Work Hard, Play Hard

If you had told me 6 months ago, that I would be spending my free time going on adventures, playing outdoors, and enjoying the fresh air, I would have laughed at you.  You see, my motto has been "work hard, rest harder".  I have spent a good portion of my adult life growing spuds on my couch potato butt.  I hated to do anything that took me away from a good TV show or a good nap.  I knew I needed to be a more active mother and just a more active person in general, but I could not make myself.  I have dealt with anxiety and depression and was just as happy being in my pajamas at home as anywhere else. 
This year not only did I turn over a new leaf regarding my weight and health, I have completely revamped my whole outlook.  My weekends are spent out with my kids and husband.  We have started taking the kids on trails and enjoying nature.  We have started a new hobby called letter boxing where we have to hunt down clues and find treasures all over the place.  We are now an active family.  It seems a bit weird, but it has been better medicine than any pill I could take for my depression and anxiety.  The joy I see on the girls faces and the memories we are making is a blessing to enjoy.  My new motto, " Work Hard, Play Harder". 

Past the Plateau

Yay Me!!!!  I got past my little road block and I have lost another 2.1 pounds this week.  I am down to 191.  That means my total weight loss is 8lbs.  I am so excited.  The longer I work toward the "fit me" goal, the easier it gets. Got to add a little more physical activity back into the mix, but so far so good.

Weekly Weigh -In

I debated on whether or not to even do an official weigh in today or just skip.  I barely followed any kind of healthy much less weight loss plan this week.  I went ahead and weighed.  I was surprised to find, I stayed exactly the same as last week.  Still 193.1.  I am so glad I did not completely sabotage my weight loss plan.  Gonna work hard this coming week to get a good number at the end of the week!

Back on Track

I am trying to get back on track.  Savannah and I went camping with her Girl Scout troop this past weekend.  Although I planned ahead to eat whatever I wanted while we were gone, I did not realize how hard it would be to get back on the diet track after the trip was over.  I am trying to get my motivation back.  My walking buddy, Sharon, got me out of the office for a walk at lunch and I did really well today and ate reasonable meals and snacks until dinner.  We were running short on time before church and ended up at my favorite buffet, Mutts BBQ.  That is like cocaine for the fat girl.  I obviously have not been on my "rehab" diet for long enough to tempt myself with that kind of food. Needless to say, I way over ate.  I am not gonna beat myself up.  I am gonna do this!!!!  I can do this!!!  That skinny girl I swallowed years ago is still dying to get out!

Weekly weigh in.

I am making Friday's my official weigh day.  I weighed this morning and was 193.1 for a loss of 1.7 lbs this week and 5.9lbs over all.  I would have loved to have lost more, but after killing myself on the stairs I have not been able to do alot of walking and other activities.  Every pound counts.  Can't wait to continue my journey.

Stupid Stairs

Yesterday was a nasty rainy day.  I knew I wouldn't be able to go walk during lunch so I had a "better" idea.  I was afraid not to exercise, so instead of the walk, I decided to go climb stairs at one of the hospital buildings close to my work.  I figured it would be more of a challenge than the walk, but I must have been crazy.  The building I went to had 4 floors.  The stairwell was about 70 stairs.  Not an easy task for a fat girl.  I wanted to push myself a little so I went up and down the stairs 4 times.  I really hope that there were no security cameras in that stairwell. What a sight they would have caught. That climb was not pretty.  I was huffing and puffing, and having to stop at each landing.  OMG it was a challenge.  After the 4th time back down, I left and went back to work.  All was fine until... I got up today.  What a joke.  I could barely walk to the bathroom, much less my lunchtime walk.  Savannah had to come home early from school today sick, so I have done nothing.  Tomorrow, will hopefully better, but today I am doing the fat girl, old lady, stiff leg walk.

Hunger Games

Today was by far my hungriest day since I began my diet.  I ate about the same as I have the past 10 days, but I have been hungry all day.  It didn't matter what meal I had or what snack I ate, I was still hungry.  Thank goodness I have already seen progress on the scales, or I would have probably caved. I figure that my body is just adjusting to my new lifestyle changes.
I have had a couple of people ask if I am following any particular diet plan.  Well, the answer is no.  As much as I want to loose weight and get skinny, I am more interested in new way of life.  A life that will get me off some of my medication and cure some of my ailments.  I will be 35 next month and I am to young to be obese. I have been so unhealthy for so many years. I am sick of the "diet" game.  Technically I am keeping track of my calories, limiting the "Whoa" foods as Savannah says, and adding daily physical activity, but this time my efforts are for a change of lifestyle.  Over the years, I have tried Weight Watchers, the Paleo Diet, low fat, low carb, and low iodine (for the thyroid treatment). Everything has been in the mindset that it would be just for the length of time it took to reach my goal weight.  This time I am serious.  I want to live to see my grand babies get married and since my girls are 3 and 7, I still have quite a few years ahead of me. So the plan I am following is simple: Eat Right, Get Active, and Don't Stress.

Today is NOT that Day!!!

