Fitting in Fitness

Heads up Butter Cup - this blog has veered into the lifestyle realm of things :)

I have been extremely active my whole life.  On top of that, up until a couple years ago I was blessed with a fantastically fast metabolism that allowed me to eat whatever I wanted without my outward appearance taking a hit.  In fact, downing ridiculous amounts of food was actually something I took pride in.  Somehow, eating unhealthy made me feel "cool," and more accepted by my peers. 

I'm guessing you can see where this is going - in my early 20's reality hit.  I quit working out cold turkey to study for a certification exam for about 6 weeks. (terrible idea in hindsight) I gained 10ish lbs, which isn't drastic but was noticeable on my petite frame.  To be honest, I wasn't that worried about it - I figured I'd start working out again and bounce back to my college bod-no problem!. 

Psych! It took me almost 2 years to lose that weight I gained.  Here's a high level of my journey

1.) Got a personal trainer 1xweek (helped, but was too expensive to maintain)
2.) Got a new job that had a gym nearby and started working out at least 3x week
3.) Hopped on a scale-NO results, started to try to eat healthy for 2 out of 3 meals of the day
4.) Started seeing myself drop 2ish lbs throughout the week just to gain them back over the weekend (this lasted MONTHS! so frustrating)
5.) Yearning some structure for myself, Googled "1 week healthy eating plans," found one I liked on eatingwell.com (free) and went for it.
6.) Continue to be strict about eating healthy, and started doing strength training (no longer just cardio)


At step 5, I took on a "No More Cheat Days" mentality.  When I hopped on the scale at the end of the week, I was so stoked! I weighed less than I had in over 2 years! It was only 4 lbs, but hey, 4 lbs in 6 days is something to celebrate.


The positive results kept me motivated to eat healthy, and my passion for eating delicious food has actually made this journey really fun. I am happy to say that I actually was back to the weight I was in high school. The whole experience has inspired me to start sharing some of my meals ideas in this blog - so this is your warning! I'm making a transition to more of a career/food/lifestyle blog.  It will be an interesting combo - bare with me.

Here's my theory - as professionals, we are judged on our outward appearance.  Even if we don't like to admit it, that's just a fact of life.  For me, feeling like I am at my best has ALWAYS been very closely linked to feeling like I'm looking my best.

So for others out there trying to fit in some fitness - I hope my story inspires you! Be patient! Be persistent! Be proud of accomplishing all you do each day :) 

Until next time

~Kara