Week 15: A Bad Finish, A Good Start

"Failure is the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently." -Henry Ford

The holidays have come and the deadline for my big goal is upon us.  The last two weeks I have kinda gone a little nuts.  I have eaten whatever I wanted. I have chosen to do other things over working out.  I have not made good choices.  After all my hard work over the past 4 months, I am returning back to the States at the exact same weight I left it.  I failed to accomplish my goal, or even to approach it.  

Yes, it was admittedly a major bust...IF I only look at numbers on the scale. The numbers on the scale are the same, but the girl on the scale isn't.  I am much stronger physically and emotionally.  I have an increased knowledge of what works and doesn't work for me.  I have almost no cravings for bad foods.  I don't even enjoy bad foods all that much when I eat them. I have started to be concerned about the health of others, particularly the children I work with.  I talk about health, fitness, food, exercise EVERY SINGLE DAY! Usually to multiple people.  I am committed to my health! Sure, I wish I could report some wonderful number of pounds lost, but I am glad that I have the chance to begin again as a stronger, wiser person.

I am home for the holidays and intend to enjoy myself in moderation.  I want to keep up with exercise and the goal is to maintain my weight for the next two weeks (although you won't hear me complain if I drop a few pounds!).  Then in January, I will be back on track, full force.  My goal is still the same--lose 30 pounds--but I want to do it over the next 6 months.  When I return home at the beginning of July, I will do so with the body that I want--strong, healthy, and fit. 

Happy holidays! Check back in starting in January to see how my weight loss journey progresses in the new year!

Love,

Candace

Week 14: Crashing

"If there is no struggle, there is no progress." Frederick Douglass

This week, I spent a lot of time crashing. The week started out normal, but on Tuesday, everything started going downhill fast. I went to the gym and hopped on the elliptical and was exhausted in less than 5 minutes (I always do 45 minutes with no trouble...).  Then I tried the bike and managed a measly 30 minutes.  And it only got worse! Wednesday, I went to work but just came home and laid on the couch for a while. I was so tired! I actually managed to play some volleyball on Thursday, but was so exhausted after that I regretted it. Friday, I couldn't even take a walk without feeling like I had just run a marathon! I have been fading in and out of total exhaustion!

I wish I could say that despite that, I ate really well this week.  Not so.  My diet crashed along with my energy! At first, I was just eating things like sugary granola bars and crackers because I thought it would give me quick energy.  I kept thinking maybe I wasn't eating enough calories. False. I ate way too many calories this week in the form of things I haven't even touched for months!

The frustrating thing is that all this happened for no apparent reason.  Even without exercising, resting more, drinking water, etc, I am not feeling any better! I want so badly to go to the gym, but my body just can't handle it at the moment.

Needless to say, with my lack of exercise and overabundance of bad food this week, I gained over a pound. I'm glad it wasn't much more than that, but it's still irritating to see that number go up! As disappointing as it is, I have to remember that sickness happens...it's a temporary set-back, but not a permanent one! I am going to do everything in my power to get back on track this week!

Here's to a healthier week ahead!

Pounds lost: 5.8
Pounds left to lose: 24.2

Love,
Candace

And a tribute to Nelson Mandela that makes me feel a little better about myself today!

Week 13: Lows and Highs

"And now that you don't have to be perfect, you can be good." -John Steinbeck

This week I hit an "all-time" low (in this case, that's a good thing)! I know it's not really an all-time low, but I can't remember the last time I saw this number on the scale, so for my weight loss journey, it's an all-time low. And I was so excited! I was on a good kind of high all day, because this is really a milestone! 

And know what's even better? I ate TWO delicious Thanksgiving dinners this week and still managed to drop a little weight! I already explained last week how I went all out at the church's Thanksgiving dinner, and it did show on the scale the next day. But I worked hard and lost those pounds again during the week.  When Thursday came, I really had to think long and hard about what I would do--go all out again, or scrimp so I could see some results.  I sort of found a happy medium.  I ate everything on the table (and it was all SO good), but nothing in huge portions.  I wanted to eat another yummy roll, but decided against it.  I had two small pieces of pie, but opted out of trying the other two kinds.  And I refused to take any leftovers!

As I was reflecting on this week, I realized that I made the right choice.  Thanksgiving has always been one of my favorite holidays, so if I had chosen to eat, for example, just the turkey and a few green beans, I would not have felt satisfied. So I ate to my heart's content! Am I the perfect dieter? No! I don't want to be! Steinbeck had it right, now that I don't feel the need to perfect, I can just be good!

