So my 365 day challenge is coming to an end today. What an interesting journey it has been. I did it! I dedicated myself to this and held on to it. Did I doubt myself? Not for a second. I knew I was able to do it once I got started . When I decided to start something like this, I made sure I finished it. Has it been hard? Yes, once in a while. Had I wanted to stop? Never! The only two weeks I had to take a break was when I got an inflammation in my knee, I had surgery.
I´m really glad I did it because this proves that building muscles do not happen over night. It takes a lot of dedication, a lot of work and hard will. To lose weight can be easier then gaining muscle. In my case, due to my petite frame it´s really hard to do either. Now I at least know that it´s possible, but it requires a lot of time. Have I seen changes in my body? Absolutely! :) Do I feel stronger in my lower body? For sure am! Heavy squatting has always been hard for me and still is, but not as hard as they did before. I am so happy I did it!:)
Jan 1
Quad (thick part): 22.4 inch (56.9 cm)
Glute: 26.8 inch (93.5 cm)
May 23
Quad: 21.5 inch (54.6 cm)
Glute: 37 inch (94 cm)
July 13
Quad: 22 inch (56 cm)
Glute: 37 inch (94 cm)
Aug 28
Quad: 22 inch (56 cm)
Glute: 37.7 inch (95.8 cm)
Dec 31 2015 Quad: 22.7 inch (57.7 cm) Glute: 38.7 inch (98.3 cm)
Result after 356 days. Small girls can build booty too ;).
I loved every second of this challenge. Am I going to continue with something new for next year? Sure will! It´s all planed out already! ;) Tomorrow it will start! ;) I´ll let you know what it is later.
So was it all worth it? Sure was! Today I ended my year with a 10lbs PR (personal record) in my back squat and did my last 100 walking lunges :).
Thank you year of 2015. There was a lot of downs, some true hard times. Missing family and friends back home etc. There was still much love, laughter and joy. I have met so many incredible people during this year. I have gained a lot of experience true the year and made some good memories. I have the best friends ever on this island! Without them I don´t know where I would be. I have so much to be thankful of!:) Love you all! I also have the best family back home! Though we don´t talk that often I still have them there when ever I need them. I will also always be there for them!<3
I hope the year of 2016 will be a little bit lighter and whatever it brings, I know I´m going to be stronger! I will try my best to give back as much as I can! I just have to take one day at the time! Cherish the moments you have with your love ones and don´t be too hard on your self. Life is too short and not that serious. May the next year bring only joy to everyone! <3
Hello.
Hope everyone had a relaxing and joyful Christmas with your love ones :). Hope you gave yourself time to rest and to enjoy all the good food the holiday brings along.
So what about now? The New Year is just around the corner. Any New Year´s resolutions? Excited, or does it feel difficult to get started? Your motivation is gone and you just want to give up, not do anything?
Don´t worry! I bet you´re not the only one. We all have these days now and then. It´s totally normal. Especially after a longer holiday where you allow yourself to take a break from your daily routines. But you know what? You just have to get right back to it!:) That´s what life is all about. We cannot allow ourselves to take too long of a break. We have responsibilities in life as human beings. It can feel hard in the beginning but just keep on moving, taking one day at a time. It can only get better :).
Especially with fitness, the struggle can be real sometimes. As a coach, I see and hear it once in awhile. Why is that? Why do people think that any kind of sports or fitness is less important that anything else? Why leave that out and let everything else come first? Your car is more important to take care of than your health and body? So who´s going to drive the car if something happens to you?
Do people even think like this? Maybe not, maybe I´m the only one. Sometimes I just wish that people would slow down, drop down and do a squat. LOL! :) No, seriously. To do any kind of activity daily would prevent us from so many doctor visits. You might not believe it now, but everyone gets older day by day and age does not come alone. And believe me, it does not take much of your time. I have put this out before: ONE HOUR workout is 4% of your day. So stop making excuses and just get it over with :).
As I said, the New Year of 2016 is soon approaching, and everyone is thinking about new beginnings. So why not start it today, why wait?!
That´s why I now want to share two amazing stories of two different people. These two awesome men work out at our gym, Crossfit Key West. They are not only hard working athletes, but also incredible, humble, loving, and kind people. They have a smile on their face every time they come in to the gym. They are happy, they make jokes, they laugh, they dance, they cheer others on, but most of all, they do their absolutely best every time for each workout! They want to be better, healthier and stronger. They are some true inspirations and 100% dedicated to what they do.
Before I unveil who these two men are I just have to share this video that one of them send me. I bet some of you have already seen it, but this video is so hilarious and points right on how people can feel around this time of year when it comes to getting back to the gym.
OMG, LOL!! Can not stop laughing! :D What a well done video, or what do you think?
Let me now tell you about the journey of DAVIDand JOHNNY<3
David started crossfit: January 2015 Age: 53 Weight then: Weight now: 240 lbs 195 lbs Size then: Size now: XXL. 40 L. 34
Deadlift then (in workouts): Deadlift now: 85 lbs 115 lbs
Here we have David in a blue shirt and red shorts on my left hand side. This picture was taken (sorry for bad quality) 39 weeks ago.
David and Johnny also did the 24 day challenge with Advocare a while ago. That gave them even more results :).
