So today I went to Zumba, and plan on it wed and fri this week.  I am also going to work in some bike riding.  I am going to use those two activies to get me going for awhile.  While I was in Zumba today, I remembered why I loved it in the first place.  It’s so fun!   And plus, as usual, I am just down about how i look and feel.  I haven’t lost weight in 2+ months and it’s disheartening.  I know I can do, I did it!  Lost 8 pounds in a month not too long ago!  I just need focus, dicipline and things to keep my mind off of it.

But you know…I knew this was going to happen.  It always does, so kudos to those of you can 100% stay on your game, because unless it feels natural to you, you will stick your hands or feet of the wagon from time to time.  But I feel better, and I want to get in better shape.  So for those of you who are going through or went through the same feelings, it’s ok!  Just get back on! :-)  It’s a lot easier this time than it was for me before for some reason.  I just was like… “Wow, this spring was awesome… what happened?  I wanna feel like that again!  And I know I can do it!”  I wanted to kick my own butt for not stricking with it - in the past I made excuses and didn’t care…

Good luck buddies, you can do it!  Stick with it, and if you can’t/couldn’t, just focus your energies back on what you liked about exercising!

When we first arrived on Thursday night, I was trying to figure out my plan for the weekend.  I knew that I was not going to eat what I didn’t want to and I wasn’t going to indulge in stuff that I didn’t need to eat.  I discovered that Hopi, my sister in law had brought healthy things to snack on over the weekend.  (I knew she was a healthy eater, but I was thrilled that she brought it with her!)  She also told me that she planned on power walking each morning and that I was more than welcome to join her.  I almost jumped up and down!  I had been wondering what I was going to do for exercise, and this was a good solution.

Friday was not hard at all, just drank a bit.  We walked, and later that day I enjoyed the paddle boat.

Saturday, I started the day with a longer power walk and took a few rides on the paddle boat during the day.  I stayed away from all the deserts (yay me!) in the anticipation that we may go to the ice cream shop where Scott and Dave went when they were kids sometime during the weekend.  Barbeques are full of caloric and carb filled foods, so I tried my best to eat like I normally would.  :-)  I ate watermelon when the rice krispy treats came back around and around… I did drink quite a few gin and tonics on Saturday, but I was okay with that!

Sunday, no power walk because Hopi and I got up early to make breakfast, but we made up for it with a long ass paddle boat ride, where we would switch off who paddled to get more resistance.  Later in the afternoon, we played a game of family football, and man, we played rough and we got lots of exercise!  It was great

So all in all, I had a great time.  The tough part was eating in the airport during our layovers.  There weren’t a lot fo great choices, so we ate both our lunches Thursday and Monday at Chili’s Too.  I felt like if I could pinpoint that pound that came on, it would br from there.  I had a ranch chicken sandwich on Thursday and a turkey club on Monday, and I had some fries, too.   It was wonderful to be on vacation with other people who are conscious of what they eat and how active they stay. 

Back to the grind!  Hope you all had a great weekend!

I’ve had the urge to snack a bit today…I think it’s because I started my period yesterday.  (That would explain the pimples!)  I’ve held off for the most part…just had some Chex Mis Party Mix…going to have dinner soon

I attempted some of the ab machines tonight in the gym.  I did 10 on one and about 20 on another.  It was hard, I’ll admit.  Definitely something I need to start working in.  I just don’t like it because I have a hard time focussing my stregnth on my abs..you know what I mean?  Like, using my abs to do the work, instead of my neck and back muscles.  Does anyone know the secret?

Well, I am going away for the weekend to my mother in law’s house!  Lots of food and drinking!  My sister in law is a health nut, and I’m pretty sure my MIL stays pretty healthy, so I don’t think I have too much to worry about…just the drinking :-)  My husband tells me that they walk their dogs every night after dinner, so thankfully, I’ll have some sort of exercise too.  They also live on a lake, so he said that we could take a long walk around it if we wanted… and I am going to want too, I am at the point now that I can only go one day without feeling ugh.  When I get back I plan on going every weekday.

Have a wonderful week, buddies!  I know I will!

