staying dedicated and finding rewards of another kind...

Heather's 30-Day Body Transformation

When you accept a commitment, experience the ups and downs, discover the tricks to keep you focused, jump the hurdles, and acknowledge your successes, you become your own best ally. Much of the success is made by a decision in your head. As you make decisions that get you closer to your goal, you gain the realization that you CAN accomplish anything. I believe that Heather has created this kind of thoughtful dedication.  She has showed true commitment during the Transformation, especially through the Holiday's and her birthday, which was January 1st.  I was out of town for the holidays so the workout and nutrition tactics were completely up to Heather, really it has been all along. I contacted Heather while I was out of town and she shared how she conquered! It is amazing how staying true to ourselves is one of the most rewarding things we can do. ~Meche

As we near the close of the transformation the  motto we discover is this....

The Motto we gain at the
end of a journey!

Heather's Journal In Week 4

SATURDAY iS DAY 30!

This has been a difficult and very very fantastically rewarding journey!  

Difficulties:  The biggest difficulty this past week was Christmas, New Years and my Birthday.  As I have mentioned before, I have very strong connection to food as a way to celebrate, relax, and reward myself.  In the past, when I could not find a way to distract myself from holiday goodies or lack thereof, I would occasionally feel a little down.  

The pink highlights are hard to see, but
they are there! :) 

Solutions:  I have had to remind myself that there are many great ways to reward myself that don’t involve food, and there are also incredibly delicious foods that I can still consume…. Well, I don’t know if you consider coffee a food, but it is a delicious substance that I have turned to for comfort throughout this journey. How I found rewards: January 1^st was my 32^nd Birthday!  It is absolutely true that I really wanted to eat cake on my birthday.  Instead, I decided to reflect on the fact that according to my data (home scale) I am 14 pounds lighter than I was on my 31^st birthday.  Instead of cake, I treated myself to a spa day.  I had a fancy mineral bath (thanks Cindy!), gave myself a facial, and added some pink highlights to my hair.  Fun!    

Moving Forward:

My journey is not over yet, not by a long shot.  I want to lose more weight, gain more strength, do more than 5 real pushups, and be able to do just one real pull up.  So, needless to say, I have my work cut out for me!

This weekend, the husband and I will have a quick out of town trip to celebrate the end of this first big step.  On Monday, I will continue with my work: increasing my cardio endurance, continuing my strength training with Meche, learning to cook more healthy and delicious foods, and focus on expanding my art portfolio.

I am holding myself accountable to everyone who has read, encouraged and sponsored me on this journey. I look forward to checking back with you all soon as I continue to get results.  Thank you! 

Wishing you all a Happy and Healthy New Year,

Heather

Sometimes when I run, I feel like I may understand why our dogs are
so happy when we let them off leash.  Here is Mazzy.  I don't think she is even
aware of her own body, just the thrill of running as fast as she can :)

Another painting... 4' x 5'.  The stronger I get the
longer I last with paint brush in hand. 

The photos of my food didn't turn out very appetizing.  But here is
an example of some home cooking: the thanksgiving dinner
we made: chicken and garlic. Yum!