From Chaos Comes Clarity....

Or not.....

It is Day 2 and I am space cadet central.....

So we’re on Day 2 of this 3 Day Refresh. I gotta tell you, if I weigh myself on Wednesday and there is no change I am not going to be a happy camper. And then I will run to Whole Foods for Vegan Cookies (yes, I am obsessed with the 2 pack of Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies from Whole Foods in case you didn’t learn that yesterday.)

They are seriously the best. And yes, they’re vegan and don’t have much in them but I still probably shouldn’t consume them on a daily basis…Last week I think I had them 4 days out of 7…whoops. Although if you know me pretty well you would know that I never actually eat the cookie. Yes, I’m one of those weirdos who only pick out the chocolate chips to eat. I know. I’m a weirdo. As you get to know me you’ll realize I have a ton of weird eating habits. Picking things out of things is one of them. But…I digress.

So anyway, my breakfast consisted of a chocolate Shakeologly shake blended with a ½ of banana and a shitload of ice cubes…..not too bad! Got me through to oh, about 9:30am during which I could have my “Fiber Sweep” aka trying to swallow what I would imagine glue and woodchips would taste like if someone were to actually make a drink out of them. Oh and they oddly taste lemony. Not my favorite part of the day. Then again, no part of this cleanse has been my favorite. I am angry, I am irritable, I have wanted to quit about 10 times today. I feel fuzzy and foggy and I think it might have to do with the fact that every time I go to get my blood drawn they say I’m anemic. So I don’t know how good of an idea this cleanse was….but onward we go. I kept thinking in my head the scene in one of my favorite movies "You've Got Mail" with Meg Ryan when she says to Tom Hanks "My head feels fuzzy." haha



Lunch. A heaping cup of cucumbers, cantaloupe and a vanilla protein shake. Um…. Yeah. That’s the biggest meal of the day. 6pm rolls around…starving. Oh wait, I forgot to mention the 4 baby carrots I was allowed at about 3:30. How easy it is to forget about eating nothing. Back to 6pm. Best meal of the day in my opinion. Cauliflower, broccoli and carrots with coconut milk mixed in vegetable broth. Ok….not bad. Except… here it is 8pm and I’m starving again.

I can’t go through the night I went through last night. They say you’re supposed to get better sleep (uh, no) gain clarity (uh, double no) and feel good (oh, hell no!) Last night I barely slept and had dreams like I was on LSD.... clarity, yeah right…today my friend came in to talk to me and I swear to god I have no idea what was said during that conversation. He probably thought I WAS on LSD.... and feeling good? Uhhh right. I wanted to murder about 6 people today and now I just want to go to sleep.

But hey, silver lining… one more day right! One more day of this hell on earth that is the 3 day cleanse. Mind you, if I get on the scale on Wed and have lost 5-10 lbs I may be singing a different tune. Right now, I’m singing the tune of wanting to give the F up.

Plus, I miss working out and I sure as hell can’t do that on no sleep, a foggy head and feeling like I want to die. No thanks (hey, my endorsement makes you want to run right out and buy one right? Come on, I make a little commission...you can probably survive this longer than I.)

In fact, Steve is doing great, he has mental clarity and stepped on the scale this morning after ONE DAY and got some amazing results. I’m not going to share those results, that’s for him to do but Jesus Christ, if I get those results after 3 days I will be happy.

I am already thinking about what to eat on Wednesday…kind of defeats the purpose eh? But… I do know that after going through all of this I WILL NEVER WANT TO DO THIS AGAIN…therefore, I will adjust my eating and drinking habits so that I NEVER HAVE TO DO THIS AGAIN. Did I mention I WILL NEVER DO THIS AGAIN??

So there it is ….Day 2 in a nutshell. How I managed to find the energy in my fingers to type this blog I have no idea…dear god let some divine intervention take place and get me through Day 3….
Send me some motivation… please.

