Sweat is FAT CRYING!

You've probably heard that saying somewhere along the line. And tonight while I was on the stair climber in the gym, with sweat dripping down my face and running down my arms and back and stomach...I thought of this.

If sweat really was fat crying, then my fat must have been freaking devastated tonight. I love days like this, where I succeed in making healthy food choices all day and then get a good work out in. Can I make it two in a row? I hope so! Today certainly wasn't a "second in a row" - because last night, I had a ridiculous craving for carbs...it turned into a bit of a carb-fest. Not good.

But today, I moved on and redeemed myself!

How were your choices today?

Lord, give me strength....

My older daughter in in Kindergarten. She is a Daisy Girl Scout this year - and guess what time it is? Yes. You guessed it.

Girl Scout Cookie time.

Back in the day when I was a Daisy Girl Scout...(you know...ummm, just.... 19 years ago...ahem), we took orders on order forms, then turned them in, and the cookies came awhile later and we had to distribute and deliver them. Now, the girls have the cookies ahead of time. They can bring them with door to door and exchange money for goods on-the-spot. Speaking of money - $4 a box this year. WTF is THAT all about?! Geeez - before you know it, they will be charging a kidney or something!

Anyhow. What does this mean for me, exactly? It means that I now have dozens of boxes of cookies sitting in my house. Every single cookie seems to call my name from within. It's like a massive chorus....eating away at me with urges to eat away at THEM. Granted, the cookies are to sell. They aren't mine unless I buy them. And I am sure we will buy a couple of boxes. But we need to PLAN for it. The problem with having them around is that I could say, oh let's open a box. We'll buy it. And then, Oh, lets open another box. We'll buy it....and so on. That could be one heck of a slippery (and expensive) slope!

So I declare now, I will NOT GIVE IN TO TEMPTATION. The only cookies I will buy and eat will the what my husband and I plan ahead of time to buy. And that number will be very minimal. There will be NO spur-of-the-moment "Oh, we'll just buy one more box" crap!

So STFU, cookies. I'm NOT listening to your evil chants of deliciousness.

New found love

I.love.almond.milk! I hadn't tried it until recently, but now that I have - I wish I had sooner. Coconut milk is also very tasty, but I will focus on the almond milk for now.

I bought the Silk brand. The unsweetened variety has just 30 calories per serving! And it is delicious!! I haven't tried the unsweetened vanilla...only the unsweetened original. The unsweetened vanilla will be next on my list. I have tried the sweetened vanilla and it was too sweet for me. I mean it was good, but I prefer the unsweetened original (which is kind of odd being that I generally have a big ol' sweet tooth...but I guess not when it comes to milk)!

Anyhow. If you haven't tried almond milk - go for it. Seriously! I was actually surprised by how much I liked it.

Totally off topic...

Ok so this is completely off topic. Has nothing to do with weight loss or fitness or any of that.

But seriously...why am I NOT getting carded anymore when I buy alcohol?! I just want to get CARDED, DAMNIT! I haven't been carded in a long time. If somebody would card me, it would probably make my day. I'd probably say "Thankyou!!!!!"

Seriously, I would.

Love this pic

My husband took this pic of me, just a couple of days before Christmas, at sunrise. I was just being silly. It's one of my favorite pics of me, and it's not really even of me. I mean, it is, but it could be anybody else, just as easily.

 I just love the gorgeous sunrise, reflecting off of the ice, and then the shadow of a person "striking a pose" on the dock. Although I suppose it wouldn't have been quite so cool if the shadow had been more blob-shaped (like I was before) rather than person-shaped! Heck, I'm even wearing my winter jacket in this pic, and still don't look like a blob!

 Good job on the pic, hubby!

Thank you

I feel like I really need to say thank you.

Of course, first....thank you to my husband for putting up with me, supporting me and being proud of me. He has to gets to live with me day in and day out, so his support is a huge key to my success. He is also an inspiration, having gone through and being in the midst of his own journey. He is more amazing and means more to me than he knows!

Thank you to my kids - for being so amazing and being one of my core motivators. They are my life.

Thank you to ALL the friends and family who support me and encourage me. My close friends, far friends, acquaintances, parents, sister in law...everyone. You all rock. Thank you especially to friends who tell me I inspire them, for example Chelsea who says she lost 20 lbs thanks to my influence. That means a lot to me! Thank you also to Amberle, who I sort of started the journey with after we went to a weight watchers info session, and decided that we didn't need to pay that kind of money; we could do it on our own. And we did.

Thank you to my blog readers and Facebook followers. Another reason for my success has been that I put it all out there, for friends as well as complete strangers to read and judge. But mostly I just figured that the more people I was sort of "accountable" to, the harder it would be to let myself fail. Guess what, it worked! It also helps getting words of encouragement and reading other success stories, both of which I get much more of through having this blog and having the Facebook page.

Thank you to Moms RUN This Town. The organization as a whole, the people I have met and will meet through it, and the strangers (other chapter leaders) across the country who I probably never will meet. Many have inspired me and encouraged me. And, it's not just about running or weight loss - I went out on a limb to do something I was nervous and scared about (leading a chapter) and never looked back. It was honestly something that was TOTALLY out of character for me. Very much outside of my comfort zone...but along side with getting healthier, MRTT has helped me become more confident.

Finally, I guess I should thank my body and my mind. For being stronger than I knew either of them could or would ever be!!!!


Ok. Now that those are done with for now - back to my regularly scheduled ranting posts about the importance of being honest with yourself. And how amazing Chinese food is (damnit).

Frequently Asked Question

I often get asked "How did you get started? I don't know where to start, what should I do?"

The hardest part about getting started on a weight loss journey, actually has nothing to do with getting started. No, the hardest part (in my opinion) for myself and many others is how to be consistent and keep going once you've started.

Think about it. It's easy to eat well for one day. It's easy to go for a walk or do something somewhat active on a beautiful evening after work or on a gorgeous, sunny weekend day. But it is not always easy to eat well, consistently, for an extended period of time. It is not always easy to make exercise a part of your routine. There are several reasons why it can be hard to stay on track. Maybe you have a busy schedule and fitting in exercise is difficult. Maybe your coworkers invite you out for lunch frequently and it's often a place that has very few healthy options. Maybe you get sick, take a break from working out, then never start again.  Maybe you have been doing it for a week but have gained a pound and figure "What's the use?".  Maybe the weather has been awful. Maybe you don't have access to a gym. The reasons (and, let's face it - excuses) are endless.

"Start exercising. Eat healthier". It's been said a thousand times. But what some people don't think about is that it's a mental game, too. I've put a lot of thought into this...and you really need to have a positive, determined attitude in order to beat the road blocks (especially in the beginning) and battle the plateaus. Instead of letting yourself be overwhelemed by what is working against you - you need to make the conscious decicision to basically make lemons into lemonade. Be creative. Be determined. Make sacrifices. Prioritize. Don't let yourself give up no matter how stuck you feel. Keep in mind that even if the scale doesn't move, you are still making a difference to your body. Take it day by day.

I am very guilty of getting overly frustrated by being "stuck" on the scale. I've gained 5 or 10 lbs back and lost it again a couple of times. I've been stuck several times. I'm stuck right now. I currently weigh the same as I did 4 months ago. And I won't lie - it ticks.me.off. It's frustrating and annoying. Sometimes I just want to throw myself down on the floor, kick, and scream "It's not faaaaiiir"!!!! But instead, I just keep on, keepin on.

Even after I screw up (hello, chinese food or pizza for supper followed by a glass bottle of wine). I know that I am a hundred times healthier than I was before I started, and I won't let a bump in the road or the occasional indulgence take away from that fact.  The same holds true when you are still in the beginning stages of the journey...no matter what hurdles are being thrown your way, or what "mistakes" you make, you just gotta keep on, keepin' on. Really try to keep your attitude positive and determined - because that is how you will be able to pull through and continue the healthy changes, even after that very first day, week, month, and beyond.

So you see - it's mental.