Strategies & Wins!

I've had some big wins this past week; so I thought I'd share. Maybe it will give you some ideas, maybe you'll give me a virtual pat on the back. Either or both outcomes will be worth the time it takes to type this post.

Win #1-My husband has perfected a recipe for roasted almond toffee with dark chocolate. He makes it every year to give to his co-workers, some neighbors, home teaching families, etc. Toffee is at the top of my list of favorite treats, especially when paired with roasted almonds and dark chocolate. So he stayed up the other night making this toffee. The whole house smelled of roasted nuts and butter and sugar mixing together to create the delightful delicacy. I told myself that the next morning I would have a couple pieces, about 150 calories worth and that would be it for the day. So I ate some toffee with my before workout banana. I figured if I was going to eat it, might as well be early in the day so I could burn off the sugar calories. To help myself the rest of the day I put this tupperware of carrots out in front of the treats. When I walked past and thought about eating a piece of toffee, just a tiny chunk, I grabbed a carrot instead. I did awesome, and perhaps now carrots will somehow give me the satisfaction of toffee when I have  a sweet tooth. Crazier things have happened, right? Thankfully he packaged up most of this toffee and gave it out last night. We have  a few families' portions left, but I found I don't have to eat it. I enjoyed it, and appreciated it, and now we get to share it with others.


Win #2-At our ward party last week I filled up half my plate with salad, measured 2 tsp of dressing, took one roll, one fried chicken thigh, a small serving of mashed potatoes, skipped the gravy and called it good. They were serving pie, and I technically had the calories I could have used for it in my budget for the day, but I looked at the pies and I didn't feel like I really wanted any of them, so I passed. I had a great time at the party! I didn't stuff myself or eat more than I should have. I savored that piece of fried chicken and found it was enough.

Win #3-This week I reached the weight loss goal that I set for myself on LoseIt last November.  As soon as Judson was born I started training to run the New York City Marathon. Really I never quit training. I worked out my whole pregnancy with that goal in mind, knowing I couldn't get out of shape or I'd never be ready to run that race because Jud was born in May and the race was in November. It takes about 16 weeks to properly train for a marathon, and that schedule starts when you're already in shape enough to run for 45-60 minutes without feeling you'd like to keel over dead, so I knew I just didn't have time to mess around. I kept my weight gain under control and exercised until the day before Jud was born. But still I had gained 40 lbs. A good healthy amount of weight to gain, but a lot to carry around when you're trying to run 26.2 miles. Through my marathon training process I only lost 7 pounds from the time I came home from the hospital with Jud to race day. All those miles I trained and still I hang onto that baby weight. My body with the nursing and running and stress of a new baby, just wasn't going to let go. So I didn't worry about it. I focused on the running and said, "As soon as the marathon is over I'll switch my focus to losing the baby weight."

So, the second week of November, 2011when I got home from New York I downloaded the LoseIt app and started counting calories. It was the beginning of the holiday season, but I wasn't going to wait any longer.  I had a trainer friend help me with some cross training workouts and continued to run 3x a week. I worked hard and did well for 6 months. Then last Spring I hit a plateau, 10-12 lbs from my goal weight. I was burnt out and a bit frustrated, so I took a break from counting calories and logging my every bite of food. Up to that point I had been pretty darn near perfect in my food logging and exercise. So when I just stopped losing, I knew I had to change things up. I didn't take a break from healthy eating or exercising, but I just decided I needed some time off from thinking about it so much. I maintained that weight all summer. I felt happy and healthy and enjoyed being fit, even if it wasn't "perfect".  And then I got back on the horse when I started training for a half marathon this fall. I wanted to lose those last 10 pounds. I could face the calorie logging once again and I started to see results on the scale.  I did a cleanse to help control my sugar habit, and then I started this holiday competition we're enjoying now.

13 months after my initial goal, about 6 months longer than I originally thought it would take, I finally hit that goal weight. But you know what? I have been feeling great for a while now and have been happy and enjoyed life, even before achieving that number on the scale. But now that I have hit that magical number, I wanted to take a moment to think back over this journey & share. Because it's truly much more about the journey and what I've gained through the process. Beyond being able to pull out the bin of my smallest size clothes and having them fit, there's more! I have energy; I have healthy habits; I've taught myself a lot about nutrition; I understand my body really well; I know I can overcome slumps; I know plateaus aren't forever; I believe what I do most of the time makes the biggest difference so I let myself enjoy and celebrate when it's appropriate; I teach my kids about healthy choices too; I cook good food that's nutritious; I don't resent food, but I love it & love to share it; I have amazing friends and family who support me and applaud my successes too; I exercise early in the morning because I like it; I look forward to improving and doing new things; I am strong; I run with my kids; I lift them and spin them and play with them & it doesn't tire me out; I do fun races with my siblings & friends; and I just feel good!

I'm going to set a goal to lose 5 more pounds. That will be an average of a pound a week for the rest of this competition. I hit my goal weight, but there's some extra on these hips that could say goodbye. So I have a new plan and a new goal. But it's not because I'm not happy. It's just a new thing to work for. Next on the list-TRIATHLON, sometime this year.

Thanks all for helping me along on the journey and letting me help you. I truly love it!

Carry on!!!