3 Day Refresh...commence!

Man, I'm a mess lately...first of all it's been a little over three months since I even gave this page a thought. And it's for a lot of reasons. A lot of things that have taken place over the past few months that kind of shook my world for a little bit. And, when things shake my world, naturally I turn to chocolate and alcohol like a lot of folks do. After all, I'm human. A human that likes chocolate. Lots and lots and lots of chocolate.... I have to say though, I HAVE been good with my workouts, consistently working out 5/6 days out of the week, mainly doing Les Mills Combat which I love. I recently started incorporating Les Mills Pump into my schedule and I gotta say, there's something very powerful about lifting weights. Not necessarily becoming more powerful because of lifting (although that’s awesome too) but more so becoming more powerful in the mind. There’s something about lifting weights that makes you feel like you can conquer the world. And when you can do one more rep than the day before, it gives you a confidence that has a ripple effect throughout your life. Needless to say I love Les Mills Pump. I just need to be mindful of the back at all times and make sure I don’t overdo it. So far, so good.

What is NOT so good is the number I saw on the scale this morning. Sure, it’s a number and people say don’t pay attention to the number but I can’t help it. That number helps me stay accountable. And, even though I’ve been working out, clearly my nutrition is not on point since I gained 8 lbs since I last weighed myself. Blah. A mind-f for sure. (I AM hoping though some of that has to do with my weekend indulgence of drinking both Friday and Saturday nights and eating things I normally don’t eat….we shall see.) But… it’s also a good thing I decided (before I weighed myself) to do the 3 day refresh and try to get things under control. So I HAD to weigh myself and take measurements on Day 1 so I can see what it does when I check back in on Wed after it’s over. Steve and I are both doing it together. Which is actually helpful because I probably would’ve given up once Parker’s Cheez-Its came out as a snack this evening. He is preparing everything I need to eat when which is also awesome because I don’t have to think about it, just do it. If I actually had to read the book and figure out what I needed to eat when, it wouldn’t have happened. My ADD brain would’ve given up at the first sign of “prepping things.”






Sooooo. I will not post my weight here, sorry, just can’t do it… a number I’m most definitely not comfortable with… but…I will post my waist at 29” and my hips at 39” … so we’ll see how many inches I lost when I retake those measurements on Wednesday.

Now, about Day 1. This isn’t easy. After having four glasses of wine at Parker’s auction last night I woke up slightly hung over, this is on top of the few beers I had on Friday night of which I woke up hung over Saturday morning. Getting older is a bitch let me tell you. 37 is right around the corner and I’m beginning to realize I’m not 21 anymore. Then again I knew that at about 30. 7 years later, I’m still pretending I can hang. Trust me, I can’t.

So anyway, hung over Courtney has a tri-fecta of foods she eats to help ease the pain. First thing, egg and cheese bagel from Dunks. Extra cheese, extra egg. Yes, you read that right. Second thing, an eggplant parm sandwich with, yup, you guessed it, extra eggplant, extra parm. Haha And finally, a nice big bowl of fro-yo with chocolate sprinkles, chocolate carob chips and cookie dough bites. Yup. The tri-fecta. For many years this has worked like a charm. So you can imagine my body’s surprise when I decided to go the exact opposite direction and start a 3 day cleanse. All of which consisted today of 900 calories…shakes, fruits and veggies. My dinner was a bowl of cauliflower, broccoli and carrots in veggie broth with a vanilla protein shake. (Which, to be honest, the veggie soup was reallllly good as it had coconut oil in it with a little sea salt.) The only thing missing? Like 2 more servings of it. haha

So, talk about a shock to the system. My body is crying out terribly for those three foods that make everything so much better…. But, if I want to jumpstart things and change that number on the scale, I need to do this. So, here I am preparing for The Walking Dead (I totally feel like I should be in that today) but hey, at least I’m 33 1/3% done.

Anyway, I’ll keep y’all posted on the progress. Debating on whether to weigh myself tomorrow morning to see what, if any, progress has taken place. Knowing my penchant for instant gratification though that might not be good for me. If I see that I didn’t lose anything or see that I gained the first day (a normal reaction for some people) I might get disillusioned and head to Whole Foods for a Vegan Cookie.

We’ll see how it goes…wish me luck. And I promise to start posting things more regularly as I try and take this fitness thing to the next level and try to conquer some demons. Putting it out there in the world make it that much more real and hopefully y'all will hold me a bit more accountable. (Like when I'm going to reach for that 5th glass of wine...thanks) ha

Court

A lot has gone on these past six months....

