Progress

This weekend we celebrated my birthday at mom and dad's house. We spent some time buzzing around Traverse City and Charlevoix all day Saturday. Despite the lower temperature this weekend, the sun was shining and there was, blessedly, no rain or snow! My birthday dinner was complete with shishkabobs, which I could make custom to fit my diet, and a sugar-free lemon cake made by yours truly! Mom found the recipe for me so we could still have a cake on my birthday...so sweet:) I wanted to make it because I love baking, and everyone was so gracious when they tasted the not-so flavorful, definitely lacking-in-sweetness, very plain spongey 'cake'! I thought it was an amazing treat, so I scarfed down my piece, while everyone else got out the syrup and strawberry jam! It was a new recipe to begin with, so I will try it again after my show...it could use a lot more lemon, a bit more sugar!, and of course, some sort of topping or frosting to really make it yummy. It worked for me though, considering what I can allow myself to have at this point....

For myself and for anyone else who is interested, I had Isaac take some progress photos to show the changes I've made and how far I've come from being twelve weeks out, to now 5 weeks out, from my figure show. Essentially I haven't lost much, if any, weight, but clothes do fit differently, and my body is just 'harder'. The goal is not to be skinnier, or weigh less, but instead to have a very minimal body fat percentage, and really toned/defined muscles. Wow, does it take time! These pictures mark the beginning and the halfway point in my training.