I am Wonder Woman

Well maybe not, but I feel like it. Around the end of December I was feeling pretty sorry for myself. I wanted to workout but never had the time with 3 little boys and felt like I would weigh 180+ lbs forever. I think at that point I had even started crawling back up to 185 again. I was on a favorite fitness site of mine and found a friend that is now my Team Beachbody coach. I signed up under her and joined her Facebook fitness group of women motivating each other instead of cutting each other down. I felt more like maybe I could do this but still made excuses for time. I mean seriously how many other women have 3 BOYS all 5 and under?! Then I saw Maria Kang. Her picture popped up looking amazing with her 3 boys all 3 and under posed around her fit body with a headline "What's YOUR excuse?" Uhhhh well Maria my excuse was that I had 3 kids close together and I don't have time but you've pretty much blown that out of the water now haven't you? Well crap. Now I have to think of another excuse. Surely she has a nanny or a personal trainer or she never ever eats anything fun? RIGHT? Nope. She is just dedicated to her body just as much as she's dedicated to her home business and her family. (Insert line of expletives here.) Ok, ok, ok. As I am pondering starting Turbo Fire and all the excuses I still had as to why I couldn't do it another blog I follow announces Garden of Life vitamins is having a free trial for their new weight loss supplements Fuco Thin Green and if you are chosen you will get so many months for free to test it. What now? My favorite vitamin company is giving away free all natural, organic, non GMO, weight loss supplements to 25 lucky people?? I HAVE to try for this. And I did. And guess what? I got it! That got my momentum going. Seeing Maria, watching Ashley bust it out through a pregnancy, and now getting this trial, I had to start right then. I got Turbo Fire and started January 21, 2013. About 3 weeks in I didn't feel like there was a lot of changes, my weight wasn't going down and I was feeling overall discouraged that my house was in disarray and time with my children was suffering but dangit I was going to do this. I felt like stopping and just sticking with my new found yoga practice I had started once a week, I cried that even though I wanted to feel better I obviously wanted to stop looking 3-4 mos pregnant too. I messaged Ashley completely discouraged, she gave me more pointers and refreshed my resolve and I kept going. At 4 weeks I took pictures and measurements and could see a slight change. YAY! At 6 weeks I had dropped a few inches and the lbs were starting to come off. WOO! By 8-10weeks I had dropped over 10lbs since I had started Turbo Fire, 20+lbs from my heaviest and my body was showing significant changes. I started adding more changes, Garden of Life's Raw Meal Meal Replacement shakes for lunch, amino acids, probiotics, and iForce Nutrition's Compete. Raw Meal is very similar to Shakeology but without the adaptogen blend, it's raw food, vegan, and gluten free. I think if you can afford Starbucks and fast food you can afford Shakeology but since I can't afford either of those I definitely can afford Garden of Life's Raw Meal. It tastes good and its so similar to Shakeo I am able to do the cleanses and make the yummy no bake cookies with it. Raw Meal made a huge difference in my energy levels and overall how I felt, but the balance of my life came back when I was introduced to Compete by iForce Nutrition. This stuff I call my Supermommy Juice. It has turned me into a full fledged Wonder Woman. I ran my first 5K with it, I worked out 3+ hours a day, played outside for 2 hours with my kids and had a perfectly clean house with it. It. is. AMAZING! No caffeine, just clean energy. If you haven't tried it. DO IT! Every mama, especially ones working to be fit and balance their me time with family time should have this. I went from no water a day, to choking down 50-70+ ozs a day to now putting down 90 oz a day with Compete and I am so productive. I wouldn't be where I am so far without these people and without these supplements. I also invested in some workout clothes and a Polar HRM. Knowing how many calories I am burning pushed me to beat myself every time. Fitness is an investment in yourself. If you can afford the soda, the fast food, the Starbucks and doughnuts you can afford this stuff to make your life healthier. Because of conquering my fitness fears I have been able to conquer other fears, my yoga practice has helped me in my life so much too. Me, who had a panic attack on a fair ride 6 years ago because I am so afraid of heights, jumped out of an airplane on Easter Sunday. I am putting my fears of being judged to the side and putting myself out there by posting less than pretty pics of myself on the internet, by meeting new people, by trying a yoga asana that I might totally bite it while attempting. I am putting on my Wonder Woman gear and running Warrior Dash for the first time in 2 weeks, and I have even decided to pursue a career as yoga instructor. I am working on being more mindful in my life, being grateful everyday and for the first time in a while I am excited to wake up in the mornings, not dreading the workday ahead but know now I can handle what comes my way. I am still the Farmer's market loving, cloth diapering (again finally), hippie mom, but now I get to be the yoga mama, the fit mama, the sexy wife and Wonder Woman all rolled in to one.
Everyday now I get up and ask myself "What's MY excuse today" after I answer I push past it and keep going.

