Happy short week everyone! Well, at least for me it is anyway, I was lucky enough to have yesterday off for MLK Day!  Had a nice long weekend, but glad to be back in the routine.   Let me recap my weekend for ya... Saturday, Tony and I had a nice little outing, fun-filled with shopping and dinner at the Olive Garden.  We are both doing P90X2, but normally workout at different times of the day, but since we were both going to be home all weekend we decided to do our workouts together!  In order to do that we needed to head out to the sports store and grab an extra foam roller and stability ball.  Dick's Sporting Goods had awesome deals and I think we got both for just under $30, steal!  Sunday we did the X2 Balance & Power workout and yesterday we did X2 Core.  I came to find out that I got rather frustrated working out with him because he is MUCH stronger than me and can do more of the moves for a longer period of time.  Not good for my competitive side LOL :)  He had to remind me that we are two totally different body types, not to mention genders!  In the end, yes, I got it, but I still tried to keep up with him ;)  Which is good because he pushed me to my max!  Oh.. speaking of P90X2, check out my hat Beachbody sent me!  LOL....  love this company, they just keep sending me stuff!  I LOVE stuff!

Sunday we had some fun outside with the kiddos in the snow... which is now completely GONE and 58 degrees today!  Only in Ohio :)  But, glad we got the kids outside in the snow while it lasted, it was lots of fun and a lot of work pulling the sled up and down the hill! Extra workout snuck in there!

Definitely a relaxing weekend, even had some time to catch up on my reading in my book PUSH and do an at home man/pedi!  Nice, right!?  Love it when I can fit in these small little things that help me keep my sanity :)  Speaking of sanity... did ya'll know that this girl is turning the big 3-0 in a week roughly!?!?  Say what?!?  I know... I can't believe it either!  Looking forward to it actually and I'm totally looking forward to the weekend too since we'll be celebrating on Saturday!  Can't wait!  I'm sure I'll post more next week and give ya the whole rundown on how much fun we had... and I might get a little sentimental as I near the HUGE milestone in my life :)

So as I wrap up this post, I'm also finishing my delicious lunch.  Last night the hubs made salmon patties for dinner (I was skeptical).  To my surprise, they were PHENOMENAL!  Thank goodness there were leftovers because it made for the perfect lunch!  Thanks honey, I'm going to try and let ya have more credit in the kitchen, I'm always skeptical about what he attempts to make, and 9 times out of 10, it's a hit!

Have a great rest of the week all!  I'm looking forward to teaching 3 Turbo classes, getting together with friends and keeping on track with my current Beachbody Challengers with our fitness!  Have a good one!

WOW!!  Guys... can you believe we've made it to 2012?!!?  This year, 2011, has been simply AMAZING for me.  Words can not even begin to describe how my life has changed in the past year.  Lets rewind back to this time last year.  It was 2010, I was MAD.  I was mad at the world, I was mad at myself, I felt like my life wasn't my own, I wasn't happy in my own skin, I hated the way I looked and felt in my clothes, I was not in a good place.  Although, I was just as blessed last year as I am this year, I was so blinded by my own ego and self-loathing that I couldn't even see it.  Now lets fast-forward to the now.... I'm 35lbs and 3 pant sizes thinner, I've completed TWO 90 day Beachbody programs, TurboFire & P90X, I began my own fitness business and have transformed my physical AND financial situation by becoming a Beachbody Coach, I became a TurboKick fitness instructor because my love for the program TurboFire inspired me to want to help others feel the amazing transformation that I had with the program, I was able to secure 2 TurboKick classes with 2 different gyms this year and will be adding a 3rd in January.  Because of all of my goal setting, hard work and and determination, I was able to become more available to my family, my husband and my children and instill in them all these fantastic goals and habits. Because my husband saw my transformation with my journey to get healthy, he followed suit and also lost a total of 40lbs and 3 pant sizes.  My children love to jump in and do bits and pieces of my workouts with me and every now and then I catch them asking their little friends, "Hey, does your mom do TurboFire?!"   LOL!!  Also, they are so aware of what they are putting into their mouths, they KNOW that McDonald's and any other fast food is OUT OF THE QUESTION and they don't even want for it anymore.  They constantly question if what they are eating is healthy and want to know what foods are and aren't.  THIS, what I have instilled in them will set them up for success as they grow.  They will be confident and exude self esteem.  They will never have to face the issue of childhood obesity, they will never be made fun of for being "heavy", they will not suffer from  ailments that come from bad eating habits.  I've set them up for a fulfilling life and that is the BEST gift I could ever give them. 

