Firsts...

If you've ever been on a weight loss journey or a journey to change something about yourself, you will understand today's topic. Today's topic actually should've been yesterday's topic, but I was too tired to blog about it yesterday. Yesterday was a whole new day of firsts for me. I'm being open and candid...some of this stuff may seem trivial to you. But to me, it's like crossing over the top of a mountain. It's stuff I haven't done in years. Literally. Years.

First, yesterday I was able to wear a shirt and pants that was two sizes smaller than what I was wearing four months ago. I have not worn those pants and shirts in probably three years or more. When I say that I haven't worn them, I mean that they were locked up tight in the attic. Now, instead of three pairs of black pants that I have to wash repeatedly throughout the week (literally, I have worn those three pairs of pants every single day of my life for the past five years), I have about 20 more! And, I have other colors, too...navy, brown, gray, khaki (I'm still partial to my black ones though). And, the best part is, the pants were button/zip fly and didn't have elastic all the way around them. That doesn't sound like a huge deal, but trust me, it is.

For the first time since I bought my car I was able to buckle my seatbelt. I was able to do so on the passenger side on Thursday night. I did so on the driver's side yesterday. Normally, I had to have the extender (by the way, if you are overweight, the car dealership will usually give you one for free). And then, I got so large the extender did not fit. I was not proud of it. Now, I'm so proud of myself I just can't stand it, haha. It's the little things in life that make you proud of yourself.

This month I decided to up my game a little bit on my own. I told Danny about it. I think he thinks I'm a little crazy, but I've got some goals to exceed in August. I started doing an Ab Challenge and Squat Challenge in addition to my cardio and strength training. I would love for you to join me. Below are the details of what you should do if you plan on doing them (by the way, if you do, please comment on the blog so I know to encourage you along the way)!

So last night, I went to the emergency room observation unit to have the bandages on my leg changed out as I do every night. The nurse on the floor is a very bubbly lady who is friendly and always asks how my workouts went that day. I was telling her about the challenges, and she asked me to send them to her. So, I did. When she looked at them, she said she couldn't do them. My response to her was, "you can't, or you won't? Let's do them right now!" So, seriously, we stood in the middle of the ER observation unit and did our 55 squats. We got a few strange looks...and some chuckles, but it was pretty neat. I told her that even after I was done with my leg dressings, I would check in on her and see how she was doing on the challenge.

After today's weigh-in, I have lost 84 pounds. I only have 16 more to go for the month of August to reach my goal. Another first for me is truly putting in all the cardio time. Cardio is not my favorite. But, it truly works. I started with 32 minutes on elliptical Monday, and progressed a couple/few minutes each day. It's getting easier, though my legs are becoming more and more sore each day.

I encourage you to join the 30 day challenge(s). Whether you want to join just one or both, come on!  

Progressing Toward Goals...

This month has been a little difficult for me. I let my circumstances dictate me, to a point. Don't get me wrong, I still went to the gym almost daily. I still did as much cardio as I could (which, truthfully, wasn't much, due to the bum leg). But, what I did not do, was stay on target with my diet. Of all the times I should have been spot on with my diet, this month was it. But, I didn't. I allowed myself to veer off plan. To eat many things I shouldn't. At one point, I felt as though I were on a slippery slope of crashing into my old lifestyle. And quite honestly, that scared me to death. I don't want to go back to where I was. I feel like a whole new person. My outlook on life has changed for the better. No longer am I the girl who circles the parking lot looking for a front row parking space, or too tired to go to the gym. No longer am I the girl who picks sweets over healthy food. No longer am I the girl who doesn't eat leftovers. No longer am I the girl circling the fast food restaurants for breakfast. No more. I refuse to go back.

This past weekend my mom finally made me go through my clothes I had packed away in the attic. You know, the clothes you always keep because you just know you're going to get into them again someday. To be honest, I've needed to do it for quite awhile now. But, I have delayed. Procrastinated. Made excuses as to why I didn't do it. Truly, the root of it was that if they didn't fit, I didn't want to be devastated. Nonetheless, my mom literally dropped the bucket of clothes right in front of me and basically said to do it. So, Sunday afternoon, I shopped from my attic. I found many items that I could wear. There are two or three shirts I cannot quite wear. Other than that, I mailed off a ton of items still with tags to a company that resells them for you. They were too big! And not just a little bit!

