Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Thursday, February 22, 2007
Monday, February 19, 2007
15 lbs later...
Most of you know that I've recently been working on getting back in shape and some of you have been inquiring about my progress, which I've been a little reticent about sharing, mostly because I am not really sure about the actual progress and I would hate to actually measure it and then realize that I'm not as far along as I would like, thus getting discouraged and finding myself at the bottom of a pint of Chunky Monkey.
However, one of you in particular (YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE) has not stopped bugging me about it and so I have decided to start chronicling the progress in the hopes that not only will I know how I'm really doing but also maybe encourage some of my mommy friends to do this as well. Because, even though I am not a size 0 again, I still am feeling much better and all of the clothes I own do fit MUCH better. Also I want everyone to know that if I (the reigning Snickers Eating Champ) can do it, ANYONE CAN DO IT.
I officially started working out every day on October 26, 2006. Before then my weight had somewhat leveled off, which was kind of nice after steadily gaining for the last five years of childbearing, but there was no denying that I was overweight. At 5'4", the 147 lbs. I was sitting at was really too big and my knees (one of which is tricky from a somewhat athletic HS career) were starting to feel the strain. Not to mention that I just didn't have the energy to chase around and wrestle with my very energetic children. And that most of my clothes were uncomfortable or unflattering and I'm very vain and didn't like that.
Here we come to a big part of starting any self-improvement program: MOTIVATION. Most people I know that are carrying a few extra pounds (most of my mommy friends) WANT to be thinner, but they almost refuse to do anything about it. There's the regular excuses: time, energy, opportunity, etc. but I really think that if you are motivated enough, these excuses GO AWAY. My motivation was a combination of factors, but there were two major things that happened that really made it hit home. The first event was a girl's night out with three cousins, all of which are total hotties (we have a very fabulous gene pool, what can I say?) and as we were getting flirted with by the various drunkards at the bar, it suddenly hit me that I AM THE DESIGNATED FAT CHICK FOR THIS GROUP OF GIRLS. Ouch. I've never been the fat friend... in fact I like to think that back in the day I was quite an attention getter.
So that was quite ego-bruising and I'll tell ya that my ego doesn't recover very easily. The second thing that happened is that my husband and I were at a concert (nobody you've heard of) and the lead singer for the band was about my height but pretty chunky. I asked (like wives do) if I was skinnier than her (thinking that the answer was, of course, yes) and my husband, having had a few, actually told me the truth and said NO. Ouch again.
There are a couple other very personal reasons for getting started down the weight loss road, not the least of which is how one looks without clothes on - but I think that these two illustrate how I was starting to feel like I was turning into a middle aged overweight nobody WAYYYY before my time.
Anyway, that's what got me started, and after I started seeing real results (it really only took three weeks for waistbands to start being less tight) it really became easier and easier to keep it up. So this is the progress so far:
October 2006
(The only reason I know these measurements is because of how much online shopping I do)
Weight: 147
Bust: 36
Waist: 33
Hips: 42
Thigh Circumference: 25
Upper Arm circumference: 12
Dress Size: 10/12
February 19, 2007
Weight: 132
Bust: 32 (the only bad part!!)
Waist: 28
Hips: 38
Thigh Circumference: 22
Upper Arm circumference: 9
Dress Size: 8
I was going to put some pictures up here but they are not as dramatic as I'd like so maybe in another 15 lbs... Stay tuned because I'll continue to post progress in this space.
However, one of you in particular (YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE) has not stopped bugging me about it and so I have decided to start chronicling the progress in the hopes that not only will I know how I'm really doing but also maybe encourage some of my mommy friends to do this as well. Because, even though I am not a size 0 again, I still am feeling much better and all of the clothes I own do fit MUCH better. Also I want everyone to know that if I (the reigning Snickers Eating Champ) can do it, ANYONE CAN DO IT.
I officially started working out every day on October 26, 2006. Before then my weight had somewhat leveled off, which was kind of nice after steadily gaining for the last five years of childbearing, but there was no denying that I was overweight. At 5'4", the 147 lbs. I was sitting at was really too big and my knees (one of which is tricky from a somewhat athletic HS career) were starting to feel the strain. Not to mention that I just didn't have the energy to chase around and wrestle with my very energetic children. And that most of my clothes were uncomfortable or unflattering and I'm very vain and didn't like that.
Here we come to a big part of starting any self-improvement program: MOTIVATION. Most people I know that are carrying a few extra pounds (most of my mommy friends) WANT to be thinner, but they almost refuse to do anything about it. There's the regular excuses: time, energy, opportunity, etc. but I really think that if you are motivated enough, these excuses GO AWAY. My motivation was a combination of factors, but there were two major things that happened that really made it hit home. The first event was a girl's night out with three cousins, all of which are total hotties (we have a very fabulous gene pool, what can I say?) and as we were getting flirted with by the various drunkards at the bar, it suddenly hit me that I AM THE DESIGNATED FAT CHICK FOR THIS GROUP OF GIRLS. Ouch. I've never been the fat friend... in fact I like to think that back in the day I was quite an attention getter.
So that was quite ego-bruising and I'll tell ya that my ego doesn't recover very easily. The second thing that happened is that my husband and I were at a concert (nobody you've heard of) and the lead singer for the band was about my height but pretty chunky. I asked (like wives do) if I was skinnier than her (thinking that the answer was, of course, yes) and my husband, having had a few, actually told me the truth and said NO. Ouch again.
There are a couple other very personal reasons for getting started down the weight loss road, not the least of which is how one looks without clothes on - but I think that these two illustrate how I was starting to feel like I was turning into a middle aged overweight nobody WAYYYY before my time.
Anyway, that's what got me started, and after I started seeing real results (it really only took three weeks for waistbands to start being less tight) it really became easier and easier to keep it up. So this is the progress so far:
October 2006
(The only reason I know these measurements is because of how much online shopping I do)
Weight: 147
Bust: 36
Waist: 33
Hips: 42
Thigh Circumference: 25
Upper Arm circumference: 12
Dress Size: 10/12
February 19, 2007
Weight: 132
Bust: 32 (the only bad part!!)
Waist: 28
Hips: 38
Thigh Circumference: 22
Upper Arm circumference: 9
Dress Size: 8
I was going to put some pictures up here but they are not as dramatic as I'd like so maybe in another 15 lbs... Stay tuned because I'll continue to post progress in this space.
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
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