Weight loss update

Summer has officially ended and although I did not get as much pool time as I desired, I did manage to get in the water more than a couple of times. I am sad to say that I did not meet my fifteen pound goal, but I can honestly say that I have discovered more about myself as a person, as a woman and as a wife throughout this journey. In my first entry Summer weight loss I was excited and eager to lose weight. I was so enthused that I joined dietbet.com weight loss challenge. Yes, I gave strangers my money in hopes that I could win more money back after shedding the pounds (ain’t that some ish). I can explain, I had visions of a skinnier me and dollar signs in my eyes. I had to lose the weight, I had written a blog about it…I had set out a plan…I had a plan… one that I did not follow.  In fact, after that entry, I surpassed my then weight by five pounds. I never lost the weight and I lost my money (they laughed all the way to the bank…with my money). The bible verse, a fool and his money are soon parted is still applicable today.

What’s a girl to do when faced by a double whammy like that? Well, I have to give myself props, I did not give up! I threw a tantrum, I moped around, but I did not give up! I came to the realization that I may not have been eating often, but when I did, I ate a mountain of food. My husband is 6’1” while I am a short 4’10” (I have been measured at 4’9”) and I was piling my plate with the same amount of food as his (I matched him bite for bite) and wondering why my waistline kept expanding! I also realized that in order to see any difference I had to move…literally. I had to get up from my chair once in a while and walk around. I had become accustomed to sitting all day. I even scooted my rolling chair to get to the printer then back to my desk (I know, I am ashamed)

I decided that something needed to change. In an effort to keep track of my calories and the amount of food I consumed, I joined myfitnesspal.com. This allowed me to log everything and I mean everything that I ate. At first this was really hard, as I shocked myself by the amount of empty calories that I consumed (oh wine, thou art not my friend!) The fact that I could use the phone to enter my daily intake eliminated any excuses. It is amazing how willing I became to exercise once I saw how it would affect my caloric intake (relax, I do not eat back all the calories that I burn…no matter how tempting it is). Hubby and I are still consistently walking 9 holes of golf in the evenings. On the days that we don’t hit the course, I take the puppies for a walk. I have also discovered the joys of running/walking in place while watching the TV show Hoarders (don’t judge me at least I am making an effort).  

All in all I have lost the five pounds that I gained after proclaiming my weight loss plans. I am right back where I started, but this time I am armed with a few weapons in my arsenal. I did not learn my lesson and when my family decided to put money in the pot for a weight loss challenge, I jumped at the chance (I have never met a diet bet that I could pass up).

Although at times I did not feel like fighting the battle, my hubby my greatest cheerleader (and partner in doing damage to some food, we used to go hard on buffets…beast mode!) reminds me of my goals. He constantly tells me that he loves me just the way I am, which motivates me to get healthy for myself. I understand that it will be a hard road and I am not a spring chicken anymore (mmmhh chicken…focus!), but I am motivated by this guy who lost 560 pounds, and visions of a skinnier me in my winter leggings and cute scoop neck sweaters….and dollar signs.

I will do another check in November (Thanksgiving) before claiming my winnings from the family.

Have you experienced weight loss setbacks? If so, how did you overcome them? What are some of your motivations?    

Intentional Success

“Plan tomorrow tonight. Don't just let the day happen to you - Success is intentional” – Shun Strickland

As soon as those words came across my computer screen, I felt a deep case of déjà vu. I have often muttered the same words after a grueling race to accomplish an impossible task. Mind you, the same task would have been possible with enough preparation, but due to procrastination, I am often left scrambling. Ok, so I already have a clear understanding of the essence of what the message was telling me. Proper planning, efficiency, and success walk hand in hand. Those same attributes are what I strive for. Intentional success is something that I have desired for years. I have practiced it on several occasions and it has worked wonderfully. 

So why have I become known as the queen of procrastination you ask? Well, it is something that I just kind of fell into, just like many things in my life. As a young teenager, I remember my older sister admonishing me by using the adage “poor planning leads to poor performance which yields poor results.” At the time, her words were met with fierce eye rolls. Deep inside, I knew she was right. I used to thrive and survive on the adrenaline of last minute cramming or worse, last minute research paper writing. Over the years, I convinced myself that I did my best work under pressure. I got away with it in undergraduate school work, but it came back to haunt me in Law School. In my adult years, intentional success is what I desire and procrastination is something that I now want to nip in the bud. They say “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks,” but I believe that there is always an exception to every rule. As a young professional, I want to be the best at what I do. I want to be so far ahead of the game that nobody can ever accuse me of slacking.

How will I accomplish my goal of intentional success? Well, there are a lot of factors that have to come together in perfect celestial harmony (perhaps I am being a tad bit over dramatic.)

The said factors are:
1. Taking a personal inventory of my current situation
2. Setting goals and commitments
3. Developing mechanisms to abandon the need for external affirmation
4. Forced repetition
5. Doing proper research and self evaluation when I do not achieve the desired results
6. Engaging in activities that interest me
7. Developing a support system
8. Repeating steps 1-7 until it becomes a way of life

I have set these rules for myself. In the following days I will post several blog entries containing a brief breakdown of how I arrived at the aforementioned 7 rules. I will explore each of them in separate posts. In developing the rules, I realized that I needed a short and sweet view of what I needed to work on. Having a long list of goals would only serve to confuse me. I thought long and hard about what I need to change at this point in my life to be able to achieve intentional success. These rules do not apply to everyone, as we are all different. These rules were developed after a personal inventory of my strengths and weaknesses.

Are you on a personal quest for Intentional Success or have you achieved Intentional Success? If so, how did you do it and what were your experiences? Feel free to share your ideas.