It's been a week since I wrote and I really have no excuse. I need to keep on top of that because it's so important for me to stay connected to my weight loss efforts and my thoughts and emotions as I go through this change of life. It's a tough battle, but just because I didn't write this week doesn't mean I have deviated from my healthy lifestyle, it doesn't mean I have gone off the deep end of fallen of the wagon.
All in Debbie land is actually really great! I lost 2.6 pounds this week. That means since January 3rd, I have officially lost 20.6 pounds. Ok, I'd like it to go a little faster, but I am happy to have lost 20 pounds. It really feels so good and rewarding and I do think I am starting to see some very slight changes in the shape of my body. Like I have said before, trying to lose weight and get in shape can be difficult and disappointing, especially when you think you are trying so hard and can't make headway. But once you can make a few really good changes, and you start to see results, I now see how easy it is to keep motivation.
Because I was an athlete for mots of my young life, I gained a very competitive spirit, but this is the first time I am using the competitive spirit against myself. I just feel like I have to "win"! There is nothing that can stop me. I am not even struggling. I am so excited because I feel like I have finally mastered the healthy eating lifestyle. It just feels so easy, why didn't I figure this out before. I can't take all the credit though because I am just putting in to play many of the tools and techniques I learned from weight watchers.
They really taught me how to eat. It's a shame they got rid of their core program. I know they have some variation of it now, but it still involves counting points. I know that does work for some people, my Mom specifically has done really, really well on the points system. I guess it worked for me too, but I think what always get's me when I am trying to lose weight is, I get too caught up and lost in the diet. It engulfs my whole self and eventually it starts to drive me crazy, like I just can't take thinking about it anymore. The point tracking, the measuring, the weighing, the journaling. It just all gets to be too much. The point finder thing was such a pain in the neck every time you had to figure out how many points something was. If I was in the store and wanted to buy something and I didn't have my points finder on me, what a pain to try to figure it out and then make the choice to either buy it or not and take my chances on the amount of points it was. And then all the game playing.....Yes, you heard me.....I said game playing! It's so easy to play games with yourself while you are doing that kind of thing. First of all, the points come out of how much fat, calories and fiber something has in it. So, basically, you can have anything you want as long as you can figure out the points associated with it. When I was doing the points, I would justify things like, candy bars (Most of them around 5 pts), a big mac (13 pts), Egg McMuffin (9 pts) and so on. There is a point value for everything, but it doesn't mean that is the kind of stuff you should be eating. You find ways to justify eating bad food within your points value and then you get all upset when you didn't lose or lost very little.
So, they use to say "A calorie is a calorie." Well, by doing weight watchers core program, that only lasted a short time, I learned so very much about eating. I mean, what do you think is better? 5 points worth of chicken or 5 points worth of a candy bar? Which one is healthier for you? Which one is going to carry you the longest before you are hungry again? Which one is going to give you the most energy? Do you think it's better to eat 5 pts of a candy bar or 10 pts of a grilled chicken breast. This is the epiphany I have gained from doing the points programs. It forced me to learn a little more about nutrition. It taught me how to gauge my portion sizes without having to weight and measure. For dinner, I should be having about 5-6 oz of a lean meet. So, I greab a chicken breast out and I cook it. Then I eat it. What step did I skip? I didn't measure it and I didn't journal it! That makes life so much easier. So, what if the chicken breast was 7 oz instead of 5 or 6? Is that really going to make such a huge difference? No, it's not.
I think the problem people had with core, was it gave too much freedom and when it comes to "dieting", a word I completely despise, people need to have boundaries and rules because they are so reliant on someone else telling them what to eat and how much, they haven't really been taught to think for themselves, and they haven't been taught about proper nutrition, or common sense when it comes to food. I am so fortunate that I took the chance years back and tried the Weight Watchers core program because it really taught me what to eat, how to eat and in the right portions without having to drive myself crazy by weighing and measuring and writing everything down. I know what to eat and in the right portions and I don't put a lot of thought into my food. I use to literally drive myself crazy, that I just couldn't stand obsessing and thinking so much about everything I put into my mouth.
I just cook up some good old fresh lean meats, a whole grain, veggies and a salad for dinner and I'm good to go. Then because I enjoy a little sweet taste in my mouth, I eat one cookie, or one piece of dark chocolate or one of my sweet delights and I am totally satisfied. I have also learned that I don't need to abuse sweets in order to enjoy them. I really enjoy and savor the taste of just one. One the weekends I sometimes allow 2.
tonight, Saturday night, I am so excited because I bought the fixins to make myself a pizza. I bought pizza dough, chicken sausage that I am cutting into little peices, I have black olives, green peppers and onions that I am putting on it with pizza sauce and 2% skim mozzarella. I can't wait. The best part is, I am not even going to try to figure out how much fat and calories. I don't care. I will probably eat about half and put the other half away. It really is all about moderation. So, that means that this isn't something I could eat everyday, but if I have it once in a while on the weekend and make sure that they rest of the time, I am very aware of what I am eating, I will still lose. And the best part is, allowing yourself a little treat now and then really helps you to not feel deprived. I do not feel deprived at all. I love everything I am eating and I have really shown myself that I can eat good, lose weight and not feel deprived, but that I can feel totally and completely satisfied. And the funny thing is, as I continue to work hard on eating healthy, I have noticed that food does come a little less important to me. I use to focus so much on food. Every where I went, every thing I did, I felt like food was the center of it. I don't feel that way anymore.
Last night I came home from work and all I thought about on the way home was, "When I get home, I have to get the rest of the mulch placed in the gardens." I didn't think about dinner and I didn't feel like I was even that hungry and yesterday when I got home, I realized I totally forgot to eat my 3pm snack. I mean, i don't want to do that everyday, because I usually eat a small amount of nuts and an apple and that holds me til dinner, but yesterday I just wasn't feeling hungry. So, I came home and I worked in the garden til about 8pm. Then for dinner I had a little bit of couscous and a small slice of chedder cheese. I just wasn't hungry.
It just amazes me what we can do when we put our mind to it. For so long, I was right there with so many other people who say, "I just can't because........" and they tell themself some little story that they believe. They don't even try, they make up their minds that they are going to fail before they even try. It's really sad that people don't give themselves more credit. We as people are amazing.....We are so strong and we can do anything we put our minds to.
So, I have one more thing to talk about. It's about keeping motivation. So, I have an excel spreadsheet that I use to document my weight. So, I have each date that I plan to weigh in and when I put it in, it calculates how much I lost. In the next column, I have created a column that says, "Projected weight loss." Basically I set little goals for myself instead of just trying to lose weight and not knowing exactly what I want to accomplish. So for instance, when I first weighed myself on January 3rd, I was 344. Then I thought about how much weight I wanted to lose and the time frame I wanted to do it in. So, I said I wanted to lose 170 pounds in 2 years. If I lose it faster, great, but at the minimum, I will lose it in 2 years. I figure slower is better and It will ensure I keep it off longer, hopefully for good. So, I take the total want to lose and divide it by the number of weeks I want to lose it in. So, two years is 104 weeks. Then I divide 170 by 104 and I get 1.6. 1.6 pounds is what I need to lose a week in order to reach that goal. So, in the "Projected Weight" Column, I subtract 1.6 from 344 and next week, my goal is to weight 342.4. Then I create a formula that subtracts 1.6 from 342.4 and drag that formula down until I get to 104 weeks and see what my ending weight will be, but each week, I will clearly see the goal I have set for myself.
