A Letter of Gratitude to My Trainer & Friend, Rob Lagana

Dear Rob,

Wow!!! Here we are, less than a month away from Dec 10, 2009!!! This year has truly flown by. I have so much to say. I did not want to wait until the end of the journey (or what I am calling "the beginning of my new and permanent lifestyle), to write you this letter. Expressing gratitude has always been significantly important to me and I really want to do this one right. Rob, I know you would be perfectly happy with me just saying, "thanks a lot Rob, we did it!" but I wouldn't be. So here goes...

Even at my heaviest weight, I was never one to be low on confidence or self-esteem, but where I lacked strength was in believing in my ability to lose this weight. I just lived with it and for the most part, wasn't overly bothered by it until I reached my breaking point. That's when I contacted you. From the moment I met you and we discussed the plan, I felt an immediate energy - it was strong and it felt right. I knew then and there (I really did), that you were the person that would help me achieve this goal; you were the one that would provide me with the tools that would not only work for me, but FIT with the person that I am. Your confident approach, awareness of self and confidence in your knowledge and abilities was evident from day one. I knew that if I really wanted this, it could be mine and you would be right there supporting and pushing me along.

I stepped on the scale yesterday and dropped another 3 pounds and that took me over the 80 pound mark! 81 pounds GONE!! That is a HUGE, personal victory for me. I feel like a WINNER!! I did it!! I know that my initial goal was to lose 101 pounds and even though I don't lose that amount come December 10th, I FEEL LIKE I'VE WON!! WE WON!! WE DID IT!! The journey continues, I WILL continue with my lifestyle as well as achieve and maintain my ideal weight in the near future - whatever that weight might be!!

I am on a new and exciting path. I am healthy and strong and day by day, my body represents those feelings!! It's incredible all of the wonderful things that have happened to me since embarking on this journey. Most importantly, I am healthier and stronger AND my quality of life has and is continuing to improve.

So, with all that said, I wanted to THANK YOU!!! Thank you for your time, your support, your knowledge, your encouragement, YOUR PATIENCE, your sincere and genuine caring nature! Thank you for helping me to save my own life!!! Thank you for believing in me from day one and NEVER ONCE judging me for how fat or unfit I was. When I first saw you and how physically fit you were, I wondered if in your mind you thought to yourself, "how could she have let herself get so out of shape!" But never once did you ever make me feel that way and I appreciate it! You were one of my loudest cheerleaders and I truly thank you for that.

Thank you for all of the kick-ass routines and meal plans. I have cursed your name many, many times in the wee hours of the morning as I pushed through the training but it was all worth it! LOL!! Thank you for answering ALL of my NUMEROUS questions, regardless of how silly they were! THANK YOU!!

You are so good at what you do. Your obvious passion for fitness is contagious! This is what you were born to do! Really!!

I know that the best way that I can repay you for all you've done for me is by continuing to live this healthy lifestyle and taking care of my body, respecting my body. I promise you Rob, I WILL!! You've shown me the way and I will always appreciate you for it! I just took my measurements and when I post the results, YOU will be blown away and I know that will make you happy!

I don't know what else to say, except, thank you!

Thank you for changing my life. Thank you for the wisdom and confidence you have shown while training me to be the best I can be. Your influence on my life is immeasurable. The knowledge and skills you have taught me will stay with me for my lifetime. Your presence and guidance in my life eternally holds a place in my heart as trainer and a friend.

Thank you!

In health and friendship, always

Joania :)

Day 11 of My 30 Day Countdown - AWESOME!!

Hey everyone!! Today was one of those days that I will remember for the rest of my existence!! You know, this journey has opened my eyes to so many new, wonderful things! I've been able to try so many new things!! Things that I never dreamed that I would be able to do! It's been incredible. Today was such a fantastic day for me.

