PREPARATION + CONSISTENCY = SUCCESS

I was thinking about why it’s so tough to develop healthy eating habits. I remember the days of when I was a morning anchor and reporter. I was always exhausted and always reached for anything with carbs to refuel my body. My daily ritual: go to my favorite fast food joint, order my pesto pasta, the rice crispy treat and an Arizona tea. Month by month I began to add back the weight I had lost from the year before. This was how it always ended. It began with a DIET and ended with the same 15 pounds I tried so hard losing the year before. The back and forth made me manic. Surely there was an easier way to keep this weight off once and for all. This wasn’t just about my body anymore and what I looked like in the mirror. The doctor told me I had a high cholesterol. I was only in my 20′s! My mother has had high cholesterol almost her entire adult life. This was genetic, but I could change the tide if I changed my eating and exercise habits.

It would be years later, when I met my husband John that I understood the true meaning of changing your lifestyle. Here we are three years together, newlyweds and I’m just finally beginning to “get it”. So believe me, if anyone understands why it takes so long to get on board with this healthy thing, it’s me. Problem is we’ve been taught to think vegetables are “gross”, or that’s how those skinny people eat. Admit it, we’ve all been guilty of seeing the girl with a thin build and thinking to ourselves “eat a burger and some fries will ya?!” In some cases, people who are thin are built that way genetically. I knows girls who eat nothing but junk food. My husband calls it skinny fat, assuring me that your shell doesn’t always determine your overall health.

This is much bigger than just about being “thin” or your ideal body weight. I weight about 138 pounds, give or take depending on the day. I rarely step on the scale anymore (more on that in another blog) but I think we all have a desire to reach that so-called ideal body weight we’ve created in our minds. We base our entire lives on a number. 125 lbs. I’d prefer to step on the scale and see the number 125, but you know what? I’ve been there before. I’ve been at 119. I’ve been at 105 during my high school years (not healthy), and all those years I didn’t exercise healthy eating habits. I was just trying to be THIN or SKINNY. My mindset has completely shifted over the years, and I thank my husband for that. With him being in the fitness industry and a former NFL player, he knows first hand about nutrition. He taught me that food is fuel for my body, and while food should be enjoyed and celebrated over a nice glass of wine on date nights and over indulgence on pizza, burgers, fries and cheesecake …oh and chocolate are okay in moderation, this isn’t about what you can’t do. It’s about what you should do to live a long healthy life.

To live long enough so you can be blessed to share in the many joys that come along your journey.

With that said, it took me a long time to get to where I am and still going. Even while I was training with my husband when I first started years ago, I was wishy washy. Not committed. Stuck in my old ways. Eating “healthy” for three days, reaching for a box of cookies the next. I always stopped myself in my tracks, fearing that maybe if I committed 100% to this thing called health, like I have with my career, I would feel too good. Sometimes the only person standing in the way of our success is ourselves.

After John and I got engaged, I kicked myself into high gear…I would lose some weight for the wedding!!! I didn’t. BUT I did get a lot stronger. I discovered what it was like to train in a group with girls, who empower one another and keep each other accountable. Switching my solo workouts to a group setting was the best thing I could have done. It makes you naturally competitive, but it also gives you a support system that is vital for a successful road to health. For me anyway. August will mark one year since I joined the women’s group at my husband’s gym. 3-4 days a week of weight lifting. I never thought I’d enjoy picking up a dumbbell so much. Of course there are days that it feels like too much, it’s too hard and I want to run out of the gym and go home and just QUIT! but I keep going because my girls are there, and we are in it together! And well, I’m not a quitter. However, I want you to know those feelings are normal. While I’ve been hitting the weights (and no we are not talking crossfit here, and for those of you who swear by it …awesome, but my weight lifting sessions focus on building strength, muscle and most importantly, not getting injured) I haven’t been the most dedicated to healthy eating habits. For those of you who follow me on Instagram and see all my food posts, I try for the most part to eat all natural foods. It took me a LONG TIME to get to this point, so you know what I told myself the other day? “And it will take TIME to get to where you want to be.” Because a healthy lifestyle isn’t a fad diet. It is what the words means: LIFESTYLE. A series of healthy choices you make over the course of your life.

The title of this blog is Preparation + Consistency = Success. YES. That’s exactly right. I want to share a little secret with you that is not so secret. Perhaps it’s a reminder. The reason why I eat healthy as often as I do is because I’m PREPARED. Take it from me…it’s tough to eat “healthy” when you’re working full time and juggling a demanding career. I know some women work full time for a living, others are full time mothers, wives …whatever it may be that you do on the daily, our DAY is filled with activities and obligations that keep us busy, very busy. So busy that we convince ourselves …

“I don’t have the time to work out…”

“I don’t have the time to eat right all the time…”

“Taking the time to do those things for myself takes me away from things that are important, like my husband or my kids…”

WELL listen, YOU are just as important!!! A healthier, happier more energetic you is the best thing you can do for the people you hold so near and dear to your heart!

So when I talk about preparation, I mean this: PREPARE your healthy meals if that’s what it takes. Take that 30 minutes and prepare your food for the next few days. Your lunch, dinner and snacks. IF that’s what it will take to keep you on track, preparing meals is great way to keep you committed long term. It’s what works for me. Today is a day where my meals (except breakfast) are already read for my work day. Trust me, I don’t have the so-called “time” to sit down and enjoy a meal at work. It is a constant dose of high pressure and high stress. There may be some misconceptions out there that news people stroll into work, sit down and just “READ” the news. Ha! If that’s how easy it was, everyone would want that job!!! When I’m working on a deadline and I’m hungry and I haven’t prepared my meals, guess what? I hit the gas station or a fast food joint for a meal filled with preservatives, and I always end up feeling crappy after. So for me, the key to eating healthy has been preparing my meals a few days ahead of time. Then I repeat in the middle of the week. The preparation leaves me less stressed throughout the day at work, and gives me the time to do the things that I love before I go into work, like writing a blog or my book!

When you’re prepared, you naturally become more consistent. Those two things have a symbiotic relationship. Being prepared is one thing. Now that you’ve taken that step you can work on being consistent, which is just as difficult as being prepared right? Consistency is tough when a million excuses get in the way. For some it takes longer than others, but if you try hard enough and are consistent long enough, then the preparation it takes and the consistency you need to be successful comes naturally. You have in essence made it your lifestyle. Just like you made the lifestyle you have now.

The above picture is an example of how I eat during the day at work. Some chicken breast with quinoa and raw vegetables for lunch, apples and peanut butter for a snack and a chicken salad with dressing of choice!

And here is what I munch on for breakfast: eggs with mixed veggies, some turkey bacon (or bacon too sometimes, I switch it up), some hot tea and freshly squeezed grapefruit juice!