Weekly weigh in and exciting things to come!

So the scale stayed the same as last week.  At face value, that's rather disappointing, but digging a little deeper...it's actually a good thing (in my best Martha Stewart voice).  Last weekend I spent some time self-sabotaging and the weight went up, up, up.  I was actually up 3 MORE pounds by mid-week, so to be back where I started is ok with me.

I've been trying to surround myself with positive, motivational stuff.  Whether it's a great Facebook page, an inspirational blog, or the reddit pages my little brother has shared with me (thanks Andy!).  Many of them talk about "hard work," of course.  I always felt I was working hard and doing what I can because I will work my butt off in the gym, and then some.  The other night as I was driving home, I was thinking about "hard work" and what it meant.  I came to the rather difficult realization that I'm NOT working hard...at least in a well-rounded way.

I give my all at the gym.  Whether I'm lifting or doing cardio, I'm working up a sweat and giving 110%.  If time were not a factor, I could easily spend a couple of hours working up a sweat at the gym.  Ok, I've got the exercise part of the equation down.  There is no doubt about that.  Once I get this knee fixed again, I hope to crank that stuff back up again.  But we'll see.

We all know the other part of the weight loss equation, and that is nutrition/food/eating.  And here is where I have consistently fallen down for years.  If you do not believe that weight loss is 70-80% nutrition and 20-30% exercise, message me and I can fill you in.  I am the poster child for proving that is true.  I. Am. A. Food. Addict.  I'm not a binge eater, but I am addicted to food and there are certain ones that I just cannot resist.

Which leads to the thoughts I was having as I was driving home.  Weight loss/lifestyle change/whatever you wish to label this journey...takes hard work.  I'm only doing half of that work, so I'm NOT doing hard work.  I'm doing half-way work.  Medium work.  Mediocre work. 

What?!?!?!

What about all the sweat and tears I've given in the gym?  What about all the pain I've put my body through with my workouts?  What about the injuries?  What about all the TIME I've invested at the gym? 

I'm not saying that was not worth it, nor was it meaningless.  My blood pressure is great and I have no real health problems.  I'm way more healthy than I appear on the surface.  So it was all worth it and will continue to be worth it.

But I'm not giving the full effort in the kitchen that I've been giving in the gym.  Those two side of the equation have to balance or success will NOT be the answer.  And by success, I mean weight loss.  The food part of this journey has got to change.  To do that, I'm going to have to step outside of my comfort zone and try some new foods, new spices, new methods of cooking, etc.  I've had this thought in the past, but I've managed to quash it down and ignore it.  It's time to bring that thought out to the open, take a good hard look at it, poke it, prod it, and figure out how to implement it.  There is no other way.  I've tried them all, so I know! 

First step in this direction is to meet with Jennifer, the dietitian at the Macomb Hy-Vee store.  I have an appointment with on Wednesday after work.  I'm hoping she can give me some guidance, suggestions, and ideas on how to get my plan started.  I know, from my friend's experience with her, that she will take me around the store and give me suggestions on things to do with various foods and how to bring them together to create something good. 

I need that because I do not know how to combine foods.  I'm ignorant when it comes to spices other than salt and pepper.  But I've been AFRAID to try anything for fear of failing.  I've let that fear paralyze me and keep me in this blasted rut for years!  I'M TIRED OF THIS RUT AND I WANT OUT!

Another step in that direction will be research.  Great recipes and food ideas are not going to fall from the heavens and land in my lap.  Although I love Food Network, they do not have a show (yet) called, "Hey Angie!  Let Us Cook You Some Delicious Food So You Don't Have To Think About It!"  (This idea is MY property and if you steal it and pitch it to Food Network and make a trazillion dollars I will hunt you down and cut holes in your socks and I will also think bad thoughts about you.)  So instead of wasting time waiting for Facebook to update, or playing Candy Crush, or any of the other timewasting methods I employ on weekends, I need to spend time scouring the internet, cookbooks, blogs, etc for food ideas.  Pinterest is a wonderful place to "store" things you've found on the internet.  I should put it to better use than for storing pictures of funny cats and witty quotes.  Huh.  Novel idea there, eh?

Ok, so I'm working on the food thing.  And that's also a good thing (see 1st paragraph regarding how that should sound).

Yet another step I'm taking to move this journey along is I took a risk and applied for a spot in the Biggest Loser Competition that the Campus Rec Center is hosting.  They only pick 10 applicants to work with.  Well, there were only 5 applicants (so far) and I'm in.  I'm sad that more people didn't apply because it's a great opportunity.  There will be a weekly meeting and I'll get to work with a personal trainer (student) at least once a week for an hour workout.  I'm always up for learning new things, so this excites me.  I hope we get some more applicants so we have a bigger group for the weekly support meetings.  But if not, I'm going to take these people down and leave them in my dust (except for my friend, KW, who I made convinced to sign up with me).  I want to WIN, dang it! 

Change is hard, though, so I'm not trying to make myself do this overnight.  My inclination is to do just that, but I know it will just make me mad/frustrated/irritated/upset and I'll withdraw and quit.  Been there, done that!  So I'm just trying to be more mindful of what I'm eating - and how much - for now.  We've all heard it said:  food is fuel.  If I choose the foods that make my body happy, my body will do amazing things for me.  I've never given it that opportunity because I've never been able to give up the junk.  I'm not saying I will never, ever, ever, ever eat "junk" food again, but I am saying it's presence on my food logs needs to be greatly reduced. 

I can do this.  I've gone through harder changes in my life.  And it will only be hard for a little while.  Once we get used to new habits, they start to seem easy.  I've just got to get to that point without quitting as I have before!