Ready

Alright. So I've fallen off the wagon. Hard. I'll skip the excuses because I mostly just wanted to say that I feel like today is the start of something good. And I'm verbalizing it in hopes that it will become much more than a feeling.
Spring is in the air and I'm ready to feel light on my feet.

Measurements

Alright. It's been a couple of weeks since I last updated this thing, so I guess I'm overdue.

Last week I contracted a wicked cold that kept me from the gym but cut my appetite, so I ended up kinda even-steven calorie wise. However I was left feeling pretty weak in the muscle department. Why is it that muscle deteriorates so quickly?? Argh.

For the past 3 days I've been pretty good about watching what I'm eating and going to the gym. 

Remember last weigh-in I was 156lbs? Well on Monday I weighed in at 154.6. Chances are that's just due to muscle deterioration from being sick, so I'm not turning cartwheels about it. But at least it didn't go up, right??

This is so unorganized but that's how I'm feeling right now so too bad.

Here's a rough idea of my thoughts on how to eat when trying to lose weight:

• cut out processed sugars
• soda/juice
• candy/chocolate :(
• little to no bread/pasta
• makes me bloat! Plus it's my weakness so always overindulge

• protein in the morning, not sugar!
• eggs are my go-to breakfast. Recently I'm enjoying them poached.
• fruit for snacking
• takes care of the sugar cravings!
• veggies as much as possible
• here's where I struggle the most, at least at the beginning.
• avoid dairy
• the exception is yogurt, but that in moderation
• avoid junk food
• my honest favourite is anything salty - chips, popcorn, cheezies. But it's the worst for you!

So that's what I aim for. Ideally these become habit and I continue eating this way even once I've reached my goal weight. The trouble is my lack of motivation to cook things, since I eat by myself for lunch and dinner, so often all I want is toast or something. Which is ridiculous I know. 

Anyway, all I really wanted to do was post some starting measurements. 

I had them taken yesterday and had to work on not getting discouraged. I reminded myself that I need a starting point and it will get better if I keep on keeping on.

So without further ado:

Bust: 40" 

Waist: 29"

Hips: 35.6"

It's funny, but my body is actually fantastic at gaining weight in that it keeps my proportions pretty much the same. I've still got my hourglass figure, it's just enlarged. I'm not really sure what my goal measurements are as I don't have anything to compare with, but I think it will just be interesting to see how they change as my fitness level increases. Yay!

Oh yes, and then for further torture, I decided to measure my thighs...I almost died of disbelief. Just ONE of my thighs measures 24 in. around. That's only 5" less than my waist! Gah. But in the past I've noticed my thighs change quite a bit once I started exercising regularly. So here's hoping! Because 24" thighs are crazy.

I love that no one's really reading this, so I can be as candid as I want!

I think Mondays are a good day for weighing in, so I shall wait until then to weigh again. Don't want to become obsessed, stepping on a scale every day. 

And I'll re-measure myself every two weeks.

For now, Happy Valentine's day. I've already eaten more than enough chocolate (my husband got me ferrero rocher, yummmm) to last a week, so here's hoping Monday isn't too rude an awakening. 

See you when I see you,

Jade

Mountain Climbing

Well I finally faced the music and stepped on a scale for the first time in over a month. Now I'm in that difficult place between determined and discouraged. I'll wake up feeling positive and optimistic, but by the middle of the day I start to feel overwhelmed and resigned.
I think the problem is that I am staring at the mountain that is my end goal without acknowledging the fact that each step I need to take is an accomplishment in and of itself. If I can celebrate the steps, I think I'll be able to build momentum as I climb.

I guess I still haven't 'fessed up as to the result of my weigh-in. So here goes: 156lbs.

On my muscular 5'5" frame, I believe 156 lbs to be approximately 26 lbs too many. So my mountainous goal is 130 lbs, but I'm going to work on some mini-goals to help me along the way.

It's like when you're hiking a literal mountain: when you get tired, of course you look up at what you still have to climb in dismay. But you also look down at how far you've come, how small those trees below look that once towered above you, and the beautiful scenery all around that can still be appreciated even if it isn't yet the vista you yearn for.

