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No, I Was Not Late to my Own Wedding – 9 yrs ago Today!

August 11, 2010 By 113 Comments

No, I wasn’t late to my own wedding – 9 years ago today.

I totally apologize for this post being late! For some reason, I’m thinking that today is TUESDAY! Wow! Where has this week gone?

Well, today is my 9th Anniversary! 9 years ago, today, we looked like this! We’ve done a lot of growing up and growing out since this picture was taken!


You know, last week, my weight was 234.0. This week, I weighed in at 234.4. I was disappointed with that number because I have worked so hard this week to not only lose the weight for myself and my family, but for all of you out there rooting me on and supporting me along the way.

It wasn’t until I spoke with Leah over the phone that I realized that busting my tail the way I have can actually cause a weight gain because of muscle swelling from not being used to heavy workouts! She assured me that it’s happened to almost everyone who has started with a Mamavation Campaign! I feel better knowing that, but I also know that in order to lose the swelling, I need to keep up with such heavy workouts to get my body used to it!

My Tracey Mallett DVD’s just arrived this morning! I can’t wait to try them out! I hear that I’m going to get a heck of a workout with them. Boy, do I need it! :)

I’m loving the Earth Footwear, because not only do they feel great on my feet, but they also give that extra little UMPH you need when you’re walking! You don’t always pay attention to every step you take, and with Earth Footwear, you really don’t have to! They shoes help your body get the most out of walking that you can! You know something, though, even if they were not our sponsors, I’d be typing the exact same thing. These shoes really work, and I encourage each of you to go out and get you a pair. It’s totally worth it!

Still no word from Smooth Fitness, but I have faith! I’m pretty jealous of all of you who have their treadmills! I’m anxious to be able to get on one and do some interval training! Y’all put in a good word for me! Hehe! :) I’d love to be able to chat it up with all of you about the treadmill, but for now, I’ll have to spread the word based on others’ reviews!!

I DID however, have a nice little twitter chat with Kathryn from EA Sports Active! My favorite part of the EA Sports Active for the Wii is actually playing SQUASH! I played racquetball in college, and I love it. I had so much fun with this game last week, Kathryn had to spoil my fun by telling me that she has beat MY high score on there by 46 hits! I’ve gotten up to 44 – can’t go any further than that for some reason! What’s cool is, she (@EASActiveGirl) said she’d try to get a Squash tourney together for the entire #EASActive community! Look out for that, and if she doesn’t, let’s tweet her up and see if she can get the ball rolling! I’m really looking forward to it (even though I’d be out in the first bracket! haha)!

I think I have one more pan steak left from Chef’s Requested as I wait on my other shipment to come in! They are FABULOUS! I noticed on their site, they have coupons if you sign up for their newsletter. I’d urge you all to try them. Leah said that I can actually eat 2 of the bacon wrapped filets if I give the bacon to someone else! I can’t wait to try that!

Again, I apologize for the late post! I’m telling you all what.. I will get this down.. Pete Cohen says it takes 21 days to make something a habit! Well, ironically, in 21 days… haha, will be the end of my stint as Mamavation Mom! Hopefully, by then, I won’t need to have Leah telling me I’m doing it wrong! At least she’s cool with my handicap at this point! :) Speaking of Pete.. we were ALL thrilled to have him on the show on Monday! I’m learning so much from him, and I hope everyone else is too!

At least my Gruve is forgiving! It shot me an email this morning…. How nice of it. I wish it had a real name. I need to name it.

Dear Lisa Johnston,

Congratulations, you have just completed four consecutive Green Days in a row.

This means that you have successfully attained or surpassed your caloric burn goal each of the last four days. Stay motivated and keep on Gruvin.

Your Gruve

WELL WOULDN’T YOU KNOW! Right on cue! It’s barking at me for sitting here too long! I guess that means I need to wrap it up!

