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If you answered yes, this post is for you. We know the new year is full of resolutions, weight loss is always at the top of most lists. What people don’t realize is the easiest way to jump start that is to change their coffee order. How many of you stop for a coffee in the morning? I know I do, there is nothing wrong with that… unless you are seriously trying to lose weight. One of the biggest culprits of hidden calories are coffee drinks.

Drinking your calories in general is always something to be weary of. Some coffee drinks are just as bad as sodas or even milkshakes. So many people don’t realize that and then wonder why they aren’t losing weight. When I was personal training and working on meal programs for clients I heard, “I have a coffee or two a day.” constantly. When I broke down the calories of their regular drink I was able to show many that they were literally drinking 400-600 calories extra in their coffee alone.

Now I know you’ve been waiting on tips to keep the coffee and ditch the excessive calories, we have arrived. The first tip is obvious, but not exactly realistic for some people… drink black coffee. If that’s not your jam, don’t fret I’ve got other options for you. Instead of getting your usual drink, try getting it americano style. You can order whatever flavors you want in an americano and it will likely cut your calories in half. You can add a little cream even and it will still be better for you than your usual drink.

I get asked a lot what my go to coffee is and it really depends. If I am not in prep or not trying to cut my go to is a quad shot with white chocolate and coconut milk for cream over ice. If I am in prep or cutting I usually go for a cold brew with just a splash of coconut milk. Below I took the liberty of breaking down the difference between a White Mocha and a White Mocha Americano style.

Well, I have officially survived my first 2 weeks of recovery! Now, everyone is different… and this is me sharing my experience. I am by no means saying everyone’s experience has been or will be as easy breezy as mine has been. However, mine has been surprisingly easy compared to what I expected.

I was back to work three days after my surgery. There were definitely things I couldn’t do yet, but I don’t like being stuck at home. I figured if I can’t work on the bar, I can at least work windows right? Each day, I pushed myself a little bit more to see where my limits were. This is something I do in every aspect of my life (insert eye roll here), I push myself to my breaking point way more often than I should. Anyway, I definitely over did it on one of those days when I was trying to put milks away after stock came. My coworkers caught me and scolded me, for good reason. I went home in pain, it was my own fault.

I have this character flaw where I don’t like being told what to do. Especially when it comes from doctors… I know, they are the ones I should actually listen to. Usually when someone tells me I can’t do something my response is, “Watch me.” That mentality paired with my freakish pain tolerance are really something else… One of my coworkers saw me on my day off post surgery and said, “I can’t believe you just had surgery the other day, and here you are like nothing even happened.” My response came with a laugh, “Mama didn’t raise no bitch!”

I had a follow-up appointment last week and I was praying so hard that they would give me some clearance to start exercising a little. Surprise, surprise… that didn’t happen. So here I am… loosing my damn mind. Trying to find things to fill my time. Funny story about my appointment though… I almost passed out. They took the tape off of my stitches, out of no where I felt super light-headed and the room started spinning. I told my nurse and she laid me back. I didn’t know what was happening, she said it happens all the time apparently. I thought it was just because I hadn’t eaten yet. We laughed about it, and I didn’t completely pass out so that was a plus.

If I am being completely honest, I was anxious about having my boobs done. My mind was racing in the waiting room, “What if they are awful?” “What if they’re too big?” “What if I hate them?” It was stressful the more I thought about it, but the end result… I couldn’t be happier. I am borderline obsessed with them… they turned out so much better than I hoped or imagined. My self-confidence has improved, not that it was terrible before, but I was always self-conscious about my boobs. There’s a song that has a verse that resonated with me, “some days you feel so good in your own skin, but it’s okay if you want to change the body that you came in.” All I wanted was to be proportional physically and no amount of exercise was going to help out my boobs. I have wanted to do this for so long and I was finally able to do it! Best money I have ever spent 😉

 

Yes, I had my boobs done. Let’s just start right there, mainly because it will be pretty obvious to anyone who knows me or follows my social media. There will be no images of my bare breasts, so if that’s why you’re here feel free to move along.