Wow. 6 months have passed since my last blog post. That's kind of crazy but then again my life has been kind of crazy. I promise to get back to blogging more regularly and sharing my journey with y'all!
This time it's going to be more of a life journey than a weight loss/fitness journey. Of course that's a huge component of what I'm going to dedicate myself to but not entirely what I'm going to dedicate myself to. I vow to become a much better person, mom, wife, friend, co-worker...an overall better me. I feel like the past few months have really gotten me off track on who I am meant to be but I am dedicated to changing all of that and getting back on the straight and narrow and continuing down a path that I started to go down but somehow got sidetracked with everything.

Soooo much has gone on these past 6 months I'm not even sure where to begin. I had problems with my relationship, I have done some questionable things, I looked for a new job, got a new job, quit my job, hated my job, begged to come back to my job, came back to my job, lost weight, lost myself, gained some weight, lost myself some more, drank too much to deal with life, thought the grass was greener elsewhere, ate too much, ate too little, got drunk before a very important event, somehow pulled off a very important event.... I'm not even sure where to start. Sure, life is full of ups and downs but I need to find some type of balance and only I am responsible for creating that balance. So here's why I'm back blogging. To have you all to hold me accountable for creating the life I want to live. And it's so much more than the life I'm living now --- although it's getting better.

(Side note, 50 Shades of Grey preview just came on and I cannot wait to go see this movie...dying and counting down until the day it comes out in the theater!)

So bare with me, the next few blogs I'll fill you all in on what has happened the past 6 months... it's been a crazy ride. Then, on February 1st I'll weigh myself, take some measurements and share my fitness journey with everyone too. I just bought Les Mills Pump and excited to start lifting some weights and taking my body to the next level... I want to be a lean, mean dancing machine... more on that aspect of it later ;)

Until then, brace yourself for some highly entertaining stories, a snapshot of my life that past 6 months. Oh, you'll be entertained I'm sure.

xoxo,
Court

Damn You Sangria....(I'm Exhausted!)

It's been awhile!
Life gets in the way of my blogging and then well, I don't blog. Sorry about that.
In the past week, my little man Parker turned 4 (omg) and we had a great party for him Saturday! The days leading up to it were crazy. We ended up at Wegmans 5 out of the last 6 days before the party, for what I don't know but we always found things we actually needed when there. I swear Wegmans puts some subliminal messaging in that kick ass music they play to make you want to come back for anything.

I mean. It's Wegmans. Educate yo'self.
http://www.buzzfeed.com/rachelysanders/why-wegmans-is-the-greatest-supermarket-ever

So yeah, the planning was crazy. I luckily was able to get the Westampton Emergency Services Department to stop by the party with their trucks, the gear and their fire dalmatian Jake. They rolled up at our house and Parker was beyond elated. It was the perfect start to what would be the perfect party!



I won't get into too much about the party other than we were blessed with such great family and friends who came, it ended with a Mister Softee surprise and then the supermoon. Couldn't have been better if it was all planned. Amazing weekend, so sad for it to come to an end... but looking forward to what the rest of the summer is going to bring. More family, more friends. Bring it on Summer '14! Took a lot of pics which I'm sure you already all saw on Facebook. Pictures for me are still so awkward even though I'm starting to realize that I am looking better in them...better meaning, more fit, more healthy, and just more happy...although when everyone wants to take a pic of me it's usually me feeling like this!



In any event, bringing it back to the party a little bit, I did end up drinking two large red solo cups of Senor Sangria aka the devil disguised in a bottle.



Now if you read my post a few before this you'll realize alcohol never was my friend and it reaffirmed that this morning. Even though I only had two glasses I felt horrible this afternoon and ended up taking a one hour nap!! UGH. So I decided I should just be done with it all. What's the point? I gave it one more try but really, I've done enough of that. I've lived enough. So yeah, not happy about the slight hangover from Mr. Senor BUT, I will give myself props because at 9:00 I knew I had to get my workout in since yesterday was a "rest" day. Somehow I got through it. If you want something bad enough, you make it happen. I sweated it out, kicked and punched my way through it and feel so much better!! Wasn't not going to do anything two days in a row!

