What has changed so far?

Hello all!

Along the process of this journey I haven't weighed myself.  I used to weigh myself maybe 3 times a day before!  But since we moved I haven't found my scale (which I think is a sign) and I started this journey, I started seeing changes and I didn't want to tie it down to a number.  I wanted my body to be my measure of progress.  So I thought this blog I'd go into what has changed for me so far and where I'm seeing progress and how I know that I'm progressing.  Other than the pictures I take which show me a lot of areas that have changed, here are more areas or items that have me happy so far:

• Jean Size-  I was squeezing into a size 10 (probably sadly on my way to a 12) before I started this journey and I've had to go jean shopping and I'm currently wearing a size 4 or 6 depending on the brand.  
• Midsection- This was the first place I started to really notice the weight loss the first couple of weeks.  My waistline has slimmed down and I can see what I can only guess is the beginning of abs (because I've never seen my abs before!).  The changes are starting to be smaller each day but they are there!  
• Glutes/Backside-  My glutes/butt is starting to lift where it's supposed to and after all the squats, lunges and presses I am so happy!  I still have a ways to go with this muscle group but I'm finally starting to see the changes I've been waiting for!  I know it's going to take a lot of work to build and tighten the muscles and the diet will drop some of the weight still there.  
• Legs-  My quads and legs are starting to develop shape and I'm noticing this is the next muscle group that's going to benefit from my diet being consistent.  Even my trainer mentioned that my legs were progressing!  (That really felt good to hear!  Even though I couldn't respond because I was in the middle of a set :)
• Shoulders/Back-  Now this muscle group is my lead pony right now!  I went to scratch my shoulder the other day and almost shocked myself, it's so weird to be able to feel hard muscles and know it's my body!  One of the people I work with the other day complimented me on my arms so it's nice to know I'm not the only one seeing progress!  But on a daily basis my back and shoulders are changing.
• Cardio Improvements-  Today I did my outdoor cardio workout which included sprints, bleachers and a mile run.  My mile run was at a faster pace than I was expecting and it really had my whole body working.  I could feel the burn and my whole body working (even my abs!) and even though I did have the thought of "I wish I could stop/walk" I knew that was just a thought.  The truth is I knew I was capable of pushing myself to that level and able to make it the entire distance.
• Metabolism-  I've mentioned that I'm feeling hungrier than usual and do not get me wrong!  I am NOT starving.  My meals are the size to nourish my body and keep my body constantly working to burn the food into fuel.  I don't ever really have that FULL feeling though, I'm never in pain from being so full.  Except on my cheat meals which are awesome and doing their job!  Which is to make my body have to work harder to burn through the food I ate (which is of course a higher calorie meal than I'm used to) and then the next day I drop back down to my regular meal plan but my body is still burning at a higher rate to digest the meal and I drop my caloric intake down. So there is a gap developed between what my body is burning from the cheat meal and what calories I'm supplying it.  Which is a good thing for not only my body but my mind as well!!!  :)

So even though I don't have a number attached to anything that doesn't mean that there aren't changes every day.  I'm proud of my progress both emotionally and physically so far and I'm only excited about the next steps!  I'm already in the development stage of designing my bikini!  I've already picked the dress I want to wear on stage and the last thing is to find somewhere local to create my themewear outfit!!!  Lot's of decisions to make and it all makes me feel like this journey is coming together!  I don't want to give away too many details but I'll share as much as possible along the way!  Thanks for reading and I look forward to more progress!

p.s. here's the color of my suit as a little bonus!!  It's purple and sparkly and I love it!

Cheers,

Ash