JOHNNY started crossfit: April 2015 Age: 49 Weight then: Weight now: 230 lbs 180 lbs Size then: Size now: XL. 40 M. 32
Deadlift then (in workouts): Deadlift now: 55 lbs 135 lbs
When they started they were both overweight. Their mobility was bad and we had to modify almost all the movements. Now, well I don´t even know where to start. They have come such a long way. Their mobility is getting better day by day. David fought his fear with the box and does now 24 inch box jumps together with his wife who got them the same day :). He also gets upside down in a handstand and manages to do pull ups in the workouts. His overhead squats are finally getting lower and not to talk about how he´s killing those rope climbs :). This man is not the only motivator in the Mahoney family. David´s lovely wife started Crossfit at the same time as him and has dropped weight too. Not a long time ago their teenage son also joined our family and is doing incredibly good as well. You know the saying; "family who train together, stay together". <3
Today David killed the 20min amrap with a total of 6+5 rounds. He did the front squats with a weight of 105lbs. The box jumps and pull ups he did with no problem.
"BEAST MODE", he said!:)
Johnny, omg, what a inspiration too!:) He gets stronger day by day. He finishes the workouts in no time, even with small dance steps in between ;). His drive is amazing. He just wants to get better. You can say that this man is literally in love with Crossfit <3. He is not leaving a workout undone. He is a real trooper! <3 We almost lost him, when he got hospitalized for kidney failure. Thank God for good medicine Johnny can now continue doing what he loves. We are so blessed to have him with us. It would not be the same without him!
Both of these men show that age is just a number. It is never too late to start, and Crossfit really is meant for anybody!:) So people, let this be a motivation to start. NOW!:)
Oikein Hyvää Joulua kaikille :). Toivottavasti te siellä koti Suomessa olette saaneet nauttia hyvästä seurasta ja herkullisesta ruuasta. Jospa minäkin vihdoinkin löytäisin aikaa rauhoittua. Täällä päässä se joulumieli ei vain oikein millään tule. Et erota päivä toisesta. Ihailet kaikkia jouluvaloja ympäri saarta, mutta joulutunnelma on vaikea löytää. Iso syy siihen on myös että olen tehnyt töitä kuin hullu. "Joka päivä töitä teen". Ei vain ole ollut aikaa mihinkään. Jopa tänään oli aikainen herätys töihin. Sali oli täynnä reippaita asiakkaita jotka halusivat saada treeni pois alta ennen joulupöytää. Onneksi huomenna saankin nukkua ennen kuin työt kutsuvat jälleen illalla.
Päivästä tai pyhästä huolimatta, kotia on aina ikävä. Kunpa välimatka olisi lyhyempi. Ikävöin eniten omaa mammaa. Kiitos päivän tekniikasta sain eilen pari ihanaa viestiä häneltä ja veljen lapsista. Heillä on onneksi kaikki hyvin <3 Lapset kasvavat päivä päivältä. Aika se vain rientää. Ensi vuonna saankin sitten vain toivoa että he tulevat tänne ;).
ÄLSKAR ER!! <3 <3
Muuten kaikki on täällä oikein hyvin. Jotain kivaa olen sentään ehtinyt tehdä myös työni ohella. Pari viikkoa sitten ystäväni pyysivät minut mukaan juna ajelulle ympäri saarta ihailemaan asukkaiden jouluvaloja. Tämä oli minulle jotakin uutta ja todella mukavaa :). Ainakin hetkellisesti tuli joulu tunnelma.
Tänä vuonna pidimme myös vuosittaiset joulu juhlat salilla. Oi, että oli hauskaa. Juhlaväki oli jopa suurempi kuin viime vuonna. Tämä tietysti lämmittää sydäntä <3. Meillä on aivan paras joukko ihmisiä. Olemme yhtä suurta perhettä :). I LOVE YOU GUYS!
Joten tässä pieni slide show meidän onnistuneesta illasta <3. ENJOY! ;)
THANK YOU Yvon for the pictures and Jeremy for putting this together. You are the BEST! <3
This time I want to give a shout out to my beautiful friend who is a makeup artist/aestheticianand the owner of Casa Salon. She is the one who makes sure my eyes look beautiful ;).
So living back home I used to have my lashes done every third week. I drove all the way to another town to make myself pretty ;). Why? Well, simply because, you who know me, I´m very blond. I don´t have any color on my lashes or my eyebrows. Also when you do what I do, you don´t wear makeup to work, only when you go out. That´s why this is a good option for me.
In the beginning of my time on the island, I used to get my lashes done for a lot. The girl who did them at that time was not that good. So when Inna offered to do my lashes, I of course wanted to give it a try. And I have been absolutely satisfied :). Inna has now been taking care of me for a few months now, and I am really happy with the results.
As I said, these can stay on for 3 to 4 weeks depending how they´re being taken care of. At first it can be difficult to get used to them. You have to remember not to rub your eyes the same way as before. The first few days you should also not use water on your eyes just for giving the glue time to dry. I personally, don´t use water most of the time on them at all. Instead, I clean my face with facial wipes and makeup remover. Other then that, you really don´t have to do much, except brush them once in awhile to keep them looking nice.
For that, you can use your old mascara brush.
People usually ask if you need to use any mascara. And the answer is NO! That´s the reason you have these lashes.
For me it´s also important that they look as real as possible. I don´t want them to be too long or too curly. With that been said, there are different lengths that you can choose from. Inna understands me though, and knows exactly which fits me and my face the best. That´s why she is a professional :).
A lot of people may think that this is a waste of money etc etc. But we all have our own way of taking care of ourselves so we feel beautiful. Some of us go to the hairdresser once a month and some of us go get a facial. This is my way. And believe me, if I was dark and beautiful with long lashes and a perfect brown color on my skin I wouldn´t do this either, lol :). We all have our own ways.
So if you are excited to try this on, I would warmly recommend The Casa Salon!! <3 Go and check out their services from the link above and give them a call!:)