This is hard.  It is really challenging me to watch what I eat and when.  The exercise is not really a problem, it’s just my schedule.  I know that I am not going to quit, I am going to keep pushing through and I know deep down…eventually I will see the results I want.  It’s just hard to think that I have been doing this for so long, much longer than I ever have, and all I have lost is 8 pounds.  That hurts me, it’s kind of a set back really.  I’m not far off my from 2 month mark, and it’s just not going to be what I had hoped.

But enough of all that!  I lost weight this week, that is all that matters! 

Hope you guys have a great Monday!

I’m not pushing myself enough.

Cutting out sugar, chocolate, carbonation, it’s not enough.

More exercise than I have ever done in my life, is not enough.

Hating the way I look and feel…not enough to push harder?

Today at Zumba I realized that what I am doing is not enough.  I know at this point in my game I should have already incorporated extra days of exercise, but with my work schedule it’s hard.  My plan was to go to the gym early before work on those days, but between errands, appointments, and sleeping, and a doctor’s appointment tomorrow, it just hasn’t happened.  The scale has brought me down this week.  My weekly weigh in went unrecorded because I gained a pound.  And you know what?  Gaining one pound is not that big of a deal.  But I hopped on the scale this evening too, and it said I weighed more!  ;-(   I knwo that I shouldn’t weigh in the evening, because tomorrow morning it will say something different, but still.  I am so far from my personal mini goal that it seems like I should change it.  I also wanted to get to 150 by next Friday before my mini-vacation, and I was on my way to that…now not so much, that would be one pound per day!!!!   I wish that I could become addicted to exercise or that all my cravings would just go away with the snap of a finger, but for me it hasn’t been like that.

I’m gonna keep on truckin, but it sucks.

I am getting closer to that piece of birthday cake… Maybe by Saturday I won’t want it?  Not likely

Today has made me think about how far I have come.  I’m not too old, and it makes me realize as the time races forward, that now was the right time to make the change.  I wouldn’t have wanted to wait any longer.  Weight loss is a challenge, but I want to feel amazing by my next birthday, and I know that will happen.

On Sunday, I accomplished something that I am very proud of, and something that I obviously had to work towards.  I went on a 2+ mile hike up and down a mountain.  My husband and joined by some friends went to Fall Creek Falls, TN and made the trek to the bottom of the waterfall and back up again.  I can tell you, it was very challenging and it pushed me hard, but it was awesome and it felt so good to do it.  And…I would not have been able to do it a month ago the way I felt.  On the way back, I was thinking, “Man, that felt amazing!”  It was obvious to me that I am in better shape, and that the pounds and inches aren’t the only (though important) reason I am doing this - I am doing it to feel good, too, and to be able to do things that I couldn’t.

We can do it, ladies.  We just have to push ourselves to the extra step.  It’s not going to happen overnight, it’s not going to happen in a month.  But it will happen if we want it to.  It seems like it never takes us long to gain it, but so long to lose it.  But it will happen!  I feel like a different person.  I feel great, and I’m actually excited to go to Zumba class.  Seriously… I’m looking forward to it today.  So I recommend finding something you like.  I tried Yoga and Zumba for the very first times this past week.  Its about finding something that works for you, and that you will want to wake up and do that day.  Think about what motivvates you.  I actually have been confused about what motivates me, because I thought I would have started my weight loss journey a long time ago because I was so unhappy with it, but I think that I am at the point now that I can honestly say, I want a different life.

And I am going to get it, and so are all of you!  Have a great day buddies!

I also signed up for my gym membership today.  I’m at a place where I am ready to commit to working out, so now was the perfect time.  I’m getting a monthly membership for less than it was to tan monthly, so YAY!

Well, I am off to get ready for work.  Have a great weekend buddies!

Tomorrow I am 99% sure I am going to sign up for a gym membership.  It’s very inexpensive, includes tanning and all classes!  Tomorrow my BFF and I are going to go up there and take a Zumba class.  Anyone ever done Zumba?  Leave my some feedback about what you thought about it and what to expect.   I heard from a lady who takes it where I am going to take it that she LOVES it, and she has lost 15 pounds doing it 2-3 times a week for a month!  (In combo with diet).  Plus, she said it is the most enjoyable exercise she has ever tried.

Have a great weekend buddies!