Walking and 15 minute work outs do wonders!

I've been slipping on my blogging so I'm going to cover a 1 - 1 - 2 workout schedule. June 27th, my day began at 6 a.m. with a bowl on Honey Nut Cheerios, followed by water and stretching. 30 minutes later I completed my Leslie Sansone 15 minute 1 mile power walk!! It creates such an AWESOME sweat and is a great way to start the day followed by my cranpomegranate ViShake.

JUNE 28th REST DAY ... I am not feeling well since returning from vacation so although I was attempting to get back on my NO DAYS OFF regiment I needed the rest.

June 29th - I got up and MOVED MY BODY!! 15 minute 1 mile power walk along w/ 100 crunches and a 60 second plank. That's a sure way to start your day off just right!! You don't have to do a whole lot, remember A LITTLE GOES A LONG WAY!

June 30th - this morning I was up at 5 a.m. and on the bridges by 5:45 a.m.

I took a brisk, swift CHRIS BROWN - TURN UP THE MUSIC walk over the Acosta AND Main St bridges this morning. I didn't have enough time to do both of the Acosta as I've been doing. I am having to start over getting my core back to where it was before vacation. If you want something you have to go and get it ... BY ALL MEAN NECESSARY!! I get mine through daily physical activity and the VILIFE!

I am hell bent on keeping this 40+ year old body as FIT AND FABULOUS as possible!

VILFE WILL FOREVER BE MY LIFE THAT WAY I KNOW THIS 40+ YEAR OLD BODY IS FORTIFIED PROPERLY!

My INCONSISTENCY caused this!

After all my talk of consistency this clearly shows what my inconsistency has done ...

... it has caused me to start over again with my core work.

Before I left for VA my abs were becoming well defined but in a matter of 6 days of inactivity its fading away. I'm mad with myself but I know what caused it and what it will take to get it back. I'm back on my FITNESS grind with work out routines every day as I did before I went on vacation. There will be 15 minute morning working out routine every day and another in the evening picking up once again on my crunch challenge.

WATCH ME WORK THIS POWERED BY VI LIFE!

And these are just a FEW choices I can have!

Deep Creek High School 25th Class Reunion - C/O 88

Last week during my VA vacation, there was one of the best events I've attended in many years ... Deep Creek High School's Class of 1988 25th Class Reunion! Yep, you read it right, 25 YEARS and I have to say WOW, time has truly gotten away from me. It wasn't until I received the invite over a year ago that I realized it had been that long! Time has truly been great to my class mates and I as most of us don't look a day over 30. If I've learned nothing else in life I've learned if you take care of yourself your body will take care of you. As time was drawing near for this fabulous event I realized I had no idea what I was going to wear nor did I bring anything from home (Florida) to make that decision easier. *sigh* WELP ... guess I have to go shopping!! Mini me and I

set out to find a dress after our birthday lunch date. We ended up at Ross and there I found several wonderful selections! Here are the top 3 choices:

This is Calvin.

Designer whose name I couldn't pronounce NOR do I remember.

This is also Calvin and it fit my curves PERFECTLY but at the end of our try on session the 1st Calvin dress was purchased. For 1, it was purple (Hornet colors) and it was the cheapest! (DO NOT JUDGE ME!!)

Saturday morning, June 22nd, the day of the reunion, began wonderfully! Fellow classmate and friend, Wendy and I headed out as we always do when I visit. It started with time spent at Great Bridge Middle School for her son, Jordan, football camp.

Jordan is pictured with fellow class mate Gina's son Bryan. Here we go with yet another mini Hornet reunion! Gina (Bullock) Stukes spotted us as she sat in the stands.

Although we are all friends on Facebook there is absolutely NOTHING like a face to face meeting. It was so good to see her, especially since she was not going to be in attendance this evening.

After leaving there I needed heels and accessories for my dress so we stopped at Cato where I found the PERFECT pump ...

... you see how they PUMPED up the volume?? SOLD! Didn't find accessories there but DOTS did the trick NOW to the house to get dressed. Oh how pumped up we were to get to this evenings events and little did I know how the devil was going to try and ruin my evening. After prepping for the evening I put on my new, Hornet purple dress to find out it had a hole in it! HOW'D I MISS THAT WHEN I TRIED IT ON!! *palms forehead* This is 30 minutes before we were to meet at Roger Browns.

That face though ... enough said BUT Wendy would NOT let me get down and depressed about it. She went into immediate action! She made sure her children's event was taken care of AND off we go headed back to Ross. I wish she'd have taken a picture of my outfit I had on when I went into Ross ... HILARIOUS! I was getting looks left and right as I hit the counter in my multi-colored Dr Suess socks with no shoes, pumps in hand! It took all of 20 minutes to find another dress, exchange, get in a fitting room to get dressed and head out the door! Off to Roger Browns we go with the final dress choice ...

It's supposed to be purple but looks blue up against Wendy's dress NONETHELESS it was party time!

Inside Roger Browns, the 1st Hornets I spotted were Scott Erwin and Troy Brockett! It's one thing to be friends on Facebook, as I stated earlier, but it's so much better to meet and greet in person! After them there were so many familiar faces popping up; Laverne Mason, Sonia Knuckles, David Hadaway, Aundrey Barnes, Dawn Warren, Tamra Snead, Sylvia Dixon, Ellen Reid, Tyra Young, Lori Bostick, Rusty Hooker, Jeffy Colley,Carmela Duke, Michelle Wilson, Lisa Walker, and Kim Hardy just to name a few! There was a true feeling of nostalgia in the air and at this point it was time to drink, eat and get ready for the real festivities!

The feeling upon arrival inside of the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame was surreal! Faces and names that I hadn't seen or heard since June 10, 1988 were filling the room. As I looked around, some faces I remembered and some I didn't but all it took was a little bit of conversation and name tag views to change that quickly. The atmosphere was so familiar, almost like we'd just done this before. It was as if we'd just gotten back from summer vacation and it was the 1st day of our Senior year ... EXCITEMENT EVERYWHERE!! Sweetwater Cuisine did an awesome job on the hor'dourves and sweets. There was a decadent chocolate fountain

and a beautiful reunion cake

of which I had none! I actually had so much fun mingling, dancing and of course taking pictures that all I had was 2 cups of ice water! I was too busy having a ball to stop and snack. From line dancing (learned the Biker Shuffle and the line dance to Mary J's FINE) to watching ROCK show up and show out

to the elevated joy I felt when I saw my boy 'Toiny Boo' (Antoine Whitted).

Look how much was going on! There just wasn't enough time for me to sit and eat anything.

I can't remember not one person who didn't enjoy themselves, even quiet Katrina Glascoe. I tried my best to get her to come leave the entrance area and join us in the JUNGLE better known as the dance floor where Wendy (DELTA) and Krista (AKA) were having a SOROR dance off!

Do NOT ask me who won because both represented well BUT I am sure if I were to ask either of the 2 we'd know their answer. Katrina, nonetheless, did not move which makes her the smart woman that we've always known her to be! In the middle of our reunion, Ellen "ZeeZee" Reid Savoy presented us with a video/slide show which brought tears and laughter to us all. We've lost so many classmates, some I didn't know personally and some I knew but didn't know they'd passed. I've tried to add Ellen's video but it won't give me the embedding code, look for 'DCHS2' on YouTube if you've not seen it already. Theresa "Binky" Sawyer Ford also made a slide show that was awesome. We have some very talented people in our ranks.

I have to say, after watching Ellen's video presentation it hit me just how blessed we truly are. We are still here, above ground and able to celebrate 25 years of public school freedom, together with some of the greatest people on earth! It was nothing far from EPIC the way we all came together and were able to get along, no one looking down on anyone else or judging because of their past, present or foreseeable future. The only thing going on at the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame that night was some good ole HORNET comradery and I'm proud to say I was a part of it.

Katherine Porterfield Gray and Scott Erwin you guys are FANTASTIC!

You, along with Sandra Witherspoon, David Hadaway and Rusty Hooker put together an awesome evening that will be talked and blogged about for months to come ... not to mention the pictures that keep surfacing! The next 5 years will pass by so quickly as we prepare for our 30th class reunion and I can't wait! This event reignited my true being ... I BLEED PURPLE AND WHITE!! ONCE A HORNET ALWAYS A HORNET!

