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Hey Fam,

“He that is good for making excuses is seldom good for anything else.” Benjamin Franklin

I’m at it again, huh?  Allowing several weeks/months to go by before I enter a new post.  Well, I have absolutely no excuse.  Tons of reasons, but no excuse.  The only thing I can do is apologize and simply say, I’m going to do my very best to do better and be more consistent with my post.

I have so many exciting things to share and talk about.   You’re probably saying that I better because it’s been almost two months.  Well, since my last post, I performed in the spring recital with the Adult Modern Dance Company that I was apart of at Body Moves, on April 24th and it went very well.  It definitely let me know that I still have it.  I am a little rusty, but if I wanted to focus on dance again, I believe that I could.  And that made me feel good.  I then performed in the Secret Lives of Ministry Wives (SLMW) on Mother’s Day.  This gospel stage play was written by Nicole Morgan and adapted from her book, Half Minister, Half Mistress.  The show was received very well.  It was standing room only in the house and she is currently working on putting the show up again next month. 

I had a fabulous party planned for my youngest son for his 4th birthday on  April 30th.  We were going to have a moon-bounce, popcorn machine, cotton candy machine, pinata, cupcakes, juice and chips at his daycare with all of his classmates and friends.  I had decided to take the party to the kids instead of inviting the kids to a party, you know.  My poor little pumpkin woke up the morning of his big day withSTREP THROAT!!  I was devastated!!  He had started acting a little different two days prior to his birthday and I wish I had taken him to the doctor the next day (Thursday) because I may not have had to cancel his big party.  I rushed him to the doctor at Noon, thinking he had an ear infection and if he got some antibiotics in his system he would be good to go for his party at 3pm.  But instead, we found out he couldn’t be around any other kids for 24 hrs because he had strep throat.  I was crushed!!  I had been planning this party for him ALL month.  Once he got the antibiotics in his system, he slept until about 9pm and then we sang happy birthday, cut the cake and he opened a few presents when he woke up.  We had the family and close friends over for a fish fry on Sunday afternoon to give him a small party and celebrate his 4thyear of birth.  My birthday was May 6th and I actually spent it in tech rehearsal for SLMW.  My hubby had a few family members over the next day for dinner and a movie.

Now I’m focusing on building my business of MULTIPLE STREAMS OF INCOME.  I have a plan to be back home and working for myself again.  I’m tired of working hard for someone else, building someone else’s dream, when I know I can focus that same discipline and energy and work hard for myself.  It’s My Time, as Joel Osteen says.  It’s My Time and the count down is on!  I am in alignment!  I am focused!  I am praying everyday!  And I trust and believe that I will be back home soon and very soon!!

Until Next Time!!

Donnese

“The chains of habit are generally too small to be felt until they are too strong to be broken.”  Samuel Johnson

Hello Fam,

How are you on this fine Thursday?  I can’t believe April is almost over.  But I’m so excited that May is just around the corner.  I am a May baby, so I love the spring.  I can do without the pollen and the ragweed and stuff, though.  But allergies are a small price I’m willing to pay for the beautiful weather.  Is it me, or does it seem like allergies are worse these days?  I don’t remember it being this bad growing up.  With May being just around the corner, you know what that means?  Summer is closer than you think. 

You’re probably wondering what I am so shocked about, huh?  Well, I will get to that in a minute.  Let me reiterate what I mentioned in last week’s post, I AM in Alignment!!  Things seem to really be moving in a positive direction for me and I’m not going to let my thoughts or any outside factors change that. 

“Your goals, minus your doubts, equal your reality.”  Ralph Marston

I’ve always considered myself a positive person.  I’m usually the peace maker, the half-full girl, the one giving inspiration and motivation to others, BUT I’ve always doubted myself.  I have to admit that I get in my own way.  I have doubted myself quite often and thus have “delayed” my success.

“Doubt yourself and you doubt everything you see.  Judge yourself and you see judges everywhere.  But if you listen to the sound of your own voice, you can rise above doubt and judgment.  And you can see forever.”  Nancy Lopez

I’ve been studying the Law of Attraction and I can honestly say when I am  practicing it – focusing on positive thinking; living it – deciding what I want, asking for it, taking action and preparing to receive it, the “Universe” responds, or another way to say it is, the Lord provides!!  What you ”think about and thank about, you bring about.”  Now don’t get me wrong.  You can’t just think and ask without action.  The majority of those people who are known as an “overnight success”, trust me, they have been diligently and actively working and pursuing their careers for YEARS!!!  Positive thoughts can definitely lead to success.  As Bob Proctor would say, you can achieve success in just 6 minutes.  It’s time to start changing your life – 6 minutes at a time.  My future is looking really bright!!