Started off this morning, feeling great. This was after all my "rest" day! When I say rest day - I mean a rest from weight training....not from exercising. Tuesdays and Thursday are the days when the only form of exercise I do is my Jiu-Jitsu (JJ)class. It's a one hour class of the martial arts technique! DON'T GET ME WRONG, it's not like this class is easy, it's tough and at the end, I'm usually drenched in sweat! Some days we have a very vigourous workout with a stronger focus on cardio, however, most days it's a light warm up and straight into learning the techniques. It's awesome. This is one of the things I would have never imagined that I would even attempt in the past!! Anyway. This class is always taught by Sensei Derek (I've mentionned him in previous posts - he teaches some of the kickboxing(KB) classes as well and he takes pleasure in inflicting pain! :)

Anyway, Sensei Derek has been reading my blog including all of the things I wrote about him, specifically, the "he worked us so hard, I almost puked" part! So today, he started the class by mentioning that he was doing some "reading" on the computer last night and read all I had written about my experiences with KB and JJ classes!! Then this huge grin appeared on his face. I knew at that moment, that this class was going to kick my ass....real hard!!

He set up 8 different stations around the dojo (gym). Each station represented a different exercise that we would have to perform for 30 seconds each, then rotate to the next station and repeat! "How long will we be doing this for?" someone asked. His response, "As long as it takes for Joania to puke!!!!" OMG!!! I was so scared y'all but I had my game face on!! Not even, I think he saw the fear in my face!! LOL!!!!

These stations were no joke y'all. I'm talking dips (triceps), medecine ball squats, kettlebell swings, crunches, step ups, knee on belly punches and my least favorite of all - running and jumping over a high stack of blocking sheilds, landing on a mat!!! I was DONE, y'all!!!! After one round of this torture, the sweat was just running down my body, my heart was in over drive, my lungs were screaming, "WHAT THE F*%K ARE YOU TRYING TO DO TO ME?" It was nuts plus we had to this 2 more times!!!!!!!!! Sensei Derek walked around pushing us to get it done!! It was intense!! When we were done that part, I went for a couple of sips of water...it did not go down right and feared that this would be the day that I puked!!! This would be it!! I could feel it! I was really pushing myself and the crazy thing is that after all that, we weren't even a quarter of the way through the class!!

We were called back to the mat where the torture continued, kicks, squats, lunges, lunge-kick combo's, knee-ups, OMG he threw everything at us today...EVERYTHING!! At this point, and I'm sorry to be so graphic here, but the vomit was sitting on my chest and moving upwards..I grabbed some water and just chugged it!! It was awful, but great at the same time (I'm I nuts??)LOL!!! We were now half way through the class!! :)) We learned a lot of cool JJ moves and techniques today and even grappled (wrestled) a bit - which I really enjoyed! My partner pinned me with a head lock type submission move...IT WAS AWESOME!!! (Therien Martial Arts offers grappling classes as well, I think I might just take it! :)) I had an awesome partner as well, which I think helped - she was giving me tips as we practiced, it was great.

NOW, HERE'S THE BEST PART OF MY DAY....

We finished up and knelt to the mat as normal as we listened to Sensei Derek ( this is normally where we cool down, perform a quick breathing/meditation exercise as well as where he makes any announcements etc..) before he officially ends the class. He then started talking and called me up to the front for a presentation of my very first stripe on my belt!!! I was so thrilled and proud. I walked up, bowed and he proceeded to affix my stripe on my belt as the class applauded - it was awesome!! I wanted to just hug him and do a happy dance - this, the same guy who just made me swallow my own puke!!! Anyway, this is something I never thought I could ever do especially when I weighed almost 300 pounds!! And here I am doing it!! Crazy!! So I now have my first stripe....I need to get 3 more stripes before moving up to a Yellow Belt!! It just felt awesome (I will take a pic and post it soon)!!

So this totally made my day today! That class was insanely nuts!!! It was such an awesome workout - just thinking about the amount of things we did in that hour is crazy!!

Food was on point today ( I ate very well - pretty well the same as yesterday but instead had some of the frittata for lunch!) I consumed about 3.5 litres of water today!!

Oh, I almost forgot...I had a comment on yesterday's post that asked, " how do you keep your energy up eating so little?"

I'm actually eating quite a bit of food throughout the day, just smaller meals and frequently. I'm eating every 3 hours. I don't usually feel hungry after I eat however if I do get hungry, I have another snack - but it has to be healthy (like a boiled egg, some cucumber slices, sometimes I grab a chicken breast, cut half and eat it - that's why it's good to have it pre-cooked and just ready to eat)!

Anyway, that's it for today. Signing off a very happy girl today. Tomorrow back to the weights for some Rob Lagana-style pain!!! :)

Until next time...
Joania (2KMINE!!!)

