Crazy Hectic

Hey there.  So it was brought to my attention that I needed to pay a visit to the blog.  It's still crazy to me that people read this, much less notice when I haven't found a moment to sit down and write. Life has been hectic, the good kind of hectic that takes you from good days at work to fun nights at the ball field.  Not much better than seeing your kids accomplish something they've been working on.  It's the kind of crazy where I have to remind myself what day it is, because they all run together. That's when this is required....

This week between work, gym and ball games, we'll be signing our oldest up for Kindergarten.  Before kids, people tell you how fast it goes, to soak it all in....but its not until you're slap in the middle of it that you understand.  I feel like if I blink she'll go from her Pre-K cap and gown to the real deal.  She is such a smart, funny, caring little girl and it baffles me everyday that myself and Mr. Coburn brought such an awesome little person into the world.  If I talk to much more about that, I'll cry, and that won't be good for anybody.

This past Sunday I was able to take the kids to Turner Field to watch the Braves play.  It was "Braves Day" for both her softball team and his t-ball and they were able to run the bases at the end.  I won't lie and say the waiting in line was stellar, it wasn't.  In fact I thought I might pinch my cute Sour Patch Kid's head off for a moment in that dang line, in the heat.  But they loved it, and being a HUGE Braves fan, I'm so glad they got to have that fun experience! Note to self though: I like baseball too much to sit up in the nose bleeds.

 

A crazy work and mommy schedule means its extra hard to find the time and energy to get in a good workout.  I'd love to tell you that when I can't make it in the door of the gym, I'll workout here at home.  I always have good intentions with that, and know that some people do that solely, but it simply just doesn't work for me. 

I may not have been able to get in my preferred 5-6 days for the last couple of weeks, but I've kept it at a steady 5 and I'm content with that.  I even managed to hit another milestone a couple of days ago, hitting the 60 pounds lost mark.  The milestones are coming slower and slower, but each little one pushes me to keep going.  Had you asked me 7 months ago if I thought I could lose 60 pounds in the next year, let alone less than, I would have bet a million dollars that I wouldn't.  Don't do that for yourself.  Don't set limitations.  Don't bet against yourself. Or hell, maybe that's how you push yourself, by attempting to attain the unattainable....if that's you, bet away!

 

That cute Sour Patch kid is out of bed and asking for more cuddles, so I must oblige. Good night. :)
 

Back Workout

Hey there!  Its Wednesday which means its Hump Day. For us, it's the only day of the week we don't have at least one ball game! I'll be heading to the gym this afternoon to take a Pilates class with my Momma.  My schedule doesn't match up for me to take it often, but it makes me sore in places I didn't even know I had! 

    {my thoughts on a crazy busy week}

Ella, my five year old, FINALLY had her first softball game last night. They've been rained out several times and she has been so ready to have a chance to play! This is our first year in any sport where score is actually kept, so it was so nerve wracking to watch!

Last week I got my monthly Birchbox subscription. It’s always fun watching the tracking for it and knowing its coming. If you aren’t familiar with Birchbox, you pay $10 a month to get a box of sample goodies such as make up, hair products, nail polish and sometimes even sample snacks or candies to try. I get a chance to try products that I may not have access to without Birchbox and have found lots of great things I love. If you haven't tried it before, I definitely recommend it!

Monica and I have been doing an awesome Back Workout that Mr. Coburn put together for us a few weeks ago.  I've been meaning to share it with you all, so here it is finally.  I have always incorporated back exercises into my weekly routine, but this makes me more sore than I have ever been, which for me, lets me know it's working!  Always remember heavy dead lifts done the wrong way can injure your back easily, so make sure you have proper form! In full disclosure, Monica and I watch a YouTube Video before we start them every time, just to make sure! I highly recommend that!

I'm hoping all of your week is going well, and that its all downhill to the weekend from here!  Please feel free to comment here or message me if you have something you'd like me to cover here!

