Good advice

Saw this on a friend's FB page and had to copy it.  Now if only I would DO it!

I have not scheduled working out into my week at all so far, but today I am planning to hit the gym for the 2:00 water aerobics class.  That gives me enough time to exercise, shower and dress, and then get home with time enough to empty and reload the dishwasher and the washer/dryer before the kids get home.

I KNOW exercise helps me in so many ways, not the least of which is to get get in shape.  I have major clinical depression, and while it is mostly controlled by medication (better living through chemistry, baby!), exercise lifts my spirits and makes me feel good about myself.  And the water aerobics classes make me feel GREAT about myself.  Okay, that's probably because I'm the youngest by about twenty to thirty years so therefore am usually able to push myself even more than the instructor says and still look graceful doing it, but hey - whatever works, right?

I don't know if anyone actually is reading this blog or if it is mainly an outlet for myself, but in case anyone IS reading, what exercise do YOU do that makes you feel good about yourself?  Please leave a comment and let me know.

Guess What!

It is necessary to do more than create a blog about losing weight in order to actually lose some weight.  Huh.  Who knew?

Forty

I have forty pounds to lose.  That amount of weight combined with the fact that I am just under 5' 2" makes my BMI officially over the line into the Obese category.  Since The Princess is my youngest and she is almost eight, I don't think I can call it baby weight anymore. 

This year I will be turning forty.  I believe everything happens for a reason, and there must be a reason that the amount of weight I have to lose equals the milestone age I will be in four months.

It is time to get serious.

Diet-wise I'm attempting to keep it simple:

• 2 proteins
• 2 milks
• 2-3 carbs  It should be 2 but since that is my weakness, I'm letting myself have up to 3.
• Unlimited fruits and vegetables
• 8 cups of water

This week, garnered by the enthusiasm from starting anything new, I have been pretty good sticking to it.  I was trying to use http://www.sparkpeople.com/ to track calories, but my computer is soooo slow that it is just taking too much time for me to record what I eat.  Hopefully this plan will be simple enough for me to incorporate it into my lifestyle.

I know that diet and exercise have to go hand in hand, so I am trying to make going to the gym a priority, planning my day around the class I want to attend.  Tuesday I did an Aerobics Sculpting class which kicked my butt and made my muscles scream the next day (and the next . . .).  The Princess was home sick on Wednesday so I couldn't get to the gym (and with the way I was feeling, I wasn't too disappointed), but I did get to a good water aerobics class yesterday afternoon and am planning to go again this afternoon.

I wonder if the past four days of being so good has made a difference in the scale.  I weighed in last Friday using the gym's scale, so probably I should do that again today to see if anything has changed.  I would be thrilled if it has, but it won't be the end of the world if it hasn't - this week was all about getting back into a healthy routine.