Thanks, y’all, for being so supportive! OOOOOOOH, and because I was late, please please help me tweet this out! I want y’all to let the world know what’s going on with me! :)

Have a fabulous week! I PROMISE to remember to be on time Friday with my vlog! :)

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Family Changes Through Mamavation

August 10, 2010 By 89 Comments

Thanks to Mamavation, I have become the most selfish person on earth.

Not the bad kind of selfish, where you don’t share your fruit salad with your kids, but the good kind of selfish. The kind where I know my nutritional needs are met and that plus my fitness routine is giving me some seriously abundant energy I can blow on my kids.

Also, I find that not being hungry makes me way less crabby. I don’t remember the last time I raised my voice to either one of them.

Oh, wait, it was yesterday. Darn. So much for my sainthood.

But seriously, the extra energy from the workouts lasts through the day and it dawned on me yesterday how amazing it was that I actually get up and go see what’s going on with my kids now and then instead of just yelling for them to come to me and tell me what they’re up to.

Another change happened this morning after breakfast. I see them fly by me all dressed and wearing these cute little animal-visor hats with tails on the back and they’re not-quite-running-but-more-than-fast-walking through the house. From the back bedroom all the way to the front room through to the kitchen. Back and forth. Back and forth.

Finally, as they are about to pass me I throw up my arm and say, “Toll Bridge!!” They both smile because they know the toll is hugs (of course) and as I’m hugging my 5-year-old…

I ask, “What are you crazy kids doing?”
She answers, “We’re jogging.”
Me: “Why?”
She: “We want to get our exercise before you because then we win.”
Me: “Do you like exercise?”
She: “We LOOOVE exercise. We don’t want to be tired all the time. We want to have energy to run and play.”
Me: “Who’s the best?”
She: “Team Family is the best!”

It just warms my heart. Jogging. It’s just one example of so many exercises they do around the house as part of their normal play now. They also exercise with me when it’s something they enjoy.

Food changes were easy. I just slapped plates in front of the kids with the same stuff I ate. My kids love fruit and would eat whole wheat waffles and yogurt until the end of time. So that didn’t surprise me, because they are garbage disposals and will eat darn near anything. (They both loved sushi as toddlers). But the exercise? I had no idea it would sink in so far and fast into their little developing brains, and I have to say I’m thrilled.

My family is changing. I am changing. I can’t see me ever going back – I like the way I feel about my family and myself and what I’m doing for my kids and – more importantly – with my kids.

I’d also like to send hugs out to Smooth Fitness, Earth Footwear, EA Sports, and Chefs Requested. You all helped make this moment possible in my family.

Jennydecki
p.s. All that lasting energy means you don’t feel half-dead when you go to bed at the end of a long day. *wink wink nudge nudge* Fitness is good for the whole family.

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Video Post – Week 1 for Me – ljenator

August 6, 2010 By 68 Comments

If I’ve learned anything from my vlog today, it’s 2 things. #1 – 3 to 5 minutes, REALLY? Dude, I like to talk WAY more than that! :) #2 – Thou shalt not use thy laptop cam for thoust vlogs! I apologize for the quality up front! Next week, I promise to use my cam, cam.

This one was a little longer due to the fact that I just joined in! There is a break at about 5 minutes and 30 seconds that you don’t HAVE to watch past.. you just might want to!

Eventually, we’ll take down that ripped up wall paper border in my office! It was like that when we moved in!

Again, thank you to our sponsors Earth Footwear, Smooth Fitness, EA Sports Active, and Chef’s Requested for making Mamavation possible for average moms like me!! Also, thank you to Pete Cohen, Dr. Renna, and Tracey Mallet for your selflessness and support during these campaigns! We are so thankful and honored to have all of you by our side!

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Video Post – Week 4 – Jennydecki

August 5, 2010 By 80 Comments

It’s week FOUR! I’m calling it “hump week” because it’s the middle week, AND because I like to say hump because somewhere in my brain there’s a 12-year-old boy that thinks it’s funny.

Sorry, it gets a little gross about halfway though, but sometimes I get a little gross. It happens. It’s the honesty thing.