Overstuffed Easter

Happy Monday y'all. Hope you had a wonderful weekend full of family and friends. Ours was super busy, but worth every second of it. 

Saturday night we had our 3rd Annual Glow In the Dark Easter Egg Hunt at my Mom's.  Many people have asked how we do this, there's no tutorial needed, we simply buy the tiny 1.5 inch glow sticks online and pop them into plastic eggs after activating them. In years past we've used the bracelets because the planning was more last minute, trust me, get the small ones...it's worth your sanity. Unfortunately there aren't great pictures of it because it's dark of course when we do it, but take my word for it, it's fun! My kids look forward to it every year and I'm so thankful they'll have this unique tradition to grow up with. 

Mr. Coburn had to work all weekend, so the kids and I made the trips to see some of our family. My niece and sister-in-law were in town and it was so good to spend some time with them. My Dad had a birthday and Monica's baby girl had her first birthday, so it has been a party for a few days here! 

In full disclosure, I ate TERRIBLE this weekend. No need to go into detail, but there was plenty of this cake involved and then some. I won't lie, while I enjoyed all the delicious food, I don't miss the feeling of feeling over full. 

I'm so thankful to have reached a point in this journey that I am able to splurge for a weekend and then get back on track. I know for me missing a day or two in the gym, especially adding bad eating in with it, can make me feel like I'm throwing it all away. Don't get me wrong, I was VERY strict for the first 5 months+ and still make healthy choices the majority of the time, but it's nice to be at a spot where my consistent workouts 5-6 days a week are allowing me to maintain. 

Monica and I hit this gym early this morning to get right back in track. I did plan to where I had a great gym week Monday through Friday last week, and will have a strenuous workout schedule to get back on track this week also. It's all about planning. 

This journey can be tiring. Please remember, your timeline will be different than mine. Whether you have less to lose or more, different "problem areas" or whatever else, please don't see my timeline and expect it for your own. You may get there way faster than me, or it could take you longer.  Each one of is is different and I hope that instead of being discouraged by not seeing progress, or wondering why you're at a different place in your progress than I am, or someone else is, I hope coming here simply let's you know that YOU CAN MAKE IT. Keep pushing yourself, keep making changes FOR YOU and you'll get there. I hope you come here and know that you're worth every single bit of the effort that this journey takes. 

{Coburn Family Photos}

Hello there. Today is my Friday, I'm so excited for my 3 day weekend to start. This has been a busy week with ball and work and everything else it seems. This past Saturday we had some family pictures done by the talented Ashley Allbee of Zesty Photo in Florida. She came up for a friend of mines' photos and we got in on her awesomeness too!


Right before I started this journey to getting healthy we had family photos done. I love any picture that has the 3 most important people in my life in them, but since they were taken so close to the start of this journey, they officially became the "before" photo for me. From the moment I realized that I could really make a difference in the way I felt about myself, I've been dying to have a "redo".

We've received a few peeks of the photo and I am SO happy with how she captured our family. I can't wait to get all of them and get them on my walls in our home!

I also met a very important goal a couple of days ago, my "ultimate goal" weight. A little over 6 months ago I threw out a number of 130, thinking it was completely unattainable. I was at 188. Now I am reevaluating what my next goal will be, which I know will include a whole lot of toning. I seem to have hit a point where people think it is appropriate to tell me that I am going to "wither away", that I need to eat something or that I need to stop trying to lose anymore. Of course this is a first time being in this situation for me, but I'm a little amazed that people think this is okay. I can count on one hand the people that it is okay to make this kind of comment to me. I am VERY aware of my weight and my health, I am doing this the healthy way and am in need of no advise on this matter from those that have no right too. Honestly, it doesn't anger me or frustrate me, because for the first time in a long time I am so very comfortable with myself, and also trust my husband to be the person that brings something to my attention if necessary. I am just simply shocked that people think it’s okay. You would tell someone over weight to "drop the cheeseburger", why would you tell someone getting in shape to "get off that scale". Okay, off soap box now. :)

I hope you all have a lovely Easter weekend if I don't have a chance to blog again before. I'll leave you with a few more of our photos.

