My New Ending

So, I had another proud mommy moment the other day… 

My girls have been making sure to get their exercise in a couple days a week at the least after school and the other day they decided to go for a walk.  I had just dropped brother off at soccer practice and was going to go for a run.  The girls started out walking before I started my run and I thought I heard them say something about studying while they walked. 

Sure enough, as I came up behind them I see one of them holding a sheet of paper and they are quizzing each other for a Spanish test the next day..while walking! 

My kids are studying and getting exercise in too!!  Woo Hoo!!  Of course, they paused to cheer me on as I jogged past them.  So cute.  

After I was done with my run (the girls were waiting for me on the porch) we girls went to get brother from soccer practice.  

He had worked hard too. 

I told the kids I was so proud of them for getting in some exercise, so I did what we mom’s do best…took a picture of all of us.  🙂

Being that it had reached 79 that day, we decided that protein smoothies would be a good idea for dinner. So, I got right to work making a nice cold dinner. 

One had mixed berries and yogurt with strawberry protein powder, me and one daughter had almond milk, frozen bananas, PB and chocolate protein powder and my son had almond milk, pb and chocolate protein powder.  It was like having dessert for dinner, but full of all kinds of goodness and enough calories to count as a meal! 

You know, this was just another NSV of sorts — seeing my kids stay active and being able to be right there with them rejoicing and high-fiving after a good workout.  🙂

Hello!  I’m back and we’re back into our normal routines now.  I love that.  *contented sigh*

Vacations are nice.  

Relaxing is nice.  

But there is great truth to the saying “Home Sweet Home”.  There’s nothing like it and I love being in my normal school-day routines.  Today I’ve done nothing more than pick up the house, do laundry, go for a nice walk, chat with a friend and I’ve enjoyed every minute of my day.  

The sun has been shining and the temperature reached the mid to high 70’s.  My windows are open and fresh air has been breezing it’s way through my home.  

Can you see why I’m feeling so pleasant?  

The pleasant contentedness also comes from having a good talk with my dear friend and weight loss buddy about how it’s okay to go back to basics with exercise — as long as we’re still moving. 

The farther along I get in this weight loss journey, and the more I see myself capable of things I never thought I’d be able to do, it’s easy to put myself down for not pushing harder each workout.  It’s easy to think I’ve done nothing, or I’m a failure, if I’ve not put out a solid hour or 45 minutes of hot, sweaty exercise.  

What a lie.

Four years ago (this past week to be exact) I weighed myself at my all time, non-pregnancy high of 232.5 pounds.  I was mortified.  I was forced to acknowledge the pain in my knees was due to putting on another 20 pounds since the previous summer.  I was forced to acknowledge that I was “loving myself” right out of my 20w’s.

I felt hopeless.

And I decided I needed to do something, but I refused to start any specific diet out of a fear of failure.  

So, I changed one thing at a time.  Looking back I realized I made two choices.  I would stop one bad habit and I would start one good habit. 

I cut my regular soda drinking down to only at mealtimes, and I started doing walk-at-home DVDs for 30 minutes 3 times a week. 

Was it Biggest Loser style change?  No.  Did I get results?  YES. 

Those small basic decisions lead to more decisions, which lead to more and now here I am lighter and still keeping that weight off.   

Yes, I managed to gain 5 pounds while on vacation last week.  Yes, I was lazy and enjoyed my Grandma’s homemade desserts daily.  Yes, I did go for one, small 2-mile run, but well, yes, I slept in and enjoyed lots of time with my family.

And even more than that….

Yes, I came home and made the decision to get back with the program.  I know those five pounds will come off soon enough.  I know I’ll go for a run this week and I’ll get back into my regular workout schedule again and most of all…

I know it’s good enough.  

Happy Monday!  Hope you all have a good week!

Tomorrow is Easter, and dear blogland friends I would be remiss if I did not share that it is one of my favorite holidays.  As a born again Christian I rejoice knowing my sins are forgiven, paid for by the blood Jesus shed on the cross.  His resurrection on the third day proved his power over hell and the grave. 

When I accepted Him into my life he forgave my sins and almost four years ago when I asked Him to help me with my weight issues He also began to prove to me that I could be free from the bondage of overeating.  One of the biggest keys to my weight loss success is surrendering my weight issues to Jesus and allowing Him to guide me on how to change.  

Every Sincerely Yours,

Leah

Today’s Weight:  164.0

Loss/Gain:  – 0.5 lb

There is no school today, so I was able to sleep in.  As I was laying in bed thinking about my day ahead and knowing I was going to weigh in this morning I reminded myself that no matter what the scale said I would keep going.  The scale is a tool and I would have earned the number on there.  

