Sunday, March 31, 2013

An Experiment!

So, I'm experimenting with doing videos with my phone. I didn't know I could record videos with my phone until a couple of weeks ago - I'm so behind with certain technology things!

I apologize for looking like a hot mess, the bags under my eyes, and the shaking of the camera when I laugh at my ridiculous jokes. Hey, it's the first one...cut me a little slack ;)




I mention Genie's blog in the video - make sure you head over to "Genie's Journey" and tease her about her fancy lip gloss in her video :)

As you prepare for the week ahead, keep this quote in mind!!


photo credit

Thursday, March 28, 2013

Truth Time!

This will surprise a lot of people but...I cry. I'm serious. This is not a joke.

There have been some things going on in my life that I've been working through. I have been using the guidance and affirmations from Creative Visualization to help me and I was feeling like I was making progress.

Then this happened.




Yep, that's me crying in the car this morning on the way to work. I was feeling a bit off when I went to bed last night and hadn't quite shaken it when I woke up. After getting The Princess off to school, I sat & wrote down some of the affirmations I wanted to focus on today. One of these centered on being happy and not letting how other people treat me negatively affect my day, life, and emotions. I told myself that I needed to focus on the positive things in my life and push out the negative. I grabbed my things and headed out the door.


Three minutes into my drive, this song came on and the water works began.



I took off my sunglasses and said out loud, "What in the world is going on?!!?" No one answered me (of course...lol..) and the tears continued to fall. I contemplated pulling over so I could get myself together but decided against it. As the song ended, so did the crying. I thought, "I must be PMSing or something. This is so not like me."

Then this song came on and the crying started again.


What in the...?!?! Why in the...?!?!

Normally, I would pretend like this never happened but let's be real, it did. Obviously, something in the messages of these songs touched me. I think it has to do with feelings of inadequacy but I'm just speculating here ;)

This is what I do know. I'm human. I cry (even though I really really don't like it..lol) and I'm learning to be ok with letting my eyes leak every now & then :)



Tuesday, March 26, 2013

New Release Tuesday

Two words --> Robin Thicke

I'm going to be completely honest here - I will drop my husband Tom in less than two point two seconds for Mr. Thicke. The man is SUPA FINE and he can sing his sexy ass off. Can you say "winning!"?!? Plus, he's very funny - have you seen him in The Real Husbands of Hollywood?? Comic relief!!

Anyway, let's focus. Robin has a new song/video out called Blurred Lines. Watch the video here and if you don't enjoy it or drool over him, I think we might have to end our friendship ;)

Sunday, March 24, 2013

Black and Yellow's Excellent Adventure: 12 Weeks Out!!

*taps the microphone*

Is this thing on?? Can you hear me?? :)

I'm alive! No, the Earth did not swallow me whole! Life just got in the way of blogging, what else can I say? To make up for being absent, I thought I would do a video check in and quick update on what's been going on!



Friday, March 15, 2013

Flashback Friday

Some of my favorite photos on Instagram on the photos that people post on Thursdays with the hashtag "#ThrowbackThursday". In the spirit of revisiting the past, today I'm going to post a photo I'm not sure many folks have seen.

Let's flashback, shall we?



The year is 2010 and this is me on stage for the first time!!! I stepped on stage for my first competition completely out of my element! I knew that I wasn't technically "stage ready" but I still wanted to see how I would do next to other competitors. Let's just say, I didn't expect to get my ass handed to me that day but I did!!

I learned that heartbreaking, frustrating day in July that I had so much more work to do if I wanted to be competitive. I learned that last place feels really crappy but is an incredible motivator. I learned that I was W-A-Y more competitive and hungry for a plastic trophy than I originally thought. I learned that I was in love with this sport, no matter what other people thought of it.

So there you have it....a flashback to almost three years ago...where I walked on stage for the first time and discovered that the stage, the teeny tiny bikini, drag queen makeup, and posing my heart out made me ridiculously giddy!

Tuesday, March 12, 2013

New Release Tuesday

I'm pretty certain I've shared music from Lupe Fiasco before. I'm not sure why I haven't shared this song yet. Shame on me!

Let me introduce you to Battle Scars....put in ya ear :)


Sunday, March 10, 2013

It Does My Body Good


This post is all about the February sample box I received from the Muscle and Fitness Supplement Sampling program. If you haven't heard of this really cool program before, let me give you the Cliff's Notes version!! You may sign up to receive 5-7 samples of different products each month. They are currently offering a trial offer for monthly memberships. The cost to you is $7.50 or $11.25 for a 12 month membership. Shipping is free and members receive $15 off any $75+ order from the Muscle & Fitness store when they join. If this sounds like something you might want to try out, you can find additional information about the program at the Muscle & Fitness Store.


February's Haul! :)

There were a lot of goodies in February's sample box and I was giddy, to say the least. In addition to the samples pictured above I received a Cytosport shaker bottle. This girl can always use a shaker bottle so I was extremely excited when I found one in the box!


I am not a huge fan of protein bars. Let's be honest, I would rather have a meal than a "meal replacement bar"! However, there are times when you can't sit down to a meal(s) because you forgot to pack them so it's the protein bar in the pocket of your lunch bag to the rescue! The Promax Pro Series Peanut Butter Crisp bar is 350 calories per bar with 28g of protein & 37g of carbs. I didn't eat the whole bar in one setting and half a serving was more than enough to fill me up. The taste was better than some protein bars that I've tasted and I did like that the bars primary source of protein is whey protein. I would have liked the peanut butter taste to be a bit stronger but I'm also a girl who likes to eat peanut butter out of the jar by the spoonful so... *shrugs*



Amphetalean from Beast Sports Nutrition is a product that is supposed to give you an energy boost while burning body fat. According to Beast Sports Nutrition, "Amphetalean is a strong energy formula that gives you a boost and keeps your energy level constant during your training or workout. While elevating your energy levels, Amphetalean also helps your mind focus and promotes weight loss". Here's what I can tell you from taking the one serving that I received - it tasted like Hi-C Orange. I'm being a bit facetious but honestly, I only took one serving and in my opinion, that is not enough to for me to say whether it did or did not promote weight loss. I didn't notice a significant change in my energy levels and again, I'm not sure if that's because I only took one serving of it. The powder did mix well with cold water and there were no clumps (which is always a positive) but the color of the mixture was this borderline neon orange so don't let that freak you out! The taste, as I said, reminded me of Hi-C and there's nothing wrong with that!


One of the samples that I fell in love with was the VPX Sports 12 Gauge Shotgun!! Excuse my language but this is some good shit!! It is a pre-workout supplement that, according to VPX Sports, "delivers the extreme mental acuity and intense energy required for explosive workouts in the gym and on the field". I decided to take this on an Operation Build-A-Back workout day and since it was my first time taking it, I followed the instructions as stated on the package. Close to 30 minutes after taking it, I started to feel a little tingle in my nose and fingertips and I knew it was starting to kick in. I didn't feel ridiculously hyper or energized but I really felt myself "zeroing in" on each exercise & rep. I could feel my blood pumping (not in a scary way) and I felt an intense need to smash my workout :) I loved this supplement so much that I ordered a full size container of it - ssscccooorrreee!!!

In being mindful of time, I'm not going to go into every sample in the box but I can say that February's sample box was an awesome one. I love that I found a new pre-workout supplement and that the folks at Muscle & Fitness included a shaker bottle (hey, it's the simple things that make me happy!). I can't wait to see what goodies will be in the March box!!!



Disclaimer:
I received these products free of charge and was given no compensation for this review.
All opinions expressed are my own.

Friday, March 8, 2013

New Year, New Gear Reveal!



I am a bit behind! I was supposed to post about my reveal several days ago but with work, prep, cooties, etc the week has just gotten away from me!

If you're not familiar with New Year New Gear, let me explain! Nicole over at Apples and Arteries has come up with "New Year New Gear". She came up with the exchange as a way for people to receive "gear" that will help motivate them and help them achieve their fitness goals. You receive a name and put together a fun package (under $15) for the person you are paired with.

Look at Diana's beautiful handwriting!

This month, I received a package from the awesome Diana! I loved that it was a different approach to helping me meet my goals than "the norm". Diana wrote me a really great letter explaining why she had chosen the different things in the package. I really appreciated that she did that and it gave me a chance to learn a little bit more about her. 


Tasty treats!
The package contained a variety of different treats and I had never tried any of them! I am so excited because I love sampling & trying new things and this is an opportunity to do that! I know...I know...you're looking at the picture above and thinking to yourself, "She's never used Burt's Bees?!?!" No, I have not but now I can with the new shimmer Diana hooked me up with :)

My new workout log!
My favoritest (yes, that's a word!) item in the whole package was the notebook Diana tucked away beneath the tasty uber bars and Beanitos chips :) In her letter, she suggested that I could use the notebook for a workout log and that's exactly what I'm going to do. Remember how I talked about trying to keep a positive outlook during this prep? Well, this is just one of the tools I'm going to use to help me do that!

Thank you so much, Diana! Your package was pure perfection and I loved it!!

If you're interested in seeing what I sent to Becky of Olives 'n' Wine, check out her reveal post here.

I think there's still time to join the March exchange, so head over to Apples & Arteries and sign up. If you can't join us for March, then sign up for April! The more the merrier!!!

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

New Release Tuesday

I just added this song to my workout playlist. I can't remember how I stumbled on it - but it happened last weekend and I've had it on repeat since then!

"I don't have to try....I just do what I does..." --> gangsta! :)

Enjoy!

Sunday, March 3, 2013

One Week In


Black and Yellow's Excellent Adventure is in full effect up in herrrrrr!!! :) I officially have one week of prep under my belt! One week down, 15 more to go - lol!

The fortune I received while eating "the last supper" before prep started :)

I am happy to report that week one went very well. I am happy that the start of this prep has been calm, smooth, and positive. I had to know that good things were in store when the fortune I received the day before I started prep said so! I am taking that as a sign that this journey to the stage will be a great one!

Eating one of my meals in the breakroom
The plan right now is to start things off slow and steady. During the off-season, I was doing 3 cardio sessions a week so that has now been bumped up to 4. My meals are completely different than they were a couple of weeks ago, of course! No more jalapeno muenster bagels or red velvet ice cream! I'm back to eating healthier meals 5-6 times a day. Check-in with The Boss went well yesterday. I was surprised to see a nice drop when I stepped on the scale but didn't do cartwheels over my pictures...I rarely do...lol!

Keepin' a smile on my face!
I had been anticipating starting prep for quite some time so it was fairly easy for me to "flip the switch" and get back into prep mode. For me this means going to bed earlier, making more lists, and adhering to a set schedule as close to as 100% of the time as I can.


I really really want to be competitive at this show and I'm telling myself I can! I'm going to focus on the positives and try not to let the negatives & self-doubt creep in. I know that it will but I'm going to do everything in my power to keep it to a minimum!!

Sun is shining and it's time for progress pics!

One week down and as Jay-Z says, "I'm on to the next one"! :)