Not that I feel the need to justify my decision, but I’ll share with you why I chose to do this. It’s something I have always wanted to have done. When it comes to my body, I’m pretty happy with everything I’ve worked for. But… no matter how hard you work in the gym it doesn’t exactly do a whole lot for your breasts aside from making them smaller (usually). My personal journey’s (yes plural) with weight gain and weight loss took a toll on my breasts. Mainly when it came to pregnancy and breast-feeding my son.

I would never change my decision to breast feed, I was very fortunate to be able to do so. What it did to my body though… was take my barely “B” boobs all the way up to “DD” boobs and right back down to barely “B”. After the great deflation, as I like to call it, I was extremely self-conscious of my boobs. I hated them. I would have given anything to have them “fixed”. I worked my ass off in the gym to look the way I want to look, but nothing I did there would do anything for my boobs. The decision to have them done was years in the making and not a rash decision by any means. It was what was right for me. I did it for myself and no one else.

I saw Dr. Kathleen Waldorf out in Portland. My experience there was amazing. Walking in there for my consultation as uncomfortable as I was, I was warmly welcomed and made to feel comfortable. They had this amazing machine that took pictures of you they could show you what your after will look like on your actual body. I mean, how cool is that? Dr. Waldorf listened to everything I wanted and made sure to show me options she felt were what I was looking for. We decided on 310cc silicone implants, for those of you wondering. I left that consult excited to make this next step for myself.

Two Days ago, I had my procedure. I bought the most comfy jammies so I could go right to bed when I got home. My friend Meg drove me out there and helped me with my kiddo for the time I was in surgery until his Dad got off work (You the real MVP Meg!!). She dropped me off and I was trying to remain calm, anesthesia and I don’t get along well. So I tend to get a little bit of anxiety knowing I have to go under. The nurse called me back and I continued to play it cool while shaking on the inside. She had me change into this funky hospital gown and hop into bed. Then gave me warm blankets and hooked my gown up to a machine, which explained so much. It was a heated gown… this was some Kardashian level extra stuff guys!!

After about 15 mins of hooking me up to IV’s getting my vitals, they wheeled me on back. That’s where things got a little foggy, obviously. I woke up disoriented and drugged up, but otherwise feeling fine. I was given a muscle relaxer and some apple sauce. Once I was fully awake they allowed Meg and my son to come back and see me. Grayson was very excited to see Mommy, which warmed my heart. I sat up so I could get dressed and started to get nauseous. They quickly gave me some medication in my IV, but it wasn’t soon enough. I threw up and I apologized for it, even though it was in the little blue thing I still apologized. The nurse kept telling me I didn’t have to apologize, but that’s who I am.

I found out after a little bit that they had given me oxy while I was out, which explained the vomiting. Narcotics like that always make me incredibly sick and I ALWAYS throw up.  I asked for extra puke bags for the drive home because I knew it was inevitable. Sure enough we’re almost home and I am yacking again. Thankfully Meg was unfazed by my puking, again the real MVP. We got home and I was in and out of consciousness for the entire day. I took nothing for pain other than extra strength Tylenol, because I was not about to fill my prescription for Oxy. I was beyond over throwing up.

One instance I do remember is my mom coming home to check on me she walked into my room and said, “Well I can still see your face over your chest, so I guess I don’t have to call you Dolly Parton!” Yes ladies and gentleman, my mom is hilarious and also the coolest.

The next morning I was still pretty groggy and sore, but okay for the most part. I hadn’t looked at what I had going on under my shirt yet, so I unbuttoned it and revealed my bandages and wrap. at the top I saw cleavage… I Erika Hopper, have legit cleavage for the first time since breast-feeding! I was shocked that even wrapped up they looked so good!!

I had pretty full mobility by the time I got to my follow-up appointment. We unwrapped everything and I got to see them for the first time, even while still taped up they were exactly what I was hoping for. The nurse said they looked great and I shouldn’t have any issues. We then put on a surgical bra, that I got on Amazon for super cheap, and we were on our way. I went back home even more excited because I was coherent enough to appreciate what I now had going on.

