healthy eating? what's that?

oh how the mighty have fallen... off the wagon.

after the craziness of the wedding was over, i got a little crazy myself - with EATING. blame it on the holiday, blame it on the street fests, blame it on my 3 week long migraine (no, not kidding) or blame it on me just needing some good old binge eating. this past week was the worst - ice cream, multiple times. bbq pulled pork sandwiches. macaroni & cheese. cornbread. cherry coke floats. brisket sandwiches. beer - lots of it. hooters. portillos. taco bell. mcdonalds. GROSS!!! i got busy with work, my business, and overall just got lazy. but now it's all out of my system & i'm ready to start fresh.

so as of yesterday, i'm back on the fitness wagon. pilates 4-5 times a week, and a little bit of gym time too. cutting out the white carbs, cutting down on sugars, and absolutely no soda or sweet tea. after just one day i already feel a little better! we have a little less than 6 weeks to go until our Orange County beach vacation, so at least I have another end point in mind to reach my goal. I would ideally like to lose another 5 pounds by vacation. wish me luck!

as i mentioned above, i have been keeping busy with my new cake pop business, pops by kristina! it's been a lot of fun being creative and having great ideas come to life. i'm currently working on a few orders, one being very big - i'm doing the entire sweet table for my friends daughters first birthday party! i can't wait to see how it all turns out! if you'd like to learn more about pops by kristina, you can visit me on facebook -http://www.facebook.com/PopsByKristina
all facebook fans receive 20% off of their first order!

all for now - wish me luck on the next 6 weeks!

My final (but not so final) numbers, and my new business!

Well hello everyone! What a whirlwind 4 months it has been! Thanks to the readers, whoever you are, for sharing this journey with me! Also thanks to my family, and the friends that have been supportive of me since day one - it's much appreciated! A HUGE thank you to my amazing pilates instructors over at Demi-Bar Pilates - Sheila, Jen, Julie, Pauline, Tami & Katie! You ladies helped me re-shape my body and shave those inches away!

Speaking of inches, here's my final results!

I went from 128 lbs to 117 lbs - lost a total of 11 lbs! 

Waist: -4.5 inches

Hips: -6 inches

Thighs: -4.5 inches

Arms: -1 inch

Pant Waist: -6 inches

Chest: -5 inches

That's a total of 27 inches lost! I have old jeans that fit again, clothes that are too big on me... it really is a great feeling. I can't stress enough how great the demi-bar pilates has been. I have arm muscles! Actual biceps that don't look like creepy woman bodybuilder biceps! My thighs and my stomach, while seeing some decent improvement, are still an area of concern. That's okay though, because this journey is not over! Why? Well, one reason is our Laguna Beach vacation coming up in just 7 weeks. Another reason is, my BEST friend Stephanie over at The Single Slant is getting MARRIED!!!! So I've got to keep up the hard work to look good at her wedding too! We've got a little over a year to go, and I'm already looking forward to seeing what kind of results I'll have a year from now - there is NO room for slacking! If you are interested in following Stephanie's wedding planning journey, you can do so over at Bellissima Bride.

The final piece of information that I would like to share with you is that I have started a new side business. I recently became obsessed with cake pops, and since I've had some extra time on my hands, I've been experimenting with making all different kinds. My first attempt was for the bridal shower, where I made cheesecake pops and also made cute stands to display them on - they were a huge success, so I just kept on going! I decided to start up a little side business called Pops By Kristina - you can find me on Facebook, follow me on Twitter,  email me or call me at 708.316.POPS for more information. I can do birthday parties, bridal showers, baby showers, bachelorette parties, you name it! It's so fun to be creating cute little treats to share with others. Please wish me luck with my new business venture!

I will leave you with some photos of the wedding, and of my work. Thanks again everyone!

Bridal Shower cheesecake pops!

Chocolate cake pops for the birthday girl

Chocolate cake pops with a peanut butter swirl

 

 

More birthday cake pops

Funfetti pops!!

The Wedding :)

18 days to go!!!

Wow, I cannot believe how fast time is flying! I've been so busy counting down to the wedding, I didn't realize that by the time the wedding was over and done with, we would be halfway through summer! So yes, the title is correct, there are 18 days to go!

I have to admit, I have slacked somewhat over the past week. I fit a few demi-bar pilates classes in, but didn't get to the gym like I had planned. I even took 3 whole days in a row off - just way too busy with other stuff, but I also think I needed that break. So I started back at it yesterday with a class in the evening, I'm doing two classes today, and I'll be doing as many double workouts as I can until the big day.

If anyone was wondering how the Trader Joe's Detox went, it was not great. I had to stop after 6 days. I truly think that I just wasn't getting enough nutrients because nothing was staying in my body long enough. I got a severe migraine that basically landed me in bed for three days, so I thought it was best to just stop. I wasn't a fan, but my friend didn't have any issues with it. The food restrictions are so frustrating though, that when it comes time to eat, you get so annoyed trying to figure out what to eat that you're not even hungry anymore. I did lose two more pounds after I was finished though!

