Feature Fridays: Dani Holmes-Kirk

Happy Friday Fitness Friends!  I hope that you are having an awesome week and you have been making your health and fitness a priority in your life!  Today's Feature Friday is from Dani who blogs at Weight Off My Shoulders, and she is sharing her personal and inspiring story with us today.  She has been able to overcome many obstacles and find her happy healthy self with the help of running and Weight Watchers.  She also just completed the Boston Marathon, way to go girl!  After you read her story be sure to check out her blog and follow her on her social media sites.  

Dani's Story:

When picturing myself as a child, I think of a little dirty blonde haired girl with a little belly. I can flash forward to seventh grade and being "MOO-ed" at while waiting for the bus near my house. Speaking of the bus, I can channel the sadness when the seniors would snicker at my weight.

All of the negative moments planted little moments in my head, which spawned a lifetime of self-doubt, poor self-image and depression. It festered and resulted in eating disorders (both bulimia and anorexia), cutting, previously mentioned depression and ballooning to a weight of 235 (maybe even higher - I stopped getting on the scale).

In 2009, I decided it was enough and time for a change. I wanted to lose weight, but in a healthy and controlled manner. I knew there had to be a way for me to do that. Enter Weight Watchers. I went to my first WW meeting on November 2, 2009 and weighed in at 217.4. Well at least I wasn't at my highest anymore. But on that day, I swore to myself I would never see the 200s again.

Weight Watchers taught me how to change my life both physically and mentally. I learned that there is more to weight loss than what you put in your mouth. With the help of Weight Watchers, I shed 64 pounds and hit my goal weight in January 2012. 

Along the way I shed pounds, but gained confidence, happiness, an active life and a new passion for running.

I had started running in 2005 as a way to lose weight and from January 2005 to September 2006 I ran 5ks, 10ks, a half marathon and a full marathon, but breaking up with running for over four years. 

But after suffering a herniated disc and undergoing back surgery (a microdiscectomy) in January 2011, I fell back in love with the sport when I was cleared to regain activity in June 2011. Since then I have run countless 5ks, 15 half marathons and 4 marathons (including 2 Boston Marathons). 

In addition, I took on the biggest fitness goal of my life in January 2014 - completing the Dopey Challenge in Disney World. The Dopey Challenge was 4 races in 4 days for 48.6 miles - 5k, 10k, Half Marathon and Full Marathon. It was one of the proudest moments of my life.

Without Weight Watchers and my healthy living journey, I wouldn't have had the confidence to even attempt something like the Dopey Challenge. 

There are times when I struggle, but I think back to why I started and look at my foot where I have my mantra tattooed: "Finish What You Started!" 

For others who have hit goals and are trying to maintain, here are my top 5 tips:

1) Find challenges that motivate you - either online through social media or at your local gym

2) Keep a healthy-balanced diet in mind

3) Drink plenty of water

4) Use a race or another fitness goal to keep you active

5) Find a support system that will be there through the ups and downs of maintenance

Connect with Dani:

Blog

Twitter

Facebook

Instagram

Youtube

Pinterest

Google+

Tumblr

Thanks so much to Dani who shared her amazing story with us today!  I love that she has her mantra tattooed on her foot, how cool is that!  She proves that you can overcome the past you and the self doubt and become the person you want to be and create the life you want to live.  If you have a story you would like to share for feature Fridays, please send me an e-mail.  Put your heart and soul into living your best life! 

Feature Fridays: Rebecca Pytell

Happy Friday!  I hope that you are having a wonderful week, and making the time for health and fitness in your day.  Today's Feature Friday is from Rebecca Pytell, who is the blogger behind Strength and Sunshine, and like myself she found her love of strength training at a young age.  She shares with us how fitness and yoga helped to get her out of a dark time in her life.  Read on to hear more about Rebecca, then make sure to head over and check out her awesome blog.

