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MARGO_U's Recent Blog Entries
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Friday, March 29, 2013
One of my goals for the year was to sign up for, and complete, my first 5k. Well, I'm halfway there. I signed up a couple weeks ago, and I'm participating in the local Mother's Day 5k. What the hell was I thinking? I can for run a few minutes at a time, but I won't be able to run the whole thing. In the back of my mind is the fear that I will be coming in last. That's terrifying; high school all over again, except back then we only had to run a mile. I could never manage it. So now, 11 years and 35 pounds heavier, I'm going to run three. Hahahahaha... Crap.
But, I signed up. I paid. And I will be there. I'm even a bit excited, and I have a reward picked out to celebrate my accomplishment. If I finish in less than 45 minutes, I will be lightening my hair a bit and sticking in a few strands of purple color. I'm actually really excited about this. I've never had the guts to do that before. But I want to give it a try.
My hope is that this will start pushing me towards my weight loss goal again. It's been a rough few months. My DH has been working 60-70 hours a week, so I have had late night after late night, trying to get things done. With two young girls, work for my clients, and school work (four courses, three of which that are upper level), I have been drinking Pepsi and eating sugary junk just to stay awake most nights. Not good. Not good at all. Fortunately, DH is going to a simpler schedule for a bit, so I'll be able to cut back on the late nights. I'll also have time to go out running nearly every day for three weeks (YAY!). I need the time to train, and the extra calorie burn will be a nice bonus.
I ned to get back to logging my food and exercise. I'm still at the gym three days a week, burning about 5000 calories each time, and I'm starting to add strength training at home. If I can cut back on my intake, I should start to see the pounds fall back off. I need to get focused again.
Tuesday, January 01, 2013
I don't know if it's really been five tries at this point. That number is probably a little low, but whatever. Each time I try again, I'm starting in a better place than I did the time before.
With the exception of the past three weeks, I am a regular at the local gym. Three days a week, for a little over an hour each time. I'm hoping to add to that number in the next few weeks. The recent break is due to a nasty cold, and then the woman who provides the drop-in daycare went on vacation for two weeks. She's back on Thursday, so I will be there, too.
I've decided that 2013 will be the year that I run a 5k. My goal is to be ready for the local Mother's Day race put on by the YMCA, and I talked my husband into joining me. I want to focus on a fitness goal rather than a particular number on the scale (although my 'scale goal' is to see 160). I also want to limit junk food to one selection a week. In other words, I pick out one treat at the grocery store, and that's it for the week.
Right now, I'm sitting in the living room, trying to put off going to weigh and measure myself. I ate a lot last night, and I'm trying to keep it in perspective. And by last night, I mean during the entire holiday season. I was better than I usually am, but I know that I added on a couple extra pounds. But, I need to have a starting place, so I need to just go ahead and do it.
Be right back....
Okay, not as bad as I was thinking.
Waist-- 178.8
Hips-- 43
Waist-- 39
Thighs-- 24
Calves-- 15
upper arms-- 13
breasts-- 40
neck-- 14.5
Not as bad as I was expecting. I have just shy of 19 lbs. to lose to reach 160. That's not too bad, and if I can lose more after that, great! If not, I'm good with 160.
Okay, I'm off to drink some water and then make breakfast. And then I have a few hours of housework to conquer. Happy New Year, everyone!
Friday, October 12, 2012
Why am I committed to losing weight? What was it that caught my attention?
It was a shirt.
I shop at Old Navy. Their large size fits really well, with the exception of being a bit short (I'm 6' tall). Except, every now and then, they have a style with funky sizing. Last year, there was a jacket that I had to buy in XL because the sleeves were too short (it promptly shrunk, so it was still too small to wear. Grr.). It fir around with no problem; it just wouldn't fit my arms.
A few weeks ago, I picked up a flannel-style shirt. Size L. I was so excited to see this in my local store, and the color suited me perfectly. We were in a hurry, so I didn't worry about trying it on, only to get home and find out that it's a smallish large. It's tight around my breasts and waist. I can get the buttons without a problem, but the fabric is noticeably stretched. Not a good look.