Thank you: @SmoothFitness, @EarthFootwear, @EASActiveGirl, and @ChefsRequested. What great sponsors!!

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Am I REALLY a Mamavation Mom?

August 4, 2010 By 247 Comments

Wow, what a whirlwind this past two days have been! I just have one question – am I doing this right?

No, I’m not in the wrong place, I promise! For those of you who were expecting a weekly blog post from Jessica Bolin today, I must inform you that you’ll have to settle with little ol’ me now. Sadly, Jessica had to step down as Mamavation Mom which is actually a bittersweet revelation. Leah announced that she is pregnant and dealing with family issues that need immediate attention. It’s extremely hard for me to be happy due to another’s misfortune, however, this was the best decision for Jessica and her family, and I pray that she has a happy and healthy pregnancy as well as a smooth transition during her family’s time of need.

So… what does that mean? You got it! Leah, founder of Mamavation, has chosen ME to become the replacement Mamavation Mom!

I’m honored that Leah asked me to step up and finish out Campaign 5 as Mamavation Mom. I’m not quite sure what made her decide to pick such an eclectic soul as I.. but I’m guessing it might have had something to do with the fact that I went on two vacations in the past two weeks and manage to lose SEVEN (7) (VII) (Siete) POUNDS! Really? Who does that? Needless to say, it’s a privilege to be able to step up and take over for Jessica!

Jessica Bolin, Kimberly Cogley, Lisa Johnston
BoBNola 2010

I think the hardest part of the campaign for me, may just be this next paragraph! Leah asked me to “tell a little about myself”, and although I can be a HUGE bigmouth, I absolutely HATE talking about myself. I feel as if I’m bragging, when there’s really nothing to brag about… so… here goes nothing!

I’m an extremely busy mom of 3 kidlets! Kylie is 11, going on… well, I’d say 32, but that’d be too mature, so I’ll say 16! Braxton is our 6 year old Jack Hannah, and Hawk… well, he’s our toothless wonder at a whopping 3 years old (yeah, toothless, already *sigh*). Andy and I have been married for almost nine years! It’s been SO great, that we both realized four months ago that we’ve gained a combined total of 200 pounds! Holy Moley! Seriously, we have! I’m self titled as “busy” however that may be an understatement as of Monday night at about 9pm! I am an Operations Manager for The Cloth Diaper Foundation, a nonprofit organization that provides cloth diapers for families in need, and I’m also a homeschooling mom, Labor Doula, Avon Independent Sales and Leadership Representative, Veggie Contessa for Mamavation, Blogger, Houston Cloth Diaper Leader, former volunteer turned PAID employee of an upscale children’s resale store, and so forth and so on…. yadda… all that jazz!

That revealed, I’m super excited to be a Mamavation Mom along side Jenny! I’m not even sure if I’m on the right track with this post, so please don’t hesitate to correct me if I’ve left something out or added too much! It’s my second day on the job, so I appreciate everyone cutting me some slack (I already screwed up the workout for the yesterday!! SORRY LEAH!!)

If you’d like to see what went on yesterday, check out my food and exercise journal here. Not really sure if I did that right, either, but it’s all good!! I’m sure, in true LJ fashion, I will get it all down pat by the time the campaign is over.

This week has brought many surprises! I became a paid employee, I became a Mamavation Mom, we scheduled a Sister’s Weekend (I have 2 sisters) for September 11 to go to New Braunfels and float down the river, and I found out that we will be having another BLOGGER EVENT IN FLORIDA!!!! That means, TWO MORE mini-vacations between now and the end of my first 50in8 goal! (Lose 50 pounds in 8 months – Easter to Christmas) How do you think I’ll do? *giggly*

This week, I’ve learned that no matter WHAT… if you don’t “win” something by your own standards, don’t quit striving for it! You never know when it will fall back in your lap, and it’s best to go on living like you’ve won the grand prize anyway, because when it does come back and catch you in the kisser, you surely don’t want to be out of breath while embracing it! Translated: Thank the Lord I kept up with healthy eating and exercise after campaigning was over!! I could not IMAGINE how Day 1 would have been if I hadn’t.