So now for the number crunching.  I am down another .8 of a pound this week (not a huge number, but in this case, pretty impressive, see paragraph 2 above)! Just another 2.8 pounds and I'll hit the 10 pound weight loss mark!

Here's to another week of healthy eating, exercising, and loving life!

Pounds lost: 7.2

Pounds left to lose: 22.8

Love,

Candace

Week 12: Fat and Happy

"Breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, dine like a pauper."

Conversation with a student last week:
Student: Miss, why do you go to the gym all the time?
Me: Because I want to be healthy!
Student: Not me, I want to be fat and happy!

Today, I'm feeling fat and happy! I just came from my church's annual "Harvest Dinner" aka Thanksgiving. We don't get Thanksgiving off from school, so it was nice to have one a little early this year! I am so full of delicious foods and honestly just very happy!

And here's why--I ate tons of things today that I would normally avoid--cake, cobbler, mashed potatoes, cornbread--and I didn't feel bad about any of it! I have been treating my body so well for the last few months, so though it might show on the scale tomorrow, that delicious meal was worth every bite! I think usually around this time of year, I have already baked up so many treats before Thanksgiving, that I feel bad for eating even more when the big day comes.  It was totally opposite this year and I love it!

So this week, I tried out The Big Breakfast Diet and the results are...less than inspiring, according to the scale.  I am down just a measly .2 of a pound since last week! But I have decided to stick with the diet for one more week. Let me explain.

The diet promised a few things, but two that caught my eye.  1. You won't crave carbs or sweets in the afternoon or night. 2. You won't be hungry at night. Surprisingly, both of these things were true! I ate my huge breakfast, a smaller lunch, and little to no dinner because I just wasn't hungry.  No sugar cravings was totally new for me! I think where the diet went askew for me is that I tried a couple of different meal plans that she designed, one of which had significantly more calories than the other, causing me to gain weight at the beginning of the week. I switched to a different plan, and lost all the weight I had gained back, but not enough to see great results.  This week, I am trying my luck with the lower calorie plan. If I don't see great results, it's bye-bye Big Breakfast Diet!

Though I'm not losing tons of weight, I continue to receive compliments about how great I am looking! I definitely can't hear that enough! I'm excited for another week of big breakfasts and fit living!

Pounds lost: 6.4
Pounds left to lose: 23.6

Love,
Candace

Week 11: On My Way

"It's not so much where you are, but where you're going."

It's been another great week, but I have to admit to starting out badly! At the beginning of the week, I was craving EVERYTHING.  I just wanted to eat all the time. And nothing was satisfying.  It was super frustrating!  I also went to book club and ravenously consumed way too many delicious treats.  To put it lightly, I was going downhill fast!

I had ordered a book called "The Big Breakfast Diet", less because I was looking for a diet and more because I love breakfast, so I was interested in what the author had to say.  Her basic principle is that it's not just what you eat, but when you eat it.  She advocates for a large protein packed breakfast, a smaller protein/fruit/veggie lunch, and an even smaller protein/fruit/veggie dinner.  As I looked through her meal plans, I sort of wrote it off, as she included carbs and sweets in every breakfast.  

Frustrated with my insatiable cravings and seeming lack of control, I said, "Well, it can't be worse than what I'm doing right now!" So I tried out her diet plan for two days, Thursday and Friday.  I was stunned with the results--not just weight loss, but my cravings essentially disappeared! By dinner time, I was barely even hungry, because I had eaten so much protein, fruits, and veggies during the day.

Now, I know better than to base my opinion of anything off a mere 2 days, so I am trying out the diet plan for this next week, to see what kind of results I can get.  I will give a better review of the diet next week!

So what about this week? I lost another 1.8 pounds, which I am very pleased with.  It would have been more if I hadn't gained back more than a pound in the early part of the week.  Regardless, it's a good number, so I can't complain!

Yesterday was my little sister Brianna's birthday.  She loves the movie Brother Bear and I found myself humming a song called "On My Way".  In honor of her and my weight journey continuing to go well, here is the video!

It feels great to be on my way! 

Pounds lost: 6.2

Pounds left to lose: 23.8

Love,

Candace

Normally, I hate cat memes, but this one made me laugh!