So, what is it that I’m so SHOCKED about?  What am I convinced works?  Something that I asked for, thought about and received.  A way for me to lose the weight, without really having to exercise, because you know a sista’ has to keep that fresh press as long as I can.  Well, the universe answered, by way of my husband and it’s The Warrior Diet.  I never would have believed it.  I actually didn’t believe it in the beginning.  But when I saw how much weight he was dropping, I said hold up, let me try this.  I’m not even following it 100% because I’m not working out.  I’m not taking any of the vitamins/supplements.  I have just simply changed the way I eat.  Yes, I dance maybe once a week and I am constantly on the go, but in no way will I say I’m “working out”.  I’ve always thought, have been told and believed that ‘you have to eat 5-6 small meals a day to speed up your metabolism.’  ’If you deprive yourself of food your body is going to store the fat.’  Who would have thought that under-eating during the day and overeating at night would give me the fastest results I have ever experienced.  I have lost four (4) more pounds since my last post.  That’s in seven days, by the way!  And I probably could have lost even more if I had been working out and followed the diet to the “T” (meaning didn’t eat that bread pudding, or those chips or those cookies, or…well you get the point).  I am focused and committed.  Like I said.  I am picturing myself in a two piece this summer (I’ve worn a “mother’s bathing suit” for the past 2 yrs).  And never wanted fall victim to fooling myself and others by wearing some sort of garment under my clothes that makes it “appear” as if I’ve lost weight.  Now don’t get me wrong!!  In no way am I knocking those who chose to do this because they do work miracles for some people.  I just know that I love the pool, the beach and tanning, so I can’t be all covered up, you know.  Some of you may say, ah go ‘head girl and be happy with your body and just wear the bathing suit you want to wear regardless of the size!!  I could just let it all hang out I guess.  But I would definitely prefer to fit the bathing suit & be comfortable and NOT embarrassed & talked about, okay!

So, if you are looking for a diet that works, I would definitely recommend The Warrior Diet.  It’s NOT an easy program, but if you stick to it and stay focused your body will get used to it and you will definitely see results.

Until Next Time!!

Donnese

“Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our life. If we were to go through our life without any obstacles, we would be crippled. We would not be as strong as what we could have been. Give every opportunity a chance, leave no room for regrets, and don’t forget the power in the struggle.”

Hey Fam,

It’s been a real struggle these past two weeks for me physically, emotionally & financially.  Something has got to give.  I’m trying to stay focused and think positive, BUT it’s hard.It’s been a real struggle these past two weeks for me physically, emotionally & financially.  Something has got to give.  I’m trying to stay focused and think positive, BUT it’s hard.  I’m not going to lie.  I am yet again falling victim to self sabotage.  I did NOT work out at all last week because I was feeling ill, I was letting life get the best of me and get me down.  All it takes is one little hiccup for me to loose focus and stop working towards my goal.  If I don’t see immediate results or immediate success, I STOP.  I GIVE UP on achieving the goal.  I was loosing the inches, but the weight was not dropping.  I even think the inches have returned, which SUCKS!!  It’s really hard motivating myself and keeping myself on track.  I will give myself every reason/excuse to quit.  I want the weight to fall off easily, like it used to.  I’ve started back this week.  I worked out yesterday morning and I danced/rehearsed last night, as well.  What usually happens around this time is I will deprive myself of food, which I know is not healthy, BUT!  the weight comes off.  I need immediate results and then I will do what is necessary to maintain the weight loss. 

Oh My Goodness!!  In the middle of typing my blog, I decided to look up LA Weight Loss because I was on the plan and it worked for me.  I THOUGHT they went out of business, BUT there is a website.   I may have to look into joining the program again, because I know it works!!!  This would definitely help me coupled with working out 3 -4 days a week.  I’m not going to fool myself into thinking that I’m going to work out everyday anymore.  OH, because I forgot to tell you.  I took my braids out, so now I’m dealing with sweating and figuring out what to do with my hair now that I don’t have a perm.  That’s HUGE!!

Okay, so I’m feeling hopeful, again.  I’m going to look into the LA Weight Loss program and let you all know what my findings are.

Until next time,

Donnese

Boy, oh boy.  Where do I begin.  It’s been a minute since I’ve posted, hasn’t it?  About a week and a half I think. 

I’ve had a pretty rough past two weeks.  Physically, Mentally, Financially and Emotionally.  The devil has really been busy, but I refuse to let him be victorious.  I did work out 15 consecutive days (since 10/4), with some dance rehearsals and two performances in there, as well.  It really felt good dancing at Towson last Saturday (10/17/09).  I didn’t realize how much I missed dancing.  I get such a rush whenever I’m dancing, so I’m definitely going to keep that going.  Many of you may not know that I also joined an adult dance company last month, so I will be performing more often now. 

