A Whole New Me- Keep Trying!

The goal I set for myself last month (technically the end of August) was to lose 4 lbs of fat. Unfortunately, I didn't even come close. The begining of the month was bad all over the place. We had 4 birthday parties and a wedding in the course of 3 weeks (that was a whole lot of cake...). I still struggled with getting my workouts in on a regular basis. About mid-September, a friend of mine invited me to go to a Zumba class with her (well, more like begged me to go so she wouldn't look like a fool since it was her first time too). I have to say, I totally loved it. It is some serious cardio and you are bound to break a sweat (or, in my case, drown in it). I have consistently gone at least once a week, and tried to squeeze in a a second time. It has been a very fun way to do cardio without the feeling of "working out." I highly recommend it. And for those of you that think that you are too old/fat/out of shape, watch this video:

This awesome lady is 65! She's "old" and probably not in the same shape that she was in her mid 20s. She also isn't on the same level as all the young ladies in class with her. But that hasn't stopped her. She keeps going and keeps trying. THAT is what exercise and being healthy is all about. It isn't about being "perfect" or having the perfect body. It is about constantly getting up in the morning and TRYING. One step at a time.

Take my measurements for example:

I started with this in July 2011:
Waist: 31 in
Hips: 40 in
Weight: 142 lbs
Body Fat: 34%

Goal:
Waist: 28 in
Hips: 38 in
Weight: 125 lbs
Body Fat: 30%

I set my goal so low because I didn't think I could actually get to where I wanted to be. I secretly wanted to have a 24" waist and 36" hips, but didn't think that after 4 babies I could ever get there again, without making some drastically unhealthy choices.

A year later, I hadn't made a lot of progress, except in the body fat area (although I am entirely convinced that the 18% drop came straight from my poor boobies that went from 36 DD to 30 B). I fully believe that this was because I had set my bar SO low that I didn't have any drive to actually reach it.

July 2012:

Weight: 140.8 

Body fat: 16.3% 

Waist: 31

Hips: 38.25

Chest: 29.5

Arms: 10/10.5

Thigh: 21

 

Now, only 2 MONTHS LATER, I am smaller than I ever thought I could get again, and I still have inches to lose if I want. I learned more about my body composition and that the magic number I was constantly reaching for (125lbs) was not going to make me LOOK the way I wanted. Seriously, what was I thinking? 125 lbs with 30% body fat would have meant that I was carrying around nearly 40 LBS OF FAT! Uh, no thank you (think boxes of butter, ew)!

So now, I am here:

Weight: 137 lbs

Body Fat: 15.6% (HALF of what my goal was last year!)

Waist: 27 in (smaller than my original goal)

Hips 36 in (my secret goal)

Chest: 29.25 in

Arm: 9.75/10.75 in (ha ha, I'm lopsided :/)

Thigh: 20 in

I am only carrying around 21lbs of fat and I have already hit my goal in several areas. The sheer difference in muscle/fat percentages is pretty awesome. I went from 94 lbs of muscle and 48 lbs of fat to 116 lbs of muscle and 21 lbs of fat. I can actually SEE the definition in my biceps that I never have before, even in High School when I was curling twice the weight I am now. The best part is that I am nearly the size I secretly always wanted to be and I'm still healthy. I always thought that in order to be as "skinny" as I really wanted that I would have to starve myself, or something. Nope. I just had to work my butt off. At this point, I can still safely lose 5 lbs of fat, putting me at 12% body fat and 132 lbs. With how many inches I lost just losing TWO pounds of fat, I'm kind of excited. In theory, I could lose an additional 11 inches. I don't know WHERE, but I would be totally happy with just another 4 or 5.

So, here's my new, improved goal:

Weight: 132 lbs

Body Fat: 12%

Waist: 24 in

Hips: 35 in (that would be so amazing)

Chest: 29 in

Arm: 9.75/9.75 (it would be nice to be even lol)

Thigh: 18 in

Total to lose: 5 lbs of fat and 6 inches

Think I can do it? We shall see...

July 2011

October 2012

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dang... That is the fist time that I have seen those two pictures together... I feel a whole lot better

So, I'm afraid that my posting for last year became non-existent shortly after early November. There is a very good explanation for that. After more than a year and a half of a brutal court battle, it finally all came to a head during Thanksgiving Break. Thankfully, I won my case, but it took a LOT of time and effort which meant I had less time for my blog.

I did, however, take the time each day to find something that I was grateful for. By last night, I had come to realize that a lot of my issues had come from how I viewed them. Once I focused more on the positive things, it became so much easier to notice them. I also came to find that Riker was struggling with a similar issue. It has been very hard to watch him become so engrossed in all of the negative things that have been going on. Oddly enough, my attempts to help him have just forced me to find even MORE positives in my life.

The best part is that with the holidays over the last few months, I have had even more time to reflect and evaluate my life. I have really come to appreciate more simple things. As a result, I have been a lot less focused on trying to get everything perfect. I have been a little easier on myself. I have smiled more. I have tried to let things go and move on. I have even had more time for myself (which made more time for craft habit).

As part of our New Year's Eve celebrations, I had the kids write down all the crappy things that had happened to them over the last year. Some of the things they wrote down were petty and happened within the last several hours. Some of the things they came up with were very influential in their lives and have had a great impact on them this year (Data's broken arm and corresponding surgeries and complications being a good instance). Then, we all folded them up, took a deep breath, and threw them in the fire as a physical way to let it go and move forward. From there, we listed all the wonderful things that happened and the blessings that we were grateful for (this list was significantly longer) and wrote them on a paper lantern and set it floating in the sky to remind us that there are always good things that happen and that we have to keep our chin up to see them. (I seriously came up with this idea in the middle of our festivities and was so impressed by how well it went over that I will definitely be incorporating it into future New Year's Eve traditions).

Like many others in the spirit of New Year's, I have come up with a list of resolutions for 2012. Instead of trying to start them all at once and inevitably falling short after a few months or weeks, I am going to try to take my master list and split it up into smaller, more attainable goals and only try to work on one at a time. This may mean that I never get to some of them before the end of the year, but at least I will be able to work on some of them. My plan is to split them up into 52 goals and add them in, one at a time, each week. Think I can do it? I do.

So, my first goal is to have Family Home Evening with my family every Monday, even on days when Riker has to work (this is one thing that always threw us off before). Unfortunately, updating my blog is a little lower on my priority list this year, so I may not be tracking things on here regularly for several weeks, but I will try to touch bases every now and then to keep things updated and keep track of my progress.

I hope that you had a wonderful Christmas season and are looking forward to the fresh opportunities that this year has in store for you. Here is to a GREAT 2012!