28 Weeks. Picture Day!

If pictures could say a thousand words, than my before pictures are screaming and begging for help. It actually saddens me to see how I truly let myself go. I thought that taking the updated pictures would not show that much of a difference. I mean, I still feel vulnerable taking them, I still am self-conscious about my weight, but good Lord am I in such a different place mentally and physically taking them. If my pictures today could speak, they would let out one huge hell of a sigh of relief. My bones are thanking me, my joints are squeaky clean, and my skin is trying to do me a favor and tighten up as much as possible. This week, although I did weigh myself, I am going to let the pictures speak for me about my weigh in. I think about the rough month on October, when I felt nothing was really changing. And then I look to the huge month I had in November, where my body finally caught up to the weight loss in a good way. I still feel a little awkward about people asking me about my progress, like a microscope is being put on various parts of my body, but then I realized, these people are asking ME for ADVICE on how to do it! WOW. I am now recommending to them to read my blog. :) The 1st question is always 'what's your diet' and my response is 'living a healthy lifestyle without dieting.' 

Anyways, there's my little tidbit...now onto the main event for the week...PICTURES (not w/ santa haha). And, as promised, sans makeup and sans sucking in!

Before:

6 months later (front):

Well, the front shots are definitely a slimmer version of me. I couldn't decide which picture showed best, so you get both.

Side shot before:

 6 months later (side):

Ok, in my opinion, this side shot shows the most progress. I actually want to cry when I look at the before shot, but truth hurts. And look how far I've come with that truth. Now my truth is so much better.

Back shot before: 

Back shot 6 months later:

Look at my arms-mucho bettero. And a few rolls are missing. I won't be missing those!

Overall, I am happy and pleased going into Christmas. I'll be snowboarding, hiking, and sledding over the holidays in the Rockies so I'm hoping to not gain anything over the break and at least stay where I'm currently at. Sound good? Yep!

Have a very Merry Christmas everyone. And please stay fit & stay healthy over the holidays. It's not worth the guilt afterwards!

Love w/ ALLLLL of my bum,

CH

p.s. weigh-in: what do you think of my 6 month pictures compared to my 1st day? What do you notice that I might not?

Week 27-Holidays are almost here

With the holidays just around the corner, I thought I'd use this post to talk about ways to trick yourself into not eating EVERY option placed before you at holiday parties. With all the smells and bells, it's probably the most difficult time of the year to not snack. On average, Americans gain 1-2 pounds over the holidays. The problem is that many people never work it off but simply add to their weight. Let's work on preventing that.

Alcohol: Limit yourself. Try drinking a glass of water before you consume any beverage and have another glass of water afterwards. This will make your stomach feel full faster as well as balance out the dehydration properties of alcohol. Also, try grabbing a glass of wine and enjoying the flavor by nursing it for awhile instead of taking shots or drinking fruity cocktails that taste so good, it's like drinking flavored water. 

Working out: Try to get in a workout a few hours before the party. That way, health is already on your mind and you will be less likely to blow the popsicle stand when you just spent all this effort trying to shed calories. Also, make a plan for your workout the next day in the morning. This will help aid in you not going to sleep too late and staying out later to drink.

Nibbles: You know I advocate bringing your own snacks and having that while others gorge on cheeseballs, fried finger foods, fudge, etc. I also advocate bringing a healthy option hor d'ouerve. With so many healthier options out there, make one less temptation for yourself and others by bringing something guilt-free. Trust me, people will honestly appreciate having a healthy choice. 

The meal: If your meal is buffet style, start 1st with veggies & salads. Make it almost uncomfortably tight for your mac & cheese to sneak it's way all over your tray. Limit yourself to one plate and allow yourself 2nds only in the healthy options. Try to sit far away form the buffet line and also try to sit with people you know are either picky eaters or working on a healthier lifestyle too. It helps when you aren't sitting next to people that go back for 3rds. If there is a kid's size plate-try that 1st. Planning on having dessert too? Eat slower and cut that pie slice at least in half. Trust me, you'll thank me later. Don't forget that just with the alcohol, drink as much water as possible in between food types and you'll feel fuller faster and will eat less. Served dinners are usually easy to monitor, so just take your time and you should be fine.

So onto the weigh-in this week:

Weight Day One: 207.8

Percent of Body Fat: 44.3%

BMI: 34.2

Water Weight: 40.6%

Weeks to Meet Goal: 73

Weight Today: 167.8

Percent of Body Fat: 35.6%

BMI: 27.6

Water Weight: 47%

Weeks to Meet Goal: 33

I gained a pound this week but I am actually ok with that. I busted my bum in the gym right after weighing in this morning and I felt like I pushed it extra hard so as to start this next week out better. As the holidays near, I am also going to try to get in as much extra gym time as possible so that I won't guilt myself on days that too many functions prevent me from getting in a run or gym.