Yes, there are weeks we do our best and for some reason the scale doesn’t seem to cooperate and show a number reflective of our hard work, but this week I screwed up and knew it would be my decisions that would be reflecting on that scale.  

And my decisions did indeed reflect. 

My decisions to overeat last weekend, giving no thought to my plan, but also my decision not to throw the entire week just because I ate all my extra points within two days were all reflected in that half-pound loss.   

Which leads me to being thankful for some other decisions I’m glad I’ve made recently.  And a photo post run yesterday because I was so thankful.  🙂 

First, I’m really glad I joined up with Weight Watchers Online.  Basically the points I’m given to eat every day (and the extra for the week if I choose to use them) are calories for my protein, carbs/sweets and fats.  Watching those points go down as I track my food helps me make better choices throughout the days.  

I’m also glad I chose to be completely honest with my tracking last weekend.  It was sad and very humbling to admit how badly I ate and yet looking at my tracker all week and seeing I was actually in the negative with regards to my extra weekly points helped keep me in check most times.  Not having those extra points also reminded me that I needed to exercise.  I needed to work on burning some of the calories to make up for my overeating.  

So, I also chose to exercise.  I made the decision that I had to get back to good, sweaty workouts — namely at least 30 minutes of something that would push me.  I love walking, and my lifelong fitness goal is to be able to go for daily walks when I’m old and gray, but for now I can do more.  So, I made the decision to do Jillian workouts and get at least one run in. 

The DVDs are an easy choice, because I get to stay inside.  🙂  

I’ll be honest with you.  Our days were still cold and I’m tired of being cold already.  I didn’t want to bundle up and go running in 40 degree weather.  I know it’s still March, but we had some really nice 60’ish degree days and feeling those nice days made me not want to run until it was nice like that again.  

Then I read an article in Runner’s World wherein the author made a comment about at least getting in a quick run just to keep your body used to running.  They said even if all you can do it 10-15 minutes it’s better than nothing.  So, I made the decision to go for a run and not worry about the time or distance.  I decided that I would just wait until a little later in the afternoon when the temperature was supposed to get up around 53 degrees.  

Waiting until later in the day meant I had to pause a conversation with a friend I hadn’t talked to in months telling her I needed to go run and could I please call her back?  (Another decision)  We had talked for almost an hour already and she was fine with it.  Then about 10 minutes into the run I got a phone call, but told the lady I was running and she offered to call back later.  (Another decision..yay!) 

This run turned out to be a great one.  However, it was great for very different reasons. 

While it was a beautiful sunshiny day it was still chilly.  It was also windy.  I realized about two thirds of the way through my run I had paused my Map My Run app, so I wasn’t going to get a decent reading.  (argh..) My side was aching most of the run, which I know was because I went out too fast.  But I kept telling myself this was a great run…because I was doing it. 

Because I was doing it.  

With every decision I made this week I have proved once again that I can be successful, not because I’m the one losing the most pounds each week or working out the most hours, but because no matter what I keep going.  I keep making those decisions to keep at it.  

And this week may only show half a pound gone, but it shows that I made the decision to keep fighting after a less-than-stellar weekend.  That, my friends, is success!  

*insert small happy dance* 

Now, please wish me luck with Easter weekend.  oh my .. I don’t always do well around holidays and company and we’re having a lot on Sunday.  BUT…I am determined to track everything and do my best to make conscious decisions for the better.  

Happy Friday, and if you made it through this extremely long post…thank you!!!  Sometimes there is no simple way of putting things, because I want to record everything about my journey.  🙂 

Well, my friend wants to know how Weight Watchers is going for me…

*pausing*

Um…

Well….

It’s going great, except I allowed myself a free day or two over the weekend and then decided I would be bluntly honest and track e.v.e.r.y.t.h.i.n.g.  and oh my….

I ate all my extra weekly points in two days.  

How embarrassing and how enlightening all at the same time.  

The reason I chose to follow Weight Watchers was to make me think about the kinds of foods I was eating.  As I track my points daily I see them go down and know I have to make better decisions for the rest of the day, or in this case week, to have any hope of seeing a loss.  

It’s different to see I’ve lost all those weekly points instead of just saying, “Oh, I had a high calorie day.  Tomorrow is a new day!”  

Tomorrow is a new day, but without exercise that day doesn’t have room to go off plan.  

It’s a good thing I used a lot of those calories on my favorite candies, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup minis, and a brownie or two, but still …. what an eye opener.  

But as I told a fellow blogger…I will not throw the entire week just because of an over-point weekend.  

