COMMITMENT MATTERS

As Valentine’s Day is upon us tomorrow, I think about commitment and how it not only matters in my marriage but also in my fitness and overall health.  They both take dedication and work right?  Think about that: if you cheat on your marriage, it will not work…if you cheat on your health, it will not work…see what I mean.  In order to maintain a happy, healthy relationship, it takes commitment, effort and work on a daily and consistent basis.  

In this journey of life, I have learned what I do and do not want, and I certainly have found a gem in my husband and cherish our relationship as top priority.  I feel the same way about my fitness and realize that my life is a precious gift worthy of my time and attention to reduce the risk of illness and maintain a healthy quality of life.  Commitment is a word that I do not use lightly and is a promise that I will maintain my relationship in a healthy way with my hubby and with myself. 

Really, I do not need a special Hallmark day to tell me that, because every day is Valentine’s Day in my life with my honey and my health.  I treat both with tender loving care, appreciation, time and attention.  Commitment to the things that matter is important and believe me, there are plenty of “busy things” in life that just do not matter.  I like that motivational saying “when you are committed to something, you accept no excuses, only results”.  I believe in seeing positive results in my marriage and health and if I do not take the healthy action steps to make that happen, that is on me.  I have worked too hard and long in my life to not make the most of each day, and  appreciate what good health and true love feels like.   

I will be fifty soon, and it has taken half my lifetime to reach the maturity of emotional, spiritual and physical well-being that I understand today.  The bumpy road along the way was difficult, but through patience, perseverance, and commitment to want more for me in every aspect of life, the journey was meant to be and is always a “to be continued” story.  The importance of commitment is also patience through the process as nothing happens overnight.  There is no such thing as here today and gone tomorrow and rushing life to get no-where is certainly not on any page that I am writing.

I dedicate this Blog to the love of my life, my best friend, prayer partner, and greatest support I have ever known.  To my husband:  I love you “Forever and a Day” and every day is Valentine’s Day with you. 

Thanks for stopping by my Blog, hope you enjoy the content, and if you have not become a follower yet, I would love to see your face on my friend's list.  If you are inspired, LIKE my entry, leave a comment and I look forward to responding!

StayHealthy!

Darla

Friday Fitness with our Mystery Freeletics Athlete - Week 8

Where are the weeks going? 8 weeks already? Really? We are just over the half way mark and I think our mystery Freeletics athlete is doing a mighty fabulous job. Someone made a comment that they didn't see much progress in her pictures, little did they read how she has changed her lifestyle around and living more healthier and making a conscious effort to incorporate regular exercise within her week supported by great food. That deserves a 10 outta 10 in my book! You go girl, I am so proud of you.

See you again next week!

xxDani 

Weekly journal update

Freeletics week 8

This week I feel I needed a big kick to keep me going.  I loved the exercises but I was feeling a little sluggish and felt like I needed to cleanse my insides!  So I added a 3 day juice cleanse to my program.  I must say the first day was ok, the second I could have eaten my arm off and the third has been great.  I thought I would lose my energy and wouldn’t be able to do my freeletics but I actually have just as much energy. Now that is over I feel great and I am looking forward to getting back to the eating guidelines from Freeletics.

I can see my hips shrinking in the pics and I love it. My motivation for next week is seeing my hips in these pictures.  You can see that the layer of fat on them is slowly shrinking. I will always have hips, I just want to get rid of the fat layer on them! I do want to tone my stomach more as I feel that those images are hard to see any changes.  I wonder if there has been so much stretching from 2 kids and lots of excess weight that I will never get it toned and smooth again. I am not stressing over that, but it would be nice!

Food Diary:

Breakfast
Chia pudding with a piece of fruit

Morning snack
Yogurt with fruit & nuts

Lunch
Tuna salad 

Afternoon snack
Banana and tea

Dinner
Grilled salmon with blueberry pear salad

Hard parts this week:

Adding the juice detox and just juicing for 3 days, that was HARD! I love my food so it was hard to not eat, especially when I am making yummy meals for my kids and husband! Freeletics workouts were great this week.