I had a doctor’s appointment on Monday, and the doctor recommended that I take some days off in between working out to give my muscles some recovery time.  I really don’t believe that’s necessary, but because the devil was busy at the time she told me that, of course I did it and took off on Monday and Wednesday of this week.  I know.  Messed up right?  But, I did it.  I’ve just been so drained and tired lately, I don’t know why or what happened all of a sudden.  I feel my body trying to break down and receive a cold or something, but I of course am not claiming illness and doing whatever I can to prevent that.  I can’t seem to get up early and work out like I used to.  Nowadays I seem to be waking up even more tired then I was when I went to sleep and I can’t explain why.  Maybe we need to invest in a new mattress or something.  I don’t know.  It’s been pretty rough and I need to quit whining, suck it up, and do what I have to do.  It’s extremely hard, but I know what needs to be done.  I can’t keep doing the same things and expect different results.  If I want change to happen I have to do what needs to be done to make it happen.  I just had to vent for a moment, I guess.  You know, get it all out.  Talk it out.  Blogging seems to be therapeutic for me, so I need to make sure I do it as often as I can.  And now I need to do what I have to do to get back on track and back where I was when I begin this journey on July 27th.  I was well on my to working out for 90 consecutive days, BUT I let life get in the way.  Again, here I go with the self sabotage.  I stopped myself from accomplishing something.  I stopped myself from achieving a goal.  I stopped myself from succeeding.  I took my eyes off the prize and I feel short.  I can’t blame anyone else but myself.  So, TONIGHT I am starting all over again.  Tonight will be Day 1 of my journey.

Hey Fam,

Today was day 6.  It sucks that I had to start over!!  But nonetheless, I’m still working out.  I’ve been switching back and forth between Tony Horton’s 10 Minute Trainer and Jillian Michael’s 30 Day Shred II.  I’m also dancing again, so that’s just icing on the cake.  I dance on Tuesday nights for 2 hours.  I can definitely see a huge improvement in my abdominal strength in class.  Kathy Smith, instructor/choreographer, is a master of the (Lester) Horton Technique and every week in our warm up we must execute 8, 4, 2 and 1 count coccyx balances.  This balance requires the use of our abdominal muscles the entire time.  There was a time when I would quit in the middle of the warm up, lay flat on my back because my abs were streaming and I’d barely even make it through the warm up.  NOW, I can make it through the entire coccyx balance warm up without stopping and I owe it all to Jillian and Tony.

Until next time,

Donnese Tyler

Hey Fam,

How is everyone.  I’m a day late, but I’m getting it in.  For those of you who checked yesterday and didn’t see a new posting, I do apologize.

I’m a little bit upset, but it’s okay.  I had an extremely long day on Saturday because my oldest son (6yo) competed in his first Tae Kwon Do Tournament.  I am extremely proud of him because,  I’ll admit, I was worried about how he was gonna do.  The week prior to the event he wasn’t remembering his Poomse (Traditional Forms routine), he wasn’t focusing, he wasn’t executing with power and was just lazily (is this a word?) going through the motions.  He didn’t seem to be receptive to any of the suggestions that we would give him and I was starting to think that he wasn’t going to do well at all.  WELL, my baby showed up and showed out.  He really made me proud.  He displayed confidence, executed with power and didn’t miss a move while in the Traditional Forms category.  He brought home the 2nd place trophy in this event.  He made momma proud. 

The 2nd category he competed in was Sparring.  I was scared to death!!  This is the category that he needs the most practice.  There was no one else competing in his weight class and belt division, so he ended up bringing home the 1st place trophy.  But he did participate in an exhibition match with a 8 year hold Korean little girl, and well ahhh, she shut him out.  Needless to say, the day was definitely a learning experience for him and an eye opener to what he can accomplish and what he needs to work on.  I’M SO PROUD OF MY BABY.

I say all of this to say, I was gone all morning and all afternoon and when I got home I completely forgot that I didn’t get my workout in that morning.  To make up for it though, I doubled up on Sunday and did a workout in the morning and another one that night.  I am so upset that I broke my streak!!  I worked out 68 consecutive days!!  68 DAYS IN A ROW!!  I was well on my way to 90 Days and I missed a day.  I am soooo bumbed!!!  BUT, I did start over on Sunday, so I’m on Day 3.  I’ve been mixing it up so far and doing both the 30 Day Shred II, Tony Horton’s 10 minute trainer, dance class and rehearsal.  People are telling me that they can see a difference, they can see that I’ve lost inches, but MAN!!  the scale still doesn’t reflect that.  I know, I know!!  I haven’t committed to a eating plan, yet.  I really need to do that.  I’m sure as soon as I do that, the pounds will start falling off.