And, as promised, a few shots of my facial weight loss progress!

June 2011

December 2011

Holy Crapola! Do you see how HUGE and PLUMPY my face was?! WHOA WHOA WHOA. It's crazy to see them next to each other. Well, there is progress if I ever saw it :) And look, I have chin curves as in, you can see my chin and it's bone structure. I seriously cannot believe I was such a jiggly-puff. It's one thing when you avoid mirrors and you get this 'vision' of how you think you look (it's all in perspective) but seeing the change point blank is eye opening. I'm so proud of how far I've come but I am also embarrassed that I let myself get like that to begin with. Ahh, how nice it is to say goodbye to that person I no longer recognize or identify with.


Feel free to post some before/after shots in the comments-or email them to me-I would LOVE to highlight you and your successes!!

Have a wonderful & healthy week!

Love w/ all my bum,
CH

1/2 a year later, the glass is half full. 6 months

Can you believe that it's been SIX whole months already?! Amazing. In six months I feel like I have endured and accomplished so much. I never would've guessed in June that by December I'd be running a 15K, will have gained warrior status and be 40ish pounds lighter. Incredible.

This week, I had to face the music that not everyone would be happy for me. I never thought that this transformation would affect anyone else in a negative way, but I guess they don't call it drama for no reason. Some of you may already know that my beloved running buddy and I (my neighbor of whom I have spoken about on here) have called it quits on one another. I finally had to break ties and depend on myself to accomplish my goals. I think this is for the best because now no one can pass my victories off as their own personal accomplishments. Aside from that, I no longer have to hear horrible, hurtful comments throughout this process from her.

For example:
1. "I can't run your pace anymore because it's too slow that it hurts my knees"
2. "Running with you always feels like an accomplishment to me because I know that you are struggling and I could do circles around you in the same run"
3. "You do not acknowledge the fact that I took time and effort out of my day to make you run harder, faster and longer. You wouldn't have been able to do it without me"

If you EVER EVER run across someone who will put doubt in your head about yourself while you are working towards something healthy and positive---RUN away as fast as you can. Although I am deeply hurt by these comments, they also give me fuel. This horrible experience has given me a great lesson about setting goals and doing them solo as well as helping me recognize that it's not just the "shoulder's" that can guilt you about being healthy. There will always be someone who will talk negatively about your progress-especially if they are not accomplishing anything on their end. This situation will be an overall healing process but I think any decent person will end up on the right side of things eventually. Overall, I am ready to come up for air with the clean break.

So onto the Hot Chocolate 15K. What an experience. I had the greatest support system yet at this run and I was pretty emotional while running the second half of the run.

My supporters decorated my home and car "Run like you stole something!" haha

I just couldn't believe I got up at 5 am and was running 9.3 miles. Cold weather, long waits, narrow path, etc. just didn't seem to matter as I ran because the bigger picture was that I had signed up for something I didn't personally believe I could do 2 months ago, trained for it and yet, there I was running it with ease.

Half way point

I think the best part was that I didn't feel tired while running and I barely felt sore. It was as if I was MEANT to be running it.

My bum running!

 I may not have been the fastest person there...but I laced up, showed up, and finished strong.

Emotional Finish!

The best part was finishing, the second best part was pacing an 11 minute mile the entire time. In my long distance runs while training, I never did better than a 12 min mile and some change. And yet, race day comes and I run a minute per mile faster?!

Heck yea, I did it!

And then we had some chocolate fondue!

Who wouldn't be excited about chocolate fondue afterwards?! But for the record, it's much better to run for beer!

WOW! Another cool thing was that I already feel ready to look to the next step: a whopping half marathon. That's some serious business. 13.1 miles my friends. I'm thinking late Spring, early Summer with a few smaller races in between to keep me focused.

And now for the main event. Drum roll please: Week 26 breakdown!

Weight 6 months ago
Weight Day One: 207.8

Percent of Body Fat: 44.3%

BMI: 34.2

Water Weight: 40.6%

Weeks to Meet Goal: 73

Weight Week 26: 166.8 (down 41 lbs)

Percent of Body Fat: 36.5% (down 7.8%)

BMI: 27.4 (down 6.8 pts)

Water Weight: 46.3% (up 1.3%)

Weeks to Meet Goal: 36

I've surpassed the big 4-0! This feels great! I am so happy for this next mini goal being reached. And for November's goal to lose 10 lbs. I was so very close to making it...but missed the mark by a pound. Pooey. Close enough for grenades in my book.

