The Pre

My all time favorite supplement is by far a great pre-workout! Post hysterectomy energy is something I struggle with greatly. I can't rock through a workout on a cup of coffee anymore. I have tried a lot of them, so I tried to touch on a little bit of everything in reviewing them.  Pre-workouts are similar to the fat burners in, it's about knowing your body and what it can handle. Don't ever skip to the max dosage without trying out a smaller dose first. Like in my last post- smelling sounds is not a good experience and vomiting in the middle of leg day can be unproductive!

So here we go:

1. I bought this awhile back on a recommendation from a salesman at GNC that insisted this was top notch! Their top of the line women's supplement with ton's of excellent feedback on pump results...WRONG..NEGATIVE GHOST RIDER!!!! I got about 10 minutes of sweat out of it, could have sat in the sauna and achieved the same results!

2. Another product marketed and priced for "women". It was okay, yes that is all I have. I have had far worse and the taste was manageable if you are new to this whole pre-workout game this is a okay starter. You could also try the ASSULT it is a few bucks cheaper on the fact that it isn't marketed towards chicks!

3. I did a round of this because I see so many people rave about it. It's probably also a good starter drink. I double scoop to get the results I need. Occasionally I get a headache at the crash but nothing that hangs around for long.

4. The store I get my favorite from was out and recommended I try this.  I don't get a tingle (which I love) off of this product and I have learned the hard way it is not a friend of anything cardio related. Twice I have almost up-chucked during HIIT or LEGS. BUT as far as a regular lifting day, it makes me want to do the HULK SMASH! My better have had to drag me out of the gym. It is usually the other way around I could have threw weights all day long.

5. Of course I saved the best for last. I have not tried the BULK in their product but I have the other two. Blackmarket Labs IMO makes the best most well rounded product on the block. They make sure you get a surge to every area you need it. No crazy crash either! Once a month they launch a new limited addition flavor and none that I have tried have disappointed me. I recommend it to a lot of people and haven't once got an "I hate this" response.

Quick note on Supplement Cost. If you are digging this deep into using supplements you are probably noticing it's not a cheap ordeal. At the end of the day, you get what you pay for. Do your homework before you buy a random cheapy product! 

Burn it up!

Fat Burners

Something I get asked about alot! Normally I don't take them. I am super sensitive to niacin in vitamin form. Which most fat burners and thermogenics have in them. Too much of it and I get flu like symptoms and a big fat anxiety attack! Every now and then I get brave enough to try one when I need a pick me up or a jump start. Usually I just try and control my diet but that isn't always a great success in my world! Here are a couple I have recently tried. We end up with alot of samples at my house because my lovely husband spends so much time in the supp shop they are always throwing stuff at us to try!

1. White China- HORRIBLE experience! Ended up trashing the rest of the bottle. I could smell sounds people! That and it resulted in several mad dashes to the bathroom!

2. CLA Core- not extreme energy here. No reaction what so ever, could probably be safe taking it with a pre-workout or coffee!

3. 360Cut-  Pretty decent product. Not over the top, I can take one with coffee and be ok or two if I am just drinking water. No jitters, no crash, no extreme adrenaline rush.

Refresh (Detox) Review!

Detoxing is one of those things that people always wonder about but no one wants to really talk about! I feel there is nothing wrong with a good detox every now and then to get you back on track or jumpstart you onto a new journey. I have tried lots of other products for detoxing.

The good, the harsh, and the... don't leave the bathroom types! I also hate to refer someone to a product I haven't myself tried. I want to be able to give actual feedback not just google search reviews.

As far as this product goes: I got the refresh without ShakeO. I have my own protein powder that I am partial to. I am not dogging people who love it. I have lots of friends who adore it!
I am a picky protein girl, taste and texture wise!

It comes with a really good guide to follow and answer a lot of the questions I had. I started on a Friday which was probably now the greatest time for me. I should have done Sunday-Tuesday.

