Excuses, Excuses!

People ask me ALL the time how I lost my weight and if I have any tips to help them lose weight. I am more than happy to tell them my secret, hard work. Most people then turn around and give me an excuse to why they can't put forth the effort it takes to get the results they want. I have heard almost every excuse in the book and so I have put together this list of some of my favorite excuses and what my response back is...

Excuse	What I say back
I don’t have time to go to the gym	Make time! If there is a will, there is a way!
I don’t have the money for a gym membership	Its $20-$40 a month, cut out a splurge (smoking, eating out, drinking, shopping, etc) and you will be able to afford a membership. Or use nature, or a workout DVD.
I am a single mother and work full time.	And your excuse is…?
I just have to much weight to lose…	Umm okay, so go to the gym and start losing it!
I don’t know how to use any of the machine	Talk to a trainer, they are there to help you. Most gyms even give you one free mini sessions.
I am going to start on Monday	Why wait? Do it now, you never know what tomorrow may bring.
I have a hurt knee	Go to Wal-Mart, get a brace, and go to the gym and do low impact exercises. Most gyms even have pools you can use.
People will stare at me if I go to the gym and workout because I am overweight	I promise you this, people at the gym are NOT worried about you. They are so consumed with their workout they probably don’t even see you. And if they do see you, they might think "Wow look at that person coming in here and wanting to lose weight, I could've never done that when I was bigger."
I am to old	Life isn't over til its over, why not go and add more years to your life?!
I don’t have any friends to workout with	Go to the gym and make new friends… That’s how I met Ashley, Berns, Lo, and all my Sweat Sisters that train with Lo!
*This one is personal and may upset someone close to me but its an excuse that I am tired of hearing* ---- I am a cancer survivor and don’t have the energy to workout	Even more of a reason TO workout. Start out slow and build back up your endurance.
I am already skinny, I don’t need to workout.	Just because you are skinny doesn’t mean you are healthy or in shape. Come take a run with me and then you will change your mind!
I feel guilty leaving my child in the kids club for an hour or two because they were in daycare all day.	I promise you, your child wont remember it and actually they might have fun. Plus the more you workout, the healthier you become, the healthier you are, the more years you add to your life. That means you are trading an hour a day to live longer to be in their lives longer.
I get bored at the gym	Try a new workout program, a class, change your music on your iPod, watch TV while you workout… Do not let boredom win!
I just don’t like working out	Well you know what, I don’t like going to work every day but I know that it will make my future better for me and Caleb so I go. Same with the gym…

REMEBER this famous quote (pardon my french):

"Excuses are like assholes, everyone has one and they all stink!"

Funniest story you will read all day!

I have told this story only to a select few, but yesterday a follower said she likes how I don't sugar coat my journey. Well, I got to thinking about it and if I don't tell my blog followers this story then in a way I am sugar coating all my ups and my DOWNS! So, for those of you that have not heard this story yet please say a big Thank You to Brenda Argraves.

Friday night the gym is very dead until about 7ish (right before Cardio Dance Party with Berns). Ashley and I had gotten there at 6:30 to run before class. She got onto the treadmill next to a very cute (but short) guy and I got on the one next to her and had a older guy next to me. The only other people I remember seeing was a few guys lifting weights on the floor in front of us. I started to run and about 5 minutes or so into my run, I needed to potty. I jumped off the treadmill onto the side steps and left the treadmill going. I went into the locker room, used the little girls room, came out of the locker room and walked over to where my treadmill was.

---------HERE COMES THE FUNNY PART---------

I don't know what I was thinking, actually I wasnt thinking at all. I jumped on my treadmill (as if it was turned off) forgetting that it was turned on at a 5.5 speed. ...BOOM BOOM BOOM... The next thing I know I am struggling to get back up, I look up and the guys around me are starting to turn off their treadmills, taking out their headphones and are about to come check on me. Now, I love attention but not this kind of attention. So I decide to stand up and shake it off, but as a idiot I step back onto the still running treadmill and ...BOOM BOOM BOOM... I have fallen again!!!! Ashely is looking at me like a nurse looks at a patient that they are worried about. I finally jump up to my feet, stand on the side steps of the treadmill and jump on the correct way and start running again. I was in PAIN but I didnt want to cause more of a fuss then I had already caused!

