Busy, Busy.

LIFE.

Life seems to get in the way of everything! I did great over the summer! I exercised, dieted, counted calories, took my essential oil weight loss trio - I was on it! Then life hit.

School started back. Grad school started. Soccer started. Homework started. Yearbook/Newspaper/Clubs/Sports started. Cub scouts started. LIFE HIT! Fast & Hard. Quick snacks. Fast food. Exhausted. No exercise. It. Is. Awful. (Life isn't awful - the busyness is awful.)

I've definitely gained weight (again). Thankfully, I am two weeks into school and feeling a lot more confident! I bought a FitBit, and my day does not end until I walk at least 10,000 steps (first day of school I conquered 14,000+!). I am still working my PACT app, but my calorie counting has been ending in the negative.

Today is a new day! The year is settling in. Our schedule is smoothing out. I will be back on track. 

(hopefully I pick back up blogging too!)

Essential Oils for Weight Loss

Each day I become a bigger "essential oiler." For those of you unfamiliar with essential oils, they are the life blood of a plant. They were used for medicinal reasons before chemically created medicines began to poison us. Oils are referenced many times in the bible (just to show you how long they have been being used). 

I started out extremely skeptical. These "smelly waters" were just another expensive marketing scam. They don't do anything. These people are crazy. 

Towards the end of the school year, I began to get sick (sore throat, congestion, yucky head stuff). A friend invited me to a meeting and gave me thieves and eucalyptus. I felt better before the end of the meeting! My scratchy, sore throat was GONE. My congestion was clearing up - I could breathe! She sent me home with peppermint for anymore sinus issues - and I. Was. Hooked. 

I ordered a Young Living started kit (Young Living is the only company with a seed to seal promise. After a great deal of research, I settled on YL.) shortly after that meeting. 

I've used them for so many things! Cleaning, sinus trouble, migraines, headaches, sore back/feet/anything (especially from working out), my son's eczema, anxiety, insomnia, ETC! The list could go on forever. Now I'm using them for weightloss!

I had the idea to make and take these from reading another blog: http://stuffparentsneed.com/tag/young-living-oils-for-weight-loss/

She used grapefruit, peppermint, and lemon essential oils mixed with coconut oil. Peppermint and lemon come in the kit, and grapefruit is fairly cheap. I also ordered empty capsules and the coconut oil. Following her directions, I mixed them up, filled them up, and stuck them in the freezer. 

I've only been taking them for a few days, but I can tell a difference! It's summer time, and I'm used to snacking constantly throughout the day - I don't have the snacking urge anymore! I don't even really care to eat until my tummy is talking to me. I can't speak to how big this is for me and my body!

I don't weigh myself each day, but I will definitely update when I do to see if they are helping with weightloss!

Progress Perfection!

There are few better feelings than watching the scale numbers decrease! It means my hard word, sweat, tears, and lack of sweet treats isn't for nothing! The scales aren't headed down fast, but down is always better than up. 

PACT app has been a HUGE help. I may be comfy on the couch and exhausted, but I still don't want to owe $5+! So my butt gets up and walks for 30+ minutes. I've found the time goes by a lot faster if I try to run. Apparently when you are gasping for air like your life depends on it, you don't notice time. I've completed over 200 activities (excersice, calorie counting, and eating fruits/veggies), and I've earned almost $20! May not seem like much, but when I lose the weight - shopping here I come!

I went shopping recently due to the new school year, and I made myself use their full length mirror (I don't own one!). I see weightloss in my calf/thunder thigh areas, but not much of it. My butt, stomach, and arms sure aren't going anywhere fast. It's okay. I know I'm headed somewhere better - getting my life back! I won't be trapped inside this flubbed suit forever!

Bad Blogger

I am such a lazy blogger, but I am not being a lazy weightloss-er! I've been busy with teacher professional development and planning for the upcoming school year, so blogging has gotten away from me. 

I'm doing very well using PACT, eating better, exercising more, and tracking calories! I've earned over $13 with PACT now. 

