A New Leaf

For a while now, and especially during the time I moved out to Mesa a few years ago, I haven't been the most vigilant when it came to my health and eating habits. I tend to go through these little surges of health kicks where I'll refuse any fast food, faithfully work out to my Denise Austin "Shrink Your Female Fat Zones" DVD, and perhaps for a time halt the very slow, very gradual expansion of my waistline. I know I always do feel much better physically and psychologically when I'm doing this, however, I'll go on for several months, and after seeing what seems like absolutely no change in my appearance, I'll get discouraged and fall off the wagon. (This picture always makes me laugh a little bit. And I do love me some hard boiled eggs!)
While I feel that my eating habits have never really been dismal (I'd drink soda only when it was offered to me, eat fast food only when I had to, and didn't spend much money at all on nutrition-void snack cakes, etc.), my portion sizes were victim to a pretty severe oversight. Also, I'm a HUGE pasta and dairy lover. My switch to skim milk several years ago made me feel a little bit better about that, but still, the carb and fat levels in those two types of foods were really not helping my physique to say the least.

BUT. This year marks a new start. I know it's a bit cliche, and thousands of people set fitness goals at the start of every new year and then quit a few months in, but I'm really serious about it. I've reached a point in my life now when I can no longer deny that my weight and overall fitness are not just problems for my physical appeal and self esteem. I've got to make a change NOW if I want to make sure I don't put myself in real mortal danger in the coming years of my life. I know that in order for me to really make a difference I need to set goals and form habits that will continue on long after the initial excitement fades. I've acquired a treadmill from my dear friend Meagan, and an iPod as well with the help of another dear friend, Dallon. The first nullifies the excuses of bad weather, or public appearance to keep me from walking on a regular basis (This is habit #1 being put into place). The second, while providing a wonderfully convenient way to take my music with me wherever I need to while exercising, also has an awesome application on it that when used properly will keep track of all the calories and nutrients I ingest, applying them to a personally calculated weight loss plan. I love it. Whenever I eat anything, or exercise, I plug it in to the "Lose It!" program, and that way I can keep very close watch on what, and how much I'm eating. So far with the goals and information I've entered, I'm doing very well with sticking to the 1,700 (+/-) calorie limit, and minimum of half an hour of deliberate exercise every day. Another cool gadget I've invested in to help me stick to and reach my goals is a bathroom scale that measures not only my overall weight, but also the weight of my bones, BMI, water percentage, and body fat percentage. Every time I step up it tells me what difference I've made in these things since the last time it was measured. And we all know that having that in your face on a daily basis is a great way to not forget about the fact that when you eat food, it actually goes inside of your body and changes it. For better or for worse. I've switched to ONLY whole wheat pasta. (which I actually really don't love the texture of, so I'm eating less pasta anyway. Good choice all around.) I'm adding much more fruit and veggies to my diet, and any dairy I eat has to be very low fat, or fat free if possible.

As of right now, I'm feeling very good about the changes I'm making, and hope to add even more routine health-saving habits that will compell me to reach my goals without so much drama and stop and go. This isn't a diet. It isn't a phase. This is a life change that I plan on holding on to for a very long time. Wish me luck. :)