Love FMA (Freeletics Mystery Athlete) xx 

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Fitness Transformation Tuesday story with Matt Weiss

• Here's the amazing Matt show casing that even men get unhappy with their physique. So girls, it's not just us. Thanks so much for sharing your story with us and we look forward to following your continued success. Keep on inspiring!
  For those that wish to submit their Transformation Tuesday stories please fill out our interview questions here.
  Much love and friendship,xxDani
  
  
  
  How old are you and please can you share your health and fitness journey to date?
  Hey everyone my name is Matt Weiss and I am 22 years old. I started my transformation journey July 2011. I weighted 212lbs and had 21% body fat. I was very unhappy with the way my physique looked and I wanted to make a change. I am a college baseball player so I wanted to improve my athletic ability by getting more physically fit. I started working out 5-6 times a week and started to eat healthier. Diet was a huge part of my transformation. I would always lift weights before but my diet was terrible and I never saw good results. Once I tightened up my diet my weight andbody fat percentage just started to melt off. Now I weigh 182lbs with 5% body fat. I am so glad that I made the change become healthier and I will continue to improve my physique daily.
• What types of foods did you used to eat as a kid and young adult? What's changed since then?
  Growing up I use to eat tons of junk food. Foods very high in carbs and unhealthy fats. Stuff like McDonald's, Taco Bell, and Hardees were places I enjoyed eating. In high school me and my buddies would go out then get fast food late at night. I didn't think anything of it but then I started to know a change in my body. I found myself being tired a lot. When I got to college I ate the cafeteria food. They had buffet style which I loved. I would get pizza, fries, soda, etc. This is how most college kids ate so I didn't think anything of it, plus I enjoyed eating like this. A lot has changed since then with my diet. I know eat things like chicken, ground turkey, ground chicken, eggs, brown rice, oatmeal, almonds, etc. Now I am eating way less greasier foods. Diet is key if you are looking to transform your physique. You will never be able to out train a bad diet.
• Do you play any sports or what sports do you like watching?
  I play college baseball player.
• What are your interests, passion and what makes you smile?
  I love hanging out with my friends and family. I also enjoy helping people out with diet and workout plans through my online personal training. Something that makes me smile is when me and my family are all together. Family time is very special to me.
• What was the catalyst that sparked your lifestyle change?
  Well freshman year I played baseball at Arkansas State. Everytime we did conditioning I would always finish last and be gasping for air. It would make me so mad because I was giving it my all and I still would finish pretty much last. I ended up redshirting their and when I had my going away meeting the coach told me if I didn't come back next year in shape then I wouldn't play. This made me so angry! I ended up not returning to Arkansas State. So I would say my coach their telling me that I needed to come in the next year in better shape. I am actually very thankful that he said that to me because that is what truly sparked my lifestyle change.
• What are some of your dreams/goals you hope to achieve over the next 12 months?
  Since I have transformed my physique a lot of doors have opened for me. I am officially a sponsored athlete with the best supplement company in the world (Inner Armour). I plan to start doing fitness modeling and men's physique competitions also. Right now I am a semi-finalist for the bodybuilding.com bodyspace spokesmodel competition. I really hope that I make the finals and compete for the title in LA.
• What tips would you like to share with my readers about your transformation?
  Something that I want everyone to know is that never listen to negativity. During my transformation process I had friends always trying to get me to go out and drink. Also sometimes even my family would give me a hard to because of the way I was eating. Stick to a plan and keep fighting through it, because in the end you will come out a champion.
• List your social media's if you would like people to follow you
  Instagram: mattweiss_fitness
  Facebook: Matt Weiss Fitness
  YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkBVIBaOiWnLW3UfxwlalxQ
  Email me at mattweissbaseball@yahoo.com if you're interested in my online personal training.

Freeletics Friday with our Mystery Transformation Athlete Weeks 6 & 7

She's back!!!