Rebecca's story
I had been a competitive dancer for 13 years of my life.  The only thing I knew was dance, eat, sleep.  But once I got to high school I finally made the most difficult decision that was facing me and decided to finally stop and end my career.  After years of emotional abuse and treatment plus the extreme financial strain on my family, I knew I could not go on any longer with dance.  I needed to focus on my studies and ease the strain I had put on my parents for all those years.  But ending what was my life as I knew it did not make me feel happy or free.  I fell into a deep depression the summer before high school and rarely left the house, cried all the time and needed control.  I was also plagued by with the question of what I would do to get my fitness in.  I had never done any other sport or exercise besides dance, twirling and Pilates.

I needed something to escape in and allow me to enjoy moving my body like I always had.  I decided to join a gym and start strength training.  I had always wanted to and now this was my chance.  To my surprise, I quickly fell in love.  Lifting weights made me feel so powerful and I started to gain my confidence back and see the light out of the tunnel.  Losing myself with the barbells and dumbbells was perfect for me and I couldn't get enough.  As my love for fitness grew I also became an avid healthy living blog reader.  I loved connecting and reading with all the wonderful, strong, and inspiring bloggers out there.  So eventually, last summer, I decided to finally take the leap and start my own healthy living blog.  I now get to share my passion for fitness, food and healthy living with the community I fell in love with.

But during that time I also discovered the beauty of yoga.  Yoga is the number one thing that has changed my life the most.  After two years of self-practice, I have discovered such a love and confidence in myself.  I use yoga as a way to combat my anxiety and depression that still creeps into my life.  But I also use it as my new favorite form of fitness.  A strong powerful Vinyasa flow gets the heart pumping and the muscles working.  I have never felt bad after a yoga practice.  I only ever felt energized, alive, and at peace once I step off the mat.  Fitness is so important for everyone.  It really is a magical activity.  No matter what you do, make sure you love it and move your body everyday.  You will increase your confidence and self-love ten fold!

 

About Rebecca

Rebecca is a healthy living/fitness/food blogger at Strength and Sunshine.  She is currently a high school senior who will be going off to college in the fall.  She is looking into getting her 200 hour yoga teacher certification this summer as well so she can share her love of yoga with everyone.  Rebecca is also the social media manager as well as being an ambassador for Plant Fusion.  Through her blog she is also a new FitFluential Ambassdor, IDEA inspired blogger, Sweat Pink, Girls Gone Sporty, and MyYogaPro Ambassador.  She also writes for Pop Sugar Fitness and is a member of Recipe Redux.  Rebecca has Celiac disease and shares her recipes with her readers to show them that having a special diet does not mean restriction or lack of taste! 

Connect with Rebecca

Blog

Facebook

Twitter 

Instagram

Pinterest

Google+

Bloglovin

Thanks to Rebecca for sharing her story of how fitness and yoga truly changed her life.  I look forward to reading more from her in the future!  She is a bright young girl with a great future ahead of her!  Wishing you all the best in college Rebecca!

Feature Fridays: Kalee Sorey

Happy Friday!  The sun is shining here and it is finally warming up a tad...dare I say Spring is on the way?!?  Today's feature Fridays is some Kalee Sorey, who found her strength and self confidence through healthy living.  She loves sharing her passion for health and fitness through her blog and her Facebook community.  Make sure to stop by and check out her blog and Facebook page, you are sure to be inspired! Healthy living can truly change your life and Kalee is a true example of this!

Her Story: 

Standing outside of the classroom, waiting in line, another girl's mother told me I was heavy. I don't remember why or what context she said it; I just remember it hurt. At 10 years old, I knew nothing about food, exercise, or weight really, and I had no idea why I didn't look like the other little girls.   

My mom was always so supportive and kind. She consistently set a healthy example in our house. We ate pretty healthy, especially for growing up in the South, and she always made sure we were playing and staying active. She also did workout tapes and was just a really great role model. She always made sure that I knew I was valued, pretty, and special even on the tough days when I didn't feel any of that at school. 

