I have learned...

Happy New Year everyone! :) I love how the New Year makes everything feel fresh & new and allows people to start from scratch with new goals and objectives. I love setting new missions for the year...I also love to reflect on what I've learned in the past year...it allows for personal growth and advancement.

Last year I made the best decision towards living a fitter life: I started running. It was hard but I learned that with perseverance that I could actually do it. I did it and enjoyed it. It was great therapy for me; moving to FL was very hard for me. I was homesick and lonely and went into a sort of depression when we first moved here. I got pregnant with Caleb and that allowed me to focus my mind on things other than the fact that I missed my friends and family, and that I really had no one in FL. After having Caleb, the stress of taking care of the 2 kids (who were only 30 months apart) was enough to bring me back down...that coupled with the 50+ extra pounds on my 5'2 frame, and having to finish the requirements of my Masters degree, I was REALLY down in the dumps.

January 2, 2009 I decided to start running and I am so glad I did. I ran my first 5K on May 2, 2009, and ran another one with my family on May 7, 2009. It felt great to do something I never thought I would have. Running gave me a confidence that I had been lacking for several years.

I dropped the pounds quickly. Soon I was 17 lbs lighter than I had been at the start of the year. But then the weight stopped dropping. I thought I plateaued, so I started to mix up my routine; I cross-trained on the elliptical, took more group fitness classes, and worked out to Jillian Michaels' dvds...still, the weight wasn't dropping as quickly as I'd liked.

I have since learned that diet is KEY. I have read somewhere that what you look like is 80% nutrition. 80%! No wonder I wasn't losing any weight. So, equipped with this knowledge, I know what I have to do. I have to change what I put into my body. I've said this before...and yet I still fail at this.

I've racked my brain for the answer to WHY I continue to do this to myself over and over again.
I realized this morning that I am scared of the hard work that is required to lose this weight. What is required is not a quick-fix; it takes hard work and determination and will-power. Results won't come quickly and I am used to instant gratification. When I want something, I get it. Most things have come pretty easily for me in life, without much work required. I am used to getting what I want when I want it...and without much effort. So with the diet thing, it was so much easier just to give in to the food. I got the instant gratification I was so used to from food. Who cared if what I was eating was sabotaging my workout ventures? Working out obviously wasn't working quick enough (or so I thought), so I needed my "fix" from somewhere...and where I went was to FOOD.

I watch weightloss shows and Oprah and all say that you get fat because you have issues with food. I always said to myself, "I don't have issues, the food just tastes good!" It took a lot of soul searching to come to this realization and I am hoping that now that I am equipped with this new found tidbit of knowledge, I will be more successful in my weightloss attempts.

With all that said (and wow, that was a lot!), I am ready to do the hard work that is required of me to lose this damn weight! I am tired of talking about it and just want to do it already. :)

I got a couple things to help me jumpstart this challenge:

• I got a mini insulated cooler for my lunches and snacks during the week. I spend a lot of time in the car during the week and end up not eating lunch, then binging later on in the day.
• Target had the Biggest Loser dvds on sale for $9 so I picked up four: Last Chance Workout, Cardio Max, Power Sculpt, & Bootcamp. I love the Jillian Michaels' workouts so I am sure these are right up my alley. :)
• I got a medium-sized cosmetic pouch by Vera Bradley (from the NEX...saved a couple bucks!) for all my workout related stuff I take to the gym: Ipods, heart rate monitor, weightlifting gloves, etc. I can just dump the pouch in my purse and go.

• I also picked up an aluminum water bottle by GAIAM...I have heard great things about SIGG bottles but couldn't bring myself to spending $25 for one. :p Hopefully the GAIAM bottle will work just as well.
• Body Glide. I've been using this for awhile now and this is my 3rd time repurchasing. Works wonders for chafing. :)
  

I plan on kicking off my 32nd brithday at the gym tomorrow...I am excited to get back at it. :)