Today I was finally able to get out of the house on my own. Sitting at my usual spot in my favorite coffee shop, I’ve been writing this latest post. This is strictly my experience and it’s different for everyone. If I can give anyone one piece of advice when it comes to making a decision to have this procedure, it would be this… Do it for YOU and no one else. Don’t allow anyone to pressure you into it or feel like you have to. It’s YOUR body, do what YOU want to do.

 

I met one of my closest friends about nine years ago. I was a freshman in college and she was my first year mentor living on my floor in the dorms. I remember the first time I met Deborah, she was this peppy tiny little thing, literally shaking with excitement to greet everyone living on her floor. I was 18 full of angst and attitude, typical right? But this girl was determined to be my friend. I did my best to keep her at arm’s length at first because I was very weary about who I let into my life at that point in time. I was on the softball team and convinced myself that I really didn’t need any other friends, our team did pretty much everything together. Deborah was persistent and didn’t give up on me.

It took some convincing and some literal dragging me out of my dorm room, but eventually she broke me. I could not be happier that she did. It was probably around the time that she challenged our entire floor to stay off of social media for a week. I refused. She was knocking on my door I was yelling to her saying, “I’M NOT DOING IT AND YOU CAN’T MAKE ME!!” She let herself into my room where I was sitting crisscross on my wheely chair with a bag of frosted mini wheats that was literally as big as I was. With a pep in her step, she turned my chair and wheeled me out into the common area. Bag of cereal in tow.

Deborah pulled me out of the hard shell that I had put around myself during that point in my life. That year was one of the most difficult years of my life. I was a walking disaster who didn’t know what she was doing with her life. I put myself in A LOT of bad situations. One of which changed my life forever… during my freshman year I was sexually assaulted and if I wasn’t a disaster before, I was an even bigger disaster after. It messed me up in all of the worst ways and I didn’t know how to deal with the emotions that came with such a traumatic experience. I did everything I could to numb the pain I was feeling. Drinking became that “cure” for me. I cannot tell you how many times Deborah found me and saved me.

Call it over dramatic or what you will, but Deborah is one of the biggest reasons I am still alive today. I was ready to end it all back then, I was in so much pain I didn’t know how to deal with it. The first time she saved me it was as simple as her seeing me stumble into the hallway, she took my hand and led me to her room. I was out of sorts to the point where I called her “My Deborah” and guess what? It stuck. She scooped me up off the floor countless times consoling me and wiping away my tears. She told me I was worth it and that I was something special. She took this wild child and brought her back.

We became the best of friends. We talked about everything from guys to our life goals. From the day I met her, she has always told me how much she wants to get married. She has been waiting for today for as long as I have known her. When she told me that she wanted me to meet the guy she was dating for the first time she begged me to be nice. Now, if you don’t know me… I am extremely protective of my friends, but ESPECIALLY of my Deborah. I walked up to this guy with my RBF game going strong. He extended his hand and introduced himself, “Hey! I’m Skyler.” I death gripped his hand, “I’m Erika. If you break her heart I will break your face and curb stomp your ass.” He maintained eye contact and our handshake saying, “I won’t Erika.” That spoke volumes to me and I knew that this was meant to be.

Call me a bitterly divorced woman, but the last place I think I should be is a wedding. BUT… this wedding is something I would move mountains to be a part of. My Deborah I am so happy for you and Skyler. You two truly are meant to be and have such a beautiful relationship. Today is your day and I could not be more excited nor honored to be a part of your special day. Standing next to you as you take this amazing step in your life, literally watching your dream come true, is something that is truly priceless. Thank you for being the incredible human that you are and allowing me to be a part of this day with you guys. I’m not crying… you’re crying… SHUT UP!!

Cheers Skyler and My Deborah! I love you both more than I can express!