Intentions

Do you ever have days that you just feel, inadequate? I think that's the best word for it. Where you can talk yourself into believing you can't get anything right? Or aren't good enough, in everything you do? Hopefully you don't, it's an awful feeling. 

                                     

Yesterday I intentionally turned my early alarm off for the gym, which was the only time I could get there for the day. Worked on a beautiful Saturday, while my babies were enjoying the sunshine with friends and a lot of my friends were running the Color Run 5K, that looked like a blast. I came home with great intentions of getting things done around the house before Mr. Coburn came home from work and lost all motivation the moment I arrived. Had grand plans of doing some type of workout at home, so I didn't end up with an unintentional off day, didn't happen. You get the picture. 

                                     

Why do we beat ourselves up in this way? As a woman, wife, mother and a list of other titles by the end of the day, it's so easy to get caught up in everything we "should be" instead of being proud of being what we truly are, right at that moment. Don't get me wrong, there are days I feel like Super Woman. The days I manage to get up for a 4:30 workout, shower and actually do my hair and make up and get the kids to school without rushing. Work, ball practice, dinner, baths and even find the energy to clean the kitchen before sitting down for the evening. Even more days where about half of that happens, but in a much crazier stressful way. But days like yesterday show their ugly face here and there, and knock me to my knees. 

                           

For whatever reason I tend to wake up the next day refreshed. Ready to make today everything that yesterday wasn't. Today I've enjoyed a slow cup of coffee watching cartoons in bed with my babes. There's nothing I can do to go back and redo yesterday. It happened, and unfortunately is part of life. It's not all rainbows and perfection. Who knows how today will end up, hopefully better than intended. 

                           

{Six Month Check In}

Hello Lovelies and Happy Hump Day!  Really, today is a Monday for me, but I'll spare you guys from having a second one of those for the week.  I am back at work after a 4 day weekend.  I got in some girl time, lots of family time and even some time with Mr. Coburn.

Sorry for the ugly faces, dead lifts and rows are ugly too.

    Sunday Morning iHop with my loves.

Today I'm taking a rest day from the gym after an intense few days on.  Sunday I worked LEGS until they were JELLO. Monday was Tricep and Chest and then yesterday I worked my Back with Mr. Coburn. I'm thinking I do not work my lower back enough because today I am so very sore.  Good sore.  To me, there isn't much better than being sore from top to bottom by the time I get to a rest day.  It means I earned it and that all of my hard work meant something.

Tball and Softball is now in full swing!

 

The first picture is in January, the rest Sunday. We know we're crazy.

Yesterday I was able to buy my first pair of size 6 pants.  I've worn a couple that a friend gave me, but haven't actually purchased them.  Every single pair of work pants I have at the moment are falling off of me.  I have tried to refrain from buying too many since I started losing weight, so the money is not wasted a couple of months later.  Leggings with dresses have been much more frequent in my wardrobe than usual.  I started in October in a size SIXTEEN, today in a SIX.  That feels pretty awesome.

Six months ago I was miserable with myself.  Nothing fit. Even what did fit, I felt terrible in.  I decided to make a change and haven't looked back.  I am addicted to seeing the changes in my body. Seeing where I was 3 months ago to now is even better than the very first progress picture I posted of the first 3 months.  I cannot wait to see what changes I can make in another 3 months. 