The great thing about this is, it's a great monitoring system. If you feel like you are eating good, and you gain or don't lose 1.6 or whatever your goal is, you know you have to modify something and just know that you will do better next week. When I first started though, the first two weeks I lost like 10 pounds, so I got way ahead of my goal. Then my dog passed away and I feel off the wagon badly. But I did get back on, then I tried herbalife for two weeks which messed me up badly. But once I got off that, which was now 6 weeks ago, I am back on track and right where I am suppose to be with my goal because I have been doing so well, that I have lost way more than 1.6 a week. The really exciting and motivating thing about this is, I can look 4 or 8 or 12 weeks from now and get so excited when I see numbers that I haven't seen in so long and I am so excited to get back there. And when you see it in black and white, it makes it so real and then you understand so well the correlation between eating bad and eating good. Then I think, by continuing to eat healthy, what will this get me??? It will get me under 300 in 17 weeks and that is if I only lose 1.6 a week. I could see 299 on the scale sooner than that. I am both happy about this and ashamed of this at the same time, the fact that I let myself get over 300 pounds. I was ashamed when I was over 250. But I have to stop and not think of that. It is what it is and it's that feeling of shame that got me to where I am. I started feeling shameful about myself weight when I was in High School and I hit 175. And then I hit 185. 190. I was in college when I hit 200 and I felt so bad about myself. I felt so shameful, but the funny thing is, my reaction to shame was to hide and eat. I use to stop at McDonalds on the way to school and eat like 2 or 3 breakfast sandwiches because somehow it comforted me.
I often laugh at that.......The very thing that ruined my life and made me so unhappy and shameful about myself was the same thing that comforted me. I don't get it. But I don't have to. I am over it now. I am an adult. Yes, I am ashamed that I am 323 pounds right now. I am ashamed that I was once 344. But I don't allow myself to feel that because nothing good comes from feeling shame. I have too many things in my life I am tired of feeling ashamed of, some I can't help, it's just who I am.
I don't let shame be a part of my life anymore. As far as my weight goes, I am so proud of myself for finally taking control of my life and my eating.....I am proud of myself for not giving up and working until I found a solution that works for me. I am proud that I lost 20 pounds. And if someone out there is reading this, and it helps them, I am proud of that too.
Be who you are and be proud to be who you are! There is no one else quite like you!!!
All my life I had been looking for something, and everywhere I turned someone tried to tell me what it was. I accepted their answers too, though they were often in contradiction and even self-contradictory. I was naïve. I was looking for myself and asking everyone except myself questions which I, and only I, could answer. It took me a long time and much painful boomeranging of my expectations to achieve a realization everyone else appears to have been born with: that I am nobody but myself. ~Ralph Ellison, "Battle Royal"
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Saturday, April 9, 2011
My NEW Heaven!
This morning was weigh day! I am so happy to report that I lost 4 pounds this week!!! I gained 2 last week, so I guess in reality, I only lost 2 "new" pounds, but that is ok! I'll take it. That makes my total loss 18 pounds since the 3rd of January. It's been a rough ride and had I not gotten off track when Sampson passed and then went on that hokie Herbalife diet, I probably would have been further along, but the main thing to keep in mind is that 18 pounds is still 18 pounds no matter how long it took. I just know that I am feeling so much better already!!!
I think sometimes when trying to lose weight, especially with the Biggest Loser as a part of our reality now, people are so quick to balk at 1, 2 or 3 pounds. Even when I say 18 pounds, it doesn't sound like a lot. The Biggest Loser has us so brainwashed that you should be losing 10, 15 or even 20 pounds a week, but that is not realistic and it's is not even really all that healthy to lose weight so fast. So, whenever I get to thinking that 1 pound isn't a lot, I have to give myself a visual. 4 sticks of butter is a pound. Put 4 sticks of butter together and tell me if you can't say that is a good amount of weight to shed off your body. It doesn't sound like a lot, but when you look at it, you can cleary see that it's pretty significant.
Even 5 pounds, which never sounds like a lot, is really a pretty good amount of weight. Next time you are at the grocery store, grab a 5 pound bag of potatoes and walk around the store with them for a while. Then when you put them down, notice how much lighter you feel. How much better does your back alone feel?
So, for me to gauge how much weight 18 pounds is, I look at and pick up my little dog Toolah who is 16 pounds. Well, because I have had dogs that are 70 pounds and 40 pounds, my little Toolah at 16 pounds seems to light and little. But when I look at her size and picture losing that much off my body, that is a good amount of weight to lose off your frame. And when we are on walks, and she decides that she doesn't want to walk anymore and I have to carry her the rest of the way home, I am so extremely relieved to put all 16 pounds of her down when I get home. That is enough weight over a short period of time, to start to give you some pain and stress over your knees and back.
So, today I have to say that I am truly happy with my success in many ways. Not only am I proud of losing 18 pounds, I am proud that I didn't give up last week after gaining 2.2 pounds. So many times that has been the time when I fall off the wagon because I get so discouraged because I know I worked hard all week and then to get on the scale and not see that reflected is really hard to take. It causes me to get frustrated and angry and last week I didn't really let it affect me. I just knew that diverting from my healthy eating lifestyle wasn't going to accomplish anything productive. It was just going to lead to more frustration and more weight gain which was going to lead me back to that vicious cycle which I finally feel like I am out of now!
I have truly come to believe that losing weight and being healthy is something that takes patience and effort. It means changing habits, not just for a temporary period, but it's about making changes that will stick with you the rest of your life. It's about learning how to eat sensibly, while making sure that you don't completely deprive yourself of the things you enjoy, it's about moderation. And most importantly, if you eat more calories in a day or at a specific meal, don't beat yourself up. Just eat less at the next meal and get right back in the game. There is no such word as cheating in my routine because that is a negative word that makes you feel guilty, and feeling guilty leads to more bad eating. If you eat a little more than you should, just cap it and move on. The important thing is to know how to recover.
I have been trying to lose weight for the last 15 years and as a result, I have gained more and more. It's just now that I am finally processing and using all the tools and techniques I have learned over the years. It's just now that I understand all that I have been taught, and it's just in these last few months that being healthy and fit is more appealing and rewarding to me than eating things I once believed were heaven to me. Now, my heaven is feeling healthy, energetic and confident!!!