By high school, I had naturally slimmed down, but I wanted to learn more about my food. My mom and I started sharing a passion for our health and nutrition. We started eating clean 90% of the time, and we never counted calories. The other 10% of our diet was reserved for anything special (aka junky) we wanted. It could be a birthday party, date night, or even a Snickers bar on grocery day. Having that freedom and knowing I was fueling my body correctly most of the time gave me a whole new sense of confidence. I finally felt strong and cared more about nutrition than the outcomes of a "diet" which a lot of my friends were doing.

After adjusting to college for a semester, I was able to get back on track and eating just a balanced diet again. I also added in exercise. That's when I found ChaLEAN Extreme. A friend had recommended it to me, and I bought it and the brand new heavy weights. I fell in love with the power and strength that lifting gave me. Plus the workouts were short, challenging, but doable which empowered me.

Four months later, I added in HIIT workouts from TurboFire, and I got to my happy weight. There is nothing like getting into a healthy routine, feeling confident in your skin, and inspiring others, and that is why I continue to live a healthy lifestyle above any other reasons.

Tips for Living a Healthy Lifestyle

• It's really important for me to remember I'm living a healthy life; therefore, if I totally blow it one day - it's okay. For me, it's not about one really great day, week , or month of eating perfectly clean or exercising like a madwoman. As long as I am consistent with my healthy habits most of the time and staying true to my goals, I know that is enough. Living healthy should be something that empowers you - not brings you down or makes you critique yourself.
• Meal Planning helps me stay focused and organized through the week. I love knowing what to pick up at the grocery, what I will be eating at each meal, and how much prep-time is required every day. Plus, having a meal plan keeps me from getting hungry in between meals or skipping a meal.
• Allowing for a little wiggle room every week helps me stay focused the rest of the week. On a date night or special occasion, I don't track my calories or worry about what I am eating. Having the freedom to just enjoy the meal and company is something I stay focused on and excited about all week.
• Last, but not least - I surround myself with positive, goal-oriented people. If you are around enablers or negative people, it is going to bring you down and make reaching your goals that much harder. By surrounding myself with positive people, I am more confident and happy. If you don't have a local group of healthy friends, follow blogs, reach out to people on social media, or join a  healthy accountability group online. Seeing people's progress and inspirational posts in the morning gets my day started right.

About Kalee
After graduating college with a Marketing & Finance degree and teaching high school for a year, I decided to follow my passion of health and fitness. I'm now 25, a full-time Beachbody coach and full-time blogger. I'm engaged and am so excited to get married this June. I follow a mindset of "building a healthy body and balanced life" that way I know I'm living healthy, but I also allow for a little indulgence here and there. I love strength and HIIT workouts, easy healthy recipes, Quest bars and an occasional cupcake.  My blog is www.soreyfitness.com, and I'd love to get to know you better on Facebook too!

Connect with Kalee:
Facebook
Pinterest
Instagram

Thanks so much to Kalee for sharing her story of creating the life she wanted and sharing her love of health and fitness!  You are an inspiration to many!

Have a healthy and fit day, 

Angelena 

P.S. Stay tuned for a giveaway starting soon!

Feature Fridays: Alyson Gelinas

Feature Fridays: Alyson Gelinas

Today's story comes from Alyson Gelinas and it is truly inspiring!  Alyson decided to take control of her life and her weight.  She stayed positive and believed in herself, read on to hear how awesome she is!