So as we near the closing of 2011, take a look back at what you've done, what you didn't do, and based off of that grab a piece of paper and start writing down what YOU want to do and accomplish for 2012 and then make a plan to throttle those goals into reality.  There is nothing too big or too small, whatever you desire YOU CAN ACHIEVE.  If you need proof, go back and re-read this post.  Yes, 2011 was incredible, but it was only just the beginning for me, a stepping stone for the greatness that is going to be brought in 2012.  LOOK OUT WORLD, you're about to meet the REAL Liz Bollini aka FitLiz :)

This here is my list of goals so far, and I WILL be adding to this for sure!  Here it goes... in 2012 I WILL....

1.  Be a better wife & mother, devote my time and energy to them FIRST among all other things.
2.  Offer more of my skills to my full time job and step out of my comfort zone and avoid being just one of the numbers.
3.  Reach Diamond rank in my part-time Beachbody business by June 2012.
4.  Become and independent contractor for marketing campaigns and utilize the skills I currently have and have been avoiding and putting to good  use.
5.  Give back through charity.
6.  Complete a round of P90X2 and take a new after pic, lowering my overall body fat %.
7.  Compete in an extreme sport.
8.  Get my family to Disney.
9.  Double my TurboKick class attendance rate from 2011.
10:  Get certified in personal training or P90X certified.
11  Be a better friend.

That's it for now!!  Whew!  I'm fired up now!

Friends!  Get out that pen and paper and GO WILD!!!  WRITE IT DOWN, SAY IT OUT LOUD, MAKE IT HAPPEN!  I have faith in you!  Let's do it up right in 2012, LET'S GO!

Hi All!  How was the weekend??  Mine was great!  We got the Christmas tree and decorations up on Friday evening.  I thought it was going to be more of a hassle (hence the reason I put it off til now), but it really wasn't, it was actually enjoyable, despite one string of lights going out on my miniature pre-light tree in our dining room :/  BUT, I have a MILLION extra lights so no worries, just wrapped an extra strand around the tree and good as new :)  And much more vibrant I must say!  Holiday candles had been burning non-stop all weekend and the house smells sooo good, def. looking a lot like Christmas in our house now :) 

Saturday we went to Toldeo to see the Walleye hockey team play against Chicago at the Huntington Center.  This was the kids first hockey game ever and my first pro hockey game ever!  Tony and I used to go to Bowling Green college games a lot back in the day and WOW what a difference!  The fighting is out of control!  Very entertaining, I was so blown away, I couldn't believe the refs just let em go until the both hit the ice!  Again WOW!  The kids definitely had fun and that's what matters most to us.  There was this awesome magic show during one of the breaks, where the lady changed outfits amazingly fast with just a whip of the little sash thing LOL.. you have to see to know what I'm talking about, it was pretty AWESOME!  Check it out on YouTube!  After the magic show this huge walleye blimp soared around the arena dropping coupons and hockey pucks, the kids LOVED it!  All in all a fantastic time :)

So, let's talk about yesterday... CHRISTMAS CAME EARLY FOR THIS GIRL!  The Beachbody Santa Claus delivered this box on my doorstep, it was sitting there waiting for me when I pulled into the driveway when I got home from work...... can you guess what's inside?!  Oh yes, this would be my P90X2 System!  WOOT!

I torn into this box like it WAS Christmas morning LOL!  Take a look at all my goods!  January 2nd is the big start date.  I complete my first round of P90X on Dec 30 and will dive head first into X2.  Can't wait!

