This post could have easily been titled “I Gained 15 Pounds in 2018” because I did. Towards the end of 2018 between numerous bought of sickness that spread like wildfire throughout our home and the ridiculous amounts of baking I did over the holidays I discovered I had gained 15 pounds after ringing in the New Year.

I was actually fairly surprised because I didn’t really feel heavier. I honestly hadn’t even been paying attention to how I looked in the mirror. When you have 4 kids time management becomes very important. I could probably win a gold medal at this point for how fast I can go to the bathroom, change a diaper, and get myself and all the kids dressed ;).

In February I knew I wanted to overhaul how I was fueling my body and also commit to exercise more consistently each week. So here is what I started doing.

WHAT I ELIMINATED FROM MY DIET

I eliminated 3 main things from my diet that I knew weren’t helping me. Eggs. Added Sugar. Caffeine.

Eggs

I had been so good about staying away from eggs the last few years but slowly in 2018 I attempted to eat them again, mainly by baking cookies and cake. I discovered several years ago through an elimination diet that eggs gave me severe skin rashes and swollen eyes. In fact the day after I took my before picture that I am using in this post I developed the most horrible all over body hives and swollen eyes I have ever had in my entire life. I had to go to the doctor and was prescribed steroids because they were so bad.

Added Sugar

The amount of sugar I was consuming was ridiculous. The American Heart Association recommends the maximum amount of added sugars women should have each day is 25 grams or 6 teaspoons. Most days I was consuming well over this amount. For the month of February I used this recommendation and only ate natural sugars. Meaning no candy, juices, cookies, cakes, breads, pancakes, etc…but instead more fruits and I used maple syrup as a sweetener.

Caffeine

Hi. My name is Tamara and I am an iced tea addict. I love iced tea. I don’t drink coffee or soda but I would take a China Mist iced tea anytime of day. I had been having a really hard time falling asleep the last few months even though I was so tired. So I ditched the tea and focused on drinking more water.

WHAT I HAVE BEEN EATING

When I first wake up I drink a glass of room temperature water. Then for breakfast I have a smoothie with spinach, frozen dark cherries, banana, avocado, chia seeds, water, and a scoop of this protein powder. For lunch and dinner I have either chicken, salmon, or tri-tip with lots of vegetables which is usually a salad or a sweet potato with avocado. I just discovered this dressing and love it.

For snacks I have been making a fruit parfait with siggis yogurt, the Fitnessista amazeballs, or more fruit. Each week I have been trying to drink at least 3 green juices. I am also drinking about a gallon of water daily and making way more trips to the bathroom ;).

MY EXERCISE PLAN

I will be sharing more on this in the next two weeks but I wanted to have a plan to follow because I am always more successful when I have one. I decided to sign up for one month of Gina’s Home Workout Warrior Live plan. I am so glad I did! It came with 5 days of workouts each week and a meal plan. I haven’t really been following the meal plan because of eliminating eggs but it was still worth it. I have 1 more week to go before I am finished. I started this plan on Monday February 11.

THE RESULTS

I feel so much better overall. I am so happy with how I am eating now and that I started exercising more consistently again. I don’t normally weigh myself but I decided I should in February and I lost 6 pounds. I went from 150 and now I am 144.

I think it is so important whenever you do make a change like this to track also how your body feels, not just how you look. My periods had been off the chart lately with cramping and heavier bleeding and this month it was so much better! My skin also didn’t break out before my period either which was so amazing. I am sleeping better and have so much more energy. My head hits the pillow lately and I am out. I sometimes even fall asleep before my husband shockingly. And he makes sleeping look like an olympic event by how quickly he can fall asleep.

So there you have it! This was an honest look into the start of my fitness/wellness journey for this year. I love the accountability this blog has provided for me during other times in my life and knew I wanted to connect back to this space again for this reason. I am off to get to sleep because I will be up soon enough to exercise and spend time in the bible before the kids wake up. Thanks for reading :).