The hardest part was the no junk loaded coffee. Day one was my clean out the system day. After that there was no excessive potty stops :) The fiber is something you need to chug it's not created to be a yummy treat. It also makes you appreciate the Vanilla Shake you are going to have for lunch! Drink lots of water. I also lifted every one of these days with a significant drop in strength due to lower calorie intake. I did still take my Pre-workout because there would be no walking out the door at 5 am without it. All and all it was a really good product and I dropped close to 3 inchs off the waist which was exactly where I needed to recover from the first few crazy weeks of school junk/stress!
 Happy Chasing H

August Resolutions!

-I will say this is a long one. I tried to address some of the questions I have been getting along with my blog topic at hand! 

If you are a mom, especially a SAHM with school age kids, then you know August resolutions are almost as popular as New Year's resolutions. If you don't have kids then you are reading this thinking this lady is batty! Why you may ask? 

Well summer break is over. The children are back in school and you have possibly more than 5 minutes a day to think about yourself. Instead of the crazy mecca of camps, vacations, sleepovers and pool parties! 

I started my "stop hating me" journey Brody's first day of kindergarten. He is going into the 3rd grade this year and I might be having a panic attack as I type that. I keep getting a lot of "I wish I had your dedication" comments lately. Well let me tell you it isn't always that way. I am human, just like you and I make mistakes and fall flat on my face. I am probably not someone you should put at the top of your people to imitate list. ha ha

The one thing I can tell you is that once I got the weight off, I knew I never wanted to go back to that feeling. It's not just the amazing feeling that overwhelms you when someone tells you how fabulous you look. It's when you pass your reflection in a mirror and you don't automatically look away. Now I am not saying stand there all damn day and have a love fest either! It's called being comfortable in your skin, once you reach it you would do anything to not give it up. Am I satisfied in my skin, absolutely NOT! That is what fuels my drive to achieve better. Not just in my appearance (yes I hear you calling me vain) but me as a person inside and out. To learn to judge less, uplift more!  Not just in other's but with myself also. As women most of the time we are our own worst enemies! Which sets us up for immediate failure. It is ok to pat yourself on the back. For all the victories large and small!

If you read past blogs I am pretty sure at least 10+ times I have said " I will never be in love with fitness, I will never be the girl who likes to work out" HA well guess who went and fell in love! It really is an addiction. It's a mood changer for me, I can be in the shittiest mood and go to the gym sweat it all out and leave it alone. I don't like the whole "strong is the new skinny" quote but getting strong and pushing your body to do things your mind says you can not do, and then 3 months later you can do it with no struggle. It's an endorphin high I am not giving up. Might as well find me a support group :)

  Do I think that everyone should work out like I do? 

No! Fitness is a very big word. There are vast amounts of ways to be healthy and fit. It comes in all shapes and sizes. I think everyone should test out the waters and see where you belong. 

If the number on your scale is what matters most, find a high cardio exercise. 

(Zumba,biking, running, machine cardio, spinning, swimming)

If transforming your body is what matters most, find some weights!(If you don't have a gym then look into home workout programs: Tapout, p90x, insanity, etc.)

Even if you choose to mix the two, if you are losing weight try out 30 minutes of cardio on top of a weight session. Women tend to freak the F out when we don't drop weight and are spending hours in the gym.

To my endo-sisters: Is working out post hysterectomy more difficult?
That's kind of tough to answer. I didn't to a whole lot of working out pre-hyster. It was super painful to do anything that strained my abdominal region. Some days the fatigue is harder to deal with. I artificially generate it on those days. It is much easier to push past now-a-days. If you are in the middle of a flare there is no pushing past anything but the heating pad and a bottle of Demerol! I DO NOT MISS THAT AT ALL!