I am also very excited to work closely with all of the Mamavation Sponsors! Thank you to Earth Footwear, Smooth Fitness, EA Sports Active, and Chef’s Requested for making Mamavation possible for average moms like me!! Also, thank you to Pete Cohen, Dr. Renna, and Tracey Mallet for your selflessness and support during these campaigns! We are so thankful and honored to have all of you by our side!

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Farewell – In So Many Ways

August 3, 2010 By 67 Comments

It’s been a week of Farewells. I’m going to throw them out there randomly, except the first, which is by far the most important to me:

Farewell, Jess
While we didn’t talk tons, I watched your videos and read your blog and followed your already amazing journey. You are the definition of mamavation and I have nothing but massive respect for you and the work you’ve done in the last three weeks. You are amazing and we’ll all be here for you on Twitter and on your blog no matter how sporadically you come into our lives. We will always support you.

Farewell, Health
Finding out for sure I had a hernia this week and going this morning to the doctor feel like a farewell. Even though my doctor assures me my hernia is baby-related, not weight-related, I feel like I’ve lost the right to say, “I may be fat, but I am healthy.” So, yeah, good thing I started all this nutrition stuff or I might be having an even worse identity crisis.

Farewell, “I don’t have triggers”
I’ve always said I’m not an emotional eater. I believed this. Two fast food stops in one day during a funeral *could* be looked at as forced due to accessibility…but yeah, we could have stopped at a store and grabbed sushi or a bag of veggies. Death must be my, “I hate myself and I want to die oh look that’s McDonald’s that crap will kill me – let’s eat there.” Trigger.

I’m late for my doctor appointment so I’m going to wrap this up. Even though I’m saying farewell to three important things, I’m saying hello to just as many if not more. Congratulations and welcome (with my open flabby arms in a big squishy hug) to Lisa (@ljenator) on being the pinch-hitter for the Mamavation community and finishing out the next four weeks with us.

Thank you to @EarthFootwear, @SmoothFitness, @EASportsActiveGirl, and @ChefsRequested for being amazing #Mamavation sponsors. All the Mamavation sistas looooove you!

Until Next Time!
@Jennydecki

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My down week: Everyone has them…..

July 31, 2010 By 256 Comments

So yep I have officially had my off/down week during my Mamavation campaign. Leah said it would happen and I guess I truly did not believe her:

Thank you to Earth Footwear, Smooth Fitness, EA Sports Active, and Chefs Requested for being such wonderful sponsors! This campaign is what it is because of you!

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Week 3 – I Do Not Have It Together

July 29, 2010 By 61 Comments

I had the best of intentions bit so much has happened this week the only time I had to do this week’s video was before coffee this morning. I’m writing this from my phone on the way to a funeral.

I’m not going for sympathy, I just want you to know how seriously I take my commitment to my Sistas!

Thank you to: @chefsrequested @easactivegirl @earthfootwear @smoothfitness

Until next time,
@jennydecki

Filed Under: Mamavation Moms, Videos

Getting Back into the Swing of Things

July 28, 2010 By 65 Comments

This week has been a very awkward week for me. Last Wednesday my husband wrecked my car and although thankfully no one was seriously injured I did not walk away 100%. I was released Monday though to begin adding back in my exercising, so Tuesday I worked out to EA Sports Active Upper Body. Wednesday (today) I was able to do Tracey Mallet Quick Blast Fat Burner. I actually just finished this one and am sitting here icing my shoulder.

See that is so important after you injure yourself and are trying to work back up to your previous exercise/fitness routines….. Ice muscles after stretching! I am required to ice after stretching is over from an exercise and then again before bed. So far my shoulder seems to be doing well; I mean I can tell it’s still healing but overall I am not in horrible pain.