Success is a journey, not a destination." Ben Sweetland
I think sometimes when trying to lose weight, especially with the Biggest Loser as a part of our reality now, people are so quick to balk at 1, 2 or 3 pounds. Even when I say 18 pounds, it doesn't sound like a lot. The Biggest Loser has us so brainwashed that you should be losing 10, 15 or even 20 pounds a week, but that is not realistic and it's is not even really all that healthy to lose weight so fast. So, whenever I get to thinking that 1 pound isn't a lot, I have to give myself a visual. 4 sticks of butter is a pound. Put 4 sticks of butter together and tell me if you can't say that is a good amount of weight to shed off your body. It doesn't sound like a lot, but when you look at it, you can cleary see that it's pretty significant.
Even 5 pounds, which never sounds like a lot, is really a pretty good amount of weight. Next time you are at the grocery store, grab a 5 pound bag of potatoes and walk around the store with them for a while. Then when you put them down, notice how much lighter you feel. How much better does your back alone feel?
So, for me to gauge how much weight 18 pounds is, I look at and pick up my little dog Toolah who is 16 pounds. Well, because I have had dogs that are 70 pounds and 40 pounds, my little Toolah at 16 pounds seems to light and little. But when I look at her size and picture losing that much off my body, that is a good amount of weight to lose off your frame. And when we are on walks, and she decides that she doesn't want to walk anymore and I have to carry her the rest of the way home, I am so extremely relieved to put all 16 pounds of her down when I get home. That is enough weight over a short period of time, to start to give you some pain and stress over your knees and back.
So, today I have to say that I am truly happy with my success in many ways. Not only am I proud of losing 18 pounds, I am proud that I didn't give up last week after gaining 2.2 pounds. So many times that has been the time when I fall off the wagon because I get so discouraged because I know I worked hard all week and then to get on the scale and not see that reflected is really hard to take. It causes me to get frustrated and angry and last week I didn't really let it affect me. I just knew that diverting from my healthy eating lifestyle wasn't going to accomplish anything productive. It was just going to lead to more frustration and more weight gain which was going to lead me back to that vicious cycle which I finally feel like I am out of now!
I have truly come to believe that losing weight and being healthy is something that takes patience and effort. It means changing habits, not just for a temporary period, but it's about making changes that will stick with you the rest of your life. It's about learning how to eat sensibly, while making sure that you don't completely deprive yourself of the things you enjoy, it's about moderation. And most importantly, if you eat more calories in a day or at a specific meal, don't beat yourself up. Just eat less at the next meal and get right back in the game. There is no such word as cheating in my routine because that is a negative word that makes you feel guilty, and feeling guilty leads to more bad eating. If you eat a little more than you should, just cap it and move on. The important thing is to know how to recover.
I have been trying to lose weight for the last 15 years and as a result, I have gained more and more. It's just now that I am finally processing and using all the tools and techniques I have learned over the years. It's just now that I understand all that I have been taught, and it's just in these last few months that being healthy and fit is more appealing and rewarding to me than eating things I once believed were heaven to me. Now, my heaven is feeling healthy, energetic and confident!!!
Success is a journey, not a destination." Ben Sweetland
Friday, April 8, 2011
Nothing tastes as good as thin feels!!!
Yesterday after work I went to watch a friend play softball on her work team. All the players were in my age group, some a few years younger and a couple were a good amount of years older. It was so much fun to watch, but at the same time, I felt a sorrow rise up in me. It looked like they were having so much fun, and hitting, catching, running seemed to be little effort for them all.
I remembered back to my days of playing sports and how much I loved it. I remember when I was in Jr. High and High School, I use to be excited all day and couldn't wait for the day to end so I could get to sports practice, whatever sport I happen to be playing that season. I can think back and remember so vividly how good I felt and how much fun I was having and I know I felt so alive. I want that feeling back so bad. As a 37 year old, I could still be playing. There were also beach volleyball courts at the ball field and again, many people in my age group playing beach volleyball. My favorite sport of all time is indoor volleyball, but I also like beach VB. I get so sad when I think about the fact that I have stolen that life away from myself.
I looked up on the computer to find out if there was an adult volleyball league in my area and infact, there is. I could be playing!!! I would totally love to go a few nights a week to play. I want that life back. I love to be active! I love to get all sweaty! I love to feel sore the next day, but you feel so invigorated as well.
So, last night while I watched the game, it just reaffirmed for me how important it is for me to do this. It reaffirmed how important it is for me to take my life back and get back to doing what I love.....Being active!
I am already working hard, but I know for me, being successful is all about staying motivated. So many people put so much emphasis on the actual "diet". Although this is very important to be mindful and aware of what you are eating and the quantities you are eating, it is equally important, if not more so, so really get connected to yourself emotionally and find out what drives you to eat, but more importantly, what drives you to want to be healthy and lose weight to begin with. Make a daily reminder of this for yourself. Renewing your motivation is so important to do everyday because everyday you are faced with challenges and you are faced with tough decision making, but if you are clear on why you want to lose weight, and keep reminding yourself of this, you will be able to develop a strong motivation to lose weight and work hard to stick to a healthy way of life.
If is so important and yesterday was another life affirming reason of why I am working so hard to accomplish my 150 pound weight loss. But the other thing is, I am not totally focused on the 150 pounds because that can become overwhelming and I will start to feel "normal" again way before I lose the 150. Right now I am looking to lose 25 pounds. That will put me back into the 200's. Then from there, I am looking to lose another 25. That will put me at a weight that I remember so vividly what it feels like. I will then be at 265. I don't know why that weight stands out in my head, but I remember being 285 and getting down to 265. I felt so renewed, light and healthy. I was beginning to get active again and I was beginning to feel like a "normal" size. But I don't know what happened. Somehow I lost it and ended up gaining back the weight. So, right now that is the weight I am ultimately focused on. When I get there, I will refocus on a new goal.
I can barely remember what I felt like when I was 145. I know I was playing a lot of sports and very athletic and I know that I felt good playing sports, but I wish I could really remember what that felt like. But I will soon because by this time next year, I am hoping that I can be close. I don't know that I will ever be 145 again, but that is ok. As long as I can get to the 100's, I will worry about my finally goal from there!!
It is so exciting to think that in a year, my whole life could be so different than what it is today. I could be a totally different person being able to engage in totally different activities and having a totally different confidence level. I can't wait!! It feels so good I can taste it!!! That reminds me of something my weight watcher leader use to say, "Nothing tastes as good as thin feels." She is so right!!!!
I remembered back to my days of playing sports and how much I loved it. I remember when I was in Jr. High and High School, I use to be excited all day and couldn't wait for the day to end so I could get to sports practice, whatever sport I happen to be playing that season. I can think back and remember so vividly how good I felt and how much fun I was having and I know I felt so alive. I want that feeling back so bad. As a 37 year old, I could still be playing. There were also beach volleyball courts at the ball field and again, many people in my age group playing beach volleyball. My favorite sport of all time is indoor volleyball, but I also like beach VB. I get so sad when I think about the fact that I have stolen that life away from myself.