Are you a HOTTIE in training?

Good Monday Morning great folk!! Here's your Motivational Monday tip:

Rather you are single or married you should always want to keep your body in 'competition' shape! You MUST keep your body trained to be the BEST WIFE/GIRLFRIEND or HUSBAND/BOYFRIEND your mate has ever had. Keep yourself up so that your mate truly has no reason to look or go elsewhere for they have the BEST at home already! I won't and can't say it will stop cheating BUT it'll make it a little harder on your mate and easier on yourself.

What ever your goals are, to GET FIT you must EAT RIGHT and engage in some form of FITNESS activity to include a good WORKOUT and EXERCISE regiments of 30-40 minutes at least 4-5 times weekly. This will create a healthy lifestyle change for you and those around you. Be your own Motivation and watch how you motivate and inspire others!

What you eat and how often you eat it IS KEY!

Good Morning good people!! Here's a TAKE OVER TUESDAY FITNESS tip:

BE CONSISTENT IN ALL YOU DO! Any thing done consistently will create a difference, even if its a little at a time. Remember small progress IS progress!! If you EAT RIGHT, WORK OUT, EXERCISE, eat clean, train mean YOU WILL GET FIT!! It's about your health and wellness and the perk is LOOKING FABULOUS!!

Tired of starting over? STOP GIVING UP!

Great Wednesday great folk!! Here are some useful words for the day:

This can be applied to everything in life but of course you know right now I'm speaking FITNESS, your health and wellness!!! You don't have to live in a gym every day or pull 2 hour WORKOUT routines just be consistent! If you consistently do 30-40 minute of exercise 4-5 times weekly you will see results. You can even break those down to twice daily, 2 15-20 minutes per session until you, your mind and body realizes that THIS IS WHAT WE WANT TO DO ALL THE TIME! The frustration of starting over will end when you reach that point!! It will become as routine as getting up, eating and brushing your teeth!

That's my tip for this Work It Out Wednesday! Start small, be consistent and watch big changes happen!

THE UNVEILING! *SUPER PROUD*

If you've been reading and keeping up with my blogs since my Memorial Day vacation you know that I've been working out EVERY DAY since June 2nd. Some days I got it done TWICE!! Well today was supposed to be a rest day BUT when I got up I had the "FITNESS FEVER" and I had to get 1 in. 2 miles WALK AT HOME with Leslie Sansone. I feel awesome now! Last night I felt like I was coming down with something and woke up feeling the same way but once I worked out I felt 100% better. I guess I needed that 2nd session last night and my body was letting me know. *duly noted body*

A little sweat never hurt nobody NOR has A LOT of sweat! I am so glad I challenged myself to see what I could do in these 2 weeks leading up to my departure for Virginia. I want to be RIGHT for my 43rd birthday, 25th class reunion and the rest of my life. One thing I have to clear up though, I'm not trying to lose weight but ridding myself of body fat. My goal is to get my muscles as lean as possible. I'm not trying to be a body builder or enter any competitions but attempting to live longer and healthier as possible. There are a lot of health issues in my family and most of them can be controlled by diet so I'm controlling! I don't want nor do I need another physician to tell me something that I already know I should be doing.

Now when this all started I said I wanted to lose the 10 lbs I'd gained. Was I successful? NO, not even close. I lost 2 lbs but I am so not mad because I've stressed so often to those I mentor that it's not about the pounds but the inches lost and fat burned.

When I bought my 2 piece on May 31st I was not confident at all with the way I looked. Although I've lost the weight I am still flabby in the inner thigh and abdominal area, that 2 piece showed it all! I worked vigorously on burning fat during these last 2 weeks, 14 days non-stop with some days getting in 2 workouts. Well here is the unveiling!