As I look to the next six months, it would be great to accomplish the half-marathon, be almost bikini ready, and feeling more full of energy and positivity than I have the first 6 months. Also I very much want my BMI in NORMAL range (under 25 points). As I look back on the past six months, it has been a rollercoaster of getting used to the newness in my life. I hope that my hubby will now climb on board the healthy lifestyle train along with me as that will make eating around the house that much easier. I also intend to cook more homemade meals and eat more veggies. 

On the road to success

Next week, I'll post some updated bikini pictures (woof) so you can see the difference over the past 3 months. I'll also show you a picture of me and my starting out pair of jeans. Speaking of jeans-I now fit in a size 10 (started at a tight 16) and I even have a pair of size 8 jeans that I can zip! Oh yea!

 

I sympathize with the hippo but cannot wait to NOT be a hippo anymore!

I cannot thank you all enough for offering me real support, being real friends, and being genuinely proud of my accomplishments. 

Here's to the next 6 months bum followers!

Love w/ all my bum

CH

Goodbye November and 25 @ 25 weeks

As 25 closed to an end, so did my age of 25. This week I not only celebrated Thanksgiving, but also celebrated my birthday. I was actually pretty decent in my eating habits over the events and felt great to not be amongst the average American who consumes 4,500 calories on Thanksgiving Day. It's difficult to imagine stuffing all that food down my throat and even more horrific to think that the average American DOES. Wow...this, my friends, is the society we live in. Fact.

Let's hop right into the weigh-in:

Weight Day One: 207.8

Percent of Body Fat: 44.3%

BMI: 34.2

Water Weight: 40.6%

Weeks to Meet Goal: 73

Weight Week 25: 170.6 (down 37.2 lbs)

Percent of Body Fat: 36.8% (down 7.5%)

BMI: 28 (down 6.2 pts)

Water Weight: 46.1% (up 1.1%)

Weeks to Meet Goal: 36

My overall analysis for a little bit of weight gain this week is taking a break from strength training for a week as well as having 4 days off from cardio. But, I will say that I am pumped in the sense that I did not eat terribly and have affirmation in that what I do to get fit works. 

Looking forward to my 26th year, it would be great to be in a place that has me fit in all aspects of my life. And there really is no better time than the present. After I complete the Hot Chocolate 15K this weekend, I'm likely going to start looking for a half-marathon to register for the late-spring/early summer. For those non-runners, a half-marathon is 13.1 miles while a full-marathon is 26.2 miles and pretty much everything else aside from Iron mans, triathlons, etc. is always a numbered K (for kilometers ran) like 5K, 8K, 10K, and 15K. It would be cool to do a destination run (maybe somewhere by the beach) but doing something around the DC monuments would also be a great experience. I think it's funny that I am already looking for the next distance goal-we'll see how I feel after this 15K! And I would be proud to say I ran a half...not everyone does that and it seems like there is a large step between 15K and 13.1 miles, even though it's 4ish miles more. I running circles and chat, I have felt like a non-runner because "anyone can train and do a 5K in a month" and "it only takes a little training to do a 15K." To the non-runner, that totally sounds like crap but for some reason, in a runner's world, a 9 miler is clearly a warm up. This is not to discount my achievement when I finish on Saturday, but it does give a glimpse of what it means to be a 'runner' and in most cases I have found the group to be somewhat snobby. "Oh yes, I did that half awhile ago and it was a decent run" -they say. Haha. If any sport could be pompous, I'd never say running would be my 1st pick, but it is slowly changing! I cannot help but feel there is always this looming judgement placed on you by your pace, tempo, overall time, and personal record (PR). Well, I'll tell you what-THAT part of running is not for me. But I do respect this hidden sense of competition between everyone. Say I ran 5 miles today, a runner would tell me they did a 6 miler on Tuesday. It's the land of one-uppers and it's a combination of frustration and amusement to 'get it.' And then I realized that dedicated runners do it solo. No one makes you pound the pavement across the finish line  at the end of the day except for yourself. You can run with groups, etc. to help motivate you but all in all-running is about the personal experience. This is such a foreign concept for me because I have always played team sports. In team sports, everything I did was to benefit the whole. My personal accomplishments were for everyone. Hit a grand slam and 4 people get home and your entire team gets points. Slam dunk-a great shot by me and 2 points on the board for my teammates. PR on a race and I feel great-no one else. This sport is a completely different mindset and learning it's jargon, etc. is interesting. This sport is also challenging in that it's truly the first sport I've ever had to work at to be good at. I thrived inn team sports back in the day and this new challenge is really motivating me to master it. The best part is is that over the course of the next year, I will get better and better...but eventually everyone in running hits their peak. For example, as time goes on, you don't take minutes off your run to where you started at 10 minute mile and over 10 years eventually get to a 1 minute mile. There is a ceiling for everyone and knowing that makes me feel less overwhelmed by this new community of 'snobby' runners. I can see a runner and know that no matter how hard they try, it's natural ability and talent that makes someone a star athlete. And that's where my most profound respect comes for runners: to know that after a certain point, you cannot do any better and yet they still go at it, still try, still run. That is incredible. 

