What Works For You?

I think it's important to figure out what works for you. Unfortunately what works for one person doesn't necessarily work for another.

One thing I've found to be true of me is that I do best when I push myself and make it hard... Eek! Not always fun, but it is in those moments of being strict with my eating plan and pushing myself in my workouts that I stick with it. I guess you could say I'm an "all or nothing" kind of personality.

Enter in the Whole30 program. Recently I was learning about what clean eating really is, and why we should all consider trying a program like this out for a time. For me it made sense. I am a sugarholic! I own it. But I don't like it! So through this Whole30 program I'll be eliminating sugar from my diet entirely and giving my body the chance to get over this addiction while learning to enjoy other foods and not constantly ending up in the ice cream line.

The thing that really got my looking into Whole30 was learning how food really is responsible for so many health issues we have, from joint pain, headaches, hormonal issues, digestive issues, how focused we are, etc. It's such a powerful source of nutrients and energy for our bodies, and yet we often will eat food filled with chemicals, artificial food and additives that have been proven to be harmful to us. I am in that category!

The more I learn though the more I want to see what I can change in my diet, see what physical issues I have that food may be responsible for, and see what it's like to eat a diet that we as human beings were really designed to eat—natural, whole, and filled with vegetables.

So on Monday I embarked on this 30+ day journey. Day one was a breeze, minus being at a BBQ where I couldn't eat 95% of the food—and where they had ice cream sandwiches!—but I stayed strong and powered through. Day two began with a massive headache, which I was warned might happen. My body is going through a detox process, and it's trying to figure out how to use food the way it's supposed to. I've been feeding my body so much junk for so long that it's used to "quick release energy" foods. It needs to relearn a few things.

I am determined to power through this. I want to get to the other side and compare how I feel then to how I felt before starting. Plus as I share this journey while digging for more info, I learn so many more fascinating things—like recently a friend shared several articles on how women who struggled for years with infertility issues, stopped eating grains and got pregnant. So who knows?! But, hey, even if that doesn't happen for me I still get the opportunity to use my body as a science experiment that can be nothing but beneficial.

Want to learn more about Whole30? Go to their website Whole30.com or pick up the book, "It Starts With Food," by Dallas and Melissa Hartwig and keep following my journey.

The West Coast!

My trip to the west coast has wrapped up, I'm actually writing this in the airport as I await the red eye flight to take me home :-)

Thought I would share some highlights of my trip with you all along with my next plans :-)

The reason we went on this trip was so that Jake could attend a photography bootcamp with Kevin Kubota. It was well worth the trip out as Jake had a great time, got some amazing photos, and learned lots to take his wedding photography from a hobby to his full-time job. So, if you or someone you know is getting married let me know if you need a photographer. We travel!

The following are three of the beautiful images Jake captured during bootcamp.

One evening they decided to do a candlelit shoot to practice their skills, and I got to be their lucky model :-) This photo was taken by Kevin Kubota himself. Amazing! It was fun having eleven photographers all snapping away at the same time.

We discovered Dutch Bros. an amazingly delicious coffee shop! I realized how easy it was to fork over $3 or $4 for a coffee that was full of sugar and empty calories, and would leave me wanting soon after. I guess I'll stick to my Shakeology, which is about the same cost, but gives me all the nutrients I need for the day, tastes delicious, helps with my sugar cravings, and satisfies the sweet tooth in me. Oh, and has 70 superfoods in it! Take that Dutch Bros ;-)

While Jake was busy with bootcamp I did a lot of exploring central Oregon. One morning I spent hiking around Smith Rock, BEAUTIFUL!!!! I could have stared at the views forever!

On our way back to Portland, we stopped to see the magnificent Multnomah Falls. It were stunning!

From Portland we made our way up to Seattle stopping to see the Ape Caves. In Seattle we enjoyed walking around the city, meeting up with distant cousins and riding the Great Wheel!

We visited the famous Pikes Market, where we got to see them throw fish, look at the beautiful flowers and visit the store that sells my favorite tea!

The highlight of our trip was eating dinner in the Space Needle while watching the sunset! The weather was perfect and it was a great ending to a fun trip!

We had a wonderful trip, but honestly I'm excited to come home. I'm excited to begin the journey of following the Whole30 challenge and detoxing from sugar, which I desperately need after this trip! I'm also excited to get back to my gym--I always feel better when I get down there first thing in the morning and sweat it out! Plus I'm super excited to be starting a new accountability group online that will focus on clean eating! There are some awesome women who are joining me on this journey to being healthy, fit and having fun doing it!

Keep checking back to learn more about my Whole30 journey, what I'm learning about clean eating and for some awesome results ;-)

Why Beachbody

I've been meaning to create my 'WHY' video for a few months now, but never took the time to sit down and share. I wanted to create this because I think it's important for others to hear my story, why I love what I do and why I think becoming a Beachbody Coach was perfect for me!

This week while I'm enjoying the beauty of Central Oregon I got kicked out of my cabin by housekeeping and found it was the perfect time to sit down and create this video in the beautiful Deschutes National Forest!

For more information about Challenge Groups or about becoming a coach contact me via the button at the top right of the page :-) 

21 Day Fix EXTREME Results!

21 days of extreme workouts + an easy but strict eating plan = RESULTS! Was it always easy, NO! But did I stick to the workouts every day and follow the meal plan for the most part, YES!

21 Day Fix Extreme isn't designed for someone that just got off the couch for the first time in three years, but instead is for those who have begun their journey and are ready to step up their game! I was intimidated by it at first, and that's why it took me two months to get up the nerve to go all in. I learned so much about myself through this process though! I can do hard things, I can stick with something through the end and continue to push myself!