Yesterday in the mail I also received my FREE TurboFire t-shirt from entering the Beachbody Challenge!  LOVE IT!  Beachbody is so good to me :)

Have you entered the Beachbody Challenge yet?  You totally should!  You could win FREE stuff just like I did :)  Go to my website and click on the "Take The Beachbody Challenge" button on the left hand side of the page. It's sooo easy!  Go on... :)  And if you want to take it a step futher, you can always join my January NEW YEAR TO A NEW YOU Group Challenge, it starts Jan. 2.

Have a great week guys! 

_Just finished up listening to our Monday night team call.  We were blessed to have Craig Holiday speak tonight giving his rendition on Dreams & Perseverance.  So with that said I'm about to get REAL for a second here, I'm totally fired up and my thoughts are just firing away. The past couple of days have not been easy for me, I constantly second guess myself so this call was much needed.  For me I get no greater joy than seeing others in my life succeed at something that they want more than anything in this world.  For some it's weight loss and to get their life back, for others it's money and some just want to be accepted and to have hope, a light at the end of the tunnel, someone that just friggin cares about their very being and what they have to say.  Dreams are driven by a why, a reason to succeed.  My why generates from my children, they are 5 years old and even now at this young age I want them to know that it doesn't matter who you are, where you came from or what you believe, you were put on this earth to do something great and TO BE SOMETHING TO SOMEONE.  No matter what it is you want out of life, big or small, they can most definitely have it, it CAN be theirs.  That no one person can control their destiny, only they have the power to do that.  In the end i want my children to know that their mother gave everything she had to pave the way for their lives to be a happy and fulfilled one and to make the world seem like a less scary and judgmental place and to pass that wisdom on to others.  I refuse to conform and fall victim of just being 'normal' and doing what everyone else does.   I don't want to just get up, go to work, do my job and come home and not have any real connection to what I do day in and day out.  We get one shot at this thing, one trip around the sun, I have an undying urge to make a real difference in the world and when the time comes and my life flashes before my very eyes I want to damn well make sure it's worth watching.  I'd rather be looked at as a freak for marching to the beat of my own drum rather than blending in on the regular old perpetual beaten path of life that most people choose to take.   No.  I want to BE EPIC.  And I want others to know that it's OK to be epic in their own way, even if it's not the social norm. Even if it means being seen as a dork or whatever.   It's ok to be you, that's the way you were made and dammit that's OK.

Happy day all!  I am SO excited right now, SO much to report!  Ok, so this past Tuesday wrapped up my October 30 day challenge, I had 10 girls revv'd and ramped up to get down and dirty for this challenge and to change their way of life through nutrition and exercise.  And I have to tell you... these ladies BROUGHT THE HEAT!  WOW!  Each and everyone of them inspired me in one way or another.  All 10 of them used Shakeology once a day for the entire 30 days and exercised at least 5 times a week.  Exercises ranged from programs like TurboFire, Insanity, P90X, Shakeology workouts, some were pulling workouts from fitness magazines, others were training for 5Ks and some were just getting up and getting active by taking brisk walks or jumping on the elliptical.  Either way, they were gettin busy and I loved every minute of it!  We help eachother stay accountable through a private Facebook group page, we posted nearly everyday about our struggle, triumphs and stories, it was amazing.  It is truly amazing what one  can accomplish when they have the support they need.  And these girls rocked it.  All of them lost at least some pounds or inches, an average of 5 lbs lost is a good benchmark I'd say for the group.  So yesterday I had to pick a winner, I wish all of chose all of them because they all did so well, but there could only be ONE winner.  The awesome chica that took the grand prize for the month of October was a girl named Angela Weyer!  This lady rocked TurboFire for the entire 30 days and lost 19.5 lbs and over 33 inches!  HOLY WOWZA!!  Check out her before and after pic below!  Great job Ang! What an inspiration!  The November Challenge is currently underway and those folks are off to a great start! December Challenge starts Dec. 1.  There's still time to register, but there is limited space available, contact me and reserve your spot!  Would LOVE to have you :)  You could be the next success story... So what are you waiting for!  Let's GO!

