Slacker alert

Holy crap, I am the biggest slacker ever! hahaha! Life has been....well, busy...and i've neglected my blog. 

Last time i blogged on here was 2013--yikes! And i was saying how i was getting "back on the wagon." So did i? I know inquiring minds want to know. So...here's the truth:

2013: At the top of the year, i had just had a double mastectomy (12/28/12). I had the tissue expanders removed in March of '13, and replaced with implants. At that point, I had already been working out (slowly) again (even with the tissue expanders). After the implants were put in, I waited about 2 weeks for the stitches to heal, then--with very supportive sports bras--started working out full-force again. 

I was exceedingly annoyed because i couldn't do a lot of things that i could do before--mainly, pull-ups and push-ups. Anything that involved the chest wall hurt, and for those exercises, i was essentially starting at square 1. It totally sucked. 

During 2013 I continued to drink my Shakeology (i'm an addict), worked out to my best ability, and gained...wait for it...4 pounds. Yep. A measly 4 lbs. :) 

2014 and 2015 were pretty much the same. To be honest, i haven't physically challenged myself in a while. 2015 was extremely busy--we were in several shows at theatre, we moved (and all the fun stuff that comes with that), and we just NOW feel like we're really 'living' in our house and getting into the swing of things. 

Right now, i'm doing Hammer and Chisel. I LOVE it. And, as usual, i'm working out when I can--meaning, I can't always follow the schedule the program sets. And that's okay--it's called LIFE, people. I work out a MINIMUM of 4 times a week. Wednesdays are difficult--I have meetings all day, I office at the theatre, and we get home at 10pm or later. Could I get up earlier than 630am and work out? Yep, I sure could, but it's my CHOICE not to. I hate working out in the morning. Hate it. 

What I DO do, and have since I started Beachbody, is eat clean 85% of the time (if not 90), and drink my Shakeology EVERY DAY. My shakes are important to me. Full, CLEAN nutrition in a single glass. No preservatives, no artificial flavors, nothing you can't find in nature. It's the best thing I can do for my body. (And, as a side note, when i was going through cancer crap, my oncologist--who is NOT affiliated with Beachbody at all--said that Shakeology was the best nutritional drink she had ever seen.) << That made me happy, and I honestly feel like my health attributed to my awesome healing process (double mastectomy on 12/28/12, and back to working out by 4/13)! Holistic health, baby-- from the inside out! 

So that's where I am. Much love to all of you. Make the choice to be healthy. Make the choice to take care of yourself. You have one life. I encourage you to wake up every day and CHOOSE to love yourself and take care of yourself. I'd be honored to help you--I can offer an encouraging word, I can recommend workout programs and eating plans, I can create a personalized workout plan (I'm a CPT, too!). Life is so precious. Create a mind and body that helps you live it!! 

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Can i have some cheese with my whine, please?

UGH. Just...UGH. I tried to do a pullup today. Ouch. Breastcancer has really pissed me off--and although the CANCER is gone, i'm still dealing with it's crappy cousin, Repurcussions.

I love pushups. Now they feel so funky, I don't want to do them. Think of what a pushup does to your pecs. Now, imagine you have balloons UNDER your pecs. What happens to said balloons when you do a pushup? Yeah. They squish into your armpits--well, towards your armpits. And the pecs squeeze the balloons. Dammit. Same thing happens when I do presses, too.

I just tried a pullup. Like pushups, I LOVE pullups. 11 non-kip is my 'good day' record. I can't even pull myself up once now. Wait....let me rephrase. I attempted to pull myself up, then it felt like someone lit a fire under my right side, so i stopped. Again, DAMMIT.

I know patience is key here...but when it comes to working out, i'm quite limited on patience.

So...what AM i happy about when it comes to my recuperating fitness level? Hmmm.... I'm using 15s for shoulders (I had to start at 5s); 25s for lawnmowers (again, had to start at 5s). I have most of my flexibility back in my chest wall. I was able to do handstands against the wall last week, with TINY presses. I was able to do a backbend/bridge with minimal pulling in my chest. My cardio is completely back, which i'm insanely happy about.

Bummer: Arm strength definitely isn't back yet. And...I still can't scoop ice cream. --sigh--

I like to end these 'ranty' types of posts with my reaffirmation: At least my boobs didn't kill me.

Back in the game

Well, I am exactly 1 week out from my tissue expander to permanent implant exchange surgery, and I feel FABULOUS!! Those tissue expanders were like rocks in my chest, and inhibited me from doing way too much. Having squishy boobies is NOT overrated! :)

I started working out (carefully!) on Monday of this week and already I can see and feel a difference. I also cleaned up my eating. Over the course of Boobmageddon, I lost 7lbs of muscle (i had just completed Body Beast before I found out I had breastcancer). I only ended up gaining 2lbs or so--no big deal. However, I sure didn't keep it clean over the past 3 months. I wasn't horrible, but i wasn't eating my best. I'm one of those people where exercise fuels my desire to feed my body properly. I'm pretty sure a box of Valentine chocolates didn't account for proper fueling. :-/

One thing I didn't do, and i'm proud of myself for it, is that i never used cancer or my resulting surgeries as an excuse. I KNEW what I was doing. I KNEW i was eating crap. I KNEW i wasn't fueling properly. I accept it. To me, it's better to accept what you're doing, rather than make excuses for it (in all walks/situations in life). If you keep making excuses as to why you're eating crappy food (ex. It's my birthday, I 'deserve' it, I had a rough week, etc.) you're only kidding yourself. Be accountable to yourself--it will make your life that much easier. So, in that regard, I stayed accountable to myself over the course of my treatment. And now, I'm dealing with the consequences of the chocolate and white flour/sugar I was accountable for.

I'm back to drinking a gallon of water a day, back to eating super-clean (but still allowing myself a 'treat food' every once in a while), and back to daily workouts.

I credit my super-awesome recovery time to my health. That's more than anyone could ask for.

Not on a workout program? Start one. Start slow. JUST START. Your body will thank you for it!

I'm back in the game,
Steph