I did it~

Well, after over 11 years with my so-called stable job, I did it; I walked away! Last Friday was my last day and it was a day mixed with many emotions. Above and beyond it all, I was happier than I have been in a long time. Then I was sad because I have been working with many of the same people since the year 2000. I can't lie and say that I wasn't also nervous about walking away from a stable paycheck and top notch benefits. I have a son with Epilepsy, and bills to pay so no longer having the comforts of both is A LOT to digest. BUT-----GOD IS ABLE! I have been doing a lot of praying, fasting, and seious thinking over the past several months and to be quite honest, I was absolutely miserable at my job and it wasn't getting better with time. Ya know, it seems kinda crazy to me to continue to go to a job that you wake up hating EVERYDAY; and for what? Money, benefits, vacation time that they wanna hassel you about if you try to take a day off?? I got to a point where I decided that I wanted a LIFE more than a tenure so walking away was not all that complicated. I am blessed to have a plan B, one that has the potential to sustain my family far better than that "job" ever could have. My decision was just that, MINE, so I still got mad love for those that remain in Corporate America. You gotta do what works for YOU, but that journey was at an end for me so here I am and glad to be here.

I am now at the tail end of my first week as an entrepreneur and it feels amazing. In addition to quitting my job, I also had to relocate from Kentucky back to Michigan. My house is a wreck! Bags, and boxes all over the place. 2 of many things that we have now listed on CraigsList. I'm also adjusting to being a full-time SAHM to a 4 & 7 year old. So far, it ain't half bad! I'm loving the idea that my time is just that...MINE! Make important business calls in my PJ's while I'm making my kids breakfast; how cool is that? It has been my dream to be able to be home full time by the time my daughter started school, and guess who is starting kindergarten this fall? I will be able to take her to school for the first day and be there when she gets home. Mission accomplished!

Okay so on to the business. I thought I had locked in on a location but that fell thru so it's back to the drawing board! I was mad at first but I have re-grouped. God has something better for me so I'm keeping my eyes and ears open for the location that HE had intended for my business. On Tuesday I had a meeting with an awesome lady who is going to team up with me on some things for the business. She has the experience that I am lacking and is willing to take me under her wing- I am in complete awe at the people that I am meeting each day.

I have pre-registered for my next Zumba certification at the end of July. I'm also about to get things in order to get my AFAA certification and the ACE is next!
It's also time to get my body back in tip top shape. Relocating and the stress of all of this transitioning has not helped me focus on the very best of eating habits and exercise. I feel awful because it's been a minute since my last good workout. I strive to be relatable in my blog so here you have it folks...I have slip ups too!! The cool thing is that my body is very well conditioned and it doesn't take long at all for it to snap back after a hiatus. I've set up my schedule to help me balance my day and it will definately include several hours of exercise. I'm excited about that!

Things are on the move for me and Move2Lose fitness so don't blink or you might miss something great!

Mizcardio4lyf!

Don’t think, just drink~

Your body needs water daily…and LOTS of it. I happen to be one of those fortunate people; drinking plain water comes naturally to me so I can down 100+ ounces of the clear stuff daily without batting an eye. For others, it’s a challenge and I have heard some rather creative ways that people try to justify their water intake.  Coffee & tea consumption does not count as water intake for my clients; while I do whole heartedly support many of the health benefits in both of these power drinks, NOTHING compares to a glass of plain old water. Water is one of the BEST known natural appetite suppressants; more times than not, the grumblings that people mistake for hunger pangs, is actually your body’s need for water. Unfortunately, the overweight person needs more water than a thin one. Larger people have larger metabolic loads. It is believed that water is the key to fat metabolism; therefore the overweight person needs more water.

So what about water retention? “If I drink a lot of water, I retain water and feel bloated. My stomach feels huge and I weigh more!” The best way to overcome water retention issues is to give your body what it needs -- plenty of water. Only then will stored water be released. If you have a constant problem with water retention, excess salt may be to blame. Your body will tolerate sodium only in a certain concentration. The more salt you eat the more water your system retains to dilute it. Again, diet plays a BIG part in weight loss; watch your sodium intake. *and high levels of sodium is not just about salty foods. Read labels!*

Please stay away from water pills people!! (I know all the tricks trust me) Diuretics offer a temporary solution at best. They force out stored water along with some essential nutrients. Now besides the fact that losing essential nutrients is NEVER a good thing, your body will replace this lost water at the FIRST opportunity and guess what… the condition quickly returns. 

