A Moment of Realisation.....

There was a point last week whilst I was running my free clean eating group that it suddenly dawned on me how amazingly excited I felt about what I was doing in that moment.

I haven't felt a spark as strong as that in a long time and quite honestly it took me by surprise. I know that I'm passionate about good nutrition and fitness. Heck, I'm constantly learning and educating myself about this stuff in my spare time. Instead of sitting on the sofa watching TV programmes every evening I'm on my laptop trying to absorb ALL the knowledge! This stuff is what gets my blood pumping, I just love it. And I get a massive kick out of sharing that it with other people too.

It's true to say that my sparkle has been dull for a long time. That's quite difficult for me to put out there. I don't really know how it happened, it kind of just crept up on me. I don't think I was aware of it or fully understood it. Earlier this year I chose to make some hard decisions and take some time out  to try and put myself back on the path that I want to be on. Part of that was revisiting what I'd been doing before with Sweating the Small Stuff and taking the leap to run a clean eating challenge group again. 

When I felt that spark during the group last week it felt amazing and I can finally say without a shadow of a doubt I know where I got my old sparkle from! For the life of me I don't know why I allowed life to get in the way of me doing what I love the most. But I get it now and I'm not prepared to allow that to happen again.

I love the interaction of the groups, the sense of all being in it together, the support and encouragement you get from a group of like-minded people.

I know where I'm going now and I'm excited about the path that's stretched out before of me.

I am recommitting fully to my fitness and clean eating and this also means I'll be Sweating the Small Stuff 100%!!!

To help me on my way and to give me the kickstart and consistency I need I've committed to complete an entire workout plan, starting THIS WEEK!

It's official - I've taken the before pictures, measurements and weighed myself. 

Wow, what a shock that was! Weighing myself isn't something I do often, I never have. I'd rather go on how I feel than a number on the scale. I knew I'd put on a fair bit of weight but I wasn't prepared for quite how much. I'm not proud to say that I'm currently weighing in a full stone heavier than I've ever been (even during my 2 pregnancies!), and I feel every pound of it. I'm glad I've made this decision to recommit because I NEED to do something about that.   

So, it's go time!

I know my fitness is at a low point so I've chosen to complete the 21 Day Fix program because the workouts are well suited to beginners/intermediates. The nutrition plan that comes with it is brilliant. It's simple and fun to use (cute, coloured measuring containers included!) and is totally geared towards clean eating. I can even track my workouts and food intake on a handy app each day, so there's no messing up. Oh, and I've never done this program before so I'm excited to see what all the hype is about.

At the weekend I planned all my meals out for this week working out my containers for each day, I got a shop in and I prepped some bits in anticipation.

Breakfast is, as always, a shake because it's quick, easy and keeps me full for a few hours. Lunches and snacks are all the same this week while I get used to counting my containers, I'm keeping it basic for now. Next week I should feel more confident to mix it up a little.

My goals for the 21 days are to lose 6lbs, to stick to clean eating and to see what kind of results I can get by being disciplined and completing the program as it's designed.

So far I've done all of the workouts and I've stuck to my meal plan. I'm feeling really positive about it all, even though my legs are aching like mad!

I'll be checking in here at Sweating the Small Stuff so stay tuned for the scoop on my weekly meal plans and progress!!!