This past Thursday through Sunday I got to spend the weekend in New Orleans. I met some of the most amazing ladies and have a new sense of love for some of them. I will be honest Saturday night my mood changed. It was not because I was not enjoying myself or the ladies I was with. I had become exhausted and was not getting the amount of sleep my body needed. I also missed my boys more than I could ever imagine I would. Aaron, my four year old, often spends weeks away from me at my moms house but in the past year I have only been away from Caleb for one night. I had also never been sooo far away before! Sunday I changed my flight and left very early. I know I had several ladies worried something was wrong and I think I may have strained friendships…. I hope it’s repairable.

I guess through of of this I have learned alot about me. See in my eyes this Mamavation campaign is not just about making me healthier/thinner on the outside but also on the inside!

  1. I am tough and can work my way through just about anything.
  2. I like my routine and work out schedule. I get crabby when its messed with, even for fun.
  3. I love my kids and need small amounts of time from them so I can not be so dependent on them.

Thank you to Earth Footwear, Smooth Fitness, EA Sports Active, and Chefs Requested for being such wonderful sponsors! This campaign is what it is because of you! Also thank you Pete Cohen, Dr. Renna, Leah, and all the Mamavation Sista’s.

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Kicking Stress In the Keister, Fitness Style!

July 27, 2010 By 36 Comments

I knew yesterday was going to be super-stressful.

In the morning I had:

  • A TaeBo workout (stick with me, it gets worse)

In the afternoon:

In the evening:

  • A committee meeting for a local school fundraising organization
  • Mamavation TV
  • I had to pick up my friend from the bus station in downtown Chicago

It doesn’t sound as bad all bullet-pointed, but it was hectic. On top of that I found out that every. single. one. of my WordPress sites was hacked. I use secure passwords, too. I discovered that they’re hacked SO bad that I have to do complete re-installs or pay boatloads of money to get them fixed by a professional. I don’t even want to think about why all of my blogs hosted by the same company got hacked, especially when the email they sent with the fix specifically told me it wasn’t their fault. I didn’t even think it was until they made sure to tell me it wasn’t. It was all kinds of, “the lady doth protest too much.”

During all this I had to fit in five healthy meals and snacks. Here are a few tips for keeping yourself healthy even when stress tries to take you down for the count!

  1. Keep something healthy and non-perishable in your car at all times. But rotate it so it doesn’t get stale and nasty. My choice is granola bars. Sometimes I also have rice cakes in my car. This means I don’t freak out and hit the dollar menu at some greasy fast-food place.
  2. Keep an emergency five dollar bill in your car or in your wallet. You can get a nonfat latte or water or even find something remotely healthy at a convenience store if you have to.
  3. Stay hydrated. Being thirsty makes me way stressed. So if I’m running around and parched, I’m more likely to stop for something bad to drink like a big-ol’ sweet tea. If you do have to hit a drive-thru for a beverage, get the unsweetened tea and add some lemon if you want to.
  4. Breathe. When you feel like your brain is about to melt, stop thinking for a minute. Don’t rev your engine until it dies or gets flooded…give it a minute and try to just stare at a cloud or something cheesy like that. It works, and you’ll be a little more clear-headed when you come back to thinking territory. Counting also helps and so does the alphabet. Just concentrate on it. It’s the same as when you really concentrate on your muscles when you lift weights instead of just flopping your arms around with weights in them. The concentration is what makes all the difference.
  5. Exercise. Seriously. Even if you don’t want to. Especially if you don’t want to. It helps with the stress and is more productive than crying. I know, I did both today and the exercise was waaaay more helpful to my state of mind.

Tomorrow I sign up with a new hosting company and one by one I’m going to copy and paste my current blog entries into the new blog. When I originally set up the blogs I did it kind of willy-nilly so it will actually be good for the blogs to do this. Everything will be more organized and my databases will be less messy.

I’m looking at this like spring cleaning. Everything will be shiny and new when I’m done.

Thank you to Earth Footwear, Smooth Fitness, EA Sports Active, and Chefs Requested for being amazing sponsors for all the Mamavation Moms and Sistas.

Until Next Time,
@jennydecki

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