Well, hello there folks! We made it through to another week!
I don’t know about you, but it’s hard to believe that we are one week closer to Thanksgiving.
Not only that, but I feel like I’ve started to see people decorating for Christmas AND hearing tunes of the season playing on the radio.
Can’t I just have a few moments to enjoy my turkey, stuffing, and mashed potatoes?
Like…seriously…I need to be able to enjoy my mashed potatoes before I shift the gears of my mind over to the holiday season.
You think I’m kidding. But I LOVE my mashed potatoes.
LOVE.
But I digress.
Anyhoo, this week I’m going to discuss the journey I’ve been on the past three years in regards to saying “mmmbyeee” to the skinny minny Mr. Sunshine.
What’s really ironic is that I’m currently feasting on a bag of Sour Patch Kids as I write this…
Didn’t you know that they are part of the food pyramid?!
Well…they are part of the Mr. Sunshine food pyramid…shh…don’t tell my trainer!
But I digress…again.
For as long as I can remember, I was always skinny. Growing up, I was always the one that had no meat on their bones. I was always the one that was made fun of in elementary school, middle school, and high school because there was just nothing to me.
Literally…nothing.
There were even times that people would ask if I ate because I was that skinny.
Fitness was never something that really interested me. In all honesty, it was something that I would often think about–I would think about going to the gym, I would think about getting toned muscles–I would think about looking like those picture perfect Instagram models that have chiseled everything–but I would never actually execute and move forward with it.
I was always the person that would try to find the latest and greatest fitness fad during the month of December and tell myself that I was going to become physically fit once the calendar switched to January 1st.
You know…those infamous New Year’s resolutions that we all make for ourselves that last like a week before we fall off the bandwagon?!
Yeah…that was me…like every year once I graduated college.
I would join the local gym at the beginning of the year and after a good week or two of “working out,” I would stop. The excuse was usually that I was too busy…but we all know that I just didn’t feel like putting in the work.
I didn’t have the motivation.
I was even crazy enough (or should we say INSANE) to buy the Insanity fitness DVD’s to try and get fit that way. My former roommate Elyse can attest to this because she was more consistent than me. I fell off the bandwagon after like a month because I got lazy and once again, was too busy.
Toward the end of 2016, I told myself that I needed to buckle up and get serious about getting in shape, so I started to do some research into personal trainers. I knew that if I made a financial investment into bettering myself for the future, I would stick with it. I’m also the type of person who needs someone motivating me and pushing me to be great.
I knew a theater friend who I worked with and reached out about the gym that she was working for at the time. After receiving very positive feedback, I decided to reach out to the trainer and make an appointment to talk about my goals.
The rest is history.
I’ve been working with Zach Musser at Z Fitness on Columbia Avenue in Lancaster since January of 2017 and I can’t even begin to describe how much my life has changed for the better because of it. I’ve gotten stronger in body, mind, and spirit and two times a week for one hour, Zach pushes me to be better and makes me do things that I would’ve never been able to do 3 years ago.
Squatting with 60 pound dumbbells in each hand?!
Yeah…skinny minny Mr. Sunshine could’ve never done that!
Zach is a great motivator and even though he makes me do push-ups and pull ups (which I DISLIKE SO MUCH), I still can’t even begin to thank him for the changes he has helped me make in my life. Working out has become a habit in my life that I love and when I miss a training session, I don’t feel complete. It is now a part of me that I don’t want to give up in life. I only have hunger to become stronger.
In January of 2017, I started at a weight of 135lbs.
Three years later, after lots of hard work, I weigh right around 156lbs and feel great. I can’t even wait to see what the future holds as my fitness journey continues with Zach over the years.
One of the hardest struggles for me in the fitness journey is food. Everyone knows that I LOVE to cook (TOTAL SARCASM). I don’t like to cook and finding time to do it is something that just doesn’t exist for me. I live a busy lifestyle and most of the time I get food because it is convenient and cost-effective.
Trust me…if you saw my eating habits, you would fall over in your chair.
Sugar, coffee, fast food, sugar, ice cream…I mean…I eat vegetables and cheese too.
This is the aspect of my life that is a constant struggle and one that will be an over-arching goal for me in 2020 as I continue my fitness journey.
More meal prepping, intentional grocery shopping with lists of actual recipes and foods that are healthier, less fast food and coffee intake, and trying to eat less…
…drum roll please…
SUGAR.
Yes, you did just read that last sentence correctly.
Mr. Sunshine needs to lower his sugar intake in 2020.
YIKES! Do they have a support group for that?
I actually do have a pretty awesome online coach who checks in weekly to make sure that I’m getting my calories in and doing due diligence to get those gains!
His name is Daniel Buckley and we connected through social media on Instagram. And like my personal trainer Zach, he is a pretty awesome motivator that I’m extremely thankful for. He is such a huge supporter and his guidance is welcome, honest, and genuine.
Fitness is a journey that looks different for everyone. Finding the path for me that suited my ability took some time and now that I’m on that path, I have the opportunity to continue evolving into something greater.
Fitness takes discipline. It takes dedication.
You have to make the choice. Don’t give up. Take the leap of faith to be healthier, better, stronger.
I’m a firm believe that you can achieve anything you put your mind to with hard work and determination.
Skinny minny Mr. Sunshine will soon be a thing of the past.
And, I for one, can’t wait.
Sprinkle sunshine always,
JP!
Mr. Sunshine Smiles 