Milestone Day

Today I hit 25 pounds lost! (233.8) Yippee!  Next mini-goal is to get out of the 30s.

When I strictly stay grain and sugar free and get good exercise in, the weight peels off. So worth it!

Make it a great day (and weekend) with no excuses.

No Excuses

Today I was hoping to hit 235.something on the scale, but I didn't. I hit 234.8!!!! OCD me even weighed three times to make sure it was real. It was. YES!!! I'm now on the downside to getting out of the 30s and I can't freakin' wait! One more pound and I'm down 25 pounds. I'm finally starting to notice a slight change in my appearance.

No excuses that it's too hot to exercise:  It has been in the 90s here and so humid for about a week now. Yesterday didn't seem as bad so as soon as I got off work I decided to go walking early so that I'd be done exercising in time to watch Extreme Weight Loss. I was determined to get in 3 miles. It was so hot that I could only eek out 2.5 miles. I kept thinking, "it's only another half mile, just to it" but I started feeling a tiny bit light headed and weak so I stopped. I  got back to the car and cranked up the air and got chills even though I was dripping sweat. Heat exaustion symptoms! I'm glad I listened to my body. I went home and chugged water and ate a light supper of an egg muffin, cherry tomatoes and cherries.  I actually liked exercising early to get it over with and also, I wasn't really hungry after exercising so I ate less.

No excuses that you don't have time to exercise:  Over the years I would see this cozy couple at the high school track where I usually walk – they are probably in their mid-30s or so. I've talked to them several times before and the girl would always say how she wanted to get fit because her husband is and she felt like she needed to keep up with him (he would jog, she would walk). Both are very friendly and she is real cute and is from South Africa and has a pretty accent. Over time she finally built herself up to jogging. I hadn’t seen them around for a while but last night here they come jogging with a stroller!!! She had a baby – he’s 15 months old already - that’s why I hadn’t seen them for a while and now she’s back at it. I thought good for you for not making excuses, she just takes her baby with her. I congratulated them both and told them what a great example they were setting for their child. The man told me that I was very kind for saying that. Who knows? Maybe that little comment will motivate them more, too ;)

No excuses that you aren't able to exercise:  Did anyone watch Extreme Weight Loss last night? (If not - SPOILER ALERT!) Love that show! It is so inspiring and always makes me cry. The young man that was on there last night (age 23) only had one arm (lost in a car accident at age 19) and worked his ass off, literally, and lost over 200 pounds in a year through eating and exercise alone. He also realized his dream of learning to ride a bike. He had never even learned as a child when he had two arms but he learned with one arm and an obese body and rode 43 miles in memory of his uncle. So inspiring...

Let's make it a great day with no excuses.

In the Zone

I'm in the zone and I feel great! I lost 1.6 over the weekend (Memorial Day Weekend at that!) and...get this...it's also TOM!!! I weighed in at 236.0 this morning - down 2.6 from a week ago.  Yippee! This weight is coming off nicely ever since I switched to primal eating and with minimal effort. 

I made delicious turkey burgers yesterday with chopped baby bella mushrooms and red and green peppers inside. YUM!

Tonight Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition starts up again; I'm looking forward to it. Tonight is also the last night of my squat challenge - HURRAY!!!

What happened?

What happened that I gained 40 of the 60 pounds back that I had lost? I simply stopped trying. Here's the story...

Last year I started out pretty strong but I quickly started losing momentum and it went down hill from there. I got tired of counting calories, reading labels, exercising, telling myself that I couldn't eat this or that. So I started out just eating a little more and exercising a little less and before long I was out of control - again. I must say that I honestly did enjoy the break. Eating whatever I wanted and doing whatever I wanted was glorious for a while. I kept telling myself that I would get back on track on "Monday". Always Glorious Monday, but Glorious Monday never came. Oh, I had good intentions. I would get back on track for a day or two but quickly fall back off the wagon. I read Dr. Phil and Tom Green books on weight loss and emotional eating. I watched weight loss shows and read weight loss/fitness magazines to try to get inspired again. I even shelled out a chunk of money for five months of prepaid Weight Watchers coupons telling myself that this would keep me accountable if I had to report to the meetings and I wouldn't want to waste the money that I had already shelled out. Still, I found it hard to stay motivated and I didn't have the patience the learn the new program so it wasn't long before I blew that off, as well. I simply wasn't ready. But ready for what? To get slim and healthy? To feel better and have more energy? Why not??? WHY IN THE HELL NOT???

My clothes started getting tighter and I became more uncomfortable and I could only glance at my body in the mirror for a second, never a "full-on" look. I never would step on the scale, even though I knew I should to face the reality of what I was doing/had done to myself yet again. Then I used the excuse that I'd start after the holidays. After I had wasted 3/4 of the year why get back on track before the holidays? I always had an excuse at the ready.

Now the holidays are over. I faced the music and climbed on the scale and discovered that I had gained a little over 40 pounds back. I was not surprised at all. I knew where I was headed all along but somehow I didn't care. I had let food control me again. I could feel my fat rolls returning. I could feel my shoes getting tighter and see my disgusting swollen ankles. I felt sluggish and my joints felt stiff. I'm out of breath when I walk up the steps again. I had to buy larger clothes because the smaller ones (the same ones that I was so excited when they were getting baggy) were now too small. I had gotten rid of my "fat clothes" before because I swore that I would never be that size again and here I was with nothing to wear because I had become that size again.

I think back to where I was and how far I had come. I had started out at 242 and had successfully dieted down to 179. I felt incredible. I felt slim and strong and healthy, younger, more attractive, I had more energy. I remember how I was so excited because I was finally able to see my collarbone again. Well, it is gone. I think about where I could be now if only I had stuck to it. I was only 14 pounds away from my goal weight and I stopped. Why? I know that I was sick of dieting but why did I actually put the weight back on and not maintain? Was I self-sabotaging? Did I feel more secure hiding behind the fat? Did I feel that I would never be able to maintain the weight loss so I might as well just get fat again? Do I enjoy eating too much and let food control me again? Yes. Yes to all of it.

So that's the story. I came back to the people who have always supported me unconditionally and inspired me daily. I've talked to my daughter about you like you are a good friend that lives down the street. So, I'm reaching out to you for support and inspiration again. I have absolutely no doubt that I will find it.

Starting weight 222.8 (gulp). I can do this. Again.