Motivation

I often get told that I am looking skinny, lately. Now, I know that this is no where near the truth, as I still have 24 pounds to lose before I can technically leave the ‘obese’ category on the BMI charts, but I am 3 pounds away from reaching my 100 pound weight loss mark. People ask me a lot “what I’m doing” to lose weight. My standard answers are: I don’t eat sugar, I exercise, and I try and eat (as recommended by the Center for Disease Control) my full daily dose of fruits and veggies (because when I intake the recommended daily values I usually end up eating less of the things I shouldn’t). But the truth is that there are lots of motivating tools that have kept me going and helped me reach my goals. I’ve listed them below:

• Exercise Goals:

1. Walking 2 miles, then 3, 4, 5

2. Running a mile, then 2, then 3

3. Completing a triathlon

4. Training for a ½ marathon (Tonight I ran 4 miles for the first time since 1993).

• My iPod: this may sound silly, but I loathe exercising without it. If I go to exercise and find that the battery is dead, I will put off exercising until it’s charged—however long that takes.

• Favorite Songs: speaking of iPods, it’s a little corny, but I’ve got three favorite workout songs that I pretty much never get sick of, and I use them to get me through the tough parts of exercising—Fighter by Christina Aguilera, Viva la Vida by Coldplay and Each Tear by Mary J. Blige. ***I’m not usually a person who puts much meaning into song lyrics; in fact, I usually say “the more ridiculous and inscrutable, the better,” so I’m a little embarrassed to admit such great affinity for these songs, but there it is.

• An Obsessive Personality: It’s a joke and the truth.  :)

• A Milestone Birthday: the quick approach of 35 (in less than 4 months—YIKES) has motivated me greatly. I just want the other side of my thirties (and the rest of my life) to be lived out at a healthy weight.

• Calorie Counting: I didn’t do this for the first 10 months but I’ve been doing it for the past three. Now I can’t stop. It works.

• Sparkpeople: this is a great online tool for tracking caloric intake, water intake and calories expended in exercise. It also has good articles.

• Increased Physical Benefits: especially since I’ve started running, I have reaped the blessings that muscles and endorphins bring.

• This Blog: has kept me accountable to my goals.

• Encouraging Friends and Family: especially the latter—

1. Brett has been throwing the skinny word at me for the last 80 pounds.

2. Mom raves about my ‘thin face’ every two pounds I lose (even though there’s no way it changes that visibly, that fast).

3. My nieces and nephews have always been ready to go with me on a walk, a bike ride, or a run, at the drop of a hat.

4. Dayna suffered through a summer of endless inquiries regarding the caloric value of her already healthy dinners and was always willing to make culinary adaptations for me when she was already feeding 3 other people.

5. Glenn went off sugar with me, checked in with me regularly and kept me accountable, encouraged, suggested, and always listened (and often when I’m sure he’d rather not have). And, he insisted I work toward exercise goals that frankly, I probably wouldn’t have even thought to attempt.

6. A church friend was always willing to go walking with me and Jenny and Elizabeth readily agreed to run/walk races with me.  Elizabeth and Glenn have also talked nutrition and exercise with me to exhaustion. 

7. And, I can’t think of one friend or family member that has tried to sabotage my no sugar rule. I was initially worried that I might be accused of fanaticism, or of being strange, but everyone has always been really supportive of it. Also, I can’t count the number of times friends have readily stated the belief that they think I will make it to my final goal. Considering that I have spent my whole life losing and regaining excess weight, I think this is a really generous attitude.