Honor My Body Day

In one of my "many-times-daily" health/fitness emails I received today, there's an article called "Celebrate Honor My Body Day". After reading this article I really dug deep to think about what I say positively to my body. Yup, pretty much nothing!

The article talks about how we've started this journey to treat our bodies better...eat better foods, practice portion control, get our bodies off the couch and moving. The trouble is, when is the last time you looked in the mirror and praised the work you've done so far? I'm nowhere near the person I want to be. However, I have two boxes, a garbage bag, and another garbage bag started all of clothes that are now too big for me. That should be something that I'm proud of...but I have yet to express that to my body!!

A quote from the article, which I've also heard in other aspects of my life, is this: "Action follows thought". Think about it. If you look in the mirror every day and continue to hate everything about what you see, are you really setting yourself up for success on this journey? Even if there are still things you may not like about your body right now, surely there is something you're proud of.

My personal look in the mirror: I hate my arms and I dread thinking of how much work it's going to take to get rid of my baby belly. I know, Josh is 2-1/2 so it hardly qualifies as a baby belly anymore. However, the scar tissue from my c-section has made parts of my belly feel like my abdominals are actually hard. That they are, but not because they're toned, but because there's scar tissue on top of them! Not sure what it's going to take to lose that, and that's the part that I dread!!!

Now for the positives: I've started wearing clothes that are more fitted and while I can still see all my curves, the good and the bad, it still feels really good to be able to wear clothes that fit...correctly!!! Not to mention seeing my husband's reaction when I throw on fitted clothes that actually accentuate some of the good curves!!! I can tell I've lost weight through my face...that I LOVE. I can now wear rings that I couldn't wear before because my fingers were too fat. The shoes I'm wearing right now I couldn't wear before because my feet were fatter and they were uncomfortable!

So you see, even I can find something (even the smallest details) I'm happy about when it comes to my physical appearance. Now my job is to point those things out to myself and remind me that, as a friend just recently said, this is not a sprint. I am so proud that I'm finally making the right choices in my life. My busy life is no longer an excuse. My thoughts about the positive results I'm seeing I will now allow to help feed my ego...a well fed ego (in a positive way) will stir that action that I need to continue on this journey until I become that person that I envision.

I thank the good Lord that my body is taking this journey with me and is not fighting me. My mind and my body will from this point on work as a team and build each other up.

How are you talking to your body? Negativity, in any aspect of life, will stop you dead in your tracks. I vow from this day forward to always find the positive in me. Will you join me?

PS-- Here's the website address to the article if you're interested: http://caloriecount.about.com/celebrate-honor-my-body-day-b597284?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=newsletter_20130207&utm_term=title1

Letting Go of Perfect

I've written before about how I am sometimes too hard on myself, how I'm always trying to strive for perfection. I recently read an article online about Alison Sweeney, the host of The Biggest Loser. Here is a snippet from that article.

A self-professed type A personality, Alison, in her quest for perfection, often prevented herself from trying new things. "If I couldn't be number one or go superfast, I'd give up and not do it at all," she admits. "But I'm learning I can have fun and be proud of myself, even if I'm not the best. Medium speed is okay too!"

Letting go of perfect has been liberating. "It's a positive cycle. You take care of your body, and the next thing you know, you're taking better care of your career and the people you love," Alison says. "With each new accomplishment, I think, Wow, what can I do next?"

Letting go of perfect...I love it! In fact, I like that phrase so much I think it's going to become my own personal motto.

Since I'm now "letting go of perfect", I'm happy to report that over the holidays I only gained 2.8 pounds. And yes, I'm happy with that number. Of course I'd be happier if it was a loss instead of a gain, but let's be honest...I love Christmas and with Christmas comes not-so-healthy food choices and a lack of motivation to exercise! And unfortunately being sick over the holidays took a lot out of me!! I'm still huffing and puffing when I climb the stairs to work each morning. But the holidays are behind us and it's a new year with new goals...and now a new motto!

So what about you? What motto are you striving to live by?

Happy New Year!