Last week, my girlfriends and I went to the annual summer patio kickoff party at our favorite restaurant, Carlucci's.We had a blast, but the most fun part was interacting with the crowd. It was a very diverse crowd that night, and we were probably some of the youngest girls there (besides those super-skinny little models running around in bikinis). Out of nowhere, an older gentleman came up to me and said, "You have to have great legs to pull off an outfit like that.... and you do". Needless to say, I turned bright red in embarrassment. I really have no other reaction to that, other than, THANK YOU, demi-bar pilates!!!

Since I started this journey, I am officially down 10 pounds, and I have lost a total of 23.75 inches! I have lost a total of 15 inches since I started pilates in the beginning of May. So far it's been 3 months, and I'm pretty happy with the progress that I've made in this time. My clothes fit better, and some are even too big - isn't that the greatest feeling??

I'm taking off - time to get started on another busy day - and the bachelorette party is this weekend!!!

80 days in....

Well hello again! I'm up earlier than I should be, with some time to kill before pilates, so I thought it was a perfect opportunity to make a new blog post!

So, the title of this post is right: it's been 80 days since I started this journey. EIGHTY! I can't believe it! And there are 30 days until the wedding. So let's check in and see where I'm at, shall we?

Demi-Bar Pilates has been AMAZING for me. It's a great workout, and it totally does re-shape your body. I can't say enough good things about it. I try to do pilates 3-4 times a week, and do the cardio fusion class twice a week. Demi-Bar Pilates will usually burn anywhere between 280 - 450 calories for me, and on days I do pilates, I usually go to the gym as well to do cardio for about 25 minutes. The Cardio Fusion class is all about keeping your heart rate up, so I usually burn about 400-530 in that class. Last nights was brutal, and I'm feeling the pain!

So within just 4 weeks of pilates, I felt my body changing and I started dropping more inches. Here are the inches I lost since I started doing pilates:

WAIST	-1.25
HIPS	-2.5
THIGH	-1.5
ARM	-1
PANT WAIST	-3.25
CHEST	-1.5

That makes for a total of 11 inches lost in one month! And I finally lost an inch in my arms, the stubborn little area that wouldn't budge!

Overall, since the beginning of the skinny bridesmaid journey on march 14th, I've lost a total of 19.75 inches, 2% body fat, and 8 pounds. It's a little disappointing that I haven't lost more weight, but at least the inches are melting off, which makes me feel great. I can't wait to see what the total end result will be!

Another bridesmaid and I just started the Trader Joe's Complete Body Cleanse. It's a two week program with 3 different kinds of pills. During the cleanse, you are to limit and/or eliminate the following:

• alcohol
• simple carbohydrates
• red meat
• dairy

Yesterday was day 1, nothing crazy happened. I'll keep you guys posted if anyone is interested in doing it. I've heard great things about it, and I've also heard that you could drop a few pounds from it as well. And now that I think of it, it's about that time to go take the fiber capsules!

Glowing Green Smoothie recipe, and other notes

Okay, so I've been bad at updating this. But we all knew that was going to happen. I have a short attention span.

First and foremost, I would like to share my most recent results. I am now down a total of 8 pounds since I started on March 14th, just 8 weeks ago. I have also lost a total of 12 inches from the spots that I have been measuring. There are 7 &1/2 weeks to go until the wedding!

Inches lost:

Waist: -2

Hips: -3.5

Thighs: -1.5

Arms: 0 (the one thing that wont budge!)

Waist where my pants hit: -2.5

Chest: -2.5

 I am pretty pleased with how I've done so far! My end goal may not be realistic - I'd have to lose another 10 pounds. Honestly, I'd be happy with losing just 5 more. We will see how I do!

I touched on the Glowing Green Smoothie in my last update, it has been something that I've incorporated into my diet during the past two weeks. It looks weird, tastes delicious, and gets lots of fruits and veggies into my diet that I wouldn't otherwise eat - I am NOT a veggie eater. The recipe comes from the amazing book, The Beauty Detox Solution, by Kimberly Snyder. The book is a real eye opener, and helps you look at diet and nutrition a lot differently. I learned a lot about digestion, and have made small changes to what I eat, and when I eat it, which has helped me a lot. You can buy the book here, and check out Kimberly's blog and website here.