What do you use for Supplements?
For me, if I don't keep it simple I will never follow through with it. Going into a supplement store can be overwhelming. The sales people will convince you into a ton of things that are probably going to do something for you other than damage the balance in your savings account. However, I want to keep it as simple as I can. I am a busy mom I don't have time to track pills and drinks 10 times a day!
My stack consist of a protein, pre-workout, amino options, and a multi-vitamin! I may dabble in this or that every now and then but this is what I stick to! Keep in mind this is what I use for MY goals right now. No weight loss! No "diet"
I like OPTI-WOMEN multivitamins they are not harsh to take and won't kill me if I don't eat right away after taking them.
I have to Proteins here: The Combat- is really Bryan's but I use it occasionally. I prefer the ISO it digest easier and let's face it, it's the best tasting powder I have EVER tried! I pretty much let my hubbs pick my protein and I decide on the flavor but if MGN American ISO in Apple Crumb Pie is ever in stock BUY IT PEOPLE!!
Amino aka BCAA's  I have several options for these depending on when I take them. The Musclepharm I usually drink while working out. The orange bottle has caffeine in it so I don't mix it with my pre-workout. I use it more in 2 a day's or an afternoon pick me up. The chews are for on the go times!
Saved the best for last. Pre-workout
Pictured is adrenHERlyn CUTS by Blackmarket Labs. Hands down the best I have ever tried in a pre-workout. It makes me sad when I cycle off it. I am so sensitive to stuff like this yet, somehow this product give you that WAHOO itchy wonderful pump without the side effects I get from others like it afterwards. I have even had some give me an anxiety attack. Not this when it's gone it's gone and no nasty habits left behind.

Do I think using a food program is cheating?

This is a loaded question! So I will do my best to answer it in MY OPINION!

I can't say I disagree with them, I used one to dynamically jump start my journey. That being said, let it be your guide to learn to do better. You can NOT quit it and go back to life as usual. There are more programs out there than I have fingers and toes. I won't tell you one is any better than the other. Find something you like, taste and financially! I had no problem at all adapting to a meal replacement plan, some people do. I used to to teach myself how to fit the proper calories into my day. I think of it as "the patch" it helped ween me off my smack (junk food) and when I didn't need it anymore I quit using it. I am not a cold turkey type of person. I know that about myself! Whatever you do, make sure you are eating enough. Seriously, nothing will halt your results like in-taking under 1,200 calories a day. If you are over 150lbs I suggest upping your minimum to the 1,350-1,450 range. Yes I know things like MFP isn't going to agree with that but I am speaking from personal experience here! 

Whether you're drinking a shake,calling Jenny, guzzling a pink drink or wrapping it up. Be prepared to take flack for it. Like I said fitness is a big word and it has lots of different approaches and opinions behind it. If it works for you and you like it and your not actually damaging your body beyond repair go for it. Also, be prepared that not everyone will want to do it with you. Don't hound people to be on your bandwagon, let them hitch a ride on free will!

So onto goal setting. 

•  Set reasonable goals in a reasonable time span! My goals I am setting are about a 12 week range. 
• Find a friend with similar goals to share with. I can promise this will make a difference in your results. It is also someone to keep going when you want to give up and vise versa.
• Try to set personal goals along with physical ones. Inner you needs to be as beautiful as outer you!
• Set up a reward system that does not involve food. To the person who taught me this, my shoe/workout clothes appreciate you. My checkbook not so much! Granted a double cheeseburger is a lot cheaper than new heels but you are not a dog, you do not need rewarded with a beggin strip!

I hope that answers some of the things I have been in-boxed. It seriously flatters and amazes me that people actually want my opinion on this stuff!
You all inspire me! Now I am off to put some serious thought into my goals. Make your self a road map of how you are going to hit it. If I wake up tomorrow and decide I am going to New York, never been there and I am not using GPS. It is going to take me twice as long! Don't take on becoming healthy without your GPS. It's 2014 use your computer and if that doesn't work chances are there is an APP for it!

What are your new goals?

HAPPY CHASING
H

Eat clean, Train EH?

One week down of cleaning up my diet. I had a few "dirty" moments this week but for the most part I did rather well. Wednesday was the biggest test of all. I work at an elementary school, which is the worlds largest cesspool of junk food you will ever see. This week brought on a birthday party, with chips and salsa and cupcakes from my favorite bakery. That is just the tip of the ice berg! You name it and it was probably in there. The last time we had one of these I dove straight into the sea of chocolate and rowed right up the river of denial. Denying that it was going to affect me at all!  This go round I managed to only slip into the wading pool aka some whole wheat crackers and cheese. I took fruit and pb to hopefully aid in my sweet tooth getting the best of me and it did!