I looked up on the computer to find out if there was an adult volleyball league in my area and infact, there is. I could be playing!!! I would totally love to go a few nights a week to play. I want that life back. I love to be active! I love to get all sweaty! I love to feel sore the next day, but you feel so invigorated as well.
So, last night while I watched the game, it just reaffirmed for me how important it is for me to do this. It reaffirmed how important it is for me to take my life back and get back to doing what I love.....Being active!
I am already working hard, but I know for me, being successful is all about staying motivated. So many people put so much emphasis on the actual "diet". Although this is very important to be mindful and aware of what you are eating and the quantities you are eating, it is equally important, if not more so, so really get connected to yourself emotionally and find out what drives you to eat, but more importantly, what drives you to want to be healthy and lose weight to begin with. Make a daily reminder of this for yourself. Renewing your motivation is so important to do everyday because everyday you are faced with challenges and you are faced with tough decision making, but if you are clear on why you want to lose weight, and keep reminding yourself of this, you will be able to develop a strong motivation to lose weight and work hard to stick to a healthy way of life.
If is so important and yesterday was another life affirming reason of why I am working so hard to accomplish my 150 pound weight loss. But the other thing is, I am not totally focused on the 150 pounds because that can become overwhelming and I will start to feel "normal" again way before I lose the 150. Right now I am looking to lose 25 pounds. That will put me back into the 200's. Then from there, I am looking to lose another 25. That will put me at a weight that I remember so vividly what it feels like. I will then be at 265. I don't know why that weight stands out in my head, but I remember being 285 and getting down to 265. I felt so renewed, light and healthy. I was beginning to get active again and I was beginning to feel like a "normal" size. But I don't know what happened. Somehow I lost it and ended up gaining back the weight. So, right now that is the weight I am ultimately focused on. When I get there, I will refocus on a new goal.
I can barely remember what I felt like when I was 145. I know I was playing a lot of sports and very athletic and I know that I felt good playing sports, but I wish I could really remember what that felt like. But I will soon because by this time next year, I am hoping that I can be close. I don't know that I will ever be 145 again, but that is ok. As long as I can get to the 100's, I will worry about my finally goal from there!!
It is so exciting to think that in a year, my whole life could be so different than what it is today. I could be a totally different person being able to engage in totally different activities and having a totally different confidence level. I can't wait!! It feels so good I can taste it!!! That reminds me of something my weight watcher leader use to say, "Nothing tastes as good as thin feels." She is so right!!!!
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Being Grateful! The Story of Elisa, Nathan and Sadie Bond!
We all get so caught up in the everyday minutia of life, and thing things that are going on in our lives seem so serious, so all important, that something I think we forget to remember that there are other people out there that have it worse than us, or are suffering more than us. These factors don't make our reality less real, but it does make one stop to think here and there and realize the "unseriousness" of their own problem, that maybe they have perpetuated into something bigger and more serious than it really needs to be.
I had a moment like that this morning. I get so caught up on my weight loss journey, and it is almost all encompassing that I don't often think about others who may be going through something more difficult. Again, it's not that what I am going through doesn't matter because someone else has a more difficult struggle, but it's just important from time to time to stop and take a look at yourself and what you have and find a reason, or two or three or more, to be grateful for the life you have, no matter how unperfect you think it is.
Today I was watching the Today Show and it featured a young couple, both in their 30's who were the proud parents of an 18 month old beautiful baby girl. Their story was heartbreaking as they began to tell of the events that unfolded February 2010. Elisa had started a blog back in 2009 to document the development and life of their new born baby. And in February 2010, her blog becomes a way to talk about and monitor the recent diagnosis her husband Nathan received that he has colo-rectal cancer. He is in stage 3 of his diagnosis and so they begin chemo treatments on him. The next two blogs are about his diagnosis, them dealing with the news and how they are going to keep a positive attitude and get through this. Then, 9 days later, Elisa finds a lump on her breast and is diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer, which has already spread to other areas of her body. She actually found the lump a month before, but because she had just given birth and was breast feeding, the doctors recommended she wait a month until she was no longer breast feeding, to get it checked out.
WOW! A young couple, both in their 30's fighting for their lives while raising their 18 month old daughter and working hard to continue to give her a wonderful life.
Both of them got a very grim diagnosis and both got a 40-60% change of living another 5 years. Despite the seriousness of this situation, they are both keeping an extremely upbeat and positive attitude and show so much gratitude for their life and the people around them. GRATITUDE!! It's something so few people engage in, yet here are two people that just basically got a death sentence, but despite that news, they are still fighting, still staying positive, envisioning themselves living a long, healthy life with their daughter and most amazing, they are grateful for their life and everything and everyone they have. Neither one of them is showing anger or anything. What a testament. Anger only makes you more sick. But being positive and being happy and grateful can only help them in their fight to survive.
Elisa's blog is amazing. If you would like to check it out and read more about their story, you can view their blog here: http://familybondingtime.blogspot.com/
They are an amazing family and it makes me realize that my weight loss, although to me it's serious because it's life or death for me, they teach me a wonderful lesson. They teach me that no matter what I am going through in life, no matter how hard it is something and no matter what I face, you MUST ALWAYS maintain a positive attitude, a sense of humor, and you MUST be grateful for you life and everyone and everything you have in it.
My weight loss is important, but I can't let it get to me. I think the best way for me to overcome this and win is to be confident, be positive at all times, stay happy and most of all be grateful for my health. Because even though I have weight to lose and could die one day if I don't lose it, I am not in eminent danger like they are. I am healthy. God gave me a healthy working body and I can't take that for granted, and when you are over weight or abuse your body in any other way, you are taking for granted the gift that God gave you. So many people would give anything for a healthy body, and then someone like me comes along and takes it for granted and abuses it. Not right and not fair.
I am losing weight for me, but now I am losing it fir the Bond family too. Although I have always been a huge believe and follower of having gratitude, I now understand even more how important that is. I will keep them close in thought and prayer, praying for both of them to make a full recovery so that they can be here on this earth to see their beautiful daughter grow to be an adult. Sot that they can see her walk down the isle and so that they can spend time with their grandkids one day!
Elisa and Nathan, I am praying for you both! Stay strong, hang in there and keep being positive and grateful. I believe in miracles and you should too!
One more thing: I don't know Elisa and Nathan at all. I just heard about them today on the Today Show, but the show mentioned that friends created a website in the Bonds name. As you can imagine, medical expenses are out of hand. Insurance doesn't cover everything. If you would like to help them along and make a donation towards their medical expenses, please visit: http://friendsofnathanandelisa.blogspot.com/p/nathan-and-elisas-story.html
Even if you can only donate a little bit, please do because if everyone just gives a little, maybe it will be a lot! I know the gesture will mean a lot to them also.
Please join me in keeping them close in thought and prayer!
