2010 IS JUST AROUND THE CORNER - time to make some changes!

I changed up my pictures and background to inspire me to WORK!!!! My leg is doing well, and it's time to get back to work. I don't WANT to, but I HAVE to :-) I miss feeling great about my body, and it's time to take my life back into my own hands.

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Watch me lose 75 in '09! (ok, maybe like 15 or 60 pounds) :-) Let me help YOU lose too! Find your "weight range" ...

2010 IS JUST AROUND THE CORNER - time to make some changes!

I changed up my pictures and background to inspire me to WORK!!!! My leg is doing well, and it's time to get back to work. I don't WANT to, but I HAVE to :-) I miss feeling great about my body, and it's time to take my life back into my own hands.

***************************************

Watch me lose 75 in '09! (ok, maybe like 15 or 60 pounds) :-) Let me help YOU lose too! Find your "weight range" and go to the link that best matches your weight. Have fun!

130: http://tinyurl.com/2an4t4
140: http://tinyurl.com/2dw2fg
150: http://tinyurl.com/29f7ta
160: http://tinyurl.com/2j7ggk
170: http://tinyurl.com/2n7s8c
180: http://tinyurl.com/2buqml
190: http://tinyurl.com/38cx9g
200: http://tinyurl.com/yo7gww
210: http://tinyurl.com/2zomkq
220: http://tinyurl.com/33fg47
230: http://tinyurl.com/3yexff
240: http://tinyurl.com/yrhuqb
250: http://tinyurl.com/22ak4a
260: http://tinyurl.com/yp52xf
270: http://tinyurl.com/24sgdh
280: http://tinyurl.com/2ypcau
290: http://tinyurl.com/2588m3
300: http://tinyurl.com/38mvc4
350: http://tinyurl.com/29jm9b

6/1/09 I've been in a funk since my sparkfriends left. I'm clawing my way back to "happy land" (I'm happy, but not my USUAL happy...). Just adjusting to life as it's changing around me....not always easy. The great news is, my weight isn't going up...now if I could just get it to go DOWN before the rest of the world reaches ONEderland before me!

4/19/09: Oh boooooohoooooo! Tomorrow is my last day with DVR, this is my last week of controlled tennis (I have to quit my membership) and the scale said 214 this morning! Can it get any WORSE! Yes actually, it can, so I need to turn this ship around, and get HAPPY again. Silly is one thing, HAPPINESS is another. Starting today, I'm going to list 5 positives I did to turn my weight loss around. Today I ate oatmeal for breakfast instead of Lucky Charms :-) 1 down, 4 to go.

3/5/09 UPDATE: THANKFULLY I was able to cut my cable bill significantly. One of the things I did was drop my internet service to the cheapest service expecting it to be slow as molasses, but FORTUNATELY it hasn't been as bad as I initially thought and it's business as usual :-) YAY! But the thought of losing my T.V., etc. got me more motivated to workout, so I'm back to playing millions of hours of tennis and less time at home :-)

This month my goal is to stay off the scale and track and KNOW what I'm eating. My PPP sisters are doing a water challenge as well and I'm up to my EYEBALLS in water! LOL Having fun is the BIGGEST part of weight loss for me, and right now - I'm having a BLAST! :-)


2/16/09 Well, thanks to a crooked business partner and our thriving economy - I am being forced to take a spark break till we can afford internet service again. I hope you'll still find inspiration through my page and my journey thus far in my absence. See you soon!

