I Was Afraid...

It was just before New Year's Eve 2009.

I was newly banded for about two months.

And I received an email from a friend (also recently banded, whom I had met at Support Group). We shall call her "Candy."  'Cuz food names are my fave.

Candy's email was all about this new exercise craze that she wanted to try: ZUMBA.

Candy wanted me to sign up for a Zumba six-week session of classes that began in January. She wanted me to go with her.

The classes began in just a few weeks! Gasp!

WTF.

Seriously?

Me?!

Exercise?

Sweat was no fun.

Being out of breath was even less fun.

I was about 210 lbs at the time.

And I had seen those Zumba commercials on TV.

Those Zumba people were skinny.

And healthy.

And had abs of steal.

That just wasn't me.

I was a couch-sitter.

TV watching was my exercise.

But with Candy's persistent emails and convincing, I signed up for that Zumba class.

On the first day of Zumba class I walked in the door in my baggy sweatpants and big t-shirt.

I hid in the back of the room.

Hopefully no one would see me struggle.

Hopefully no one else would see how afraid I was of failing at this thing called "exercise."

And guess what?

Candy was a no show.

Yikes.

All alone in a room full of strangers.

I thought about walking out that door...many times.

But I stuck with it.

The whole hour of class.

Yes, I was sweaty.

Yes, I was out of breath.

And yes, I hurt in places that I didn't know that my body could hurt.

But I finished that Zumba class.

And guess what?

I had an AMAZING and FUN time.

Shaking my booty.

Dancin'.

Jumpin'.

And that was the moment.

That light bulb moment.

The moment that I realized that exercise isn't that bad.

And that exercise could actually be FUN.

I continued to go to Zumba class and finish out that six week session.

And then I signed up for more classes.

And more classes.

Over the following year, I lost 70 lbs doing Zumba.

Who knew that exercise can actually be fun?

All that I had to do was stop being afraid...

Rockin' those Zumba Toning Sticks!

How I Lost Weight Over Christmas Week

Before I tell you what the official weigh-in was for this week, let us first admire Pemberley wearing her new hair bow that Santa brought her.  Awww....

 

Here's the digits for this week's weight:

Last week's weight: 142.6 lbs

Today's weight: 139.6 lbs

How in the heck did a THREE pound loss happen over Christmas week with all those goodies and treats everywhere?

Let's make a list, shall we?

1. I told you over on Facebook that my band was feeling SUPER TIGHT because Aunt Flo was about to arrive. Adding in some stress and seasonal sinus allergies: a Lap-Band perfect storm for tightness.
2. Because of the super tight feeling, I ate very much like a bandster is supposed to: barely a half a cup of food at each meal.  I probably had 2-3 bites of turkey and a small stuffing "muffin" for Christmas lunch. And I was absolutely OK with that.  For me, the holidays are no longer about the food, but rather who I spend my holidays with that matter.
3. I only exercised twice over the week instead of my usual 4-5 times for the week. I probably lost some muscle.
4. I usually lose weight during the week of Aunt Flo's visit.

Here is today's weigh-in photo. That's Pemberley's paw in the upper left. She's been there at every weekly weigh-in since I began my weight loss journey in August 2009:

Weigh-in Day

Goal weight: 145 lbs

Today's weight: 142.6 lbs

Still below goal.

Happy Friday!

OMG! Did You Hear?

Pretty.

Much.

The.

Most.

Useful.

Thing.

I.

Have.

Ever.

Heard. 

It was the most wisely spent 60+ minutes of my day in a long, long time.

I just listened to this podcast.

It's an interview with one of the all-knowing  GODS  experts on the Lap-Band: Dr John Dixon.

My favorite part of the podcast?

When Dr. Dixon talks about (at length) about what proper fill level is for a Lap-Band.

My second favorite part?

When he talks about what the expected life span (expiration date) is for a Lap-Band.

Go check it out HERE.

You won't be sorry.

Why Is Today Such A Big Day For Me?

In my mind, today is kinda a bigger deal than my actual surgery date.

What is today?

Exactly three years ago today on December 17, 2010:

I stepped on the scale and I had reached my goal weight of 145 lbs.

Finally!  After 14 months of lots of hard work.

You can read about that fateful day HERE.

It was an AWESOME-SAUCE of a day.

And then can you believe it? I maintained my goal weight for one whole year on December 17, 2011. Read that post HERE.

And THEN I maintained my goal weight for two whole years on December 17, 2012. Read that post HERE.

Now, I have achieved three whole years of maintaining my goal weight today on December 17, 2013.

Do I still have the fear that I will GAIN ALL 115+ lbs back?

Absolutely.

Pretty much each and every day freakin' day.

That fear is still very present in my life.

Sigh.

How will I celebrate my GOALiversary this year?

I can tell you how I will NOT celebrate it.

I will not eat to celebrate.

Maybe I'll go buy myself a new fantastic skinny girl outfit.

Because let me tell ya...

I.

deserve.

It.

It's A Fashion Show & The World Is My Runway

I remember how my Prom dress was pretty tight when I zipped it up in the dressing room that afternoon.

But it covered me.

And I guess it looked OK.

So I bought it.

That was back in 1997.

A size 26W.

Now let's fast forward to this past Saturday.

It was fashion show time at my weight loss surgery support group.

The once a year event where we bring a piece of clothing from before our surgery.

An item that we wore before we lost weight.

One lady wore her size 32W acid washed jeans.  She could fit her whole body into one of the legs.

One guy wore his size 5X button-up shirt.

And I wore that Prom dress.

How loose that dress is on me now.

It easily fit over my current size 6 frame.

I felt like I was wearing a big navy blue polyester blanket.

While I stood there wearing that dress, I decided that I didn't need to bring the dress home with me.

I no longer need that dress.

I donated it to the support group clothing exchange.

That dress isn't me anymore.

Weigh-in Day

Just in case you missed it... I posted this morning's weigh-in over on Facebook:

Goal weight: 145 lbs

Today's weight: 141.4 lbs

Happy Friday!

Weigh-in Day & Eating Out At Restaurants

Let's get the weigh-in over and done with:

Goal weight: 145 lbs

Today's weight: 142.2 lbs

Still below goal.   Yay.

Now let's talk about eating out at restaurants.

One of the main ways that I make good food choices: I do not eat out at restaurants that often.

I usually prepare and eat food at home.

And these foods are usually foods that I know the calories and proteins totals for already.

This past week, I have had three dinners and two lunches out (work and non-work related).

Yikes.

A rarity.

I usually don't choose the restaurants, I ask my friends/coworkers choose where they would like to eat.

Why?

I have learned that for me, the food is not the reason I eat out anymore.

It is the people who are seated across the table from me that are important.

The conversations.  The company.  The time together.

This was a HUGE lesson for me to learn after being banded.

I can remember in the not too distant fatty past, all of the planning of having a meal at a restaurant would be about what I would eat. Not who I would be eating with.

Here's how it usually would go down in my fatty head:

"Should I order the fried fish & chips or the cheeseburger? Don't those taquitos look yummy? What would I get for dessert? Oooh! Doesn't that chocolate cake on the online menu look good?  Let's be sure to order that!"

This pre-planning of what we would all eat became the conversation.

I was obsessed.

And then we would get to the restaurant and all we would talk about is the food.

Now?

I don't really care where I go out to eat.

I usually don't look at the online menu before I leave the house.

I walk into most restaurants never knowing what will be on the menu:  I did this five times this week at five different restaurants.

But I do know that there will usually be a food option that I can choose.

So now it's your turn, how do you handle eating out at restaurants?

A Secret To My Success

I don't think that I did anything special or particularly unique to lose 115+ lbs in 14 months.

What I do to maintain my 115+ lbs weight loss is not really too complicated.

But a secret to my success has just been pointed out to me.

My coworker said to me this morning:

"You're CONSISTENT."

Sometimes I need the people around me to state the obvious to me.

I need a big ol' hit over the head occasionally to make me realize something.

And here's today's not-so-obvious-to-me learning lesson that I needed to learn.

My light bulb moment.