At 156 lbs, I can still appreciate that I am not the 165 lbs I reached last Christmas.

So along this vein, Meredith and I were discussing what we could set as smaller goals for ourselves. And not just weight goals but fitness and nutrition goals as well.

There is a 10 km run that happens every Spring in my beautiful city of Victoria. Part of the course runs along the coast, and it's just breathtaking. Thousands of people participate, people of all ages and fitness abilities. I haven't participated in years, but I want to this year - and my goal is to be able to run the entire thing, no walking breaks. Last Spring I was able to run 5km without stopping after only a month. With the 10K being in late April, if I start now I'll be able to reach this goal.

I bought a gym pass a couple of days ago. I want to go 4 times a week, at least. I need it to be a habit. I need to stop seeing going to the gym as a big deal, and start seeing it as just something I do. And hopefully come to enjoy!

Next I need to tackle my eating habits. Right now they're total crap. For example, I had McDonalds for dinner tonight. And while I don't often have fast food, the food I eat at home isn't usually much better.

But for now,
See you when I see you.
Jade

Striking a Balance

So back in November my good and beautiful friend Meredith told me that she was ready to get really serious about getting back into shape. To which I immediately and enthusiastically responded, "ooo me too!" And I was pretty good about it. Granted it took me until almost December to really buckle down but once I did, I was more than happy with the results. But then Christmas and New Years came, and although I could have predicted exactly what happened I pathetically chose to ignore the warning bells and instead happily descend back into my horrible eating and non-exercising habits. And so here I am, 3 weeks into 2013, feeling constantly bloated, lethargic, unmotivated and ticked off at myself. But damn my taste buds are happy! 

I know everyone's struggle with weight is different. My struggle has always been that I love eating huge amounts of disgustingly unhealthy but deliciously fatty and sugary foods. My husband (who is sick to death about hearing anything to do with my weight) insists that my problem is that I am always living at extremes - either I'm eating pizza for breakfast lunch and dinner (hyperbole!) or I'm subsisting on lettuce and chicken broth. And he's not wrong. I have a hard time maintaining a good balance.

So I think that this time around (I've lost count), I will focus not on weight, or muscle tone, or calories, but rather on mastering the art of moderation. 

"Everything in moderation." We've all heard that before, and I'm going to adopt it as my new mantra. Because it stretches beyond so much more than only eating a small piece of chocolate cake. 

It's about acquiring discipline in your life. The ability to acknowledge that yes, I do need this - but I may not need as much as I want, and as much as I want may be exactly what I don't need. 

I know I can find this balance. But staying there, that's the trick.

We'll talk concrete goals soon.

See you when I see you.

Jade

A Blog About Efforts in Weight Loss

Ooooookay. I have this problem with inertia - I want to do things but I never know where to start. But I recently had a conversation with a stranger in which I was reminded that you don't need to have the middle and end formalized before you can begin. Usually you just have to take that first step and hope it leads in the direction of where you might maybe possibly want to end up.
So I'm going to start this blog about weight loss by simply declaring that I want to write a blog about weight loss. I have a few ideas about what I want to include, but whether all or none of these make the cut, that's alright too:

Goals. Short term, long term, in-your-dreams term - it's all fair game and essential in keeping myself motivated and optimistic.

Weekly progress reports. Consistency is a great way to keep yourself accountable.

Failures. Because I'm only human.

Successes. Because without the occasional success it would be impossible to continue. Also, bragging is super fun.

Recipes. When I find something that I am capable of making, is healthy, AND tastes great, it deserves major credit.

Life stuffs unrelated to weight loss. Just so I appear well-rounded and not obsessed.

So there we have it. I hope this blog is a fun and convenient way to document my hopefully successful transition into a healthier lifestyle. I'm really not at all concerned whether or not anyone but myself is ever even aware of its existence. I'm just looking forward to seeing what this can become. I could just keep a journal but pen and paper is so last century.

I should come up with a clever sign off, but for now, I'll see you when I see you.

Jade