The May 31st picture you could tell I was not happy but I still wore it. I didn't look the worse but I didn't feel my best. I was pleased that I'd accomplished what I set out to do, be a part of team 2 piece by my 43rd birthday but it needed to be TIGHTENED up! I'm not done STILL but there is a significant difference and I love it! This only makes me want to go harder now. I know my fitness kicks in VA are going to intensify and I'm taking folk with me! *laughs* This has been an AWESOME 14 days and I am so eager to see what else I can do. I've consulted a "fitness guru" who has given me some tips and actually offered to work with me so I'm looking forward to that.

On that note I shall leave you with this ...

Last day of my 2 week NO DAYS OFF!!

I've been going hard since June 2nd and I have to say I am SO impressed with myself. My goal was to lose 10 lbs but that didn't have. I only last lbs BUT the fat, the inches I've dropped are more impressive than anything! When I went to Vero Beach May 31-June 2 I wasn't truly comfortable in my 2 piece but I wore it anyway. I didn't look BAD but I still wasn't satisfied and to be honest I am STILL not satisfied but I am pleased with what I've seen. The past 14 days I've worked out EVERY day, some days twice. I've been looking at my pictures and watching my core progress. It's coming along but I still think I need to do more so I consulted with a DIE HARD gym rat and fitness buff. After we spoke and discussed what I already do he told me I was on the right track but to push myself a little harder and up my reps. It felt good to hear someone who almost live in the gym or doing some form of working out at home tell me I am doing great felt awesome. I had to pat myself on the back because I am doing this on my own, no personal trainer, gym or anything and I think that's pretty commendable. *PROUD MOMENT*

This morning started with 200 crunches and a 60 second plank. I was at work DYING as my abs let me know I worked them really good. *no pictures* I didn't do a second work out today because after I worked 9 hours and had to come home and finish a work schedule AND pack it was a wrap! Maybe I'll do it in the morning! Until then ...TOOTLES!!

A.M. Workout 06/14/13 - Are you a WINNER or LOSER?

Oh what a great start to my morning. I hit the Riverwalk and the ACOSTA bridges at full speed! I promise you, when you take music with elevated BPM's on your walks and you keep up with the baseline you WILL get an awesome, fast work out!! I live and die by Chris Brown's TURN UP THE MUSIC! I put it on repeat for most of the walk until it's time to cool down.

Today I decided to walk the Riverwalk again so I started behind the Jacksonville Landing. I truly enjoyed it the last time and the views are so beautiful to me. Let me share some with you ...

This is why I prefer outdoor exercise over being a gym rat ANY day. The views are much more beautiful and less enticing than the views at the gym. I'd have to carry my bible while I worked out to remain focused. *laughs* The Father provided us with this wonderful scenery and awesome nature to enjoy so I partake of it as often as I can. I don't knock anyones gym hustle but it's just not for me. You have to know what works for you and get in that lane.

I started my walk down the Riverwalk, across the catwalk and down to the YMCA which is how I connected to the opposite side of the Acosta bridge. At the foot of the bridge I did 40 inclined push ups before beginning my journey. Thank goodness for the cloud coverage which allowed for some type of coolness. As I walked I began to feel down, unsure why but I just felt down and that's when I began to talk to my Father. I walked, talked and cried during my entire walk over that side of the bridge. It seems the more worked up I felt the harder the breeze would blow. It was almost as if my Father was telling me it's all going to be alright and greater things are yet to come. I believe and received that too. Amazingly enough the 1st lap seem to disappear during my talk ... no sooner than I started walking up the incline I was coming down the other side. NOTHING BUT GOD! I am ever so thankful for health, peace of mind and strength. I am over joyed and confident feeling after I work out. There are so many people without the ability to function on their own and we take it for granted so often, for this reason as well as a few others I keep my body moving.

No targeted core work today but keeping your core tight when you walk is a work out in itself.

Where are my winners who work hard to achieve SUCCESS in any and all you do, be it life or fitness? When it comes to fitness you can NOT shortcut your way to a healthy body, those results will be temporary. Please believe! When you work hard for what you get you are more likely to keep it up and take care of it, I know I do. It makes you want to do everything in your power to prevent depreciation ... that NEW CAR feeling and I love the "new car" that gets me around these days. The fuel it uses, none other than VI ... that's how THIS winner keeps going!