Examples of my consistency were rambled off to me this morning by this same coworker. I guess that I have never really thought about it before:

• She sees me workout almost every day - at the same time - Can you believe that I've been doing the Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred DVD for almost a year now?
• She sees me eating my vitamins at my desk each morning
• She sees me drinking my water and refilling it at the water cooler - a lot.
• She sees me eating small-portion, sensible food choices
• She never sees me lurking near the office snacks, donuts, muffins, candy dishes, etc.

These are all habits that I had to LEARN. 

Did it take me years to learn some of these habits? Absolutely.

And let me tell ya, there was no magic button where all of these habits were all of a sudden easy for me.

It.

Took.

Time.

And does my Lap-Band help me with all of these daily habits?

No.

Not really.

It's pretty much me.

And only me.

My Lap-Band does NOT send me a psychic signal telling me to "Go drink water."

My Lap-Band does NOT send me a text message that says, "Go exercise."

And my Lap-Band certainly does NOT send me any emails that tell me to what to eat. I've never heard my Lap-Band say, "Eat that shrimp salad, not that delicious Fettuccine Alfredo and Garlic Bread"


It is...

Up. 

To. 

Me.

My 5th Thanksgiving With My Lap-Band

My usual tradition on Thanksgiving is to wear the tightest pants I own.

This helps me not overeat.

Weird.

But it works.

Like a charm.

And it worked this year too.

Mostly.

I was able to enjoy tastes and sensible portions of all the foods that I love, but without over-doing it.

But I did have TWO and a HALF pieces of pie.

'Cuz that's how I roll.

If you would like to read all of my past Thanksgiving blog posts, go read THIS.

Here's the 411 on my weight: in case you missed today's weigh-in on Facebook, I weighed-in at 141.0 lbs this morning.

That's right!

Still.

Under.

My.

Goal.

Weight (145 lbs)

In other fun news, the boyfriend treated me to a fun date night in San Francisco the night before the Thanksgiving. He took me to see the musical, "The Book of Mormon."

Completely hilarious!

Here we are getting ready to see the show:

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Weigh-in Day...What Did the Scale Reveal?

After cruise weight: Sunday November 17: 149.2 lbs
 

Today's weight: Friday, November 22: 141.8 lbs

I am back under my goal weight of 145 lbs!  I can't believe that I will be at my goal weight for THREE YEARS on December 17 (just a few weeks away).

Now let's get down to the nitty gritty.

The 411.

What did I do to achieve this weight loss this week?  Here's the scoop:

• Limited my calories to 1200 calories per day.
• Made sure I was eating at least 80 proteins per day.
• Drank buckets of water - 100+ oz per day
• Exercised. Daily sessions of Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred workout DVD.
• Took my vitamins: Calcium Citrate Chews, Vitamin D drops, B12 Sublinguals, Multi-Vitamins, etc.

If I do the work, then I get results.

Simple.

As.

That.

How To Gain 9 Pounds in 9 Days With the Lap-Band

It's been a hot minute since I last posted.

Thank you all for your emails checking in with me asking where I've been.

So where have I been?

What has happened since my last post?

I went on a fantabulous Caribbean CRUISE with fellow bandster Stephanie.

Lucky me!

There was sun.

There was fun.

There were fancy dress up nights.

There was wine.

There were bikinis.

There were mojitos.

There were many, many trips through the buffet line.

Yum.

It was also pretty much a giggle-fest of ridiculousness.

We.

Had.

The.

Best.

Time!

In the tradition of always keepin' it real here on my blog, let's review the recent weigh-ins:

Day before cruise: Friday November 8: 140.0 lbs

Day after cruise: Sunday November 17: 149.2 lbs

Seriously.

That's a 9 pound gain.

As I completely expected.

My Lap-Band does not make my food choices for me.

I make each and every one of my food choices.

Chocolate filled croissants for breakfast? Yep!

Waffles with buckets of butter and syrup? Absolutely.

Fettuccine Alfredo? Hell yeah.

47 peanut butter cookies? It happened.

This list could go on and on.

But I'll stop there.

