Unless you puke, faint or die....keep going!

It feels like forever since I posted even though it's only been two weeks. Last Saturday was a big day for me! I lost 4 lbs! I am now down 14.5 lbs!! I weighed in this morning and only lost a half of a pound this week but I didn't let that discourage me because I know for every "Ok" week that I have, I'll have just as many "Great" weeks!

My motivation this week stems from knowing that each pound or half a pound I loose that I will never have to see that number again. I'll never weigh that amount again. By this point, anytime before, I probably would have given up already or gone back to the way that I was eating before but this time, over and over again, has proved to be so different than any other time before. This time I'm not just on a diet I'm making a significant lifestyle change and I refuse to ever go back to the way that I was. I definitely think it helps knowing that I have plenty of time to reach my goal also. All of the times before I would start in January or only a few months before the time that I wanted to be "perfect" and the pressure and stress of the time restraint definitely won over the so called "determination" I had. I never knew what determination was until I started this whole thing back in October, I will not let myself fail at this and no lack of progress from time to time will change that. I know at some point my weight will plateau and there may be a few weeks that go by that I don't loose anything until I figure out how to tweek things, those will be the times that my patience, strength and ability to bust through that plateau will really be tested. This weeks 1/2 lb weight loss is just a test leading up to that point.

This week we are coming up on Thanksgiving and although I doubtfully will reach my goal of 20 lbs lost by Thursday any number lost by that day, to me, is a good number. At least it's something right? At least I haven't given up and at least I'm not stressed about it. I'm also doing the Turkey Trot Thursday morning with my lab group from my Physiology class. I'm really excited because this is my first race to ever participate in! I wasn't planning on running because of the continuing issue with my hip but I think I have decided to at least try and run to see if, 1. I can do it and 2. to see if my hip is bothered. It's been about two months since I have tried running and while I haven't been working as hard as I should of on the therapy exercises for my hip I want to see if what I have done so far has helped at all. Plus, the race will burn some extra calories for my major day of cheating ahead :o) I won't go overboard on eating that day but I won't limit myself to what I can have either.

This week the changes that I plan on making are going to be at the gym! While I have gone to the gym more this past week than I have in the weeks prior I wasn't working as hard as I could have been. I do cardio for 45 minutes and then I'm done, not good enough! I have the ability to work harder so I definitely need to! I made a workout plan for myself to start doing after cardio and I will definitely be adding that to my workouts this week! Changing the way you eat will only benefit you on the scale for so long, I have reached that point and now it's time to step it up in the gym! I'm going with Jillian Michael's quote this week that, "Unless you puke, faint or die...keep going!!" I'm sure there will be many times throughout this week at the gym where I want to quit or be done before I have done all of the exercises that I have planned, but I have to refuse to let myself quit. Just like I have refused to let myself quit on the diet up to this point. Besides, in a month from today I will be weighing out for the competition with my cousin and while I'm currently in the lead, if I end up winning I want to win big!

My obsession this week:

~Smoothies! They are super yum and sooo good for you! Yesterday I had a Strawberry/Kiwi smoothie and this morning a Blueberry/Banana smoothie. The beauty of smoothies is that you can pretty much combine any fruit that you like and also if you put 2-3 fruits in each smoothie that you drink that right there is your daily recommended intake of fruit all in your breakfast or lunch or whenever you decide to have it. I also recommend adding a handful of spinach or kale to your smoothie, it changes the color to make it look really unappetizing but trust me you can't taste it! I did it with both smoothies that I had and I couldn't tell it was in there, not even a little bit.

Strawberry/Kiwi Smoothie

I know, I know it looks gross and yes it is green but it's so good! Definitely give it a try if you can!

1 Banana

3 Kiwis

1 cup Strawberries

A handful of Spinach

1/2 cup of Pineapple juice (This is optional. I've had it with and without and it's good both ways, because of the crazy content of sugar in most juices though I usually leave it out.)

1/2 cup plain Greek Yogurt

Ice

~You can also add a half of a cup of oats for added protein and fiber if you want.