26 pounds down!!

I haven't posted here in a while, but that doesn't mean I haven't been making progress! 26 pounds down since I started getting serious about weight loss on Feb. 4th! I'm super proud of myself, but I still have a long ways to go. So I need to stay focused and on-task.

I am no longer doing the Medifast plan. That was WONDERFUL for me to get started and get a boost early on, but the plan doesn't match my core values of eating healthy, REAL food from nature and exercising to create the body I want. But it did give me a huge boost at the beginning and it got me going. So it was very, very useful for that. If I hit a plateau along the way, I am keeping that open as an option to do for a week here and there to get me going again--it's basically like going on a fast.

After doing Medifast for a week back in February, I have been eating fruits, vegetables, whole grains and really watching my portion sizes. I have been eating smaller meals, more frequently, which is really working for me. When I get hungry, I eat something small and continue to do that throughout the day.

I've also really started exercising in the last month--doing Zumba twice a week and going to the gym 3-4 mornings per week to do cardio and strength exercises. That has made me feel so much stronger. I just feel really great and my endurance is MUCH improved.

Now that I've lost 26 pounds, I feel like I'm kind of in my "crunch time". It has always been relatively easy for me to lose 20-30 pounds. Honestly, it doesn't seem like I've had to work that hard for it. I have soooo much extra weight, that 20-30 pounds isn't that much for me.

But in the last few years of trying to lose weight, I haven't been able to get past the 30 pound mark. Once I hit the 30-pound loss, I plateau there for a while, get frustrated, then give up and go back to old eating and non-exercise habits. Therefore, the weight comes back.

So this is a very critical time. I need to get past the 30 pound mark. My next goal is to hit the 40 pound mark. If I can do that, there will be a huge celebration!!!

February was a GREAT start!

It's been exactly four weeks since I really started losing weight and I've lost 18 pounds in 4 weeks! Most of that was in the first week and I am amazed that I was able to not only lose a few more pounds, but keep that weight off from the first week even though I wasn't nearly as strict!

But I'm definitely eating better overall. Major difference in how I'm eating.

I don't do fast food or eat out nearly as often--only 1-2 times a week. That's still not ideal, but it's a HUGE difference from what I've been doing.

I've been making it a point to cook and take time to prepare healthy meals, rather than just eating whatever is convenient at the time. My "sweet tooth" has also been tamed. I'm not really sure how that happened, but it's not as strong as it used to be at all.

My goal for March---Lose 15 pounds. I know we're only supposed to try to lose 1-2 pounds a week, but I need to shoot for more so I will work harder. I want to also incorporate exercise this month---something I didn't do at all in February.

So 15 pounds by April 1st. I can do it.