 

Some people know that I am currently in the process of moving, others don’t. So surprise, I’m moving… yes, again. I know, I know… shut up. Anyway, the last month has been nothing short of hellacious. My stress levels have been through the roof. I am physically and mentally exhausted, all I want to do it crawl under a rock and disappear. But, unfortunately for me that’s not exactly realistic. So I have just continued chugging along, slapping a smile on my face and pretending that my world isn’t actually on fire…

While this has been my personal life for the majority of the last year, I really try not to let any one see that. I’ve been like that for most of my adult life, it can be a character flaw. This last week things began to break through the dam I’ve built…

I opened one morning at work and I was alone for a little bit. One of our regular customers came through and we started chatting as usual, until she said she had something for me. She handed me a pin, but not just any pin… this was a Wonder Woman pin. She began telling me she had heard through the grape vine that new big things were coming my way and that she was given this same pin when she was given a new opportunity like mine. I was caught off guard because of how sweet and personal this small gift was for me. It got even more personal when she went on to talk about how in getting to know me, she knows I haven’t had it easy and that I bust my ass everyday. She continued and told me that I was one of the strongest women she has ever met and that she was so happy to have gotten to know me. I stood there in complete shock as tears rolled down my face. Yes, you read that right… I Erika Hopper cried in front of someone and I am admitting it. My heart was so full and even as I’m typing this right now I can feel the love in my heart I felt that morning.

Two days later another regular came through, he’s one of the coolest older gentlemen I’ve ever met. Always listening to old school rap and dropping off boxes of donuts for the crew. He always greets me with a “Hey Sis, how are ya?” and he genuinely wants to know how you are. On this particular day my response wasn’t my usual “Great! You?” it was “Honestly my friend, I’ve been better…” He asked what was going on and I just told him I was overwhelmed with life and my move, the stress was getting to me. He responded with the most unbelievable pep talk I’ve experienced. He told me that he knows me inside and out, my heart and my soul are strong. Not just strong, but really strong. He told me I was an amazing daughter of God and that I can get through anything because of the strength God has given me. I could feel my eyes welling up with tears again, he looked at me and said, “Now don’t you go crying on me girl, I’ll cry too!” I laughed and couldn’t help the couple tears that got away. He told me I was amazing and that I was loved, if I needed anything at all to just ask.

I always boast about the fact that I don’t cry, but this week it seemed like that was exactly what I needed to do. Especially when the tears falling are happy tears. I am really so blessed to have such incredible people in my life and a job that allws me to build relationships with such amazing people. Most the greatest people in my life I have met through my job, how many people can honestly say that?

With social media these days I feel like we all think we know so much about everyone, but really it’s all about what we want to portray. If you follow any of my social media platforms you probably know that I am extremely into fitness and Wonder Woman is my alter ego. But I can guarantee you don’t know everything about me… So here goes, 10 things you probably didn’t know about me…

Number 1: I am A Giant Nerd

I love comic books, I have a mountain of Wonder Woman comic books at home. I am especially fond of superheros, I know you probably had an idea about that with the Wonder Woman talk. My son’s room is comic book themed with mainly DC characters. Not only am I a comic book nerd, I also used to play Dungeons and Dragons back in the day… along with World of War Craft. Surprise!! Bet y’all didn’t realize I was that nerdy.

Number 2: I Didn’t Know I Was Mexican Until I was In 1st Grade

I came home from school and I was really upset. My Mom asked why and I said, “Some kid called me a Mexican at school today.” She responded with, “And?” With all the confidence I had I said, “Well I’m not!” My Mom laughed and motioned to herself saying, “Umm… yes you are honey.” Obviously shocked and confused I said, “But my last name is Hopper…” With a chuckle she continued to explain, “That’s because your Dad is White.” Little me was so shocked my only response was, “WHY DIDN’T ANYONE TELL ME?!”

Number 3: I Love To Sing

Growing up I was always involved in choir. Everything from children’s choir, church choir, all the way to elite choir in high school. Music has always been an important part of my life. I use music to deal with anything and everything. From emotional breakdowns to just tuning the world out in the gym. Anytime I am in my car you can bet my radio is blasting and I am singing at the top of my lungs.