If you are thinking about starting a weightloss journey, do it. Make the promise to your children, your spouse, your family, but most importantly to YOURSELF.  Think about where you could be in 3 months, in 6 months, in a year.  You''ll be so thankful you did.  I started at 188 pounds.  Some people will gasp that I'm comfortable with putting that number out there, and especially my before pictures out there.  I did not take that first picture with ANY thought to show anyone, not even Mr. Coburn.  But today, today I am so very proud of the journey I'm on, that I feel not one ounce of shame for that before picture.  That girl is in the past, she is not coming back.  That picture is my BIGGEST motivation.  And if it motivates even one other person, then its worth every bit. 



Last Spring

 

 

  Built By Squats Tank

  

188.  Today I am at 132. 56 pounds down in 6 months.  When asked back in October what my goal weight was, I threw out 130.  I honestly thought it was pretty unattainable at the time and for quite a while after.  It has been my "ultimate goal" since. Now, 2 pounds away, I cannot wait until I hit that mark, but my journey will not stop there.  I still have weight to lose and muscles to build.  There will be a new goal to work towards. 

Loaded SWEET Potato

This morning started bright and early, not at the gym, but at work.  I'll be heading to the gym this afternoon before we head to softball practice this evening.  I have to say that I LOVE seeing so many of you posting about getting your workout in for the day.  Seeing your comments that something I did, said or posted here is what pushed YOU to get a workout in of some type that day feels pretty dang incredible.  If you had told me 6 months ago that I would be able to motivate ANYONE, heck MYSELF, to get to the gym, I would have bet you a million dollars that would NEVER happen.  You guys are incredible.  Keep sharing, liking and commenting so WE can motivate as many people as we can.

Yesterday's workout was INTENSE.  I took a Body Pump class at the gym followed by a Spin class. I literally wanted to fall out after that!  So sweaty and so many calories burned. 

Anytime I'm asked about what I do in the gym, I encourage EVERYONE to take Body Pump a couple of times a week, if your gym offers it.  Not only is it an awesome total body workout, but it has taught me SO MUCH about how to use the free weights in the gym all on my own.  You choose your weight for each exercise, so it is really a class for any fitness level.

End of Jan/End of March

 

I am so excited to really be able to see my arms toning up. These last few pounds to my goal are shedding slowly, but I'm okay with that when I see pictures like the one above!

 

And just because I am a sucker for a progress pic in the same clothing (pants):

 

Tuesday night I had a DELICIOUS dinner thanks to a recipe my friend Monica shared on Facebook the other day.  I’m just going to call it a Loaded Sweet Potato, though there may be another name out there for it.  Since it starts with a sweet potato, I guess that means I should share with you all THE BEST way to cook a sweet potato to start.  Are you ready for these complicated tutorials?!

Wrap several whole sweet potatoes in foil.  Place them in crockpot with lid on. Cook for roughly 4 hours on low or 6 on high (each crockpot will vary on time). No, you don’t put water or anything else in with it. JUST foil on taters.  They will be THE best sweet potatoes you’ve ever cooked.  

Okay, so on to the actual recipe for you guys: 

{Loaded SWEET Potato}

Ingredients

Cooked Sweet Potato

Browned Ground Turkey

Scrambled Eggs

Black Beans

Kernel Corn

Shredded Mozzarella

Thawed Frozen Spinach

Fresh Tomatoes

Taco Seasoning

(anything else that sounds good to YOU)

Top sweet potato with each ingredient to your liking, then sprinkle a tad bit of taco seasoning and mozzarella on top.  Heat in oven until all is warm and cheese is melted.

I had this again for lunch yesterday and it was even better. 

Hope you all have an awesome Thursday!

LEG. DAY.

Happy Tuesday, Y'all.  I am so so thankful for all the kind comments received on Facebook yesterday.  You guys sure know how to make a girl feel awesome.  Yesterday I had a great 4:30 am workout with my favorite gym partner.  Monday is LEG DAY.  I am feeling the burn today! Here is the leg workout we've been doing on Monday's lately:

 

Monica and I this past weekend.

 

Here is a video example of the Assisted pull-up machine push downs.  If you do it correctly, your buns will definitely be burning the next day!