And show you some gratuitous cruise pics of yours truly and the lovely Stephanie! Isn't she super adorable?

Stephanie showed me her favorite exercise 

before we began our cruise: KANGOO!

The first of many, many cocktails we enjoyed on the cruise!

 We worked out almost every day on the cruise!

Here we are in the gym on the ship:

Fancy schmancy!

 Beauties on the beach!

Bahamas

Curacao

Is it too soon to plan our next girls' getaway? I think not.

Stay tuned for Friday's weigh-in to see how many pounds I've lost!

Weigh-in Day & a Halloween Non-Scale Victory!

Goal weight: 145 lbs

Today's weight: 140.8 lbs

But wait a gosh darn minute! That's not the whole story.

What did the scale say the day after I returned home from my trip to Australia (Sunday Oct 27)? 

146.2 lbs.

Damn.  

All that eating out at restaurants while traveling and eating WAY too many butter croissants at Starbucks and eating buckets of chocolate cookies called "TimTams" while I was Down Under had finally caught up with me.  

Yikes.

So this past week, I got back on track with my food choices (high protein, low calorie) and achieved this for today's weigh-in:

Now let's talk about my Halloween Non-Scale Victory (NSV).

I wore my workout clothes to work yesterday as my "Halloween" costume.

Yep.

Totally lame. But sometimes I just want to wear my stretchy pants to work and be comfy, mmkay?

I put my dumbells/weights on my desk.

The illusion of "exercise girl" costume was complete.

If you follow me of Facebook, you have seen MANY pics of yours truly in my workout gear.

While I was sitting at my desk yesterday morning, a coworker stops by and says, "Are you Workout Barbie?"

Yes.

I.

Am.

Thank.

You.

Very.

Much.

NSV alert!

I'll take it.

So I was officially Workout Barbie for the rest of the day.

Glimpses of My Past Help Me Stay Motivated in the Present

As I was looking through the back of my closet, I came across a treasure.

A relic from 1997.

Let's flashback to the days of of Ally McBeal, the movie Titanic, Beanie Babies, and Hypercolor T-shirts.

What did I find?

My prom dress.

Size 26W.

Yep. Gotta love formal gowns and how they usually size up.

I totally forgot that I still had this lovely memory of a dress.

And for your viewing pleasure, here is my prom dress hanging next to one of my current dresses (size 6):

Banded for Four Years!

Yes.  The blog has been super quiet lately.

Can you guess why?

I've been traveling.

...8 days. 

...5 flights. 

...17,386 miles. 

...34 hours flying time

I've been to Australia and now I'm back in the good ol' USA.

Coincidentally I was 'Down Under' traveling on business during my official Bandiversary on October 20, 2013.

In case you missed it, you can find my previous Bandiversary blog posts here:

One Year Bandiversary post

Two Year Bandiversary: I wrote a letter to my former fatty self.

Three Year Bandiversary post

And now here we are...

Banded for FOUR years!

And what did I do to celebrate these amazing four years?

I did something that I never would have or could have done when I was 258lbs.

I climbed up to the top of the Sydney Harbour Bridge!

See those people up there (upper left side of the pic)? We climbed all the way up to the flags!

Happy Bandiversary to ME!

I wonder what this upcoming year has in store for me and my Lap-Band?

Friday Weigh-in Day!

Oh snap!

It's not Friday today.

Did I trick ya?

It's Thursday.

But since I will be away from my scale tomorrow on my official weigh-in day, today is weigh-in day for this week.

Goal weight: 145 lbs

Last week's weight: 141.4 lbs

Today's weight: 140.4 lbs

I can't believe that Sunday is my four year bandiversary.

Banded for FOUR years now!

And let me tell ya, I have some EPIC plans for myself on Sunday to celebrate.

Check back here on Sunday to see what happens! 

Weigh-in Day & How I Lost 3+ Pounds in 5 Days

I weigh myself pretty much every morning. Every day of the week.

I am and have always been someone who can GAIN and LOSE weight pretty fast.

Therefore, when I weighed myself on Monday morning (5 days ago), the scale was up to 144.8 lbs.