“Impossible situations can become possible miracles." Robert H. Schuller
I had a moment like that this morning. I get so caught up on my weight loss journey, and it is almost all encompassing that I don't often think about others who may be going through something more difficult. Again, it's not that what I am going through doesn't matter because someone else has a more difficult struggle, but it's just important from time to time to stop and take a look at yourself and what you have and find a reason, or two or three or more, to be grateful for the life you have, no matter how unperfect you think it is.
Today I was watching the Today Show and it featured a young couple, both in their 30's who were the proud parents of an 18 month old beautiful baby girl. Their story was heartbreaking as they began to tell of the events that unfolded February 2010. Elisa had started a blog back in 2009 to document the development and life of their new born baby. And in February 2010, her blog becomes a way to talk about and monitor the recent diagnosis her husband Nathan received that he has colo-rectal cancer. He is in stage 3 of his diagnosis and so they begin chemo treatments on him. The next two blogs are about his diagnosis, them dealing with the news and how they are going to keep a positive attitude and get through this. Then, 9 days later, Elisa finds a lump on her breast and is diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer, which has already spread to other areas of her body. She actually found the lump a month before, but because she had just given birth and was breast feeding, the doctors recommended she wait a month until she was no longer breast feeding, to get it checked out.
WOW! A young couple, both in their 30's fighting for their lives while raising their 18 month old daughter and working hard to continue to give her a wonderful life.
Both of them got a very grim diagnosis and both got a 40-60% change of living another 5 years. Despite the seriousness of this situation, they are both keeping an extremely upbeat and positive attitude and show so much gratitude for their life and the people around them. GRATITUDE!! It's something so few people engage in, yet here are two people that just basically got a death sentence, but despite that news, they are still fighting, still staying positive, envisioning themselves living a long, healthy life with their daughter and most amazing, they are grateful for their life and everything and everyone they have. Neither one of them is showing anger or anything. What a testament. Anger only makes you more sick. But being positive and being happy and grateful can only help them in their fight to survive.
Elisa's blog is amazing. If you would like to check it out and read more about their story, you can view their blog here: http://familybondingtime.blogspot.com/
They are an amazing family and it makes me realize that my weight loss, although to me it's serious because it's life or death for me, they teach me a wonderful lesson. They teach me that no matter what I am going through in life, no matter how hard it is something and no matter what I face, you MUST ALWAYS maintain a positive attitude, a sense of humor, and you MUST be grateful for you life and everyone and everything you have in it.
My weight loss is important, but I can't let it get to me. I think the best way for me to overcome this and win is to be confident, be positive at all times, stay happy and most of all be grateful for my health. Because even though I have weight to lose and could die one day if I don't lose it, I am not in eminent danger like they are. I am healthy. God gave me a healthy working body and I can't take that for granted, and when you are over weight or abuse your body in any other way, you are taking for granted the gift that God gave you. So many people would give anything for a healthy body, and then someone like me comes along and takes it for granted and abuses it. Not right and not fair.
I am losing weight for me, but now I am losing it fir the Bond family too. Although I have always been a huge believe and follower of having gratitude, I now understand even more how important that is. I will keep them close in thought and prayer, praying for both of them to make a full recovery so that they can be here on this earth to see their beautiful daughter grow to be an adult. Sot that they can see her walk down the isle and so that they can spend time with their grandkids one day!
Elisa and Nathan, I am praying for you both! Stay strong, hang in there and keep being positive and grateful. I believe in miracles and you should too!
One more thing: I don't know Elisa and Nathan at all. I just heard about them today on the Today Show, but the show mentioned that friends created a website in the Bonds name. As you can imagine, medical expenses are out of hand. Insurance doesn't cover everything. If you would like to help them along and make a donation towards their medical expenses, please visit: http://friendsofnathanandelisa.blogspot.com/p/nathan-and-elisas-story.html
Even if you can only donate a little bit, please do because if everyone just gives a little, maybe it will be a lot! I know the gesture will mean a lot to them also.
Please join me in keeping them close in thought and prayer!
“Impossible situations can become possible miracles." Robert H. Schuller
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Amazing what a little extra effort does!!!
I use a website called Mint.com to balance my budget as I believe I have mentioned before. I love it because it's so visual and I am such a visual person. I love that I can see a pie chart of all my spending and can drill down to smaller categories. I just really love it.
so, I was looking at this today and comparing the category "food" from January to Now. It was so great to see that every month, the pie chart change and have the "groceries" piece of the pie grow bigger while the fast food and restaurants piece of the pie grow smaller each month. And then I got thinking about the last time I ate fast food and I couldn't remember. I had Sbarro a few weeks ago, but that isn't exactly fast food, although it isn't necessarily the healthiest choice. I honestly couldn't remember the last time I ate at McDonald's, which is my favorite fast food. I have no trouble staying away from all the others. But according to my Mint.com budget, the last time I had McDonald's was February 22nd. Well, all that tells me is that was the last time I ate there and paid on my debit card. But I rarely carry cash, so that probably was the last time I ate there. And I got feeling so good about that. What an accomplishment because not only have I not eaten McDonalds or any other fast food since that time, I am not even craving it or obsessing over it at all!
I pass by 2 McDonalds and about 5 other fast food chains on the way home and so many times I would leave work feeling so hungry.....ravenous is more like it, and all I could think about was stopping at McDonalds to stop and get my fix! Then I would eat it in the car and still eat dinner when I got home and I wasn't even necessarily eating something healthy when I got home so it was a double whammy. I use to feel so tired and sluggish after eating that crap and I never had the energy to do anything in then evening when I got home except lay on the couch, watch TV and many nights fall asleep there. I would wake up around 10 or so, drag myself into bed, sleep lousy and many nights I would have bad heartburn or acid reflux in my sleep.
Now, I just want to clarify though that I did not stop at McDonalds every night for weeks on end. It was something I would do here and there and I would go through periods of stopping 2 or 3 times a week for 2 weeks, then I work hard not to stop there for food for a couple of weeks straight and then I would breakdown and begin to stop again for food and the cycle continued. But I have to say that not only has it been 6 weeks since I have pick up McDonalds or any other fast food, I haven't even had the compulsion to do so.
So often as I would be driving and knew McDonalds was coming up ahead, I would have this internal fight with myself. But it was torture to drive past it. Every night was a fight and not only did I have to get through it once, I had to go through it again as I passed the 2nd McDonalds. But it's funny how you really can change your mindset. Ultimately, we are really the one's who are in control of our thinking and our actions because I just realized yesterday that not only have I been successful at not eating there, I realized yesterday that I don't even think about McDonalds and don't even notice when I pass by it anymore. I can't remember the last time it was even on my radar and I can't remember the last time I had a struggle when passing it by. It's like I have completely forgotten it is there and that makes me feel so good and so successful.
I feel like my addiction is broken, but I know that I have to stay strong and willful because an addiction, if you are not watching steadfastly, can sneak back up on you. I am feeling so good now though, I can't imagine why I would ever return to that bad habit of eating.