I have always wondered, who falls off the treadmill... like really?!

Well... I do!

This is a picture of my leg.. I scraped up the skin above my knee, have a bruise on my knee cap and one right below my knee. My right leg is bruised too.

Cheerleading 101 - too fat to cheer

Everyone has that person from high school that they carry with them and want overcome, mainly because they picked on you, made fun of you, started a rumor, or just was downright mean.  I didn’t have just one person; I was a “lucky” one and had an entire cheerleading squad!

I wanted nothing more than to be a cheerleader. I loved being able to put that skirt on and go onto the field or court and dance. I loved the fact that I got to get in free to all of the games, nothing better than a free front row seat to a football game. Cheering was my life… I practiced like all the other girls, tried out like all the other girls, made the team like all the other girls, and even put my uniform on like all the other girls. In reality though, I wasn’t like all the other girls at all. Cheerleaders were thin and well let’s face it, I wasn’t.  But just like I stated, I made the team fair and square (and no my parents didn’t pay for me to be on the squad, heck they struggled to make ends meet at home and I had to sell candy like it was going out of style just to pay for my uniform and camp cost).  

People, especially teenage girls, like to shun out the person who is different. Lucky me, I was the different one in this situation. I remember 9^th grade year (Freshman Cheerleader) we had to decorate the Science hall for Homecoming Week. We went all out and even hung a huge picture of our team in the hall wishing the Football players good luck. Monday when I arrived at school, I walked to my Science class and as I passed the photo of the team, I saw one of the meanest things I have ever seen. Where my face was in the photo, someone had drawn a black “X” and wrote “too fat to cheer”… Talk about a knife to the stomach, who could be so mean? Why did they not like me? What did I do to them? I was devastated because from that minute on my love for cheering started to slowly dwindle. Year after year more and more situations like 9^th grade Homecoming happened. I remember going home and crying almost every day, but I wasn’t a quitter and I wasn’t going to let them win. I quit cheering my junior year because of a knee injury, but the hate from those girls has always stuck with me.

I was listening to ‘Fighter’ by Christina Aguilera and it made me think of those girls. They were evil for no reason, they made me cry, they made me hate cheerleading but in the end they made me a strong person with thick skin. And from now on anytime I am ready to quit the journey I am on I am going to remind myself of those girls. Remind myself that I have put up with the caddiness of high school cheerleaders and didnt quit, so why quit now?!

After all you put me through,

You’d think I’d despise you

 But in the end I wanna thank you

‘Casue you made me that much stronger

...

Makes me that much stronger

Makes me work a little bit harder

Makes me that much wiser

So thanks for making me a fighter

...

Made me learn a little bit faster

Made my skin a little bit thicker

Makes me that much smarter

So thanks for make me a fighter

The Ashley Cooper story

Ashley Cooper is an amazing woman that I met at the gym at the start of the year. Actually, she came up to me in Berns' class and started talking to me while we were up against the mirrors doing leg lifts. Who would have ever known that we would become so close that it feels like we have known each other for decades?!

When you travel down the weight loss road, you meet people that will either help you or hinder you. With Ashley, she has been a HUGE help to me. She pushes me (because I don't want her to beat me, friendly competition hahaha), she guilt's me into doing something when I don't want to (guilt is key) and she makes working out fun (yes I just said workout and fun in the same sentence)! Ashley is honestly heaven sent for me and I am so thankful for her.