Week 10: Drowning In Sweat

"Nobody ever drowned in his own sweat." -Ann Landers

This week, I felt like I was drowning in sweat! For a while now, I have felt like some of my workouts have not been at the intensity that they could and should be.  So this week, I decided to amp it up! I pushed harder than before and even tried a new class--an Insanity workout class! The class totally kicked my butt, left me drenched in sweat, totally exhausted, and happy! That's right--HAPPY! It really felt like I was pushing my body to new limits!

With my intense workouts and strict healthy eating, I managed to lose 3 pounds this week! I did a little happy dance, glad to see some progress!  I hope to keep up the good work this week with a similar meal and exercise plan.  My body, though it still looks about the same, feels really spectacular.  I know this is from my constant efforts to treat it right! 

This week, we had a breakfast at school with muffins, donuts, and bagels--aka some of my favorite foods.  I passed on all of them, only to be left wondering later in the day--is it worth it? Is it worth it to not eat these things that I love? That night at my circuit class, I felt so light on my feet and energetic.  That was answer enough for me (and the 3 pound weight loss was an extra confirmation)!  Having a healthy body is worth every effort! 

So excited for another week of healthy eating and vigorous exercise! Bring it on!

Pounds lost: 4.4

Pounds left to lose: 25.6

Love,

Candace

Week 9: The Set-Point

"You can outdistance that which is running after you, but not what is running inside you." 

-Rwandan proverb

I started this week with the best of intentions--I made a big batch of Black Bean and Quinoa chili for my lunches, had a big bag of salad greens ready for dinner, and a full schedule for workouts. But good intentions don't always mean good results.  The chili ended up making my colon hurt (maybe too much fiber), so I nixed it after two days.  I didn't feel like eating salad by the time Tuesday rolled around.  I had a cold, so my workouts happened, but at a much lower intensity than normal.  I went to the Coffee Bean twice with friends and justified a pastry both times since I don't drink coffee.  And to top it off, I attended 2 parties and ate all sorts of things I shouldn't have eaten.

The results are a little ugly, but not as ugly as they could be.  I ended up gaining .4 pound this week. I was disappointed to see the number go up once again, but I was also glad it didn't go up more.  

I was thinking today how irritating it is that my weight has lingered around the same number, give or take 5 pounds, for the last 2 months.  It reminded me of something I had read about before called the set-point theory.  Basically, many scientists believe that each person has a "natural" weight that their body gravitates to. They attribute some people having a much harder time losing weight or trying to get to a certain size to the fact that their natural weight or set-point is higher.  When I first read about this, I thought it was a little hokey, but as I was thinking today, it actually makes some sense.  Before I lost weight earlier this year, my weight kept going back to the same infuriating number over the course of about 3 years.  It would go up and then down and then back up, but always hover around the same number. The research says that you can to some extent "reset" your set point, and I think that's what I did, to a weight that is 20 pounds lighter.  

So today, I thought to myself that it was time to reset that set point again, this time even lower!  Obviously it's going to be harder than I thought, but I am up for the challenge.  I can tell that my body is fighting itself. When I eat things that used to be regulars in my diet, like a homemade cookie, it wants to enjoy it, but it doesn't! That is either really depressing or really exciting (I'm thinking a little of both!).  Now I just have to tell my mind to stop picking those things up, because they won't be worth it if I'm not even enjoying the calories!

The fridge is stocked with vegetable soup for dinner, turkey and cottage cheese roll-ups for lunch, and carrots and hard-boiled eggs for snacks! It's a new month and I'm determined to make it a healthy one (for real this time)!

Pounds lost: 1.4

Pounds left to lose: 28.6

Love,

Candace

Week 8: Good News and Bad News

"I have missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I have lost almost 300 games.  On 26 occasions, I have been entrusted to take the games winning shot, and missed.  And I have failed over and over and over again in my life.  And that is why I succeed." -Michael Jordan

Hi all! It's been two weeks since my last post and what a fabulous two weeks they have been! I have some good news and some bad news. Shall I start with the good? The good news is that I had a wonderful vacation in Sri Lanka! I ate so many wonderful things, and relaxed, and didn't worry about anything (including my weight, more on that later).  The other good news is that I lost 6 pounds this week.  Don't get too excited...there's still bad news to come!