Monday night was measurement night. You know what that means. I'll be honest, I was a little bit dreading it because of the surgery, my lack of perfection on the eating plan, lack of cardio. But, you know what? Despite all that, it still was okay. Life went on (insert shocked face, here)! Here's the updated measurements:

	April 17, 2013	June 3, 2013	July 1, 2013	July 29, 2013
Neck:	16	15.5	15.5	15
Chest:	52.5	51.0	50.5	49
Waist:	56	54	51.5	51
Hips:	75	73	71	71
Left Thigh:	39.5	37	36.5	35
Right Thigh:	36.5	35.5	34	34
Left Calf:	26	26	None due to surgery	None due to surgery
Right Calf:	28.5	26	None due to surgery	None due to surgery
Left Bicep:	21.5	21	18.5	18
Right Bicep:	20.5	19.5	17.5	16.5
Shoulders:	56.5	53	51	50.5

Last, but not least, below is the updated picture. Because there was only a six inch loss this month, the picture really is not distinguishable from last month. Mostly, because it's a half inch here and there. So, just for fun, I thought I'd post my initial weigh-in picture from April 17, 2013 and my picture from this month's check-in:

Left: April 17, 2013 (445-ish lbs.)
Right: July 30, 2013 (362 lbs.)

This picture shows about an 82 pound weight loss in just four months (82 pounds since April 13, 2013). I know it sounds cliche, but I really do feel like a whole new person. I am at 102 pounds since last July, when I first joined the gym. It's not the 100 I wanted to lose from April through July, but I am okay with it. I am truly happy with my progress because I know I have done everything I could do to get there. I did not give up when the going got tough. I might've stumbled, but I did not quit. It is still 100 pounds. 

So, a huge thank you to all my family and friends who push me. The deepest, heartfelt thanks goes to Danny and Cynthia - who reached out of their busy lives and saved my life. Without y'all, I'd still be eating fast food three times a day and being miserable. I owe y'all so much. 

The point of this post, is that I am striving for progress. I fell off the wagon. I had an injury. Before, I would have given up. Now, I'm more determined than ever to kick this weight loss in the face and beat it -- once and for all!

You can do anything your mind says you can! If you haven't made the change, what are you waiting for? The hardest step is the first one. 

Setting Goals, Facing the Music and a New Wardrobe!

This month has been a struggle for me. I have let it be a struggle. I could have made better decisions. I could have worked harder at the gym. I could have said no to the temptation. But, I didn't. And, now, I have to face the music. While I did have an injury this month, that took me out of cardio commission for about 2-1/2 weeks, I still could have made the decision to do more. I let my circumstances outweigh my goals for a bit. While I have lost the pounds I gained during my surgery/recovery, I haven't lost much more than that. I am hoping that all the upper body workouts made me lose some inches, but we will see. If I didn't, it's my own fault. All I can do is work to improve.

Tomorrow, July 29, 2013 is a new day for me. A new beginning. Time to stop focusing on the past and what I have or haven't done and to focus on the future. This coming month. This coming week. Tomorrow. The next meal. The next choice. The next 30 minutes of cardio. Whatever. I have to get back into the mindset of not focusing on the overwhelming goal, but to focus on the little goals that will eventually get me to that big goal.

This week I am eating 100% clean. And, at least 30 minutes of cardio per day. Six days. That is my goal for the week. I have done it before. I can certainly do it again. There is no margin for error, because I have a goal, and I want to reach it more than words can say.

On a brighter note, I went shopping in my attic/storage today. Mom made me. I didn't want to do it. My shirts are literally falling off my shoulders. Said they looked unprofessional. I needed to know what I had so I could buy what I didn't have. Turns out, I have a whole new wardrobe (for shirts, anyway) that fits well! There were many items that had tags on them still that I just blew through. I couldn't wear them. Too big. I've shipped those off to a company that sells your clothes for you and gives you the proceeds. I will have to use that money to buy new clothes.

So, I will check in tomorrow with the new measurements and weight...whether I like what it says or not. It's up to me to make a bigger change for August. And, this month, there is no turning back.