"I just wanna give you a high five..."

I haven't done a progress update in a couple of weeks, so I have to share one with you today.

I didn't eat that well while on vacation, so I did a five day detox two weeks ago. Then I gained a little weight back in a matter of two days and in the middle of that my cousin posted a photo of me I hated, and I got really dramatic about it, and then I lost that atrocious four pounds plus another one after a couple days of low carb, healthy eating. I am not riding the Hot Mess Express; I am the Hot Mess Express.

As of Friday, I've lost 16 pounds in nine weeks of healthy eating and exercise. I'm at the lowest weight I've seen since Eric broke up with me my freshman year of college and I didn't eat for two months. I've got about 15 more to lose before I see that number again. It was amazing.

But for now, let's appreciate where I'm at! Sixteen pounds down is something to be proud of!

Yes, I am posing in a regular bra. For once in my life all of my sports bras were in the laundry. Plus, I'm proud to have gone down in bra sizes... I went from a 40D to a 38C at Victoria's Secret. Boob progress is a thing, right?

I can't believe summer is over for me... Vaught and I had a great week last week but kept pretty busy! I did send him to daycare two days so I could get moved into my classroom and get some new clothes, but those days aside, I spent every moment snuggling with him. We went for a jog twice this week, and here's a shot from Tuesday. It was HOT!

 

Moving was my cardio on Wednesday, and there's no way I could have done it without the help of one of my former students. He is such a sweetie and, I have to admit, a favorite from my first year of teaching.

I hit the gym three times this week, including yesterday morning at 7. Six or seven on Saturday morning is probably my favorite time to go. The early birds are there doing cardio, and the squat racks and free weights are almost always open. Often, I'm the only person in the weights area. Yesterday, however, there were several people there. I set up in one of the squat racks and began doing heavy squats, working up to 175 pounds for three reps. In between squats, I did lateral pulls and military presses. After that, I took a 40 pound barbell and did front squats, bicep curls, and reverse curls, three rounds with 10 reps each round.

When I went to put the barbell back on the rack, this guy, who'd been there the entire time I had, stopped me and held up his hand. I was confused at first, then he said, "I just wanna give you a high five. You're doing some difficult stuff over there... You're doing a great job."

Random? Yes. Odd? A little. But did it make my day? You bet! I slapped him a high five and had the biggest smile on my face. "Thanks so much!" I told him. "That just made my day."

Gym friends really are the best. I'm always making small talk with a few of the guys there. Some of them know me as "Eric's wife," or "the wife of that guy who squats 675," and though we don't all know each other's names, we're there for similar purposes, and we support each other. I've had strangers offer to spot me while squatting, and I've been asked to spot others. I've shared a flat bench with someone I don't know because the others were taken, so why not share? There's something about that community in my gym that I just love. These are the people I used to be self-conscious around, but now it just feels like we're family. We don't really know one another, but we're family.

I continued on with my cardio (one mile HIIT on the treadmill) and was still smiling when I got home shortly after 8. I told Eric all about my new friend, and he assured me it was probably an attempt to "hit on me." I highly doubt that though, and am just going to stick with my thoughts on the matter: I've made a new gym friend!

Hope you all have an amazing Sunday! We're celebrating my mother's birthday today. Blog post to come!