AND my pants were tight.

Yikes.  I got off track with my food choices.  I also really need to fit in a workout during my weekends.

So what did I do?

I got back to basics.

Writing down my food choices.

Exercising each day this week.

I've been updating my Facebook with my food journals and back to basic posts.


I stepped on the scale this morning and it revealed: 141.4 lbs.

That's a loss of 3.4 lbs.

And the pants aren't nearly as tight today.

Phew!

What does this prove to me?

That if I do the work, then I get the results that I want and deserve.

Weigh-in Day & Why Blogs End

This is my 959th blog post since I began my blog back in October of 2009.

This is my 218th weekly Friday weigh-in since I began my surgeon's pre-op diet to get my body ready for surgery.

Yep, this journey began 4 years, 2 months, and 4 days ago.

Today's weight: 141.4 lbs

Still below goal.

I'm kinda surprised that you all still stop by to check on me in my little corner of the interwebs here.

I'm not sure what more there is to tell you or blog about.

Weight maintenance is super boring.

There is no "done."

There are no exciting weight loss numbers to announce every week.

Almost all of the boxes have been checked on the to-do list of getting healthy and fit.

I also learned this morning that some blogs do come to an end.

Today's example? Emily, who I've been following since 2010, blogged at "The Bright Side: Breast Cancer at 31".  She just passed away. I didn't know Emily personally, but reading about her over the years, I kinda feel like I did.

So that brings me to a few questions for you:

Are there any specific topics that you would like for me to blog about? 

Any questions that I haven't already answered?

Non-Scale Victory Alert!

To get into the driver's seat, sometimes I have to climb that big scary ladder.

Let me explain.

My job has a few perks.

One of those perks is the occasional neato cheeto fantastico field trip.

Yesterday's field trip was to the ocean port.

Ya know... that place where they load up really big boats with cargo containers and ship them off to all corners of the world.

Time to climb up that ladder to get up onto the boat.  Amazingly steep. Yet I made it to the top! Non-scale victory!

I couldn't miss a photo-op with the captain.  He's been at sea for fifty years! A cool tour guide too:

Where would you like to go? I'll take you there...

Weigh-in Day & What Will I Do For My Four Year Bandiversary?

Goal weight: 145 lbs

Today's weight: 142.0 lbs

Still.  Below. Goal.

In exactly 23 days, it will be October 20th.

On October 20th, 2009, I had my Lap-Band surgery.

It's theeee official "bandiversary" -- as us bandsters like to call it.

And I have some seriously EPIC plans for this bandiversary.

I will be doing something that I don't think that I would have tried to achieve or complete when I weighed 258 lbs.

It's something that involves some serious fitness.

And there will be lots of climbing.

Ladders.

Stairs.

...lots and lots and lots of climbing involved.

Hopefully there will be lots of amazing photos to share with you too.

Stay tuned for my upcoming post on October 20th where I will post a photo of me showing you what I did to celebrate my Bandiversary!

Does That Dress Come With A Pole?

Did you know that mirrors are big, damn liars?

They lie to me.

Mirrors show me a body shape and figure that I do not see when I take photos.

While we are on the topic of liars, did you know that my brain also lies to me all the damn time on what my body shape really looks like?

Speaking of dams, here's a dam picture of yours truly at 166 lbs:

July 2010

This is how I picture myself and my body image currently in my head.

About 166 lbs-ish. 

Size 12 shorts.

This is also how I see my shape when I look in the mirror.

Kinda a no-waist kinda figure.

That shape is awesome.

And healthy.

I remember that blue shirt.  It was a size Large.

I was no longer shopping in the plus size section of the store! Sweet.

I am waiting on my brain to catch up to what I look like now. Size 6. 140-ish lbs.

And what about those mirrors too?

They need to catch up to what I look like now.

But let me tell ya....

How do I know what my shape really looks like now?

PHOTOS!

Photos tell a completely different story.

Here is a photo from this past weekend in San Francisco.

Girls Night Out!

What have I learned?

I learned to take buckets of photos as I was losing weight.

And I take lots of photos at my "now" weight.

