Happiness in the eye of the beholder

2014 wasn’t the best year for many people I know, myself included. I was not happy with where I was at and regretting many choices I had made. I managed to move past my resentments and started making changes and choices for a better 2015. I just re-read my New Year, New You blog that I posted in January and it’s funny that I’m not doing all the things I intended to. I’m not saying that in a bad way. My priorities have shifted. My intentions have changed with each lesson I have learnt so far this year. I still can’t believe we are already half way through this year!

While I was sick last month I felt really flat and started feeling depressed. This brought up past feelings of resentment and questioning the choices that were made. I am dealing with stress due to my current circumstances and while I thought I was managing it, it was obvious I wasn’t when my body gave up. My circumstances aren’t going to change anytime soon but they are on the path to improving so I just have to keep moving forward. The struggle is trying to maintain a positive mindset and managing stress levels. And that is why I just love this print I downloaded from The Daily Guru because it is so perfect for me right here, right now!

New beginnings

Today is a very exciting and scary day for me. Today is the day I took the leap into the public world of the internet. The first step was creating this blog which is really a by-product of step two. Three months ago I signed up for the Maxine’s Shape Up Challenge and today is the first day the public can vote on the best transformation. This is scary for me because it means people I know will see me in my sport bra and undies and I am embarrassed for how I used to look. Even though it isn’t my heaviest and at that time I thought I only had a little to lose. I ended up losing 8kg during this challenge and made it to my goal weight! I still need to work on my trouble areas but I am so proud of what I have achieved in 12 weeks and am excited to share my transformation with everyone!

I have completed other 12 week challenges before but the Maxines Challenge was different. This challenge transformed my mind, body and my soul and what I learned during this challenge and what I want to learn to complete the transformation is why I am writing this blog. As you can see in the comparison below as the weeks progress my smile grew bigger as I became a happier, more energetic person who was now confident in her own skin. I feel inspired and empowered and I want to share this feeling with you.

I am proud of what I achieved and would love it if you could show me some support and vote for me. Go to http://www.maxineschallenge.com.au and register to vote. Once registered you will have 3 votes to use. You can vote for 3 different challengers or you can use all three votes on me (search for Natasha Quintanilla). Please take the time to vote for the challenger/s with the best transformation and support the hard work we put in over 12 weeks to transform our lives.