But this last month has been so great. I really feel like I have formed some great new habits that are sticking and I have found a healthy eating plan that works so great for me. I don't feel like I am on a diet, I just feel like I am eating good healthy things that I enjoy. I don't feel deprived because if I want something bad enough, I allow myself to have it, because this is not about complete and total deprivation, but I use a lot more control now in the amount that I have.
For example, at home, I have a box of chocolate fudge cookies that I really enjoy. But I am not touching them because they are a treat for me for the weekend and I am only allowing myself to have 3 over the whole weekend. I am good with that. I don't know why, but somehow it works for me.
I do hope one day to be able to be in control enough to enjoy McDonald's from time to time, because even though it's not the healthiest food, it is YUMMY! And anyone who follows my blog knows that I totally enjoy the YUM YUM!! But I would like to be able to have a burger and fries once every couple of months and be ok and in control about it. But right now, I am too afraid that the taste of it will send me into a tailspin and find that I am addicted again. Maybe I will never be able to have it again, only time will tell.
But either way, I can't go back to my old habits. It was making my life too unhappy and even though I still have a ton of weight to lose, the burden seems lifted a bit because I am on my way to a healthier, thinner life. I feel good now and I know that I can work hard over this next year to lose the majority of my weight. And now that my Achilles Tendon is fixed and the nice weather is here, I am going to get out and be active! And the best part is, today my co-worker, who had been out on vacation for a week, came back to work today and as I was standing in the door of her office, she told me I looked like I had lost a little weight. So, my advice to anyone trying to lose weight and failing......Just work as hard as you can to be really good and work hard the first 4 weeks. I have found that the first 4 weeks are the hardest, but if you can get through those first weeks, you will be well on your way because by then, there will be so many positive things happening to keep you motivated. I have been staying motivated by keeping a positive attitude, by seeing the scale go down week after week, by putting on a pair of jeans that didn't fit, but now do and so many other things, but now someone else noticed my success and let me know. That is a whole different kind of motivation, stronger than any type of motivation I can give to myself.
She made my day and now I want to work even harder so I can lose more and hear that from more and more people. It's truly amazing what a little extra effort does! And most of all, it's amazing all the magic that starts to happen when you believe in yourself and tell yourself that YOU CAN DO IT!!!
You can't try to do things; you simply must do them.
-Ray Bradbury
so, I was looking at this today and comparing the category "food" from January to Now. It was so great to see that every month, the pie chart change and have the "groceries" piece of the pie grow bigger while the fast food and restaurants piece of the pie grow smaller each month. And then I got thinking about the last time I ate fast food and I couldn't remember. I had Sbarro a few weeks ago, but that isn't exactly fast food, although it isn't necessarily the healthiest choice. I honestly couldn't remember the last time I ate at McDonald's, which is my favorite fast food. I have no trouble staying away from all the others. But according to my Mint.com budget, the last time I had McDonald's was February 22nd. Well, all that tells me is that was the last time I ate there and paid on my debit card. But I rarely carry cash, so that probably was the last time I ate there. And I got feeling so good about that. What an accomplishment because not only have I not eaten McDonalds or any other fast food since that time, I am not even craving it or obsessing over it at all!
I pass by 2 McDonalds and about 5 other fast food chains on the way home and so many times I would leave work feeling so hungry.....ravenous is more like it, and all I could think about was stopping at McDonalds to stop and get my fix! Then I would eat it in the car and still eat dinner when I got home and I wasn't even necessarily eating something healthy when I got home so it was a double whammy. I use to feel so tired and sluggish after eating that crap and I never had the energy to do anything in then evening when I got home except lay on the couch, watch TV and many nights fall asleep there. I would wake up around 10 or so, drag myself into bed, sleep lousy and many nights I would have bad heartburn or acid reflux in my sleep.
Now, I just want to clarify though that I did not stop at McDonalds every night for weeks on end. It was something I would do here and there and I would go through periods of stopping 2 or 3 times a week for 2 weeks, then I work hard not to stop there for food for a couple of weeks straight and then I would breakdown and begin to stop again for food and the cycle continued. But I have to say that not only has it been 6 weeks since I have pick up McDonalds or any other fast food, I haven't even had the compulsion to do so.
So often as I would be driving and knew McDonalds was coming up ahead, I would have this internal fight with myself. But it was torture to drive past it. Every night was a fight and not only did I have to get through it once, I had to go through it again as I passed the 2nd McDonalds. But it's funny how you really can change your mindset. Ultimately, we are really the one's who are in control of our thinking and our actions because I just realized yesterday that not only have I been successful at not eating there, I realized yesterday that I don't even think about McDonalds and don't even notice when I pass by it anymore. I can't remember the last time it was even on my radar and I can't remember the last time I had a struggle when passing it by. It's like I have completely forgotten it is there and that makes me feel so good and so successful.
I feel like my addiction is broken, but I know that I have to stay strong and willful because an addiction, if you are not watching steadfastly, can sneak back up on you. I am feeling so good now though, I can't imagine why I would ever return to that bad habit of eating.
But this last month has been so great. I really feel like I have formed some great new habits that are sticking and I have found a healthy eating plan that works so great for me. I don't feel like I am on a diet, I just feel like I am eating good healthy things that I enjoy. I don't feel deprived because if I want something bad enough, I allow myself to have it, because this is not about complete and total deprivation, but I use a lot more control now in the amount that I have.
For example, at home, I have a box of chocolate fudge cookies that I really enjoy. But I am not touching them because they are a treat for me for the weekend and I am only allowing myself to have 3 over the whole weekend. I am good with that. I don't know why, but somehow it works for me.
I do hope one day to be able to be in control enough to enjoy McDonald's from time to time, because even though it's not the healthiest food, it is YUMMY! And anyone who follows my blog knows that I totally enjoy the YUM YUM!! But I would like to be able to have a burger and fries once every couple of months and be ok and in control about it. But right now, I am too afraid that the taste of it will send me into a tailspin and find that I am addicted again. Maybe I will never be able to have it again, only time will tell.
But either way, I can't go back to my old habits. It was making my life too unhappy and even though I still have a ton of weight to lose, the burden seems lifted a bit because I am on my way to a healthier, thinner life. I feel good now and I know that I can work hard over this next year to lose the majority of my weight. And now that my Achilles Tendon is fixed and the nice weather is here, I am going to get out and be active! And the best part is, today my co-worker, who had been out on vacation for a week, came back to work today and as I was standing in the door of her office, she told me I looked like I had lost a little weight. So, my advice to anyone trying to lose weight and failing......Just work as hard as you can to be really good and work hard the first 4 weeks. I have found that the first 4 weeks are the hardest, but if you can get through those first weeks, you will be well on your way because by then, there will be so many positive things happening to keep you motivated. I have been staying motivated by keeping a positive attitude, by seeing the scale go down week after week, by putting on a pair of jeans that didn't fit, but now do and so many other things, but now someone else noticed my success and let me know. That is a whole different kind of motivation, stronger than any type of motivation I can give to myself.