Bottled or tap? I’ll leave that up to the individual. I know many people who will fight to the death over their Britta water bottles, and or their bottles of Evian. Those are all fine by me, it’s one of those matters where both sides have great arguments and supporting studies. In general I drink tap water. Besides the fact that it has nutrients such as fluoride, let’s be honest, it’s cheaper and convenient! I’m a water bottle junkie, especially personalized ones. I’ll fill my containers in the morning, throw em’ in a cooler with an ice pack and I’m out the door! Every now and again, I do like to splurge and get a Fiji water but I can assure you, it’s only because I think I look super cool carrying that squared off looking bottle. #imjussaying…

If you do opt to rock a water bottle, please…please…PLEASE…clean it thoroughly with HOT soap and water daily! I watched a documentary on water bottles a few years back and was blown away at the bacteria found in water bottles daily. Ecoli being one of the most prevalent! There’s a lot of backwash going on in your beloved water bottle on a baily basis and simply rinsing it out with some more water will kill none of the germs. I try to wash my bottle out with soap and water before I refill it but if there is little time then I make sure I do it at the end of the day. I also replace my bottles every 6 months, I have no scientific reason for the number, I just do it after I go to the dentist. *shrug*

Glowing skin & nails, a happier colon are a few more out of a host of reasons why you should be sure to hydrate your body often. Water is not optional in weight loss, it is key to your success and can make life so much easier in general. Please remember this is if nothing else:

If you wait until you’re thirsty to drink a glass of water, you’re already dehydrated!

Mizcardio4lyf!

A picture speaks a thousand words~

The process of losing unwanted pounds and getting fit is almost always a daunting one. There are highs, lows, and everything in between. I’m such an impatient person. Whatever it is that I want, I want it yesterday! So you can imagine how badly I was waiting to see some results when I weighed over 200lbs, wore a tight  size 18/20 and wanted so desperately to see the single digit sizes again. For most people, the numbers on the scale show a loss pretty quickly in the beginning. Usually the first drop is water weight coming off but it’s still a happy feeling when you are ready to LOSE. You will get to a point where the numbers won’t budge, or worse, they start to RISE again. (see my previous post about throwing out them scales) You’re going to need some sort of sign that all of your hard work and sacrifice has not gone unnoticed by your body. *enter the camera* I was not a big fan of the camera when I was bigger. I’d usually hide in the back or be the one doing all the picture taking. (sound familiar to any of you?) One day, I can’t remember why I did it but I took a “before” picture and every few weeks I’d take another. After a few weeks of this I had them side by side I saw changes! Talk about an ego boost. People were telling me they could tell I was losing weight, but “I” wanted to see; did I mention I’m a control freak too? =) From that point on, pictures became a regular part of the weight loss drill. I have pics at every stage of my weight loss and I STILL look back at them to this day! I can still remember how I was feeling and what was going on in my life at the time when I look at many of the pictures. We all have those, “I feel fat” days and the pics will usually give you the “pick me up” that you will need to go on. You don’t need anything super fancy; a cell phone pic will do if that’s all you got. I don’t care how bad you hate taking pics, take at least one when you begin your weight loss plan; you will be SO GLAD that you did! Remember how you feel when you take the picture, and then put it somewhere to remind you of a place where you will NEVER be again!

Mizcardio4lyf!

Try something new~

My muse for the name of my company really tells the tale of how I lost weight. I know a lot of people think that to lose weight you simply go to the gym, eat right, drink a bunch of water and the weight will come off. This thinking is absolutely correct, BUT….there are so many other ways to lose weight than the machines at the gym.  When I was trying to lose weight in 2007, I had a gym membership but I was too embarrassed to go, and the machines bored me to tears anyway. One night, I saw an infomercial for a cool chick named Leslie Sansone advertising Walk Away the Pounds dvds. I was looking at it laughing to myself because it looked entirely too easy to have any type of weight loss effects. Well I’m here to tell the masses that I was SADLY mistaken! Not only were her vids effective, but they put a whooping on me something terrible! Who knew that I really COULD walk away the pounds?? Hence, the birth of my business name because all you gotta do is MOVE and it clearly DOES NOT have to be on a treadmill in a gym in order for you to LOSE!

Today I’d like to encourage you to try something new in both eating habits and exercise. You may be surprised to discover that the exercise you least expected to work might be your breakthrough body changer! Hire a personal trainer for a minimum of 6-8 weeks and if you do then please make SURE to clean up your eating and do what he/she says to the letter. Our job as your trainer is to work the heck outta you, not coddle; sorry but it is, what it is. If you have a trainer that won’t push you past what you can do on your own then you are wasting your valuable time and money.

Another suggestion is to try some form of group exercise. Some of my favorites are: Yoga, Spinning, and Kickboxing. You want to get your heart rate up and sweat!!! Ladies, this is NOT the time to be worrying about your “doo”. Get some braids, or buy a wig and take care of business.

I wish you the best in your new fitness discoveries! There’s so much out there to try.

