Losing weight in spite of myself.

I began this blog in February 2011 as a way to help me not quit trying to lose weight, and to learn a few things. It's been an interesting and powerful experience. It certainly confirms what I've long suspected--that although I am a genuinely happy cheery person in the main, I am NOT a happy cheery dieter. I DETEST losing weight. I resent being overweight in the first place and I am a virtuoso in the art of self-sabotage. And YET--I'm doing it! I'm fighting and kicking and EATING all the way down, but the weight is finally going down. The plan I was following in February was a half-baked one largely based on wishful thinking. I gained a little weight and decided to get real. I knew I couldn't just join weightwatchers or count calories or do any one plan and expect to be successful. I decided if I was going to bother to make the effort to lose weight I was going to throw everything I could think of at the problem. And so I do. My real "Day One" for this blog is April 1, 2011. I joined weight watchers, I joined caloriecount.com (awesome website), I read the blog losingweighteveryday.blogspot.com religiously, I keep this blog faithfully, I joined the health programs sponsored by my insurance, I use the principles from overeater's anonymous, I use my church's 12 step program as well, I subscribe--and use--Healthy Cooking Magazine.



The result of all this? Painfully slow progress (About 20 lbs in 10 months). But it IS progress and like the little engine that could I keep on trying in my rebellious way. I have no intention of quitting. This is by far the longest sustained weight loss effort I've ever made in my life. Successful I think, because for the first in my life I've done this MY way--which I've discovered, involves a lot of pizza and restaraunt food. I'm convinced this is the only way to lose weight. For me it must be MY way. For you it MUST be YOUR way. Not weight watcher's way, not your doctor's way, but YOUR way. Any plan or idea I use is only a tool.

The latest plan to lose weight my way began on Oct 29, 2013. It really is my own crazy plan. As you'll see if you read that post. I've implemented the best ideas of all sorts of eating plans and thrown out the scale. A couple of months in and I'm definitely healthier. I'm actually enjoying myself. I won't weigh until April 1, 2014, so I'll see then if this works the way I hope it will.

There is no magic weight loss bullet. But there IS a great deal of magic in the discovery of what I can happily live with (very different from what weight watchers tells me I can happily live with) and still have the body and health I want.

Good luck to all of us on this journey. It's quite a trip!







Thursday, April 5, 2012

369 Normalizing

Gorgeous weather and still getting back to normal. Yesterday's hitch was the bookclub lunch--oops--forgot about that. Love going out to eat on work time though. :)  Environment makes all the difference--everyone I work with now is healthy and it helps sooo much! Everyone took a normal portion at the lunch (including me out of peer pressure), some took dessert and some didn't. It helped me to choose to skip dessert--this was a less virtuous decision than it sounds because the reason I skipped it was because I had an almond joy easter egg that I was determined to have. Still not having the dessert AND the egg is an improvement. For dinner I made a chicken burger receipe that Dave found. This one is one to have again--you fry up diced apples and onions and also make some crispy bacon and mix that with some bread crumbs and spices in with the chicken then top with provolone cheese. The topping was mayo with cheery preserves and chives. Of course we had this with our standby oven fries. A great dinner. Skipping the lunch dessert and walking to work paid off too--184 this morning. It's encouraging--yes, maintenence is still going to take work, but boy is it easier than losing! But I'm mentally gearing up to work to lose another 10 and then maintain at that level for awhile.

Today I'm grateful for:
Spring!!!
A "european" style breakfast--a roll with butter, cheese, yogurt, milk, juice and hot chocolate.
little 100 cal microwave popcorn
Reeses Easter Eggs
funeral potatos for dinner
a husband who can and will resurrect the lawn mower
a yard to work in--I'm belatedly learning to like gardening and yard work--must be Mom's influence.
people who discover healthy reciepes and share them

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