Now on to the 5k story... Ash's 1st 5k was also my 1st 10k, this meant that we couldn't run it together. I was kind of bummed about that but knew that there would be plenty more to come. This past Saturday we ran Joe's Run (5k) and we both decided that we would cross the finish line together. Our goals for this run was that Ashley didn't want to walk and I needed to go faster (I am stuck in a 5.0 speed). Mile 1 was great, we were step and step with each other. We got to Mile 2 and it was uphill (I suck at uphill) and she took off. I was proud of her for pushing herself and I told myself that I would run faster as soon as I go through this 2nd mile so I could catch up with her and finish strong. With mile 2 finally complete, I see Ashley walking... I sprinted to her and we started jogging again. We were about 0.7 miles away from the finish and Ashley starts walking again saying she feels like she is about to throw up but for me to keep going. I did what she said and continued to run to the end, but then it hit me... this isn't about me finishing, this is about us finishing. I stopped and walked with Ashley until she felt okay enough to jog it in. About 0.3 miles away she starts jogging again and the finish is insight. HERE COMES THE GOOD PART --- As soon as we get about 100 yards or so from the finish line, Ashley sprints off and leaves me in her dust!!! I end up finishing 4 seconds behind her... That BRAT!

In the end, she beat her time and for that I am super proud of her. Ashley finishing without me got me to thinking and I started to relate a 5k to our lives. A 5k is 3.1 miles, its a long uphill and downhill journey that you take to achieve a goal. Weight loss is also a long journey that has both uphills and downhills that you decide to take to achieve a goal. With both the 5k and the weight loss journey, you can share your struggles and accomplishments with your friends but at the end of the day, its just you and the finish line!

Ashley, thank you for being you. I love you friend and I am so thankful that you are in my life... And just know if you ever leave, I will find you!!! HAHA!

Haterade

By now you all know that I gained 3.2 pounds this past Wednesday. Yes, I am devastated. Yes, I am embarrassed. Yes, I feel horrible because the “playing” wasn’t worth what I paid.  In 5 months, I haven’t gained not even one ounce and then to step on the scale and see 3.2 gain… wow! I know that I have a lot of people following my journey who are inspired by what I have done. I have been complimented so many times and it is very kind of you all; but for every 5 supportive people, it seems like I have one hater who gets excited to see me fail. Well this is a letter to my haters…

________________________________________________________________________

Dear Haters,

                Please know 1^st and foremost that I am, well… AWESOME! You see your obsession with my weight loss, makes it just that much more worthwhile. You sit there and get joy out of my gain, you smile when I fail, and you love to hear about my weak moments. But what you don’t know is that my motivation grows stronger when joy fills your heart when I gain. That my confidence in myself fills back up when you smile at my failures. And that my love for my healthy life grows deeper and deeper when your love fills your heart to hear about my weak moments. So this is a letter to tell you thank you for being my biggest cheerleaders. I love having inspiring, motivational, uplifting, and determined people in my life to push me when I feel like I am getting stuck. But what you don’t know is that when I am really stuck it’s not those people who pull me out… it’s you, my haters! Go ahead and pour yourself another glass of Haterade and I will keep being AWESOME!

Love ya,

Jordan

My “Aunt’s” visit

Warning: Guys read this at your own risk because my “Aunt” isn’t my Mom’s or Dad’s sister, but instead a gift from Mother Nature!!!

For the most part, I am not easily convinced into cheating when it comes to food. However, this month when my “Aunt” came to visit me (for longer than she ever has) she found a way to drag me down and make me listen to her reasoning’s.

“Oh come on, it’s just one time!”

“You have been so good; you deserve a cheat more than once a week!”

“Everybody is doing it!”

I started off slow, just a Kit Kat for breakfast… then next thing I know I was eating cookies for lunch. I have eaten at least 1, if not 2 or 3, sweet treats every single day since then! While I am in the moment of wanting it or eating it, I feel like it is okay and that what I am doing is not bad. But then, BOOM, out of left field after I am done with my treat the guilt comes over me. Not only does she make me want to snack 24/7 but I haven’t been in the mood to workout at all. I have been so blah, from my “Aunt” and from all the sweets I have been eating. Usually I workout ten times in a week, and this past week I have worked out a total of ONE time!!!!

