Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Another Year Another Contest

First off I'm sorry I've neglected this blog for so long.  I've thought often of writing but I did so much writing last year that I felt like I didn't have much more to write about.  Of course those blogs are not on this blog but on Family Circle's site and I'd be surprised if they still had them up.  Anyway..back to the topic.

So year after year after year I've made grand resolutions...THIS IS MY YEAR...THE SKINNY ME IS COMING OUT.  Then the year passes and I'm still not skinny.  I have achieved many great things personally that I honestly did not think I would do.

First major goal for me....  I set my mind to train to run a half marathon in October 2011 and while in training developed "jumpers knee" in my left knee.  I spent the summer in physical therapy and had to not show up for all the training races I signed up/paid for per the doctors orders in order to heal so I could "WOG" (walk/jog) the half marathon in October 2011.  At first I was so upset when he told me no races that summer and that I had to do a TON of physical therapy on my knee and that I had WOG the race.  Then I thought wait a second you brat...you can still do it, it's not like you set a time goal for yourself your only goal was to take your vertically challenged legs and pound the pavement for 13.1 miles.  Shut up and GET IT DONE!  It took me just over 4 hours but I got it done!   I got my race bling and I went home with no plan for the day after the race, the following day or the day after that.  Well I started this blog around the time I decided to embark on this running journey and wrote frequently about my journey on being obese and training to run a half marathon.  So with that I had people that followed me, gave me kudos, atta-girl, etc.  Well when the race was over all that died down.  I didn't have any goals set for myself.  I succeeded but I failed...I succeeded by wogging the race but I failed in not making any other plans.  In comes post race blues.  The weight I took off in that journey quickly returned.

Second major goal for me...In sulking in post race blues I decide I've had enough.  Get your fat ass off the couch and do something with yourself.  Yes sorry I can be a bit mean to myself at times.  In 2012 I turned 39.  IT WAS THE YEAR OF ME!!  2012 was the year I would blast through all my hurdles, self doubt, fears of failure, fears of success and I was going to show the world the new and improved Tiffany Lehman.  I was going to show you just how awesome I really was.  So while lacking in much needed sleep to help heal muscles, burn fat and just rest (much like I'm doing right now but I swear I do go to bed much earlier and get the rest needed to heal muscles and burn fat)  I was playing around online coming up with new ways to be amazing and skinny.  I found an application to apply for Family Circle 2012 Healthy Family Challenge.  The Lehman's are strong and we are going to do this together.  I had to fill out an essay, answer questions and send a picture of the family.  I entered never thinking we would be chose.  We are just your average middle class family literally from middle America (Des Moines, Iowa).  But we were chose!  HORRAY.

We're off... it's a 6 month challenge and we have to blog, keep food journals, do photo shoots, blog more, we get a free membership to our local Gold's Gym (best gym on the planet) and my husband and I get two AMAZING personal trainers to work with and we are ready to rock and roll.  Monthly we have challenges and we're competing with another family from New Jersey to win prizes.  1st challenge is to eat your fruits and veggies...we lost that challenge (and only this challenge), 2nd healthy hydration, they didn't drink a lot of water where we are big water drinkers (Andy and I easy a gallon a day).  They were not big beer/wine drinkers...Andy and I drank too much beer and wine.  So their challenge was to drink more water and ours was to cut alcohol.  3rd challenge was to move it..I am a FREAK for working out and Andy loves it too.  The kids hello they never stop..well Jack (the 7 year old) doesn't.  We are given fitbits to wear and we hands down won.  I won't bore you with all the challenges but we rocked it but after challenge 2 ended me personally I drank way to much.  My husband, he did good in that area.  Jack, our 7 year old, is Autistic too and we had a pretty rough summer with being out of school and off schedule and things personally just were starting to slowly go South.  I get the oh wooes me, crying, eating, drinking, not being as active, etc and my progress is stale.  We rocked that challenge for the magazine and we overcame some big hurdles that summer and I finally decided OK I think it's time to put the kabosh on the wine.  2012 was the year of me alright...another year not being skinny.  The challenge was over, school was starting back up for the kids, holidays were coming..You see a pattern???  So here I am heading into 40 still fat...

So now here it is February 27th and I'm now 40.  Realistically half my life as I know it is over.  I have no race I'm training for and I am not going to be published in a national magazine and blogs posted online.   What do I do??  It's all about me and it's all up to me.  The race doesn't end, it will never end.  It's a life.  It's not about being skinny it's about being healthy.  While the scale says I need to lose weight I'm as strong as an ox and I can kick most fit girls butts out the door.  You do what I do with my trainer in an hour and lets see who's in the locker room puking...chances are I will want to but I won't and you'll be puking or passed out on the floor.  You look better than me now but I'll catch up.  I'm a slow learner but once it's there IT'S THERE.

Back up just a moment because you're probably like ok this is a nice story and all but what does this have to do with another year another contest.  Well...I recently got an iPhone 5 (my husband hates it because I love it too much, I can't get enough of it).  Prior to the iPhone I had a Blackberry with no Instagram.  Well I have found IG.  I can't get enough Instagram.  Through pictures I have virally met some amazing people and I follow them and vice versa.  They are what is known as my #fitfam.  They keep me motivated and I hope I do the same for them.  I know IG is used for far more that fitness but for me, that's the life it takes on for me...tifano98 (my Instragram user name).  One of the IG users I follow is @instagramfitness and he announced a contest with an online coach to get 8 weeks of free online coaching with @committed_jay.  Jay is a fitness BEAST.  If we wanted to be considered to win the online coaching giveaway we had to tell our story as to why in pictures and hashtag #FuelForFitness for a week and he would chose one guy and one girl.  So that's my goal is to win this so I can have 8 weeks of online coaching with @commited_jay.

So far in 2013 I have never in my life felt more spirit lead, more powerful, more strong physically and mentally.  I am seeing my body change before my eyes and I'm not letting my worth be determined by the # that's on the scale although I will say I like seeing the scale go down but I'm paying most attention to how my clothes feel, how my muscles are starting to pop out from under the fat, watching the fat melt away and just over all feeling good.  I feel so good in both mind and body and I pray that it never goes away so that I can be the best me to me and that I don't have to sit on the couch feeling sorry for myself and downing in my self pity, wife to Andy, mom to Anna and Jack, child of God (1st and foremost), best friend, best employee, etc.

In closing to this very long rambling this is me @commited_jay and why I hope I'm chose to win the #FuelForFitness challenge.