Even our Freeletics mystery athlete didn't let her ankle let her down, she persisted and she shares her journal with us for the last few weeks she missed. So we are playing a bit of catch up hence 2 weeks in the 1 post today.

Please show her some support by leaving words of encouragement, it's a tough gig being out there in the world wide web and having us cheer her along keeps her so motivated.

Thanks for sharing and we look forward to reading from you next week!

xxDani

Freeletics Week 6

So…. This week I fell off the bandwagon… well actually I think I jumped off it whole heartedly!  I was tempted by everything and because I felt like I had been good then I deserved to slack off and eat what I wanted and drink what I wanted. Just take a look at my pics, I think that you can tell. I am embedding this feeling into my mind.  It’s the feeling of disappointment.  I am disappointed in myself for giving in. Don’t get me wrong, I had a great time eating and drinking and playing up with my mates.  However my body didn’t appreciate it.  I feel sluggish and guilty.  I don’t like those feelings so back on the band wagon next week, actually squat jumping back onto that bandwagon!

Hard parts this week:

All of it!  I just didn’t make time to prep meals or exercise so I went back to my old ways of quick and easy food and not as much exercise as I would have liked. I blame my injured ankle for playing a part in my social and party week this week. Oops!

Freeletics Week 7

Bandwagon going along full steam ahead! I have been really good this week, I have been having salad plus protein most days and nights. One night I made a delicious couscous with almonds sprinkled through it.  That was delicious! On the exercise front, there have been less burpees this week and I think that has helped motivate me to do the exercises. The pics this week show a slight improvement over last week. My hips are where I am really seeing the difference. My muffin top is slowly melting away.

Hard parts this week:

Actually nothing!  I was really motivated this week, I am wondering if my slack week last week was what I needed to get me back on track?

A change for the better with a Fitness First giveaway

Hi everyone, it's a brand New Year and I am super excited that we are all focused on reaching our new goals for 2014. A new year gives us the opportunity to re-evaluate and refocus our attention to what we want to achieve.

As you all know, I was extremely fortunate to go away to the Gymea Retreat recently. The retreat was facilitated by the amazing Amber from Bloom Wellness and was just an experience I cannot recommend highly enough. I met some amazing people and totally got inspired by the health practitioners and professionals that were there to help us reach our goals.

WOWZA!! What a really relaxing time, I highly recommend it and a retreat is exactly what a health practitioner ordered! 

If you have never been to a wellness retreat, you may be wondering what to expect and think it is geared up specifically for hippies. Not the case and here's what I experienced - it was a total escape outta this world, solace, a haven for getting away from the grind and reflecting inward. It gave me a chance to reconnect with myself, solve some challenges I had prior to attending, gave me a fresh outlook and perspective on life. It restored my health and hey, I even dropped a few kilograms with eating all that raw food :-) 

I know we're all busy, trust me I know. With 4 kids under 8 years I am constantly on the move so this came at exactly the right time.  A retreat gives you time to reflect on your life, ponder your next move and questions whether your lifestyle supports your wellness aspirations.

Although I was able to attend an offsite retreat, I understand this is not physically or financially possible for everyone. With this in mind, there are other ways to achieve this goal.

To find nirvana, you need the tools of the trade along with a quiet space to put this into practice.

To coincide with my recent collaboration with Fitness First NEW YEAR, NEW YOU, I wanted to take this opportunity to "share the love" by giving back to my loyal readers. All you need to do is tell me what your health and wellness goals are for 2014.

x1 Lululemon Weekender Warrior Bag and 

x1 The Pure Mat 3mm by Lululemon

You always need a great bag when working out and a handy place to store your yoga mat. Gotta love the 2-in-1 combo.

x1 iPod shuffle

Music is my life, it motivates me so I want it to do the same for you.

x1 Jawbone UP Activity Tracker Wristband

This is one über cool wristband which measures your lifestyle throughout your day. Let it be movement, water intake, sleep you name it! This baby is for you.

So how do you enter?