The bad news is that I gained 10 pounds in Sri Lanka.  You read that correctly.  Ten. 1-0. So even though I managed to lose 6 pounds this week (pretty remarkable if I do say so myself), I am almost all the way back to where I started, which is a little discouraging.

But I thought to myself, "Candace, if Michael Jordan can fail that many times and still be thought of as one of the greatest basketball players of all time, then you still have a chance here!"  So here I am, starting over, but also starting better.  I have more reslove than ever before to stick to my healthy eating and exercise goals.  I don't know if I'll get to 30 pounds, but I'll get somewhere and that's the important thing.

I want to take a teaching moment out of this as well.  There are so many reasons that people gain weight. I think there are a lot of thin people who think that fat people just ate too much and never exercised, end of story. But those same people probably could have eaten the exact same menu as me for a week and gained no weight.  Everyone's body is different.  People think I'm nuts when I say no to a treat and they tell me things like, "Just one won't hurt." But here's the thing.  Just because one won't hurt you body doesn't mean one won't hurt mine. If you know someone who's trying to make healthy lifestyle changes, do them a favor and don't tell them what is or is not "fine" for their body.  We all know our own bodies best!

It's a new week and a another chance to get it right!

Pounds lost: 1.8
Pounds left to lose: 28.2

Love,
Candace

Week 6: Nothing But Education

"What is defeat? Nothing but education, nothing but the first step toward something better." -Wendell Phillips

I really like that quote.  I especially like it this week, because a moment has come that I've expected, but not welcomed.  Yes my friends, this week instead of losing weight, I did in fact gain weight! 1.6 pounds to be exact.

What happened? Not really one thing, but a lot of little things.  And by a lot of little things, I mean a lot of "little" treats.  Sunday I did pretty well, but the trouble started on Monday.  A friend needed some girl time, which I was happy to give her, but long story short it ended up with a missed workout and a (really delicious) cheese and spinach quiche.  Tuesday brought some bad news for a coworker that somehow led me to obsessive snacking all day.  And a donut. (That one was NOT my fault!) Wednesday there was a big Hajj celebration at school which meant lots and lots of food. Especially cake.  Big delicious chocolatey cakes.

So maybe there was too much temptation or maybe I let my guard down, but either way, this week was a small defeat.  But going back to the quote above, it was also a step toward something better.  This week, I had treats that I haven't had for a while and guess what? I didn't even enjoy them.  I didn't want to keep eating them (though mindlessly I still did).  This small defeat has led to a heightened resolve to get on track and stay there!

That being said, tomorrow I'm heading to Sri Lanka and I will probably enjoy a few too many delicious things in spite of myself! But it's my goal to get in some exercise and make the best choices I can! 

Next post will be in two weeks when I am back from vacation!

Pounds lost: 5.4

Pounds left to lose: 24.6

Love,

Candace

Week Five: I Think I Can

"Whether you think you can, or you think you can't, you are right." -Henry Ford

Hi all! It's been another healthy week here in Doha! I am down another 2 pounds, so I'm feeling pretty great right now! This morning after my weigh-in, I thought, "You know what? You can do this, Candace.  You're already doing it! You go girl!" And then maybe I did a little happy jig.  

Not that I didn't believe in myself before, but the more progress I make, the more realistic my goal seems. Attitude makes a huge difference when you're trying to be healthy. I've noticed that my attitude about everything fitness related is just getting better and better! There is hardly a day when I don't feel like exercising, hardly a day when I really want to eat something majorly unhealthy because I can really see the benefits of those things. Not to say I've turned into some fitness junkie who deplores junk food and prefers exercise over lounging about, but my attitude is definitely changing for the better!

In a week, I am leaving for Sri Lanka, so I have a mini-goal to lose 3 pounds this week.  That would get me up to a 10 pound weight loss before my week of vacation.  Three little pounds will actually take quite a bit of effort, but I think I'm up for the challenge! And if it doesn't happen, oh well! There's always next time!

Life is good, healthy, and happy here in Doha!

Pounds lost: 7

Pounds left to lose: 23

Love,

Candace

Week 4: Getting Easier

"That which we persist in doing becomes easier, not that the nature of the task has changed, but our ability to do has increased." -Ralph Waldo Emerson

Another week has flown by! I said last week I wanted to see more weight loss this week and that's just what I did! I am down another 2.4 pounds! 