She made my day and now I want to work even harder so I can lose more and hear that from more and more people. It's truly amazing what a little extra effort does! And most of all, it's amazing all the magic that starts to happen when you believe in yourself and tell yourself that YOU CAN DO IT!!!
You can't try to do things; you simply must do them.
-Ray Bradbury
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Up for a New Challenge!
In my years of dieting and trying to lose weight, being part of different weight loss groups or different organization, I have learned many things. But one piece of advice that I once received from a Weight Watcher lecturer about 4 years ago had to do with your method of shopping in the supermarket. I think in this day and age, many of us are aware of the more process, pre-packaged foods that are out there on the market. Although these foods are intended to make meal prep a little easier for the busy person, and allows us to eat "healthier" lower fat and calorie foods on the good and without having to spend a lot of time or putting a lot of thought into it, in the long run, these pre-packaged foods actually aren't all that healthy. Yes, they may be lower calorie, lower fat and they do allow us to make meals faster and may prevent us from a worse act of eating fast food or eating out. But as my Scottish Uncle Jim use to say, "Everything in Moderation."
I will not sit here and say that from time to time I do not eat a smart on or a lean cuisine or some other pre-packaged "diet" food. I do from time to time, but in the past 3 or 4 years, I have eaten a lot less of those food.
So, back to the advice from my lecturer about shopping. He suggestion was to only shop the perimeter of the Supermarket because that is where you can get all your fresh and less processed foods. Now, of course there are exceptions to every rule and that is, of course not EVERYTHING that you can buy shopping the perimeter is healthy and fresh and it's not completely realistic to think that you will never need to go down an isle to get something. And, there are good things down some isles like dried beans and legumes.
But as a general rule, I try to buy only fresh food items. This has worked pretty good for me. I have to say that I do see a difference in how I feel and in my weight loss when I am not eating foods that are packed with all those "chemicals" they call preservatives and whatever else they put in pre-processed foods.
But I do have to say, I haven't paid a huge amount of attention to certain ingredients in certain foods, like boxed cereal. Although I thought I was eating healthy buy sticking with cereals like shredded wheat and bran and certain types of Kashi. But I learned, even those aren't the most healthy things to be eating either, and I am not talking about just for weight loss, I am talking about truly eating healthy.
A friend of Maggie's are work was talking about her 5 ingredients or less rule. She said how she is on a mission to truly eat healthy and will only eat foods with 5 (healthy) ingredients or less. I realized then that I never really spent time looking at food labels for ingredients. But from now on, that is my mission too.
So, on Saturday mornings, I like to make myself an omelet with light cheese. I normally buy the weight watchers shredded cheese, thinking it is so healthy. Well, I looked at a bag of shredded cheddar cheese and it had 6 ingredients. Not that 1 extra is a big deal, but the extra ingredient in shredded cheese Maggie told me is a anti-cake ingredient and it's function is preventing the shreds of cheese from clumping together in the bag...Basically it keeps the shredded cheese shredded. And all I thought was, can that really be good to eat? It's natural for cheese to cake together, and so they add something to prevent this, making it now unnatural. I think in the future, I would rather buy cheese that is "natural" and shred it myself. It really doesn't take that long. I could shred it as I need it.
Then I looked at my "healthy" cereal and was really surprised to see all the ingredients in them, which was between 15-20. The only cereal in my cabinet that was really healthy, was my Quaker Oates. It had one ingredient which was 100% natural whole grain oats. That was the only ingredient.
So, I think this is going to be a slight challenge in some areas, but in many areas I am already eating all fresh foods. I am up for the challenge though of taking out the few foods I am eating that contain 6 ingredients or more. 5 or less is my goal!
I know I am Up for this Challenge!!!!!!!
I will not sit here and say that from time to time I do not eat a smart on or a lean cuisine or some other pre-packaged "diet" food. I do from time to time, but in the past 3 or 4 years, I have eaten a lot less of those food.
So, back to the advice from my lecturer about shopping. He suggestion was to only shop the perimeter of the Supermarket because that is where you can get all your fresh and less processed foods. Now, of course there are exceptions to every rule and that is, of course not EVERYTHING that you can buy shopping the perimeter is healthy and fresh and it's not completely realistic to think that you will never need to go down an isle to get something. And, there are good things down some isles like dried beans and legumes.
But as a general rule, I try to buy only fresh food items. This has worked pretty good for me. I have to say that I do see a difference in how I feel and in my weight loss when I am not eating foods that are packed with all those "chemicals" they call preservatives and whatever else they put in pre-processed foods.
But I do have to say, I haven't paid a huge amount of attention to certain ingredients in certain foods, like boxed cereal. Although I thought I was eating healthy buy sticking with cereals like shredded wheat and bran and certain types of Kashi. But I learned, even those aren't the most healthy things to be eating either, and I am not talking about just for weight loss, I am talking about truly eating healthy.
A friend of Maggie's are work was talking about her 5 ingredients or less rule. She said how she is on a mission to truly eat healthy and will only eat foods with 5 (healthy) ingredients or less. I realized then that I never really spent time looking at food labels for ingredients. But from now on, that is my mission too.
So, on Saturday mornings, I like to make myself an omelet with light cheese. I normally buy the weight watchers shredded cheese, thinking it is so healthy. Well, I looked at a bag of shredded cheddar cheese and it had 6 ingredients. Not that 1 extra is a big deal, but the extra ingredient in shredded cheese Maggie told me is a anti-cake ingredient and it's function is preventing the shreds of cheese from clumping together in the bag...Basically it keeps the shredded cheese shredded. And all I thought was, can that really be good to eat? It's natural for cheese to cake together, and so they add something to prevent this, making it now unnatural. I think in the future, I would rather buy cheese that is "natural" and shred it myself. It really doesn't take that long. I could shred it as I need it.
Then I looked at my "healthy" cereal and was really surprised to see all the ingredients in them, which was between 15-20. The only cereal in my cabinet that was really healthy, was my Quaker Oates. It had one ingredient which was 100% natural whole grain oats. That was the only ingredient.
So, I think this is going to be a slight challenge in some areas, but in many areas I am already eating all fresh foods. I am up for the challenge though of taking out the few foods I am eating that contain 6 ingredients or more. 5 or less is my goal!
I know I am Up for this Challenge!!!!!!!
Friday, April 1, 2011
Struggling!!!
So, I normally don't post twice in one day, but right now I am using my Blog more as a tool for survival than sharing thoughts, ideas, experiences and inspiration. I am having a hard struggle right now. I think it goes hand in had with the weekend.