Anyways, I cannot wait for my run this weekend as you can tell from my entire dialogue previously about the sport! I am blessed that this time around I will have some of the greatest support I have ever had from a group of people. 

As for next week-I'll let you all know how the race went (even though I could care less about my time but more about me doing the run without walking at all!). I'm also do for some picture updates so I'll either get those to you next week or the following. 

Love w/ all my bum,

CH

I had a ball at the ball...23 weeks

What a week it has been! I ran 7.22 miles last week, attended a ball, and am starting to solidify a concrete group of gal pals. Kind of amazing!

My girl, Sarah, is amazing and has been on a healthy lifestyle journey as well. She looks INCREDIBLE!

So let's get to the nitty gritty of the ball. Mr. Sexy Back was definitely there, but let's just say that I can only thank him for making my theme song and not being a wonderful human being outside of it. Although he was disinterested to be there (and later said they night changed his life forever because of it's 'meaningful impact'), I've taken away that others may be inspired by his words, regardless of how fake they are in actuality. There's something to be said about a man that lives by the words he says (ex: Martin Luther King Jr., Nelson Mandela to name a few), but there is also something to be said about the quotes that inspire us on a personal level when we have no idea who the person was behind the quote (ex: The woman came from a man’s rib. Not from his feet to be walked on. Not from his head to be superior, but from his side to be equal, under his arm to be protected, and next to his heart to be loved.)

All in all, I'd say to each their own. But overall, I took away a wonderful evening. I started the event by fitting in a dress size smaller than anticipated a few days prior to the Ball...always a plus. Then we took pictures and started the night with a great ceremony and touching film about the contrast and comparison of the Pearl Harbor attack and September 11th. It was pretty moving and there were definitely some dampened eyes as the film closed. And then, my friends, in 4 inch heels that I ADORE, I danced the night away. 

A group of friends is solidified over dance moves :)

Last week I discussed not wanting to have alcohol get in the way of my progress. It was nice to rise up to the occasion. While many drank, I sipped water, nursed a glass of wine, and punch danced my rage out on the dance floor. LOL! And let's not forget the whole reason of being here-my hubby. He gives me strength in a unique way and I am ever so proud of him and his selfless service for our country. Plus, he's so tall I can wear whatever shoes I want! How can you not love that?!

And so I land this week, a bit nervous for my weigh-in because I was not as easily able to monitor my meals while I was on this mini trip down to Richmond and a few days off from working out. However, I am EXTREMELY happy with this weeks report card. Check it out:

Week 23 weight in

Weight: 169.4

Percent of Body Fat: 37.4%

BMI: 27.8

Water Weight: 45.6%

Weeks to Meet Goal: 34

Comparison to Day 1

Weight Day One: -38.4 lbs

Percent of Body Fat: -6.9%

BMI: -6.4 pts

Water Weight: +5%

Weeks to Meet Goal: -39 weeks (16 weeks ahead of schedule)

Allow me to point out that I am less than 2 lbs away from 40 lost. WOW. That is amazing. Even more amazing is that I have surpassed my half way point to my realistic goal of 135 lbs! WOOT! Heck yea! I am incredibly motivated today and I can only hope I continue to be this motivated over the next few months to really push it out over the holidays and tempting 'stay in' weather. I've GOT to work on getting my beach body! Getting half way makes me think of all those motivation, inspiration, perseverance quotes! I thought they were so corny, but hey, today I am loving it!

