Mom Works It Out by Angela Gillis

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Notes on the weekend: Running, weights, new people and family

Notes on the weekend: Running, weights, new people and family

The weekend has come to a close and I’m glad to report that this week was a good one.  Last weekend I was so down in the dumps and miserable, but things were totally different this week.  On Saturday morning, I got up made breakfast and was ready to run with Willie. I did a short 4 mile run and then headed off to do my weight training at the gym. This is probably a big reason why I was having a good weekend. I made it to weight training throughout the week and I was really proud of myself.…

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Changes in the wardrobe

Changes in the wardrobe

I remembered hating clothes shopping with my mom when I was a kid. I was always the bigger kid in the family and I was always ready to leave the clothing store as soon as we walked in. I don’t know what it is about clothes or just notion of shopping for clothes that always bothered me. I carried that feeling for the longest time. There’s an old saying, “Clothes make the man” or something like that. In a sense, it’s true. You are how you dress. I started my weight loss journey at 492 pounds. My clothes definitely reflected…

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The one about lacking the motivation

The one about lacking the motivation

This past weekend was doozie for me.  I didn’t really want to talk to anyone, do anything, or even concentrate on television.  I completely lacked the motivation to move.  All I wanted to do was sit on the couch and maybe watch some television, but that was a BIG maybe. I don’t know what put me in this horrible mood, but it happened.  Last Friday I decided I needed a work out break because my workouts that week sounded like I was ordering hamburgers from Wendy’s:  triple (M), double (Tu), triple (W) and double (Th).  When Saturday morning came around…

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The Catch Up Post: Goals, Races and Mother’…

The Catch Up Post: Goals, Races and Mother’s Day

I feel out of touch with the blog because so many things have been going on in life. As you may have read, my grandmother passed and I took it very hard. I didn’t expect to take it that hard, but I did. There were a lot of tears shed over this experience. I saw her decline every day until she passed; I basically watched her die. She’s in a better place now after living a long and amazing life. Her passing added emotional stress and sleep deprivation to my life so my overall well being kind of took a…

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Chicken,Sweet Potato, Quinoa Stir-Fry

Chicken,Sweet Potato, Quinoa Stir-Fry

Quinoa is great and one of my favorite things to eat. I eat a mostly plant based diet so quinoa is a great way to get my protein. Willie is still a meat eater, so this is something I can fix for both us and still be satisfied. I’ll just throw some chicken in the mix for him. Best part, low in sodium and very filling! FYI: I don’t use the canola oil when cooking. I try to stay away from any oils when cooking, even though they are good fats. I don’t think you need oil/butter to cook your…

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Donate To St. Jude Children’s Hospital To …

Donate To St. Jude Children’s Hospital To Make A Difference

We need your help! Cancer is something that has touched both of our lives this past year when my mom was diagnosed. We have seen the monetary cost of cancer and that is why we are choosing to run for a reason. On December 7, 2013, I will run my first marathon (26.2 miles) and Willie will run the half marathon (13.1 miles) but we want to be St. Jude heroes. To do that, we both must raise $500 EACH! We have changed others lives by sharing our story and this is how we want to change someone else’s life.…

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It’s not a diet. It’s healthy …

It’s not a diet. It’s healthy lifestyle changes to lose weight.

The biggest piece of advice we can give you is to stop dieting.  It’s not a diet; it’s healthy lifestyle CHANGES to lose weight and keep it off. A lifestyle change is very difficult, especially for the people in your life.  We had so many problems with our friends and family because it wasn’t only a change for us, it was a change for them too.  Both Willie and I were overweight our entire lives and our weight defined us.  When it was time to make a change things did get very sticky and possibly people didn’t take us too seriously. For people who…

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We haven’t left you hanging

We haven’t left you hanging

My grandmother passed and right now things are in a bit of chaos.  The blog has taken a backseat to the health of my grandmother.  Things will be back to normal very soon! Thanks for understanding, Angela

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A day of (state) resolutions

A day of (state) resolutions

After running the Austin 10/20, Willie and I were honored with state resolutions on the floor of the Texas State Capitol.  Our weight loss achievements are now a part of Texas state history!  This is/was such a honor for us and definitely a moment we won’t forget.  We were honored alongside our friend Richard and Amie James (for creating a healthier community by creating The Gusher Marathon), Iram Leon (for winning the Gusher Marathon while pushing his daughter and just plain winning at life), and Felix Lugo (who ran his 50th marathon holding the American flag at The Gusher).  We…

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Willie’s first long distance race: Austin 10/20

Willie’s first long distance race: Austin 10/20

I ran my first 10 mile race on April 14th! This was my first long distance run. Before this race I had only run 5K races with a finishing time around 36 or 37 minutes. A couple of days before the race, Angela bought me a new pair of running shoes, running socks, and calf compression sleeves. When I ran the previous 5Ks, I had been running in a pair of old Nike running shoes that really needed to be thrown in the trash. The new shoes were Brooks running shoes and when I first put them on I noticed…

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Why food could be ruining our attempt to …

Why food could be ruining our attempt to make friends

One of my April goals is to become more social.  Willie and I have spent a good chunk of our time hanging out with out of town friends but we did want to have more of social life in at home.  The older we get the harder it is to make friends though.  I wish we could return to the days when sharing a crayon or playing on the playground instantly rendered a best friend or playmate.  Adults just don’t make friends the same way and most of the time it does involve food. I have my own social hang…

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