FREE SHIPPING on cute workout tanks!!!

I am VERY excited to announce that I have teamed up with Simply Sophia Maria to offer my wonderful friends and followers FREE SHIPPING on all her workout tanks!!! Visit her shop and enter the code FITBYJORDAN to receive free shipping within the US!

This great deal will end 1 week from today (11/30/2013).

 (http://www.etsy.com/shop/SimplySophiaMaria?ref=shop_name_search_sugg)

Don't forget to stop by my fitness page on Facebook... www.facebook.com/fitbyjordan

Struggling but still alive

Happy Friday Yall!!!!

Ok, I aint going to lie… this 3^rd Phase of LiveFit has been a challenge to me for sure! The end of the 1^st week I was very sick, had to miss a couple days of work and barley moved off the couch. After I did start back at the gym, I couldn’t go full balls to the walls. I worked myself back up to the intense level and have been doing great this past week.

…UNTIL…

I pulled (or strained or whatever) a muscle in my shoulder! It happened earlier this week and I have been working through the pain since then. Last night it hit me though and I couldn’t take it anymore. I laid on the couch with a heating pad and some pain relievers (I may or may not have shed some tears). After a couple rounds of heat, I called it a night and let me tell ya, that was the 1^st night all week that I had decent sleep. BUT I woke up this morning and the soreness is back… and today is shoulder day at the gym!

I decided to ask my trainer what should I do (even though I already knew what she would say, just had to hear it from her) and she said for me to take it easy and take a week off from working my upper body and to get a massage. I like the massage part, the other part kind of scares the CRAP out of me!!!

Today for LiveFit I am supposed to work on shoulders and cardio, tomorrow is pure cardio, Sunday is rest, Monday is legs and then Tuesday I start back with some upper body… Well, I am going to tweak it just a bit and forgo shoulders today and pick it back up on Tuesday. That will give my shoulder 4 days of rest; I pray to God that is enough!!

Despite the sickness and now the pulled muscle, I am still kicking and fighting. I think it says a LOT that I haven’t given up even though there have been many opportunities for me too. I will finish this program and I will do it to the best of my ability, I mean why start something if you aren’t going to finish it?!

I hope you have a HAPPY and HEALTHY Friday!!!

XOXO
Fit by Jordan

Sharing Success

I posted on my Facebook page (www.facebook.com/fitbyjordan) yesterday that I wanted to pay it forward and share someone’s success story. I have been blessed by a couple different friends, fitness pages and etc. by them asking me if they could share my story and I felt it was only right if I paid it forward… after all isn’t that what life is all about?

I received a couple different stories, all were inspiring and touched my heart… however, today I am only choosing to share one (I plan on doing this again so don’t worry if you sent me in your story I have it tucked away for another day. Or if you want to send me your story for another time, please do so… fitbyjordan@hotmail.com)

This story really touched my heart and I can relate SO much! She talks about her lowest of lows, her denial, and how she decided it was time to change!!! I hope you enjoy her story and check out her Facebook, Twitter, and Blog!!!

I'm Jess, 25.

I too am just starting. The advice that was given to me was, "The time is now!" The only person that was in my way and the only thing holding me back was, ME. You can either fake it until you make it (which for me, wasn't very long, I'd always quit) OR you can just do it (as cliché as that sounds). It takes a strong conviction and decision to say, "I am going to change my life today and everyday." I started with something that I liked, Zumba. It was party. Everyone seemed pretty happy! I sweat a lot and it hurt! Then I began to run, it hurt to and I began to like that. So I'm 55 lbs down from my highest weight to date and starting to find my motivation from within. It's a really good feeling :)

Weighing in at TWO HUNDRED and EIGHTY POUNDS (my lowest of lows and all time highest weight to date), I took my first step towards regaining what was mine, my life. No excuses, no failed attempts at starting "tomorrow," no more "starting my diet on Monday," and no one else to push me but myself. "The time is now," I say this over and over. I am 25 years old, I have a great job and pour myself into being an advocate for children and their families. I have an amazing family and the most supportive man that stands by my side (beside me, behind me) and he loves me for all that I am (dimples, fat rolls, jiggles and all.) I know that's not a very positive self image but at the time of writing this, that was exactly the mindset and attitude I kept. (Stay tuned, that negativity changes drastically).  A great friend of mine spoke to me openly, honestly and she said, "Jessi, you have no obligations, no one to cater to, no one in your own way but you. Take charge, and do it while you can. The time is right now!" Words I consistently live by now... The time is now!
        Two Hundred and Eighty. Weighing 280 pounds I felt sluggish and immobile. I couldn't move! I am an active outdoor enthusiast, that enjoys hiking, rock climbing, playing sports and I could not even walk up a flight of stairs without being winded. I hid from people I once called a friend. I avoided social outings and my favorite times at sporting events, theaters, air planes and even the park. The seats cut into my hips, making it undeniably evident that I did not fit. My heart crushed and sank deeper into my chest every time I had to sit awkwardly, uncomfortably, embarrassed and ashamed.
        What were my options? Blame others! Denial of my own behaviors, continue habitual routines, tell myself lies and irrational thoughts, self loathing, depression, anger, sadness, desperation, weakness, feelings of powerlessness, negativity, numbness, blinded, imprisoned, captured, stuck, afraid, giving into every temptation, limited, eat.