 

What I hope this blog does is not only give me accountability to my readers to keep working out, living healthy and growing mentally, but to also motivate everyone to do the same. It's easy to read about this and see the transformation over time, but it's difficult to make it personal until it is personally YOU doing it. Just like the Biggest Loser, it's so easy to say "I want that" "Look what they are accomplishing" and then 'should'in' and making excuses for why YOU aren't in the same position (i.e. "Oh well they are on a show and have trainers I can't afford and strict diets, etc."). I am here to prove that all you need is to your will power to stop excusing yourself and making it easy on yourself for being lazy. That will power will help you to just start doing something, ANYTHING to get you out there and changing your life. No more yo-yo diets, no more guilt, no more. You've got to wake up and just tell yourself "Enough is enough." But I can only tell you about how I went form being insecure and shy, which is 100% not me, to finally feeling I have that old pep in my step, energy, and self confidence growing daily. Telling you can only go so far-it's up to you to start this process.  Over the next few weeks, I'm going to be interviewing some of my friends that have risen to the challenge to change their life. I hope that seeing that others have made drastic changes will help in allowing you to join the community of healthy lifestyles-I am here to support you and so are they. We are all struggling to be fit, but this community is making progress and following through on their goals. So that's my spiel for this week. Stay tuned for more :)

Looking to next week, it will be my 26th birthday-what a good time to get fit :) and Thanksgiving will be upon us as well. Obviously the holiday is centered around eating and I'll do my best to keep the focus on family over food. I've got some big training runs to do in preparation of my 15K and I am hoping to get through them with ease and strength to finish strong. 

I hope this week has motivated you as much as it has me. If I can do it, so can you!

Love w/ all my shrinking bum,

CH

5 Months

High five everybody! 5 months have gone by and it's incredible how fast time flies. I want to 1st jump into the weigh in this week and then tell you all about what's coming up and on my mind. Let's do it!

Week 22 Weigh in

Weight Day One: 174.2

Percent of Body Fat: 37.5%

BMI: 28.6

Water Weight: 45.6%

Weeks to Meet Goal: 39

Initial Comparison

Weight Day One: -33.6 lbs

Percent of Body Fat: -6.8%

BMI: -5.6 pts

Water Weight: +5%

Weeks to Meet Goal: -34 weeks (12 weeks ahead of schedule)

I'm on my way to 40 lbs and quite frankly, I cannot wait for my BMI to go down and for my figure to tighten up. After 5 months, you'd think that I'd have a rockin' body already, right?! It is definitely a long process to tone up. I joke with my husband that all my muscle is hiding from me because it doesn't want me to stop working out when I reach my goal or at least look as if I've reached my goal! Push through it!

I know I always talk about how I am accomplishing all these things related to running (i.e. in October I was at a 5K, November I started running 10K and in December I'll do a 15K), but I have yet to touch base with my strength training. To give you a glimpse of my progress, I started out on a seated row and a pull down barely able to lift 30 lbs. I could barely do any push-ups let alone hold a plank for more than 10 seconds. Pull ups were a dream never to be had. My body felt as if it was always giving in. But my determination and drive (that boiling pot I talked about last week) has led me into some fantastic breakthroughs. For example, on Tuesday, I rowed 130 lbs and did 100 lbs on my pull downs. That is incredible! Weight training is CRUCIAL for weight loss and toning. Muscle strength enables me to burn calories faster and have more endurance for those long runs AND I rarely get sore from runs, etc. because my muscles have been properly prepared. I've witnessed more people having injuries and trouble running and losing weight because they do not strength train. It's a simple addition to a workout and only doing so 2-3 times a week will have a SIGNIFICANT impact on the rest of your lifestyle change.

This week, I am one busy panda. I finally get to go to the Marine Corps Ball and say thank you to Mr. Sexy Back for making a song that has become my anthem for this lifestyle transition. I am hoping to get a few decent shots from the event with Justin Timberlake, but who knows!? Either way, you'll get to see some shots of me in my 'little black dress' from the ball (I didn't reach my goal of being in the size I wanted, but I feel great in my dress and that's all that matters-right?!). In December, I promise to blog some more update photos in my bathing suit so you can view my progress and we can analyze what 6 months has done for me :) I'm thoroughly excited to be part of this great traditional event, and the hopes of meeting JT adds a little pizzazz to the whole night. But we all know who the real heroes are that night: those men in their dress blues who have and will sacrifice everything for us. Happy birthday USMC!

I'll also be up to 7 miles this week and a mere three weeks away from the Hot Chocolate 15K (9.32 miles people!). I am nervous, as I always am, leading up to the run, but what a milestone that will be for me...and that makes me excited! 

I'll report back next week-cannot wait for this ball and to share the experience with you all.

