Healthy Living

Tonight, I went into the kitchen ready to grill up my normal chicken and veggies, but really wanted a bit of variety! If you know me, you know I love to bake. I make cupcakes for everyone, dabble in cookies for kicks, and have a Butter Nut Cake that no one can turn down. When it comes to cooking, I’m a bit new to the game! Baking has always been so simple…combine ingredients and throw it in the oven. Cooking seems to take a little more attention, time and patience (three things I do not have when it comes to food!).

I follow several recipe and cooking sites through Twitter, but can never find the kind of recipes I need. My new best friend is the crock pot, but I don’t always have time to whip it all up in the morning and let it stew all day. Basically, I need some good recipes for chicken, turkey, vegetables and snacks which are low in sugars, carbs and fats. I seem to be a proteinatarian right now, and am afraid I may turn into a protein bar soon! Luckily, I’ve been eating nothing but turkey and chicken for years now (can we say picky eater?) and have yet to start clucking! I sometimes forget to eat meat, so anything which is quick and simple for meat would be fantastic. Any great recipes you’d be willing to share? I know you’re looking at this blog…might as well pass on a great, healthy recipe. If you do, I’ll make it and share on the blog!

Also, you can vote until April 25th for the June Twenty Something Magazine Girl! Since June is the month of Miss Oklahoma, I would really appreciate your help in making Miss Sooner State the featured twenty something! Keep checking back (or subscribe!) because I have A LOT of speaking engagements and appearances coming up in the next few weeks. I love being able to share my platform with others and create safer social environments!

Getting RESULTS

Early Saturday morning (we’re not talkin’ 11:30 am, I mean NINE AM!), I took a bold step towards achieving a huge goal – I met with a personal trainer. Swimsuit is an area which I’ve always been about average in. Typically, I can’t accept average – but when it is the difference between eating a cinnamon roll or a celery, I have gladly selected the cinnamon roll.

Until the later years of college recently, I hadn’t even stepped foot on a treadmill, elliptical, or that scary high stepper machine. After dancing for years, my body had always been in shape and I was very fit and healthy (aside from the fact that I ate absolutely no greens). As my body has matured (and I stopped dancing daily), it has taken a more womanly shape. Sure, I’ve always had a small waist and hips that are larger (yet proportionate) in comparison, but when you’re 5’2″ gravity (or the cinnamon rolls) has to set in at some point!

One of the goals I set for myself this year is to win swimsuit. At Miss Oklahoma, that’s quite a feat! This year one of the swimsuit winners went on to become Miss Oklahoma and win swimsuit at the national level. Needless to say, the competition is pretty thick (not literally, they’re all quite thin, muscular, and ripped!). In order to achieve that goal, I decided to work with someone who not only pushed his clients, but set feasible and realistic standards.

Brian Attebery and I met on Saturday morning, which was an hour drive from my hometown, Shawnee. If I’m waking up before 7:30 am to be somewhere, you know it’s a big deal! Brian was exactly what I expected and more. He is intelligent and seriously knows what he is talking about. Somewhere he lost me in the explanation of how blood sugar, glucose and other scientific words work, but in the end it all made sense and I was ready to take off the body fat and put on muscle!

While Brian is super smart (he’s a Sooner alum – need I say more?), he is also very concerned about teaching his “girls” how to maintain a healthy, manageable lifestyle. He doesn’t believe in crash diets or three hours of cardio a day – lucky for me! Brian’s plan is very realistic and he understands that college students have a lot on their plate and a packed schedule. He worked with me to create a meal plan revolving around foods I will actually eat, and provided options as well so I won’t get burnt out.

After typing up a healthy, balanced diet, he created a workout regimen with various forms of weightlifting and cardio. I have scoliosis, causing a lot of back pain, but Brian was very knowledgable about working with a spine curvature. He took that, and my bum ankle, into consideration when designing my plan, giving me a safe work out to follow. Another pro about Brian is that he actually cares about the people he works with. I felt like I actually got to know Brian. He learned about my family, school and we even found a few commonalities!

Now that the initial meeting is complete, I just have to do what he says. I’m determined to lead a healthier lifestyle and develop positive work out habits. Though easier said than done – in the long run my body will thank me!