1/16/09 - 2008 was such a waste in some ways, yet NOT at all in others :-) I "only" lost 13 pounds (3 of which are flux pounds) but I exercised almost every single day of 2008! In 2007 I didn't even TRULY start exercising till late spring, but once I discovered tennis in the fall I fell in love. I continued the tennis into 2008 increasing it slowly until I was playing 5 days a week, sometimes 3 hours a day. However, I didn't lose ANY weight! Not an ounce! We moved at the end of summer and I continued my tennis in our new area, and FINALLY saw the scale moving down, down, down to a low of 206 in October! I've been stuck since the end of October between 208-211. I was soooo close to 200, and I had been putting off strength training till I reached ONDERLAND (because WHENEVER I start a strength training program I GAIN 10 pounds...) For 2009 I decided that I was no longer going to wait till I reached ONDERLAND to diversify my workouts, and that I needed to take a closer look into WHY I wasn't losing and how to avoid the gain with strength training. So....I've decided to go back to "Stage Two" and start tracking my food and exercise again, cutting back on "sweet drinks", and heading for the salads. I've tracked now for a few days this week and am again SHOCKED at the amount of calories I was consuming! LOL While not as bad as it sounds, I was ending up around 2000-2300 calories each day, which is GREAT if I was at goal and trying to maintain I guess, but even with all my exercise, there is no way I can LOSE eating that many calories. I thought I was doing so good! A little denial can sure go a long way!

So, in 2009 I'm getting back to my "healthy habits" - tracking food, tracking fitness, eating "real" food (salads, vegetables, perimeter shopping), less processed foods, more water, green tea, less caffine, sweet drinks and soda (of all kinds). Sure I'll have all that stuff from time to time, maybe even daily a sweet, but much more reasonable and within my calorie range. My fitness plan is also changing. While I doubt I can back down on my tennis (I just love it toooo much!) I am forcing myself to add 1-2 days of pilates or yoga, and doing my library of workout videos. The first one I'm doing is Jillian Michael's 30 day shred. I also need to incorporate more exercise into my children's lives. My daughter is young, but she's already 5'6 and 160 lbs. I'd like to see her at 140 or lower before the end of the year. I am VERY excited about 2009 and am really happy to put 2008 behind me. I think I just needed a year to adjust to all my new habits from 2007 and appreciate what I had. :-) I will say though, for 2008 I did change my body in inches, cardio strength and just how I feel in general. That is a really huge thing that people forget. I stand taller and I'm SO much happier.

9/7/08 Just found this quote on an OLD frnd of mine's FACEBOOK page. I thought it was fantastic! I hope you get something from it too: “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” ~Marriane Williamson

7/6/08 My friend SJFINK posted this Healthy Reflection from today on our team thread, and I REALLY want to remember it so I'm putting it here to share with you, and a reminder to myself not to stand in my own way...

Something we were withholding made us weak, until we found it was ourselves.

- Robert Frost

Who is standing in your way?

Imagine someone regularly tying small weights around your ankles as you try to climb a mountain. Doesn't sound fair, does it? But that's exactly what you can do to yourself, a little bit at a time, if you don't watch out. When you think of who and what is standing in the way of your dreams, it's easy to forget your own responsibility. Even the best of us can be guilty of unknowingly hurting our own progress. Procrastination, lateness, being disorganized, pessimism, not being honest with yourself, severe self-criticism, downplaying achievements, focusing only on weaknesses while ignoring strengths, keeping goals a secret, demanding perfection, giving up after a small setback--these are all ways you can make it tough to be (and do) your best. Smart systems, the right attitude, and a promise to keep going no matter what will make a world of difference.

11/14/07 This week I've been reflecting a lot on what I'm doing. I had a little "lull" for the past two weeks, but feel really empowered again. I was trying to think what changed, and here's some of what I came up with:

I was starting to focus on the "numbers", and not the process. When I live this day to day, I am empowered. When I live it thinking "I have to lose 10 pounds this month" I usually begin to fail.

I was starting to focus on what I "couldn't" have, rather than trying to break it into smaller pieces. I can have whatever I want, but in moderation. I can't eat 5 fun size kit kats and expect to be in control of my food and thoughts. But, I can PLAN to have one kit kat with dinner, and then my brain feels fulfilled.

I have noticed that I cannot drink diet sodas every day. Something in diet soda triggers a "mean" hormone in me. It makes me irritable, impatient, short tempered, etc. I actually think it's the artificial sweetners for me. I know it's not the caffine, because caffine usually has a calming effect on me, but when I'm loaded up on the artificial sweetners (crystal lights, splenda, equal, etc.) I notice the above feelings. When I cut out artificial sweetners, I notice I think more clearly, and I am much calmer. It fascinates me.

