So we lied to my parents about going to a movie for “sibling day” and had a blast shooting with my photographer girlfriend Elaine, in Land Park. Elaine even managed to get my brother looking presentable (which almost NEVER happens, he’s always making a goofy face) and we had such a lovely time with her. She’s just starting out in the business so if you’re in the Sacramento area, feel free to check out her site!

Rob was actually in most of our Mom shots but they didn’t make the cut on the blog. Hehe. My Mom was actually protesting the fact we didn’t have Rob in all of them (lol sorry Mom!). When I showed my Mom the photos, she said it was by far the best Mother’s Day present we’ve given her.  Thank you SO much Elaine for helping us give our Mom exactly what she wanted for Mother’s Day! 

I still think I’m looking a little bigger in these photos than I look now, since we took them in late April. I’m going to work hard to slim down some more, hopefully shed a few pounds for our engagement photoshoot with Emily in 12 days! Eek!

I can’t wait to do a recap on Vegas soon, it was unbelievable. We are truly blessed.

How was your Mother’s Day? Happy Mother’s Day to all my blogger friends who are Mamas out there! 

I can proudly say that I not only accomplished my April goals but I’ve found the drive and motivation it takes to make health and fitness part of my life for the long haul.

… My Fitness Background …

I’ve never been an athlete. I loathe running. I virtually avoided doing any physical activity that I didn’t have to do. There were a few stretches where I would start going to the gym for a week or so and eventually just stop going because life was “too hectic”. My diet was average for someone who never actively watched what they ate. I blamed a lot of my weight on a family history of obesity and frankly, I was good at hiding my weight and knowing how to flatter my size. That’s just to give you some insight – healthy fitness choices did NOT come natural to me.

… Best Investment : Personal Training  …

In March, I decided to hire a personal trainer and financially invest in my fitness goals. Despite the gaping hole in my savings, hiring a trainer was the best money I’ve ever spent, hands down. It not only got me to the gym twice a week but it gave me the best motivation I could ever hope for: complete and utter humiliation at the state of my physical fitness. My trainer is SO amazing and she’s never once said a discouraging word to me. But as I pushed through work outs and felt every muscle in my body want to give up, I realized that my health was NOT something I could push aside any longer. I was embarrassed that I’d let it get that far, that I had let myself and my health take a back seat in my OWN life.

… The Vital Component: Meal Planning … 

As soon as it stopped being about how other people saw me or the number on the scale, that’s when I knew there was no stopping me. The motivation came from within, from the pride I felt in sore muscles and the joy of feeling my body become strong. About 2 weeks into my personal training, I decided it was time for another big change: the meal plan. I couldn’t keep going to the gym, working my a$% off and then eating twice as many calories as I should. So my trainer gave me my first meal plan and it’s been a HUGE part of my life ever since (If my readers are interested, I can share my basic meal plan and how I approach food now). Meal planning has been CRUCIAL to my fitness journey and I desperately wish I had started it sooner.

… The Click (and signing Rob up too!) …

About a month into my personal training is when the diet and exercise really came together and clicked for me. Fitness quickly became a BIG part of my life and soon it became all I wanted to talk about or do. Since Rob and I do nearly everything together, I knew I had to bring him on board. So we hired a (my 2nd) personal trainer that Rob and I are now doing training together with twice a week. Making fitness important to Rob and I as a couple was vital to this process because not only do I want him to get healthy too, I want us to grow together in the direction of healthy living.  And lucky for me, he’s loving it too!

… On Discouragement …

I can’t say I’ve lost a ton of weight since I started almost 2 months ago. And honestly, I put ON weight when I started working out and I felt pretty discouraged. But that discouragement, it pushed me harder than I’ve ever gone. I know that the scale hasn’t proven much but the fit of my clothes, the strength of my body and my endurance all speak for themselves. This is the beginning of a new me.

That’s not to say there aren’t HARD days. Notice that it took a full MONTH to get my diet and exercise on track to weight loss. I don’t always look forward to hitting the gym and I definitely give myself cheat meals weekly. But now that working out has become such a huge part of my life, it’s not as HARD as it used to be.

… Progress and The Scariest Thing I’ve Ever Done …

Even here on my public blog, I tend to stay pretty guarded and I’ll admit, I actively put my best foot forward. I only post pictures I REALLY like on my blog, because I care a lot about what other people think. But because I want this process to be truly transparent and to prove that losing weight can happen with good old fashioned diet and exercise, I’m going to do something that truly scares me half to death… Here’s my progress photos of April and into May. (I really wish I had done it with a gosh darn shirt on but I NEVER thought I’d be sharing them here!)

I didn’t even edit out my sister’s crazy laundry in the background, that’s how you know these photos weren’t edited in photoshop!

I’ve still got a LONG way to go and hopefully I start seeing the scale numbers slide down but overall, I think the pictures show the progress I’ve made in a month with healthy eating and exercise. When I look at that top picture, I can’t even believe I let myself get to that point and I know I’ll do everything in my power to keep moving forward!

… Let’s Get Physical …

So on to Let’s Get Physical… While this month I didn’t go the traditional format of LGP (which is open to change if participants have any suggestions!), I hope I’ve said it enough: Fitness has become a huge part of who I am now. I’m hopeful that Let’s Get Physical will evolve with me because I know that the support of blogger friends has been so critical to my success. I can’t wait to click over to your links so I can get even more inspired!

The link up with stay active for a week and close on May 15 at 11:59 pm PST. Remember the only requirement of LGP is that you comment on the 2 bloggers in the link up above you and give them some encouragement!

I’m still so shocked I decided to post my progress pictures out there for the internet… But hey if you don’t do things that scare you once in awhile, what’s the point in living right? (Please God, let me not regret posting this someday…)

Thank you all so much for the unending support I get on this fitness journey. Every sweet comment, e-mail and tweet pushes me the right direction. Thank you all so much.

Since I’ve been gone 2 weeks…

…I re-lived my college days at Picnic Day and rocked a mean fanny pack…

….I’ve barely touched my laptop at home…

…I’ve been to the gym 5-6 days a week…

…I hired a 2nd personal trainer (!!)…

…We went to my town’s first monthly food truck gathering and loved it…

…I accepted my first paying gig to make cake pops…

…We saw Iron Man 3 and realized I love more than one Robert in this world…

I have to be honest, the 2 week vacation has been glorious. I’ve been more present and less anxious with my time, knowing I didn’t have to set aside time to blog or do projects. I don’t think I could ever do away with Simply Evani completely (I mean if you moms out there can do it, I have no excuses!) but I might have to reconsider my blogging process. If I can find a way to use my time more efficiently and still do things I want to do, that would be the best! We’ll see…

I’m sorry guilt-free week turned into I’m-staying-off-the-internet. More than anything, I missed interacting with YOU, my readers and I really want to catch up! Since I can’t afford to fly around the US (And for my international friends, the world) and have a cup of coffee with all ya’ll, how about you leave me a comment with your favorite blog post you wrote this past week or just tell me 2 things that happened this week. I can’t wait to hear all about it.

Let’s Get Physical May is tomorrow! If fitness and health is a priority to you and you like to support your fellow bloggers, this link up is for you! Here’s the How To and April’s post for good measure. We’d love to have you!