Some Ways to Stay Motivated

I love to search the internet for great information.  I try to read a couple new sites every day on topics regarding health and fitness.  Knowledge is power and I need all the power I can get to keep my weight, eating, exercise and overall health in balance.  Here are a few new sites I ran across that have some good ideas.  Nothing earth shattering is found on these sites and I’m sure you’ve heard most of it before but sometimes we need a little reminder to keep us going.

http://www.articlesbase.com/supplements-and-vitamins-articles/6-ways-to-find-inspiration-to-guide-your-weight-loss-505685.html

This is a link to a great article with 6 ideas that will help you keep going toward your weight loss goal.

 

http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/diet-motivation-tips

This link is ideas for eating right.

 

http://resources.jimestill.com/2008/09/inspiration-to-work-out-14-tips/

Inspiration to keep exercising.

 

One of the best things I have learned is that life is a marathon not a sprint and you just have to tackle each day as it comes,  Right now I am LOVING exercising but still working to eat a little less but I am finding joy in everyday.  I am not beating myself up over not eating “perfectly”.  I am human and I do make mistakes.  Even my Heavenly Father doesn’t expect perfection from me right now but I sure will keep trying to do a little better each day.  We are ALL in this together.  We need each other to stay focused on this journey.  When I was was in the midst of losing weight I thought that once the weight was gone that I could relax on the exercise and eating but I was wrong.  To be healthy is a daily choice.  Some days the food wins and some days my health wins BUT I must never lose sight of my goal to be happy with who I am and how I feel!!!

Make a choice today that will bring you closer to reaching your goals!

I WON Kind-of

I entered my picture into a Facebook contest to win a free registration for the AF Canyon Half.  Well I didn’t get first place but I did get 2nd place with 195 votes over less than a weeks time.  I have the most amazing friends!!!! I just found out that I too get a free registration.  YEAAAAAAAA! 

Here is a great quote to keep you headed in the right direction.

Running

Last week we purchased a new treadmill.  I had forgotten how good it felt to run.  Sadly I am not running nearly as fast I was in the fall but I am running.  I also registered for the American Fork Canyon Half Marathon today.  I am so excited to run this race again.  I need a goal to work toward and this is it!  It was my first half and it was an amazing course and for a great cause. If you don’t run I challenge you to try it.  Start out slow and build up to full on running.  I never imagined I could ever run and now here I am planning to run my 3rd half marathon!  What an incredible change!  You too can change.

  The POWER to CHANGE is within YOU!!!

New Taste

I have read before that you get a new set of taste buds every 7 years. I have also been told that once you get rid of all the processed food, greasy fats, and sugars in your diet that you will actually taste things differently.  I was skeptical at first but I do enjoy the real foods without extra sugars and salt now.  Fruits and veggies taste differently to me now.  I love their flavor and crave them. I also really enjoy oatmeal without sugar but just a sprinkle of raisins and cinnamon.

 

Here I am enjoying my lunch today.  This is a SUPER Green Smoothie!  I only added a half scoop of vanilla protein powder, 1 1/2 cups water,  2 cups frozen mixed fruit, 1/2 large banana and 3 huge handfuls of baby spinach.  It makes 6 cups worth.  I’ll have the quart for my lunch then snack on the rest when I get hungry latter this afternoon. I used to need a full scoop of powder and extra stevia to be able to drink this but now I love the spinach flavor and it isn’t terrible anymore.

Races of 2011-Nothing is Impossible

I ran 3 races in 2011.  I ran my first ever half marathons, the American Fork Half and the Provo Halloween Half and one 5k.  I even ran them like a real runner with good times barely over 2 hours (2:05 and 2:01)! (They did have some good down hill assist with the good timing.)  My 5 K run was several minutes faster than my previous time too!  Not bad for a woman who only started running in May of 2010! AND was weighing in at 390 pounds just 2 years before!!!

