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Introduction Text Hi there .... today I am taking the first steps towards my journey for a LONG LIFE! I want to be around long enough to see my kids go to college, marry and have grandkids. I need to stop feeling like a grandmother myself and become more active! I have 2 kids age 6 and 4 and I work 5 jobs. I am 39, and I had the wake up call of a lifetime in April when I was rushed to the hospital in the middle of work with heart palpitations that would not stop. I have had a battery of tests including wearing a heart monitor for over a month, and taking a nuclear stress test... All doctors have told me that my heart is fine and that stress caused the problem. Regardless, this has been one of those life changing experiences where you stared your future and your children's future squarely in the eyes. That level of fear is not something I will ever, ever forget. So since then, I have made a promise to myself that I will lose 5 pounds per month. My first goal was to walk 4 days per week, then 5 days a week, and now my goal is to walk at least 30 minutes every day (Thank you, Dr. Oz.) I am dedicated and determined to eat only healthy food and things... for my own longevity. I put those little electrodes that I had to wear on my chest in strategic places around my bedroom, so in case I slip into laziness I can be transported back to those weeks of fear when I thought I had a heart problem. I never, ever want to go back to that place again. So - today I am focusing in on "walking the walk for health." I am trying to go to the gym as much as possible (4-5 days/week) and do 40 minutes on the elliptical and work out with my personal trainer doing circuit training 1-2 days per week. Right now I am classified with the BMI that is "morbidly obese." I would like to get out of this classification. I have lost 50 pounds so far, so I am on my way! I have to lose another 20 to get out of "morbidly obese" range for my BMI. Also - another long term goal - never set foot in Lane Bryant again!!!! I would like to own just one piece of clothing that fits from the Gap.

January 3 UPDATE: By hook or by crook I have now lost 50 pounds in 2007!!! My new goal is to try to stay on track to lose 5 lbs a month and knock down another 50 by the time I turn 40 in December!!! I need to choose small goals and stick with them so I am racking up a series of successes. Right now, my goals are to eat low on the glycemic index and exercise at least 30 minutes EVERY day. My new goal is to mention some goal or progress to at least one person a day. My weight loss goal is to lose 5 pounds a month, and I am considering upping it - but I don't want to set myself up for failure. If I go at this pace, I will be 100 pounds down by the time I turn 40. Hopefully I will then feel like I am 20 again.

I classify what I am doing as a "three tier diet." Depending on food options in front of me, I try to make the best decisions and follow the diets in this order: 1. GLYCEMIC INDEX. I am trying to avoid foods that are high on this index (white rice, white bread, refined sugar, etc.) So whereever possible, I choose whole grains and whole foods. 2. LOW FAT. Next, I am avoiding fried foods, red meat and high fat sauces in mindless amounts. I eat dressings on the side and "make the fat count" in that if I choose to eat something high fat (i.e. cheese on salad) then I enjoy the bite that has cheese without another fat (dressing) on top. I am being conscious about the fat that I am eating when I choose to eat fat. 3. LOW CARB. When the only carbs around are "stupid carbs" (i.e. sugar laden or white bread) but are low fat, I will skip. For some bizarre reason I have noticed if I go out for wings for lunch (eat no bread) I lose at least a pound the next day

I am in the Atlanta area and a mom to 2 kids. I have been overweight my whole life so it is time to fix that! I have a very busy schedule as I work 5 jobs. My schedule has always been an excuse for me.. but now I just see it as a challenge. If I am going to do this, I MUST find a way. As Dr. Oz says in his book "YOU ON A DIET" - "The only way to start stripping away weight is to start stripping away excuses."

My new mantra is a Chinese proverb: The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stone. My blog will focus on my journey and celebrations of the successes of my carrying away small stones.

Add a Link The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones. --Chinese Proverb We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit. -- Aristotle Life is made of millions of moments, but we live only one of these moments at a time. As we begin to change this moment, we begin to change our
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