Happy anniversary Erin

Well, here I am a month into my diet and exercise routine. Happy anniversary to me! Funny how I had such a torrid relationship with food before, and i decided to "break up" with it! I started a new relationship with food and am pretty happy with it.

I have lost roughly 8.5 lbs so far, and that is not to bad for the first month. I know it may slow down a bit; possibly to a lb a week,that's 4 lbs a month. It is normal for your body to get used to the routine you are doing , so I just keep stepping it up. I have found having a scale is not the best most accurate way to determine how I am doing. Muscle weighs more than fat, so while I am building muscle it is replaces my fat but the scale does not know the difference. I was really obsessed in the first several weeks with weighing myself 2-4 times a day...yes I know crazy. And the fact that our weight fluctuates daily made me even more crazy. Food we eat, water weight, that will all make your weight fluctuate somewhat. I have settled for weighing myself once a day which may also seem a bit excessive, but it is better than 4 times a day. Measuring is also a telltale sign that you are toning. I have lost a few inches in my waist, but i only measure myself every couple weeks or so.

I have been working out to this video called : 30 days to shred: Jillian Micheals. It is a 30 min curcuit training video that literally kicks my derriere big time. Jillian trained all the "Biggest Loser" people on tv and she means business. You hear her throughout the video saying things like " you DON'T get to workout out for 20-30 min and take a rest, there are NO rests in this routine!!!, or "If your looking for a modified version of a jumping jack, look elsewhere, Iv'e got 400lb people that can do a Jumping Jack so can you". She's an exercise drill sergeant and EXACTLY what I need to keep me in line and not let me give up. I read up on amazon about this video with great feedback of great results. So no matter how hard it is I am going to keep up with it!!!!!!

Sayonara, and happy sweating!

When will the new me emerge?

So far I have been on this diet exercise plan for 3 weeks and have lost 7 1/2 pounds. My boyfriend, family and friends have all said they are beginning to see a change in my ; i.e. more defined jaw, smaller waist.

The problem is I look in the mirror and still see my chubby overweight self and it can be quite a downer. I can't tell if my clothes are looser and I still have that nasty roll in my stomach i just want to go away.It makes me wonder when I will finally look in the mirror and be pleased with what is staring back at me.

I often wonder in my mind "what would happen if i ate one piece of bread, or candy, or skipped to days of exercise." Then I think of the tears rolling down my face when I stepped on the scale 3 weeks ago and how angry I was at myself for getting this way. So I think of this quote everytime I am tempted to give up:
"Instead of giving myself reasons why I can't, I give myself reasons why I can." I was always giving the great advice of not future-scoping how my life"might" be. So instead I am going to decide right here and now what it WILL be, and that means not giving up, going the extra mile, and realizing what you ARE capable of, not what you are not.


Smile and the world smiles with you....

Hey ! Weight! Go away and never come back!!

If you have ever been on a regular diet with exercise than you may have stepped on the scale one day to find that you have lost weight, and then the next day have gained weight! You also may find that you may find that you lose NO weight! And you ask yourself"Tell me why again I am eating this healthy and working my ass off only to have nothing in return?!?!"

There is this little thing called the "Plateau effect". It seems to be what I am experiencing now.Sometimes your overworked muscles need time to rest and rebuild. Take time off from your exercise routine by slowing it down, and going for leisurely walks or doing yoga. Also make sure that you are constantly changing up your workout routine: Maybe one day you go for a fast walk in your neighborhood, and the next day you workout to your favorite kickboxing video. I am blessed with the fact that on my cable i have a "fitness channel" i can record workouts from on my dvr!

It has been hard for me with this fluctuating weight and a bit of a downer, but i know if i keep working hard it will keep coming off.............

"A wretched soul, bruised with adversity,
We bid be quiet when we hear it cry;
But were we burdened with like weight of pain,
As much or more we should ourselves complain.
William Shakespeare"

Slow slow slowwwww the weight comes off....

Why does one have to exercise all the time and eat like I am eating to take off one pound a week? This will take forever!

I have been feeling a little better about not eating sugar ,bread, and pretty much eating rabbit food. I have found a lot of sugar free options but and it has been quit do not want to go to crazy on that either.

My boyfriends kids are here this week from Minnesota and it has been quite a feat to keep the regular eating habits in order, but I am doing well. I have finally lost another pound, and it brings me that much closer to my goal.....

Keep on truckin Erin, and be your own best cheerleader....

cry baby cry...

So the other day my boyfriend and I went out to eat middle-eastern food. As I perused the menu , there seemed to be many options of what I could eat. we settled on the mezza platter which consists of hummus, grape leaves, falafel, and we also go basmati rice and chunks of grilled chicken. All was well until the brought the freak-in PITA BREAD!

The sudden realization the I could not dip the warm hot pita bread in the creamy hummus and shove the plethora of flavors in my mouth instantly made me burst into tears. Yes I messily cried in front of my boyfriend and whimpered like a baby. It is funny how being without these things is like going through the 12 steps of not drinking alcohol.

I never realized how much I depended on my favorite foods and ate them like there was no care in the world. It was only when faced with being WITHOUT them did I realize what I was facing. Who knew food could have such power over me?

I now know that I can never go back to eating the way I used too, because I would rather have the power over myself.

:)

Do it for yourself and no one else........

I have come too several realizations: 1 no one really reads this, and 2 it shouldn't matter. When I first created this weight loss blog, I wanted the support of all my friends and family; too join the blog comment and encourage. I made daily posts to my facebook that I had posted a new blogs asking people to "follow and comment" ...Well I eventually got 3 followers and several encouraging words on my first post.

It is funny the biggest answer i get on facebook is : I have been really busy I will follow it when I can. Oh ok, so you have time to be on facebook making this comment but not 2 seconds to go follow my blog? It literally takes seconds to follow and comment on a blog.

Well I was pissed for a bit. But now I do not care, I need to be doing this for me and nobody else, so no more pressuring people insistently, it does not matter, do it for you and no one else. So basically this is like my diary, but open if people want to see. I am no longer going to let this rent space in my head and upset me, this weight loss is for my well being and I am the only one who should care.

Peace, Love, and happiness.

AND ONE! AND TWO! MOVE THAT BUTT!

So I have been working out to these videos I really enjoy on the fitness channel with "Gilad" He is this oiled up Italian grease monkey that looks like he stepped out of a flock of seagalls video. However his videos are GREAT! lots of energy, encouraging words" you can do it!" " keep it up!"

I find it pretty pathetic though that as we are on the floor working our inner things and he's saying "cmon just 10 more" My burning legs fall to the floor as I am gasping for oxygen.I immediately pick it back up telling myself not to be a quitter.

Yesterday was the first day after 6 days in a row that i did not work out, due to being out all day. I was cleaning a house, so I guess i did get SOME exercise, but it was strange how this guilt set in that i wasn't able to workout with my grease buddy "Gilad". It is strange how when you are NOT on a diet and telling yourself to workout 3 times a week you can barely muster the energy to do it. But when you ARE on a diet, and working out every day, you actually MISS working out if you miss a day! Who ever thought I would miss flailing my arms in the air in a frantic aerobicising way, while sweating like a pig! Guess I really am getting into this health nut thing, and let me tell you it feels great!...Now if only there was no stiff joint afterward...ooof.