There are my May to June differences. You can definitely see improvement! I'm not losing weight as much as I would like, but I feel better - more energy, happier! I have high hopes that the weight loss will happen. 

Keepin' It Up

This is not an easy ride! I'm losing hope rapidly, but I'm determined to stick to this for the rest of the summer. I gained weight over the last week or so, but I've FINALLY gotten under (very little, but something) where I was when I started this blog. 

Here's to hoping it keeps going down! I'm still keeping up with my PACT goals (and earning a little bit of money)!

I'm also using RunKeeper for my workouts, and there is a huge difference in May and June! Yay!

I've gotten very sore and bad back pain with trying to keep up work outs. I started swimming instead to keep up with PACT goals. I know I need to keep walking/jogging for more calories and cardio and strength. Here's to keeping up motivation!

Motivation is Key

Motivation is key! Last week was very successful. I'm using the PACT APP, and I met all of my goals. I don't like loosing money, so it works well!

I went down in weight (just a smidge) by the end of the week. I've upped my goals for this week. Looking forward to more progress!

Slippery Slope

One step forward, two steps back. That can pretty much sum up every weight loss attempt I've ever made - including this past week. 

I wasn't making excuses for why I should sit and watch netflix instead of go walking the last few days - I just didn't have the time. Busy mornings and late evenings where I'm not home made it difficult to get in my mile. I love in lower Alabama - mid day is NOT an option during summer. 

I missed four days of doing anything. FOUR DAYS without even noticing. Yikes. That's how fast this slippery slope goes.  

To combat this dangerous hill, I downloaded the PACT app. I will discuss other weightloss apps I use in another post, but this app looks like it will be a true motivator. 

Basically - I agree to do complete a certain number of workouts each week, log my calories for a certain number of days each week, and eat a certain number of fruits and veggies each week. I set the number for each one. 

THEN (the kicker) I set how much I'm willing to pay for each missed workout, missed calorie tracking day, and missed fruit/veggie serving. I like my money. I am not a fan of giving it up for no reason, so this app will definitely make sure I get my butt in gear! PLUS when you are successful, they pay you!

Pact Workouts

Pact offers several ways to track your workouts, and basically every option uses GPS to keep you honest. Since this is my first week, I selected the minimum three workouts with the minimum $5 per missed workout. On Sunday nights I am typically very optimistic about my workouts for the week ahead, so I set my workouts on Sunday night then I'll be forced to follow through during my "not so motivated" days. 

Pact has the option to sync with other workout apps - that's the option I'm taking. I'm using Runkeeper. If you look at the screenshot,  you'll see one workout for 06/09 and one not counted. The uncounted workout is because 1) you can only log one workout each day and 2) that specific workout is me entering into Runkepper that I swam for 30 minutes. Since I did not GPS track my swim, it doesn't count on Pact. 

Pact Calorie Logs

Similar to the workout logging, you can use other apps to count calories, and it will sync to Pact. I use MyFitnessPal. I've never paid attention to serving size and calories, so this is a huge eye opener! Pact doesn't require you to go under or on your exact calories nor are you penalized for going over. You just have to make sure you record at least 1,200 calories and three meals each day. 

Pact Fruits & Veggies

The Pact fruit and veggie log is really easy. I already take photos of my healthy meals and snacks to share with CSA friends - now I just upload them to Pact too! The Pact community votes yay or nay that your photo is of a full serving and looks like you're getting ready to eat it (not walking through the grocery store). 

Drumroll Please

The part everyone has been waiting for - THE PAYOUT. Obviously I haven't earned anything since I just started using it, but I did a great deal of research before giving this app access to my paypal account. 

All of the money that is paid in from people who don't meet their Pact is put into a pool that is then paid out to those who do meet their Pact. Most people recieve about $0.30-$0.50 for each completed Pact item. That may not be much, but it's better than nothing. Plus it adds up. 

IF I were to recieve $0.30 for each item above every week for a year, I'd earn over $170! I'll update this post next week to reflect my progress and earnings. 

Comment and let me know if you are using Pact too!