Back on the wagon, anyone?

Thank you, to my dear friend for reminding me that I had not posted a new blog entry in a few weeks. I have to say it isn't because I haven't wanted to, because I really did, but I wanted this to be a positive experience, and honestly, during the holidays, it is hard to be positive when it comes to eating well and losing weight!

I mean really, who ate too much on Christmas, had one piece of candy (or 5!) too many at the office, or imbibed a little more than they thought they would over the last few weeks? If you say "No, I didn't", then you are either lying to yourself or you are a model of perfection, and you should bottle that up! You would make millions!!!! :-)

Anyway, when my dear friend said she wanted to see my next blog post, she wrote: "You are doing great and even on the struggle days doing better than most. Keep up the good work and tell us all about it." (I promise that going forward I will post even if-well, when-I am struggling!) It was a good reminder to me (there seem to be many hiding out there lately if you are looking for them!) that something like this is a journey, not a destination. Interestingly, I have said that many times during classes that I teach, but honestly it fits so well in this situation. The last month has been, well, according to the scale better than most years for me. I was actually surprised when I got on the scale this morning. In a good way! They say most Americans gain between 5-10 lbs during the holiday season. I will honestly be able to say that I lost, which I wasn't expecting. Now, that is a journey I like to be on....

That by no means is indicative of how I feel I have been doing. I have been beating myself up for eating this or eating that. Giving myself the mental lashings, if you will. But after my friendly reminder, I sat back and said "okay, well, who cares what went before, what matters is what goes on now". So, enough of the negative self-talk, and show me the Pollyanna thoughts.

I titled this entry "Back on the wagon, anyone?" because honestly, how many of us have a love/hate relationship, perhaps a bit addictive with one or several types of food? Sweets, especially chocolate are my best friend, and my mortal enemy. So, after the past month of gorging ourselves on every fatty food known to man, the goal is to re-shape the eating again. Start adding green things back into the diet (and no, the green and gold Packers chips DO NOT count...darn it....) and focusing on the water intake.

I happened to come across the normal, for this time of year, "how to lose weight" stories on FB today, and thought I would click in and see what they had to say. Nothing new and earth-shattering, I'm sorry to say. (By the way, I want to see that story someday...."Medical Breakthrough: Here is the absolute BEST and only way to lose weight GUARANTEED"...but we have already had it...decrease calories and/or increase activity...so simple...) But I digress...what the story had to say towards the end really made sense to me. Here's the link to the entire story. http://www.myoptumhealth.com/portal/Information/item/Positive+Thinking%3A+The+Key+to+Weight+Lo?archiveChannel=Home%2FArticle&clicked=true

• Form a positive relationship with food. Food does not have to be the enemy. Instead, view it as something that nourishes your body.


• Avoid an "all or nothing" attitude. You don't have to be perfect. Plan to eat well 90 percent of the time and allow for small indulgences. This will help keep you on track for the long term.


• Treat yourself well. Ignoring your own needs can cause stress and resentment, and eventually lead to overeating. If you work to feed your soul, you will be less likely to overfeed your body.


• Refrain from negative self-talk. Think about the mean things you say to yourself when you look in the mirror, take a shower, or get dressed in the morning. Would you say these things to a friend? Recognize that negative self-talk can send you on a downward spiral from which it is hard to recover.

Hmm...number 4 sounds familiar. Okay, so maybe the wagon I need to get back on is the Pollyanna wagon. Apparently, the food wagon is already set to go (not at warp speed!), now I need to get myself back on the "Good job eating that green leafy substance that you didn't know the name of" wagon.

Sometimes it helps to hear it from someone else, and for that I am grateful to have such a wide support of friends. And no, chocolate is not that supportive friend...but a delicious enemy. If only...

My Reasons for all this....

Why am I doing this??? Putting myself out there, and letting everyone know, as well as just trying to go through this process of weight loss.

Oh, so many reasons...but two of them primarily.

First, my health. That is the reason many people give, but honestly that is a big factor. My family has a HUGE history of high blood pressure. Multiple family members with high blood pressure, heart attacks etc. Myself, I have been on blood pressure medication for about 6 years. Initially, it was because my blood pressure was a touch above normal, and with the family history, it was a safer option. Years later, my blood pressure has continued to go up, and now I need it for my own health. My hope is that with a few pounds off (or more!) I will then be able to reduce or eliminate that medication, and be healthier!!!!

Second, is a bit of vanity, but from a different perspective. You know the saying "the camera adds 10 pounds". Well, my plan is to head out to New Zealand next fall. For the classes that I teach, they film every three months. I want to go out there for these tapings. And for me, it is not just a taping, it is the fullfillment of a dream. Many Les Mills instructors will NEVER make it to New Zealand for a taping. I am planning to go, and I want to be up front for each exciting moment, jumping as high as I can in BodyStep, doing Supermans with flair in BodyAttack, and being ripped and ready to go with CXWORKS. All of that is a motivating factor to me. With the potential loss of 40 pounds, I want to make that happen!!!!!

My goal in teaching is to change lives, even in the smallest way, to give my participants the motivation to change their health and take their fitness further. My hope is that I can continue on that journey myself. And with everyone's support, I am doing it!!!!

If you want some additional motivation, watch this video. Now, she is an inspiration!!!!

http://gma.yahoo.com/video/health-26594251/extreme-weight-loss-woman-loses-282-pounds-27563061.html#crsl=%252Fvideo%252Fhealth-26594251%252Fextreme-weight-loss-woman-loses-282-pounds-27563061.html

Cooked Carrots...YUCK!!!

I despise cooked carrots, just hate the flavor, the texture. I will do everything I can to avoid eating a cooked carrot. Like them fresh, but not cooked. Yet, the other day I made a stir fry kind of thing that included in the mix, cooked carrots. YUCK!

I did force myself to eat them, just like your mom did when you were a kid with something similar. I forced myself to eat them, not because they are good for me (I cannot imagine that after you cook something like a carrot down that it has anywhere near the nutrients that it had before....) but BECAUSE I didn't want to. I mean let's face it....how many things do we do that we don't want to do? I didn't have to do it, but I wanted to, BECAUSE I didn't want to.

What I mean by that is, I am taking myself in a new direction (hopefully) and with a new journey you will always have bumps in the road. You have to bear down and just accept the bumps, and know they will be there, and hope that in that moment, you are strong enough to not only face them, but overcome them. Now, don't get me wrong, I don't consider a cooked carrot to be a bump in the road....it's just a carrot. But for me it was about saying "Okay, you are going to do this right, if you are going to do it, and some stupid cooked carrot is not going to be your downfall". (It will likely be my love for chocolate, but that is a story for another time!) Taking this in a different direction will only happen if I TRULY take it in a different direction, and not just pretend to myself that I am doing it. The cooked carrot is a metaphor for what I am hoping to overcome. (Right about now, "Deep Thoughts by Jack Handy" comes to mind....makes me laugh at myself....)

Again, I am not sure if it will make a difference or not, but hey, when we try that different road, there may be something down there that we don't like, or don't know....but let's face it....sometimes what is comfortable and familiar to us is not necessarily the best for us, either.