This has helped me to realize what my figure currently looks like.

It helps me to not believe what I see when I look in the mirror.

Take photos.

Take photos.

Take photos.

Did you hear me?

Take.

Those.

Photos.

Weigh-in Day & Roll Call Alert!

Goal Weight: 145 lbs

Today's Weight: 141.4 lbs

Still below goal.

Yay.

Maintenance.

********************

Did you see what we're up to this morning on Facebook?

We are doing a roll call and finding out what state here in the USA we are all from (or what country of the world!)

Here's your chance to represent your home state!  Go comment on the roll call post.

So far there are lots of you from Texas and Tennessee.

Where are you from?

Loose Skin & Vegemite Sandwich-Eating Koala Bears

This is a two-for-one post today.

Lucky you.

And you didn't even need a coupon for this deal.

#1:

I posted this pic on Facebook the other night.

Why?

I still struggle with being comfortable with my loose skin.

Especially the belly skin.

WTF.

Don't get me wrong though.

I love that I have lost weight.

I love that I am strong and have muscles.

I love that I have improved my health ten fold.

Go me.

I know.

But have been thinking about so many recent rockstar examples of ladies of all sizes in my life who have rocked their rolls, belly skin, tight tummies and not so tight tummies at the beach and pool this summer. They are confident! Awesome-sauce.

No matter the size, shape, wobbly bit, I've seen these ladies rockin' their bikinis, tanks, and swimsuits.  They look GREAT!

And all the while when I see these lovely ladies, I am silently thinking in my head "I wish that I could be that comfortable with my jiggly bits. Sigh."

Welcome to Crazytown. Population: 1.

Maybe because I always covered up my jiggle-jaggle belly bits for so long (about 20+ years), that it's a little bit awkward to now show the belly?

So I have officially started "Operation: Let It All Hang Out" 

What does this stealth not-so-military operation involve?

 All kinds of tricks so that I get more comfortable with my extra skin and wobbly bits:

• Posting random pics of the loose skin on Facebook or here on the blog.

• I've also been wearing the bikini occasionally around the house.  

• Whether I'm sitting on the couch with Pemberley watching TV or cleaning the house, it's bare-that-belly time lately.  

• You should have seen me vacuum in my bikini on Monday night.

 Stay tuned on how "Operation Let It All Hang Out" goes.

#2:

Do you live in the land of koala bears? 

Do you live Down Under?

I'm headed your way in October.  

Sydney and Melbourne to be super specific. 

Would you like to meet up?

I have already received lots of positive feedback from all you Aussies when I announced my upcoming trip on Facebook. 

If you're interested in a meetup: email me at lapbandgal at yahoo dot com.

We could eat Vegemite sandwiches together and pet each others ports.

Good times.

The Long Lost Blog Post - My Maintenance Ring

I've written over 953 blog posts in four years. 

Only one post has been deleted. 

Deleted on purpose.

On that deleted post, I showed you my my ring that I designed for achieving one year of maintaining my goal weight.

Then I deleted that post a week later.

I regret that decision.

I've received a few emails and Facebook messages from some of you recently asking, "what ever happened to that ring?"

So here we are with a story to re-tell you.

Let's flashback to December 2011.

I had just achieved my one year goaliversary.

One year at my goal weight of 145 lbs.  

For me, my plan for my Lap-Band was not about losing the weight, but really all about maintaining that 115+ lbs weight loss.

And I knew that I deserved a reward for that accomplishment and at the same time needed a daily reminder of maintaining my weight.

So I asked a local jeweler to design me a ring.  

My only two requirements that I asked the jeweler?

A ring that I couldn't break if I accidentally hit it against something.

And a ring that was symmetrical.

I know. Doesn't my practicality scare you sometimes?

The jeweler drew these images to give me an idea of what he had in mind.

Then I chose a gemstone (a gift - a ruby, thanks Mom and Dad!) It's the in the bottom right of the box:

Then the jeweler made the ring in wax and put the ruby in it:

And the final creation:

White gold, ruby, diamonds

If you look closely in most of the photos of me on this blog and on the Facebook page, you will see that I have been wearing that ring ever since my one year goaliversary back in December 2011.