Whew!  And I'm not even close to being done with all the excitement yet!  THIS WEEKEND... a movie comes out to theaters that absolutely makes me want to scream and be all giddy like a teenage girl.. Yep, 29 years old and this film has me ALL kinds of worked up!  YES!  FINALLY!  It's here, Breaking Dawn Part 1!!!! AHHHHHHH!!!!!!!  Seriously have goosebumps right now!  I can't believe we've made it to the final series of this amazing book, I CANNOT wait to see how the directors/cinematographers of this film interpret the book version, because it is INTENSE beyond words!!  Oh I can't wait!!!  Would love to go to the midnight showing tonight, but I've got plans with my girl Valerie for her birthday to see it Friday night!  Oh I can't wait!  Did I mention that?  ;)

Can you handle more excitement?  I hope so because I have MORE for ya!  So this Saturday I was asked to do a 'preview' Turbo class at a new gym that just opened in town!  Eeek!  Yay!  SO very excited!  I LOVE teaching Turbo and I'm bringing my Turbo Girl following with me to the preview plus there will be other members of the gym trying it out too!  The workout will only be a preview so about 30 minutes, but I told them, hey just because it's a shorter class doesn't mean you're gonna sweat ANY less ;)  So pumped, and my girls will be there to support me, gonna be FUN TIMES!  Just thought of something.. I need a name for my Turbo followers... Hmmm brainstorm a comin'!  Have any ideas?  Post em!  Have a great weekend guys, I KNOW I will!

Well hello there fit friends!  Can you believe it's Wednesday already!?  Actually the week could be going a little faster for me, but hey let's make the most of it shall we ;)  OK, so let me recap you on my weekend, it was filled with fun, fantastic things!  Friday I was at American Eagle and they have this really cool accessories shop and all kinds of fun techie stuff and ya'll know me... miss geek squad over here :)  Any who, I've been in the market for some portable speakers and at a look at this cute little guy and he's pretty powerful too, great sound quality, only 24.99, I do believe!

So that about wrapped up my Friday nite... now we get to the good stuff!  Saturday morning I held my very first TurboKick class!  For noaw class is being held in my basement so space is pretty limited, but we had about 5 girls gettin down Turbo-style and it was off the hook!  So much fun!  I'm currently looking for a larger space to have class, but for now Turbo will be in my basement every Saturday morning!  Join us if you're in the area!  Later that night Tony and I went to an adult only Halloween party and had some time away from the kiddos, which they didn't mind because their favorite babysitter came over to watch them ;)  I went as a cheerleader from my high school alma-mater, complete with Tony's football jersey and pin from high school :)  I was an athlete in high school, so being a cheerleader was kinda fun!  Tony was Batman....LOL!  Really that's all that can be said :)  Take a look below....

All in all, we had a great time, didn't stay out too late, Tony had to work in the morning and I had a ton to do before Trick or Treat on Sunday afternoon.  Sunday morning the kids and I went to church and then headed to the store to get Halloween candy, noticed I waited til the last minute to buy this, for good reason too!  I'm a mini candybar-aholic!  When we got home I started right in on my homemade chili, I made a HUGE batch.... love leftover chili :)  So once the chili was simmering in the crockpot, it was time to get the kiddos ready for Trick or Treat.  Haiden was Iron Man and Marianna was a bride :)

It was a gorgeous day for Trick or Treat and the kids made out like bandits on candy!  Yes, that stash is being hidden, tucked away from where the eye can not see, if I don't see it, it doesn't exist LOL!  So, while the kids sorted their candy, I made a nice comfy place on the couch, watching Hocus Pocus and eating a yummy bowl of chili.  Perfect end to the weekend :)   Hope ya'll had a great weekend as well, hope the week has been good to you so far!  Talk to you soon guys ;)

willpower (n): energetic determination; the ability to control oneself and determine one's actions; firmness of will; control of one's impulses and actions; self-control.

