Trials

So the past month has been a journey. I look back to the 2 months of intense (for me) prep and think, "it really wasn't very hard at all." But then I remember back to how much I hated it and wanted it to be over when I was in the moment.

Isn't that just how life goes? That in the moment it seems like whatever it is, is SO hard, SO time consuming, SO horrible but later you think to yourself that it wasn't so hard, that it didn't take that much time, or that it was actually easy?

I think trials in life are like that. That they are more than we can handle at the given time, but later we feel bigger, better, stronger for going through the experience?

Well, Big Jon was a trial for me in himself. haha.

I realize now how much he taught me about lots of things. Food, exercise, planning, and my physique.

First of all, food. I always thought that I could achieve this figure that I wanted if I didn't eat "bad" food. But the reality is, that even "good" or "clean" food still has calories and a lot of time, more calories than a regular ol "bad" food. What Jon taught me is that if I eat certain "good" foods, and cheat one time a week-- I can have the figure I want. If I dabble in "bad" foods throughout the week, all week long, I can not have the figure I always wanted and the fat will creep back on.

Exercise. I thought go hard or go home. Negative boss. Intervals, and slow and steady fasted cardio. Really? I can't go as hard on fasted cardio, well-- that's ok because if I am fasted from the night before and didn't eat carbs late, I go to fat burning. So I can feel good about 20 or 30 minutes of lower impact intervals as soon as I roll out of bed in the morning-- because I am burning my fat!! Who doesn't want to burn fat?! And building muscle, lifting weights-- I used to speed through my workouts moving as quickly and efficiently as I could, but he would tell me "lifting is to build muscle, not lose fat-- so if you can speed through you aren't lifting heavy enough".

Planning. Jon is big about planning your food, having a plan so that you can avoid temptations (sitting out of events if it is too much stress, not feeding the kids ice cream because it tempts me... I belive he said one time-- "what wrong with broccoli for a kid" lol. I still laugh at it. But guess what? My kids are eating broccoli, and they also don't usually get a meal without a small serving of fruit and veggie with it. He also says "Stick to the plan all week, and then cheat with WHATEVER you want one time a week." And he really meant whatever, I would tell him what I had (and I wouldn't leave anything out) and he would say good, did you enjoy it? However Big Jon taught me to relax a little in other ways, that really no one else could...

I schedule my days weeks ahead of time, if I can do it a month ahead I am even happier. But that just didn't work for Jon. And because I wanted/needed/paid for his help, I had to do some things-- his way. Which meant that sometimes I didn't know what day I was going to train until 2 days before, which did cause some anxiety, but it always worked out. And I always showed up, and he always showed up. And never, not once did I leave a workout thinking that he could have worked me harder, or I could have worked harder.

He also taught me that food is just food. Fuel. It doesn't have to me some big freaking firework occasion everytime you eat. If it is, it probably isn't fueling your body to look the way you want it to. He reminded me of something I read on a fitness guru's blog. "What is with every commercial acting like they are having an orgasm from eating their chocolate, cookie, or big mac?" haha that always keeps my laughing. But it's true-- is broccoli, brown rice, and chicken an orgasm in my mouth? Hell no it's not, but it makes my real orgasm better because it makes me look the way I want to look naked. (wow, that was TMI huh?)

I used to think personal trainers were a joke. And I still do think a lot are. Honestly, I have said it before and I will say it again. If I am in better shape then the trainer, I don't want to talk. I think about people coming to my bootcamp class, and how I want to be the most motivating person in the room. I want them to want to look like me. Not only does Jon talk the talk, but he walks the walk, and I like that. Him and his wife are the fitness industry, they don't just research it and tell others how to do it-- they do it. So, my opinion has changed of personal trainers and I will say that keeping yourself in check and on track, is easier when you have someone who is going to ask you once a week what the scale said, or how much you lifted, or if you got your cardio sessions in.

And there's no point lying to Big Jon. I am going to go see him tomorow morning and he is going to know I ate candy on halloween, because he knows about nutrition and how it affects the physique. He probably wont even ask, but I'll know he knows. Which is what has me 100% on track today!! My face is a little swollen, and my muscluar definition isn't quite as good as it should be, because of the water retention from sugar.

So, there you have it. Big Jon was one of my trails in life, but just like every other trial, I have come out better, smarter, stronger and happier for going through it. And I recommend, if you can, hiring a trial of your own, in Big Jon. The holidays are coming up, and I know you, you are like me-- you want to look good when you see your family for the first time in a year, and you want to be the hot wife attending that Christmas party with your husband.

As a good friend says, there is no reason to be sad about the way we look, if we are working to change it.

So, are you ready for the party? Are you ready for family pictures? It's true, we are what we eat, we feel like what we eat.

I say-- Bring on the family photos!!