Right now I’m stuck inside without a working treadmill and I long to run!  I know many who run no matter what the weather or temperature but my lungs just don’t like the cold air.  These pictures brought a smile to my face reminding me of how capable my body is of things a I once never believed were possible.

Never say it is IMPOSSIBLE!

Change it to I’M POSSIBLE!

After posting this today I found this actual quote that I didn’t even know existed out there:

On a More Personal Note…

I usually keep this blog just about weight loss and eating right (and I guess this still is) but there is so much more to me than that.  I am most importantly a wife to my incredible husband Dan and mommy to my 5 incredible children.  I have been thinking about my weight loss and how I never asked their permission for me to change.  I am a huge part of their lives and this would in fact change their lives forever.  Well weight loss would of course be a positive thing in all aspects, right?  Of course I can do so much more physically than I used to but in fact being healthy requires time, space and sometimes money.


I’ve thought about this off and on the last year.  My husband loved me at 300 plus pounds. That’s the only size I had ever been.  He loved my curves and all. He loves me no matter what size. He’s had me at size 30-32 all the way down to size 8. I have so many beautiful notes from him telling me that “I am the most beautiful woman in the world.” from before I lost weight. BUT I do exercise every night after the kids are in bed and this takes away from our time together.  He never complains and supports me but I still think back to the days of big bowls of ice cream sitting on the couch watching TV together.  Don’t get me wrong we still hang out but an hour less each night if I’m on the exercise equipment.  I have recently started attending a boot camp and toning class at 5am each morning. He never complains about the alarm waking him up a hour and bit before he needs to get out of bed. (I suppose that since I get back with 30 min to make a nice warm breakfast for the family that it makes up for it. :-) )

I appreciate his support and loving me enough to tell me when my weight was too low and putting up with me when my weight started getting higher than I’d like.  He is the greatest husband in the world and he is mine for all eternity.  Thank you Dan for all of your support and putting up with my new crazy eating and exercise habits.

My kids never were embarrassed by my weight. They say I was just “mom” but they will admit that they like that I am smaller now. They do get frustrated sometimes when I want exercise during the day or create a new “healthified” recipe. I admit not all of my recipes turn out great on the first try. They find ways to spend time with me in our very small exercise room and have given up a bedroom so that we can have an exercise room in the house. They are great kids and they love me no matter what size I am.  I am their mom and will be for all eternity.

True Happiness

True happiness does not come from the numbers on the scale but from knowing that I am doing my part.  When I do my part then I can feel MY Heavenly Father and Savior making up the difference for me.  Quoting one of my favorites, Brad Wilcox, “They make all the difference.” I know I can’t do this on my own but with fasting, prayer, the Temple, the scriptures and an amazing support team I know I can tackle the hard days.

There have been so many more hard days this last year! I was on track so nicely before my gall bladder surgery last year on Feb 1st.  For some reason the surgery gave me so many doubts about my body and how healthy I was.  I couldn’t exercise normally for 6 weeks and 10 pounds came on overnight and I haven’t lost those 10 pounds all year.  I can tell that my body doesn’t work quite the same as it used to.  I don’t NEED to be back at 185 pounds but I did really feel good at that weight.

I’d like to maintain around 190 for the rest of my life and NOT go over 200.  After just a week of eating right and exercising my body has responded quickly and I am back under 200 pounds.

What is different this time from last week or the week before?  I have turned to my Savior for His help.  I have found great comfort in the Temple and in the scriptures.  When I am spiritually in tune then I am more able to tackle my food cravings that have overwhelmed me lately.  I attended a Health Expo yesterday and all of the vendors had their quick fixes and tricks but none of their tricks will last forever.  You have to find for yourself  the strength to change and figure out where your strength comes from to keep going toward your goals. My strength comes from my faith.  I feel so blessed to be a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  I can’t imagine a life without the beliefs that I have. I pray that each of you will be able to find you own strength to keep going and truly find happiness and peace with yourself!