I’m definitely learning some things here and I guess that is good.  🙂  

Now if it could please warm up a bit I’d be much more into running…another blah moment for another time.  

Bye for now!  🙂

Today’s Weight:  164.5

Loss/Gain: -1.5 lbs

Yay!  I was a little worried about the scale because it heading down and then yesterday was an off day.  It’s good to know I didn’t ruin the entire week’s worth of work with my carbolicious snacking.  *rolling eyes* Needless to say that’s a post for another day, because I think I was snacking away some feelings.

But, I know I earned this loss, because I did indeed work at it this week.  In fact, after much thought over the last couple of weeks I made a decision last Saturday night.  

Short Story:  

I joined Weight Watchers online.  

Long Story:

Over the last month or so I’ve been perusing various diet plans.  I know what to do to lose weight, but I needed a little more structure.  Some plans make your food for you, some tell you eat only specific foods and others just tell you to stay within a certain calorie budget.  

I have a friend who asked what I thought Weight Watchers and I was reminded I’ve followed Weight Watchers in the past and I feel it’s well-balanced and teaches a person how to eat correctly.   When I ran into a mom who was sharing with me her weight loss story and we were discussing eating and she mentioned she is doing Weight Watchers also, I was like..hhmm…maybe I should look into that again.

So, I got online, read about it and argued with myself about whether or not I wanted to spend money on another weight loss plan.  I also knew I didn’t need the meetings.  Noticing the 3-month online plan only was $20 a month I figured, “You know what?  I’m going to probably end up spending that money on something, so why not a tool to help me finish my weight loss.”  So, I chose that plan and agreed with myself that if I don’t see progress during that time I will quit using their program and go back to doing it on my own.  

For those that don’t know…here’s a quick view of what it’s about and why I like the plan. 

Weight Watchers follows a points plan that gives point values to foods based on their fat, carbohydrate, fiber and protein amounts.  Fruits and veggies are “free” foods with a value of 0 pts.  I’ve followed the old points program before, so it’s not too hard to get used to. 

For my 5′ 4″, 36-year-old female self these are my points allowances:

I was already in the habit of using a calorie tracker on my new iPhone, so switching to their tracker was easy.  They also have a barcode scanner, like My Fitness Pal does, so that’s handy too in case there is a food item that isn’t in their log already. 

** shamelessly inserting that I LOVE my smartphone so much for things like my food and exercise trackers — SO EASY!!!!  Thank you, Luv.**

Following their points plus plan this past week I’ve been reminded that not all calories are equal.  It’s exactly what I needed to help me make better choices.  

For example, as I texted a young friend of mine who also recently joined WW… 

So..there it is.  I am following a “diet” now to get to my goal.  However, I think of it as more like just tracking my food like normal, but with some guidelines to help me stay away from the added sugars and fats I don’t really need. 

Me thinks this could be the ticket to helping me stay focused to finish up what I’ve started.  🙂  I also am one of those who enjoys these little encouragements:

Now for a little fun photo I found when looking for some pictures for a military appreciation display I’m putting together for a coffee house opening up in our town.  

I haven’t run but maybe twice in the last almost four weeks. 

Saturday I got a new pair of running shoes and this morning I took them out for a short run.  

It was rough.  I told myself I wasn’t out to break any time records, just slow and easy.  The best part of the run was looking down at my cool new shoes.  Their hot pink with neon trim was the only bright spot on the chilly overcast morning. 

Then I reminded myself, or maybe I decided once again …  I’m just out to finish this.  

I’m planning on running a 10K in May and then a half marathon in September.  This break from running had scared me a bit because it was getting so easy to not exercise, or go for a brisk walk.  Yes, walking is great and when you usually run it’s like an “easy” workout.  But I knew I wanted to run.  I knew that I would get my new shoes and I would head out again, because when I run I feel strong and capable.  I feel like I can conquer anything. 

And while I enjoy seeing my pace speed up as I run more and as the pounds come off, really the only thing I’m looking for in either of my races this year is to finish.  To finish strong and know I didn’t give up.  

There is always going to be someone more dedicated than me, more fit, faster, etc. etc., but I only need push myself and do my best.  And if it means taking is slower when getting back into running, then that’s okay.  If it means not PR’ing a 10K because I took a month off of the training plan, then that’s okay.

This is life and the goal is simply to finish.

Thank you to all who entered to win a copy of Miracles and Moments of Grace:  Inspiring Stories from Moms.  

The winner chosen randomly through Draw Straws! is … 

Syl from LiveSmileRun

Syl, leave me a comment with your email and I’ll get your mailing info to have the book sent out to you.  🙂