This winter, I kind of slacked on my fitness and healthy eating. Yes, I tried and honestly it's one of the things that kept me going during those darkest months when I was depressed and just wanted to give up on everything. So for that I'm thankful. Once I started the journey out of my dark pit I wanted to see what I was made of, what I could do! So, this program seemed like the perfect place to go!

Here are my before and afters! 

I'm still not where I want to get, I really want to see some ab definition, but I know now that I can get there! I did cheat a few times on my eating, and because of that I know that I didn't get the ultimate results that I could have. Abs really are made in the kitchen! I can feel the muscles there but they are hiding under a layer of fluff created by my food choices.

So... That's why I've been learning about clean eating and how food can either heal our bodies or wreak havoc on them! And that's why my next challenge group is going to be sharing about how to eat clean, why you should consider it, recipes and facts. 

This group will be starting on May 25th with a deadline to sign up this Friday May 15, to ensure you get your program and everything you need to start on time. I will help you pick the right program for you, give you support on a daily basis during the group, offer accountability, motivation and encouragement as we journey to being healthy, strong and confident women! For more information or to sign up you can send me a message on facebook, click the contact button at the top or leave a comment :-)

Are you ready to look and feel your best?? Join me on this journey!

The Elephant In The Room

Grandma's newly completed porch.

It's been quiet here on the blog the last week or so and there are several reasons why.

First off my husband's Grandma, who we live with, was going to be gone for a couple weeks and we decided to give her porch a makeover. I spent my mornings last week painting, cleaning, and transforming the porch into a fresh, welcoming place to enjoy the beautiful spring weather! This was a top secret mission, so I was unable to post about it until Grandma came home.

Then this week I've been busy working, preparing to travel out west and making a surprise trip to see some dear friends of mine while they are here in the states. So, my time for writing was greatly limited.

I wanted to get this post written before Mother's Day though, because, well, I think I'm finally ready to share it.

My Big Reveal

Very few of you know that my husband and I decided to wait two years after getting married to start a family. June 30, 2014, marked two years. We were excited to embark on this journey into parenthood, but we hadn't expected it to be so hard. We're young, healthy and everyone around us is getting pregnant, so it must be in the water, right?

Well, by December we knew there was something wrong and that a doctor visit was going to have to happen in order to figure out what the next step would be. I put it off until after the holidays, hoping the problem would work itself out, but no such luck. So off to the doctor's I went. The problem was nothing serious, and the doctor's initial suggestion seemed like an easy enough fix, so I left with the hope that in the next couple of months we'd have a baby on the way.

Four months later... nadda.

My Low Place

During the winter I found myself in a place I thought I would never return. I was depressed. I didn't want to get out of bed or be around people. Honestly I just wanted to curl up in a ball wrapped in a fleece blanket and eat an entire container of ice cream while watching Hallmark.

Seeing so many other people around me get pregnant was hard too. I had difficulty congratulating them. I couldn't confide in anyone, except my husband, and he, admittedly, couldn't fully understand my feelings about this problem.

But who else could I talk to? Isn't this a private thing? Something you don't talk about? That's what I believed and so I went along with it.

During these few months I was also dealing with the death of my grandfather, the first close relative of mine to leave us for Heaven. The winter was brutal with sub-zero temperatures much of the time. I had quit my job with the anticipation that our house was going to sell, but when that fell through life became even more confusing and messed up.

My New Place

It wasn't until I went to Florida to meet my Beachbody family of coaches that I started to see the light shining at the end of the long dark hallway I had been walking in for months. I was able to open up to some of them and talk about these issues, and it felt good. I found out that several others had experienced difficulty getting pregnant. I was not alone! I am so thankful that God put me on that team and allowed me to go meet everyone. He used them to greatly encourage me just when I needed it most.

Since that trip to Florida I have learned several things that have brought me to the place where I can share about this in such a public way.

First of all, don't ask someone if or when they are going to start having babies. Ever. It's just rude. You have no idea how hurtful that question can be. They may have not started trying, or maybe they've been trying for months or years, or maybe they found out that they can't conceive without medical help that they possibly can't afford. And, honestly, my sex life is none of your business! I have some close friends that I can confide in, but I have no intention of telling Dick, Tom and Harry when I plan to get pregnant.

As Mother's Day approaches be sensitive to those who have lost little ones far too soon, have empty arms and empty wombs. This can be a very hard holiday for couples who have struggled with infertility, miscarriage or have been unable to get pregnant despite no medical reason why they wouldn't be able to. I'm not saying we shouldn't celebrate Mother's Day, just be considerate. If you know a friend who has miscarried or lost a little one too soon, she is a mother. Honor her!

Finally the thing that God impressed on my heart this week is that I NEED to find my identity in Him. As long as I place my identity in wanting to be a mom, focusing on that desire and then seeing it go unmet, I WILL be miserable! Nowhere in God's Word am I promised to be a mother someday, and that may not be His plan for me. Instead I NEED to have my identity secure in Christ, in who He is and what He has done, only then can I keep pressing on through the trials and hard times.

I guess the other reason I've been busy lately and not blogging is that I'm trying to find balance in who I am as a whole person. I'm not just fitness coach Dani. I am a friend, a wife, a daughter and a child of God. I have emotions, hard days, and things I'm learning about and busy doing that aren't just health and fitness related. I want this blog to reflect who I am as a whole person.

If you are still reading, thank you! I hope what I have been learning blesses and encourages your heart today!