New Year, New Me.

In November, I discussed my weight loss journey. Now, I'm back with an update on fitness tips, my body, and motivation. So, far I have lost thirteen pounds, going from 186-173lbs. My weight loss goal is 140 pounds. I plan to be at my goal by March 1st! "I changed my lifestyle because I want to live longer, have more energy, have better skin, avoid diabetes, cancer, heart disease etc. and look good naked! :-)"

What I do:

Workout: 1 hour a day, min 3 days a week and max 5 days. I usually take a day of rest every other day if I choose to workout 3 days a week. For a 5 days a week workout, I will exercise 3 days in a row, one day of rest, and 2 days in a row back in the gym, than rest. My personal preference is working out 5 days a week. However, with my workload and school schedule for the past few weeks I've been doing 3 days a week and my results have declined. 

My Workout Plan:

20 squats

30 lunges

10 calf raises

50 sec wall st

30 leg raises

20 chin-ups

50-100 crunches

Treadmill

Elliptical 

My suggestion: workout 5 days a week!!

Eat healthy: I had to discipline myself so that I wouldn't make eating right a choice, but a lifestyle. My first step: Changing my grocery list! If junk food isn't in my reach I know that eventually I'll forget about it. (logically speaking, it takes 28 days to break a habit, I've been on this journey since November)..  I also had to cutback on eating out. (which was hard, living in a dorm with a terrible cafe). But it's possible, I bought a hotplate pots, and pans and did what I had to, NO EXCUSES! 

My grocery list:

Bell Peppers

Onions

Olive Oil

Green Tea

Tazo tea

Water

Lemon Juice

Lettuce

Apples                                                      

Oranges 

Mangoes

Brown Rice

Banana Chips

Dried Cranberries

Yogurt Covered Cranberries         

Eggs

Light Soymilk

Raisin Bagels

Potatoes

Tilapia

Salmon

Turkey 

skinless chicken breast

broccoli

flax seeds

olives

avocado

light butter (low in cholestrol)

feta cheese

blue cheese

Spinach

Grapes

Dates

Granola 

L-R: Olives (target store), water bottle is lemon juice and water DETOX, spinach and feta cheese omelet, healthy snack, banana chips

L-R: Lipton tea, Kashi granola cereal, Nestle drinking water

helpful apps: Spark recipes, and calorie counter

Detox: I detox at least twice a week. In order, to get healthy you have to get unhealthy. My favorite is the lemon juice and water.  Flush all the unwanted waste from your body, greasy foods, junk foods, etc. Also, I have eliminated beef from my diet, since it takes longer to digest than turkey. Beef sits on the stomach causing that excess bulge that is so hard to get rid of. One of my favorite foods is hamburgers, but I had to leave that behind because as much as I love burgers, I love me more. 

Self Motivation: In order to achieve anything you must think it first. Come up with a plan and execute it! Through Rain, sleet, and snow I still make it to the gym. However, before I had access to a workout facility I used in home videos, apps on my iPhone, and nature to help achieve my goals. I would run the "Big Dam Bridge", walk around the track of my school gym, and do yoga right in my suite. My slogan is "have a summer body all year around." In fact, old pictures are sometimes enough motivation to keep the weight off. My recommendation is to always track your progress, if you see just a pound drop that means there a more pounds to shed. Good luck!!

Suggested Instagram Pages to follow for healthy eating and motivational quotes:

1. fightforfit

2.instagramfitness
3. drcmd (me)

My Progress (Pictures):

Top: November, Left: about a week ago, Bottom: Goal!

This coat made me look 3 times bigger, but the style was to sag, not fit, I started to let myself go. Glad I caught myself, I'll never lose me again.  (Right side: October, Left side: December)

My face begin to clear up, no more outbreaks. Why?No more  pop/soda! Water only, or tea if I really need flavor (don't use too much sugar!)


P.S. Congrats to my President Barack Obama, I am very proud of him! I hope the Obama's enjoy their day of history!!

When You Look Good, You Feel Good!

Hey Everybody!

 As women, we have all had that time where we look in the mirror and decide to change something about ourselves. Whether it is weight, hair, or make-up, we have all been guilty of wanting more or less of something. One day when I looked in the mirror I decided to change my body not only on the outside, but the inside as well. I decided to get healthy and in shape, so I started with a simple google search, "what is the appropriate weight for my height and age".

After reading the results I ran across an app known as CALORIE COUNTER, featured on Good Morning America. The app helps me to log my daily physical activity, food, and water. Each day I start with a total of 1400 calories, and log my breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks. Than, I submit a daily report amongst my supporters, which is really cool because I get positive feedback from random people who want to see me achieve my weight loss goals. 

Not only do I have a support system with calorie count, I also earn points which can be redeemed for gift cards and coupons! In addition to counting my calories, I rearranged my eating habits. I switched from eating out to cooking more, which is less expensive. Also, I traded in processed foods for more organic and nutritious items. Last but not least, I started to get back in the gym! My favorite exercise is running so I run twice a week and picked up a motor skills course at school three times a week to stay fit!

Tip: Eating sugars, salts, and fats weighs your energy level down, making the statement true, "you are what you eat"!

My belly within a 5 day period of using calorie count, now I have to get that pug down!

Spark Recipes, a healthy eatring app great for brkfast, lunch and dinner!

Some of my supporters on calorie count!

Dinner: Feta cheese and spinach stuffed chicken breast with zucinni and squash

Catching up.