I woke up today and realized that my “Aunt” has packed her bags and left for a few weeks, so today I am restarting. I am going to get my water intake in; I have been living off diet cokes. I am going to stay away from the sweets. I am going to stick to my meal plan. I am going to get my workouts in. And most of all, when I go to face the scale at Lo’s on Wednesday afternoon… I am going to take whatever number it throws me and know that it’s not the end of the world; I know where I messed up!

In the end none of the sweets or the “reasons” I couldn’t go to the gym, were worth the gain I think I might have for the 1^st time ever with Lo…

Sisterly Love

In my family, I have always stuck out like a sore thumb. I have 2 sisters, Valerie (Val) is older than me by almost 3 years and Amanda who is younger than be my almost 3 years. The fun of growing up with sisters is that you are able to share your clothes and shoes!!! Well for me that wasnt the case, but for Val and Amanda that was true. Both my sisters are right around average height for a female, Val being just a little shorter than Amanda. They both wear the average size shoe, the average size tops, and the average size dresses. Many times I have had to witness the famous "oh that is cute, can I borrow that?" converstation take place, and never have I been able to be a part of it. You see, I am 5'10 and I have always been thicker and heavier. Even when Val had gained weight, I was still bigger than her. I made my peace along time ago with the fact that I would probably never be able to borrow anything from either of their closets. When pigs fly, I always told myself... when pigs fly!

It took me 25.5 years and losing 100 pounds but damnit, I made those pigs fly!!!! I was over at Val's house sitting on her bed watching her get ready to go out, while I stayed with my nieces. She hung her outfit on the bathroom door, like she always does, and I complimented her on her top, like I always do, and she thanked me. That right there my friends is where the conversations ALWAYS ends. This time though, it continued... Val spoke the words I had been waiting  to hear for so long "Try it on! If it fits you, you can borrow it after I wear it tonight!"... I was stunned! Was I just invited into the "sister hood of the borrowing clothes"?! It doesnt stop there, she goes into her closet and starts taking tops down saying, "Try this one"... "Do you like this"... "I think this would be cute"... I ended up borrowing a purple top, which reminds me I need to return it.

Throughout my weight loss journey, I have collected "Trophies" along the way...

1. The 1st guy to hit on me Trophy

2. The being under 200 Trophy

3. The omg I just ran 3.1 miles & the omg I just ran 6.2 miles Trophies

4. The my parents just crapped their pants when they saw my weight loss Trophy

5. The I bought a small instead of an extra large Trophy

6. The I shopped in the Junior section Trophy

AND NOW... the trophy I have been waiting for and never thought I would ever see....

7. The I borrowed clothes from my sister Trophy!!!!

I love my sisters!

(Me, Amanda & Val - We have so many pictures were Val and Amanda are right next to each other and I am standing off to the side posing just like this one!)

The story of Jed (a brave sole)

I met this guy last August on a cruise, we hit it off and I enjoyed talking to him. He lived in Kansas and I was here in good ole Fort Worth, so a  talk of relationship was out of the question. After the cruise, we talked on the phone, through email, text and Facebook as much as possible. We decided that he would come to Fort Worth and hang out for the weekend of Halloween. We ended up having a great weekend, we went to a Stars game, Joe T's, a Cowboys game, Six Flags, and with my family to go Trick or Treating. It was Sunday night and he was leaving the next morning, when he decided to be a brave little sole and speak his mind...

Before I go into detail of why he was so "brave", let me give you a few side notes.
1. We met on a cruise, where I wore my bathing suit a lot along with shorts and tank tops.
 2. When he came to my house that weekend I had lost 10 pounds since the cruise, I answered the door in a cute dress and he complimented me on how I looked.
3. We spent the whole weekend together and even talked about how we could make a relationship work with him in Kansas and him maybe moving to Fort Worth...