 

We knocked out another 4:30 am gym session today.  Most people think we're crazy for going to the gym so early in the morning.  Trust me, when that alarm goes off, I think I'm crazy too.  It NEVER gets easier getting out of bed that early.  But having someone to meet there holds me accountable and is what pulls me out of bed most of the time.  Getting up is the hardest part, it only gets better from there.  I never regret an early workout and EVERY TIME that I start the day that way, it is so much easier and smoother.  No rushing around late for work.  No worrying all day if I'm going to be able to get a work out in. IT'S DONE and I feel fabulous.

Today after some intense strength training and a sweaty 45 min on the elliptical/Yesterday ready for work.

No matter what time a day you get your workout in, the BIGGEST factor is consistency.  Make a goal for yourself and KEEP IT.  Any physical activity it AWESOME and all of our schedules are different, but you can do SOMETHING to get a workout in, sometime during the day.

I attribute my weight loss success so far to the consistency of going FIVE to SIX days a week.  The only times I've gone less since October are when my whole family had the flu and during the ice storm, where I had to work A LOT and wasn't able to go home for days. I could probably scale back to 3-4 days if I wanted to MAINTAIN my current weight/physic.  Instead I choose to keep striving not only towards my ultimate weight loss goal, which is 6 pounds away, but to keep pushing myself physically, with or without the gains.

I answer phones all day and people think my name is Kristine or Christina....

I think the way I say my name must be the problem.

For me, this is a lifestyle change. There is no going back to before.  I will constantly strive to change my body in ways I never thought possible.  Don't get me wrong, there will be bad days, there may be times I just can't or don't get there.  But there is no giving up. The first few weeks were the hardest, trying to find an excuse as to why I couldn't get myself to the gym.  But somewhere in there, I went from finding excuses not to go, to finding ways I COULD go.  4:30 am being one of those ways. 

Our "new to us" table we got this weekend. Now if we could just get some paint on these walls!

 

Superman went to Publix with me Sunday.  My children were

magical the whole trip, Superman might be invited more often!

Our Own Enemy

Why are we as women, especially mothers, our own worst enemy?  Why do we feel it necessary to bring each other down? This is something I will never understand, and see more than ever since being in the gym.  It's a topic that's been heavy on my mind recently. Why does it all need to be a competition?  Why can't we encourage eachother through our ups and downs, instead of bringing eachother down?  I knew at some point, someone would voice an opinion about me posting about my weightloss.  I knew it'd get on plenty of people's nerves and it was inevitible that it would be spoken about.  I was prepared for this from people who didn't know me well, because surely the people that have been in my life for a long time would be proud of me; happy for the place I'm at in my life. 

I am so proud to see my friends getting healthier, losing weight and making postive changes in their lives.  To know I'm even a tiny part of that is pretty incredible.  I'm proud of those that don't need/want to do that at this time.  I want to encourage all of the women in my life to be the best version of themselves, no matter what that may be.  Distorted body image is REAL and affects most women I know. We all have the hardest time loving ourselves and being comfortable in our own skin, what is the point in hurting someone else for your own gain?

We ALL struggle, whether you're a stay at home mom, work out of the home mom, single, married, whatever it may be.  We all have some battle we are fighting 99.9% of the time.  It may be work, stress, marriage, friendship, weight and the list goes on and on.  Why increase that battle?  The moment that you feel that YOUR struggle is greater than any other, or the day that you think YOUR life is perfection over someone elses, you may want to reevaluate.

Let me clarify now, and say, if you think you know ME just from my Facebook activity, you would be incorrect. Sure, I post frequently, I love seeing the people I love and the people I miss. Feeling like I'm closer to my brother, sister in law, neice, cousins and old friends, than I really am. But if your basing your opinion on someone's life, from their Facebook pictures and status, you may want to take a break from it for a while.