So.  We ALL know at least one person who passes on that extra cocktail, says no to that piece of birthday cake and looks past all those tantalizing treats at family gatherings... wouldn't you like to know HOW they do that?!  Easy, I can sum that up for you in one word, WILLPOWER.   Yep, that easy, a little known thing called willpower.  Easy!? I know you must think I'm crazy, but really we can teach ourselves to have better willpower, just like we can train our bodies with exercise and strengthen our minds by reading and studying books.  Here are a few things I do to strengthen my willpower.  With the months ahead and the feeding frenzy that is about to being with Halloween candy, Thanksgiving feasts and Christmas galas, these tips will come in handy to keep you from derailing your progress and sabotaging your diet.

1.  Boost your brainpower.  You have got to get it in you head that you want to be able to resist temptation of anything that can potentially delay or hinder your goals.  Write down your goals on paper, refer to them often.  This reminds us of what we want and what we have to do to achieve those goals.  Every Friday I take 10 minutes in the morning to write down my weekly goals, things I want to achieve by the end of the week.  Try it, you'll be amazed at how efficient you'll become.

2.  Be a dreamer.. but not too big.  It's awesome to have big dreams for yourself.  Dreams are actually goals that just haven't been put into motion.  The reality is, your dreams no matter how big or small, CAN become a reality, you just have to take the necessary steps to get there.  My advice, start small.  Say you want to lose 100 pounds, obviously this is not going to happen in a week, but for one week you can set a goal to walk on the treadmill for 30 minutes a day and eat more fruits and vegetables and eliminate processed food.  If you do this everyday for a month, I bet you will have lost at least 10lbs, if not more!  So, if you do this for 10 months, in less than a year you will have lost 100lbs!  WOW!  Now THAT is a goal.  Think about it.  Baby steps ;)

3.  Think about things in a 'what if' scenario.  Do this with everything.  What if I packed my lunch tomorrow for work the night before... I could pack only healthy foods and I'll save some money by not eating out AND I'll save calories by not eating fast food.  What if I stay up too late to catch up on my DVR shows from this week and I miss my early morning wake up call to workout, I will promise myself to at least go for a brisk walk on my lunch hour.  Always think ahead and think of every 'what if' scenario... being prepared is always a good thing!

4.  Be your own cheerleader.  You can't expect to go through life waiting for others to bring you up.  YOU have to bring yourself up, in the end, it's up to YOU!  Work to be a more positive influence, not only for yourself, but for others as well.  To get in a good mood, try cheering someone else up, said by the great Mark Twain.  And it's so true!  No matter what is going on in your life or how you feel strive to see the light at the end of the tunnel and know that in the end everything will work out.  Yes, we all have struggles, but the way we choose to react to them makes 100% of the difference.  Be positive, be happy, enjoy life :)

So, those are some of the things that roll through my brain on a daily basis, I hope they start to roll through yours!  As we head into October there are a few things that you should know, I've fully prepared myself for the coming months and you can do the same so you can stay the course of your goals.  October, November and December are upon us.  What do those months mean to me.... EAT, DRINK AND BE MERRY.  Yep, it's inevitable and yep I will indulge in cheer for sure, BUT I will also be putting myself in a position where I will still have to hold myself accountable for my health and fitness goals.  So, what I've done is I've created TWO challenge groups, one is a 30 day challenge that will carry through til mid November and hopefully prepare and instill GOOD habits before the big holidays hit, the other is a 90 day challenge that will carry through til the end of the year.  Each involve and promote fitness and healthy eating.  What to join in on the action?  You know how to get ahold of me, we'd LOVE to have YOU!

Hold on tight folks, we are about to enter the war zone!!!  2 more days til October.... WOW!

What better way to start off a Monday than with chocolate!  I love chocolate and finding all the guilt free ways that I can have it and still manage to reach my fitness goals is one of my daily yahoo! searches :)  So, here's what I found, thought I'd share with all of you!

1.  Plain ole dark chocolate!  1 ounce of this delish treat is only about 150 calories and is heart healthy and even prevents some cancers, score!

