Let's Get Physical!

Is it just me, or is it difficult to find time to exercise? For the most part, I'm willing TO exercise, it just doesn't fit into my schedule as conveniently as I would like. I work full-time, my commute is lengthy, and I have a husband who would like for me to be home and cook dinner at some type of a reasonable hour. (I can't even begin to imagine how those with children do it!)


And yet, exercise is definitely important. For me, the key to losing weight is watching what I eat, but I certainly can't knock the benefits that exercise provides -- muscle tone, heightened weight losses, stress relief. I think the secret is trying to find ways to sneak it in...something I'm still working on.


When I first lost weight, I was surprised at how I didn't mind parking a little further away from the grocery store doors -- I actually wanted to walk. I don't encounter many flights of stairs, but I try to take those as well (at least on occasion). If nothing else, I try to keep in mind that what could be seen as inconveniences in life (walking further in the parking lot, circling the office a few times to find someone, having seats on the 3rd level of the hockey arena) are opportunities to squeeze in a little extra fitness. It may not be much, but I'm certain that it's better than nothing!


On a side note, I loved the song "Let's Get Physical" as a child (I thought it was really about working out!). I'm sure my mother just loved having her 4-year-old belt it out on a regular basis! ;-)

Struggling

It would appear that there's nothing like announcing your plans to slim down and tone up to really throw a wrench in your diet. I'm nearly half-way through my six weeks, and if anything, I think I'm worse off than I was. I've been working on switching up my workouts (interval-style cardio, more strength training), so that part is good (when I actually make it to the gym!), but the diet part of my plan has been terrible.

I'd love to blame the usual suspects -- Super Bowl, Valentine's Day, gourmet cupcakes -- but the truth of the matter is that there's always going to be some type of special event or tempting food to derail my plans. At the end of the day, I have to make a choice to give in or resist. Unfortunately, I'm not very good at choosing wisely.

Over the course of the past week, I've been thinking a lot about Paul's confession that he so often finds himself doing the very things that he doesn't want to do. And wouldn't you know, that's exactly the chapter in Romans that we studied in my small group Bible study last weekend.

From The Message version of that passage:
 17-20But I need something more! For if I know the law but still can't keep it, and if the power of sin within me keeps sabotaging my best intentions, I obviously need help! I realize that I don't have what it takes. I can will it, but I can't do it. I decide to do good, but I don't really do it; I decide not to do bad, but then I do it anyway. My decisions, such as they are, don't result in actions. Something has gone wrong deep within me and gets the better of me every time.

21-23It happens so regularly that it's predictable. The moment I decide to do good, sin is there to trip me up. I truly delight in God's commands, but it's pretty obvious that not all of me joins in that delight. Parts of me covertly rebel, and just when I least expect it, they take charge.

24I've tried everything and nothing helps. I'm at the end of my rope. Is there no one who can do anything for me? Isn't that the real question?

25The answer, thank God, is that Jesus Christ can and does. He acted to set things right in this life of contradictions where I want to serve God with all my heart and mind, but am pulled by the influence of sin to do something totally different.

I love Paul's honesty about his struggles. I can't count how many times I've found myself in that very spot -- with food and diet, but also in life. I say that I want to stick to my diet, but the siren song of donuts from the break room is all that I can hear. I set out to spend time reading my Bible every day, but four days later, it still sits on the table untouched. I vow to buckle down and be productive, taking care of the things that need to be done, but some shiny object distracts me for far too long.

While this human weakness is so frustrating, I am thankful that God is bigger than any distraction or temptation that I will ever encounter. I'm also thankful that God is a God of forgiveness...that no matter how many times I fail (and I will fail), God still sees me as His chosen child.

I'm pretty sure that's better than a donut.... :-)

Inspiration

If the dog can do it, then so can I!

On a somewhat related note, did you see Madonna's half-time show?!? I can only hope to be in that kind of shape when I'm in my 50s! Maybe I should hire the VW dog as my personal trainer...!

Skinny Fat

I've recently discovered the concept of "skinny fat." There are a number of articles online that describe what skinny fat is and what goes into it, but it's basically this -- by weight standards and BMI, you appear to be healthy, but you still have a high body fat percentage. In other words, you look great in clothes, but as you begin to peel off the layers (read: bathing suits!), things aren't as fit and trim as you might think (or hope for!).


