Update

Since January I have had times when I feel overwhelmed and unmotivated. I knew those times would only end if I continued, but if I quit, I would be left to continually feel that way. 

Right now I'm feeling great. I finally have noticed a difference in how I look and feel. I recommend to anyone who embarks on a weight loss Journey to DO MEASUREMENTS. Often times the scale hasn't changed much or hasn't changed at all, but if you are losing inches you're winning! 

I left my card with all my exact measurements at the gym I attend, and I keep forgetting to copy it. (You leave it there) But last week I rechecked all my measurements and everywhere lost a little bit (0.25 inches or more) but one place lost A LOT - My waist. It was originally 36 inches when I measured myself at the beginning of January and now it is 32 inches. That is 4 inches off!! Also, now I know for my own experience that it is true what they say about belly fat; it comes off easier than other fat. read about it here. Or here.

I am fitting into old clothes (not in the lose way I'd like) but I'm fitting into most of my clothes. Most importantly I feel like I'm trusting myself again. I feel that I am on the right track. I'm patiently waiting for more weight to come off as I continue the lifestyle I've chosen. 

Are you making progress? Please share!

My goals

So I'm going to set a Long term goal that is constant and short term goals that will frequently change or be added to. Short term goals are suppose to help you get to your long term goal.

LONG TERM GOAL : Maintain a weight of 130 - 135 lbs. (Start out my next pregnancy at 130)
MidTERM GOAL: Get to 130 lbs by my son's first birthday


Short Term Goals:
- exercise 3 days a week at the gym, an hour each time
- gain better control of my eating habits by eating slower and listening to my body's cue's telling me its time to stop. 
-Weigh 145 lbs by my Birthday in April. 

I am scheduled to run a half marathon in May. Currently, I can only run 2 miles in 18:45. I have A LOT of work to do. So this is a separate yet connected short term goal. My goal for the next time I'm at the gym is to complete 2.5 miles in however much time it takes. 

To back up and tell you how I got to 2 miles... 

2 miles might not sound far, but after having Lincoln I could barely run for 3 minutes without feeling like I was going to have a heart attack. 1st I just ran till I couldn't any more. Then I walked till I felt like I could run again. I did this till I did a whole mile. (took me over 10 minutes). Next time I came I told myself I was going to do a mile in 10 minutes or less. The my goal was just to not stop running till I reached a mile. Once I ran a mile, without stopping, under ten minutes, I started just improving my time. I got to eight minutes and thirty seconds and decided I needed to really start upping my mileage. I went to 1.10 miles... all the way to 1.5 miles. Then I did two miles straight no matter how long it took. Last time I went I tried to keep the two miles in under 19 minutes. 

I think it is very important to set a goal EVERY time you exercise. You will never know the great things you can accomplish if you never set your sight high. 

Please feel free to share your own tips and successes! 

Goal setting!

Losing weight is difficult. Very difficult. It not just a physical thing. Its a mental, emotional, and spiritual endeavor. To lose weight, run a marathon, win a baking contest, or to learn to give a public speach, it is important to set goals. SMART goals are the best. They are SPECIFIC, MEASURABLE, ATTAINABLE, RELEVANT, and TIME-BOUND. Smart goals help us become who we want to be!

Specific Goals: For example, the goal to be "skinny". Well what is skinny? Is skinny eating only ice cream but still fitting in a size 3 pants? Probably not, but when the going gets tough, you're going to need a better goal than that.

 Measurable: If your goal is to "be in shape"? That could mean a lot of things, and how do you know when you're there? Its very important to have goals that you can objectively say you've made it or you still have work to do.

Attainable: this one is very important. Are you setting a goal to be in a certain size that would never fit you even if you were starving to death? If so, you're setting yourself up to be disappointed and discouraged. Sometimes this part of setting goals needs to be re-evaluated. If you get going on a goal and just can't make it happen in the allotted time, maybe you need to change it up a bit and try again.

Relevant: Are you setting goals that have nothing to do with what you want to accomplish? Usually this one isn't very difficult, but if you find that your goal won't help you reach your dreams, its time for some alterations. 

Time-bound: All goals need to have a time in which you expect to be finished. Otherwise you keep telling yourself, "Tomorrow I'll start!" Setting goals on time tables also helps you gain a more accurate picture of what it looks like when you're doing your best. 

When we set goals it is very important that they meet this criteria. Goals are not suppose to discourage you or weigh you down. They're suppose to empower you. 

Starting

"A Journey a thousand miles begins with one step.... " and might I add sometimes a million more steps?

I wrote this whole blog post already. I wanted to add one more thing, and I'm not sure what happened but the whole post disappeared. So here I am... starting again. The irony. The post I wrote was all about just starting; that starting is half the battle. But what just happened taught me a lesson. Starting IS half the battle - but you might have to fight that battle SEVERAL times. 

Anyways, about starting (sometimes over-and-over)... There are lots of reason why we never start. I believe all those reasons are rooted in fear. Fear of failure, fear of how our life might change, fear of being humiliated, fear of the unknown. 

I love the following quote. 

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people will not feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It is not just in some of us; it is in everyone and as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give others permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others. - Marrianne Williamson

Do you know that you are a child of God? You are a literal offspring of the most powerful person in the universe. Just like you have the genetics to be like your earthly parents, you have the spirit to be JUST like your Heavenly Parents. There is so much you can do, that you haven't even dreamed of doing!

This means that you not only should start, but you should move forward boldly. Who cares if you don't think you're the stereotypical "runner". You are a one of a kind human who can be whoever you want to be. Believe it! Besides, if you've ever been to a marathon finish line you will find that all those people come in all shapes and sizes. The only thing runners have in common is they're all crazy enough to think they can! (and they're right!!)

So get going. Realize who you want to be and how you're going to do it. Set those goals and BEGIN! 

My new journey

* I wrote this post over a month ago. I didn't want want to rewrite them all, so I just published all of them today. My journey started in January... 

 Let me share why I wanted to do this blog. I have been a runner pretty much since 8th grade when I joined track. Since then I have consistently gone several months where I run a lot and then drop off to pretty much nothing and then start again. Since 8th grade my weight has fluctuated between 128- 140 lbs. When I got married I was a solid 138 lbs.  I was 18 percent body fat and I felt great! I got married and on top of the busy college student I already was, I wanted to be a little Martha Stewart. Instead of living close to friends and sisters to exercise with, I lived far away and felt alone whenever I wanted to go for a run. (bless my husband's heart... he hates running.) Needless to say, I found every excuse to not exercise and just kept baking away. Fast forward two years post marriage and I was approaching 150 lbs. By the time I found out I was pregnant I weighed 152 lbs.

When I learned that I was pregnant I vowed to myself to only gain 15 lbs. Morning sickness struck (which should be called all day sickness) and I lost 5 pounds. I thought, Whew... good I wont gain lots of weight. Somehow, probably with the help of chocolate, I found my self at 190 lbs at my last weigh in before having Lincoln. 

Luckily, with nursing and my insane schedule to finish my degree after having my little guy, 30 lbs practically fell off. 

So I had my little guy in August. December found me at a whopping 162 lbs. I had work to do. I signed up for a local gym and started going.  A month ago I was 29 % body fat and Barely fitting into my "chubby clothes". Today I am 157 and 27% body fat (my chubby clothes have loosened some). I have plenty of work left to do. My goal is 130 lbs. I've been wanting something to help me be accountable and stay motivated. So, please feel free to join me on this journey!