Chick-fil-A days

 Today was my last official day working at CFA. I use the word "official" because I'm keeping my uniform in the closet in case the Griffin boys are in a crunch one day and need an extra hand.

 

I'm excited that I can put focus on becoming the best personal trainer that I can be. I have gotten more clients in the last few weeks and have been LOVING helping them work towards their health and fitness goals.

 

So, after my last scheduled day of working at CFA, I reminisced over the last 21 months. It was such a privilege to be a part of Grand Opening in August 2011. I wanted to post a few pics from that big day/week!

 

Ribbon Cutting with the Mayor

 

First Bite!

The Griffin fam at Dedication Dinner



Fast forward to One Year anniversary celebration!

 Such a blessing to have been a Chick-fil-A scholarship recepient!

 

It's been a blast working side by side with Jarred . . .  .

 



24th birthday

Monday, Jarred and I celebrated my 24th birthday. Started my morning out at work. And saw a suprise little birthday cake on my watch. Made me feel special :)

 

 

After a full day of work and school, Jarred and I headed over to Outback for a celebration dinner with David and Kimberly. We're so thankful to have them in Lake Charles with us (especially since we're so far away from the rest of our family).

 

Anyone that knows my dad also knows that he likes to have a good time and has a child-like spirit. So, I got a package in the mail with lots of Minnie Mouse birthday party decorations. Jarred and I decided to share the love with David and Kimberly, so we made party favor bags for them. Who doesn't love getting to act like a kid every once in a while??

 

The package included a ribbon for the birthday girl! You may not see it in the picture, but it says "fabulous." And that's just how I felt with Minnie Mouse on my shirt ;)

 

Altogether, it was a great day! One of my favorite parts was getting to chat on the phone with loved ones who I miss. Facetime with my nieces, Maggie and Katie, was definitely a highlight!

 

Looking forward to a great year of 24 years old!

Second Crawfish Boil

Little did I know when we moved to Louisiana, how much the Cajuns love their crawfish. Well. . . Jarred and I have definitely been enjoying the culture by going to our second crawfish boil of the season.

 

 

This one was at our church, Trinity Baptist. It was such a good time with a great turnout. There were about 1300 people there, and 2800 pounds of crawfish consumed.

 

Games, sports, bounce houses, and inflatable obstacle courses made the day fun for all ages!

 

 

And what would a Baptist get together be without lots and lots of food! In addition to the crawfish, there were hamburgers and hotdogs. Plus, EIGHT tables full of dessert (four of which are in the pic below)!!!

 

After a long week of work and school, Jarred and I were so glad to spend some time together with some dear friends.

 

One of those friends include . . . the Beasleys! Isabella never fails to entertain us!

 

Good time, good food, and good fellowship!

Nutrition Cont'd

Nutrition Habit #4
Stop Eating Three Hours Before Bedtime!

If you have planned your meals correctly throughout the day, you shouldn’t need to eat anything right before bed. Often the calories that are consumed after dinner are those that are eaten not because you are hungry and need the energy but because of habitual patterns or boredom. If you find yourself needing to eat late at night, choose something that is low in calories just to get you by until morning.

Nutrition habit #5
Control Your Portion Sizes!

You've got to pay attention to your portion sizes. We are victims of a society that is hooked on supersizing everything…supersize drinks, monster size cookies, muffins and bagels and astronomical sized restaurant entrees. For many of us, it may not be that our food choices are poor, we may just be eating too much of a good thing. Out of control portions will lead to weight gain and often cause people to feel lethargic. If at the end of the day, you have expended fewer calories than the number of calories you have consumed from any source, you will store these calories as fat.

Lindy's visit

Lindy came in town this weekend for some sweet sibling quality time. We kicked the weekend off with coffee and beignets at Stellar Beans (our fav coffee shop downtown). So, I love the environment in this place. Art by local artists hang on the wall. Couches and chess games make it warm and relaxing. And the workers have a chill, hippy type attitude.

