A Fresh Start

In the previous year since my beautiful daughter was born, I have shed 40 pounds. I have been asked over and over again how I've done it. It is with that in mind that I am starting this new blog. I wish to share my journey so that perhaps I can inspire others, and largely so I can keep myself inspired. You see, it is an endless battle. Somehow, I have lost a little of that motivation lately. I hope to hold myself accountable here while I try to share some inspiration to others with goals. I will be brutally honest here with myself and others. I will share my excitement over triumphs, my frustrations with my foibles, and whatever else I feel inclined to share. If you find any of it to be indulgent, vain, obnoxious, or whatever, you are invited to click away as this isn't for you. If, however, you are inspired by successes of others, or you can share in the inevitable frustrations, or even if you want to offer support, as that is still very important, then please stay and be a part of this continuing journey with me.

Me as a senior in college. Probably 195ish pounds.
My personal war with weight has been long-fought with many battles lost. I could go into the emotional experiences associated with the war, but we've all experienced that for one reason or another and we all deserve to accomplish our goals, whatever they may be. What I will say is that I lost those battles because of how poorly I fought them. I armed myself with very little food and entirely too much physical exertion. I worked out long and hard and always burned out within a short period of time. I wanted quick fixes, which inevitably ended in more frustration and eventual weight gain. Not what I was going for!

A little older and a lot wiser, along with the loving support of my wonderful husband, I seem to have figured a few things out. So what am I doing? Brace yourselves... this is valuable information that people spend all kinds of money to discover. I eat healthy. And I work out. There you have it. That will be $4000.

In seriousness, it really is that simple. I finally discovered that there is no magic diet for me. I didn't want to count calories, points, fat grams, carbohydrates, etc. We all know what it means to eat healthy: lean protein, fruits, veggies, whole grains, limited sweets. There are hundreds of cookbooks with healthy and easy recipes. For some, this may require a pantry and refrigerator overhaul. Fortunately for me, Mike and I had been practicing fairly good habits for some time so the transition was fairly easy. What we were working towards was a healthy lifestyle, not a temporary diet. In the past, I wanted to see rapid weight loss and the thought of only losing one pound a week or less discouraged me to failure. Looking at it as a lifestyle change, with the side benefit of losing weight, made it seem far more doable. Those weeks, or even months, when I haven't lost any weight over the last year have not completely thrown me off because it's not just about losing weight. I just realize that I need to work a little harder or do something different so I do and then keep moving forward.

As for working out... well... that's essential to any healthy lifestyle for far more reasons than just having a great figure. Some people are pained by the very thought of going to the gym. Again, I am fortunate to actually love working out. It's definitely difficult, and I often don't want to, but I ALWAYS feel better, all be it a bit sore, when I do. Always. It's a habit to create and the first few weeks you have to force. Eventually, though, you'll feel infinitely better and you'll begin looking better too. As for my workouts, I am a runner and I do lift weights four or five days a week. That's probably a lot for many people, especially starting out, but that's how Mike and I spend his lunch break and we enjoy it.

<--- Me now. 166 pounds



With that small taste of what it's taken to get to where I am, I will use this blog for the purpose of keeping track of what I'm doing from now on. I'll include details of meal plans, work out plans, goal, what I'm changing and the success, or lack thereof, that I'm having. Again, this is largely for my own purposes so I can hold myself accountable and keep track of everything... and if it helps anyone else, GREAT!

So, I began this journey at 207 pounds just after Lacey was born. I am now sitting right at 166.5 pounds, where I have been for a few months. Admittedly, I have had my frustrations with that. I have to remind myself, or have Mike remind me, that this is, as I said, a lifestyle. To be completely honest about it though, I did not do so hot over the last couple of months. After running the half marathon, I kind of gave myself a break that lasted a little too long and included a few too many Mini Cadbury Eggs. With summer just around the corner though, I have a new resolve and reinforced commitment. Getting discouraged over bad days, or weeks, only leads to giving up which is what I WILL NOT do. We all have our bad days and we make mistakes. The trick is not saying "Well, I guess I'll start again on Monday" but instead to allow yourself the one indulgence and make your next meal or your next work out a better one.
Currently, my goal is to get to 155 by June. That will require extra effort, but I'm up to the task. I'll fill you in later on how that's going. For now, I'm off.....