These feelings and behaviors were turning the wheel of a vicious cycle. The ride I chose to be on and convicted myself too. Until....

    280 was not the feelings I wanted feel any longer! 280 needed to be shaken awake. 280 needed to be stopped. 280 needed to be conquered and brought to her final judgment day. 280 needed to cry her final tear of hopelessness and total destruction. So...280 Took her first step!

---

THE BEGINNG:
        The begin was the hardest. To start, to put one foot in front of the other was the challenge. To ask for help (something that I find so defeating, embarrassing and degrading) was my only option. I sought out a medically assisted weight loss program. Consulted with my physician and made informed decisions about what was best for me. I researched and decided upon a fasting program assisted by medial personal. This was a twenty week liquid diet accompanied by group counseling about food addiction. (I promote this option with the utmost emphasis on the importance of the medical assistance and the counseling portions). This wasn't easy by any means, it was tightly regimented with strict steps and rules. The design is to drastically help individuals with rapid weight loss but more importantly to turn the rules into routines and new habits one day at a time. It was isolating, not able to go out and do the same things as family and friends. To sit at the dinner table and drink water and shakes while my loved ones fed their faces in front of me. To constantly tell them (while reassuring myself), "I'm okay, you don't need to be sorry, this is my choice." It was embarrassing to have to share my story time and time again. To disclose why I couldn't go out to lunch, why I didn't want to be at a party, why I wasn't eating, why I was making shakes or "smoothies" as my coworkers called them (5 times a day). I CHOSE THIS PROCESS: I wasn't punishing myself, restricting myself forever, or hurting myself in any way. Through the motions; denial and isolation, anger, bargaining, depression came acceptance and above all... CLAIRITY. I used new found tools to get up every day, dress the part (in every capacity) show up (to the gym, to parties, to bbqs, to ball games and theater shows, to my weight loss support group) and through this process I have gained determination to persevere over 280. I gained the ability to choose, to think, to feel, to understand and give myself a break once and a while...because this is my life and the time is right now!

---

I am only human. I can only control myself. Sometimes I fall. BUT I WILL GET UP AGAIN!
I want to breed positivity, motivation, self discipline, dedication and success!

www.facebook.com/fitnfeistyjessica

twitter:fit_n_feisty

blog: http://fitnfeistyjessica.weebly.com/

A little bit of everything

I have been sick since last Thursday and I am ready to get over all this crud! Yesterday my throat stopped hurting and I am now left with my lovely cough (that sounds like I am dying). While being sick this past weekend, I missed 3 LiveFit workouts and didn’t eat on my meal plan once. Do I feel guilty? Umm not at all! My body needed the rest and I was too tired to get off the couch to prep food, so I let Casey take care of us and feed us. He doesn’t know how to cook so we ended up eating out all weekend long, but I am totally okay with that because I am just blessed to have a man who steps up and takes care of me (and my son) when I am sick.

I am back to work today, starting to feel like my old self again and back to packing my own food. I have my gym bag with me and I am ready to walk to the YMCA and get a workout in. I plan on taking it slow and easing myself back into it… I would hate to overdo it and then have to miss another workout because of it.

Life happens!

Speaking of life… I came back to work to find that the season is upon us where our break room is FILLED with ooey gooey goodness!!! Everywhere you turn there is something else to eat, someone offering you a nibble of something sweet, someone delivering you a gift of calories, it seems like it is never ending…

I have a dress fitting in less than a month, I am getting married in 3 months, I have bridal photos in 2 months, I finish my Jamie Eason LiveFit program in a couple weeks and have progress photos… I have to stay away from the break room!!! I just have to, there is no other solution!

Remember, you can’t control others around you (the food will come into the office no matter if you like it or not), you can only control yourself. Guess what, you have the ability to say HELL NO… or just No (lol). You have the power to walk away and not surround yourself around the food. You and you alone can change your life. Trust me, if I could change it for you I would!

Let me just tell you, it’s hard and it sucks but it is SO worth it. Yeah, don’t get me wrong… those pastry puffs in the kitchen are calling my name, okay they are SCREAMING my name right now BUT I rather reach my goal then stuff my face with extra calories I do not need.

Think long and hard, what do you want more in the long run? I know Pastry Puffs isn’t my answer to that question…

I hope you all stay healthy and stay out of the break rooms!!!

Eating clean on a budget

Eating clean on a budget

A friend messaged me and asked me to do a blog on eating clean on a budget… so here ya go!

“We are on a budget. I love all your pictures but how can you do it being broke? I mean you can get a burger for a dollar but a salad for six…. Please blog about food on a budget”

Let me 1^st tell you, I was a single mom on a very tight budget. If I could do it, you can do it. Actually, still to this day (even though we have another income in the house) I am still a penny pincher and watch our money very closely at the grocery store. I spend about $40 a week on groceries for my house of 3 (2 adults and 1 child). I also spend $16 a week on my fruits and veggies through a co-op (www.bountifulbaskets.org).