Number 4: I Have An Extremely High Pain Tolerance

I had really severe Asthma as a child. I had a breathing machine in my house, it was that bad. It could be why my pain tolerance is the way it is. By the time I complained to my parents about my chest hurting my lung had collapsed. As I got older my pain tolerance got even higher. I broke my hand in elementary school, one of my best friends at the time jumped on it accidentally. All I heard was the “crack” sound of my bone breaking, I walked over to the couch and sat down until my parent’s picked me up from the sitter. There were no tears, I just sat there and dealt with the pain.

In high school I broke my shin playing softball. I was playing second base and a runner went for my bag and instead of sliding she basically put her entire body into my leg. I played the rest of the game and didn’t get it checked out, I hate doctors. Another incident occurred while I was in high school, also playing softball, was the Triple Crown World Series. I was sliding into home plate and I hit the catcher… HARD. I got up and she was down in the dirt crying, I walked into the dugout where all of my teammates looked at my in horror and pointed at my leg. I had apparently caught the catchers shin guard clip with my knee and sliced it completely open. A couple of team mom’s were RN’s and they pounced on me to clean it out. I flopped my skin back on, taped it up, and played 2 more games that day. I went to the hospital that night, where I got 28 stitches and went on to play 8 more games that week.

In college I blew my ankle at softball practice. It got stuck under the fence, I rebounded and fell, but my foot stayed. I had to be carried off the field, but I ended up walking out of practice that day. I walked on my mangled ankle for a week and a half before being forced to get an MRI. I had torn and stretched several ligaments, had a displaced fracture inside my bone, and my bones were bruised and bleeding. Long story short… I’m a freak.

Number 5: I am A Terrible Liar

My entire body rejects the lies I am trying to tell. I chuckle nervously, I smile awkwardly and my triple chin comes out. It’s hilarious to those that know me, but it’s actually the worst. I could say something while not looking directly at who I am talking to, but as soon as they say, “Erika, look at me and tell me that again.” It’s game over, they know and it usually ends in a big laugh for everyone involved. I am the WORST liar.

Number 6: I am Crafty/Artsy

I love making things and creating things in general. I used to draw and paint all the time when I was growing up, I used to be pretty good at it. But, life tends to get in the way as you get older and I am out of practice when it comes to those two. These days I enjoy creating my own home decor and sticking to my rotating chalkboard quotes. It has always been a big stress reliever for me

Number 7: I am Handy

I know my way around all sorts of power tools as well as regular tools. I have fixed, built, and assembled several different things on my own, she don’t need no man! I’ve fixed things such as our espresso machines and even broken into a safe that’s key pad failed. I look at these issues and my response is always, “Challenge accepted!” I love knowing how things work and being able to fix them on my own.

Number 8: I Grew Up Using Firearms

Growing up in a small country town, everyone had guns of some kind. My Dad used to hunt and used to be a Police Officer. I was raised around them for the most part. As teenagers we would go out and shoot jack rabbits for fun. Along with the occasional coyote or badger. While I was going to college in Idaho I took Trap Shooting for college credit, it was considered PE. It was by far the best class I had ever taken. I finally decided to get my concealed last year and have a desire to get back into shooting like I used to.

Number 9: I am Fluent in Spanish and ASL

I grew up in a community with a large migrant population. My elementary school had an amazing program where we did half of our daily studies in English and then in Spanish. My schooling was entirely bilingual all the way into high school. On top of that, my Mom and my Grandma spoke Spanish too. I was able to be fully immersed in the language and to this day use it regularly.

I had the opportunity to study ASL (American Sign Language) while attending Boise State University. I was completely fluent by the end of the two years and I loved every bit of it. With the lack of usage, I will say I am pretty rusty. However, where I am working right now there is a school for the deaf and several of our customers are deaf. I get the opportunity to communicate with them. It is such an awesome experience when they first realize you can communicate with them in their own language.

Number 10: I Can Out Burp Most Men

Believe it or not, I have a condition where if I don’t burp I end up in the hospital… Don’t believe me? Ask my parents, they’ve paid the bills for it and they will tell you. In high school I would burp out in center field and it could be heard in the stands. If you’ve seen the movie “Elf” you probably remember the scene where he drinks the bottle of soda and then burps for a solid minute… That’s me in real life, I am not remotely exaggerating.