I actually made it all week on regular ice tea. It's hasn't been too terrible either. My only other major slip was alcohol. I don't get out that often and I had a girls trip to the Thunder game. I stuck to vodka to keep the empty calories as low as possible. So while I woke up feeling like poo, I didn't have to hate myself at the same time. 

I don't think there is an easy way to just cold turkey into the perfect diet. Unless you have someone prepping and planning for you I think it is a giant trial and error ordeal. I now know while I ate clean all week I need to tweak my type of carbs and proteins. I was dead tired when it came to my workouts. This was also a week where my other half left out for a long hitch so my sleep patterns have been very sporadic. I am going to switch it up this week to see if it helps. 

 Which brings me to the topic of supplements! It's a edgy subject in the fit world. Some do and some don't and the in-between people like me get pulled on like a tug rope! I am posting a picture of my stack below. That being said, sometimes I use them all and sometimes I don't. I use a pre-workout when I know I don't have it in me to give my best. Remembering I am in surgical induced pre-menopause. Some days my body thinks it is 29 and some days it thinks it's 92! On the 92 days I need the umph! I have tried tons on the market. Some days I like the pump and some days I like the sweat. Just depends on what I am working and my mental/physical state that day. I take a vitapak almost everyday. My newest supplement is Amino support. I have done a lot of reading on amino's and the uber helpful guy at ASN in OKC recommended the MusclePharm Amino's. I also have protein for shakes. I mostly use them for days when my diet is lacking or an after workout recovery. Taste is at the top of my important list for protein. If it is nasty in taste, I can't force it down. Cinnamon Bun Combat Powder is FABULOUS! I also like the combat because it has casein in it, which is a slow release protein so it last in your system longer. I have tried just regular casein before bed and it all taste so horrible I spend the next two hours gagging instead of sleeping. So combat works great for my needs right now. 

I no longer use protein shake to replace meals but I have before don't get me wrong. It is about knowing what you want out of your goals. I am not in "weight loss mode" anymore. In fact it has almost been a month since I stepped on the scale (I have stepped on one, I just didn't look. I let the trainer look to figure my BMI & BF%) That has been tough. I had become so obsessed with the number that I lost site of the fact that my body shape is the goal not a number in a box. Below is my starting stats. Trying not to have a panic attack over those thigh measurements. EEK! Squatting does a body good right?

Happy Chasing Readers!

H

Who said the "F" word?

Let's talk about the worst word in the English language. The "F" word, and by that I mean FAT! The word every woman despises and the word that bites like a bullet to the heart when thrown at you!
If you haven't ever read my blog before let me help you out so you aren't reading back 45 post for this to make sense. I used to be a Fluffy girl, I am 5'6" on a good day and my heaviest non prego ranged in upwards of 200 lbs. My scales went up and down frequently through the past 11 years until August of 2011 when I decided I had enough of hating myself. Ta-Da that pretty much brings us to today. I by NO means consider my self fit or even toned. I am a skinny work in progress! Pics on the left are that day in August and pics on the right are me 21 weeks post 95% Hysterectomy due to Endometriosis

 Now I didn't start this post to toot my own horn. If you know me you would know there is very little tooting in my world. I like most every woman on planet earth have terrible self esteem/self image! I started writing this because it is the diet industries "HUNTING" season. Every where you go there is an ad, commercial, or some person trying to shove their idea of the quick fix down your throat. So, I wanted to share some of my miraculous in sites into this.
A. There are a million different products out there that will help you get to where you want to be. The only thing I wouldn't recommend is a quick fix pill. Their are shakes, oatmeals, cereals,drinks, frozen this and that, coffee's, teas, the list goes on and on and probably 8 out of 10 of them will work....IF YOU WORK WITH IT! In other words, be consistent. Find something that taste good,doesn't make you feel lousy and doesn't break the bank. If it is nasty and gives you the jitters you won't make it past February 1st neither will your checking account!
B. Don't let someone talk you into something because it worked for them. Every body is different for everybody! Speak to someone who knows what they are talking about if you have questions about calorie and protein intake. GOOGLE AND MY FITNESS PAL ARE NOT A VALID SOURCE OF INFORMATION!
C. Know your own level of dedication. For instance: When I started if you told me I had to go to a gym 5 to 6 days a week I never would have followed through. Some people can cold turkey the couch life and some can not. I was a total NOT. Now that being said I can totally do that now, but I have learned enough to know what I can and can not do. What works for me and what doesn't. If I want to indulge in the Holiday yummies I am going to sweat it out and the gym! I didn't have that much self control when I started. Body by Vi worked great for me, it gave me options but in a spectrum I could handle. Now if you can jump off the couch and cold turkey off junk and booze and bread well GOOD FOR YOU, You are way better than me!