Terms & Conditions

• Entries will close on 6th March 2014, and a winner will be announced shortly thereafter.
• Tell me what your health and wellness goals are for 2014 & include your IG or FB name beside your comment below.
• You must be an Australian resident to win.
• The winner’s answer will be judged on most creative response.
• Please ensure you have subscribed to my blog, as the winner will be notified by email. If the prize remains unclaimed for 72 hours, a new winner will be selected.
• Ensure you tag your pictures on social media with #changeforthebest showcasing your New Year, New You. 
• Only one entry per person.
• All color options of products limited by availability.

Some exciting news from Fitness First!

1. Fitness First is changing. Fitness First Australia today launched two industry- first initiatives, Pay As You Go (PAYG) and Fitness Guarantee, bringing significant improvements to its members’ fitness experience, as part of the company’s ongoing transformation.

Change is seen in every aspect of the business from the new look and logo, to new equipment in state-of-the-art gyms, through to new services that optimise the member experience

2. Fitness first launches New You awards to help motivate Australians to keep their New Year’s health & fitness resolutions. 

Registration for the Fitness First New You Achievement Awards open in July and close at the end of August 2014. New members of Fitness First can pledge their goals online at fitnessfirst.com.au/newyou 

Find out more about what is happening at Fitness First click here.

Connect with Fitness First on their social media, website and Facebook page to keep updated: 

http://www.fitnessfirst.com.au/changeforthebest

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FitnessFirstAustralia

Twitter: https://twitter.com/FitnessFirstAU

#changeforthebest

Pretty cool huh? So leave me your comments below with your #changeforthebetter health and wellness goals for 2014 and please add your Instagram and Facebook username if you have one.  

Much love and friendship,

xxDani

Fitness Transformation Tuesday with Christelyn AKA Fitness Mama

A great Transformation Tuesday story, thanks again for sharing your journey with us Christelyn. Keep on inspiring and for more information on this beautiful lady, click on all the hyperlinks below.

Enjoy!
xxDani

My name is Christelyn and I am the founder/creator of Fitness Mama.  I'm a full time wife and mother of two kids ages, 7 and 2.  I'm a certified LVN and a certified Hot Hula Fitness instructor in the Sacramento area. 

The past year and a half has been life changing not only for myself but for my family as well.  We changed from an extremely unhealthy, sedentary lifestyle to a healthy, active lifestyle.  The road has not been easy and there have been ups and downs.  Having to balance being a wife and mom and the daily routines is hard enough.  And then incorporating time to workout is a battle within itself!  It took a lot of courage and perseverance to even begin in the first place. I knew that if I didn't change, my kids' unhealthy habits would definitely take a toll on them when they got older.  To date, I've lost 60 lbs and still working towards my goal.  Click here and here for more about my weight loss journey.  And then here and here for more about how I got started.  It has become my passion to help others to become more healthy while facing life's challenges.

GOOD HEALTH DOES NOT CARE ABOUT BUSY

Society really needs to stop the glorification of busy, and I am not one who is going to listen and accept all the excuses of not having enough time to care about making health a priority in life.  Let me rephrase that, I may listen to the laundry list, but I will definitely provide the tough questions in response and offer that better time management choices and priorities need to be addressed.  So many people create too much “busy” in life that every second of every hour is consumed by work, overtime, functions, social, social, social, volunteer work,  more work, more functions and the “YES” list goes on and on.  How can anyone pull themselves out of such a drowning pool of stuff, and many times all those so called important things consuming every minute are not even necessary.  Further, many of the things that fill those precious seconds are ways to avoid or hide from just “being”.  What is wrong with society to feel guilty sitting still for an hour alone in a contemplative state, relaxing, meditating, or exercising.  Has it got so bad that avoidance of looking at ourselves is too scary, disappointing, and living in denial has become the “norm”? 