Love w/ all my bum,

CH

21 and legal

21 weeks. My favorite number is before me! I was super excited to see this number as it's always held a special place within me. Not legal drinking age, but my athletic number for sports. I think this number is befitting to the way I feel right now. Sports have ALWAYS been a part of my life (even when counting watching sports while on the couch doing nothing for a few years). Being active in sports is truly where my passion and zest for life flourishes. I lost that part of me for awhile but I feel my competitive drive heating up. Knowing that I still am a simmering pot on the stove brings such a proud sense to me. It's as if for 5 years I've been an unused pot, sitting on the shelf feeling both sorry for myself and helpless to move. One day in June, I decided to pick myself up and work towards permanent change. And only after 21 weeks of ups and downs do I finally feel like I've breathed some life back into me. The evolution of me is taking place and so far, I am proud of my overall accomplishments. 

October was a tough month for me. I've made some major changes and I've also have accomplished many things during this month that I am proud of (warrior dash, running more, etc), but I have also focused a lot of energy this month on discouragement and self doubt. It's time for me to come out of that shell and really hit the ground running full.

This past week I failed in that the temptation of Halloween lured me like the snake lured to the forbidden fruit. 

I had a Halloween party and although the menu choices were relatively healthy options (I only ate the low-cal food), I partook of the witch's brew and a few handfuls of candy.

At first, I felt like the first glass above. A shiny, happy, cold beverage. But afterwards, I feel bad after having even one glass of wine, beer, etc. It's not just the feeling guilty for having a drink and a handful of candy when I've worked so hard to lose weight, it's as if my mentality has changed and the inside of me cringes afterwards and makes me feel like this pumpkin below:

It's interesting how much a lifestyle change really is a mental change as well. I can no longer 'reward' myself with a drink here and there. That logic simply does not make sense. It's the same illogical process when one treats themselves to a bag a chips for a job well done (to coin the phrase "cutting off the nose to spite the face"). As I've stated before, when I consume food that generally isn't good for me, is over processed, deep fried, etc. I feel like bricks sit in my stomach and I'm somewhat in a funk for a few days-it literally feels like I took energy out of myself with each chocolaty twix mini.  My how times are a changin'.

Onto this week's breakdown:

Weight week 21: 175.2

Percent of Body Fat: 38%

BMI: 28.8

Water Weight: 45.2%

Weeks to Meet Goal: 40

Comparison to 1st weigh in

Weight loss: -32.6 lbs

Percent of Body Fat: -6.3%

BMI: -5.4 pts

Water Weight: +4.6%

Weeks to Meet Goal: -33 weeks (ahead 12 weeks)

As I look toward the month of November, I'm going to be training extensively for the 15K I signed up for in December. I'll go to the Marine Corps Ball and I will also be celebrating my 26th birthday-oh and Thanksgiving! Lots of stuff going on. I also think it's time to really crunch down on myself and make up for the weight not lost in previous months. I'm going to set a personal goal to drop 10 lbs this month (I've been averaging 8). We are already one week in, but I can do it!

Many thanks for the support and here's to the fire growing inside of me-rawr!

Love w/ all my bum,

CH

19 coming clean! Secrets of Indulgences...

19 weeks!

Hi Everybody! Welcome to the wonderous world of healthy! Week 19 was pretty good overall. I can tell I’ve been in a funk lately about my weight and fitness-although I am making accomplishments and am proud of my work, I guess I am just ready for this weight to be off already! I’ve recently started watching Biggest Loser and it’s frustrating to see these people losing 40 lbs in 4 weeks while I am at 4 months and barely near 30. I guess that’s what being on a ranch with trainers all day will do to you. Not realistic. So I guess I am better off with my consistency than a cram session with the potential for yo-yo’ing back to obesity. 

This week, I had the pipe in my master bathroom burst and flood a portion of the house. Stressful, right? You know what I wanted to do? Eat away the emotion. You know what I didn’t do? EAT. It’s so easy to be faced with a challenge and simply ‘give-in’ to old habits. Although I missed working out that day, I prevented a disaster by not resorting to temptations of greasy food. 

Speaking of old habits. I thought I would share some things with you. A few days prior to the pipe burst, I tried McDonalds and let me tell you-even though I was never a frequenter to Micky D’s, after 4 months of not eating that processed crap, having it in my stomach made me sick. I could taste the chemicals, feel the grime in my throat, and almost literally felt the fries inch their way into my waistline. I will not be experimental like that in the future. It truly is amazing how much one can get addicted to these high cal, high fat, high sugars and salt food and not even realize that the craving and want for more of it is actually an addiction. I’ve been there. And this trip to McDonald’s got my mind buzzing about my past eating habits. So I’m going to share 5 of my secret indulgences.

