Fit & Fearless

It's taken me years to finally get truly comfortable with my fitness routine and develop a healthy lifestyle that works well for me and keeps me sane. I'm not a cardio queen, but I love what some fresh air on an outdoor run does for me. I love logging miles at my city park while listening to music or sweating it out on the stair-climber at the gym. For the early mornings when I'm feeling a little lazy, a yoga routine is just the thing to wake me up, and I love learning and conquering new poses and transitions. And while I'm not the most muscular girl at the squat rack, lifting weights as given me so much appreciation for all that my body is truly capable of--from squatting more than I weigh now to giving birth, I'm quite confident in saying there's nothing this girl can't handle!

While I'm working to get in shape to be the very best version of me possible, I can't worry about whether or not I'm taking the best care of myself in other areas of my life--and that includes "that time of the month."

Yep, I'm talking about my period today. On my blog. In public. Putting it alllll out there, guys! I guess I'm one of those really lucky girls who's never had a time of the month that was a pain in the you-know-what, but I will say that being properly protected and taken care of during that time makes a world of difference in how I feel!

So when I was contacted about trying some new products from the U by Kotex Fitness line, I jumped at the chance! And how convenient that this invitation came just two days before my period arrived? Talk about perfect timing!

I made a trip to my Walgreen's to grab some of the U by Kotex Fitness products. Whether you're a pad or tampon girl, this line has got you covered!

I grabbed a couple of my must-haves for ultimate protection during my workouts; I don't play around about going hard at the gym, so I love that U by Kotex Fitness tampons keeps any leaks or mishaps away! I love how cute and compact these are; you just pull the applicator tip until you hear a click and it expands to full size. It also expands all the way around for a comfortable fit! These are shaped to fit and flex with my body, so no matter how deep the squat or how hard the run, I know I'm completely protected from leaks or period-related uh-oh's!

Can I also throw in how much I love this cute little carrying pouch?! It fits into my purse or gym bag perfectly (and discreetly)!

U by Kotex Fitness also has pads and liners, so I grabbed some liners too for those "lighter" days towards the end of my period. I love that this line has whatever products I need to accommodate my active lifestyle because I would much rather focus on good breathing techniques or proper squat form at the gym than worry about leaking through my spandex!

Your fitness journey should never be slowed down because of your period, and with U by Kotex Fitness, you can rest assured that you're protected! No, I'm being serious--kick butt and then rest easy because with this line, you'll have no worries!

To learn more about this new line that's perfect for your active lifestyle, click here, and don't forget to check out this new line at your local Walgreen's!

I've also got an Ibotta rebate coupon for $2 off for my fitness friends who want all the period protection with NO distractions using U by Kotex Fitness!

I'm so glad to have been invited to be a part of such an amazing new line for active girls like me! Thank you, U by Kotex Fitness!

"Why did it take you this long?"

I love honest people. I love people who speak their minds and aren't afraid to ask questions or stand up and say something. I'd like to say I'm one of them, but not as outspoken as I would like you to think. I have this blog, and I have the opportunity to use it as a platform where I'm 100% honest 100% of the time with absolutely no regards as to what others might think of the things I say, but that's far from true. I wish I could be that person all the time, but it's just not my nature.

But this isn't true for everyone. Not at all.

I was laying in bed on a Friday night a couple months ago (yes, I'm just now getting around to finishing this post and publishing it), and I received a Facebook message from my friend Amber (name has been changed). We were friends in community college, and we've remained in touch with the help of Facebook. We had messaged a few times previously about It Works products, and she messaged me again to ask about how I'd lost thirty pounds since early January. Then she hit me with a message that I immediately loved because it was something I knew I needed to address in some way as soon as I could. It was a little uncomfortable at first, but I felt better once I got it off my chest. It always feels nice to clear the air, no matter how you look at it.

In short, her message to me questioned "Why now? If you've been using the products for nearly two years, why are you just now losing weight so fast?"

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My fitness journey began in January of 2014, just a few weeks before realizing I was pregnant with Vaught. After having Vaught, I lost my 29 pregnancy pounds (plus some) easily, but I realized that my body had still changed drastically. I had an even larger stomach that seemed constantly bloated; it didn't help that despite eating lots of healthy foods, I was also consuming too many grams of sugar and carbs each day. Of course, I didn't realize this at the time, but looking back, that had everything to do with why I usually felt so gross, despite losing the weight.

In April, I decided to try It Works products after seeing several of my friends have tremendous results with them. I was super salty about ItWorks and very skeptical . I honestly was ready to throw money down the drain; I was ready to prove that this company and its products were complete bullshit.