Welcome 2013! I'm very excited for a new year. Not that 2012 was bad, but a new year means a new chapter in my book. I'm not big on New Year's resolutions. I guess I don't think a person should have to wait until a new year to make changes in their lives. However, because I am a very goal oriented person, a "To-do List Maker" of sorts, I am going to have a so-called New Year's resolution for 2013. However, I'm going to call it a goal rather than a resolution.

So here's my take on goals. I think a long term goal is essential in life. You have to have something you're working towards, even if it's something as simple as cleaning out the closets in your house. My long term goal for 2013 is to reach that 100 pounds lost mark. That's a lot, I know...75 more pounds, in fact. But I believe in myself.

Now, long term goals are great, but in order to feel a sense of accomplishment during the next year, I believe short term goals are also very essential. I honestly believe that if people don't set short term goals that lead to accomplishing a long term goal they will quit. Once that person gets off course, possibly even just once, their odds of getting back on course are slim. Too many times in life people quit because they don't celebrate the small accomplishments.

That's why I think Weight Watchers is such a great weight loss program. They celebrate with you every 5 pounds! So even if I were to just consider Weight Watchers, I would be able to celebrate accomplishing short term 5 pound goals TWENTY times!!! Not to mention the other things they celebrate: different percentages lost, being a member for so long, lifetime goal, etc. I know, it's a plug for Weight Watchers, but hey...it's worked for so many, why can't it work for you?

I have many goals that I want to accomplish throughout the year. My first short term goal is to start and finish the Insanity workout, and do the workout to the best of my ability every day. I need to push myself harder than I have in the past if I really want to benefit from such an amazing workout. I can do this!!!

My other short term goals aren't necessarily workout related, so I truly believe I can work on them at the same time without the fear of setting myself up for failure. Goals like eating out less often, eating less sweets, trying new foods and recipes, and taking some of my traditional recipes and swapping ingredients to make them healthier. Another goal I want to work on every month is to get my children involved in all aspects of a healthier lifestyle. Emma is old enough to get in on the cooking aspect, and we can all go downstairs and do Zumba or Just Dance on the Wii...not to mention boxing, now THAT'S a workout!!!

Honestly all of these are just decisions. Once the decision is made to do it, it's done. So why am I sharing these ideas with you? Well, if someone else knows my goals I have no other choice but to stay accountable. For example, last month when I decided pop had no health benefit for me and I just needed to quit drinking it, I told many people about my decision. Every single time an opportunity came up for me to have pop, I thought about all those people who could potentially say, "I knew she couldn't do it." Today I haven't had pop in 4 weeks, 2 1/2 days.

So here's to 2013. May this year be filled with better decisions leading to goals accomplished, with good health, and with great fun!!!

I'm Back Baby!

Even the most perfect person falls off the wagon every now and then. It takes a strong person to admit he/she made a bad decision, and an even stronger one to not feel guilty about that decision and just move on!!!

The last week I've made several good decisions. First and foremost, to get back on the track to a healthier to me!!! After a week of making better decisions, it paid off! In the last week I lost 4.2 pounds, which puts me past the 25 pounds lost mark in Weight Watchers, 35 all together!

It's funny, when I was working out and eating semi-okay, those last 5 pounds seemed to take FOREVER to come off. In one week I started to make healthy food selections, and got back into the working out, and wouldn't you know it...I lost 4.2 pounds in one week, AND I got past that last 5 pound mark!

On to the 2nd healthy decision that is in its third day...I gave up pop. I love pop. Not for the caffeine, but for the taste. And my pop of choice is Diet Pepsi. For me there's nothing more refreshing than an ice cold Diet Pepsi! But unfortunately that refreshing soda is doing nothing for my diet. If anything it's hurting me.

I've given up pop for Lent a couple of times and it was no big deal. But to give it up as a total lifestyle change is going to be tough. I'm on day 3 and I don't feel too bad. I had considered just cutting back, but the last time I "just cut back" I was back up to drinking 3 or 4 cans of Diet Pepsi a day!

So hopefully my good decisions will stick and pay off in the end. I have so many good examples to follow in my Weight Watchers meeting. I just need to take advantage of that and, even on bad weeks, face that scale head on!!!

A Line in the Sand

A friend of mine once said, "It's okay to draw a line in the sand, as long as you step over that line." Such a simple statement, but a powerful one at that!