Here are 6 tips to saving at the grocery store:

1.       Check out Bountiful Baskets

-          Seriously, this alone will save you so much money (and time). Yes, you never know what you are going to get in your basket each week but it also makes eating kind of fun. You are able to try new things all while saving money.

-          Here is everything I received in one of my baskets: bag of grapes, 6 peaches, 8 bananas, 1 box of blue berries, 1 box of strawberries, 3 heads of broccoli, 1 big yellow onion, 2 cantaloupes, 1 honey dew melon, 2 egg plants, 1 stalk of lettuce and 1 stalk of kale.  (Go price that out at a grocery store and let me know if you can buy all that under $16).

2.       Find a grocery store that you can use that either offers GREAT deals or takes coupons. I am in love with Aldi and have found that I have been saving SO much more money shopping there then if I went to a grocery store that accepted coupons. Wal-Mart is also another place that is good to shop at, however I do not like the headache of going there so I only go if I can’t find something at Aldi. Yes, I love Aldi BUT they do not always have everything I am looking for.

3.       Make a list! Never ever ever go to the grocery store without a list. That is what will get you in trouble… you start seeing stuff that wouldn’t be on your list (if you would have made one) and you put it in your cart. A list helps save you money!

4.       Shop on the outside aisle at the grocery store. This will not only save you money but it will also help you lose weight. The less processed crap you buy the less processed crap you eat. Buy fresh foods (never frozen or already pre-packaged) from the outside aisles like fresh meats, dairy, fruits and veggies. The only thing I ever buy from the inside aisles is our seasonings, black beans, brown rice, and 1 special thing for Caleb each week (I let him pick one food item a week that I consider “crap” and then the rest of the week he has to eat what we eat or he doesn’t eat. He usually picks either a breakfast food or a snack for the ride home from school).

5.       You do not have to always buy the name brand. I buy everything I can off brand, unless I am going to a get together and then I will buy the name brand because sometimes it just taste better (ranch and mac and cheese being the 2 things I am most picky about. But it’s okay because I never eat those things any more). Seriously though, start looking for off brand things instead of name brand. This alone will help you save so much money. Trust me, you will never know the difference on about 98% of the products.

6.       Stop eating out! Cook at home and pack your meals for work. The way Casey and I do it, I cook our dinner (it usually has 4 servings) and I dish out 2 servings and pack the other 2 up for our lunches the next day. It may get boring doing it that way, but hey we are saving money and losing weight. If you do not like eating leftovers, the only thing I can tell ya is STOP BEING PICKY! My parent’s motto for use when we were growing up was “You get what you get and you don’t throw a fit”. We were a house of 9 and so leftovers were a big thing in our house.

I am sure that there are MANY more tips out there, if you have some please feel free to share them with me!

Happy shopping!!!

Thanks,

Jordan A. Lassiter

Appalachia South

Land Clerk – Administrative Assistant

XTO ENERGY a subsidiary of ExxonMobil

810 Houston St. | Fort Worth, TX 76102

(:817.885.2343 | 7:817.885.1938

*:Jordan_Lassiter@xtoenergy.com

End of Phase 2 - Progress Pictures!

Today is my 1^st day on Phase 3 of the LiveFit program (www.bodybuilding.com) and I am SO excited to get this Phase going!

Phase 2 was a hard one for me; I ended up struggling more than I thought I would. It was hard for me to adjust to putting cardio back into my routine; I fell in love with only lifting. Then week 6, I struggled (read about it here http://fitbyjordan.blogspot.com/2013/10/i-need-your-opinion.html) a lot BUT I kept pressing forward and finished strong with week 7.

Are you ready to see my progress photos? Because I am ready to show you!!!

Phase 2 (10/7 to 11/3)

Start Weight: 168.2

End Weight: 168.8

Total Loss: 0.6 gain (oh well)

Start Pant Size: 8’s and some 10’s

End Pant Size: same as start

I can tell in the gap between my thighs, my rib cage (my sports bra isn’t even touching my stomach), my shoulders and my left side of my tummy near my belly button… oh and my facial expression!

I can really tell under my arm pits and in my shoulders… also my bicep is starting to pick up more.

 

I can tell in my back near my shoulders, they dimple more now, I am getting more of a booty (thank God) and my back (under my sports bra) is shrinking.

 

Again, I can tell in my top part of my back (the dimples) and my shoulders are becoming more defined.

 

Let’s take a minute and look at my stomach… wow! So happy about that difference! Also, I can tell in my shoulder, if you look closely you can see a line defining it more.

Okay, I am ready to tackle Phase 3 and make it my Phase! In exactly 1 month I am getting my wedding dress altered and in exactly 2 months from today I am taking my bridal photos… so there is no room for messing up like I did in Phase 2. I do have to say, even though my stats didn’t change very much (the scale and pants size) I can tell a huge difference in my body. My muscles are starting to be more defined and the fat around each muscle group is slowly vanishing!!! Time to give it hell…

I hope you all have HAPPY and HEALTHY week!!!