Thank you body…

Well, I've been working out steadily and consistently for about three weeks now. (I started back in January but have been all over the place as far as how often or long I exercised.) I have been following a 12-week since March program to get me walking 3 miles a day. When this ends in May, I will transition to the 24 week program to take me right up to the 3-Day event in Arizona.

When I started walking - I was averaging just over a 20 minute mile. I was happy with this but it would mean that I would end up walking about 7 hours a day once I arrive at the 3-Day event in Arizona. Over the last three weeks, I have shaved about 3 minutes off my mile and 1 HOUR off the time it would theoretically take me to walk 20 miles/day in November. Wow! I feel great. Walking just over a 17 minute mile really get my heart rate up, gets me sweating, and gets my muscles burning. I can FEEL that I'm not only building up my strength and endurance but also creating a healthier being. I can feel the muscles in my thighs, calves, tummy and arms - all of them - and instead of being whiny about the burn - it actually feels good. I can feel my body thanking me for putting it to good use and not taking it for granted.

So - here's to my body! Thank you for being so strong and staying with me even when I was abusing you. Thank you for staying healthy even when I tested I your limits. Thank you for being there to support me and being ready for the challenge when I finally woke up. Thank you!

Slow and Steady Wins the Race…

I joined Weight Watchers at the end of March. When the year started and thus my commitment to LIVE HEALTHIER I wasn't sure where to start. So I exercised off and on – talked to a few friends about it but really hadn't found that "thing" to really get me motivated and committed. The 3-Day ended up being that "thing". So..two months into 2010 and my idea to live healthier – I finally got started. I was walking and making some general changes to my eating habits but wasn't really seeing or feeling the results. So, I happened to ask a co-worker out to lunch on a Thursday afternoon and she said she couldn't because she had a Weight Watchers meeting. Now – while I had a 1 in 5 chance of picking the day she went to WW (which are pretty good odds) I decided to take this coincidence as a sign. A sign that WW just may be what I need. SO…at the end of March, I joined.

The first week I lost 2.8 lbs and felt that was a respectable number…something I could live with. The second week I "only" lost 0.4. I was a little surprised but still positive – down is down after all. BUT later that night, I realized that I was desperately trying to convince myself that I should actually feel bad about only losing 0.4 and that a pizza would probably make me feel better about the whole thing. I know, I know – you're yelling at your monitor right now! What was I thinking?!? My cousin kindly reminded me on Facebook that slow and steady wins the race and she's right. I am on a steady path going in the right direction. Some days could be a sprint while others are a meandering stroll – but I AM moving in the right direction. After all, the numbers on the scale are not my only goal. I have walked just over 6 miles this week – precisely as my training program said I should! I feel better, have more energy, and have walked four days in a row – something I've never managed do…EVER! This is nothing to feel bad about!

So…what's the lesson here? I guess it's to remember that we can be our own worst enemies and are capable of sabotaging ourselves better and quicker than anyone else ever could. Leaning on my friends and family and even strangers to give me support when I don't have the motivation myself is the first thing I did right when I began this journey. I'm doing the work but I CANNOT get there alone! Losing 115 lbs AND training to walk in the Arizona 3-Day is no easy feat and even when the results seem like a drop in the bucket (e.g., just a few tenths of a pound lost, a few bucks in a donation, a few minutes to train instead of an hour) – it takes a lot of those drops to make the bucket full and they all REALLY do add up.

So I want to thank my walking and WW buddy Kit, for her companionship and inspiration (she also got me to sign up for a 5k in Sacramento in June) and the rest of my family and friends for the constant and persistent well wishing and support. I also owe a HUGE thanks to everyone else that has supported my effort so far through monetary donations, purchases at my fundraisers, providing ideas on how to raise more money, volunteering time to help me get ready for a fundraiser…and every other way one might support me.
I SINCERELY APPRECIATE YOU ALL and I hope you realize what an important role you are all playing in literally changing my life!