Anyway, good news, I'm down 5.6 lbs in 3 weeks and 2 INCHES OFF OF MY WAIST! Yes, TWO INCHES IN THREE WEEKS! I can't believe it. I actually took a picture of my leg today too because it just looked smaller. I think I'm on point to get the results people get from the 9 week Les Mills Combat workout. An average of 15 lbs and 24 inches?! I can't even imagine that, but I'm well on my way!

So I persevered and here I am. Exhausted, on the couch. Getting ready to watch the very exciting first episode of Real Housewives of New Jersey because well, I'm from NJ and it entertains me.

That's all I have for today! Tomorrow is a new day, another day to start fresh, to make the most of the week! Live it up right. Be kind. Be happy and live with a grateful heart!



xoxo,
Court

PS: Have you followed the hubs amazing journey doing P90x3 and Shakeology? More than 31 lbs down and crazy body fat results!
Check it out: http://stevelovefitness.blogspot.com/2014/07/weigh-in-sunday-burnin-fat.html

This is what I do. This is what I love. Join me on my warrior journey!

Burpees? Ain't nobody got time for that...

There's that saying...where there's a will, there's a way. At 7pm, I felt so incredibly drained I went upstairs to get changed and at 7:30 I had Steve and Parker looking for me because I never came back down. Where was I? Passed out on my bed, still in my clothes, and somehow I got under the blankets.



I don't know what happened. It's like it all just caught up to me and I was completely exhausted. I've been pretty tired lately. The days have been rough. I feel like I am juggling 30 balls in the air sometimes and it gets so overwhelming my body just shuts down. Frustrating for me because I want that energy, I want to feel good, I want to put my all in my workout. I keep thinking maybe I should get some bloodwork done to check for some kind of underlying autoimmune disease, or RA which they think I have due to this nodule that keeps popping up on my shoulder. I should probably do that huh?
Any doctors reading this blog?

Check it out-any ideas as to what this is welcome. It's painful, it hurts all the time and probably the reason why I'm so miserable and a bitch all the time. Or according to Steve I guess... The way I look at it is (and I'm trying to be more positive.) With my back going out almost a year to the day and being in pain from that to this shoulder issue immediately after that it's been 365 days of me being in some type of constant pain. You try and be f'n pleasant.



Anyway, I digress. So I got up at 7:30, got dressed, put Parker to bed and came downstairs. Looked at my Les Mills Combat schedule and almost cried. I could SWEAR today was 30 minute combat NOT high intensity shock plyo. I mean. Are you kidding me?? For 30 minutes straight I had to dig deep and jump around like a crazy person. Oh and did I mention burpees?



Apparently we had time for that. Lots and lots of time. Lots and lots of burpees. Lots and lots of lunges and squats and ski jumps. I'm dead to the world. But was it worth it? Of course it was worth it. Another workout in the books, almost 2 weeks down for Les Mills Combat and I'm feeling great (minus the whole second head on my shoulder and being tired and all. ha)

4 day weekend ahead with the fam, lots of fun stuff scheduled. Can't wait to relax, workout and eat my veggie burger on the 4th of July! Oh does anyone have any paleo alcoholic drink recipes? Clean eating libations? Let me know! :)

Til tomorrow!



xoxo,
Court

My "Rest" Day!

Evening everyone!

Well, today was supposed to be my "rest" day according to my workout calendar for Les Mills Combat. I almost felt guilty resting so instead I decided to hop on my treadmill for 20 minutes. Gotta keep on moving. No rest days for me, I'll always try to stay active and get some type of cardio in on rest days since I sit at a desk all day and am pretty sedentary.

Diet going really well. Resisted the urge to buy dark chocolate covered nuts yesterday and opted for veggie chips. Today I took my son for fro-yo (my weakness with carob chips and chocolate sprinkles) and watched his little face enjoy it.



I hear 80% is diet so as long as I stay on this path, I'm progressing toward my fitness (and other) goals.

