Finding the right goal to keep your weight loss going
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December 2: 209 pounds
Lisa met her goal of losing 100 pounds by her 40th birthday, but the struggle continues. Click through to read about losing the first 100 pounds or click on the links below to read about the new challenges.
By Lisa Spodak ResultsNotTypical@worldnow.com
Provided by WorldNow
Week 1 Weigh In:
Starting weight: 209
I'm about to shake things up a little!
As I wrote a few weeks ago, I've been struggling ever since surpassing my 100 pound weight loss goal for my 40th birthday. I've gained about 15 pounds back and I haven't been able to find my motivation to keep losing and working toward my ultimate goal.
It turns out, just having a goal isn't enough – what's key for me is finding the right goal.
And I found it this weekend – my brother has set a wedding date in June and I'm going to lose 50 pounds by then!
I'm feeling motivated and rejuvenated in a way I was worried I wouldn't again and I'm raring to go. (I know that I'll eventually have to figure out how to maintain my weight without a definitive and aggressive goal, but I've got time for that.)
It doesn't hurt, either, that for the first time, my brother is struggling a little with his own weight and we've got a little competition going. It's interesting, because even though we're competing, I also feel like I can finally be of help to him, in a reverse to how it usually is with us.
I'm not changing my basic approach much… I'm still doing Weight Watchers and focusing on lots of gym time. I won't be making any radical changes there.
The big thing though, is making a break from the past 21 months. I'm still incredibly proud of what I've accomplished and I won't ever forget that… but I also need to stop focusing on the weight I've gained since my birthday and trying to make up for it. So, this is Week 1 again!
I've posted a starting weight at the top of the page and a "before" picture over there to the right. We all know I've already lost a chunk of weight, but let's pretend we don't and start over!
This week's goals:
1) Meet my friend Annie at the gym in the morning at least twice
2) Make use of all the groceries I've bought this week before they go bad
3) Go to bed before midnight at least 4 times
4) Try one new recipe
5) Resist all unplanned snacks at work (i.e., holiday candies/gifts)
Weight loss is hard, isn't it?? You'd think that would stop surprising me at some point.
I made a pretty big decision this week – I'm switching diet programs.
I had a great week! And as excited as I am about losing 3.5 pounds, I'm even more excited that I felt really in control this week – more than I have in a long time.
I think the problem is we make resolutions when we're all fired up and have grand plans for the year, but then reality sets in and suddenly that 7-workouts-a-week goal is (obviously) unrealistic and rather than scaling back, we give up altogether.
So, I'm kind of embarrassed that I pretty much disappeared from this space for a few weeks.
I hope you can forgive the sort of hokey racetrack imagery in the title of this blog entry, but I just realized how appropriate it is that I start this week's story talking about a grueling 24-hour car race.
I made an important realization this week – when I'm not motivated to lose weight, nothing external can make it happen. And when I am motivated, nothing external can stop me. So, while I'm definitely having trouble right now, it helps to focus on what I have already accomplished instead of my struggles.
It's 26 weeks until my birthday -- and I want to lose 26 pounds. Keeping focused on that and a couple of specific challenges is getting me back on track with my diet.
This is the perfect time of year to start a training program for a long distance walking, running or cycling event. Read about how you can help others while bumping up your exercise!
I'm back to counting calories for a week. Here's a peek into a day in my food/exercise diary (including an abundance of snacks, hobbit-style!).
Getting ready for vacation means packing, straightening my desk at work -- and planning how I'm going to eat and exercise while in a different country!
It's hard writing about this because I feel like I've been saying these things over and over in different ways while sort of waffling about how to move forward. But the bottom line is that this is really hard and sometimes it takes some false starts to get going again.
After countless efforts to lose weight over close to 30 years, this time is completely different. Because no matter how difficult or frustrating it's become, I refuse to get to the point where I just throw my hands up and say I won't bother trying anymore.
I find it much easier to lose weight in the spring and summer than the winter. Winter just screams for comfort food. The heavy clothes let you ignore small gains (which add up). And the excuses to stay inside are plentiful.
Sometimes we need to deal with change and find solutions that may not be ideal but are at least a step in the right direction.
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