  Mondays have always been one of my favorite days at work.  It really has nothing to do with work, except for the fact that Monday is the day that we get lunch catered by a pharmaceutical company. There are endless possibilities of what could be brought in.  I always look forward to seeing what kind of delicious cuisine we are gonna have to start out the week.
   As I've already confessed in this blog, I am a food lover. As long as there is not mayonnaise involved, I will eat almost anything.  It gets even better when the food is free.  Since we have had a holiday for the past 2 Monday's, I have not had to deal with the Monday lunch temptation.  I have worried and thought about this day for the last week.  Since I started my diet, all of my meals have pretty much been controlled.  I have planned, cooked, and packed all of my meals.  The fear of not having control of my menu was a little unsettling. 
  I decided to pack a back up lunch along with my daily snacks just in case the catered meal didn't arrive or it was something that I did not want to eat today. As scheduled, the food arrived around 11:30am.  It was of course, my absolute favorite, Mexican.  I was determined not to ruin my diet.  I ate a yummy meal with no red meat, no cheese or cheese dip, no chips and no tortillas. Basically I ate a yummy chicken and veggie taco salad.  As I sat with my friends, I ate my lunch and enjoyed every bite.  When I was done, I could see all of the temptations right there on my table.  I knew I had had enough, but dang did that cheese dip look good. I did not want to eat a weeks worth of calories at one meal.
  As has become habit in the last week, I took my tennis shoes to work.  Instead of  torturing myself any further by looking at the cheese dip, chips, and guacamole, I went for a walk.  One of my walking buddies went with me and I ended lunch feeling really good. I did not cave to my ultimate temptation.
I know that a day will come when I will be able to have a couple of chips and stop, but I also know that today is not that day.  For now, I am happy to make these small sacrifices to get myself into shape.

Activity Redefined

This weekend has been awesome.  Saturday was a beautiful here in SC.  The temperature was in the mid 60's and it was sunny most of the day.  Instead of doing the normal routine of either hanging out in front of the TV or going to a restaurant or the mall, we took the girls to the park.  Usually when we go to the park, Ashley and I sit on the benches while the girls play. I always felt that if I took the girls to the park and spent some time outside, I was being active.  Boy was I wrong.  Really all I was doing was being a park bench potato instead of a couch potato.  While the girls were playing, I decided I was going to go for a walk. I walked a couple laps around the perimeter of the park, before I spent time playing with my girls.  We were at the park for about 2 hours and I only sat down for about 5 minutes!!!! After playing on the playground, we found a kick ball and took it to a large open area.  We spent the next half hour or so playing a family game of kick ball.  We had so much fun.  All 4 of us were involved, chasing the ball, kicking it around and just enjoying our time together.  At the end of the day, I felt great. 
Today has been a different pace.  We went to church, came home, ate lunch, took naps and did nothing.  It was rainy most of the day, so our outdoor activities were put on hold.  I have felt tired and had a headache and I really think it is from lack of movement.  What a revelation that has been for me. It is amazing how exercise can give you energy, while napping can just make you more tired.
Now that I have redefined activity in my life, I cannot wait to make more memories with my family and continue on the "journey from fat to fit".

Sausage Philosophy

My favorite breakfast meat is sausage.  Give me a sausage patty any day over bacon or ham, and I'll tear it up.  One of the things I have learned over multiple times of trying to diet, is to relate each pound I lose to something tangible.  Sometimes the number of pounds I lose means nothing unless I relate it to something else.  This is where Sausage Philosophy kicks in.  Every time I lose weight, I picture each pound I lose as a roll of sausage.  It is such an easy conversion for me.  How many times have I held in my hand a fat, one pound package of sausage?  So this week, I am picturing just over 4 of those fat rolls of sausage falling to the floor.  Yep, that's right. I lost 4.2 lbs this week.  My new weight is 194.8!!!!

Walk it Off!!!

Today was a really good day for me.  I am so encouraged by the positive comments I am getting on my blog and on my goal to lose weight.  Today I added a little exercise to my routine.  Just so you know, there are couple of  things I really hate.  One is exercise and the other is any kind of diet drinks. That makes losing weight a bit of a challenge.
Today, I faced my hatred for exercise head on.  It was a small start, but I am so glad I did it.  I took my tennis shoes with me to work and went for a walk with some girls from my office on my lunch break.  My idea of a walk at lunch, was getting a little fresh air and adding a little activity to my day.  Well, I picked the wrong walking buddies for that.  Skinny girls don't play.  Before my office was even out of sight, I thought I was going to collapse with shin splints. Their pace was a little faster than I expected.  Somehow, when I used to see them walk as I was driving to get some Mexican food or eat at a local buffet, they seemed to be walking much slower.  It was definitely a challenge for this fat girl, but I did it!!!! Now I know I can walk it off!!!