My family is my LIFE.  I am so proud of the life we are creating for these little humans we're responsible for. We've finally found a great balance between work, eachother (Mr. Coburn and I), family time AND time for the gym. Thankfully they love going to the gym with us. My oldest even takes a class a couple of days a week and asks constantly when it's time again for it. We are slowly but surely showing them a healthy way of life. One that I hope we can carry on to instill in them the importance of it all. And hopefully I'll be around a heck of alot longer, simply because of the changes I've been making. This is what is working for OUR FAMILY.  What works for me may be completely opposite of what works for you, and that is OKAY.  The moment that someone chooses to question my role as a mother, THAT is the moment when the conversation is over. For good.   

As I get older and get more and more comfortable in WHO I AM, the drama and bullshit is less and less of a priorty. Heck at this point, it means nothing.  My family and a very small group of people are what matters.  Only in a perfect world would we stop the entitled, mean, dramatic bullshit. Don't worry, I know that's not going to happen today, or in my lifetime for that matter. That's okay, I'll just choose the important people in my life wisely. The day Mr. Coburn comes to me and tells me I am <insert crappy insult here>, is the day I'll worry.  The rest of the drama, I don't have time for that in my life. 

Today, give another woman a compliment and stop yourself before you decide its worth it to put someone down.  I promise its not. 

Things I'm Loving Friday

HAPPY FRIDAY! My morning started off rushed and crazy, so I'm going to put myself (and hopefully YOU) in a better mood by doing a "Things I'm Loving" post.

• Fresh Hair

I got my hair done last night.  While I LOVE my blonde bob, I'm constantly changing up my hair.  This time I gave this new ombre trend a try.  What do you think?

• Protein Pancakes 

Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Pancakes with Chocolate Peanut Butter Sauce. Recipe:

1/2 cup oats
1/2 banana
1 Scoop Chocolate Whey Protein
1 egg
Splash of almond milk...
1 hefty scoop of peanut butter

Blend in blender or food processor (I used my Ninja). Cook on griddle around 300 degrees for a minute or so each side.

Chocolate PB Sauce:
1-2 Tablespoon Dark Choc Chips
Cover in small bowl with almond milk. Melt for 30 sec in microwave. Stir and add 1 scoop PB, microwave for another 30 sec. Stir and pour over pancakes. Devour.

 

I can't seem to get enough of these and am so excited to try and new concoction this weekend! Now obviously the Chocolate PB Sauce is a bit more indulgent than my everyday meal. If I'm wanting to cut back on the sugar I'll either just top with peanut butter, or make a sauce from chocolate peanut butter protein, almond milk and peanut butter.

• Gym Saturdays

(my friend Heather)

 

Every Saturday for the last few months I've started my weekend with 2 intense hours at the gym with a great group of ladies. Softball and baseball are starting up for my kiddos, so Saturdays will soon be filled with ballfield time!

• Ab Workout

- 1 Minute Plank

- 30 Bicycle Crunches

- 30 Second Side Plank (each side)

- 20 Mountain Climbers

- 30 Sit-Ups

- 20 Toe Taps

- 1 Minute V-Sit

Repeat.

This is my current ab workout.  I try to do this 3 times a week in addition to my other workouts.  It can be done at home or at the gym!  I'm unable to make it to the gym tonight since we'll be at T-ball practice, so I'll be doing this workout and running a couple of miles in my neighborhood.

• Progress Pictures 

(January 2014/March 2014)

TAKE PICTURES.  I have so many pictures from this journey and I'm so thankful for that.  Some days I feel AWESOME.  Some days are harder, self image is an ugly thing that most of us battle with.  Looking back at pictures of myself, SEEING where I was and where I am now, that is the BEST motivation for me to keep going.  No matter where you are in this journey, just getting started, thinking about it, or smack in the middle, I challenge you to go take a picture today.  You don't have to show anyone else, heck in the beginning I would have NEVER shown someone.  Set a goal for yourself to get there!

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