Top 10 Personal Development Books To Read for 2017

I had such low self esteem for most of my life. Even as an adult I would be so scared to let the real me show. What if I said something wrong, swore and offended someone, what are they going to think of me after this, what if I disappointed so and so... All these things have run through my mind as an adult. And it is totally natural. But what makes the difference between us is how we react to these things. As a health and wellness motivator and supporter I have to open myself up in one way or another. Whether it is posting pictures of me in tight clothing (that took some time to get used to), talking about my struggles with my eating habits or just getting through life to now I had to work on me mentally to be able to open myself up to feel "okay" with what I was doing. And that all started with me starting to read personal development. And now, after a year of doing it regularly I have opened myself up to being more vulnerable, open and I am even posting pictures of me in a sports bra!

I say a year, because prior to this I didn't really think I needed it. I'm an affiliate with Beachbody and one of our daily to action steps to do is to read at least 10 minutes of personal development a day. Again, I didn't think I needed it. Until I started to go see my counselor. Yep. Seeing someone to talk about "my problems" really opened up my mind to how much I really needed it. And let me just say, counseling is amazing. It has helped me so much. I have finally learned how to cope with difficult situations in my life in a different way. But when my counselor advised that I start reading personal development, I finally got off my high horse and dove into it. And really, to make a complete change in your lifestyle, especially going through weight loss, I highly suggest you start reading personal development because you have to change the way you see yourself, think about yourself, feel about yourself and how you love yourself if you truly want lasting changes when you do lose the weight. A lifestyle change is not a quick fix, lose weight fast thing. It is for life. It is a change in your mind and body for the better to be better! 

So...what personal development books are my favorite? Check out my list below! 

1) Get Over Your Damn Self: The no BS Blueprint to building a life-changing business -  Romi Neustadt

2) Unlimited: A 3 step plan for achieving your dreams - Jillian Michaels 

3) You Are A Badass: How to stop doubting your greatness and live an awesome life - Jen Sincero

4) Losing it: And gaining my life back one pound at a time - Valerie Bertinelli

5) Change Your Thinking Change Your Life: How to unlock your full potential for success and achievement - Brian Tracy 

6) Girlboss - Sophia Amoruso

7) Mastering your Mean Girl: The no BS guide to silencing your inner critic and becoming wildly wealthy, famously healthy, and bursting with love - Melissa Ambrosini

8) 52 Ways To Live A Kick Ass Life: BS free wisdom to ignite your inner badass and live the life you deserve - Andrea Owen

9) I Am That Girl: How to speak your truth, discover your purpose and #bethatgirl - Alexis Jones

10) Make It Happen: Surrender your fear. Take the leap. Live on purpose - Lara Casey

Want more daily motivation and inspiration? Click here get free advice, support and encouragement + a free copy of my Clean Eating guide to help you get started on your health and fitness journey! Don't forget to follow me on INSTAGRAM and FACEBOOK!

3 Months Postpartum Update

Notice how I got rid of the "bump update" well, there isn't much of a bump left. I mean I still have a plus size mummy tummy, but it isn't officially a bump now that I have just passed out of the 4th trimester! So now it will just be my monthly progression pictures!

This past month I finally got back into strength training. I increased my weights from 0 pounds to 5 pounds, so getting stronger. I am just increasing nice and slowly at this point. I didn't actually really think I changed all that much but I have. You can see that I am leaning out which is AMAZING! I am still at 245 pounds but, come on. I think I look amazing considering I had a baby 3 months ago!

I set a goal November 1 to lose 8 pounds by January 1. Even though there were actually 9 weeks not 8 I thought that it was a good amount since there was Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's to work with. I ended up losing 6 pounds in the 2 months, but there have been some HUGE changes with my actual shape! So proud of my accomplishment. Who cares that I didn't reach my goal. I still made amazing progress! 

Exercise: For the past 4 weeks I have been doing 21 Day Fix (it really does work!) using my Beachbody On Demand. It has been really nice getting back into workouts that make me really work for it. I even had days where I thought to myself, "WHY AM I DOING THIS AGAIN?" But when I finish my workout, I remember why. That awesome feeling of "I DID IT", gets me every time! 

Recovery: Feel totally fine. EXCEPT, I have 0 core strength. I am actually taking it really easy on my core. Not doing full out core moves yet. Because I just don't want to risk hurting my core. I think this last pregnancy really did a number on my core and I just want to slowly strengthen it up. So. I am still doing core moves but they are very, very modified. 

Weight: Pre-pregnancy weight:237.7. Weight morning of birth: 264.8. Current weight January 1: 245.5. This past month I added in strength training. I had a good solid 2 weeks of workouts. Not going to lie. 2 great weeks! The first week of them month, I started strong but it didn't continue. But I kicked myself in the butt and the second and 3rd week I rocked it. Then after Christmas the freaking plague hit our house, and even my second son ended up in the hospital. (still in the hospital as of today) So workouts this past week have not really happened.

Next Months Goals: I am still aiming to lose 1 pound a week since I am breastfeeding I think that that is a safe amount to lose without sacrificing my supply. In all honestly, the accountability from sharing my journey and in my groups is what is keeping me going everyday. I have a natural drive to exercise and eat right, but I have even more of a kick to just KICK BUTT and show everyone that it is possible to lose weight while breastfeeding. (interested in joining my private support groups? Send me an email or comment below!)