Her story and why she wanted to make the change to live healthy:
     All my life, I have been overweight.  The extra weight had not only carried an extra burden physically, but had become a wall to hide behind.  Growing up, food was not only a means for living, but also a means for celebrating.  I am a part of a big Portuguese family, where "get togethers", consisted of enough courses of food to feed a small community.  I learned to associate food from my culture with family traditions and good times.  Not only was I attributing good food to good memories, but I was learning to associate eating with my other emotions and actions as well.  If I had a bad day at school, my eating habits would reflect on that.  It got to the point where I was not even aware of what I was eating.  I attributed my intense emotions- whether I was extremely happy or sad- to a food reward.
     I can't say that there was a specific turning point in which I had realized that I was rapidly gaining weight in the years following my high school graduation.  I can remember back before joining Weight Watchers that I had a conversation with my doctor about the health risks attributed with being over weight and the risks I specifically was exposed to due to my family medical history of high blood pressure, heart problems and diabetes.
     I realized that if I wanted to do this and succeed, I had to do it for myself.  No matter how many times someone told me I could do it, I had to believe in myself and want to do it for myself.  After taking the plunge and joining Weight Watchers, I started to realize that even though I may not have had some things in common with some of the members, we all had one thing in common- we wanted to make a change.  Whether that change be to lose a few pounds, learn to eat healthier, or both, we were all there for a common reason.  We shared a unifying bond.
     Once I began to see and feel some of the changes caused by losing weight and attending the meetings, it began to "click" with me.  I began to see my eating habits in a different way, and I finally started seeing the light at the end of my weight struggle tunnel.  The amount of support I have been given through Weight Watchers has not only helped me see my goals more clearly, but it has given me the self-confidence to continue my journey and realize that I am worth it.  I have lost 116 pounds so far, and I know this is only the beginning of a beautiful lifestyle change.

How she did it:
     I joined Weight Watchers and attended the weekly meetings.  I am a firm believer that the positivity and motivation of others can help you with your own personal goals.

How she keeps it off and maintains the healthy lifestyle:
The weekly Weight Watcher meetings are really helping me to keep it off.  Even if I have a feeling that it's going to be a gain, or I've had a bad week, I still go, weigh in, and accept the positive or negative consequences.  If I avoided the scale and my meeting every time I gained, it would be much easier for me to gain more than what I actually do.  These tools keep me accountable.

Some of her tips:
    Think about your ultimate goal, but really focus on mini-goals.  I knew I was going to have a lot of weight to lose.  In the beginning, I really focused on losing five pounds at a time.  That way, it didn't seem so overwhelming and unattainable.
     Even though the scale is important to my weight loss, it's not everything!  Other victories, such as activity victories (increasing your running time, being able to make it through an entire group fitness class without a break, etc) or what I call "body image" victories (dropping a pant size or fitting into a smaller size) are just as important!  Be proud of what you can accomplish outside of weight loss.

About Alyson
My name is Alyson, I am 23 years old and a college graduate.  I have lost 116 pounds on the Weight Watchers program.  I enjoy running, Zumba, Quest bars, and snuggling with my dog.  I am a teacher and a lover of helping others achieve their goals.  "Without struggle, there is no progress."

Find out more about Alyson and her journey here:
Website
Instagram
Twitter

I want to thank Alyson for sharing her fantastic weight loss story with us.  She is an inspiration and truly encompasses the passion for believing in yourself and achieving any thing you set your mind to!
Have a healthy and fit day,
Angelena
     
 

Feature Fridays: Rachel Miller

I am so excited for the first installment in my Feature Fridays segment.  I reached out and have received an amazing response, I have stories scheduled until the end of March.  I am so excited to read and share each one of these inspirational and motivational stories, especially as since I have my own story.  I have always loved reading others success stories it makes me know that I am not alone!  Today's story comes from Rachel Miller at Undercover Diva: A sitcom.  Read on to hear how she changed her life through exercise and nutrition!

Feature Fridays: Rachel Miller

For most of my young adulthood, I had been overweight.  At the encouragement of my Pilates teacher in the Spring of 2011 semester, I began to track my calories and exercise using My Fitness Pal.com (they also have a mobile app, both are free).  Let me tell you, counting calories is an eye-opener.  It really introduced portion control, which I think is more important than what you actually eat.  I still eat pizza, ice cream and all those delicious sweets I just allot calories for those treats.  It is also important to understand that you don't need to be perfect in your calorie counting everyday; as long as you have a deficit of 2,500 calories at the end of the week, you will lose 1 pound a week (My Fitness Pal calculates your deficit for you).

