Food, Motivation, & Inspiration

Well another week has come and gone is this amazing journey! It has been FOUR months! Can you believe it?!? I am back at 210 this week. Another two pounds and I will be back at my lowest in a really long time! My mom is still ahead of me, at 209. But the race is on! It amazes me how much I learn about myself each week. Things that I thought I knew already, but something comes up and my reaction or decision is completely different from what it would have been four months ago.

Let me explain. Four months ago I would have been upset that my mom caught me. Four months ago I would have given up every single day because it was too hard. Four months ago I was eating packs of oreos with milk while watching netflix all weekend. (At least half of that is still true, I will let you guess what half ;) ) But now, I look forward to my workouts, (except for cardio I still haven't gotten that tamed yet); I wake up each morning with a new resolve to be better today than I was yesterday; and (on most days) I have my frat-boy eating habits in check. I really liked this quote picture thingy I found on Pinterest.

With the good also comes the bad. There are things that I have learned over the past four months that I need to work on. Like: I can't afford to be picky when it comes to eating healthy. You will either starve, or get tired of eating the SAME foods every day! (Like chicken!) I do not do well if I am not prepared. Going on vacation I wasn't prepared to eat healthy so I opted for quick. When house sitting, if I am not prepared, I shop for cheap food (or eat whatever they have in the house which is usually canned or out of a box)

One of the most important things I have learned so far: I am dependent on other people to motivate me, and to keep me accountable. I find that if I don't have somebody to work out with, I won't. If I don't have somebody watching what I eat (or take for lunch) I eat CRAP! If no one reminds me to write in my blog, I will watch another episode of Merlin on Netflix. I don't know why I have such a hard time motivating myself to be healthy, or to eat right. I hope now that I recognize it I can change it. But how do you motivate yourself? I am doing this for me right? So why can't I find the time to workout on my own? Why should it matter if some one is watching what food I intake? It should be MY JOB, to watch what food I intake. It should be MY JOB to make sure I get a work out in every day! Don't get me wrong, I appreciate everyone's help and encouragement. (In fact, I think it keeps me going) And I definitely don't want it to stop, but I need to work on doing these things like nobody is watching. In case someday nobody is watching, I will have the strength because I created the habit to do what is healthy for me!

So now that I have stepped on and off my "soapbox" lets get on to some fun things! For those of you who don't know me very well, I am a VERY, VERY, VERY picking eater, just ask the people who know me best. Earlier in this blog I said that I can't afford to be picking any more because I would either starve or I would get tired of eating the same old thing. Well that is a fact! I think I have eaten so much chicken in the last four months I probably could have bought foster farms. We eat it the SAME way ALL the time. Well I got bored! I tried marinades, I tried seasonings, yeah none of that worked. I still have a hard time eating chicken. But something good has come of this. My friend Maryann and I went out for dinner the other night, and I got to pick where we were going! Well I picked the place where you can get all three banned foods for this months diet! I know, I AM A GENIUS! So I decided I was going to brave a salad. I figured I wouldn't eat very much of it (Because I HATE lettuce!) and it would probably be small any way! HA! We went to Red Robin (Yummm!) and I got the whisky river bbq chicken salad. It was the BEST salad I have every had! Black beans (healthy) Lettuce (romaine- so some nutritional value) chicken (healthy) corn tortilla chips ( probably lots of salt, but no white flour) & tomatoes ( I didn't eat very many of those, they still taste a little weird for me), with light amount of bbq sauce, and ranch. Don't believe me, check it out!                    

I challenge every one to eat something new this week. It can be something that you have thought for a long time that you hate, or something you have never tried before. If you don't like it, hey at least you tried it. If you like it, try and incorporate it into you meal plan later on this week. I am going to try cauliflower (I think, maybe, probably)
Last week's goals I was 2 for 4. 50% I guess that's ok. Better than 0% I haven't cheated on the banned foods (I have had some not so healthy meal choices, like ice cream), I am writing my blog and its Saturday 8/16. I did work out 4 days this week, but I didn't jog at any of them. My goals for the next week:
1. Work out at least 5 days at least 30 minutes.
2. Jog at least one of those workouts.
3. Try a new food this week.
4. Hold my self accountable while house sitting this weekend.

I am so grateful for all of your support and encouragement! I hope that as others start on their own incredible journeys to living a healthier life, that I will be able to be as encouraging and supportive! If you are someone who is starting or has started already, I encourage you to write about and let others know they are not alone in this fight! Remember each day, you are enough! You are amazing! And with each new day, comes a new attitude!

And as always remember, You can shine no matter WHAT your made of!