I really want to eat right now. I just want to eat something yummy, and because it's Friday, I really want to go eat out. But my dilemma is that tomorrow morning is my weigh day and I can't eat too heavy tonight. I definitely associate the weekend with celebration and along with celebration comes eating. That is the one area I am still really, really struggling with. All week I have no problem eating sensible food in sensible proportions, but as soon as Friday night hits, I want to eat out. Last Friday I cracked and went out for wings. The funny thing is, I still lost 3 pounds. I don't think I will be that lucky this week and have the same results.
So, I have 3 options:
1. I could go out to eat and have what I want, hoping it doesn't affect my weigh in too much.
2. I could go out to eat and work hard to pick someone think sensible and lower calorie
3. I can be strong and just eat something at home that I have already prepared and be happy with that and treat myself out to dinner tomorrow night.
Now I have to spend some time soul searching and figure out what I really want. What is eating out going to get me? How will I feel after I eat out? Will I feel bad, which could eventually lead to more eating bad? Possible.
What do I get if I eat home? Although I may feel frustrated and deprived now, I know tomorrow I will feel so good that I was strong and resisted going out and I will hopefully see a good result on the scale.
Ok, time to really ponder this, but after writing my blog, there is no question to me what I should do.......Stay home and eat something I have already prepared. Ok, I am going to be strong!
I really want to eat right now. I just want to eat something yummy, and because it's Friday, I really want to go eat out. But my dilemma is that tomorrow morning is my weigh day and I can't eat too heavy tonight. I definitely associate the weekend with celebration and along with celebration comes eating. That is the one area I am still really, really struggling with. All week I have no problem eating sensible food in sensible proportions, but as soon as Friday night hits, I want to eat out. Last Friday I cracked and went out for wings. The funny thing is, I still lost 3 pounds. I don't think I will be that lucky this week and have the same results.
So, I have 3 options:
1. I could go out to eat and have what I want, hoping it doesn't affect my weigh in too much.
2. I could go out to eat and work hard to pick someone think sensible and lower calorie
3. I can be strong and just eat something at home that I have already prepared and be happy with that and treat myself out to dinner tomorrow night.
Now I have to spend some time soul searching and figure out what I really want. What is eating out going to get me? How will I feel after I eat out? Will I feel bad, which could eventually lead to more eating bad? Possible.
What do I get if I eat home? Although I may feel frustrated and deprived now, I know tomorrow I will feel so good that I was strong and resisted going out and I will hopefully see a good result on the scale.
Ok, time to really ponder this, but after writing my blog, there is no question to me what I should do.......Stay home and eat something I have already prepared. Ok, I am going to be strong!
The Scale is my Enemy!!!
Ok, so maybe the scale really isn't my enemy, but this week was tough. As much as I vow to only get on the scale once a week, I failed again this week to heed to that. I did get on the scale this morning and I felt frustrated because it is up 3 pounds from last week. I had a tough weekend, but I don't think I did anything worth gaining 3 pounds over and I have had a great week. I even snuck in some exercise, although I need to do more. I think maybe tonight I will pull my bike out of the garage and try to use it a few times a week. I know exercise is key in my weight loss journey and in my quest to obtain a healthier lifestyle.
My official weight in is not until tomorrow anyway, and a similar thing happened to me last week. Although, it wasn't a gain, the scale was only showing like a 1 pound loss and when I weighed in the next day, I had actually lost 3 pounds. So, I am hoping that when I weigh in tomorrow, it is not showing a gain. If it is the same, I would be ok with that.
But no matter what, I am not giving up. I think it's important to use multiple measures in addition to the scale. If you are working out a lot, it is important to take your measurements because if you are building muscle, it weighs more than fat so although initially the scale my not reflect the changes in your body, the tape measure will show you results. I experienced this when I was a member of curves.
Also, I am paying very close attention to 2 very important things. The way my clothes fit and the way I feel overall. These are excellent measures. These two things keep me going. I have been wearing two different pair of jeans that were too tight to even button and now not only can I button them, they are pretty comfortable and are not giving me a muffin top. The other measure is how I feel. I feel great! When I am eating unhealthy, I feel tired, sluggish, I don't sleep good and I am feeling all sorts of bad. But I feel good, energetic, and I am sleeping pretty great. And most of all, I am feeling so great emotionally because I know I am on my way to a better, healthier life!!!
Today I had a small food related challenge that I conquered and the best part was, it wasn't even hard.
We had a small lunch event to welcome new employees to the company and they had chips, sandwiches, cookies and some other yummy items. I packed my lunch today, knowing that although I would attend the event, I would eat the food I brought. But while I was at the luncheon, i grabbed a handful of grapes and I socialized. So, because I was eating, no one questioned why I wasn't eating. If I didn't eat anything, it would have drawn more attention my way and may have possibly led to peer pressure to eat. Then, when it was over, I returned to my office and ate the lunch I had brought for myself and I really enjoyed it!
When you really want to do something, it is really easy to overcome obstacles, but you must be 100% committed and this time, I really am. And last but not least, I really hope the scale is my friend come tomorrow morning!
“The difference between try and triumph is just a little umph!” -Marvin Phillips
My official weight in is not until tomorrow anyway, and a similar thing happened to me last week. Although, it wasn't a gain, the scale was only showing like a 1 pound loss and when I weighed in the next day, I had actually lost 3 pounds. So, I am hoping that when I weigh in tomorrow, it is not showing a gain. If it is the same, I would be ok with that.
But no matter what, I am not giving up. I think it's important to use multiple measures in addition to the scale. If you are working out a lot, it is important to take your measurements because if you are building muscle, it weighs more than fat so although initially the scale my not reflect the changes in your body, the tape measure will show you results. I experienced this when I was a member of curves.
Also, I am paying very close attention to 2 very important things. The way my clothes fit and the way I feel overall. These are excellent measures. These two things keep me going. I have been wearing two different pair of jeans that were too tight to even button and now not only can I button them, they are pretty comfortable and are not giving me a muffin top. The other measure is how I feel. I feel great! When I am eating unhealthy, I feel tired, sluggish, I don't sleep good and I am feeling all sorts of bad. But I feel good, energetic, and I am sleeping pretty great. And most of all, I am feeling so great emotionally because I know I am on my way to a better, healthier life!!!
Today I had a small food related challenge that I conquered and the best part was, it wasn't even hard.
We had a small lunch event to welcome new employees to the company and they had chips, sandwiches, cookies and some other yummy items. I packed my lunch today, knowing that although I would attend the event, I would eat the food I brought. But while I was at the luncheon, i grabbed a handful of grapes and I socialized. So, because I was eating, no one questioned why I wasn't eating. If I didn't eat anything, it would have drawn more attention my way and may have possibly led to peer pressure to eat. Then, when it was over, I returned to my office and ate the lunch I had brought for myself and I really enjoyed it!
When you really want to do something, it is really easy to overcome obstacles, but you must be 100% committed and this time, I really am. And last but not least, I really hope the scale is my friend come tomorrow morning!
“The difference between try and triumph is just a little umph!” -Marvin Phillips
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