Milestone

I did it!  I reached my 10% weight loss goal!  I have joined Weight Watchers two times previously and both times I have lost weight, but both times I have also gained it back plus "interest".  Never in those two previous attempts have I reached my 10% weight loss goal, and it only took me about two and a half months.  The one sobering fact is that my current weight is still more than my starting weight at both my previous attempts at Weight Watchers.  So, I still have a long way to go, but I am focusing on the small victories, setting small, manageable goals, and concentrating on one day at a time.  My next goal is to loose another 10%.

So what have I learned this time around?  I have learned the importance of exercise.  I know, what a revelation.  Logically we all know that exercise is important not only to weight loss, but to living a more healthy life in general.  So why don't we all exercise?  Because it is not part of our daily routine.  I think the most important thing I have learned is that you need to have an exercise plan, and an ultimate goal.  I have been following the Basic Training Guide for new runners provided by World Vision for the marathon and I know that this has been the key to my very successful weight loss this time around.  I have not been particularly good about my food choices, and for the last couple weeks I have not only used up all my Weekly Points Allowance, but I have also used some of my Activity Points.

I know a lot of that sounds like mumbo jumbo, but Weight Watchers members know what I'm talking about.  Briefly, all Weight Watchers members receive a daily point target, meaning those are the points I have for food that day.  The number of points you get is determined by your age and your current weight.  As you lose weight, or if you have a birthday (therefore getting one year older), your daily points will decrease.  I started with 47 points, and I am now down to 42.  Every time I eat something, I deduct the points of that food item from my daily total.  All members also have a Weekly Points Allowance which are 49 additional points to use throughout the week.  At the end of the week, if you haven't used all your weekly points you lose them and you start over with 49 for the next week.  You can also earn Activity Points by exercising.  The harder and longer you work out, the more points you can earn, which you can then add to your weekly allowance.  So, for me, my week starts on Wednesdays, that is when I weigh in and when my weekly points start over.  Recently I have been using up all my weekly points by around Saturday and started using up activity points.  The first time that happened I was worried that I was going to gain that week, but when I weighed in I had lost.  The more I thought about it, I started to realize that with all the extra exercising I am doing, my body simply needs more food.  I get hungry quicker than I used to.

This is a good thing because it means I am building up my metabolism, but I am worried that once the Marathon is over if I stop exercising and keep up these eating habits, I will gain the weight back.  The solution, of course, is to keep exercising.  But I need a plan and a goal.  Having the marathon looming in my future is a very powerful motivator for me to get on that treadmill everyday, even when I don't feel like it.  Maybe I will make the marathon a yearly event or maybe I will try something else, like a triathlon.  We'll see, but I definitely have to do something if I want to keep the weight off.

I want to end on a high note.  I am thrilled to have achieved my 10% weight loss goal!  I have lost almost 30 lbs and people have been giving me lots of compliments about how I look.  That makes it easier to keep going.

Big Decisions

Two weeks ago I was at church.  It was Sunday morning and before the sermon started two people got up and told us about the World Vision Marathon team.  Last year my church had a team that ran the Chicago marathon to raise money for World Vision.  I knew a few people who ran.  I also knew two other people who ran last year's marathon just on their own.  I was so inspired by those people.  I can remember thinking, "Man, that is such a cool thing.  I wish I could do that, but I know that I never will."  Two weeks ago, however, when I heard those two guys talking about the World Vision team I felt deeply called.  So I went to the information meeting.  I listened to the presentations and I collected all the handouts, but I didn't sign up.  I went home and spent 24 hours thinking.  I talked with my mom and decided that this is something that I can do.  So I signed up and started training that same day.

I am now starting my third week of training.  In the last two weeks I have been overall very positive.  I have not regretted making this decision.  I have even started to (sort of) enjoy the running.  Today I ran for 35 minutes with a run 3 minutes/walk 1 minute pattern.  Up until now I have been running 2 minutes and walking 1 minute.  I would be lying if I said that today was not a struggle, especially toward the end.  But when it's over and I'm stretching, I always feel exhilarated and very proud.  I have noticed a dramatic change in my body.  The most notable change I have noticed is that my jeans are now so big on me that I can slip them off without unbuttoning them.  Before I even thought about running the marathon, however, I was working on losing weight.  I signed up for Weight Watchers and Curves in the middle of January and lost about 11 pounds before I started training for the marathon.

When I started this new year, my plan for 2011 was to get a job and move out of my parents house.  I still would like to do those things, but it is looking like 2011 is instead going to be the year of getting in shape.  I think changing my body will do just as much, if not more, to alleviate my depression as moving out.  I have mostly been met by positive attitudes when I tell people that I am running the marathon, after they get over their shock that is.  There have been a few bumps along the road, and I am sure there will be many more before October 9th, but I am committed to this.  I am committed to raising money for World Vision, but I think I am even more committed to changing myself.