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