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Introduction Text "You get credit for what you finish, not what you start." Welcome to my Spark Page and thank you for visiting. I joined Spark People in August of 2007 and it has really helped me develop a more healthy lifestyle. I lost about 20 lbs. in my first 6 months and have made some great fitness achievements, including completing 4 half marathons. Lately, though, I have not been happy with my weight loss progress. I have been stalled out for more than 18 months and recently have actually started to see some of my original weight loss creep back on. So, I have re-committed to my plans and am re-Sparking myself by starting from scratch. I'm just started the Fast Break stage again and am committed to getting back on track again. I'm a 30-something, married, working Mom of two boys. I want to get fit and lose weight to feel better about myself and make sure that I'm around for a very long time. I didn't really struggle with my weight until my sophomore year of college. I would pack on a few pounds each school year but was able to easily lose them again by the following fall pretty much just by exercising. I started WW for the first time in 1998. I got close to my goal but never made it and that's been a continuing theme for me. I always seem to give up before I actually reach my goal. I had a couple less successful attempts at WW and then got pregnant with our first child in 2001 and gained way too much weight. I tried Atkins in 2003, had some success, but just couldn't live with that program on a long-term basis. Then, the weight started to creep back and I got pregnant with #2 and got to my all time highest weight ever. Since having my second baby, my weight had been hovering around 200 lbs. and I was very discouraged. When I joined Spark People in August of 2007, I was just coming off a rough couple of years. My husband had been working full time and going to school full time leaving lots of the childcare to me. I didn't make much time for myself and really struggled to try to get back to my pre-pregnancy weight after child #2. I was missing one key piece to the puzzle - EXERCISE. Now, he's finished and has started a new job, which will gives me more flexibility in my schedule and lower both of our stress levels. I have a lot of trouble with emotional eating and boredom eating. It's a battle for me but I feel like with the tools here, I can win that battle and finally make it to my ultimate goal. I also struggle with the fact that my husband has the metabolism of a shrew and can pretty much eat anything that he wants with no adverse consequences. He's a real meat and potatoes eater, which has been challenging for me. My exercise passion is running. I started with Couch to 5K back in January of 2007. I started running to try to get fit and lose weight but have found that I really enjoy it and enjoy the feelings of accomplishment (not to mention the endorphins) that running gives me. I'm a slow runner and hope to get faster as I lose more weight but my pace doesn't take anything away from my enjoyment. I ran my first half marathon in May of 2008 and have run three more plus a 10 mile race since then. I had hoped to run a full marathon in 2009 but recently had to re-evaluate that goal as I was struggling with the increase in mileage. Although it was a good decision for me, I'm still struggling with feelings of regret and disappointment. I do plan to run a half marathon in September and a 10 miler in October of 2009.

I want to reach my goal weight of 155 by my 40th birthday in March - the best present that I could give to myself. I'd also like to continue with my running and work on improving my speed. I have a half marathon planned for September and a 10 mile race scheduled for October of 2009. Here's a link to my running log: http://runningahead.com/logs/90f09b773 664445bbd81d6853ddcb57e My weight loss goals: To be in 170ville by the end of Aug. 2009

I'm essentially following the Spark plan by tracking my calories and trying to burn at least 3000 calories per week with aerobic activity. I like to run, bike, walk, and cross country ski (when the weather cooperates).

I live in the mountains of western Maryland. I work outside the home full time. I love to be outdoors.

My interests include: my kids, natural science, reading, quilting, fishing, hiking, digital photography, and web design.

Add a Link -Katie- "You get credit for what you finish, not what you start." My Running Log: <link>http://www.runningahead.com/logs/90f09b773664445bbd81d6853ddcb57e</link>
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