Reach Your Goal Fast and Avoid Pitfalls

Hi guys,

A post from my trainer, Rob Lagana.

The importance of periodization training: Training too often and trying to adapt in too many different ways all at once (power, strength, hypertrophy, endurance) will result in overtraining.

A smart approach is to use periodization training. Periodization training is simply a planned training program.

You can have weekly, monthly and yearly exercise training plans.

It has been shown to be an effective form of program design.

The primary benefit is to allow for maximum levels of adaption and minimize overtraining.

You can train different forms of strength and control your volume of training. With periodization training you can write down your progress and then reassess your training either on a weekly or monthly basis.

This can help you avoid stagnation, training plateaus, overtraining and assist you with reaching your goal faster.

Overtraining is like an overload to your system. The body can't keep up with the adaptations your trying to meet in your fitness, bodybuilding or sports training.

If your using periodization training for sports, you will greatly benefit by progressively adapting to increased levels of volume training and avoid overtraining.

Some symptoms of exercise overtraining are:

Loss of appetite
Headaches
Depression
Decreased Immunity
Sudden drop in performance
General Irritability
Insomnia
Gradual Increase in Muscle Soreness

By using the a planned program such as periodization training, Overtraining syndrome is easily preventable. Unfortunately, most athletes avoid periodaztion training because they rely too much on their instincts. By design your instincts tell you to remain comfortable or ignore the above symptoms because when you start reaching an over trained state, your instincts which are your internal feedback mechanism will not give you an absolute accurate decision to treat and avoid overtraining.

Robert Lagana
http://www.laganafitness.com

Robert Lagana has been weight training and helping people for over 16 years. He has competed in numerous bodybuilding competitions and is a multi-title winner. He currently holds the 2006 Mr. Canada Natural Bodybuilding title in the NFSO & IFSB. Along with experience, He teaches natural muscular development as a therapeutic approach.

Great info...thanks Rob!!
Joania (2KMINE!!!)

Oh My Gosh, I Thought You'd Be Smaller!!!

Wow!! People just never cease to amaze me...good and bad! One of my "friends" bumped into me today and said, and I quote, "wow, you did lose a lot of weight, I've heard all about your journey from so many people, but I really thought you'd be smaller!!!"

"Uh, thank you,I think?!! What was I supposed to say to that? What I wanted to say was, "Oh my goodness, F U very much!" But I didn't, I just nodded and listened and waved goodbye and got out of there as soon as I could. Whatever. Yes, I lost a lot of weight but I do still weigh 191 pounds on this five-foot-five frame, so I'm still a big girl, but significantly healthier and happier plus I could probably kick her a** two ways from Sunday with some of my martial arts moves and strength training!!!LOL!! Kidding! Ah, it takes all kinds to make this world turn!!!

On another note, today, I pulled up those size 16 jeans without undo-ing the button or zipper...cool!! The journey continues and I'm smiling all the way to the finish line :D

Anyway, today was a good exercise and food day!!I'm excited because I'll be seeing my girlfriend Janet this weekend and really looking forward to it! Haven't seen her in a few months as she lives out of town.

Time seems to be flying by...I need to meet up with Rob(the best trainer in the world - I'm not just saying that so he'll go easy on my with this final workout and meal plan) LOL!! Seriously, he has been so kind to me with his knowledge, support and time!! He genuinely cares about me and my health and goals. He's awesome. If you haven't yet checked him out, this is his website here.

Until next time...
Joania(2KMINE!!!)

My NEW Strength Training Program.....Holy Crap!!!!

Hi guys,

A couple of days ago, I got an email from my trainer with my new, more difficult, kick-ass training plan for the next few weeks. OMG!!!

I will be weight training 4 times a week. I have 2 new programs - one day upper body, the other lower body with core and balance training incorporated in both programs. I have a choice of doing the program 2 days on,one day off (so Mon, Tues - workout, off Wednesday, Thurs, Fri -workout and have the weekend off) or do it on alternating days. So far, I've done 2 days on 1 day off! It is killer hard.

Lots of supesetting (when two exercises are performed in a row without stopping/resting). It's quite vigorous but really shows me how much my strength has increased. It's awesome. I think after this 6 week period with this new program, the definition in my muscles will really be noticeable - I can't wait!