I am convinced that people think it is impressive to be over busy and brag about it ad nauseam like some sort of “busy” award should be given.  I hope this ruffles a few feathers and causes people to think about their “busy” in the whole big scheme of life.  I mean what is this so “busy” mentality that good health is kicked to the curb and illness is accepted, and further taking pharmaceuticals to take care of the illness and stress caused by the “busy” and that being accepted.  Can you tell I am on a “soap box” on this subject?  I have worked in the health industry for over 30 years, and am strongly stating that the tiresome laundry list of busy needs a good washing out.  I am not talking about busy that may come from handling a temporary crisis, but years of putting off a healthy lifestyle all for the glorification of meaningless busy.   

The hard truth is that good health does not care about busy, and all those things that are cluttering up our time, creating stress, and keeping us from a healthy lifestyle WILL bring the consequence of illness.  Maybe not today or even tomorrow, but all that procrastination of not taking care of YOU will rear its’ ugly head in the form of illness, obesity, heart disease, cancer, diabetes, joint and spinal issues, depression, and that list can go on and on as well.  It is the blow of illness that can rattle a person and finally cause a wake-up call to adapt a healthy lifestyle. Sadly, and many times at this point, permanent damage to body processes have already taken place, and the person that once was can never be again, to the extent of 100% recovery anyway.  It is at that point that the “things” in life become unimportant as the struggle to become healthy, and the regret of not taking care of oneself surfaces to the forefront of one’s life. 

We are all at a point of being able to prevent or greatly reduce illness, and I am and always will be a very candid health professional with you, my family, and all of my clients.  I can write all this to you and hope that you listen, but this is your journey and your decision.  I fear for those who choose to let this go in one ear and out the other, and if I have reached and shaken the limbs of others to start now to live a healthy lifestyle, then I have accomplished the goal I set out to with this write. 

Thanks for stopping by my Blog, hope you enjoy the content, and if you have not become a follower yet, I would love to see your face on my friend's list.  If you are inspired, LIKE my entry, leave a comment and I look forward to responding!

StayHealthy!

Darla

Fitness Transformation Tuesday with Andrea Allen

Let me introduce you to Andrea. A mother to twin baby girls born 7 months ago. Read her story on how she got her body back after giving birth only 7 weeks after having them. There were some struggles conceiving these precious little angels but with turning her eating habits around she was able to focus on leading a fit and healthy lifestyle.

Thanks for sharing your healthy journey with us Andrea. You look amazing! Keep up the fab work! 

Much love and friendship,

XxDani 

Andrea from Deliciously Fit N Healthy 7 weeks post baby

• How old are you and please can you share your health and fitness journey to date?
  I started my journey as a freshmen in college. I had a rough breakup and I went to the gym one day to get 
  out of my apt and clear my head. I felt invigorated and alive for the first time in a long time. That 
  developed my love for exercise. I got certified as a fitness instructor shortly afterwards.Then after tearing 
  my ACL playing lacrosse I realized I needed to eat better so I started my healthy food journey. I enjoyed 
  learning so much about health that I changed my major to Public health education! 6 years later my 
  husband and I had to do fertility and the doctors told me to stop exercising and to eat more junk. It was so 
  hard to feel not in control but I had faith if I followed my instructions I would conceive. A year and a half 
  later after 3 inseminations I became pregnant through invetro with baby girl twins. I was still restricted for 
  the first half of my pregnancy but I always did all I could no matter what. Once I was ok'd I continued to 
  exercise up until labor day. My determination helped me recover fast as well. So now I am back on my 
  journey free to push myself to my limits and experimenting in the kitchen again. Its sooo exciting!
• What types of foods did you used to eat as a kid and young adult? What's changed since then?
  I use to eat cup of noodles everyday after school in highschool and when I went to collage I would eat a 
  PB&J sandwich and then go crawl in bed. I use to make pans of brownies all the time and eat diorites and
  hamburger helper alot as well.
• Do you play any sports or what sports do you like watching?
  I played sports all through high school and collage and club lacrosse for BYU. Thats when I tore my knee 
  and my healthy food journey started. I also enjoy watching football with my hubby!
• What are your interests, passion and what makes you smile?
  I love my hubby and two baby girls. They bring a smile to my face everyday and remind me any sacrifice 
  was worth having them. I love traveling and enjoying trying new places to eat at. I am totally a foodie!
• What was the catalyst that sparked your lifestyle change?
  The breakup started my fitness journey and my torn ACL started my health food journey
• What are some of your dreams/goals you hope to achieve over the next 12 months?
  I hope to inspire other people that getting fit after pregnancy is TOTALLY possible. I to help people know
  they are not alone and if they have questions they can ask. I have an instagram account where I post 
  healthy recipes and workouts and have started a blog to assist with anyones fitness journey.
• What tips would you like to share with my readers about your transformation?
  It takes work. I didn't use being pregnancy with twins to be an excuse. I tried my best every day before
  they were born and after to get my fitness on and it was so hard some days. But i kept trying! Its easy to 
  find excuses but its hard to find solution. (my transformation photo is 7 weeks after labor)
• List your social media's if you would like people to follow you
  @deliciouslyfitnhealthy 