I've also noticed that my size 14 jeans are a whole lot more comfortable that my size 12s. That's not Old Navy; that's me. Oops.
My goal isn't to hit a magic number on the scale. My goal is to look awesome in that shirt and a pair of size 12 jeans. After I reach that goal, I'll come up with something new.
My Before Pictures:
Thursday, October 11, 2012
It's day two back on Sparkpeople, but it's day four without candy. I'm going to see how many days I can go.
For the record, I'm not counting Fireballs. They are great for congestion when you have a cold; I use them in place of cough medicine. Sounds crazy, but it works.
I have a sugar issue. When I restarted my weight loss goals, I decided to go one month without candy. That started on Monday. Other than the Fireballs, I plan on going through November 8th, longer if I can.
My goal isn't to give candy up forever. I just need to enjoy it in much smaller quantities. Also, Christmas is coming. Christmas means chocolate covered cherries, and Walgreens has a few specialty flavors that I won't miss. I can give up nearly every other Christmas candy, but not that.
I'm hoping that this break from candy will allow me to see it in a new light. I want to stop eating the cheap stuff. If I'm going to have it, it's going to be a special treat, and Hershey's isn't that special. I don't want to buy a box of chocolate; I want a few of the fancy chocolates in the Gertrude Hawk case.
I'm cutting back on all of the other sweets, and I rarely drink soda, so cutting out the candy calories could make a huge difference. I eat mostly healthy outside of the sweets. If I could stay away from them, I'd have a much easier time of losing weight.
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Yesterday's Stats:
9 cups of water, plus lots of tea and ginger ale. 15 minutes of Tracey Mallet: Get Your Body Back. Shoulders and back a bit sore today, but nothing too bad. Decent amount of sleep last night, but this cold is wearing me out.
Today's Goals:
9 cups of water. 15 minutes of Tracey Mallet plus a 40 minute walk this afternoon (picking my daughter up from school). Trying to get extra rest and get school work done. Also, I want to take a few "before" pics. I'm ignoring the scale, and focusing on a different way to measure my progress, but more on that tomorrow.
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
I know how to lose weight. Fewer calories, more movement, and I drop the pounds. This isn't rocket science. So why can't I actually lose anything?
I have no motivation. Or, rather, I have cyclic motivation. I start at the top, really motivated and ready to go. And then I start to lose that motivation, and then I stop trying, and then I watch my weight stop moving (or worse, start to inch back up), and I start to get motivated again, until I finally get motivated enough to start again. And I hate it. I want to get motivated and stay that way. I just... cant. Which leaves me feeling disappointed and a bit hopeless. I am so tired of this.
I need to find a new way to stay motivated. Promising myself rewards isn't doing it. Looking forward to cute clothes isn't doing it. I need something more substantial, something that will keep me going.
What I need to do is move away from the 'lose weight' mentality and move towards the 'gain health' mentality. I read somewhere that the key is to focus not on removing bad things from your diet, but to work on adding in more good things. All of the healthy stuff will start to crowd out the bad. This is fantastic advice; now I just have to try to stick to it.
I am joining a gym in November. The local YMCA offers a discounted rate for students (which I am now, again), and they offer free child care for 6 hours a week. It doesn't get better than that. I can drop my oldest daughter off to school, and then head to the gym for a couple hours with my youngest. And, best yet, they have a pool!! I can go swimming all winter long. 
It's a long road from where I am to where I want to be. But each time I pick myself up and try again, a few more good habits stick with me. I start each time a little better than I started the time before it. And that's progress, even if it can't be measured on the scale.
Baby steps. Today's goal is to drink all of my water and to exercise for 20 minutes. I'm coming down with a nasty cold, so it won't be crazy cardio exercise (I'd hack up a lung), but it will at least be movement. I'm good with that.
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Member Comments About This Blog Post:
I'm sure that you have a great opportunity to go to the Y in November and that things will start to move in the right direction for you. Keep pushing, you can do it!