I've never seen some of these exercises before; like one where I'm working my triceps as I'm balancing on an exercise ball!! Insane!! There's another one that I'm calling the "Lagana Lunge-a-palooza"!! I'm doing all sorts of lunges (side, back, front) and balance moves all in ONE exercise!! It's crazy and really gets your heart going!! Mother of pearl!!

MrLagana (my trainer) wasn't playing around when he put this program together! I'm really going to give it my all and will be really excited to see the results. Thanks Rob!

Until next time...

Joania (2KMINE!!!)

PICTURES!!! Finally!!!!

Hi guys...so my husband and I finally got a chance to take some pix...it was a gorgeous day today so we went out and had some family fun with our 2-year old! We just got home about an hour ago and took the following pics.

A few things...

You will notice that I've changed my outfit...I wanted something different and new and SMALLER :))...I will use the original outfit in my final pics which I will take in December. But for now, I've changed it and who knows, I may get a new outfit with each new pic...we'll see. Anyway, this outfit is SIZE L for Large y'All!!! Not, 3x or 2x or even XL...it's L - LARGE. I love it...I kept it similar to the colours of the other outfit. Here's a couple of pictures showing the size I am now wearing.

Top - L/G...Large/Grand (en framçais) YEAH!!

Pants - L/G...Large/Grand

A pair of size 'L' pants fit over my butt!! Incredible!

I noticed a few things with these pics and with me overall. First of all, those "Lagana Lunges & Squats" have really started to shape my butt. Now I know that we black women have been "blessed" with having a little extra junk in the trunk, but for some reason, it skipped me - if you look at my 'before' pic from December (Back Shot), you'll notice the bootie wasn't as "shapely" as it now is. I'm not sure that I want everyone staring at my bootie but take a look at the pic below of me from the back....LOOK AT MY BUTT!!! LOOK AT IT!! All I have to say is "Lagana Lunges and Squats!!!"

Now for the pics....

Front: Me NOW...201lbs..June 28/09

In my new outfit, I might add

Me THEN: 258lbs, Dec 2008

Back: Me NOW - 201lbs June 28/09

LAGANA LUNGES & SQUATS!! LOL!!!

Me THEN: 258lbs Dec, 2009

SIDE: NOW 201lbs June 28/09

THEN - 258lbs Dec, 2008

This is my "Just for Fun - I think I'm Kinda Hot Shot" lol!!













THAT's IT!! Let me know what you think!

Joania (2KMINE!!!)

Questions and Answers

Hi everyone,

I've been getting a lot of questions and comments of late asking for tips and tricks to weightloss. I don't want to sound like those really fit people I used to watch on TV who would always say, "there ARE NO QUICK TIPS AND TRICKS", but I have to be honest. There truly are no quick tips or tricks!! Really! It's about committment, dedication, hard work and discipline. I am working my butt off (literally) everyday and it is a constant mental battle to stay on track. It hasn't been easy thusfar and I believe it's only going to get harder!! I 'm always reminding myself of my reasons for doing this.

There are tools to ensure success (providing those tools are properly used). Two of the most important tools you will need are proper nutrition and proper exercise. For me, by far the most important part of this journey (other than myself, and all the support of my family, friends and blogging community, of course) is my trainer. He's provided me with the proper tools that I am currently using to succeed AND IT'S WORKING!!!

Over the past 5-6 months, I've been receiving a monthly newsletter filled with valuable information and it has helped me on this journey. If you are interested, Rob (my trainer) is the author of this monthly newsletter which is full of valuable information regarding nutrition, exercises, fitness etc. Simply go to his website and submit your name and email address and you will receive his monthly newsletter - FREE of charge. It's loaded with useful and valuable info that can help you on your way to achieving your goals. Visit his site at http://www.laganafitness.com , read the "AboutRob" section to find out about his credentials and sign up for the newsletter. One of my favourite newsletter topics was titled, "Boost Your Metabolic Rate - 7 Fundamentals" - this article outlined (in detail), the 7 things to do to increase that old metabolism and in turn help with weight loss. That's only one of them, i would really recommend signing up for it....it's free info that WILL help you.

I will put up a post detailing what I am personally doing at this phase of my program. I hope this helps! Let me know. Thanks!

Until next time...

Joania (2KMINE!!!)