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