May 30, 2009 Here comes summer!

I tried really hard these past two weeks since my last official weigh-in to eat right and to get in more exercise:

1) Attending my karate class Tuesday, Thursday and Friday nights
2) Attending my karate demonstration team practice sessions (we're competing in Las Vegas this summer)
3) Attending WholyFit (yoga alternative) twice a week
4) Walking three times a week - yes, this is all too much; the walking is in the mornings and the demo practice has taken the place of one of the WholyFit time slots.
5) Laying off the fried foods
6) Portion control, portion control, portion control!!!

The results were...
- 4lbs since last weigh in
.4 lbs away from a 1o lb loss
.4 lbs away from my 5% goal

I'm excited about the 4 lb. loss. That is awesome. I am also realistic enough to notice the fact that .4 lb could easily have been lost had I tracked what went into my mouth the past two weeks. If you bite it...write it.

I keep telling myself that I'm just too busy to focus on so many things at once. If I focus on exercise and on tracking and on reading and on my job and on my family's business and on web design for the family business and on cleaning the house and on being a mom and on feeding the dog and on blah, blah, blah then I will fail at everything.

What I've got to do is make mindless habits out of stuff. Make routines. Focus on certain things that can become routines that I never have to think about, I just do them. Then the really important stuff, I can put my whole mind and heart into.

If I think of food as fuel, then I can just prepare my meals for the entire day, not stray from what I packed up for the day, and write it all down at night. I save myself some time thinking, measuring and tracking because I did it all in the morning and didn't have to choose and measure and plan during the day.

How'd I let things get like this?

Eating and metabolism: I have always had issues with eating. But, until my mid-twenties, my metabolism and lifestyle pretty much kept up with me. Then came the kids. When you have kids, everything changes. There are nearly ten years between my two children. I probably gained about 50 lbs. between the two births.

Occupation and lifestyle: I went from teaching to an even cooler job which required me to use computers much more frequently. I began studying in the evenings for various technical certifications. I started working on and eventually earned my MS in Computer Information Systems.

I got pregnant, got gestational diabetes, swelled up to over 247 lbs. and started insulin. I dropped 40 lbs. before having the baby. After the baby, the diabetes went away, but the doctors all told me I have a 70% chance of developing Type II diabetes.

A few months after having my second daughter, I landed my dream job - desktop computing and network administration. Besides the occasional lugging around of monitors, switches, and other parts it was pretty much sedentary. My body adapted to fluorescent lighting, slight arm and leg movements, but boy did I have a great right index finger. (Mouse clicking.)

My husband was laid off from work. We relocated the family up to The Woodlands, TX where we opened a martial arts studio with family friends. I continued a three hour a day (105 mile a day) commute. I loved that job so much, but I was unable to exercise, had terrible eating habits, was falling asleep at the wheel, and never got to see my family.

I decided to make a change because I needed to live. I needed to live life to its fullest for me and for my family. I needed to be there for them every day. I took a $ 10,000 per year pay cut and went back to doing a job that I am great at, but that I don't like very much. I have a lot of time with my family. I get to go to the karate school.

I figured that (1) if I want to be around with my kids, I should ensure that by getting in shape, and (2) it is a lot easier for my husband to sell memberships and prove that karate can help you stay in shape if his wife doesn't look like a beached whale!