2.  Mmm fudgy bittersweet brownies, no not from the box!  From scratch of course, see below!

Ingredients
1 large egg
1 egg white
3 tablespoons plain nonfat yogurt
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/3 cup canola oil
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3 ounces high-quality unsweetened baking chocolate, chopped
1/3 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1/3 cup buckwheat or presifted whole wheat flour

Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly coat an 8-inch-square nonstick baking pan with cooking spray. In a small bowl, whisk together egg, egg white, yogurt, and vanilla extract; set aside.

In a small saucepan, combine sugar, oil, salt, and 3 tablespoons water, stirring constantly for 3 minutes on medium-high heat. Remove from heat; stir in cocoa and chocolate until chocolate melts, then add egg mixture. Add all flour, stirring until batter is smooth.

Pour batter into baking pan. Bake 25 minutes, or until top is firm. Cool completely in pan on rack. Cut into squares.

3.  Chocolate covered soy nuts - About 1/4 of a cup will set you back just 140 calories -- and it packs in 5g of protein!

4.  Banana with chocolate dipping sauce!

Ingredients
2 tablespoons bittersweet chocolate chips or chopped dark chocolate
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon unsalted butter
Small pinch of salt
1 small banana, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
1 teaspoon chopped toasted walnuts

Directions
In a double boiler or microwave-safe bowl, melt the chocolate with the honey, butter, and salt, stirring frequently. Serve the chocolate sauce and walnuts in bowls for dipping, accompanied by the banana chunks.

5.  Chocolate Pudding - Super-easy and super satisfying! At just 150 calories, how can you resist!

So finally I have launched my YouTube channel!  I've been wanting to do this for quite some time now and it's finally up and running, YAY!  My plan with this is to upload all the videos that I taped doing my TurboFire workouts, showing transformation videos and eventually I'd like to start vlogging.  I invite all of you to check it out and subscribe to my channel, just click HERE!  Let me know your feedback and I'm always open to suggestions, what would you like to see on my YouTube channel?

Well hello there gang!  Happy Friday!  So I just have to tell you that yesterday I had my very first Fit Club at Vedas Fitness Center in downtown Cleveland and it was off the hook!  We did Cardio X from the P90X series and we burned some major calories, sweating from head to toe fun!  I recieve a few requests from a few ladies that could not make it to fit club yesterday and want to meet up with me at the fitness studio to do a mini fit club, fine by me I say!  I think this time we are going to do a little ChaLEAN Extreme to get the muscle movin'!  This whole idea has really got me thinking about getting my ACE fitness certification -but hold that thought, I've got alot more thinking to do on it before I decide so more on that later ;)  Anywho, Fit Club yesterday was during the lunch hour which meant that afterwards (sigh) I had to go back to the office and work.  Soooo, this also got me to thinking, there are some major gym bag must haves for this type of situation and just from my experience yesterday, here's what I came up with that are key ingredients to getting office fresh after a lunch-time sweat session.

1.  Clean & Clear Cleansing Wipes
Actually any type of wipe will do, just something that you can use before and after your workouts on your face and body in order to refresh your skin.

2.  Fresh Body Mist
Again any will do.  I recommend anything from Dove, Jergens or Bath & Body, all have body spritz that is like a bath in a bottle and it moisturizes too!

3.  A Dry Shampoo
I just seen a commercial the other day on this, Tre Semme just came out with this for their line of hair care products.  This stuff works like a powder in that it soaks up the sweat from the root of your hair and leaves it feeling soft and clean.  Perfect!  I've also found that a spritz of hairspray and taking a roller brush and hairdryer to my sweaty head has the same effect ;)

4.  Hair Accessories
Wether it be a cute head band or twist tie, be sure to have one of these on hand.  A sleek pulled back hair style is quick, easy and office appropriate.

5.  Moisturizer
Whatever you fancy, just make sure you got it!

6.  Chapstick
That gorgeous kisser gets dried out during all that huffing and puffing while you are workin that workout girl, make sure you have something to put on your lips to wet that whistle.  Maybe something with a little shimmer, adds a nice touch :)

That is all kids!  Have a great weekend!  See you Monday!