I haven't made a post since the Spring! Wow! time flys!

Recently, I have been enjoying this weather, autumn is my favorite season. I have been trying to find a peace of mind with all the craziness in my beautiful life!I can't complain though I have truly been blessed. I'm in the process of a new venture, I hoping for strength and clarity. I am understanding that I must be careful about the things I say and do in the dark, they will come to light... Be back really soon with fashion trends, and more pictures!

follow me on Instagram @ Drcmd

 

 

 

Birthday girl!



Random: Autumn



Seasons change, like people



Be back soon. xo

 

Where you are and where you want to be..

"Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don't resist them - that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like."
Lao Tzu
In life, anyone who aspires to be someone analyzes their life. The good, the bad, the hurt, the lies, the joys, and the sorrows. At some point we realize our mistakes and may quickly regret them, but suddenly realize how/why it happened, the lesson of the situation. In order to go through life you have to grow through it. Lately, I've been thinking my love affair with New York has yet to die, but I can't just leave my situation. I know my capabilities but I also know my dreams are bigger than me sometimes, and everything that I want I can't get in the time I allot myself, leaving disappointments. I'm going to keep in mind my goals and take the appropriate steps to reach them, but along the way to my big dream I won't be afraid to venture out and take a chance at my life, you only live once. Like Michael Jordan said " I can accept failure, everyone fails at something,but I cannot accept not trying. STAY TUNED guys!

Happy birthday to me!!!

Yesterday was my birthday and my first birthday outside of Chicago. I had fun here in little rock, though I would've preferred the downtown Chicago lights, the big buildings, and the sound of cabs blowing their horns. I also missed the big crowd of people.. what can I say, I am a city girl! All of my family and friends were calling me, skyping me, and making me feel loved. 

My college friends were very loving and made me feel welcomed and right at home yesterday, they're from Chicago too, so they know what it's like to not be home and have to adapt to a smaller environment. I was tremendously blessed yesterday, and even though it was my birthday, I still had lessons learned and self-evaluations. My self-evaluation overall was to take more responsibility and control for my actions. I’m legally grown now and everything that I do from this point on is on me, not my mom! So, I’m prioritizing better, and making better judgments and decisions in my everyday life.

 I realized being an adult means sacrifices, so I am ready to sacrifice fun for business! My birthday taught me to enjoy yourself no matter where you are because wherever you are it's a place you are meant to be, so there is something there for you, you just have to find it and boy did I find it! Copeland's a New Orleans style restaurant in Arkansas, DELICIOUS! :) Thanks for reading see ya soon!

Tip: Make the best of your situations… “count your blessings, not your burdens”- LALA Anthony

Birthday girl!



my dinner was great!

Chicago! i miss this!!

Knowing vs. Doing...

I know have been gone for a minute, but I'm back. I've just started college, and let's just say it's definitely a transition, I like it though. I'm writing this post because lately I've been having this urge to breakdown and observe the meaning of success and how to get there. Every time I feel overwhelmed or just feel like giving up, I think about how it is so easy to give up and so challenging to succeed.

 Usually, with a big accomplishment such as getting a degree, there is a ton of work that comes behind it. I was told by a pastor a while ago, that if god wanted everything to come easy he would have done that. So, instead he made things difficult to see if his children would overcome the obstacles and learn from it. If he wanted everybody to be doctors that would've happened but the result would be there are no patients...Therefore, we are given what is meant for us. 

If you encounter a problem don't just avoid it, face it and find a way to solve it, because whether or not you face your troubles, they are still your troubles, no one can fix them for you; and no one can help you fix them if you do not want them fixed. My message here is, that if you give up you will live with regret and be a product of the slogan "i shoulda, coulda, woulda" everyone wants to be successful and feel accomplished, it feels great. So, even if you want to stop or just give up keep going an effort or attempt to do something is better than doing nothing at all and settle for less.  Every one of us are destined for greatness from the day we are conceived BUT it is up to us to excel.  We all know what is right, but sometimes we all do things that are not in our best interest at times.

Tip: strive for excellence and it shall be achieved. DONT STOP DONT QUIT, the harder things are the closer you are to a breakthrough.

The Finale

"Some people are put in your life for a season and some are placed there for a lifetime" Yesterday a close and positive friend said this to me. It was ironic because he always tells me things that can benefit my life at that moment or in the near future. (it's great to have those type of people around). Recently, I have been dealing with the type of person you have to prepare yourself to be around that person who always throws off a negative vibe, but gets real friendly when they want something... *we all know somebody like that* I'm a humble person and I extend my hand to anyone in need, I'm also the type of person who lives up to their expectations and agreements, therefore if I tell you I will do something I mean it, but at the same time I'm expecting you to live up to your end of the deal.

In life people will try to get over on you, making promises that they know will be broken, and giving people false hope; but that's only if you let them! I refuse to place myself in a situation where I am everything but happy, and where I feel taken advantage of. people need to have more respect for other people's time and life! when u are dealing with "sometimes maybe" people ( people who are happy sometimes, and u have to guess their mood) my best advice is to distance yourself, after that person shows their true colors once or you feel tension just disconnect yourself. life is to short to waste your time arguing, sitting on edge, or even worrying about whether people will do what they said or not. There comes a point in every insincere association when everything comes to an end, and its  called a FINALE!

Tip: if you have to adjust your mood to deal with someone you should not deal with them at all!