I'm not going to lie: I rarely buy fitness magazines for the articles.

Or the workouts.

Or the recipes.

I buy them for the models.

I like the models in fitness magazines. They're not bony and they don't ever appear overly airbrushed. Instead, they look strong. They have muscles to flex and abs to show off. They look capable of kicking butt and taking names. They're always smiling, whether they're doing yoga or weight lifting or trail running. They positively glow. And while I know that they CAN be airbrushed and edited, I also know that it's damn near impossible to airbrush abs that look THAT real. So I read my magazines with a grain of salt, but that doesn't mean I can't wish for a fitness model body.

But then I read some of my blogs that I posted on this site about a year and a half ago. I read about all the wonderful and healthy foods I was eating, all the active things I was doing, and I remembered how stinking happy I was to be healthy and weigh less and be active. And then I realized something...

I had been a fitness model! And I hadn't even known it until I looked back on everything I had been doing! And no, I didn't have defined abs or a tiny waist or a ripped back, but I was strong and beautiful and happy and healthy.

So this month is dedicated not only to those strong and beautiful women in the magazines, but also to ME, to the fitness model I used to be and will one day become again.

"NEVER MIND SEARCHING FOR WHO YOU ARE. SEARCH FOR THE PERSON YOU ASPIRE TO BE." ~Robert Brault

FOOD
1. Increase fruits and vegetables - I never eat enough of these!
2. Decrease grains and sugar - I eat way too many of these!
3. Lean protein always, and fish once per week
4. Limit alcohol to one serving per week - if beer, make sure it is 10.5 or 12 ounces. If wine, make sure it is 4 ounces. No cocktails unless they include 3 or less ingredients!
5. Make sure groceries are cheap and healthy. Money has been tight recently!

FITNESS
1. Swimming - Oh how I have missed it!
2. Hiking - 'tis the season here in the mountains!
3. Weights - I need these to build muscle and really lean out.
4. P90X Ab Ripper X - because I want ridiculous abs and I really love this DVD.
5. Stretching - none of this will worth it if my joints seize up!

PITFALLS
1. The ever-present candy and unhealthy snacks/treats at work. Ugh. No way to escape it = lots of willpower needed.
2. Eric's birthday weekend. I'm planning a few days away so there will probably be alcohol tasting/eating out involved. I have to pace and watch myself!
3. My own cravings and emotions. I don't want to fall back into the binging that I was partaking in.

I don't have a set plan. Is this setting myself up for failure? I don't think so. I will simply live my life believing that I am a fitness model. Call me crazy, silly...but I find it highly motivating. Hence how, for the first time in a LOOOOONG time, I was able stay within my calorie goal. Woot!

More fitness model moments to come :)