Tomorrow for throwback Thursday, I'll be sure to post some of my photos during my awkward stage...which really took place from about 6-20. :)

Off to bed I go, on the grind again tomorrow. Tomorrow is Plyo - doesn't sound good from what I remember from P90X!

xoxo,
Court

Day Three - Les Mills Combat COMPLETE!

Hi everyone!

Just got done rocking a 45 minute combat workout! This, after a LONNNNG day. Drove out to Lancaster to meet up with the parents, walked a lot, Parker swam in the pool, went on a buggy ride, then drove home. Completely exhausted and sunburned I contemplated throwing in the towel today and doing it tomorrow (my 1 of 2 rest days!) but I sucked it up and rocked it. That music is a godsend. Not to mention, Rach is totally motivational. I want to be her. Ok, that sounds creepy. I want to look like her. She's awesome. Keeps me motivated. Her and that modification girl that I sometimes need to follow when the jump kick is out of my spinal comfort zone.

Anyway it's 10:30 now and I'm beat. Need to get a few things done for work (the joy of taking a day off, trying to play catch up) and then pass out. Tomorrow should be a rest day per the calendar but that just feels wrong. So I'll probably hop on the treadmill for a 30 minute walk/run then do a little bit of weights.

Ohhh, we just got awesome news on the Beachbody team that Shakeology has been clinically verified to help people lose weight! Check out this video, it's awesome. This is the one thing that got me involved with this amazing company. The fact that this one shake starts my whole day off right and gets me the nutrition I need when I don't have time to get it from other meals. It's a busy mom's dream!! Check it out!

Shakeology!!

If you're interested in trying it, send me an email: CourtneyShaneLove@gmail.com or find me on Facebook - would love for you to follow my page there too :) I'll send you a free sample if you sign up with me as my coach and hey, if you even place an order I'll send you a FREE shaker :)

Leaving you with this for the night. Be Happy. Be Bright. Be You.
>

xoxo,
Court

Holy Les Mills Combat!

We'll that was intense. And awesome. And man, I love kick boxing! What an amazing workout! Channels my inner rage. Ha. 

Although I jabbed myself in the face about three times (I'm learning) Hey, she said keep my other fist close. For some reason my other fist decided to move when it shouldn't. 

And hey, why not a little Fall Out Boy for some combos haha. The electronic music was pretty sweet. 

Hope my back holds out for this though, the only thing that's scaring me. For those that don't know, last July I herniated my disc so bad that it sat on a nerve and I wasn't able to walk for almost three months until I finally had surgery. Then I walked right out of there pain free. Until I reherniated it 4 months later. It was a trying time in my life last year and another story for another post. 

Blessed to be walking now and able to do this, just can't push my limits. 

Off to find a healthy snack! Hope you got your healthy eating in for the day and an awesome workout!

  

xoxo,

Court

I just posted this on Twitter & Facebook...might as well share it here too!

So I've already been preaching Shakeology in my other posts. And the hubs has used it to get to where he is now.

If you're interested in trying it but don't want to make a committment without trying it, simply sign up for an account with ‪Beachbody‬ (It's FREE) or change your coach over to me and get a free sample! Purchase a month's supply and I'll throw in a shaker for you!

Just had a great meal of a veggie burger on cinnamon raisin gluten free toast (weird combo I know) with avocado and salsa and a side of asparagus. What did you eat today? Need more veggies in your diet?

Not convinced? Check it out here!

Day One!!!

Well, it's Day One and I've gotten up, weighed myself and took some measurements...

WEIGHT: 161.6
WAIST: 30.5
HIPS: 40
RIGHT THIGH: 20
LEFT THIGH: 21
RIGHT ARM: 12
LEFT ARM: 12



Hoping I took the thigh/arm measurements right but I know where I took them so in 30 days I'll revisit that area.

Now that you know my numbers, let me tell you a little bit about me. I'm Courtney Love, 36 from NJ. I have an almost 4 year old son Parker who is the love of my life. I've been married to Steve Love for almost 6 years. More about his crazy transformation in a minute! I'm obsessed with animals, wine, live music, sarcasm, and trail mix with chocolate (of course, I only eat the chocolate out of it.)
I've recently went vegetarian but decided after reading a lot of information, it's better to go Paleo with farm-raised, grass fed chicken who are treated humanely and not stuck in a cage with hundreds of other chickens :( (no red meat or pork for me!)