I loved taking Lindy to the Trinity Center and showing her around at my new job. It's so fun having a sister-in-law that enjoys exercise like I do. I treated her to the stretch/massage that I give each client after a good workout.

I had a few hours of work that afternoon. This included two complimentary personal training sessions, working to get new clients. It was such a productive week. . . I gained five new clients (3 of which are family, two sisters and the mother)! I am absolutely thrilled to be helping these women achieve their goals, which ranges from running a 5k to competing in a pageant.

Back to sibling weekend. . . Saturday morning Lindy wanted to "be the cow" at Chick-fil-A. The sister suited up and entertained the children inside the restaurant and drivers out by the road.

 

Lindy was having so much fun, I decided to join her as a the little cow. Check out the video on Lindy's Facebook page. :)

 

That afternoon we headed to a good ole Louisiana crawfish boil. Our Sunday School class gathered for good food and fellowship. My inexperienced self trying to peel those crawfish, ended up relying on my friend Rachel to do most of the work. She peeled about 12 while I was still working on the first one, and made a nice little pile of meat for me to eat. It was delicious!

 

Saturday night, Jarred and I hosted cooking dinner. We always love having friends/family over to our home.

 

Sunday morning = church time. Then Kimberly cooked a yummy lunch for everyone, which was followed by nap time. Suprise, suprise. We hardly ever go a Sunday afternoon without a nap. God tells us to rest on the Sabbath, and we obey! :)

 

Lindy and Jarred went shopping in preparation for the Master's. Jarred got a whole new outfit (including new shades) for the occasion. (He hardly EVER buys new clothes, so it was kind of a big deal.) The girls (Kimberly, Lindy, and myself) spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing at the nail salon getting our toes and nails did. So relaxing and such a treat!

 

We finished up the weekend with some tasty Mexican, at one of our fav places called El Paso. The weekend kicked off Spring Break for me and Jarred. . . . Spring Break means 5 and 1/2 weeks of class until graduation! And graduation means the family (Griffins, Neymans, and Gorveattes) is coming to visit in LC!!!! :)

More Nutrition Habits

Nutrition Habit #2
Drink more water!

 Did you know that 50-70% of our total body weight is water? Think of it this way, every tissue cell, organ and system is comprised of water and functions optimally only in the presence of adequate water levels. So even fat loss will not occur at an optimal rate if you are in a dehydrated state. Plus water helps to suppress our appetite. To maintain your body’s fluid balance, you need to replace at least the 10 cups of water (80 ounces) everyday.

 
Nutrition Habit #3
Plan your meals so that you consume 5 small meals and snacks throughout the day!
Your metabolism, the rate at which you burn calories for internal functions, is like an engine – the more often you give it fuel, the better it works. When you deprive your body of food, even for short periods of time, your metabolism automatically slows down in order to preserve energy. And a slowed metabolism makes it much more difficult to lose weight and much easier to gain weight. The good news is you can get your body to work for you instead of against you. The rule should be that you do not go any more than three to four hours without eating something.

Nutrition Tips

There are so many fad diets out there, which may help with initial weight loss results. However, often times these diets are not upheld for very long, and people can't or won't stick to them.

At LiveFit7, I help clients adhere to a healthy eating lifestyle by giving them "weekly tips" (the tips vary depending on the client's current nutritional status). One of the most important things to learn is that a healthy lifestyle is the key to maintaining or improving one's health and fitness.

There are 9 Nutrition Habits I want to share in the next few posts:


Nutrition Habit 1

Consume a balanced diet that is rich in fiber. You will want to ensure your diet is 60% carbohydrate content - Of this amount 50% should be in the form of fruits and vegetables and complex carbohydrates which are your whole grain products and no more than 10% from simple carbohydrates (cakes, cookies, ice cream etc.) Be sure to avoid white (enriched, refined, bleached) breads, pastas and rice. Avoid foods where sugars like High Fructose Corn Syrup are listed as one of the first few ingredients.

More to come!!