Day 1 down - 89 to go.

Yesterday was day 1 of my new training and nutrition program and on Sunday night I went to Costco with my friend and dropped 2 bills on all my food for the next couple of weeks. Not all the food in the picture is mine as we had to pay for it together. FYI.

Anyways, I feel like I'm off to a good start, even though I know it's only day one, I feel organized and prepared. I went to the Oval yesterday and did a good shoulder/chest/back and glute workout and today was a cardio day. My training program this time includes more High Intensity Training and less cardio overall. I am going with the flow this time and plan on sticking to one plan and ask for help when I need it. This will help keep me level headed and eliminate any stress because I know what to expect this time which is what I found had during my last prep as I am a planner and didn't know how my body was going to change.

The main goal set by my trainer for the entire group over the next 8 weeks is to burn fat. That will come from high intensity type training and changes to my meal plan. The last time I was prepping, my meal plan included a lot more fats but now I'm incorporating more carbs. No, I don't mean bread carbs I mean unprocessed carbs like veggies. One of my main goals for this round of competitions is to put on more muscle.

Muscle is another great way to burn calories. Women (and men) who want to "loose" weight and be "skinny" tend to become cardio junkies because its the only way they think they know how to achieve this. Killing yourself for hours on a cardio machine in conjunction with not eating the proper amount of foods won't help you obtain such a goal. In fact, it might do the opposite and cause to you hold more weight but by lifting more weights and training your larger muscles groups will help you burn more calories and increase your metabolism. Weights just have a bad rap because people assume your going to get bulky by lifting weights which isn't true. So try balancing your time at the gym between the weight rack and the conveyor belt and eat a little more. You might be surprised at the results.

Over the last few weeks my parents have been on this huge health kick which is turning into a lifestyle which I am so happy about. Yesterday, my dad and I were talking about how he was feeling about everything. I even caught him on the elliptical first thing yesterday morning when I got home from the gym and he was doing two cardio sessions because my mom and him also had spin class night. He is turning in to an addict. The reason he is doing so much cardio is because he had been a little discouraged that the numbers on the scale weren't dropping as much as he'd like but I asked him how his clothes were fitting. He looked at me and said they were getting looser which I could tell got him to thinking that maybe he was making progress.

I use to be obsessed with weighing myself so I can understand where he is coming from but when you spend all that time weighing yourself or constantly talking about being fat or overweight it takes away from the success or progress you are making. If your clothes are getting bigger that's a sign that you are getting smaller so celebrate the little things and not the numbers. Mark my words that my dad will most likely take up marathons next year. I can see he and my whole house is becoming passionate about fitness and a healthy lifestyle. Which makes me one happy camper.

What are you training Tuesday? Have a great day.

E.T.S.R.

Nic out!

I met Tosca Reno, Heather Roberston and Partick House = great weekend!

The past few days had been some of the most exciting days I’ve had all summer. After flying from Regina, where we just opened a new Skechers store at the Cornwall Centre, I was off to Toronto for the Canfitpro Conference and Expo. The conference was for trainers from all over to come and recertify their credentials. The bonus was that I am doing my personal training certification with this organization so I was beyond excited to talk to people at the expo.

Even though I had a great weekend and we sold a lot of shoes, 52 pair, over the 2 days we were at the show, I find myself sitting at the airport exhausted. I can’t wait to get home and sleep in my bed and get back into my work/training routine. My program starts on Monday and my first stop when I get home is the grocery store to buy food for the week. I plan on hitting Costco hard. The show was awesome for so many reasons including my experience meeting Tosca Reno and her lovely family, Patrick House from Season 10 of the Biggest Loser and talking to people who are passionate about fitness and loved our product.

I got to meet two of my idols this weekend, Tosca Reno and Heather Robertson. Tosca and her family were at the show and they are the most genuine, down to earth amazing people (period). She came by the booth and was so thankful for the shoes we had given her and even wore them on stage. I was lucky enough to see her speak and she is a fascinating motivational speaker. Heather Roberston, who I also got to meet, is a fitness model and has graced the cover and inside of many fitness magazines. She is an absolute sweetheart and was just the nicest girl who I got to talk to for awhile. Patrick, from season 10 of the Biggest Loser was walking around so I approached him and asked him to come try on some shoes. He loved our new runners and wore them on stage as well. He is such an inspiration and has really changed his life and stopped by our booth a few times to say thank you or tell us about the shoes and how comfy they are. He is a perfect example of how eating healthy and taking charge of your life and incorporating fitness can change the biggest sceptical.