  
  

  deliciouslyfitnhealthy.blogspot.com

CONSTANT STATE OF CHANGE

Change can be necessary, change can be a challenge, change is inevitable, and what do we do with all this change?  Whether the change is to adapt a healthier lifestyle through nutrition and exercise, modifying exercises to accommodate injury, or going through the changes that naturally occur to the body as we age, it is a fact, that change is a big part of this journey of life.  None of us are exempt from a constant state of change in this life in one form or another.  Our bodies change at every level each day without our knowledge that it is even happening for the most part.

Personally, I have undergone a lot of change in this life and have to say that I embrace the positive that has come through incorporating a healthy lifestyle.  The tough physical changes that challenged me were the rehabilitation from injury and the will to persevere and not give up, and finally accept through it all that I am forever changed and require modification of exercise to fit the body that is under the skin I wear.  The inevitable change that seems difficult for me in the present is the changes that occur with the aging process.  No amount of exercise is going to stop hormonal shifts and the overall body requirements that scream loud and clear…CHANGE. Acceptance and embracing of the inevitable change I have discovered is also going to be a challenge.   

We are all aging each day, our bodies changing through the process and when I was younger I did not think too much about it, but as I stare 50 in the face, I find my mind consumed by the “different” feelings of heading into menopause.  Both men and women face the inevitable changes that occur with the aging process, whether prostate issues for men or night sweats and lowered libido for women, it is a situation that can SUCK.  I am straight up open about everything health related and I feel issues, even those topics that may fall into the “taboo” not to be discussed in public are fair game.  In fact they need to be addressed and shared because so many people are searching for answers or at least support that they are not alone in their experience.  If Dr. Oz can openly share the perfect “poo” shape, vaginal dryness, and orgasms, then for crying out loud, I am surely going to talk about it. 

All change can feel difficult, or extremely fantastic depending on the situation.  Adapting a healthy lifestyle through eating “real” nutrient dense foods and regular exercise will bring about a body that feels better, functions better, and that change can be embraced and celebrated almost immediately.  Although the process can feel like a challenge, eventually the change will provide an overall healthy state of mind and wellbeing.  The challenge change that occurs with injury or illness is harder to accept and embrace, at least in the beginning.  I found that it takes hard work, lots of patience, faith and a will to WANT the best of me in all areas of health, no matter what that looks like.  Moving into the inevitable change of aging is also an area that I now realize will require my patience, and continued research into natural ways of transitioning into another “new me” so to speak.  Changes are a part of aging and transition into another part of our life, not that we need to feel great about them, but important to realize and accept them, and I am now on this journey.  I am not going to sit here and celebrate hot flashes, night sweats, and changes in libido…are you kidding me, this is where I long for the young Darla because outwardly, my brain says what the heck is going on, and this should not be going on.  This is where I reach for new goals of discovery of the woman I am now, and embrace that woman with full understanding, grace, love and adventure of this new chapter. Am I there yet…not quite…but I am working on it.  

Thanks for stopping by my Blog, hope you enjoy the content, and if you have not become a follower yet, I would love to see your face on my friend's list.  If you are inspired, LIKE my entry, leave a comment and I look forward to responding!

