Checking In: Easter Goal Met!

It was the beginning of February when I decided that life needed to change and that I needed to move losing weight to the top of my to do list.  It took me a few weeks to really get going, but once I did, I realized that smaller goals in addition to my larger goal would help keep me going and give me things to strive towards along the way.  I even put reminders in my iphone to pop up on specific days asking me if I met my goal.

The first goal I set was to lose 15 pounds by Easter.  And yesterday, I was ecstatic when I got on the scale and had achieved this goal.  At 324, I am down 16 pounds.  It has seemed a little slow going at times, and I have found myself wondering if I am doing enough more than a few times .  Luckily at those times, I have my husband to remind me that we aren’t on the Biggest Loser and 10+ pounds a weeks isn’t really realistic.    So I keep going, proud of every pound that comes off.

My next goal is to lose 25 more pounds –down to 300–by the middle of May when I am making a trip back to WV to visit my family.  This goal may be a little out of reach…losing 5 pounds a week for the next 5 weeks…but, I will keep working towards it anyways and try to remember to be happy with the pounds that do come off.

My New Fitness Track

So, I have definitely been avoiding posting about weight stuff because I was frustrated beyond measure with how things were going.  I was really trying to be good.  I was watching what I was eating and trying to do some sort of exercise…usually doing something on our Kinect, just to get my body going and yet, for the past couple weeks, I haven’t been losing weight.  I was just fluctuating within a five pound range.  Some days I was down a couple pounds and then back up…and on and on.  I am pretty sure this is why I fall off of diets so easily…I just wanted to scream.

Last week I made a suggestion to my husband that maybe we should take some of our tax return money and get a treadmill.  Something that I could get on and just mindlessly go.  I really wanted that mindless aspect.  He said I should look on craigslist because a lot of people put ones one there that are still in really good shape.  They buy them and then don’t use them and then try to unload them on craigslist.  He seemed to think that we could find a gently used one for a lot cheaper.  He was right.  There were a ton listed.  Finally after a couple days of looking and researching reviews on what we were finding, we ended up with an elliptical in very good condition and for about a third of the price we would have paid at a fitness store.  And thankfully, it wasn’t a serial killer who opened the door when we showed up.  Just a couple in their forties whose kids were getting ready to graduate and wanted some more room and a little extra cash.  And I have to say, I am definitely liking the elliptical better than I think I would have a treadmill.  It is lower impact and works your muscles a little harder.  I have been using our new elliptical for the past 3 days and I am feeling really good about where I am.

Besides the elliptical, my husband and I also joined the online weight-loss community at My Fitness Pal.  This is a place where you can talk to other people trying to lose weight and also keep track of the weight you are losing.  When you sign up for a free account, you are asked some basic questions and then the site tells you how many calories a day you should stay under in order to lose weight.  On this site, you can also keep track of your food and calories as well as your exercise.  Besides the website, you can also download a free app for your smartphone to help you keep track of everything.  Actually recording what I am eating and seeing how many calories a food is worth has been helpful and very eyeopening.  I have done a great deal of overhauling my normal meals in order to make them healthier.  If you are using this or decide you want to feel free to friend me.  My username is Ktemple55 so feel free to look me up and we can help each other along the way.  You may also have noticed the little ticker widget on the right hand side of my page as well.  A good way to keep me honest.

I am also loving the fact that my husband and I have finally gotten on the same page and are doing this together. Usually only one of us is motivated at a time…never together.  But let me tell you, it makes so much of a difference having him help and push me along the way.  I know that I am finally on the right track to really start losing the pounds and I am super excited to get going.  My new short term goal is to be down ten pounds by Easter (or maybe more).  So, I will check back in next Monday after a full week of being able to use the elliptical and keeping track of my food and see where we are then.

Staying Motivated With Glass Rocks!

I think that one of the key aspects to trying to lose weight is staying motivated.  This is something that has definitely been Lacking in previous attempts at weight loss for me.  So this time around I am trying to find little things to help keep me going and hold me a bit more accountable.  This blog for instance, makes me really want to stay on track so that I don’t have to say one week that I didn’t lose any weight or worse gained some.  This past week, I came across something that I think will be another little motivating tool.  Glass jars to keep track of how much weight you want to lose  and how much you have lost.  This is a simple idea and a super simple project to complete.  While simple, I do think it will help.  So here it is: weight tracking jars (not very exciting, but I don’t know exactly what else to call them.)

What you Need:

1.  Two glass jars —  Whatever you want or will match your decor.  They can be mismatched or the same, you can buy them or recycle from pickle jars.  I bought 2 jars at my local Hobby Lobby that matched and I thought were fun.
2. Glass rocks or some other group of things you could use to as a counting tool (buttons, seashells, regular rocks, etc…)
3. Scrapbooking letter stickers.  You could use paint or a permanent marker but the stickers make it so easy.

Make sure your jars are clean and that you  have removed all labels or stickers.  Little side note on the jars, if you think that the jar is too small, it probably isn’t.  I had to take my first jars back to the store because when I put my glass rocks into them they only filled about a quarter of the jar.  So I took them back and got two sizes smaller of the same jar and there was still plenty of room in them.  And I had to put 160 rocks in the first one.

Once your jars are ready, grab your letter stickers and start spelling out your words.  On the first jar, I put “Pounds to Lose” and on the second one “Pounds Lost”.  As a little thing just for me, I used the stickers to put my starting weight on the bottom of the “Pounds to Lose” jar and my goal weight on the bottom of the “Pounds Lost” jar.

Finally, count out enough glass rocks or whatever you are using for how many pounds you are looking to lose and put them in the “Pounds to Lose” jar.  Now you can transfer your rocks to help you keep track of your weight loss and to give you a physical goal to work towards.  How awesome will it be to take the last rock out of the “Pounds to Lose” jar and put it into the “Pounds Lost” jar!!

I am keeping my jars on the counter in the bathroom where I put my makeup on, do my hair, and weigh myself so they are a reminder of to keep me going.  As I lose weight I have something visual (besides my own body, hopefully) to keep me motivated.  I am pretty sure that I do not want to have to take rocks out of the “Pounds Lost ” jar and put them back in the “Pounds to Lose” jar.