Guest Blogger: Salina Living Active

I am a BIG fan of Salina! She has  spunk and attitude!  She runs TWO blogs:  Becoming a Thinner, Sexier Me and Living Active? She has generously agreed to guest post a few times about her Living Active ideas!  (I have been trying to convince her to do a Punk Rope Video on You Tube.. Hopefully, my wish will come true by the end of the year!)

But until then, HERE is Salina, The Living Active Bombshell.

I feel honored that Big Girl Bombshell asked me to guest post. I can always count on her for a dose of daily reality check to pluck my head from the clouds and find some ground again. The fact that she values my attitude and views on life and blog really touched my heart. Thanks for believing in me Jules.

Like most people, I tried dieting and exercising every which way over the years and found some temporary success but always ended up reverting back to my old habits and gaining all the weight back plus a little extra for good measure. I kept hearing the “you need support to lose weight” mantra from every weight loss guru, personal trainer, nutritionist, therapist, and diet book I was consulting. To break my cycle, I decided to reach out to my friends and family for support. I asked Hubby and one of my friends at the time (who is now an unfriend), both of whom jumped at the opportunity. Great plan, right? At first it seemed to be. But then Hubby would crave Chunky Monkey and I’d sit right next to him drooling over it. Then I’d slip, oops. The unfriend was the slackiest of slackers I’ve ever known. She was a horrible choice for an Accountabilibuddy. As soon as she gave up on herself, she avoided me like the plague and that’s how she became the unfriend.

I realized very quickly that I wouldn’t be able to rely on the support of my small network because they were struggling with their own will power and emotional baggage they were swallowing with every bite of their favorite treat. I decided I needed lots of accountability. I decided I also needed lots of variation in my exercise because I get bored fast and need to keep things fresh and new to keep me engaged. That’s where the idea of Living Active came to mind.

I didn’t need a diet or the perfect exercise routine. I needed a lifestyle change. I needed to redefine how I viewed myself and recreate my body to fit into the new view. Lofty goal, right? At first, it felt that way but I figured I would just focus on getting off my booty no matter what. If I was staying active, eventually my body and mind would follow. Exercise releases endorphins which make you feel good and it burns calories which makes you look good, as long as you don’t pig out on a regular basis. That was my basic logic anyway.

So I set up Living Active as a personal exercise journal which is of course available to the world to view and participate in if they should so choose. I sat down with one of my most active friends and we came up with a master list of all the activities and sports we could think of. I needed to have options so I would never feel stuck with no ideas. I still add to that master list by the way so if you have any ideas for me, please let me know. Then I’d choose, or should I say, I let my readers choose what activity I do each month and then I blog about my experiences.

Completed Activities

Master List of Activities

I recently asked myself if this venture has been successful. Well, was it? I think so. After some reframing how I defined success, I realized that now, almost a year later, I’m still active, I’m still blogging, I’m feeling better about myself than I ever have before, I look better in the mirror, and I’ve managed to lose 20lbs so far. Was I hoping for more? Absolutely, YES. But that doesn’t mean I’ve failed. It just means that I’m taking longer to reverse the many years of bad habits and stinky thinking that I tortured myself with.

The past 11 months have been challenging. I was scared to commit myself to something I didn’t know I could accomplish in front of people I’ve never met. I was terrified to go to my first tennis lesson. I was even more skittish showing up to the Punk Rope instructor training class all by my little lonesome.

Let’s not even talk about the fear I felt when I decided to get a personal trainer certification, still being a fat girl. Or how about the time I decided I wanted to learn roller derby and showed up to a practice league not knowing my roller skates from the rows of platform stilettos in my closet.

Now, I’m feeling the need to redefine the purpose of Living Active. At first, it just referred to dismounting the well-worn ass saddle I carved into my sofa. It was just there to keep me going up to this point. Perhaps it’s time to expand my views. Perhaps it’s time to kick it up a notch or two. Turn on the heat. Raise the stakes. Yes?

I’ve shared my experiences with facing fears and becoming unlazy. Yes, I’ve definitely limped a bit to get here but I made it this far none the less. I still have more fears and challenges where those came from and I plan to continue to knock them down one by one, month by month, activity by activity. Now, I want to know what Living Active means for others. I want you to share your experiences, fears, strengths, triumphs, and struggles with me.

• What fitness fears do you have?
• How have you faced them?
• Have you conquered them?
• What support do you need on your journey to living an active lifestyle according to your own definition?

I invite anyone and everyone who is interested in challenging themselves to visit the Living Active blog and participate in this journey with me, or perhaps allow me to participate in your journey to define what Living Active means for you. I’m going to be introducing a challenge and featuring a few guest posts about other’s ideas and hopes as well.

My favorite Bombshell asked me what my hopes and dreams are for Living Active in the future. My answer? This blog has been a god send for me over the past 11 months and I attribute my revised lifestyle and waistline to the support and community I’ve found in the land of blogz.  My vision for Living Active in the future is that it can become that support network and community for others as well. I want it to be a place where anyone whether they are starting their journey or just looking for additional challenge can find the network that I found to be so critical to my success.

It’s not about the scale. It’s about ACTION!