1. I could substitute a meal and eat 1-2 top ramens at any one sitting. I would melt cheddar cheese on it as well and eat it that way. Secret: on many cold occasions, a packet would be breakfast. Ewww.
2. I could eat a bag a chips and then go right to something sweet, like sour candy, and then want something salty. I felt like I had to balance one thing with the other and ended up finishing off 4 things before stopping. 
3. If I wanted to start a diet or watch what I ate, I would first start by eating everything bad in the house to “get it out of my system” and to not “waste it by throwing it out.” This binge has happened on more than one occasion because I had to “remove” all the temptations out of the kitchen only to go grocery shopping and buy snacks for my husband that he wouldn’t get around to eating that would eventually pile up and need to be eaten by someone else (i.e. me).
4. Fast food. I wasn’t a huge fast food eater but you can bet your butt I secretly had a few trips there and disposed of the evidence in my car before entering the house
5. The lunchroom at work snacks. I’ve shown you one month of snacks to give you a sense of what enters that lunchroom every week. That month is no different than any other month at my office. Can you imagine doubling all that around the holidays? Now, imagine that before, I would grab at least one item that was brought into that kitchen each time something was brought in. Seems harmless at first, but add up the cupcakes, donuts, etc. and that’s close to 265 additional calories a week-almost 10,600 calories in a year and 3 wasted pounds for snacking just in the office alone!

I don’t believe that I was really overboard in what I did and reading this doesn’t seem like that big of a deal. However, these are the snacks and things I can't think of or have lost in my recollection. Imagine all the items I ate randomly on the couch in front of the TV I’m not thinking of. And the ‘snacks’ I ate that equated to one of my meal sizes now. I was overboard with how much I ate when I sat down. My husband is 1 foot and 2 inches taller than me and at one point I was eating as much (and sometimes more) than him in a sitting. AND he doesn’t eat all three meals of the day! Geesh! The biggest thing for me to cut down was how often we ate out, what I ordered when we did eat out, and how large my portions were for any sitting. 

And what about our fat habits? Sure, there are eating habits but what about the way in which we “deal” with the weight?  I’m going to share 10 embarrassing ways I ‘hid’ my weight from myself and others:

1. Avoid ALL mirrors
2. Never, ever, ever look at myself naked or look down whilst naked
3. Thank the stars that long shirts are in style. Basically, ALL of my pants could not be buttoned (some couldn’t be zipped either). I would either leave the button undone and wear a thick, longer shirt –or- I would wear a long sweater and roll the unzipped, unbuttoned portion of the pants inward and against my skin so they wouldn’t fold out and be noticed. 
4. Wear husband’s bigger pjs and clothes around the house so he thinks I’m being cute in his clothes as opposed to a fatty-pants who can’t fit into her own pjs/clothes any more.
5. Lights off sex anyone? How about avoiding contact from significant other because you fear they might squeeze a roll and point it out or focus on it?
6. I’ve taken blue and white eyeshadow and put it on my inner thighs to make it look like a distressed pant and conceal the rip of a pant that I busted the seam of. Yep. Totally happened
7. Been so focused on not looking at myself when dressing to discover later that I put my underwear on inside out and backwards…thank goodness it wasn’t a thong!
8. Stopped wearing heels altogether because the shoe felt like it was going to snap in half as the heel portion would bend outwards under the pressure of my weight
9. Secret candy stash in drawer @ the office.
10. Holding my breath while going up stairs so no one can hear my puffing along the route

WOW! I can't believe that was shared-but I hope you got a laugh (in my case a tear) out of my secrets!

Moving along, let’s focus on the positives from this week!

1. I ran a mile in 8  .  35 minutes. I literally have not done that…EVER!
2. I had 3 people comment on my weight loss this week :) 
3. I have actually been able to get my bum into a pair of medium running shorts my best friend got me two years ago that have NEVER fit-----that is until TODAY!
4. I have lost 31  .  2 lbs! Hellllllllllz yea!

Week 19 breakdown

Weight: 176.6

Fat %: 38.4%

Water weight: 44.9%

BMI: 29

Weeks til goal: 42

Initial Comparison

Weight Day One: -31.2 lbs

Percent of Body Fat: -5.9%

BMI: -5.2 points

Water Weight: +4.3%

Weeks to Meet Goal: -31 weeks (12 weeks ahead of schedule)

I feel pretty good about this weigh-in. As you know from last week, I had gained two pounds and this week I shed 5 off to make up for it. It's a mini roller coaster ride! And how great it is that losing in this case is a good thing! Yep, I'm a loser :) 20 lbs from now I will be in a normal weight range for my body (max 152 lbs in my healthy weight range). Obviously, I am going for middle of the range, but seeing that I'm close to this goal by a couple of months pumps me up!

Here's to the next 30! And talk to you next week!

Love w/ all my bum,
CH

4 months-wow.