Brave Sole:
 Jed was on the couch Sunday night and I was asleep in my bed, I woke up to the TV about 1 am and realized that he was still awake. I went in there to see what he was up to and he informed me that he cant do this anymore and that he is sorry. I was half asleep and confused, so I did what I do best and started asking questions. He came right out and said "Jordan, I just cant date you. You are too fat for me to date!"... Brave Sole! I had options here, I could kick the crap out of him, I could call James (he would help me get rid of the body, lol), I could insult him back, or I could take the high road. I decided to take the high road (kinda), without saying a word, I went into my room packed up his stuff, opened the front door and threw his stuff outside and told him to get the hell out of my house and out of Fort Worth! He begged to stay at least until the morning which I answered with "Go stay at a hotel, maybe a skinny person owns it!" HA!

Haven't spoke to him since. That is until he text me Monday! He told me he was sorry and wanted me back (HA!) and that he misses me. What now that I am skinny you miss me, no thank you! Best part of the whole convo was when he proceeded to tell me that I don't need to be rude to him because after all HE was the reason I have lost 50-60 pounds since seeing him...!

Ladies so the moral of the story is, you don't need to work hard at all just find a jerk to tell you that you are fat and you will automatically lose the weight! Yeah, okay!

Theraphy - Write a letter (but dont send it) to get your anger out... I wrote this the Monday he left, its funny now looking back on it!!!!

10k Journey

A lot of people have asked me how my run went and so, pull up a chair, sit down and get comfy because I am about to tell ya!!!

It was a cold morning and very windy. I woke up at 5 am that morning, partly because of the wind being so loud and partly because of my nerves. I was scared to death I was going to sleep in and miss this run!!! I went and picked up Ashley and we arrived at Boopa’s to get our chips and scoop out the place with plenty of time to spare. I could feel my nerves building and building, but I was more excited than anything. We lined up, they gave a speech, sang the national anthem and then blew the horn and we were off.

I am use to doing 5k’s (3.1 miles), so I knew that the 1^st few miles would probably end up being cake for me. I was right, until the 5k runners (Ashley and Berns) made their loop leaving me on the journey alone. That 1^st mile as an official 10k runner was kind of rocky for me, I kept thinking “I can turn around now and just do the 5k, that’s good enough.” But something inside made me push forward and turn onto the next street. Approaching miles 2 and 3, I started thinking back along my journey over the past year, thinking of all the times I just wanted to give up but I pushed forward. Every memory gave me a new sense of freedom from “Fat Jordan”; it gave me the burst of energy I needed to push up the hills or through the wind. Mile 3 and Mile 5 was 110% uphill with the wind in my face the whole time, pushing me backwards. I put my head down and just gave it hell. All I could think about was every single person I was proving wrong, everyone that ever called me a name for being overweight, and everyone who never thought I could change my life. Mile 6 I think was the most difficult mile for me. I knew I was almost done but a song came on “Fucking Perfect” by Pink, and I started crying to the point I couldn’t breathe. I was crying because this was emotional for me, I changed my life. I was doing something I never thought I could do and I was doing all by myself… that’s when it hit me, I wasn’t alone. Standing at Mile marker 6 was one of the most amazing people that I have ever been blessed to meet, Lo. I could see her smile from quarter mile back! She gave me that push that I needed, like she has done so many times before. I was overjoyed to have her there finishing my race with me.

I did it. I have completed my 10k. I have changed my life. I have impacted other people’s lives.

I. DID. IT!

Bikini Pictures - Jan - March 2011

Okay, I have looked over all these pictures and I wanted to do this blog a bit different then I did my last Bikini Blog... I am going to break down each view and tell you what I think changed (we are our own worst critics) and then if you have any feedback on what you think has changed that I cant see... please let me know!!! Februray was a hard month for me with the snow and hurting my back and not to mention it was a couple days shorter then every other month!!!

Front View:

I can see the gap between my thighs.. FINALLY!!!

Side View:

My stomach has gone down some but not alot from Feb to March.

Back View:

Again, I can see the space between my thighs! My top half of my back is smaller...

Bad news in regards to my 10k

I just received a LOVELY text message from my oh so wonderful trainer! She told me that there will be winds of 20-30 MPH tomorrow morning, which is RACE morning... ugh! I sent her a text back telling her not to cuss at me like that and then I went on www.weather.com and yep, she is right. Oh wait, there is more... there will also be AM showers and even though it will be in the 40's, it will feel like the low 30's!!!! Man I am a lucky girl...

