Wedding Weight.....

I promised to “weigh in” on my own challenge with the pounds and fitness as a whole. The last 6 months have been wild and wonderful- just like West Virginia, the state I got married in. I ran in a marathon. I assembled a world-class team of nutrition experts and exercise physiologists. I logged my food and tracked my exercise. I learned about my body and what it can and “has a harder time” doing via metabolic testing.

I lost pounds and inches. The wedding came and I looked and felt great!

Now, the honeymoon is in the distant past (more than 6 weeks in the past) and you ask, “How are you doing?” Great! I’m doing great!

I don’t have the numbers to tell you about- because I don’t own a scale. But my clothes continue to feel loose and comfortable on me.

The Pros: I still eat really well. I am 90% vegetarian. (Full disclosure here folks, where else can you get that today?) I graze. I eat every 2-3 hours. My meals are smaller, very healthful (for the most part) and fill me up. I love my new style of eating. We visit the farmers markets twice a week for fresh ingredients to cook with. We now eat at home 95% of the week. We used to eat out 75% of the time!

The Cons: I picked up a new client which has really challenged my schedule. Given I shut down at 5 PM to have my “honey time” with my new husband- my gym time has been cut out. I was going to the gym 4-5 times a week for at least 45 minutes and now I don’t go.

The beauty of this dilemma is that it mirrors that of what I hear from others who are challenging their unfit ways.

Here is my advice for how to manage without the gym:

Ø Are you taking 1 hour a day for yourself? (Reading, exercising, meditating, painting, …) Make sure you do. You will not be helpful to anyone if you aren’t good to yourself first.
Ø Walk more. I have now added two hours of walking into my weekly schedule. I walk to and from errands, clients, etc… Plus, I still walk the dogs (perhaps a little more diligently now).
Ø Log your food. Each bite. Make sure you know how much you are eating (fat grams, cholesterol, calories, servings, etc…)
Ø Eat better. Choose fresh ingredients you feel good about.
Ø Cook more. Don’t allow anyone to put your pounds on for you. Choose your guilty pleasures carefully- yourself. Limit salt. Limit quantities. You see where I’m going.
Ø Educate those you love. Make this a lifestyle everyone wants to be a part of. Celebrate every pound lost and every inch that’s disappeared! Enjoy tasting your food for once, not just swallowing it!
Ø Work on your home. Gardening and home chores are good exercise. Learn to love going up and down the steps- carrying things!
Ø Keep a journal. Note how you feel, what you are doing and why you are doing it.
Ø Commit to yourself! Look at photos of you then and now. Describe how you feel/felt. Imagine how you want to describe yourself and how you feel. Do it now. Tomorrow is never guaranteed.

I hope this helps you. I’m not proud of not getting to the gym. But, I’m not allowing that to be an excuse to override my hard work either. I’m not going to be over 200 pounds ever again. I’ve committed that to me!

Fitness Update

In two months recording time, February to April. Here are the differences in my body measurements.

Measurement: Start Date of February 26, 2009 to April 22, 2009 = Change
Body Weight 178 lbs to 171 lbs =- 7 lbs
Fat Weight 73.6 lbs to 64.7 lbs = - 8.9 lbs
Lean Body Weight 104.4 lbs to 106.3 lbs = + 1.9 lbs
Neck 13" to 12 1/2" = - 1/2"
Biceps 12 7/8" to 12 1/8" = - 3/4"
Forearm 9 7/8" to 9 5/8" = - 1/4"
Wrist 5 7/8" to 5 7/8" = 0
Waist 36" to 34 3/4" = - 1 1/4"
Hips 44 1/2" to 42 1/2" = - 2"
Top-Thigh 26 3/4" to 26 1/4" = - 1/2"
Mid-Thigh 22 1/2" to 22 1/4" = - 1/4"
Calf 15 7/8" to 16 3/8" = + 1/2"
Ankle 8 3/4" to 9 1/8" = + 1/4"
Shoulder Width 16 3/8" to 16 3/4" = + 3/8"
Hips Width 15 7/8" to 14 3/8" = - 1 1/2"

You can see that these measurements are often the ones that keep you going- not just the numbers on the scale. Don't be discouraged. I wasn't. I was sometimes disappointed but never discouraged. I knew I was working hard and doing the right things. The numbers will eventually follow with their ups and downs.

Now that my marathon is over. I'll continue running for 1/2 hour when I work out but now focus on weights so my arms look the best they can in that special dress I get to wear in two weeks.

Happy health to you.

172.4 and feeling great

OK, last week the scale said 171.0. GREAT! This week 172.4. Well, there is a good reason for that- and I'll spare all of our male readers but you can guess what it is. We, women, have a few pound fluctuation each month during a particular week.

I had a killer shin splint on Friday from my fast-paced walking (for an hour) on Thursday. Funny, my body prefers to run vs. walk fast as measured by how I get shin splints from walking and not running! Weird but true. But, I worked through the pain- working out for a full 1 hour on Friday, Sunday and Monday. I took Saturday off. (I am allotted one day per week to not work out.) This morning I went back to running for a minute in between walking. My body has really adjusted nicely to that. I find that I can run for more minutes than before. GREAT!

The marathon is just a few weeks away. The wedding a few more than that. I feel wonderful. I know the numbers haven't budged much but my confidence and strength sure have! My trainers tell me not to worry about the weight as much because I'm really putting on great muscle in my legs from the workouts. And, my nutritionist is mostly happy with my eating plan. Yes, I can do better!

So, its off to another great week. I've got a few exciting events this week but plan to remain vigilant to my health plan (with Friday being my exception!).

If you are in Pittsburgh, and female, join me and my fitness team for a workshop on Thursday. See my website for details. RSVP today if you want to attend.

Health, happiness and prosperity to each of you. Keep up the good fight to gain your health back!