Mizcardio4lyf~  

A change has come~

I was on hiatus from my blog last week, did yall miss me cuz I sure missed yall!

Sometimes I have to step back and kind of “see where my head is”, so to speak. I am, by nature, a multitasking maniac so I’ve always got a million things going at once. Now that I have started my business, and I’m commuting between states to see my family, I’m even MORE on the go! I did some thinking, made a few decisions, and I’m pretty pleased with the outcome. A little over 3 months ago, I made the decision to stop eating meat. I honestly didn’t think I’d make it thru the first 30 days and when I survived, I decided to stick with it. The next 60 days were tough for me. At first I thought I was doing pretty well but then I got to a point where I felt like I was starving to death and that was NOT the biz! Once I got past what to eat, I started experiencing a whole new issue. Fructose Malabsorbtion; who knew too much fruit could make you sick? *look it up and you’ll see what I was going thru* As soon as I backed off the fruits, all the issues I was having stopped. A decision had to be made and fast! My biggest obstacle, and I knew this going into my vegetarianism lifestyle, is that I don’t like a huge variety of veggies, and those that I do like I only like raw. I commend folks who live a complete RAW lifestyle, some days; momma needs some heat on her food! Okay so after painful deliberation, I have started eating meat again and the process has been interesting for me. We’ll just say, my body has been “adjusting” to processing meats again. I never said I disliked meat, and having been extremely successful with Atkins, you can imagine how hard NOT eating it has been for me. I have had chicken and beef so far and every bite has been pure heaven! I missed it something terrible, I didn’t know it when I wasn’t eating it but now I realize how yummy a great burger is!! *LOL* I am my biggest critic and the decision to go back to eating meat was about as difficult as my decision to wean my daughter before she turned 1. The guilt was something awful! I’m not one to quit anything but my awesome hubby helped me to see one of the things that I honestly believe; ‘EVERYTHING AIN’T FOR EVERYBODY.” I’m proud that I made it the 90 days, which was HUGE for me! I will buy organic meats though, it costs more but I’ll pay for more quality food.  I highly recommend that everyone step out of your comfort zone at least once and give vegetarianism a try. If it works for you great, if not, then at least you’ve tried something new. As for yours truly, it feels good to be back to my old self; a Hello Kitty loving diehard carnivore!  

It's getting closer!!

Time is winding down for me and my studio! I’m all set to meet with a potential CPA for my business. My single biggest fear is missing some tax deadline and having the IRS breathing down my neck about it so obtaining a really good CPA is at the top of my “to do” list.  The first potential CPA I spoke with  left me feeling quite discouraged and confused. I’m sure different entrepreneurs have different ways they like to approach matters of finance. I have decided that I want to be front and center when it comes to ALL matters of finance regarding my business. M2Lose fitness LLC is not a side hustle so I can make some quick (tax free) money. It’s not just a name that I chose and then stuck LLC on the end of it to make it look more important.  It is a real live REGISTERED business and that means if ANYTHING in my books ain’t kosher, regardless of who’s keeping them, DEZ is in trouble!  So I wanna know what the heck is going on at all times. I also don’t want to be one of those people who wake up and realize that someone had been embezzling tons of my hard earned money for years and I didn’t know it because THEY were keeping my books. The company I am meeting next week appears to be a company that understands they are working FOR me. We shall see!

I can already see a few mistakes that I have made thus far. Nothing earth shattering but things I am learning. This stuff will remain private but what I can say to those interested in starting your own business is this; you WILL mess up some stuff. Some mess ups will be bigger than others but the thing of the matter is to LEARN from it and keep moving. I have NEVER done anything like this before. I don’t have a business degree and nobody has helped me do ANY of this. Now let me make it clear…. I wanted it that way. I want to be an encouragement to the everyday average chick, with little to no business experience, that if you get fed up enough, you CAN start a business all by yourself! You don’t have to be scared if you don’t have a degree and you don’t have to worry if you don’t have a lot of start up money. If you have a solid plan, and are willing to do the research, then dagnabbit you CAN start that business-I sure did! I want to also be a role model to my children.

I confide in my husband A LOT- I ask, and value his opinion because I know he’ll tell me the truth. I’m sensitive, and get mad at his suggestions sometimes but I honestly trust him so he will forever be front and center with the moving and shaking of the studio. He was the one who gave me the draft for my awesome logo, he has been with me looking at potential locations for the studio itself, and he’s got my back no matter what happens with the studio I love you for that Mr. Houston-thank you! I also have an awesome realtor, Reginald Perryman; (ritzrealtydetroit.com) not only is he a client but he has gone above and beyond the call of duty with helping me not only find a location for the studio, but with all things business in general. Networking has been a powerful tool with starting my business. You can’t be so scared that somebody is going to “steal” your idea that you don’t talk to people. I’m not saying share your business plan with everyone you meet but you’re going to need a few people to be able to bounce stuff off of because, as the business owner, you WON’T have all the answers.

