The Switch

I have posted numerous times about my battle to lose weight and be healthier. Dustin and I contend that for someone to really make a change in their lives, whether it be weight loss, smoking cessation, or organizing their house, they have to be ready – really ready. In weight loss, you must reach a point where you are just FED. THE. FUCK. UP. You decide that this is not going to be your life, that you will not let food have power over you, that you will not set a poor example for your children. You decide: I WILL be thin and healthy. And it starts NOW. Well, this switch flipped for me last night at the conclusion of an episode of Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition. I always find the show incredibly inspiring, but Michael’s story really kicked me into overdrive. He started out at 493 pounds – and lost over half of his body weight in the course of a year! The change was so phenomenal, but it really struck me in the end scene. It’s the part where they place the “before,” being interviewed about who he wants to be at the conclusion of the coming year, beside his own “after.” The transformation is just amazing.

When the show was over, I was in tears and felt like an absolute lazy ass. If Michael could lose 200-something pounds, I can easily lose the 34 I have remaining. I went to bed knowing I wanted to make serious changes, but not knowing just what. After all, I’m not new to the weight loss game. In the last 3-4 months, I’ve lost ten pounds by changing my dietary habits. I just haven’t been consistent enough. I also haven’t worked out much – less than once a week on average, actually. As I was lying in bed, going through Pinterest, I found two things that made me want to leap out of bed to get started.

The Skinny Rules

I found a pin of Bob Harper’s 20 “skinny rules.” I already knew most of this stuff but somehow, having it on a list in front of me lit a fire inside me. This will be hung on my fridge and tucked into my planner. I already follow many of these, but I want to do better than that.

Daily Workout Plan

Shortly after pinning the skinny rules, I ran across this daily workout plan from Back On Pointe. I had seen similar ones, but something just felt right with this one. I love that it’s meant to do over the course of the day. I can’t always devote a chunk of my day to working out. It’s literally impossible some days. However, this plan can be done with five minutes here, ten minutes there. This morning, I knocked out about half of it and will do some during my lunch break. If I don’t finish at lunch, I’ll wrap it up at home this evening. I won’t lie – those Russian Twists and Lunge Split Jumps nearly killed me. However, it’s definitely a workout I can do without boredom and within my time contraints.

See? I can do this! I AM going to do this. Kissing these 34 pounds goodbye and taking you all along on the journey to help me maintain accountability. I hope to post progress pictures soon. I haven’t really lost much weight since my “before” picture, but I’m certain I’ve lost inches, because I’m down a size.

If you are like me and sick of yo-yo dieting, start a plan of attack! It’s super empowering!