I'm obsessed with Will & Grace, Shark Tank, Undercover Boss and ANY reality show on TV. Recently I've gotten into Little Women LA. It's awesome, watch it. Trust me. I'm also a marketer at heart. My mind's always going all the time and I'm constantly thinking of new ideas for work, for new businesses, for new products. Ever since I was little I was creating new products and businesses...hello, Kids News newspaper in 2nd grade in which I actually sold ads into it and my rock tumbling business where I made a killing on homemade jewelry. I'm always looking to increase my knowledge on anything as I know it'll pay off in spades when I make it on Jeopardy. I received my Masters last year and contemplating a PhD much to our bank account's dismay. But I have this insatiable thirst for knowledge and think that it's best to absorb as much as you possibly can. You never know when you'll need to know it. And you only live one life after all!

What else do you want to know? I'm pretty much an open book as you'll see in the days to come. I'm actually pretty quiet too, hate public speaking and talking in front of others (my face gets beet red) and have always considered writing to be cathartic when I was little. Unfortunately due to my ADD and lack of patience with actually sitting down and writing something out I stopped for awhile. If you've seen my handwriting, you'll see what I mean. I'm hoping this blog will get me back on the writing track!

OK so now it's time for the big reveal eh? Not so easy from someone who doesn't like taking pictures unless they are selfies and I have control over the angle and the filter.
First, let me show you were my inspiration came from. Here's Steve 2 months in from P90x and clean eating. He's inspiring others and well, quite frankly, I don't want to be the larger of the couple. Let's reserve that for the men shall we?

So yeah, look at that. Crazy right? IF you're interested in how he did it, he used Beachbody's P903X and Shakeology. Pretty nuts. I highly recommend Shakeology as I just started drinking it like a month ago and I can't imagine my morning without it. The amount of nutrients in it gives me crazy energy, I don't have to spend extra money on vitamins and supplements and it's delicious with 8oz of almond milk!

Interested in what it can do for you? Check it out!
If you're interested in trying it out, I highly recommend it! Message me for more information or if you're interested in trying a sample first!!

Anyway, so now that I've procrastinated a little bit.. So basically the first pic is me not very happy about taking these pics at all - but if they look anything like Steve's do after 30 days, sure, let's just go ahead and post em now!

Getting ready to kill Les Mills Combat tonight, god willing my back holds out on me!

xoxo,
Court

Here we go! Join me on my journey of self-discovery...(and the dream I dare to pursue)

"You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself in any direction you choose. You're on your own, and you know what you know. And you are the guy who'll decide where to go." Dr. Seuss

I start with this quote because I know it'll kick off what's about to be one of the hardest journeys of my life. For 36 years I've struggled with who I was as a person, with my weight, gave up a lot of dreams, made a lot of mistakes, have a lot of regret, went through years of therapy, drank to forget...you get the picture. I've been through a lot - more than someone my age should have gone through but we all have our stories, we all have a past. It's time to move forward, use the past to propel you into the future and start making the most of this thing called life.

"You must take personal responsibility. You cannot change the circumstances, the seasons, or the wind, but you can change yourself. That is something you have charge of." Jim Rohn

I am stopping there for now...we'll get to it all. That I promise. And I hope that by me sharing my stories (and there are plenty,) you'll find someone to relate to and someone to (hopefully) look up to as I take my life back...and by that I mean becoming happy with who I am inside, discovering my authentic self and by doing that revealing who I am truly meant to be on the outside.

I hope you'll join me for this journey - let's tackle our inner demons and our fitness goals together! Each day I'll post my progress, share my past and inspire and motivate me - AND YOU - to live your life to the fullest.

Let's live our lives with the passion we're meant to. Tomorrow I'll post my pic, a little intro to who I am and my measurements along with a before pic (yes, I'm actually doing this.) The first step is facing who you are NOW and loving who you are NOW before you can move forward.

xoxo,
Court