The ring is always there to remind me of my accomplishment of losing 115+ lbs.

The ring is always there to remind me of what I need to keep doing: maintaining my weight.

Being silly with my sister at Disney World
Christmas 2011

Having a laugh with friends!

 Singin' Karaoke!

Eatin' ice cream - Spring 2012 - Austin, TX

Summer 2013 - Lunch break

I have now maintained my weight for two years and eight months. 

I wonder what my ring and I will be up to next?

What Did I Make & Take?

Thank you all for all your fantabulous ideas and recipes that you gave me on Facebook last week when I asked the question: 

What is a good potluck type of dish to take to a weight loss surgery patient get-together? 

Go check out all of your AWESOME-SAUCE suggestions and ideas HERE

On Saturday I went to my weight loss surgery support group annual potluck picnic BBQ.

What did I end up bringing to the potluck?

I made these: Bite-Size Caprese Appetizers

Super easy to make.

Just put a cherry tomato, mozzarella, and a basil leaf on a toothpick.

Word.

Easy cheesy.

And see how fantastic it looks!?!  

Amazeballs, indeed.

Yum!

Weigh-in Day & How Did I Lose 115 lbs?

Goal weight: 145 lbs

Today's weight: 140.8 lbs

I just realized something kinda interesting.

Like a light bulb just went on above my head.

Fridays have been my weigh-in day for over four years now.

I've rarely ever really looked past the upcoming Friday.

Let me explain.

When I started out in my weight loss journey at 258.8 lbs, I almost never thought about the daunting task of losing +115 lbs.

I never thought at the beginning of this process back in August 2009, "OMG. How am I ever going to lose THAT MUCH WEIGHT?"

I only thought about that upcoming Friday weigh-in.

That Friday was never more than 6 days away.

What I focused on: that the weight on that upcoming Friday needed to be less than the previous Friday's weigh-in.

That's it.

Just less.

It didn't really matter if the scale showed 0.3 lbs less or 3 lbs less than the previous Friday.  It just needed to be less.

I know that if I had thought about the HUGE job of losing 115 lbs, I would have been discouraged.

I broke it down in manageable weekly chunks.  I wonder if it's one of my secrets to my success?

That's how I rolled for about 14 months while I was losing.

And let me tell ya, all of those little losses week after week added up to 115 lbs eventually.

Now that I've been in maintenance since December 2010, I still never look farther out than this upcoming Friday.

Each and every Friday, when I step onto that scale, the number needs to be less than 145 lbs.

That's it.

As long as the scale shows less than 145lbs, then it's all good.

And to be honest?  This is a pretty fantastic place to be.

Would You Rather Gain Weight or Gain Financial Debt?

I am a personal finance blog reading freak.

There are about 17 personal finance blogs that I read pretty much each and every day.

'Cuz that's how I roll.

My favorite personal finance blog?  DINKS Finance.

And just in case you didn't know, D.I.N.K. = Double Income No Kids.

Today's post over at DINKS Finance was:  What does your health have to do with your budget?

Go read it.

It's awesome-sauce.

What I liked most about the post was the hypothetical question:

Would you rather gain weight or gain financial debt? 

Let's get one thing super duper clear here:

Debt.

Scares.

The.

Sh*t.

Out.

Of.

Me.

I don't like to owe anybody, anything.  Ever. 

The concept of debt gives me the heebie jeebies.

Just for grins, let's rephrase that hypothetical question again with some hard-core numbers thrown in: 

Would you rather gain 100 lbs or gain $100K of financial debt? 

My answer? 

I'm honestly torn on this.

 

If I instantly gained 100 lbs, I would take me about a year and a half to lose it again. (I've done it before and I could do it again).

If I instantly had $100K of debt, that would take way longer to get rid of it and pay it off.  Maybe ten years or more? Who knows.

But how can I put a price or timeline on my health?

How can I put a price on how I feel today: fit and healthy. 

What is your answer to this question?  

Would you rather gain 100 lbs or gain $100K of financial debt? 

Tell me: