Letter to My Future Self

Dear Future Self,

You are amazing. You are strong. You are beautiful. And no matter how many times you tell yourself otherwise, you are loved.

I am writing to you to remind you of an important thing: I am proud of you. I am proud of what you’ve done. I’m proud of you for not giving up. I’m proud of you for being ALIVE.

I know you struggle. I know you put on a happy, successful face for everyone around you but inside you hurt sometimes. I know you sometimes can’t stand yourself and hate looking in the mirror. I know you have self esteem issues and fight to be confident. I know. Because I am you.

But every day you get out of bed is a day you have made a choice to live. And be strong. And serve a purpose. Many people depend on you for your knowledge – you are SO intelligent, do not ever forget that! You have such a gift in wanting to help people and educate them
and make animals lives better.

Working out is hard. You don’t like it. You would rather sleep in and eat carrot cake and Christmas cookies. But you NEED to keep your body healthy. So that you can live a longer, healthier, BETTER QUALITY of life. So that you can help more people and more animals. You talk about quality of life every day with clients. Today is the day that you MUST choose live that quality. And part of that is making hard choices and doing difficult things… like you have done. and like you will continue to do. Like exercising every day. Like eating clean every day. Don’t you LOVE how you feel when you do those things? Don’t you think YOU are worth it? Well, you are.  You are SO worth it.

You are so much stronger than you were 6 months ago. Keep up the great work! You are so much healthier than you were 6 months ago. Do not give up! Let’s take care of you! And yes, it’s okay to do things for yourself sometimes. Do NOT feel guilty about that!

So go get it girl! BE Strong, BE beautiful, BE amazing! Because that is what you are!

Love, Me.

Thrive Market review – is it worth it?

I recently posted a question to my Facebook page asking if any of my friends used Thrive Market, and if so, did they think it was worth it?

I received a couple of positive responses but nothing concrete, so I decided to check it out myself and submitted an order. They offer a 30 day membership trial, so you can cancel anytime within that 30 days and you won’t have to pay the $59.95 membership fee.

So I bit the bullet and went for it. The first thing I noticed was how easy the website was to get around and shop. I also REALLY liked how I could check the ingredients before I decided to purchase, and compare prices with similar items online. I’m a big proponent of reading ingredients, so the convenience of doing this online on my computer instead of in the aisle at a busy store was a big plus for me.

The first order, I also saved 25%, which was huge, since I placed a rather large order. Shipping was FREE, as it will be on all orders placed over $49. It came quickly – within 3 days, and I was pleasantly surprised with how well packed it was. They even took extra precautions with the items that may have melted in the Texas heat had they not otherwise protected them. Everything arrived perfectly – it was my exact order with no damage to any of the items.

Next, I did a cost comparison. I went to Sprouts, HEB, and Whole Foods. The sale prices at Sprouts were comparable to the prices I received at Thrive, although not all of the items were on sale. The HEB items, some were higher priced, some were lower, and some the same. Whole foods even the sale prices for most of the items were higher than the prices at Thrive. Of the 3 stores, NONE of them carried ALL of the items I ordered on my first order. Whole Foods came the closest for the particular items I ordered.

I then itemized everything for HEB and Whole Foods and then subtracted the items that were not available at that store from my Thrive order so as to have an accurate representation, and did not include the 25% discount I received on my first order so that it would be similar to what I would see on future purchases. Compared to Whole Foods, I saved $69.52 by ordering from Thrive. On the exact same products and brands. BEFORE the discount. With the discount the savings was over $118. Compared with HEB, I saved $29.70 on the same items before the Discount with Thrive. With the additional discount, I saved over $78.

So… is it worth it? The answer for me is a resounding YES! Based on my first order alone, I have already saved more than what the year-long membership costs. It also has the added benefit of being able to shop from your own home, look at ingredients without people trying to get around you with their carts, and waiting in line – not to mention saving money on gas, and that it takes much less time than going in to each store. The time factor alone is worth it!

From my first order the only thing I may change for next time is the nuts (almonds and cashews)… keeping in mind that I did order certified organic nuts. These were consistently more expensive at Thrive than the bulk nuts available at HEB and Sprouts. So I may buy nuts when I also buy my produce (in-store) in the future. Everything else was significantly less expensive, which adds up when you’re placing a big order!

The other thing I love about Thrive Market is that once you sign up, they do send you emails with amazing recipes and health tips. Because of this, I have tried some new dishes that I otherwise would not have even thought to look up! It’s encouraging me to continue eating right with recipes that absolutely fit in with a healthy active lifestyle, and promote clean eating.

They also have a referral program! So if you use my link to sign up and order, I get additional discounts! I would love it if you helped me out and used my link if you are interested in checking out Thrive for your non-perishable items like I did. For me, Thrive is definitely the way to go!

Click here to Join Thrive today! 

AdvoCare 24 Day challenge – Follow up

Three weeks after I have completed the AdvoCare 24 Day Challenge, I’m still going strong. While I only lost 5 pounds on the challenge, it was the jump-start to healthy living and eating right, and exercising regularly that I needed. I still have tons of energy and don’t get to the gym as much as I’d like – BUT I’m making healthy choices and eating right… even 3 weeks later! I did have a birthday party and a wedding last weekend that I let myself splurge at, and DIDN’T gain weight from it (I didn’t lose weight, either, but considering how much I ate and that includes CAKE, I’m very happy I didn’t gain 5 pounds back right away!) I’m feeling great and loving the new healthy me!

Advocare 24 day Challenge – Day 16

I cheated and had a few yogurt covered pretzels the other day… but worked out extra hard at the gym that day to make up for it! Other than that, i’ve been really sticking to the 24 day Challenge protocol, taking all the pills that i’m supposed to be taking during this MAX phase, and seeing Results… I’ve lost 5 pounds so far and have 8 pounds to lose to meet my weight loss goal! I think i might actually be able to meet that goal at this rate! Thank you all so much for your encouragement, and hopefully I’ll keep bringing you good news about my *continued* weight loss!

Oh, and if you’re interested in trying out the challenge yourself… i’m not a distributor, just a happy customer… but here’s the link to order the challenge for yourself!
https://www.advocare.com/131219631/Store/default.aspx

Advocare 24 Day Challenge – Day 12

Well, I’m halfway done with the challenge and I’ve lost 4 pounds so far. The Max phase is really giving me a LOT of energy, i’m about to head to the gym right now! I’ve lost 4 pounds so far and i only have 9 to go to reach my GOAL WEIGHT! I’m so excited to be seeing such great results without starving myself or feeling grumpy like i do with typical “diets.”

Advocare 24 day Challenge – day 10

I just finished the cleanse phase of the challenge and am about to head into the Max phase. 2 weeks to go! While the weight loss hasn’t been significant, 3 pounds is at least a good start, and I’ve lost INCHES off my waist, hips and thighs… in just 10 days! The results are encouraging and I’m excited to see what the next 2 weeks has in store!

Advocare 24 Day Challenge – day 7

So far… so good. The results aren’t very dramatic at this point, but i feel great and have more energy then usual, despite some pretty long, hard days. I even stuck with the Challenge without cheating when I was traveling to Corpus for 2 days for work this week – I love a diet where I can still eat SUSHI!!! So this challenge gets an A+ in that respect!

Advocare 24 day challenge – day 3

So Advocare is pretty awesome! I do not ever feel hungry. I have NEVER been on a diet where i didn’t feel like i was starving myself! and I’ve been on quite a few diets in my lifetime. I feel HEALTHY, and do not feel so tired that I don’t have the energy to exercise, like i do with most other diets. If you’re interested in trying it for yourself, just let me know, i’d be happy to put you in touch with my friend that got me started on it, who also happens to be my distributor 🙂

Advocare 24 day challenge – beginning of day 1

Join me on my wellness and weight loss journey! I’m not a distributor – I’m only doing this to hold myself accountable and to hopefully improve my results! (And any encouragement my friends might have always helps!)

Using Drugs and Medications on horses during competitions

Recently, the death of a pony at a big hunter/ jumper show brought some media attention to the use of medications and drugs in competition horses.  Drugs are highly regulated on the racetrack, but not so much in hunter/ jumper competitions.  The USEF does have rules on what can and cannot be used prior to competition, but many medications, supplements, etc. cannot be tested for at this time.  As such, many people have been getting away with medicating horses for competition to keep them “calm” or to make sure they don’t get sore from overuse.  This is unacceptable.  As a Veterinarian, it is my strong opinion that horses should not be medicated without the direction of a veterinarian (seems obvious, doesn’t it?)  While there is a time and a place for most of the medications out there, during a competition is not one of them… if a horse has to be medicated to stay calm enough for that rider, maybe that rider needs to find another horse.  Or maybe that horse needs more or different training.  If a horse needs medication to keep from getting sore – maybe it’s getting overused, isn’t conditioned enough, or… God forbid… shouldn’t be competing at this particular show.  I once heard George Morris say that riders today lack discipline.  That is why they can’t ride.  Horses lack training.  That is why they “need” medication to keep from getting “nervous” at competitions.  So how do we make it stop?  How to we change this?

Well, in my “Humble” opinion – it’s all on you.  Everyone wants someone to blame – the USEF needs tighter regulations – we need more security at competitions – it’s the trainers fault – it’s the horses fault – etc – etc- etc.  What people fail to see is that the horse business is just that… a business.  People are in it to make money.  Sure, many people do it for the pleasure, because they love kids and horses.  But at the end of the day, feeding a 1200 lb animal costs money.  So we put undisciplined riders on untrained horses and throw them in the show ring and expect them to succeed – because that’s how people get clients.  What?

That’s what happens.  Parents want to see their kids jumping higher on fancier horses when they aren’t ready to jump higher.  Because they only ride twice a week during the summer when they don’t have piano/ ballet/ soccer/ everything else.  Horses are athletes.  Everybody gets that.  What many people don’t get is that SO ARE RIDERS.  Without practicing every day, riding difficult horses, staying in shape, getting trained – they really shouldn’t be going to competitions at all.  That’s like having a football team practice once a week for a half an hour for a month and then going to a football game.  No matter how good your equipment is, your coach is, the field conditions are – there won’t be success.

What does this have to do with medicating horses at competitions?  Well, like I said before – the horse business is a business.  So how to you get someone to go out of business (such as a trainer who overmedicates horses prior to competition)?  It’s simple, really… STOP giving them money.  Find a new trainer.  Find a better trained horse or one that’s more suitable for your rider.  Find some time to put in the hard work it takes to become a better rider BEFORE the big competition, so that if your horse acts up, the rider will know how to deal with it.  Discipline. Hard work. Training.  That’s what makes an equestrian.  That’s what makes a well behaved horse.  And don’t tell me that you can’t find a trainer out there with ethics because “everyone does it.” I personally know a lot of trainers out there that don’t.  Stop feeding into this myth in the horse world that money buys everything.  Because in this case, it ended up indirectly buying itself a dead pony.  It didn’t have to be this way.  If the parents would have found a different trainer… a different pony to lease…  well, things might have been a little different.