I also have noticed that when I eat more sugar or processed foods, I don't have as much control of my eating. Seems so simple, but I've got a crazy sweet tooth! :-) So, I have been trying to eat "treats" that are high fiber, high protein, or made with "natural" sugars. When I avoid high fructose corn syrup, and things with sugar as a main ingredient. I am more controlled. I now mostly stick to Luna bars and Kashi bars. I do allow a few "treats", but I try to make them myself.

My body is pretty true to "science" or mathematics. :-) The "you have to create a calorie deficit" is very true for me. I have to cut out 500 calories a day and burn LOTS of calories in exercise to lose 2-3 pounds each week. I'm just not one of those people who can drop 4+ pounds in any given week. So, I've discovered my "magic" range is 1400-1550 calories, and once or twice a week, I shock my body with 1700 or so calories, and I try to exercise 500+ minutes. I actually try hard to burn 7,000 calories through tennis and various cardio, so that I can "guarantee" a 2 pound loss. But if I don't eat QUALITY food, I won't lose anything....

I've noticed when I eat "QUANTITY" food (quantity food is basically food that is all "low calorie" sugar, processed, or fast food, just basic junk food) and stay within my calorie range, I won't lose. Even WITH burning tons through exercise. When I eat QUALITY food (quality food is balanced vegetable, protein, fruits) I'm not NEARLY as hungry mentally or physically, and my body WILL let go of the pounds. It's amazing!

I love distilled water. Last week I was drinking distilled water, and I noticed I was having a REALLY hard time getting any weight off. My eating was mediocre to good, but I just couldn't get the results on the scale I felt I should be getting. This week I switched back to regular water, and I'm seeing the scale moving again. It could be coincidental because I'm eating better quality food, but I do think the distilled water isn't working for me.

I try to listen to my body. It's really hard to remember in the bad times what we were doing in the good times. Some people breeze through their bad times. I want to be one of those people.

This was some advice I gave a new friend today, and it is something that I know that I need to remember too: That wagon can be a hard thing to stick to. 1300 calories or less a day is REALLY hard to stick to. When I first started on SP, my goal was to eat in the middle of my range (1350 calories more or less) and I was STARVING! So, I decided to lose "slower" but have more options, and I've found that when I eat around 1500 calories, my body is happy, and I lose weight. Don't get caught up in the "numbers" (calories, scale, lose by dates) but listen to your body, and you will reach yours goals.

12/26/07 I blogged today about an experience I had with my family this past week, and this is the part I want to "permanently" share: I made a suggestion to a family member that at night, when she gets her sweets craving, to have on hand a bag of Dove Dark Chocolate squares. Each morning, to set one square out on her bedstand, or someplace where she is at night, and to know that each day, that chocolate will be waiting for her as a reward type thing for a job well done. She said to me - what about the rest of the bag, how do I keep away from that. I realized then, that was a place I'll never be again.

At this time last year, that's exactly where I was at. That was MY mindset! I couldn't have that bag of candy sitting around my house without "needing" to finish it off. Just it's presense was enough to throw me into a frenzy. Over this past year, I have learned so many strategies for success! I have learned that I only need that one piece, and the rest of that bag will still be there tomorrow and the next day, and the next. I don't need to feel deprived if I can't have something yummy every day of my life. I don't need the huge portions, I don't need so many things that I thought I needed. I've learned portion control, how to count calories and enjoy it, how to burn more than I take in. How liberating!

I look at this person struggling, and my heart goes out to her. I've been there! I've done that! I'm DONE doing that!!!! How exciting! 2007 was my year to learn, adjust and accept and in 2008, I'll continue to lose, and I'll continue to recapture my life. WHAT JOY! I've shared so much with so many people here on SPARKPEOPLE, and I've made incredible friends. I've been so blessed, and "lucky" to have found this safe haven, and to finally get out of the diet rat race. I still have many pounds to lose, but I know that I WILL make it. It's exhilerating to have that freedom and knowledge.

So, thank you to everyone who supports me, finds support from me and is on this journey with me. Happy SKINNIER 2008!

Read More About SKINNYSOON13 (Updated January 10)

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