Riding the wave of success!

I can't believe I almost gave up! My motivation was starting to wane, when a Spark buddy said CONSISTENCY is key - motivation can wear off.

My plan was to start off slow, which I did, by tracking my food. Then I added in Zumba once a week, then water aerobics in the pool while my daughter was in swimming lessons. But for awhile, the scale didn't move. AT ALL. I was starting to get frustrated and was beginning to slip into some bad habits. I was thinking, "This is not meant to be. I'm not going to be skinny. It's TOO HARD." Then the scale started to creep back up.

I thought "NO WAY am I giving up this easily!" I read that Spark Article "Think you're too fat to run? Think again!" I bought some bonafide running shoes, downloaded the C25k running program to my iPod, and well, I was off and running!

I started getting sore last night, but I sucked it up and went to Zumba today, thinking I'd work some soreness out. Don't know if I did or not, but as I sit here with my muscles screaming in agony, I can say with a CERTAINTY that soreness is progressive! BUT, I'll suck it up again in the morning for W1D2 of the program. I know how this "game" works, and I will probably be crying like a little girl in the morning, but I will push through the pain (soreness, not injury). I KNOW it will get easier, and the soreness will lessen with time. (Army Basic Training taught me something!)

I also found I had to UP my calorie intake slightly - right now, 1700 calories was just too low. Probably went down too far too fast. Once I went up to around 1900, the weight started coming off again - about a half pound a day. Body was probably in survival mode and hanging on to every fat cell it could! So, combined with some type of exercise most every day, I'm starting to see results.

Yesterday I went to get my first 5% goal met reward (earrings: non-fattening, ya know!) and ended up sharing my "story" with the clerk. (I find myself doing that a lot lately. I'm proud of my accomplishments and it's helping to keep me accountable.) Anyway, I told her my ultimate reward was a trip to Mardi Gras next year, and she said she'd help dress me for it! And I said "Yes! And I'll get to shop on the skinny side of the store!"

I am down 15 lbs and 8 inches overall since January 1st. Each tiny victory (a half pound is a victory in my world!) inspires me to continue. I am learning patience to perservere when the scale gets stuck.

So, when you get to feeling like giving up, DON'T. It's going to takeTIME and lots of EFFORT and CONSISTENCY - and yes, some pain and tears. You have to try different things to see what works for you. YOU are WORTH IT!! You just have to BELIEVE that you are!