Glowing Green Smoothie Recipe 

Adapted from The Beauty Detox Solution, by Kimberly Snyder

Ingredients:

1 & 1/2 cups of cold, filtered water

1 head of organic romaine lettuce, chopped

3-4 stalks of organic celery

large bunch of organic spinach

1 organic apple, cored and chopped (I like to use Gala apples)

1 organic pear, cored and chopped

1 organic banana

Juice of 1/2 a lemon

zest of 1/2 a lemon

Optional: (I never used either, because I don't particularly care for either flavor)

1/3 bunch of organic cilantro

1/3 bunch of organic parsley

In a blender, add the water and the romaine lettuce. Start at a low speed, and mix until smooth. Gradually moving to higher speeds, add the spinach, celery, apple, and pear. Add the cilantro and parsley, if you are choosing to add them. Add the banana, the lemon juice, and the lemon zest last. 

I recommend refrigerating this for at least 2 hours before drinking - I always made a big batch at night before bed - enough for 3 days. It is great to have as your breakfast, which is what I did for two weeks straight. (I gave up eggs during this time, shocking, I know!) I promise, it tastes great. I always added a little extra lemon juice - the zest isn't in the original recipe, but I think it adds nice flavor. It doesn't taste like spinach or lettuce, honestly all you taste is the apple, the pear, and the lemon. Let me know if you try it!

I have also started doing new exercise classes, which I luckily get to do for free, courtesy of my new part-time job! I started doing Demi-Bar Pilates, which Madonna made famous. It uses a ballet barre, a pilates ball, 3 pound weights, gliders, and the "magic circle".  I also started a Cardio Fusion class, which incorporates the use of gliders, flex bands, 3 pound weights, and a bunch of other stuff I've never used before! Everything focuses on small movements and pulses - it doesn't look like you're doing much, but don't be fooled - it's TOUGH! I love it and I'm now obsessed. So I am hoping that these classes, along with cardio, will help get me to the next level :)

You can find more information about the classes I have been taking at Fixe Self Center here:

http://www.fixeselfcenter.com/yoga-fitness/classes-schedule

A quick Easter update

Hello everyone! I'm awful at updating, I know. But I have been busy, busy, busy with making it to every single Yoga Sculpt class available, getting in extra cardio in the gym, changing my eating habits, and a few other things that I can't talk about just yet. But my hard work has continued to pay off! Here's some results:

Since March 14th, I've lost a total of:
6 pounds
8 overall inches
body fat has also gone down another percentage

I am so happy that I am monitoring my inches - it helps to measure a few different things so that you can see results in different ways!

This week was an interesting one. I started reading the book The Beauty Detox Soloution, by Kimberly Snyder. It's totally changed my perspective on how I eat, what I'm eating, and when I'm eating. It's also encouraged me to become a vegetarian. Now, I know that I personally could never become a full blown vegetarian, but I can cut back on the amount of animal protein that I eat. So this week, I gave it a shot, and didn't eat any meat or eggs Monday through Friday. I didn't miss it too much, and I think it helped with my weight loss this week. I've also been drinking Kimberly's Glowing Green Smoothie for breakfast - I will post the recipe later on today. I'm not a vegetable person, so it's helped me get more veggies and fiber in me in an easy way. I've had more energy, and just felt better overall - much less bloating, also.

That is all for now - I promise I will be back soon with more details about the Beauty Detox and the smoothie. Have a great Easter everyone!

We're making some progress!

So here's where we stand, about 4 weeks into this bridesmaid slimdown:

I've lost about 4 pounds - which can be a bit discouraging, but let's keep in mind two things:

• I typically don't lose a lot of weight right away. It's frustrating, but it takes a while
• I'm actually putting on quite a bit of muscle - you should see my push-ups!

I have lost half an inch in my waist, an inch in my hips, half an inch in my thighs, and an inch at the spot on my waist that my yoga pants hit. This is exciting progress for me!

In addition to my regular workouts and boot camp, I have thrown one more thing into the mix - Yoga Sculpt! I've taken 3 classes so far and I am in LOVE. The class is available at Core Power Yoga and it is AMAZING. Now, I generally hate yoga. Despise it, even. My friend and fellow bridesmaid Amanda lured me into going. She promised me it would be fun. And besides, the first week is FREE! So I said fine, I'll try it, but if I hate it, I'm going to stab your eyeballs out. Lucky for Amanda, and her eyeballs, I LOVED it. It is so not your typical yoga class. The music is fun and upbeat. You can talk, giggle, sing along to Britney and Rihanna, and oh, sweat your ass off because it's 95 degrees in there. You go through some basic yoga poses, and use weights as well - you can use 3 lbs, 5 lbs, or 8 lbs. You walk out sweaty, refreshed, and feeling like you can take over the world! I stretched in ways I didn't even know I could stretch. It was great, and now I'm addicted. The teachers are so nice, the facility is beautiful, and the best part - the lemon lavender cold face cloth they place on your forehead at the end of class. OH. MY. GOD. Complete and total bliss.

All for now - I'm going to keep on trucking away! 11 weeks to go!