And you know what? It's getting easier--not the weight loss itself, but the things I am doing to lose weight: eating well and exercising! Two examples: 1. Yesterday, we had a potluck at church.  I knew there would be a lot of really great food, so I wasn't sure how I would handle it! When I got there, I saw that there was cheesy lasagna, homemade apple pie, and even tater tot casserole! But as I walked down the line, I judiciously chose rice, chicken, fruit, and a few chips with salsa.  Not bad if I do say so myself! 2. Today, I went to buy a cupcake for someone's birthday.  If you know me, you know I LOVE cupcakes.  So I went to the little cupcake shop, looked at all the delicious choices, let my mouth water just a little, and then purchased just one cupcake (for my friend)!

I think in the past, I might have thought, "Woe is me, I'm on a diet and can't eat all these delicious foods." But my mindset has really changed.  This week, I thought instead, "I'm choosing to eat healthy and I don't want to put those foods into my body!" Exercising 6 days a week has also become second nature and if anything threatens my workout time, I get irritated! 

This week, I started each day with a mug of warm water with half a lemon squeezed in.  Not sure if I reaped any benefits from that, but I'm going to keep it up this week! I also added zucchini to my oatmeal each morning.  Yes, you read that correctly! I didn't make up this idea, I saw it on the internet (which makes it legit!).  It's a new thing called zoatmeal and it was pretty good! I just added a small shredded zucchini into the dry oats and milk before zapping it in the microwave.  Then I added my normal honey, cinnamon, walnuts, and banana.  It didn't taste like zucchini to me, but if you hate zucchini, it's probably not the way to add veggies to your diet!

Here's to another week of good health!

Pounds lost: 5

Pounds left to lose: 25

Love,

Candace

Never thought I would actually start to agree with this quote!

Week 3: Slow and Steady

"Slow and steady wins the race." -Aesop

Hi all! The weekly results are in and I've lost just .6 of a pound. Though it's not a lot, I'm not disappointed! Why? Because it's progress! I keep a chart on my wall where I record my weight each Saturday morning, and for me, it is satisfying to put ANY number that is less than the previous week's number! It might be slow progress, but it is steady progress and that's what I need!

That being said, I would like to see a bigger number next week. After all, I will be spending some time on the beautiful beaches of Sri Lanka in just 3 short weeks! So this week, I'm going to up the intensity of some of my workouts, incorporate more veggies into my diet, and drink more water! I will be trying out the benefits of warm lemon water in the mornings, so I'll let you know how that goes!

A side note on wearing clothes that fit:

If you've ever gained excessive weight for whatever reason, you might have been in this situation:

It's okay, I've been there too.  But when you lose weight, you run into a different problem, namely looking like a little kid playing dress-up:

Both situations are undesirable, but let me just tell you about the importance of wearing clothes that fit. When I got back to Doha in August, my weight was the EXACT same as it was when I left Doha in June.  I didn't gain or lose over the summer.  But when I got back in August, EVERYONE kept telling me how good I looked, how much weight I lost, etc.  Now believe me, I can't hear those things enough, so keep it coming. But I had to stop and reflect and why fewer people seemed to notice before the break.  The answer? My clothes.  By the time I left Doha, I was wearing clothes that were 1 or 2 sizes too large.  Shopping in Doha is a nightmare in my opinion and everything is expensive.  So I decided to wait it out.  Unfortunately, instead of showing off my weight loss, my old (and now big) clothes just made me look frumpy! I hated getting dressed in the morning because everything looked terrible! So over the summer, I bought a completely new wardrobe in smaller sizes, and now I love picking something to wear!

So here's my suggestion. If you are successfully losing weight, and you lose enough weight to go down a size, buy yourself at least a couple of new things! It will make you look and feel great! If you're like me and want to lose more than just a few pounds, I would still suggest buying a couple of new things along the way. Trust me, it's worth it!

(P.S. If you are in the first situation, I hate to break it to you, but you have gained some weight.  If you are struggling majorly to fit into your clothes, you might consider buying a couple of things in a size up--painful, I know, but worth it for comfort!)

