Taking My Own Advice.

I'm ashamed of myself. As I near the 100-day mark I've become more and more aware of one thing in this wedding planning process that I've completely neglected: my health.

I came to this (not-so-abrupt) realization yesterday when I had to call in sick to my internship. I had somehow forgotten to drink water/liquids the entire day before and was severely dehydrated. Desert-dehydrated. Nearly hospitalized-dehydrated. Dehydrated to the point where I felt like I had spent the previous night partying in Vegas harder than those Hangover guys. You get the picture.

This is so not like me. I routinely carry a reusable water bottle around with me EVERY where I go (I have a huge glass of water at my desk as I'm typing this). While recovering, I also realized that I've hit another point in my life that I've never been before: weighing the heaviest I ever have. I seem to have just disregarded my health and fitness completely while planning for my wedding. The worst part? Exactly a year ago I was in the best shape of my life and making money as a part-time model because of it.

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No, I didn't have any self-image problems. In fact, it was the absolute opposite. I was healthy because I had changed my lifestyle, not started on some crazy fat-loss pills, crash diet, or detox. I worked out 4-6 times a week, ate 4-6 small (but satisfying) meals a day, didn't stress over calories and got plenty of water and rest. And although I've always been a slimmer (but "soft" around the edges) girl and active in athletics, I was learning to truly take control of my health and fitness. Pretty soon, my "model" body began morphing into more of a "fitness" body.

Photos taken by friends.


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This photo was even featured on a calender sold by bodybuilding.com!

Photos courtesy of NRV Photography

My back a year ago would have looked sexy in my low cut wedding dress now! (Don't worry, only Mr. Lab was in the house with me all nakedz!)

Can't believe I'm sharing this one with the hive, but here's part of my progression into a FIT body from the "I'll just cover the extra flab with my clothes" body.



Yeah, that last one was taken exactly a year ago. So what happened? Well, school started (I had been training during the summer) and with it I suddenly had a ton of excuses for skipping out on the gym and stuffing my face. I never quite learned how to manage my fitness with my hectic schedule (classes, extracurriculars, studying, friends, football season, the holidays, etc.). And when I got engaged, I thought the magic wedding fitness fairy would pay me a visit and get me back on track. Well, I'm still waiting on that fairy. In the meantime I've put on about 20 pounds. Here's me now:

Photo taken last week. Wii Fit kicked my out-of-shape ass.

Yesterday's set back has really knocked some sense into me. I'm not trying to get down to a certain pant size or number on the scale. I'm trying to get healthy and fit, to feel energized all day, and to like the way I look. I want to do all this for my everyday life, not just for the wedding (although I'd be lying if I said that the wedding wasn't a big factor in getting back on track).

I know some of you are reading this thinking "Why is she complaining? I wish I looked like that now!" All I have to say to that is we all have different short and long term goals and know where our bodies should be. I know that I shouldn't be this out of shape. It took a lot of fast food and laziness to get this way. (Ever heard of skinny fat?) And it's a bit frustrating to hear people say I look good when I'm so out of shape that playing a hula-hoop game on the Wii gets me sweating and panting in less than a minute. I mean, not that long ago I could run 3 miles in less than 30 minutes and squat 135 lbs!

I have a little over 3 months until the wedding. You might think that's not enough time to get where I want to be, but those progression photos were taken over just a 2 month period. I won't be "ripped" like an Oxygen magazine cover model, but I'll be in shape. (Btw, in my opinion, Oxygen is the best women's health and fitness magazine out there. Trash your Shape & Self magazines and get a subscription to the "O" stat!)

I'm going to occasionally post about the things I have done in the past (and am doing now) that have worked for me. I'm no fitness or nutrition expert, but I do know enough through experience about what works and what doesn't. I don't expect everyone to agree with me when I write about my renewed fitness journey and that's okay. A lot of health and fitness is trial and error, so what works for me might not be the best route for you. But I guarantee you'll learn some things along the way that will help you get to your own fitness goal-finish line.

Now I just have to start taking my own advice, starting now. :)

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