Moral of the story is, don't set out to lose weight. Set out to get healthy, you will lose those pounds in the process and end up in a much happier place for it. Don't believe something is a miracle because the only thing that is going to save you is you! You don't have to stick to one companies product line! Mixing and Matching is great for me. I use 3 different kinds of Protein powder. I have used assorted metab. boosters, pre-workouts, and vitamins. (P.S. take your vitamins) If you love Herbalife tea, but prefer something else from Plexus or advocare or BBVI or shakeology or.. see this could go on forever then by all means take it! Last but certainly not least. DO NOT wait until January 1st. Be aware of what you are eating and the physical activity you have right now. Of course we are going to over-do it for Christmas dinner. Just don't pack on an extra 40 lbs between now and then! If you are serious about getting into those smaller pants than be serious right now not just next week.

Happy Holiday's Fitfam
Remember the reason for the season and to spend time with your loved ones.
Becoming a healthy-happy you will give you much more time here with them!

The 90 Day Challenge .. Start

If you know myself or my husband you know we rarely jump into anything we haven't extensively researched. So after much debate and a self esteem crashing trip to a plastic surgeon, I have enrolled in the Body by Vi Challenge through Visalus( www.haileyd.bodybyvi.com for more info). So I am gonna blog my way through my 90 days of challenge. With a goal set in mind of plunging into the rest of their opportunities if I believe in there products. Bryan has a family member who is involved and sounds like her and her husband rock the networking $$ aspect of this company. I am not much of a network marketer myself so I did some digging into this company and they are at the top of their game as far as their types of business go.

So against my better judgement.. I am going all out with the photos and weight specs here ( which I am sure I will regret later ugh) but that way at least you know this is an honest review/effort on my part. I will tell you I did the special K challenge.. lost the inch .. have kept it off but I grew really sick of eating cereal so I gave up.  I despise the way all those shakes you can get at walmart taste. They remind me of that chalky crap you have to drink before scopes EEK YUCK!! I am also a foody, I love to cook almost as much as I love to eat!I am not even gonna lie and say that a good Ole adderal or phentermine would do the trick but if you have been down this road you know it always comes back to bite you in the butt.. literally! Plus I have endometriosis so any of those medication that make you all hyped up contain a lot of caffeine which boost estrogen which leaves me in great pain at the end of the day. Not to mention they cause kidney stones!! Found that out the hard way too! My endometriosis is a large pain in the @** and my doctor has repeatidly told me "that fact that you can maintain a weight is a great thing Hailey" but that's just not good enough for me anymore. I wanna be healthier, I think I might be the only female left in my family not on blood pressure or hypertension medication.So I am seriously terrified of health issues to come.

So here is to me.. not even really loosing a bunch of weight to look like a super model ha ha but to being a healthier me. Someone that when your blown up on a 47' LCD screen at a doctors office you don't crash down into a full out mental breakdown!

Here it is.. Challenge start day
147.8LBS
38 Inches on chest-waist-and hips
(yes I am a perfect blob!)

AND I WILL SAY SHAKE NUMERO UNO!
TASTE AMAZING IT REALLY IS THE SHAKE MIX THAT TASTE LIKE CAKE MIX! CAN'T WAIT TO WAKE UP AND GO FOR IT!