Meeting those people was probably the icing on the cake of a very successful show for us. I was in heaven all weekend. If you aren’t super passionate on fitness, I recommend going and walking around one of these shows. Everyone at the booths to the consumers are so nice and will answer any question if they can. The show had a great vibe and it was a good opportunity to meet some industry people and magazine publishers including Inside Fitness Magazine. I met gear guy Torey and the owner Terry and again they are super down to earth and really interesting to talk to.

Other than that, I went to the gym a few times and managed to eat very clean and very healthy. My hotel room at the Cosmopolitan was a 1 bedroom suite which made it feel like I was at home. I went to the grocery store the first night and bought a bunch of stuff for breakfast and for snacks at the show which was a great call because they didn’t have the best food at the show. It was quite ironic and I would say that was the only big flaw.

Life can be very indecisive and very challenging when it comes to finding that thing or person that you love and wake up everyday but being passionate about what you’re doing in life is very important. Ever since I finished high school I’ve realized that as much as I struggled at school because of my learning disability, got bullied but girls in elementary or searching for a great job (which I have), it all made me a stronger person and I know that fitness is my niche and I am going to do everything in my power to share my passion with others. That’s a promise and don't be shy to ask for help. I know it can be tough to ask for help but the outcome always over comes your initial fears. I've also learned you can never force anyone to do anything they don’t want to do or have an interest in and that is why you are the only one responsible to take that step forward to leading a healthier lifestyle. That lifestyle could start in the simplest form such as drinking more water and going for a walk once a week because you’ll never know where it will take you but remember to have a goal and a date to make yourself accountable.

I feel like this weekend lit a huge fire under my butt and I am more focused than ever on what I want and where I want to go. I know that life happens but I am going to work daily at being better and that’s all I can do. If you ever have any questions send them to me as a comment, email or Facebook message and I would be more than happy to answer them for you. Baby steps...remember.

Where ever your journey is taking, I wish you luck J

E.T.S.R (Eat. Train. Sleep. Repeat),

Nic

I've died and gone to fitness heaven

I'm currently in Toronto after spending the day training staff at our new Skechers store in Regina at the Canfitpro show. We have a booth at the expo which is amazing. Everything you would need or want to workout is at this show. Trainers from all over come for seminars and speeches by some of the leading people in the fitness industry. My booth is also right behind Tosca Reno and the Oxygen Magazine booth. Basically I'm a happy camper. Yesterday we setup the booth and it looks awesome! I'll post some pictures on Monday with a full review of the show.
Canfit is also the same governing body that o am taking y personal training certification with so if I have any questions about anything I definitely have lots of people to ask. I'm staying at the cosomopolitan on colbourne street and it feels like being at home. I have a one bedroom suite which looks like a condo that you'd see in yaletown. I went to the grocery store last night and got some eggies, rice cakes and fat free turkey breast. Grocery shopping at a fitness expose was probably unnecessary but you can only drink so many shakes...I do love a good vanilla protein, almond milk and banana shake though.
Tomorrow I am going to get to meet Tosca and maybe Heather Roberston some of my idols to name a few. I am literally in fitness heaven! Anyways, it's time to head over to the convention centre. Have a great weekend eveyone.

Eat. Train. Sleep. Repeat - it's coming back put of hibernation as my meal plan and training starts tomorrow!

Nic out!

On the road again..zoom zoom

Today I got up early and did a quick workout on the elliptical and packed to be at the airport for 730. My flight lands in Calgary and then Regina where I will be heading directly to the Regina Skechers Store where I will be doing store training for the whole day. I'll be staying in Regina and then heading to Toronto on Thursday morning.
Yesterday was a busy day but good. I managed to make it to the gym early for a workout and did a small whole body circuit and a few laps around the track because I had to take my silly iPhone to the iDoctor. My meal plan hasn't started quite yet, neither has my actual training. I am still waiting for my program to be competed and in the mean time I am just focusing on eating clean. I worked, did laundry and followed up on some emails to get in a good nights sleep.
Last night I also went for a walk with my friend Cassidy and saw her new place and its awesome. Cassidy, her boyfriend Cam and I all talked business and there is lots of exciting things in the work so stay tuned. her house is just down the street from me so I can just ride my bike down and back which is really handy. We even did some recon work on a boot camp that she use to attend and it looked intense. I'd love to do something like that.
Anyways, today is going to be a good day and i'll fill you all in later. Have a great Wednesady everyone.

Yours in health and fitness,

Nicole