I am in a really good place right now. I can hardly believe that almost losing my job last year gave me the courage and drive to make my business happen! It feels good to know that very soon I will be the boss. I’m tired! I have had a job since the age of 14 years old. I’m tired of the corporate games, people taking my stuff off the printer, politics for getting time off work, and working like crazy to make a company rich and then the few pennies raise I get is eaten up by the raised insurance premiums the company is charging for my healthcare. No more waking up thinking of a good excuse to call in or driving to work hating the day before I even get there! Thank the Lord I’m almost done with it all!!! I’m no longer angry. The “mad at the world” ship has sailed and now I have moved on to being grateful for all the different experiences that corporate America has exposed me to and I will keep my feelings front and center as I hire my staff and work with people in general. My dream is to be able to make a living doing something that I TRULY love. Not many people can say that but I’m excited to get to the place where I’m finally one of them!

Mizcardio4lyf!!!

Do yourself a favor and get rid of your scale~

You know the drill…you workout and eat clean all week. You’ve been extra devoted to your water intake, you haven’t had any salt, and you’ve managed to get to bed before 10 every night. Kudos to you!! Tonight is weigh in night at the gym and the scale is SURE ot show a huge loss this time! You proudly step on that scale and to your surprise, you’ve GAINED 3lbs. GAAAASSSSPPP!!!! How in the world is this possibe? Your mood instantly tanks and instead of a gruesome workout you merely walk on the treadmill at a moderate pace for 20 minutes and then stop at the local Baskin & Robbins for a scoop to try to console yourself. You get home and it’s .99 day at the local chicken joint so you grab a thigh and some fries. I mean why not…you gained 3lbs so you might as well take a break today and tomorrow

 “get back on the wagon”. ßPersonally I despise that phrase to no end

Never mind that your clothes are falling off of you, you’re blood pressure medication dosage has been cut in half, and you’re wearing your wedding rings on a chain around your neck because they need to be resized; THE SCALE SAID a 3lb gain so that settles it!

 Scales are evil, period! Unless you’re in some kind of a seriously structured fitness program with doctors, & dieticians calculating things for you every step of the way, the scale is usually the single biggest deterrant to a weight loss program. I recommend to all of my clients to put very little stock in what the scal says because there are factors (many that have NOTHING to do with actual weight gain) that can cause the numbers on the scale to rise. Please, Please, PLEEEEEEAAAASSSEEEE don’t get all excited and proudly proclaim that “muscle weighs more than fat” and THAT’S why the scale is showing a higher number; muscle & fat weigh about the same so that ain’t it…

Try using a tape measure instead because inches don’t lie. Make sure to use the same tape measure each time and be very careful to measure at the same spots to prevent misreadings. There are countless outlines on the internet about the “proper” way to meaure different body parts so I will let yall hash that out for yourselves.

How do your clothes fit? Of alllllllllllllllllllllllll the ways to validate TRUE weight loss, I believe in my heart of hearts that THIS is by far the most accurate way to keep score. If you could barely get a pair of pants past your knees in January and in November you have them up over your hips, it’s safe to say that some weight loss has occurred and you should be proud. We all have that one outfit or item of clothing (FELLAS YALL DO TOO!) that we would feel so accomplished if we could get either “back into it” or we want to buy it to rock it because it looks so fly! Get the item, buy the outfit, and put it somewhere you will see if OFTEN. I know people who have gone so far as to nail stuff to a wall. Now I want you to focus on shrinking into that outfit and ONLY focus on that task. Set a date and try it on; I don’t care if you can barely get it past your ankle or your wrist, try it on. Be aware of how you feel in this item of clothing. Are you sad, disgusted with your self, angry, or super psyched to lose the weight once and for all? Whatever the feeling is just allow it to happen for 5 minutes and not a second longer. Now take the item off and the challenge begins. Each month on that date, you go back and try it on and see if you notice any changes. If you do, no matter how small, get excited and be proud of yourself. If you keep your focus, at some point, you WILL get in that outfit, and proabably shrink right up out of it too!

I wish you all the VERY BEST of luck with your outfit challenges~ now toss them scales and lets see some outfit shrinking into!!

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I’ll start! These are true pics of me shrinking into and right out of a really cute Roca Wear jumper I snagged at a thrift store for $6!! When I frst saw it I couldn’t fit it but it was such a  great deal I bought it anyway. When I did squeeze into it, I was wearing a body shaper and I was miserably stuffed into it. It took some time but I DID lose the weight ang get into the jumper. Then, I kept on losing weight and the darn thing got too big for me so I blessed a friend with it and she was thrilled!