Want more daily motivation and inspiration? Click here get free advice, support and encouragement + a free copy of my Clean Eating guide to help you get started on your health and fitness journey! Don't forget to follow me on INSTAGRAM and FACEBOOK!

Clean Eating Butternut & Apple Bake

Another holiday has come and gone. Goal for Christmas dinner was to be as healthy as possible, and I totally did that this year. We had herb crusted beef tenderloin and a healthy version of Green Bean Casserole, recipes from FIXATE cooking show available with a Beachbody on Demand Membership. Homemade rolls, traditional mashed potatoes. The last thing we had, I am so proud of! It was a Clean Eating Butternut and Apple Bake. And it turned out AMAZING! Even my husband and dad enjoyed it! It was almost like a dessert and we did not miss the sweet potato casserole with marshmallows at all! This was PERFECT! I wanted to share it with you! You don't have to wait for the holidays to enjoy this amazing side! Give it a try and let me know what you think!

Clean Eating Butternut and Apple Bake

Ingredients: 

• 1 lb chopped/cubed, peeled butternut squash
• 2 large apples, peeled, cored and cubed
• 1 tbsp. coconut oil in liquid state (or olive oil) 
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
• 1/4 cup dried cranberries

Directions: 

1. Place all ingredients in a 1 gallon-size ziplock bag or large container with a tight-fitting lid.

2. Shake well to coat everything in spices and maple syrup.

3. Pour out into a baking dish (I used an 8x8) and bake at 350 F for about 1 hour to 1 hour and 20 minutes. * if you have a deeper baking dish this will take longer in the oven compared to a shallow dish. 

4. Enjoy

Want more daily motivation and inspiration? Click here get free advice, support and encouragement + a free copy of my Clean Eating guide to help you get started on your health and fitness journey! Don't forget to follow me on INSTAGRAM and FACEBOOK!

Elyse Cheyenne: 3 Months

Elyse is 3 months. We have passed out of the 4th trimester! She is such a great baby! I can't believe how amazing she is. She sleeps like a champ. She doesn't cry all that much, if she does cry she is either hungry or tired. Matt can get her to sleep while holding her. I can't. If I am holding her she wants to be eating! And the best part...her personality is starting to shine! I LOVE IT! (Be sure to view all the way to the bottom to see her outtakes!)

Her Stats: 
Weight: 11 pounds 2 ounces

Christmas outfit #1

Christmas outfit #2

Christmas outfit #3

"HELP!" 

Christmas outfit #4

Christmas Morning with all 3 in their Christmas Church outfits

Christmas morning before the boys came downstairs. she got to see everything first since it was her first Christmas.

OUTTAKE:
My little helper trying to get her to smile!

Want more daily motivation and inspiration? Click here get free advice, support and encouragement + a free copy of my Clean Eating guide to help you get started on your health and fitness journey! Don't forget to follow me on INSTAGRAM and FACEBOOK!

Setting Goals and GETTING Results

It's the beginning of the year and the #1 thing people do is set their RESOLUTIONS! But what often happens is that in about 3 weeks...the resolution fades away. Setting goals and sticking to the work required to reach your goals is HARD WORK! And it takes constant dedication to your goals to stay on track. Here are some steps you can take to make sure you stick with your goals and GET RESULTS!

1) Set Real and obtainable goals: 

Be realistic in your goals. Start with smaller goals that are obtainable rather than larger daunting goals. Like, lose 10 pounds by March. Instead of: lose 100 pounds by March. It isn't going to happen safely or without medical intervention. You have to be realistic with yourself or else you are just setting yourself up to fail. And no one wants to do that. Another great goal to think about is to slowly increase how many days you are exercising. If on average you exercised 2 days a week, like clock work, bump it up to 3-4 for a challenge. But automatically jumping to 7 days a week might be too much of a leap and can lead to getting burned out pretty quickly. Be realistic in your goals.

2) Make It Exciting:

When you start a new exercise routine, make it fun and exciting! Start a new workout program so that you have something new and different to do than what you have done before! Doing the same old boring stuff means you can get bored sooner and more likely to stop. Try a new workout that challenges you. The Beachbody On Demand All Access Pass is perfect for anyone that needs to change up their program frequently! Hammer and Chisel, 21 Day Fix Extreme, a Cycle class, hot yoga! There are so many things out there to up the anti in your workouts! And make it fun! Also make an end goal for what you are doing to. Like sign up for a specific race that looks awesome, or be able to do 10 military style pushups. Challenge yourself but make it fun and exciting.

3) Set A Time Limit

Give yourself a deadline on when you have to reach your goals by so that you are pushing yourself every single day. It gives you something to look forward to to make sure you stay on track and you can literally see what you have and haven't been doing to make sure you reach your goal.

4) Reward Yourself

Plan a fun reward for yourself for when you reach your goal. Don't make it food related but something you have wanted for a while. New workout clothing. New equipment for your home gym. Necklace. Anything that makes what you are doing all the more worth it!

5) Don't Give Up On Yourself

The only one that can stop you from doing what you need to do is yourself. Yes life happens, but you are the one who determines if you workout or eat healthy for the day. Don't let other people, circumstances or obstacles stop you from doing what you need to do every single day to get you one step closer to your goals!  If you want to change you have to WORK FOR IT! Take ownership for what you want to accomplish and don't stop until you reach it! 

Want more daily motivation and inspiration? Click here get free advice, support and encouragement + a free copy of my Clean Eating guide to help you get started on your health and fitness journey! Don't forget to follow me on INSTAGRAM and FACEBOOK!