Until the next time,

Proud Momma

Hey Fam,

I missed blogging Tuesday and I do apologize.  It was a pretty busy day and night that day.  Even though I may not blog, I do continue to workout EVERYDAY.  I make sure I get in at least 10 minutes morning or night.

I started Turbo Jam on my 61st Day.  I’ve been doing 20 Minute Jam and Ab Jam, but I feel like I’ve stabilized as far as my inches are concerned.  I think I need to step up my workouts.  I don’t think Turbo Jam is doing it for me right now.  I think I’m going to switch to Jillian Michaels ‘30 Day Shred III.  I’m going to begin this in the morning.

I’m trying not to get frustrated or be discouraged but it’s hard.  I should be exactly where I want to be right now because I’ve worked out every single cotton pickin’ day for 67 consecutive days.  But I’m not!  I not the size I want to be.  I’m not the weight I want to be.  I guess I’m not working out hard enough!!  Usually this is the point when I would give up.  Usually I say it’s no use, it’s not working, just forget it.  But this time I’m not going to quit.  the devil is a liar!!  Enough is enough.  Starting tomorrow I’m going to step it up.  I’m going to workout at LEAST 30 minutes every day.  Period!

Until tomorrow,

Donnese

Hey Fam,

I can’t believe I have worked out for 60 Days straight!!  It makes me feel good, BUT let’s just cut to the chase, the weight is not coming off.  I feel extremely fat this week!!  I’m getting ready to stop eating, but I know, I know, that’s not what I’m supposed to do.  Definition, toning and losing inches is a plus, but losing weight just means so much more.  Seriously?  I’m just not gonna lose weight like that?  It’s so frustrating!  I’m not eating bad; I guess maybe I’m not eating enough though.  I’m so frustrated, but I guess I’m not fed up enough yet ’cause I haven’t committed to a diet yet.  I’m almost there, though.

Well, tomorrow I’m starting my next 30 Days and I’ll be doing Turbo Jam.  I’m looking forward to it because Turbo Jam is high impact, high energy and lots of fun.  I’m also doubling it up now on Tuesdays (adult dance class and company) and this Saturday I have a dance rehearsal at Towson University.  I will be dancing with  alumni celebrating one of our professor’s, Nancy Wanich Romita’s, 25th anniversary with Towson’s Dance Department.

I’m so ready to get my body back.  I’m so ready to be my ideal size and weight.  I’m so ready to be happy with myself again.

Until the next time,

Donnese

Hey Fam,

Okay!  So, today was the 58 consecutive day of working out.  I have made it a point to do anywhere from 15 - 45 minutes every single day.  During the week, I work out first thing in the morning.  On the weekend though, I will admit that I workout in the afternoon or before bedtime.  BUT, I make sure I get it in. 

Today was also the 28 consecutive day of Tony Horton’s 10 minute trainer. – Total Body, Lower Body, Abs, Cardio and Yoga.  It is amazing how hard he work you out and how much you sweat in just 1o minutes.  I am going to hopefully work my way up to and prepare myself for Tony Horton’s Power 90X.  I’m at the point now where I am able to complete the workouts with minimal modifications.  But that kinda sucks because my 30 days is up in two days. 

What’s th 2, you ask?  Well I am happy to report that I came out of retirement last Tuesday and started dancing again.  Today was my second (2) dance class and rehearsal for an adult dance company that I am now a part of.  I am so thankful that I have been working out for almost 60 days because I’m not as out of shape as I would have been.  Out of practice?  YES!  Loss of technique?  YEP!!  Extra pounds?  ABSOLUTELY!!  But it’s all good, because I look at it like this.  Next summer I’m going to be EXACTLY where I want to be.  As long as I stay focused and committed to my working out everyday, I will achieve my goal.  I will let you all know when and where the adult dance company will be performing, okay.  I’m so excited.  I just have to make sure that I stay healthy and injury free.  That’s one of the reasons why I retired in the first place.  But dance is definitely my passion and I feel so alive and happy now that I’m back .

You may not know, but I graduated from Towson University, formerly Towson State University with a BFA in Dance.  One of my instructors is celebrating 25 years of service at TU and I will be dancing with some of the alumni at her celebratory performance on October 17th.  We have our first rehearsal this Saturday.  Can you believe it?  I go a year and a half without working out or dancing and as soon as I make the decision to get back into shape, boom, two performance opportunities come my way.  Who’d a thunk?

This Friday is the first day of my 3rd – 30 Day Stretch.  I think I’m going to do Turbo Jam, but I’m not sure.  I’ll make my final decision on Thursday!

Until next time,

Donnese Monique