Here are links to all the helpful people!!
Garden of Life: http://www.gardenoflife.com/
Maria Kang: http://www.mariakang.com/
Ashley Bailey the worlds best Team Beachbody Coach if you want to start changing your life: http://wwww.beachbodycoach.com/ASHBAILEY86
iForce Nutrition: http://www.iforcenutrition.com/
Sage Studio: www.mysagestudio.com

After my 1st 5K

Turbo Fire Before and After 90 Days

Garden of Life Raw Meal

Turbo Fire 8 week progress

Garden of Life FucoThin Green

iForce Nutrition Compete

My 1st full wheel in yoga

Turbo Fire 6 week progress

From Mom to Mom

On the heels of so much sleep training bashing recently I have to share a few things I have learned so far about being a mom for my new mamas out there.
#1. If you think sleep training is letting your baby idly cry (scream or being generally upset) while you put your feet up in the other room, you're doing it wrong. Sleep training is assuring that your baby is fed, loved, dry, burped and not sick or colicky/in pain and laying them down to learn it's safe and ok to fall asleep in their own bed instead of your arms/bed/their car seat etc. Sometimes they may cry because they are tired and do not want to sleep because everything else seems so much more interesting and thats ok. But plopping baby into its crib and walking away without routine, wind down time, assuring they are ok and feeling safe... not ok.

#2. Take time to read the baby books and learn general things like babies cannot have certain foods before a year, straight water before 6mos (This can be DEADLY for a baby), how to secure baby in car seats and the car seat to the car, when they can have certain meds, etc Find out what safe alt treatments are out there for them and by what age groups. These things can literally save your baby's life.

#3. Whether you're a Stay home mom, working mom, breastfeeding, bottle feeding, cloth diapering, disposable diapering, vaxing, not, cir'c ing, not, etc You're right. Do your research and make the choice right for your family. The only right answer here is what works for you, family and baby. What you feed your baby AFTER the first year of life is just as important as what you fed it for the first year, so please do not be high and mighty about breast milk or formula then give your kids constant fast food and junk.

#4. This too shall pass.
The times that you haven't slept for hours, you are crying along with the baby and you feel like your legs may never get shaved again... It will pass. When your toddler seems to only have 1 volume and it's screaming. The tantrums seem to be unending and you feel like the worst parent ever.. This too shall pass. But so will the good things. The small moments, the rocking before bed, the private feedings, the firsts, etc. Those will also pass, so savor and enjoy them.

#5. Love them all the time, unconditionally.
Love and enjoy them for who they are even f who they are doesn't match with what you imagined or thought it should be. Love them no matter what.

#6 Be good examples. Most of the time kids that are rude, disrespectful, snotty, and unappreciative have parents that act like that towards them. If you wouldn't talk to your spouse or a stranger like that, chances are you shouldn't talk to your child that way. Model the behavior you want to see in them.

#7 Let them be a kid. Let them play, build, get messy, run, play, scream, and rompus. Preserve their innocence. We need more adults that aren't cynical and dead inside. You can learn just as much from them as they learn from you if you allow them to just be and you are open to watch it.

#8. Babywear. Not because its beneficial and wonderful and all of those things, but because it's convenient and amazing. HAHA I would have lot my sanity with 3 small kids by now without babywearing. Slings and boppys are more useful than a crib in the first 3 months.

#9. Teach them to love to clean! Trust me on this one. Having kids that thinks cleaning is fun, is awesome. And makes your job 1000x easier.

#10. Don't sweat the small stuff and pick your battles. I'm not going to fight my kid for an hour over a jacket when he may not be cold or get mad that while I type this my 7 month old has decided to experiment with pouring water on my coffee table and splashing in it. Because water will dry and not stain and he's having fun.

#11. If you have boys, teach them to be gentlemen, teach them to clean, cook, and sew as much as you teach them to build and fix. If you have girls, give them cars and powertools, not just kitchens and babies. Teach them they can be an astronaut or a geologist just like they can be a mommy. Teach all of them to respect themselves and others. To treat their body with care. That their bodies are sacred and to be respected with good food, rest and not to be given away. 

There are more. So many many more. But this was on my mind. Enjoy your kids and savor all the silliness and sweetness you can.