Half way through my 2012

Sunday, July 22, 2012

Back in Jan, I confessed that I use my birthday (Jan 22) as my new year, since it is truly MY new year. I publicly declared some goals. Let's see how I am doing.

Lose 30-40 lbs. YIKES! I have actually gained weight this year. What gives? well, ok - the next goal will explain.

Exercise at least 3X week. Nope! I have not attacked this goal - if I will get a move on here, the first goal will be a piece of cake.

Get pregnant. Well, we are working on that, but in the words of Hillary Clinton "It takes a village". If you know me, it took a lot for me to quote Hillary. Haha! Really, there is a team working on this one now. I can't believe the hoops we are jumping through right now to try and make this happen. We are doing IFV in a few weeks.

Balance - whew - not so much here either. I picked up a great full time job in addition to working on my Masters of Accountancy, so there is little else going on in my world. The job was a huge blessing, so I am not complaining - so many people would kill to have one like it fall in to their laps. But it is making that "balance" thing a little tough right now.

I did take June off to go play in Nashville for CMA Fest and a family vacation in Hilton Head Island, SC. So there has been some balance, but the day to day is a challenge for sure.

So - it looks like I have some work to get myself back on track. So - here is to a more personally successful second half for year 42.

  Member Comments About This Blog Post:

Dr. Sanjay Gupta's 2X4

Wednesday, April 04, 2012

Wow - while I have logged in nearly everyday (well, less the cruise) and been very faithful to logging my foods this year, I have been consumed with grad classes and done little else in the way of SP. Or active weight loss for that matter. Working, tutoring, studying, and going to class are pretty much my entire world now. OK - whining/venting/excuse is out of the way - whew!

You know how sometimes it takes a 2X4 to the head to get a message across? Well, I think I finally got hit by one on the sugar front. A Facebook friend of mine posted a clip from 60 Minutes about the evils of sugar. Now - I know there are those that say "no foods are bad when consumed in reasonable quantities." Blah, blah, blah. Sorry - but in my world "reasonable quantity" and "sugar" don't appear in the same sentence - ever - unfortunately.

Back to the 2X4 - Dr. CNN aka Sanjay Gupta did an "on assignment for 60 minutes" about this. And I think it scared me straight! It ran this past Sunday and talked to scientist and doctors who are slowly making the connection between heart disease and even cancer to sugar with a few different studies.

What ever they said did the trick for me and I am grateful. The idea that I am my worst enemy is not a new one - but the connection they made was so real to me suddenly. Frankly - if you are like me and your struggle with being a little too found of sugar, google/youtube for it. It may open your eyes like it did mine.

Amazing. And thank you Dr. Gupta for doing the story!!!

  Member Comments About This Blog Post:

My birthday - AKA My New Year

Monday, January 23, 2012

There are some things about having a January birthday that are not so cool. Lots of people forget it - too close to Christmas and by the 22nd, people are really feeling like their life has returned to normal. Decorations are put away, returns have been made, and everyone is safety back in school or at work. There is also the lovely tradition (for those of us with Jan or Dec birthdays) of combining gift giving opportunities for our loved ones. I can't tell you how many times this has happened to me. And then I added an anniversary to the mix on Jan 8th about 7 years ago. Poor fella, huh? He has to save all year and plan wisely to make all of that happen!

The coolest thing to me about a Jan birthday is is that for me, it really the start of my own personal new year. I have not made resolutions for many years. And I don't set off like most of the world on some new health kick on Jan 1. Too frenzied.

I am aim for Jan 22nd every year. I take some time to evaluate where I was this time last year, where I am, and where I want to be a year from now.

On Jan 23rd every year (conveniently on a Monday this year), I start to implement a few more changes.

For my 2011 (AKA, my 41st year on this earth), here was my plan:

Lose some weight - DONE. I lost 32lbs last year.
Exercise consistently - NOT SO MUCH. I had a good run in the fall, then dove off the wagon until this week!
Read more - DONE. Oh, my heavens. Had I known I could read so fast with a Kindle, I would have converted a long time ago,
Graduate from College - DONE. Ok, this was a much longer term goal than just for 2011, but it was completed last year and I started the Masters this year.

So - On to where I want to be - my 2012 or 42nd year:

Lose 30 - 40 lbs. starting weight = 176. I am putting a target on it this time. Doc thinks I should aim for 135, but I will have to see how it all looks and feels as we go. I am thinking 145 might be where I land, but I am willing to consider his suggestion as I get closer.

Exercise at least 3Xweek all year. I have a home gym and the time to do - this is just a mental game for me. I MUST move for all the reasons we read about on SP, not just weight loss.

Get pregnant - I know, shocking, huh. Well, if you know me it is shocking. We had a surprise miscarriage late last year - now, don't get all weepy on me, this was actually good news. In year 41, this was a first and thus we did not think it was a possibility. To say the least, we were more excited than we had expected when we figured that out, so we have decided to pursue it. Thankfully, I am content if this does not happen, but we are going to do our parts with the help of a fertility specialist to do this. We, hubs and me, are calling this "our project".

Have more balance in life - I get super focused on school and forget about everything else (hence falling off the exercise wagon). I also love to volunteer and when I get crazy focused on school, pretty much nothing else happens. And if we are successful with "our project", I will need this one oh so badly! So - BALANCE!

There you have it. My plan for 42.

  Member Comments About This Blog Post:

I am so proud of me - graduation!!

Thursday, December 22, 2011

It was a day 20 years in the making and I was surrounded by some of my favorite people on earth - I graduated this past weekend and now can finally say I have a Bachelors of Business Administration in Accounting. And as my sister keeps saying, I did it with honors. Yes, I am proud me of and I am bragging at this point.



As side note - under that gown in a really killer size 12 dress. Another milestone. Wish I had thought to get a picture in it as well.

  Member Comments About This Blog Post:

Oh Mother Nature...

Sunday, November 27, 2011

Riddle me this - WHY does Mother Nature have to make her arrive, of course toting 3 extra pounds that immediately go away when she departs, at the beginning of every month? And by beginning, I mean I like to weight in on the 1st of each month and danged if she doesn't arrive just in time for weigh in - every stinkin' month!

And since I am here on SP in a transparent manner, I log the exact weight the scale displays at the beginning of every month - even though it is generally 3 lbs. high - ugh!

Since most of my buddies here on SP are fellow chicks, I know you can relate. I suspect I am not alone in my frustration with Mother Nature's timing.

  Member Comments About This Blog Post: