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Introduction Text Mistakes, I've made a few! I think almost anyone who has fought "the battle of the bulge" can tell you that it is almost NEVER a "success-only" journey. We lose, we gain, we lose again, we gain again, lather, rinse, repeat! I have been there, done that, bought the t-shirts in sizes ranging from M - XXL! Thankfully I have not regained all the weight I lost, and thankfully I feel ready to start again. Not necessarily "gung-ho, ready to kick butt and take names" ready, but ready enough that yesterday I got myself to the grocery store and stocked up on all the good things I know my body needs. In the words of Matthew West: It's day one of the rest of my life It's day one of the best of my life I'm marching on to the beat of a brand new drum Yeah, here I come The future has begun Day one UPDATE, June 2019: Life being what it is, I have come full circle since I posted this and found myself back at "starting over" and unfortunately this time I actually HAD gained the rest of the weight back. I went back to the old habits of binging on regret and self-loathing and smothering those feelings in all my favorite "comfort foods". I get why we call them that, but honestly, there is NOTHING comfortable about being over-full, especially when it is topped with a heaping helping of GUILT. It's a vicious cycle...feel bad, eat to "comfort myself" and then feel WORSE...etc. On Friday May 17th I was speaking with a co-worker about my weight and how I knew WHAT I needed to do to get it off, I just didn't know HOW to make myself actually DO it...how to be READY to make the necessary changes. Experience has taught me that I rarely keep with it when I try to just "fake it til I make it". On Sunday, May 19th the pastor at my church spoke to use about eliminating the things in your life that hinder you, and my quite literal gut reaction was to reach up and grab my "jelly roll", which is what I call my larger version of what others call a "muffin top". In that moment, though, I knew the weight was not REALLY the problem...it's a SYMPTOM. The actual problem was the way I was treating myself both physically AND emotionally. Focusing on my regret and berating myself with scathing self-loathing & constant criticism was only making me feel like a failure. If you BELIEVE you are a failure, your actions will reflect that.You CANNOT behave successfully from the mindset of a failure. I had to take my own advice...forgive myself, and begin again with LOVE! Yes, I had made some bad choices, but guess what? Every day is a new opportunity to make choices. After church, I went grocery shopping and stocked my fridge, freezer & pantry with a bunch of good stuff. I allowed myself to finish out the day "off the rails" and then on Monday, May 20th I started the morning with a weigh in and began making better choices. I'm 2 1/2 weeks in, and I've been logging my food and water, exercising almost daily, and making some other good choices for my physical, mental & spirtual well-being. I am AMAZED at how quickly these changes make me feel better. Yes, I've already lost a little weight, but that's not what is making me feel this much better! A few pounds is a drop in the bucket when you have over 100 to lose, but I already have more energy, I'm sleeping better, and my attitude is improving. The depression I was feeling has lifted. I have a sense of accomplishment and pride that has been missing for a long, LONG time! I am on my way...changes are ahead...stay tuned!

While I hope to someday reach my goal weight of 145 pounds, my ultimate goal honestly is just to never stop taking care of myself the way I am right now, no matter HOW that is reflected on the scale. I have a short term goal that resets every morning, to eat right, exercise and drink my water. I have a step goal of 6500 steps per day that I will increase by increments of 500 whenever I find that I am consistently able to meet it relatively easily, with a longer term goal of increasing my daily step count to the recommended 10,000. I have a medium range goal of being able to participate in the Spa Running Festival Training Clinic as a walker which is in September-November, and then complete the Spa Running Festival 5K walk in November. I have a goal to reduce or eliminate the need for medications for blood pressure & GERD.

Do all of the following consistently: Use the nutrition tracker and stay within calorie range, aim to balance carbs/fat/protein and limit sodium. Drink a minimum of 8 glasses of water per day. Exercise at least 5 days per week, at least 30 min per day. Include a mix of cardio, strength and stretching. Never Quit

Not sure what "personal information" I should reveal here...lol

I am a child of God!

Add a Link ~Amy Jo Hot Springs, AR (Central Time Zone) I guess it comes down to a simple choice really...Get busy living, or get busy dying. ~from The Shawshank Redemption Every day is a new opportunity to change your future!
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