For the last month, I've seriously fallen short of anything that I expected of myself. I got lazy, too tired in the morning to work out, and I started saying things like, "I'll start back up on Monday." After all, Monday starts a new week. Monday would roll around and I'd be too tired to get out of bed, too lazy to make a healthy meal, and the snowball rolling downhill FAST was getting bigger and bigger.

So last Saturday JC and I are at the church to get the Christmas tree up and get the church ready for Hanging of the Greens. Pastor Natalie, who has done AMAZING on her journey to a healthier self, smiled at me and said, "I haven't seen you at our meetings for awhile, everything okay?" At first my mind was saying, "Crap, now I have to face the firing squad." But you see, Pastor Natalie is nothing like a firing squad. She truly was concerned that something was wrong.

You see, earlier in the week JC and I had a conversation. I was going to quit Weight Watchers. I hadn't gone in a month, I was wasting money, and I wasn't letting it work for me. The supportive husband that he is told me it was ultimately my decision, but it wasn't in my best interest. Ever since that conversation my head and heart were speaking different languages. What was I going to do?

So Saturday I'm standing in front of my friend, the one whom I asked to help keep me accountable, and she was curious what had happened to the girl who was so excited about her weight loss thus far. If you know me at all, you know that I don't like putting myself into a situation where I get called out (so to speak) and I've always said that quitting is not an option. I was mad at myself. I was on the brink of not only letting myself and my family down, but also some of my best friends in the world!

I cannot quit! That wouldn't be fair to my kids, to myself, to the friends I've embarked on this journey with. It doesn't matter how many times you have to draw a line in the sand. What matters is that you step over that line and continue to move forward...and forward is where I'm going!

Stupid sinuses!

Saturday night we got with some friends for supper and spent a gorgeous November evening around their fire pit. Since then my head has felt like it's going to explode! My throat is scratchy too, which doesn't fare well for a person whose job it is to talk on the phone!!! For me there isn't many smells better than that of a "camp"fire, but I'm pretty sure my sinuses are not happy with me for inhaling that wonderful smoke all night!!!

Now to the point...it's really hard to exercise when you're not feeling well! I took some NyQuil last night before bed, knowing how my scratchy throat had been causing me to cough right up until bed time. I love how NyQuil knocks me out. What I don't like is that most mornings after being medicated with that wonderful cough suppressant I wake up feeling like I haven't gotten any sleep at all!! Therefore, this chick did NOT wake up at 5:30 am for my morning Insanity workout.

That's so not cool! You might say, "oh, it's just one day". Nope...last week I didn't exercise AT ALL!!! My knees hurt, my back hurt, everything hurt last week. While I know these are merely excuses, they were enough to give me the latitude to hit snooze...for an hour...every day! So that one day this week that I didn't exercise can be added to the five days last week that I didn't exercise! NOT COOL!

I got online and asked the almighty Google if I should still exercise with a cold. Yep...in fact they say that exercise may help break up some of the crud that is currently building in my chest. Darn it! And here I thought rest was what this body needed.

So how am I going to get up in the morning? Honestly, I'm not sure. I've considered putting my alarm clock (aka my cell phone) some place other than my bed side. Maybe I'll do that. One of my favorite characters in one of my equally favorite books does just that. He puts it in the bathroom. That's the first place I go when I get out of bed...seems like a smart idea to me!!

So tonight I will test it. My alarm clock is going in the bathroom...and I'm going to get up despite my horrible sinuses, and I'm going to push play another day!!!

Saggy!!!

With a title like that, thank goodness I'm not referring to my boobs, my waddle under my arms or my belly. Although they all pretty much sag, this blog is NOT about any of them!

I am happy to tell you that this blog is about my pants!!!! Check out the picture!!! This makes me smile. The proof is in the pants!!!!

What can I say, I get really excited about stuff like this. It makes me feel really good about the journey I'm taking and makes me not want to stop!!!

Insanity is tough, but it's amazing! The hardest part for me right now, aside from getting out of bed early in the morning, is making sure I have good snacks on hand because burning that many calories makes you sooooooo much hungrier!!!

Anyway, excited to show the world more and more positive results!! 'Til next time!!!