We Will Run

I will never EVER forget the horrific images that are now embedded into my brain from the 2013 Boston Marathon. I balled my eyes out that day, feeling so much sorrow for those who lost their lives, those who were injured, those who finished and had their joy quickly vanished, and for those runners who never had the opportunity to cross the finish line.

Millions of others will never forget it either, but it's amazing to see that the city of Boston is pressing forward with its head held high and its heart full of hope and determination. Monday, April 21st will be a very special day for the running community. I'm looking forward to seeing our nation stand up together and I'll be honored to lace up my sneakers that day.

Goo luck to all of this year's runners!

Time For a Facelift

For a while now I've been contemplating whether I wanted to put the effort into updating my blog and giving it a little bit of a facelift to make it look prettier, more user friendly and a seamless look.

Well, as you can see I decided to pull the trigger and gave Take Your Pic a new look -- one that will be the face of my blog from here until indefinitely. 

So I don't have to keep bugging everyone with Facebook post, be sure to enter your email address on the right hand side so you can be updated when I post. Enter your email, click go and tada! 

I'm really loving this look and I find it very similar to my personality. I hope you all enjoy it as much as I do. What do you think!? Let me know in the comment section. 

Thank You Emily

For those who don’t remember, back in November I wrote a post about how it is okay to ask for help and rely on others to make us better whether it is physically, mentally, spiritually, or in another form.

In my post I introduced you all to Emily, my wellness coach. Well, I am sad to say that this weekend marks the 6 month ending to my program with her.

It’s pretty funny looking back at my journey with Emily and how SCARED I initially was. Emily first 

approached me on June 6, 2013. She asked me if I wanted to participate and be her guinea pig. I was interested and said sure. She emailed me all of her information..and I never responded. She followed up with an email on June 30. I never responded. As I’ve told everyone before, it was at the end of August 2013 when I realized I needed to get my life together and I knew I needed help – I NEEDED Emily. So on August 29, 2013, I finally reached out to Emily and I have never made a better decision in my life.

Over the last 180 days, Emily has been my mentor and leader in helping me create a healthier lifestyle. We’ve made bi-monthly trips to see each other (often at the Starbucks or Whole Foods) for hour session. If we couldn’t meet in person we would have sessions via Skype or FaceTime. Each week Emily would educate me on food – the good, the bad, the ugly. I would go into the ugly but that’s a whole other blog post. Handout after handout I was learning about food and what my body really NEEDS, compared to what my body WANTS. Emily has taught me how to love myself, how to prioritize aspects of my life and how to look at my WHOLE self – physically, socially, financially, relationships. Our health and wellness is made of SO MANY components, not just what you eat or how much you work out. Your “ life circle” has to be balanced, you need to be centered.

Emily helped me transform into a better person – helping me grow as an individual and showing me new explorations through exercise and food. She had me try “weird” foods I would have never EVER tried before and now LOVE! She gave me INSANE physical challenges that I CRUSHED and others I didn’t. But I was always up the challenge.

In the pictures below you can clearly see the physical changes that have taken place since joining Team Emily, but for those who see me on a daily bases, I think my attitude and positive mind set is off the charts, something I was missing for a veryyyy long time. Do any of you agree?

Thank you Emily for all that you have done. I could not be where I am today if it wasn’t for you! To everyone else, stop waiting and saying one day – start today!

xox

P.S..- For those who mock us individuals who post "transformation" pictures, you clearly need to get over yourself. People are allowed to be proud and show accomplishments for what they have achieved. If you don't care to see, then unfriend me/block me, whatever. But it takes A LOT of guts to expose your flaws to hundreds of people. To this day I hesitate pushing the publish button but if I'm helping at least one other person, it was worth it. 

Month-by-Month 

Holy face difference!