Polar Opposites

For anyone that knows me and my sister, Jami, you know we are polar opposites.  Jami and I have always looked so different that growing up people used to asked us if were half-sisters.  No one could believe that we had the same parents.
 Jami is tall, 5'6" or 5'7", I believe.  She has an olive complexion, brown eyes and beautiful silky straight dark brown hair.  She is also thin.  It is just in her genetic make-up to be thin.  She won the Presidential Award for Physical Fitness like every year in school.  She could eat a whole pie and not gain a pound.  My sister is also one of the kindest, patient people you will ever meet an she is a dead ringer for Hillary Swank.
Now a little about me.  I am short, 5'2" to be exact. I have very fair skin, blue eyes, and curly brown hair that used to be blond as a child.  I have always struggled with my weight.  I never played any sports and I could look at a salad and gain 10 pounds.  That is just part of what makes me, Me.  As far as personality goes, I am a bit more on the feisty, impulsive side.  I am kind and friendly, but not near as patient as Jami.  While Jami looks like Hillary Swank, I look just like my grandmother.  Now while there is absolutely nothing wrong with looking like my grandmother, and Jami and I are both beautiful in our own ways, I would like to hear just once that I reminded somebody of Hillary Swank or any other actress.
As you can tell, I love my sister very much.  I am probably embarrassing the crap out of her by writing this post about her.  On Christmas day, Jami told all of the family that she is pregnant with her 3rd child.  We are all so excited about this next little bundle of joy.  Jami and I were talking earlier this week about her pregnancy and my weight loss goals.  I have decided that for once on my life I am going to weigh less than her.  So, I told Jami that my goal for the summer was to weigh less than she does on the day she gives birth to her 3rd baby. Hopefully I will be able to meet this goal.  As for my part to help make this "dream come true", not only will I be dieting, but I will be feeding Jami anything fattening I can think of over the next 7 months.  ( I have recently given her my secrets to frying foods~  all part of my little plan) :)

Ho Hum, Ho Hum its off to work I go!

Today was the first work day of 2012.  I was a little nervous about sticking with my diet plan today.  It is so easy to get distracted at work and eat whatever is within reach.  At a cancer center,around the holidays, that is every sweet you can imagine.  Patients bring in homemade goodies by the truck load. 
I decided to go to work armed with an arsenal of healthy meals and snacks.  I do so much better when I have a plan.  I am horrible at impulse actions.  Whether it be a piece of candy left over by my children or the little single pack of Kleenex next to the register at Wal-Mart, or God forbid, the dollar bin at Target I somehow convince myself  I need whatever the impulse item is.  It is a crazy addiction.   My plan was simple today.  Pack healthy, reasonable, foods and stick to them.  I did not falter even once.  I even came home and cooked a delicious low fat meal that everyone loved.  I am so proud of myself.  When I have dieted before, I was always easy on myself saying, "I can get back on track tomorrow" if I screwed up.  Even though that is technically true, I am determined that no day is better than today to get myself in shape.

Stress Eating

Well I have to admit, I am a stress eater.  On top of just loving food and cooking and all the pleasures of food itself, I also use it as a vice.  I don't smoke or drink, but I can eat the heck out of any problem that comes my way.  I am sharing this today because I had a neat little plan for my "journey" today but it had to take the back burner. 
Ashley, Taylor, and I were enjoying our last day of Christmas/ New Years break at home.  Savannah was at school and the morning was pretty quiet.  The phone rang and it was the school nurse.  She was calling to say that Savannah had fallen at school busted her mouth.  We immediately went and got her and took her to the ER.  After spending 3 hours at the ER, to find out she would be just fine, my healthy groceries were not bought and my "plan" was out the window.  We ended up picking up Japanese and bringing it home for lunch. 
My plan was to fill my cabinets and fridge with healthy choices and pick from that for my lunch.  Today ended up being a day of portion control.  My healthy groceries are now bought and in place for my next hunger, urge, or stress that may come my way.  Even though today did not go as planned, I am still happy that I was able to adapt and not go into a complete binge mode.  Day 2 down, the rest of my life ahead!!!

Numbers for the New Year

Well I said I was gonna be honest about my weight, sizes, etc.  On this first day of 2012, I climbed onto my scale and then I peeked to see what the numbers said.  Thank God it didn't flash ERROR and quit on me.
SO......today's stats:
Weight:199 lbs
I also bought a pair of black pants today and the size was an 18.

So what is my goal you might ask?  I would love to lose 70-80 lbs over this next year. I am only 5'2", so 199 lbs is a lot of extra weight to carry around. That seems almost unattainable, but I know I can do it!!!!

Welcome to the Journey of a Fat Girl

Hi.  My name is Jennifer and I am determined to lose my "fat girl" title by the end of 2012.  I have never blogged about anything in my life, but I figured now was as good of a  time as any.  I am hoping that by posting my honest journey (yep-weight, sizes and all)  from fat to fit, I will feel more of a since of accountability to stick to my plan to lose weight.
Just a little bit about myself.  I am a 34 year old mom of 2 and the wife of a cop.  I work full time in a doctor's office and am active in my children's activities.  Over the past couple of years, I have faced some challenges. The scariest being a diagnosis of thyroid cancer when I was 32.  I am doing great from that ordeal, but I also have high cholesterol, sleep apnea, and a few other issues that can be attributed to the excess weight.
My goal is to not just get thin, but to get healthy.  So here goes nothing...