My first month using the products was pretty much a flop; I liked the energy I got from the Greens, but I continued eating and drinking poorly (too much soda and Starbucks) and didn't really lose anything. So on May 30th, 2015, I woke up and stepped on the scale in our bathroom to see that I was back at just a few pounds below my pre-pregnancy weight. I decided to kick things into gear, use the products correctly and consistently, and get healthy over the summer. I remember posting my results after just 6 days; my friends and family went crazy! After that, I knew for sure that I'd found products that truly worked as long as I was willing to continue doing my part.

I lost more weight as 2015 progressed and reached the lowest weight I've been in my adult life in February of 2016, just a couple weeks after quitting my teaching job. By this time, I had become an ItWorks distributor and was sharing my success and my journey with other people, many of whom were loving the products too. Not only was a fan of the products, I quickly became obsessed with the business; it was doing so much for us already!

For whatever reason, mainly laziness and an acceptance that I would always be a little chunky, I started to get complacent in the summer of 2016 and slowly put on weight. It was small at first (5-7 pounds). And I hid it soooo well. It's amazing how far a little editing goes (editing, not photoshopping). By Christmas, I was back to the weight I was at Christmas 2013 (that day I stepped on the scale and cried the whole way to my parents' house for Christmas brunch). I was literally two pounds from that weight.

I still didn't get the motivation to kick it into gear until January. I honestly chose to ignore my size and continued wearing leggings and baggy t shirts to cover up; it helps that I work from home full time now and wasn't making a habit of going out all that often. I spent New Year's Eve on my recliner with a bottle of wine and a medium pepperoni and cheese pizza in my lap. I'm not going to say I devoured the whole thing by myself, but I'm also not going to say I didn't.

I woke up the next morning, January first, and looked at the empty wine bottle and pizza box on the counter. At some point that day, I made the terrible decision to get completely naked and look at myself in the mirror; in short, I was disgusted. And I knew I was 100% to blame and that I could fix the damage if I wanted to. I decided that day that I would.

I accepted immediately that I would fail. I told myself that I would start small, making one healthy change per day for the first couple of weeks and that I would eventually succumb to temptation and fall off the wagon. Knowing up front that I was going to eventually screw up helped; it made me less afraid of when that moment actually happened - and it came... eventually.

I began taking my ItWorks supplements daily-- Greens and Thermofit were my immediate must-haves. I eventually got the Shake, New You, and Core Nutrition and added them to my regimen as well.

I didn't drop carbs all in one day, as I've discussed in this previous post. Somehow, I'd still been tracking most of my food on MyFitnessPal, so I took some time to look at how I'd been eating, and I decided that I would change it a little at a time. I went from 250+ grams of carbohydrates per day to 150. After a week or two, I went down to 100, and now I'm comfortable at 75-90 grams of carbs per day.

Just as I did two years ago, I assessed just how much I was spending at Starbucks and how poor the quality of those drinks were and how bad they were for me. 59 grams of sugar, 450 empty calories.... For what?? Momentary satisfaction? Sure, they're delicious.... But I don't need them. I returned to whole milk lattes (size tall--the smallest size) and iced coffee made with two pumps of sweetener (instead of four) and half-n-half. These are just as yummy and much better for me if I'm going to be indulging in Starbucks!

Along with eating and drinking healthier and taking my supplements religiously, I also recommitted myself to my love affair with working out. Even if I'm not at the gym four times a week, I'm getting some good exercise in at least four times in a week! I go for a two to three mile run while pushing Vaught in the jogging stroller, and I'm known to stop at STOP signs for squats, lunges, or pushups! I doing more cardio while not forgetting about my strength with muscle-building strength and core workouts.

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So far, this time around has been so much more clear and focused than my other attempts to rid myself of this extra weight for good. I didn't start seeing evident changes until I'd lost bout twenty pounds (I'm at a 37 pound loss now), but I could feel the change within the first five! It is truly amazing what your body is capable of when you get over yourself and give it everything you've got. I feel amazing, and I'm finally beginning to feel like I truly look pretty good too. It's funny that I use to pine over the stick-thin models in magazines; I wanted to look just like them. At twenty-six, I have so much more clarity on my body thought and how it works and should look. I will always be a little thick in the middle, I'll always have a big booty and wide hips. I've embraced it, hell, I even like it.

Don't let me fool you; it's not been easy. I have already had my fair share of accidental binges (they just kinda creep up on me), and I've slacked on days I knew I needed to try harder. I've literally been chomping down on chips, knowing that I was eating off my plan, and I've over-indulged in a brownie and ice cream more than once since I started this journey again. I think it's all part of living and learning and figuring out exactly how my body is going to work during this process. My weight loss has slowed in the past couple weeks, but my determination hasn't. I still have about thirty pounds to lose, and I will get there. I will!

As always, thank you all for the unending love and support. Thank you for holding me accountable each and every day! I could not do this without you guys and God!

Kate