Week XVI: Patience

Good Afternoon Readers,

I wanted to talk to you about something that is very important when trying to reach your fitness and/or health goals. Many of you, I'm sure, have made resolutions to lose weight. Unfortunately, many will also give up after about two weeks of making that resolution. Instead of pointing fingers, I can sympathize with many of you on why you might give up so quickly.

When I took on this challenge of living a healthier lifestyle I had a number in mind that I wanted to lose within a years time. I broke it down and figured out how much that meant I would need to lose each week in order to hit my goal. Well, you can imagine my frustrations when it took me almost two whole months to even drop a pound. TWO WHOLE MONTHS: 8 weeks: 60 days.. to even see one pound flutter off the scale. But, the great thing is that I did lose that one pound.. and many many many more following.

It's human nature, I think, to give up after not getting results immediately. Particularly in this day in age we are conditioned and expected to have instant gratification. To put in so much time and effort and see results is like a high, but when you don't see results it's like a punch in the stomach. Thus, many of us figure, 'why put in so much effort if things aren't going to change.'. Something I learned from my journey on this healthier road was that patience can bring the biggest rewards. Liposuction, quick-fix diets, "magic pills", can bring on quick results, however, they won't last and don't teach you how to keep that weight off. Taking the time to figure your body out and coach it to success is the only way to reach results that are lasting and worth your while.

I know you are all thinking that this is easier said than done: waiting for the weight to come off. And you're right. Motivation is a hard thing to hold on to when you don't have anything tangible to keep you going. But, as I said, my journey has been a learning process. And I knew there was no turning back to my old ways, this was it. It was keep trying, or be unhealthy forever. So, I decided I needed to find my "tangible" object to focus on and find motivation within. The focus I kept in the forefront was the fact that, although the weight wasn't coming off, I was feeling stronger and my body was loving the endorphin-endused workouts. So, I stuck through it. I never gave up and I wish everyone could feel what I'm feeling now. I'm only 15 pounds away from my goal weight which is unreal to me.

I've built such a happy person through all of this. My happiness did not come from seeing the weight drop, it came from looking and feeling healthy, laughing and smiling without feeling self-conscious, and being the Kate I know I'm supposed to be. Patience pays off, people. Anything is worth the weight wait ;) You have to want it, mind, body, and soul. And you can do it!! I believed in me, I believe in you, and know that in each of us is a happy and healthy person who just needs patience and perseverance to come out.

Quote of the Week:
"It's not about the weight." - my personal trainer

xx
-Kate

Week XV: The Invisible Muscle

Hi Followers!

The holidays are such a tease: delicious cookies, feasts, wine, desserts for us to enjoy, then (BAM!) New Years resolutions start a week later. Okay, really, whose sick joke is this???

Well, it may be really tough for us to get off track and jump back on, but it's also a good time to strengthen what I call the "invisible muscle". This invisible muscle is the strength it takes from falling off the bandwagon to having to climb right back on. For some people this takes weeks, maybe months to pull themselves back up after they've given in to the 'dark side'. And yet I was always amazed at how some people could eat one bad meal and then completely get back on track by the next. So, I thought right now was the perfect time for me to learn how to strengthen this muscle and have a quick rebound after I had a not-so-healthy week.

Easier said than done, right? Well, considering I've been following a healthier lifestyle for more than 4 months now, it wasn't as hard as I imagined. Let's go back in time about 8 days ago: Katie gets diagnosed with "walking pneumonia", which translates to "not allowed to workout for a week". Lingering holiday food around, no where to escape to, and visions of sugar-plums danced around in my head... okay we'll blame that one on the pneumonia. As you can tell, this was becoming a very appropriate time for me to fall off the wagon.

So, it certainly wasn't my best week. But, I continued to remind myself that this was a trial period for me. Trial, in terms of how I would react to this "beyond my control" situation. Typically in the past I would have just gone full-throttle into the eating bad, lazy, don't care attitude. But, I knew I was stronger than that, and thus, I decided instead of throwing in the towel, I would compensate for my situation. So, I made sure I kept my food intake in check more closely since I wouldn't be able to give my body a good workout. Some of the things I did was to keep a food diary (bodymedia.com), drink a TON of water, and get lots of rest. Even though I wasn't working out, my body was burning a decent amount of calories to heal itself. I did give in to a few cravings but only because, as I mentioned in a previous post, if I pushed that craving aside I would most likely want it twice as much later. And honestly, it worked. I had my unhealthy choice but then got it out of my system and didn't look back. Either way, I really tried to stay optimistic and not give up when so much was trying to pull me down.

Now, a week later, I am back in my gym routine (slowly of course), and on my regular food plan, as well. I'm only planning to go to my trainer once this week as my lungs aren't quite where I'd like them to be just yet. But I'm getting there, and I'm so glad that I had the strength to stay afloat while many temptations were pulling me down into the lazy, eat-what-you-want trap. I really found a way to pulse that invisible muscle called willpower to stay on track and pull myself up off the ground when sickness and the holidays were waiting for me as a speed bump along the way.

You know, I'm a really big adventurist. I love to create journeys for myself and see where I end up, who I meet, situations I'll have to handle, how I can grow from these new experiences.. But, I'm learning that one of my biggest adventures never even required me to leave my town. This whole experience of testing myself and pushing myself to be the best "me" has been a whole adventure on its own and probably been the most rewarding journey I'll take myself on. But then again.. never say never, right?!?

Well, until next time readers...

Quote of the Week:
"Life is either a great adventure or nothing" - Helen Keller

xx
-Kate

Week XIV: A Week of Three's

First of all, I hope you all had a very special and happy Christmas!

I know I mentioned that the best gift I had given myself was dropping 25 pounds, but can you believe that I have dropped nearly 8 more pounds since then!?! That's right, so now I'm down 33 pounds AND 3 jean sizes. Thus, I am declaring this week my "Week of Three's"!

It has been grueling with all the holiday cookies sitting around and delicious dishes friends and family have brought over, but, somehow I managed to stay mostly on track and only eat goodies in moderation. In all honesty, Christmas Eve was probably the hardest. I ate cookie after cookie, lasagna, drank wine.. you name it, I had it. I felt sick after I'd given in to the temptations around me. But, what I told myself after is what made the difference in my ability to stay on track. I knew that I hadn't eaten like that in a very long time, and wouldn't be successful if I kept it up. So, I made sure I stopped eating around 7pm that night, woke up, and started fresh. I made sure that if I really wanted a cookie I would let myself have one, considering if I hadn't let myself I'd crave it twice over later on. That brings me to a new revelation I've had as well..

The other day my mom apologized to me for having so many sweets and "bad" foods in the house as family came to stay with us. I told her to stop apologizing because I can have those foods if I want them- it's just that I don't want them. I found that if I tell myself I can't have something, I want it that much more- not exactly rocket science. But, somehow I found that telling myself I can have it, that I don't crave it. I mean, the saying does go, "you want what you can't have". And I found that beyond material things, the saying applies to food and cravings as well. The hard part is that it comes down to your own will power at that point, because if you actually do want it, then you better off eating it than craving it x10 in the future. I try to remind myself that even though it looks good and might smell good, it never tastes as good as you imagined and nothing feels as good as having your brother say, "whoa, hello miss skinny!", after not seeing him for 4 months. So, my point is, try to find something to keep you away from wanting what isn't the best for your health, and you'll soon see that it isn't so hard to stare at those fluffy little cookies and look away without taking a bite.

Quote of the Week:
"You can have anything you want if you will give up the belief that you can't have it."- Dr. Robert Anthony

xx,
-Kate