Left: Me in guam 2011 pre kids. Work out consisted of cardio diet of mainly lean meats, breads and junk.    Right: Me post 3 kids. Work out consists of lifting weights and little to no cardio. Diet: Whole foods.

Hey guys! SO Ummmm uncharted territory here. Let me confess I am no fitness guru, but people have asked so I thought I'd share what I do know OR at least what has worked for me. Some of you who have known me for a while may say "Oh she's always been small, what works for her may not work for everybody" and you would be right! What works for me may not work for everyone and I have always been small, but I haven't always been FIT and there is where the BIG difference lies. 

A little bit of background about myself so I can paint an accurate picture of just what I'm working with here. I am petite. 5'2" is about as high as a doctor will ever give me when it comes to the amount they write on my chart under the word "height". My weight from what I can remember has not fluctuated A LOT, but for someone of my height and build 10 lbs looks like quite a bit! Now let me throw a disclaimer up there, that weight is just a number! Fitness is about how you feel and when it comes to Fashion I think Fitness for me is about how I fill my clothes! Not how they fit me, but how I fit them! I may be able to wear the same pair of pants from when I just graduated college and was at my heaviest (too much pizza and beer you guys), but there is no muffin top and my butt looks much nicer in them now (if I do say so myself). I have been blessed with the dreaded autoimmune disease known as Hashimoto's or Hypothyroidism. This means that my thyroid doesn't work as it should; therefore I do not get ENOUGH of the required hormones (blah blah blah). For people with this disease when their meds are not balanced it leads to weight gain and difficulty losing weight. Chalk one up for the ol' genetics! Love you mom! Therefore I feel like I need to be very careful when it comes to what I eat and also I think extra hard about skipping a gym day. 

More background...I have always been into sports my whole life. I played Lacrosse in Middle and High School and Cheered in both High School and College. GO ODU! Yep, the cheerleader in me will never die. So it's not super hard for me to work out. I am not fighting every fiber of my being to get to find motivation to get to the gym, because most of the time, I enjoy it! I will tell you there is hope because I'm confident everyone can find a work out style (hey there’s that word again) that works for you! For instance I dislike running...like A LOT. I've always been fast, but only because I just wanted to get the running over with. In high school I was asked to join track by the coach and I respectfully said "no way". The only way you're getting me to run for a long period of time was by putting me on the Lacrosse field with a ball and a stick! 

What is my work out style of choice, you ask? I. Lift. Weights. Bro (little inside joke to all those who follow bioscience on YouTube). My gym time revolves around a Squat Rack or cage and the first thing I do is squat. I squat heavy. I started with the bar (45lbs) worked on form, recorded myself, looked at videos on form and once I perfected that I moved up, little by little, 5 lbs at a time! When my form went I dropped the weight down and worked my way back up little by little 5lbs at a time! When I got injured or took time off I started back at a comfortable weight and worked my way back up, little by little...yeah you get the point. I follow a 5x5 method, meaning I squat 5 reps for 5 sets. I have warm up sets (usually bar and then a half way weight amount) then I go into my 5 sets of 5 at weight. Sometimes I try and max out just to see how strong I am and I'll do one rep at the heaviest I think I can handle. For me it just feels good being strong! The best part about lifting weights for me is that I don't even have to sweat if I don't want to. I know many of you are rolling your eyes right now, but washing and drying my mane is crazy work you guys! I prefer not to have to do it often. Also, muscle burns fat 24/7 (or so I've been told) cardio burns fat as long as you are doing it and when your heart rate is in a certain zone. IF you enjoy running more power to you! Keep on enjoying it, but if something isn't working for you. Try adding in weight training.

Now, since I am not a dietician nor am I a personal trainer. I will do my best to point you in the direction of those that are! I hope to do multiple collaborations with people who ARE experts whom I look up to and feel their information is right for my readers and me. I will include some links to some starting points of the work out style that works for me. If running isn't for you then give it a try and let me know how it goes. 

This is definitely suppose to be an into article for sure. I plan to elaborate and offer more resources later. If you're interested in anything particular please comment below. I've included two resources to get your started below.