4 months have and gone and here I am still posting to this blog weekly and then some!

I don't want to quite reflect back on everything in this journey, but I can't help but think of how far along I have come. Obviously, my weight is not where I want it to be but 4 months ago I was over 200 lbs and now I am not. I think that in and of itself is a great thing.  A reader recently told me that I always shed a positive light on this blog and maybe it seems like I am not being 'real' enough. I guess that is part of me trying to make my heart bigger than my bum. I am generally a realist that is often perceived as being negative; I am working on seeing the sunshine and rainbows a little more frequently. And in reality, all this hard work and sweat and jiggling about makes me feel like I need one outlet where I can be positive about every little thing I accomplish-which is here in this blog. But this post will be more 'real' in the sense that rainbows won't overshadow my thoughts and feelings. 

I give myself a hard time and guilt myself when I have more wine than I should or eat something I know is bad, but let's face it. This sh*t is hard. No one is perfect and sometimes it really does feel like eating a bowl of ice cream is worth being fat for. There's a reason why people characterize heavy people as jolly and jovial...maybe it's because they are living how they see fit and not counting calories or worrying about the next mini-goal they are trying to reach. We often say these people need a reality check because their risk of disease and fatality from obesity is increasing exponentially. Frankly, it's easier to be lazy, easier to sit on the couch, easier to grab extra handfuls of treats. No one said this journey was going to be easy and if it was easy-more people would do it. I guess I am just now realizing how tough it truly is. Sometimes, it doesn't seem worth it when you work your bum off for fractions of a pound on the scale each week.

They don't say Jolly ol' Saint Nick for no reason!

Last month, I talked about how great it was for people to notice my change in weight. What I didn't realize is that from that point on, those people would become monitors of my progress. Bring out the microscope people, because now I am frequently asked how it's going and it tends to feel more like an interview and awkward than to be proud of what I've accomplished. I sometimes feel like saying "yep, I am still fat, but am not as obese as you remember-so please get that old vision of me out of your head-thanks!" When you work at a place like I do, any change is noticed and spoken about in cigarette breaks and cubical whispers-most often not in a positive nature. That added pressure sometimes seems unbearable. Talk to the people who aren't working out and your presence makes THEM feel bad/fat. Talk to the super fit crew and they put you in your place via their glowing accomplishments via triathlons, marathons and their already near perfect physiques and size 2 designer slacks. 

With that b*itching and complaining out, this week was a different kind of pay off. I went hiking in Cotoctin Mountain, Maryland, ran 4 miles without stopping, accomplished running 1 mile in 9.10 minutes (reminder: I started out near a 15 minute mile), and set a new goal of that Hot Chocolate 15K. 

I overall feel pretty good about that and even though I did not lose weight this week, (thank you Aunt Flo) I actually looked at myself naked today and did not feel ashamed. Remember a couple weeks ago I took pictures of myself again in that blue bikini? I could tell a few differences here and there but overall still felt dumpy. This morning as I got ready to weigh myself, I turned and faced my mirror and liked what I saw. I could bend at the waist and not see rolls to the left and right of my "underboob" and obliques, my back fat is slithering away and my stomach is getting tighter. My weight this week does not do my body justice. My body is taking form in the shape it should be. It's more about how you see yourself and how others see you than the number on the scale. And today, I feel like I've lost over 30 lbs. We all hit plateaus here and there and I don't think I necessarily hit one, but I do know that something is changing overall with my physique. I am hopeful that over the next few weeks that weight loss will catch up to my changing body...and then some :) 

On to this week's results:

Week 18

Weight: 180.2

Body fat: 38.4%

BMI: 29.6

Water weight: 44.9%

Weeks: 45

Week 1 Stats

Weight Day One: 207.8

Percent of Body Fat: 44.3%

BMI: 34.2

Water Weight: 40.6%

Caloric Intake Should Be: 2127 cal/day

Weeks to Meet Goal: 7

Although I am not as uppity as I generally am on Thursdays, I will be going out later to start the mission of finding a Marine Corps Ball dress w/ a gal pal. All of us in not-so-fit situations know that this can be a daunting experience; however, I will strive to make this celebratory as last year I refused to go because I knew I would not fit in the dress size I was accustomed to. Today, I am in that size so that will brighten my spirits and make me feel regal or sexy or whatever the dress I find conveys. So I'm off to get done up and look good-it's the best advice I can give for dress shopping. Look like a million bucks and you'll feel like a million bucks and the size of the dress won't matter-how great it looks on you does!

I look forward to sunnier days next week and rainbow posts for week 19!

Love with all my bum,

CH