Patting myself on the back

Okay, a couple days ago I mentioned my being 120 lbs. Ha! You should not take that to mean my current weight.

ALTHOOOOOUGH, the change of eating habits I started with the Six Week Body Makeover two? months ago is still going very well. I'm going to actually admit to how much I weighed when I started. And then I'll include - gasp, I can't believe I'm going to do this - a picture of then and now. Hey, the picture I saw a couple weeks ago of me just before I started that diet convinced me that I do NOT want to look like that again. I don't want to eat like that. I don't want to FEEL like that.

I'm not trim and in shape by any means but I fit into a reasonable size, and don't look like my mother. I'm also eating MUCH healthier and considerably smaller portions. Basically this diet, after you determine the types of foods for your body type, is eating 5-6 very small portions of food at regular intervals.

I used to be proud of keeping up with the men at the all you can eat buffet. Typical American glutton. And that mentality got me into a lifestyle of bulimia from my teens. Once I quit, my weight gradually began increasing because I couldn't control my calorie intake.

My aunt sat next to me one time and said, "Ok, now put your fork down and chew. I couldn't. I felt like I was imprisoned. I literally couldn't take my hand away from the fork.

Something has to change for you to be ready. Some catalyst - a bad doctor's visit, needing a new wardrobe, feeling awful - something. In my case, I had always said I wouldn't allow myself to get as out of shape and overweight as my mother. Now, I'm five-two and wear a size 3!!! wedding ring so I figured FAT for me would be 150.

Three months ago I stepped on the scale and I weighed 155! I must have made an unconscious decision because two days later, the Six Week Body Makeover DVD arrived. And I haven't looked back. It's very inconvenient when you're away from home, or even at home, to have small meals prepared so that you can eat breakfast, midmorning, lunch, mid afternoon, dinner and then late evening. It's even harder to find the foods you need on the run unless you live in a big city where the grocery stores have healthy salad bars. So I broil my chicken and beef and vegetables for the week on Sunday. I make up a batch of rice noodles, get a can of seasoned mustard greens and snack through the day on my little pre-portioned meals.

I thought about Nutrisystem. But frankly, I didn't want to spend that much and once the Nutrisystem meals stop coming you have to learn to do it on your own. This plan appealed to me because of the educational aspect. I understand more about the incorrect foods I was eating. For instance, rice is complex, natural carb which sustains energy when you're exercising even. But pasta is pounds of flour, worked and compressed into a form that is not as good for you. An orange is better than orange juice because - duh - how many oranges does it take to make a glass of orange juice? So much common sense but also some good information.

WELL, here it is - OMG - I can't believe it's only been seven weeks! And I'm down to 135. It feels so good not to be quite so overweight. But I'm going to keep eating like this and get down to what they used to call a 'set point', a natural place for your weight to rest. And I must get back to that treadmill at my target heart rate.

Yeh, me! For once I didn't do it for anyone BUT me. That's probably why I was successful.

Meme from Leah

Wow, can't believe this got by me. It didn't post.

What was I doing ten years ago?
Acting as General Manager for a Manufacturing company with all the responsibilities of the owner, but still acting to the owner as if he were doing everything. Yeah, male chauvinist. Then, when he finally figured out that I really was running the business, he laid me off! Uh-huh.

What are five things on my to-do list today?
Finish my content for Rae Monet for my Brand new website - Marley Delarose.
Get back on Revisions of MOL, two chapters to do by end of day.
Finish Maria Ferrarella's Capturing the Millionaire, an SSE, to determine if any of my Wips would fit that imprint.
Do the wash and fix breakfast and dinner, since CF man is home today.
Exercise since I'm doing so well on my diet plan.

Snacks I enjoy
Did I mention I'm on a diet? So with six meals a day I haven't had the desire to snack. But when I run the mail I usually stop by the Uptown Grocery and get a piece of their veggie pizza. Man is it good! I even had a piece on the diet and it hasn't hurt me.

Places I've lived

New Carrolton, MD
Falls Church, VA
Natchez, MS
Atlanta, GA

(forget that)

PLACES I WISH I LIVED NOW
Edinburgh
Italy
Canada
Maryland
Atlanta


Things I would do if I were a billionaire

MOVE, travel, write full time
HIRE A LIVE IN MAID
Build a a few new houses around the world
Learn to fly
Pay for a trip in the shuttle
Help a lot of people

Peeps I want to know more about
OKAY I promise I'm going to come up with some people to tag

Thanks for MEME(ing) me.

Do you need to lose weight?

I saw an infomercial a couple weeks ago, the Six Week Body Makeover. Honestly, I don't know what made me order it but it's been so fantastic.

It is based on your body type which is determined by your answers to a questionaire. Then your diet and exercise is customized to your type. The program comes with a dvd and cds, exercise band for your body-sculpting and a notebook which is everything you need to begin and track your progress for you own body type.

I grilled my chicken breasts and steak ahead on Sunday and ate them through the week, six meals a day, even when I wasn't hungry.

I LOST 10 pounds in 6 days!! I was trying to walk 20-30 minutes keeping my target heart rate level, but we got busy so I hope things will level out this week with a little more regular exercise.

If you're as ready as I was to get healthy, give it a try. (A little heads up - they'll try to sell you a bunch of stuff you don't need like the fat burning pills, etc. They just add cost to the program, and it works great without the other stuff.)

Writing goals and starvation diets

Okay, I'll admit. Setting a goal for 10,000 words to catch up after four days of not writing is kinda like going on a starvation diet to compensate for overeating. If it hadn't been for NaNo...

Well, I know what I need to do - just keep plugging out the very manageable 1500 to 2000 a day. At least I'm developing a better pattern of writing behavior. I actually setup a hair appointment for 11:30 am Monday because I plan to write until 11:00. Baby steps.

Habits get better with practice.