Mom Works It Out by Angela Gillis

Thanks for your support

Talk about a crazy day!
Gillis CNN

We had no idea the CNN story would cause this much buzz and definitely wasn’t something we were looking for by talking about our journey. Did you see they did a small bit on the actual news channel too? I missed it, but I heard all about it. Willie and I are not the type of people to seek attention. I originally started the blog because people were asking so many questions, I just wanted a place to put it down so I didn’t have to keep repeating myself. The only thing we ever wanted was to help others along the way who may deal with some of the issues we deal with everyday.

We were both very pleased with the article. It really captured who Willie and I are as individuals and as a couple. Every day I am SO PROUD of all the challenges Willie overcame to get to where he is today…and I’m proud of myself. I am very thankful this is a journey that I get to take with him! These are the moments we’ll never forget.

We sincerely thank you for all of your kind words! Unfortunately, we will not be able to respond to all the e-mails we received today. Most of the e-mails were to just say thanks, but others did ask questions. Willie and I have decided that we will use those questions for future blog posts, so please keep coming by and I’ll keep posting. I just want you to know that we got them and I haven’t read them all yet, but I will! It’s just going to take me a couple of days to make it through them all. Did I mention we got 100+ e-mails in just one hour?

This is a very exciting weekend for me because I’m in Dallas now to run the Rock n Roll Dallas Half Marathon! Yes I know I ran a 10K last week and a half marathon the week before that, but this is something that I enjoy. I look forward to spending time with my friends and just taking in the whole experience. It’s my very first Rock n Roll race!

Thanks for coming to visit our spot on the web and I hope that you find it interesting and helpful. Remember if you’re trying to lose weight or just need a lifestyle change, it takes time and doesn’t happen immediately. Stick with it. Hard work does pay off; you just have to be patient enough to wait for it. I never thought I would ever be at this point, getting national recognition for it AND running half marathons for fun. It’s amazing how different life is just from last year. I’m taking it in and living it every day.

The 80/20 Rule of Eating

The 80/20 Rule of Eating

When we first started our weight loss journey I read a lot of magazine articles about people losing weight, hitting a plateau, and keeping the weight off.  I was interested in reading what other people had to say about losing weight.  Whether someone was trying to lose 10 pounds or 100 pounds, I wanted to know the challenges and victories they experienced along the way.  That’s when I learned the 80/20 rule of eating: Don’t beat yourself up because you eat “bad” 20% of the time when you eat right 80% of the time. This is something I really struggle…

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Reflections on The Gusher 2013

Reflections on The Gusher 2013

Sadly, the Gusher is over, but there are plenty of memories to last me a lifetime.  Running in that race was one of the best days of my life.  There were a lot of people to meet and there were a lot of inspiring stories to be heard. Days like this are a reminder of why we make southeast Texas our home. Last year, I was scared and lone, but this year was a different story.  What a difference a year makes! Besides blisters on my feet and some windy weather, I have no complaints about the day and will…

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Choosing your workout time

Choosing your workout time

Motivation is a huge part of working out! A couple of weeks ago, I found myself being motivated to change my workout. To be honest, I was mostly motivated due to having to teach 5am classes two days in a row which meant I wouldn’t be at the gym so much later in the evening. I always tell my 5amers they are the troopers and the hard core fitness people because it takes a lot to wake up so early in the morning and do a serious workout. I’ve spent some time talking to the early rises and the evening…

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Keep healthy and fit while traveling

Keep healthy and fit while traveling

This time last week Willie and I were preparing for our first plane right in our new bodies. Before flying was also a hassle and little embarrassing. Do you know how good it felt to walk up to the counter and not worry about someone telling me that I would have to purchase another ticket to fly? And I didn’t even have to ask for a seat belt extender. It was a very exciting moment for both us, especially Willie because he hadn’t been on a flight in 15 years…and probably never thought he would be able to fly ever…

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Finding balance

Finding balance

Losing weight is and changing our lifestyle was the easiest and hardest thing we’ve ever done. I know you’ve heard that plenty of times here already, and you’ll probably hear it again many times. But those words are the truth and something everyone needs to know! The first thing people always say to me when talking about losing weight is they don’t have enough time to go to the gym or cook the food, but is that really true? There was definitely some self-evaluation that went on when we started our journey. I spent a lot of time doing things…

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Is Chris Christie a ticking time bomb or …

Is Chris Christie a ticking time bomb or a victim of public perception?

I hate to get political but this is definitely something that needs to be talked about: public perception overweight people. New Jersey governor Chris Christie recently went on David Letterman to discuss his weight issues because rumor has it he’s contemplating a run for the White House in 2016! In the middle of his conversation with Mr. Letterman, he stopped to eat a donut to add a little humor to the interview. Shortly after his appearance, former White House physician, Connie Mariano, M.D, told the world she was worried Christie might have a heart attack or stroke while in office.…

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Eating late isn’t a bad thing?

Eating late isn’t a bad thing?

I may have learned something new today. Calories count, not the clock. I’ve always gotten that, but I always thought late night eating was bad. Luna has a series on their site about debunk diets and today’s topic was very intereting. Before I continue, I think you should watch the video below: I never bought the don’t eat after 8pm thing because I feel like that’s unrealistic. Most days I’m busy and I don’t get home until 7 or so and then I still have to cook dinner. Some nights I don’t eat until 8 or 8:30pm and that’s just…

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Why do I blog?

Why do I blog?

The short answer to the question: I choose to blog because I’m asked a ton of questions every day about what we did, how we do it and how has it changed our life. By blogging, the story, the experience and my daily life will be here for people to read or not read. The lifestyle change journey is long and continues every day and sometimes people do want a detailed account of what we did to make it work. Others sometimes just want the short version so the blog gives everyone what they want. Blogging is hard because it’s…

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Everything Is New Again

Everything Is New Again

Losing the weight has been one of the biggest accomplishments in life. Everything seems so attainable and there is nothing I feel like I can’t do. I’m opening up more to people which means I’m making new friends. I’m trying new things, so I am developing new interests. Most importantly, I’m taking risks that I never would have taken before when I was larger. It’s amazing just how different I am from before. Losing the weight was just not a physical change, it was a mental and emotional change also. People look up to me as this great inspiring force…

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