased the VIP Experience, which allows me to log in to their website, powered by exercise.com.  There I can log work outs, track my eating habits and more!

The program comes with an awesome journal that tells you what and when to eat, when to work out and is full of motivating words and passages put together by their main nutritionist, Cynthia.  You can write in the journal, in fact, they encourage it.  There is a grocery list and even a list of things to avoid eating.  The journal doesn't just tell you what to eat, but explains the healthy benefits of doing so.

I will start Phase 1 of the Nutritional portion, called The P.I.N.K. Reset, on Wednesday, January 18, 2012. This phase is a 7 day reset that does not have any workouts in it.  Phase 2 begins the workouts, and I can't wait!

Today, Tuesday, January 17th, I went on a journey to several grocery stores to stock up on healthy foods and tools.  My purchase was expensive, but I know it will be well worth it.  I stocked up on lots of protein-- salmon, talapia, shrimp, tuna, chicken and turkey, whey protein powder, hemp protein and lots more!  You can see a sample food list on their web site.

Well, good night blog world.  I need to rest up, because tomorrow IT begins!  I will be posting updates when I can!  :) Holly Ann

Let's Get To Baking!

After making cookies for Mardi Gras and St. Patty's Day, I was asked to continue baking!  When my God-child turned 1, I jumped on the opportunity to create something special.  Once the cutters were ordered and received, I got to baking!  I made 1's and cupcakes, all in hot pink, black and white, even a few zebra print cookies!  Needless to say, everyone at the party gobbled them up.  I didn't just bake cookies for this party, I also created cupcake tags, a 3 tiered cupcake stand, party banners with and without photos and other designs.  During the party, I was asked a great question, "Why don't you do this for a living?"  GREAT QUESTION!  I was not about to quit my full time job, but decided to start baking on my days off.  The outcome, COOKIES -N- CREATIONS!!  Check us out:
http://cookies-n-creations.blogspot.com/ and "like" us on Facebook too!

:) Holly Ann

FORGIVE ME...

I AM JUST GETTING STARTED IN THE BLOG WORLD....SO PLEASE BARE WITH ME AND I WILL BE UPDATING AND POSTING SOON!