A Slow Start

I'm using Wednesday as my weigh in day so here I am at bedtime Tuesday night.... worrying. I would say I had a so-so week: started back on my exercise routine but didn't quite make my weekly goal. Somewhere along the way I strained a muscle in my butt and had to lay low for 2 days, I have not been eating everything in the house that is not tied down, but I have not been eating fruits and veggies for my snacks- the nuts and crackers still win out. Safe to say that I am easing my way back to good habits.

The muscle strain recovered way faster than I feared and I was able to do some weights this morning and am planning on trying out the treadmill (something I have been avoiding all winter) tomorrow morning. From Sweat Pea's list of suggestions I am going stock up on oranges and grapefruit and plan on "one a day". I know when I'm in the groove and when I'm not, and I'm not there yet. If the Diet Fairy would take a pound off the digital read tomorrow morning it might just give me the jump start I need. I'll hold my breath or click my heels three times or something like that. :)

Forming New Habits

Our corporate training team starts nearly all their training sessions telling their trainees that it takes 21 days to form a new habit. Once you’ve done something for 21 consecutive days, it is officially a new habit and becomes part of your routine. So that is my drive – for the next 19 days (‘cause I started yesterday) I am going to eat right. "Right" being sensibly – low fat, healthy, natural foods, (avoiding high-fat, high-calorie and highly-processed foods). So far so good, but it’s always good on day 2!

ALSO – I am headed back to the gym! I had worked out a routine I was pretty good about back when I worked from home – it was easy to get up in the morning, go to the gym and get to my desk at home, still sweaty, smelly and in my gym clothes by 8:00 (or so) and at some point durring the morning take a shower-break. But now that I am back in an office position – YIKES! This sucks! I figured I should be able to make it on Saturdays and Sundays most all weekends, and then I’d only have to find TWO other days to get there (or more if I feel like it). So I tried. But it’s nearly impossible for me to get out to the gym in the evenings. I either have another obligation, or if not, what I really want to do when I get home is relax with a drink and visit with my sweetie. SO – this morning (the coldest day of the winter so far!) I set my alarm really early (5:20 AM!!) and got my fat ass out of bed by 5:40 and headed for the gym. Just enough time to get in a cardio and weight routine before hitting the shower and heading off for the office. DAMN! I was proud of myself. And as Blondie would say “then I got to feel good about myself all day!”

So my question is this – how do I form a habit of going to the gym 4 days a week when I have to do it for 21 consecutive days before it becomes a habit?? – maybe I have to do it for 5 or 6 weeks (21 visits to the gym) and that will be the equivalent? Well, that will take me to the end of our Valentine's Day challenge, so maybe that’s a good plan!

WooooHooooo

I did it!! I'm finally down 20 lbs YeeeeeHaaaaaa! About 40 more to go.

Down again

I'm down again, and that's a good thing! Went to WW last night and lost another pound and a half. My total weight loss so far is between 15 and 17 lbs - you know how weight fluctuates. My short term goal is for 15 more lbs and then I have a long term goal of 40 more lbs after that... so that means I have a grand total of 55 to go. I measured my waist, chest and hips a week and a half ago and yesterday I re- measured and lost a half inch off my waist and a half inch off my hips. I didn't re-measure my chest. I don't wanna know how much smaller that is~! My jeans fit looser, my scrubs are getting baggy and when I look in the mirror, I can see the difference in my face.

This week I started walking a half hour every day. I learned on my first day to carry my cell phone and pepper spray. I was nearly attacked by a Pit Bull who was running loose. He's at the Pound now.

I can't recommend the book, "YOU on a Diet" too much. It's chock full of information that is so useful! Next week I'm going to start the Beginning Workout from the Website, Realage.com. I downloaded it (free) and am actually looking forward to incorporating this with my new regimen.

Pureassnow

I'm Back!

I'm Back and I'm Back. First I had to re-route myself to use the blog. This took 2 days. Second, after a very weird week last week, I feel like I am really on track again this week- a pot of "YOU" soup going in the crock pot (from "YOU on a Diet" as commented by pureassnow) and a perfect workout schedule week-to-date (including this AM which involved 3 attempts to get thru the drifts in my drive to go do a weights workout with my exercise partner).

But first: Congratulation to 10-8 and to pureassnow for excellent progress! Hopefully you are both experiencing some of the momentum that comes from making great progress. It always seems to me that it's the very best fuel for keeping you on track.

To report my numbers from this weeks weigh in: 10/4/2 ( I think that's right- total to lose, total last week, total so far). Last weeks lose was surely the fault of the flu that I experienced at the end of the week. I had one of the worst work out schedules I have had in ages and was only okay in the food department. Never mind, I got rid of the 2 pounds I'd gained the week before plus two- and, since the scales have said the same thing for 3 days running, I believe it is real.

When I am having a successful week food-wise, I am always aware that it has a lot to do with having a "food plan"- a big pot of soup put together at the beginning of the week, some kind of pasta or rice dish that will cover a couple of nights, a big container of salad mix made up and ready to add to and fresh fruit in the fridge- the good stuff has got to be SO easy to get to that I will not have any excuse to tear the cupboards apart grazing on the junk.

That's my "news you can use" for today. Stay warm.