Unfortunately, I've come to realize that I fall into the category of skinny fat (or at least, it wouldn't take much to get there). I don't know that I've been skinny fat for the duration of my years on maintenance, but I think I've drifted that way over the past year or two. I suspect that I've reached this point for a number of reasons -- my eating habits have gotten a little lax lately and, though I've been going to the gym, a good chunk of the past year was spent focusing on running (to train for my first 5K last June). While there's nothing wrong with running (and cardio in general), my downfall was that I stopped weight training in lieu of spending more of my gym time on the treadmill. As I now realize, weight training is one of the keys to being fit, instead of just skinny. Without pushing and developing your muscles, the flab stays flabby.


And so, that's where I am today. Seeking to turn my skinny body into a fit one. As best as I can tell through my very un-scientific Google search for online body fat percentage calculators, I seem to have approximately 24-26% body fat, which I don't think is horrible but leaves room for improvement. I'm also currently about 3 pounds heavier than my initial goal weight that I set when first losing weight. 


That said, my new goal is this: in 6 weeks (March 11), I will be celebrating my four-year anniversary of reaching my WW goal weight. Between now and then, I would like to 1) reduce my body fat percentage (that is, tone up from where I am now) and 2) return to my goal weight. While those two goals can actually work against each other (muscle weighs more than fat), I think they are reasonable goals. I'll be able to measure goal number 1 through body fat percentage and body measurements; goal 2 will be tracked through my home scale. I'll keep you posted on my progress!

Getting here

"Before" (Thanksgiving 2006) and "After" (Easter 2008)

Like so many others, my struggle with weight has plagued most of my adult life. Between a family disposition to be on the heavier side and my love for Southern (and otherwise) comfort food, I was far from being the size that I wanted or needed to be, and while I said that I wanted to do something, I didn't for a long time. 

In 2004-2005, after reaching my highest weight, I teamed up with some friends who also wanted to lose weight to try to help each other get there. Having the support helped, and I lost a decent amount of weight (40-ish lbs, I think). I was thrilled at my new body, but I didn't know how to take care of where I had gotten. Plus, I fell in love. ♥ Spending time with my husband-to-be and cooking for him sounded a lot better than watching what I was eating.

Fast forward six months into our marriage, and you'll find me fighting my highest weight again. In fact, the day that I started Weight Watchers, I was a single pound shy of where I had started in 2004. That day was a painful day, but also one of the best. I was getting dressed for work and complaining (again!) about nothing fitting well. Apparently that was enough for dear hubby because he gave me an ultimatum -- either do something about my weight or shut up about it. I have no doubt that he would have loved me either way, but hearing it spelled out so clearly hurt my pride enough to get my attention. I joined Weight Watchers online that morning and never looked back.

Over the course of the next 15 months, I lost 75 pounds, reaching my goal weight on March 11, 2008. Since then, I have been working to successfully maintain my weight loss, which is it's own struggle (and the motivation for this blog!).

People often ask what's the secret to weight loss -- the only answer I have is that comes down to sheer determination. Something clicked inside me that morning, and I knew that if I was going to do something, I had to DO SOMETHING and do it right. Losing weight is not easy; maintaining a weight loss may even be harder. But aside from choosing to follow Christ, it's the best thing I've ever done for myself and absolutely worth it.

The...beginning?

It hardly seems fair to call this a beginning. I mean, it's the beginning of a blog about my journey, but it's hardly the beginning OF the journey. That journey began a long time ago and has reiterated itself many times -- the journey of finding myself. 


Now, lest you think I'm about to go off on some sort of new age, hippie rage about the metaphysical entity that is my person, I should probably set the record straight.
1. If that's what you thought, you likely don't know me very well.
2. To me, finding myself is discovering and refining the woman that God has created me to be -- mind, body, and spirit.


When I first thought about starting a new blog, my initial thoughts were that I wanted to write a blog about weight loss, fitness, and learning to find my happy place in the world of weight loss maintenance (New Year's resolutions and all that jazz). The more I thought about it, however, the more I realized that I can't leave it just there. To me, losing weight and living in a smaller body is about balance. But without mind and spirit, the body itself is without balance.


So, there it is. A blog about fitness and my weight loss maintenance journey, sprinkled with other musings about the important things in life. My journey toward maintaining Merth...