Pounds lost: 2.6

Pounds left to lose: 27.4

Love,

Candace

Week 2: Practice Makes Progress

‘If you reach for the stars, you might not quite get one, but you won’t end up with a handful of mud, either." -Leo Burnett

It's the end of Week 2 already! Time sure flies when you're working with little kids everyday! This week I did pretty well! I am down another 1.5 pounds from last week! The more I work at it, the easier it is to resist unhealthy foods and choose better ones. Today I had my "cheat" meal at California Tortilla and it was delish! Why just a cheat meal, as opposed to a cheat day? Because a cheat day means way too many calories! This in fact, happened to me last week.  I made some poor food choices after my weigh-in last Saturday and gained back more than a pound! So this week, I had to lose that pound and then some more on top of that! A cheat meal helps you feel satisfied instead of deprived, but doesn't put you into such a hole that you have to make up for later. (P.S. I didn't think this up, that one comes from Bob Harper's Skinny Rules.)

I am looking forward to another great week of healthy eating and exercising.  Someone asked me today what "diet" I am following and the truth is, I'm not.  I am simply making good food choices and exercising vigorously.  In my opinion, if I'm not losing weight with a lifestyle I could maintain for the rest of my life, I will never be able to maintain it.  I guess we'll see if that principle works out for me!

Pounds lost: 2

Pounds left to lose: 28

Love,

Candace

Week 1: Small Victories

"Any step forward, no matter how small, is a step in the right direction."

It's time for my first weekly report! I wish I could say I lost a lot of weight this week, but the truth is, I really didn't.  I am down just 1/2 pound from last week. Despite not quite reaching my goal of close to 2 pounds/week, I'm not really disappointed. Here's why: Last year at this time, I was stressed, eating tons of fast food, and getting no exercise.  This week, I ate healthy foods and exercised 6 days! My body is getting used to eating only healthy foods as well as to exercising more vigorously again.  So even though the scale didn't budge too much, I experienced a lot of small victories this week. And that's worth celebrating!

My one downfall this week was a Mexican themed potluck I went to last night.  I did much better than I might have done previously at such a party, but I still ate way too much! But yet another small victory, even though there were lots of yummy looking desserts, I ate just half a donut hole and I was done! Go ahead, be impressed!

Here's to another week of exercise and healthy eating!

Pounds lost: .5
Pounds left to lose: 29.5

Love,
Candace

My Big Goal

"You can be pitiful, or you can be powerful, but you can't be both." -Joyce Meyer

I watched this show the other day that featured a lady from New Orleans.  She has been working hard to help rebuild her community since Hurricane Katrina.  When she was asked how she kept going day after day, even with so much devastation still around her, she simply said, "You can be pitiful, or you can be powerful." At that, I actually fist-pumped and yelled, "YEAH!" Something about that line really resonated with me. And it got me thinking about my goals. And I thought to myself, "Candace, it's time to set a big goal, it's time to stop being pitiful and start being powerful!"

So I made a goal.  A big goal. A goal to lose 30 pounds by the end of 2013. Am I crazy? Probably. But can I do it? YEAH! *fist pump*

Actually, I'm not quite sure I can do it, at least not on my own. That's where you, all the readers of this blog, come in. Though I'm pretty good at keeping myself in line, I know that this is a big goal, so I want to be accountable to someone.  So I thought, I'll make myself accountable to everyone who decides to click on this link! You're of course under no obligation to slap my hand away from the brownies, ask me about my exercise, or even continue reading this blog. This is just a place where I can make public to the world my progress on my big goal.

So each week, I will post how many pounds I lost that week and how many more pounds I have left to lose. I'll probably throw in a few posts about my thoughts on weight loss and nutrition and whatever else I feel like discussing as well.

Still interested? Good.  In that case, I will say just a few words about why I chose weight loss as my big goal.  I have always been a heavy person, getting to my heaviest in high school.  I lost some weight in college, but it was a constant battle between eating poorly and consequently exercising to not gain weight. When I moved to Doha, I actually gained weight as I tried to find the right foods to eat here, the best fruits/veggies to buy, etc.  But in April, I finally had an "enough is enough" moment.  I said to myself, "Candace, you are 23 years old. You can lose this weight now or live with it for the rest of your life." I got it together and lost about 15-20 pounds before heading home for the summer.  Then in Guatemala, with little control over what I ate, I was back to eating poorly and exercising to not gain weight. So I returned home with a heightened resolve to get fit.

The goal sounds big, but it really boils down to a little less than 2 pounds a week.  I can do that. There are too many pitiful people in this world--some fat, some skinny.  At any size, I am determined to not be one of them. I am choosing to be powerful!

Love,
Candace

Ok, I admit to loving this "Thinspiration" posters.
I'll probably throw a few of these in as well!