The Plan...One Year Later
Well...here it is...a year later to this very date that I started what I have now come to know as "The Plan". After a year's worth of diet and exercise I have managed to lose 64 pounds!
I will be the first to admit that it hasn't been a straight and narrow path to get me where I am today. Everything seemed to be just peachy until I took a little "leave" from The Plan around my birthday. I had set a goal that if I met my first goal of 50 pounds by my birthday, I was going to take a small break. Unfortunately, the break was a little bigger than I planned on, so when I finally got back in gear towards losing weight...I had a few extra pounds to work back off. All was fine and dandy until Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's rolled around (and all the different parties they bring along with them).
It seems like since my birthday it has been a hit and miss deal...I get on a great kick and drop the pounds and then I get into the bad habits of bad food and then slide the other direction again. It seems like this last fall and early winter I have battled allergies and a cold, so even though I may be motivated to get up and moving, it just doesn't work out too well.
One thing about losing 64 pounds is the amount of "recognition" you receive. If I had a dollar for every time someone asked me how I lost weight or what I eat now or what I do for exercise, I would have another fancy tech gadget. My biggest helper in the whole process has been this handy website called MyFitnessPal and their handy smartphone app. MyFitnessPal lets you set your calorie goals and track your food and exercise too. Being able to track my calories on a daily basis quickly put into perspective how many too many calories I had been eating. Just cutting back on my intake was a huge help and then working out with cardio exercises was my next big help. As much as I hate to admit it, one of my main go-to's for cardio is Zumba DVDs. Even though you feel like a complete idiot while doing them (that's why I do them in the privacy of my own home with curtains drawn) it is one heck of a workout!
I still have yet to figure out why so many people tend to ask me if I am trying to lose weight or if I am sick. Seriously? Can't I just lose weight because I need to? I have to admit that my biggest motivation to keep going is knowing that my 10-year class reunion is just around the corner. I'm going for that shock-and-awe kind of thing. Granted, there's no way I will ever look a male model, just slimming down has helped my esteem a lot, which is something I had a complete lack of in high school.
I had decided two weeks prior to today that when the one-year mark arrived I was going to have a total indulgence day. There was no calorie counting today...just eating things that I wanted, but would never sacrifice in the name of losing weight. I'm pretty sure I consumed 3 days worth of calories in one day, but it was well worth it.
Now I just need to get back on "The Plan" wagon and keep moving towards a better shape for summer weather!
I will be the first to admit that it hasn't been a straight and narrow path to get me where I am today. Everything seemed to be just peachy until I took a little "leave" from The Plan around my birthday. I had set a goal that if I met my first goal of 50 pounds by my birthday, I was going to take a small break. Unfortunately, the break was a little bigger than I planned on, so when I finally got back in gear towards losing weight...I had a few extra pounds to work back off. All was fine and dandy until Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's rolled around (and all the different parties they bring along with them).
It seems like since my birthday it has been a hit and miss deal...I get on a great kick and drop the pounds and then I get into the bad habits of bad food and then slide the other direction again. It seems like this last fall and early winter I have battled allergies and a cold, so even though I may be motivated to get up and moving, it just doesn't work out too well.
One thing about losing 64 pounds is the amount of "recognition" you receive. If I had a dollar for every time someone asked me how I lost weight or what I eat now or what I do for exercise, I would have another fancy tech gadget. My biggest helper in the whole process has been this handy website called MyFitnessPal and their handy smartphone app. MyFitnessPal lets you set your calorie goals and track your food and exercise too. Being able to track my calories on a daily basis quickly put into perspective how many too many calories I had been eating. Just cutting back on my intake was a huge help and then working out with cardio exercises was my next big help. As much as I hate to admit it, one of my main go-to's for cardio is Zumba DVDs. Even though you feel like a complete idiot while doing them (that's why I do them in the privacy of my own home with curtains drawn) it is one heck of a workout!
I still have yet to figure out why so many people tend to ask me if I am trying to lose weight or if I am sick. Seriously? Can't I just lose weight because I need to? I have to admit that my biggest motivation to keep going is knowing that my 10-year class reunion is just around the corner. I'm going for that shock-and-awe kind of thing. Granted, there's no way I will ever look a male model, just slimming down has helped my esteem a lot, which is something I had a complete lack of in high school.
I had decided two weeks prior to today that when the one-year mark arrived I was going to have a total indulgence day. There was no calorie counting today...just eating things that I wanted, but would never sacrifice in the name of losing weight. I'm pretty sure I consumed 3 days worth of calories in one day, but it was well worth it.
Now I just need to get back on "The Plan" wagon and keep moving towards a better shape for summer weather!
Comments
Post a Comment