Stay Healthy!

Darla

                                                                            

Fitness Transformation Tuesday with Mallory Minor

This is pretty cool. What a transformation! Amazing how you can surround yourself with people and not really know that you are leading an unhealthy lifestyle. Until your GP tells you (at 16 years) if you don't shed some of your 100kgs AKA 217lbs you will be going down the obesity path.

Congratulations beautiful Mallory, you did it! You now lead and live a bountiful and healthy lifestyle. Keep going and keep on inspiring.

I would also love to receive your healthy new lifestyle. For more information, click here.

Much love and friendship,
XxDani

• • • How old are you and please can you share your health and fitness journey to date?
      I am 22 years old. I started a journey to lose weight at 16, but I changed my lifestyle at 20 years old. I realized that if I wanted to be happy with myself that meant a healthy life, and I would have to change my habits. I slowly began working out and eating healthier. At first it was simply a 30 minute walk everyday, then I started portioning better, then I cut fast food. Eventually I dropped 50lbs! To lose the last 45lbs I practiced IIFYM, which taught me balance and enjoying the foods I loved in moderation, and also started lifting weights which has completely transformed the shape of my body! I've lost 95lbs altogether, with erb's palsy, an injury from birth that has left my right shoulder 75% immobile. As a child I was told I could never use my arm, now I am doing push ups and back bends! I'm proof that anything is possible!
    • What types of foods did you used to eat as a kid and young adult? What's changed since then?
      I had a terrible diet as a child! I grew up on Lunchables, fast food, and horrible junk snacks all the time! As a young adult I realized that I had to change these habits to live a healthy and happy life. I introduced more fruits and vegetables into my diet. I began to cook more. Now, at age 22, I absolutely love my green smoothies, salads, etc! I love making yummy desserts into healthier versions. I love learning new ways to cook lighter! People change ;)
    • Do you play any sports or what sports do you like watching?
      I love to play soccer. I played soccer as a child but I was overweight so I was always picked for defense or goalie. Now, I can play soccer as offense and run all over the field! I finally have an opportunity to score goals and bring more to the team. I also enjoy watching hockey and college football.
    • What are your interests, passion and what makes you smile?
      When I'm not working out or going to school I enjoy my family time. My boyfriend, Thomas, has been with me through my journey for the last five years! We have two dogs, two cats, and a hedgehog. Thomas and I love to get our exercise in riding bicycles or swimming. I love visiting the beach here in Florida but my heart is in the Rocky mountains! I'm also a video game nerd!
    • What was the catalyst that sparked your lifestyle change?
      Going to the doctor's at age 16 and being told I was "217lbs and headed down a path towards obesity". My doctor and I had a great relationship and knew each other for years. When she told me this I was completely shocked and scared. Most of my family is overweight and I grew up seeing how the affected their life as well as mine. I wanted to help my family's health by helping my own.
    • What are some of your dreams/goals you hope to achieve over the next 12 months?
      Over the next 12 months I hope to continue to lose fat and gain muscle. I'm incredibly happy with how far my body has come, but I am definitely a go getter! I know I'm capable of whatever I want to accomplish. I'm also practicing yoga more frequently to bring a new aspect into my fitness lifestyle. :)
    • What tips would you like to share with my readers about your transformation?
      Believe in yourself! No one can give you motivation if you don't have a fiery passion within yourself to get it done. Yes, there are days when I don't want to go to the gym. But deep down I want that feeling of satisfaction after a great workout, to look in the mirror in two weeks and see changes, to feel prideful when I deny an extra cookie. Dig deep and find out what you truly want. Then make a plan of action! Take it day by day and week by week, celebrate the small successes because they add up, track your progress each month with measuring and goals, and don't be too hard on yourself. Most importantly, though, don't ever give up! This is a lifestyle.
    • List your social media's if you would like people to follow you
      Instagram: Malzisfit malzisfit@gmail.com www.malzisfit.com