It's my turn! -82lbs w/pics

Hi, I'm Emily.
I wanted to make one of these before the end of the world....I mean year.

I can be kind of long winded and I take a lil while to get my point across. So I will include a good amount of pics for those who don't feel like reading and just wanna scroll through, and just cuz it's fun to share pics :P

I was in shape pretty much my whole life thanks to being on swim team from about 8-17 years old. Then I got an office job and turned into a big fatty for about three years! I decided that I was never meant to be fat and that it was time to make a change and get back to who I was really supposed to be.

This is me in high school...my original goal was to get back to my HS/swim team weight:


I don't remember exactly when this was...but it's probably at or close to my fattest, (I'm in the pink):


May of 2011 is when I started working out. This is July of 2011 (I'd only lost a tiny bit at this point):


When I first started working out....I really didn't have ANY knowledge. And even at this point I still have a TON to learn! When I first started, I got a cheap, crappy elliptical from Walmart and that was my only form of exercise. I did lose a good amount of weight with just that. I also didn't give two sh*ts about what I ate.

In February of this year I joined MFP and started watching what I ate too. The pounds came off sooo much faster (obviously) when I started taking diet into account too. At first I tried NOT to "eat back exercise calories." It was miserable. I now eat back nearly every exercise calorie that I earn and it's GREAT!! Since I've been eating back exercise cals, I seem to be losing weight and toning more quickly. I just love this because when I workout hard, I get freakin hungry!!

After I'd lost a good amount of weight, I decided I really needed to focus on toning. In April of this year, I started P90X. Now I know a lot of people like to hate on BeachBody products...and that's fine. Different strokes for different folks! It works for me and I think they offer great programs especially for those who prefer working out at home. Also because I'm a tad (maybe more than a tad) ADD and I need someone telling me what to do every step of the way! Lol. I feel like P90X really changed my life. Since starting that program, I've become a total workout junkie.

This is me in the end of March (this year). I won a freakin FREE trip to The Bahamas from a local radio station So this is right before I started P90X:


Unfortunately, I don't have an official "After P90X" photo. Wish I did.
As soon as I finished P90X, I started Insanity.

This picture is during August of this year, I was right in the middle of Insanity (it's a 2 month program):


I was pretty happy with myself at that point but still had some of those stubborn areas to work on! For me, my biggest issue is my stomach. It may look alright when I'm standing, but if I'm in plank position, or any position where I'm twisted or bent funny...the stomach is not cute!! So that's what I'm patiently waiting to change now

After I finished Insanity, I started the P90X/Insanity Hybrid which I'm about to be starting my last week of. I had always kind of thought that P90X didn't have enough cardio, and that Insanity didn't have enough strength training. Now that I've combined the two programs, I'm having better results than ever.

All of the super awesome, fit, and knowledgeable ladies on my FL say to "lift heavy." I trust them so I have recently switched to heavier weights with less reps and I'm definitely liking how it's working for me so far. When I finish the Hybrid I plan to do the Les Mills Body Pump program so I can get comfortable with using a barbell and make sure I have proper form. Then I'm gonna look into The New Rules of Lifting for Women and/or StrongLifts 5x5.

Taking it back in time again for comparison. This is me pretty much this exact time last year:


This is now:


This is now:


My face has changed so much too! (I'm on the left):


Hope you enjoyed the read!
Keep working out and eating right and you WILL see results!

Emily