Now the question that is running through your heads is "Is she still going to run?"... Fat Jordan would have said umm HECK TO THE NO!!! But you see a year ago this weekend, I looked Fat Jordan in the eyes and said goodbye to her, her bad habits and her negative attitude. So the answer to your question is... YES! I am going to run this race, hell or high waters. I have come to far and this is a huge milestone for me and I am not going to let Mother Nature stop me from achieving one of my goals. I am almost 100 pounds smaller, way more confident, stronger, faster, and in better shape then I have ever been before... so bring on the rain, bring on the cold and bring on the wind! Nothing is going to stop me from running 6.2 miles tomorrow and crossing that finish line!!!

Olive Garden

Have you ever had that one ex boyfriend who stands out above all the rest, who you think about when something happens, who you talked hours to your friends about, and most of all who was the biggest (excuse my language) asshole in the history of Texas…I mean the WORLD?! Well, I have had such the pleasure to have dated just that guy (oh lucky me)! Everyone, please say hello to Robert.

           

            When I first started dating Robert, it was fine. We went out, had fun, hung out with our friends, and basically did stuff that any normal couple would do. Robert had been in a car accident leaving him to have a limp and some scarring on his face, but non the less he was a nice guy who I had fun with… and well he was the only guy showing me attention. After about 6 months or so into the relationship (I remember this like it was yesterday), Robert was going to go hang out with our friends and told me that he rather me not go. To make a long story short, he ended up telling me the reason he didn’t want me going was because he was embarrassed by my weight. Talk about brutal honesty! From that moment on for the next year and half (we dated for 2 years, I don’t know why), I tried anything to change my weight (bulimia too!) to make things better. Every Friday I weighed myself at his house and after about a month of this, Robert thought it would be a good idea to “help” me out. If I lost weight, we went on a date that weekend… if I gained, welp no date for me! People, I am not making this stuff up. And stupid Jordan, well she went along with it because even though it wasn’t right, he was the only person showing me any attention.

           

            It only gets worse from here, please pick your jaw up off the floor and continue on. After weighing one Friday, and losing weight, we decided to go on a double date with Michelle and her boyfriend at the time, Ryan, to Olive Garden. We got to dinner and I had left my purse at home because Robert had driven and offered to pick up the tab. The waitress comes to the table and takes our drink order and then says she will return for our food order. Well in the mean time, Michelle and Ryan are discussing what to eat and on the other side of the table, Robert is TELLING me what I am getting… a dry salad with a grilled chicken breast. Of course, I had lost weight and this was suppose to be my “cheat” meal and like hell was I getting what he told me to get. I rebutted with him and in the middle of it, the sweet waitress comes back. Michelle and Ryan placed their order and then Robert placed his (Tour of Italy – little of everything) and the waitress looked at me and asked for my order. Robert said “just bring her a pacifier”… you could cut the tension in the air with a knife! To cut the story short, Ryan told me to order whatever I liked and he would pay for me since I didn’t have my wallet and he talked to Robert.

            I finally came to my sense a few months later and realized that Robert wasn’t worth any of this. Besides the punishment for being overweight, he had also cheated and lied so many times. It breaks my heart to look back because I am so much stronger today and would NEVER put up with that from a man now. I know that Robert helped mold me into this strong woman, but I would never wish that kind of abuse on anyone. Girls now days try to please the boys way too much; it’s mostly due to the media. You have to be tall, tan, skinny, pretty hair… if you aren’t, than you are an outcast. Stop and take the time to talk to your sister, daughter, niece, friend, whoever the younger women in your life might be. Tell them that they are beautifully and wonderfully made by our Lord and Savior. Tell them that they do not need to listen to the garbage of men who try to put them down to make themselves feel better. If its attention they seek (like I did) give them more attention. I know I wish I would have had someone really sit me down and tell me all this 10-15 years ago…

“What doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger!”