Initially I set my goal for 15 pounds that I wanted to lose.  The first 10 pounds or so come off quickly (more if you're heavier) because this is all water weight.  When I got to 15 pounds lost, I loved what I was seeing so I tried for 5 more pounds.  Then I tried for 10 more pounds.  When I did it I was ECSTATIC!  I am now maintaining that weight by running, eating well and strength training twice a week.

I eat a vegetarian diet, and I believe that has helped me maintain my healthy lifestyle and has changed my mindset towards food.  I now truly view food as fuel and try to fuel myself with as many whole foods as possible, although I do enjoy my treats.  Healthy living is an ongoing process and a constant learning experience.  I have seen the health problems associated with not eating or living well, and would like to avoid those if at all possible.

Rachel: Before and after her journey

 A special Thank You! goes out to Rachel for being my first Feature Friday Reader story.  She has a wonderful story to share and great tips too!  Check out her blog Under Cover Diva: A sitcom to see what she is up to in her journey.

I also want to give a shout out to my friend and graphic designer Laura Schmeisl for designing my Feature Fridays logo.  You can check out her work at Laura-Schmeisl.com.

It's Okay to Fail and Start Over!

 

Well, after a few months of being away I am back to blogging.  Why was I away so long you might ask?  There is not really one good answer, more like lots of little excuses.  Mainly, I was putting unnecessary pressure on myself to grow as fast as possible and do as many things as I could to promote my blog and when I started getting rejections to things, I decided to take a break.  Last night I was watching last weeks Biggest Loser (on my DVR), and they were talking about failing and how it is okay to fail as long as you pick your self up, learn something and move on.  Apollo Ono, the Olympic Athlete, was talking to the contestants and said something that hit home, "Everyone has their struggles."  And how very true this is.  There were also 3 women who had been trying to make it to Olympic trials in curling and kept failing to make it year after year, and just when they felt like giving up, they gave it one more try and made it.  So if you quit, you will never know what is out there right around the corner.  I took something that I enjoy doing, writing about health and fitness, and put stress on myself to succeed.  When I started to get rejections to things I was applying for it hurt, and I let it take over that love.  I am getting back to my blog because I truly enjoy writing and I hope that in some way, I help others find motivation, or a love for healthy living.  I hope that you will continue on this journey with me.  This time I will keep moving forward, even when I stumble.  Have you allowed failures or struggles to stop you from doing things in your life?  How have you over come them?

I am starting a new segment called "Feature Fridays".  I am looking for people who have changed their lives through eating healthy and exercise.  I will feature someone every Friday that I receive a submission.  I am going to put the word out there an I hope to start getting submissions soon.  It is helpful to read about others who have changed their lives through the power of healthy living.  If you have a story you would like to share, please send me an email.

In 2014, I am working on cleaning up my eating, as I was not so careful around the holidays and developed quite the sugar habit.  I am trying to take out processed foods and white carbs.  I have also eliminated gluten, due to the fact that I think I have a sensitivity to foods that contain gluten (more on that later.)  I don't really make resolutions for myself, I just take the time to reassess what I need to do to get back to my healthy lifestyle so I can feel my best.  I realized how horrible I was feeling when I was eating too much junk and not enough whole, real, nutrient dense food.  Do you have areas that you are working on improve?

Thanks for stopping in and reading!  I would love to hear from you!  I will be back a few times a week with some great info and topics that I would love to share.  Have a healthy and fit day!
I want to dedicate today's post to my loving hubby and my mom who both support me so much and have been telling me to not give up on my blog.  I love you both so much!
~Angelena