Monday, March 3, 2008

Dance Jig

You know, for all the complaining that I do (more to my hubby than to the blog) about not getting to the spot I want to be bikini-wise, my body sure is doing some work for me in there somewhere. On Saturday, out of some weird notion, I put on those size 8's (that I bought back in, what, November?) that have been pretty tight- button-able, but too tight to be comfortable.

Well, they fit, and I wore them.

It's official- I'm in a size 8! To celebrate, I went to Kohl's and bought two new pairs of jeans, one a size 8 and the other a 10 (only because they didn't have an 8, and they were the replicate of my absolute favorite pair of jeans, which at a size 14 I can pull up and down without having to unbutton). Very nice.

My sister mentioned to me again this last week that she thought I looked "anorexic" to her. Hmm, not seeing that...

On the workout front, I started Turbulence Training's 2k4 today. Upper/lower split. I may have taken it kinda easy, although I guess it didn't feel too easy while I was doing it. My hip started bothering me during the HIIT, so I only did 12 minutes (1 min on/1 min off) on the treadmill.

Otherwise, nothing but random thoughts today. I feel more normal this week than I did last week, even though the thesis-crunch still isn't over. However, a presentation I was supposed to give next week (and am no where near ready for) got pushed back like 3 weeks, so that helps. This current chapter is also going a little faster and isn't as in-depth. Current chapter is the Emotional Consequences of being overweight as a child/adolescent. Research apparently has a hard time linking overweight with depression, although self-esteem usually is down the drain. My undergrad was in psychology, so that's probably why this chapter's a bit easier. It's an area I'm more familiar with!

Saturday, March 1, 2008

Obliterating Obesity

Of course, right now I'm neck-deep in this stuff, considering my thesis topic. I'll have to post my Health Consequences chapter sometime so you can all know what I found in my search, and how unhealthy being obese (>27 BMI or >27% bodyfat) really is. Man, it's awful. Did you know they have hypertension and diabetes in kids already? If not, there's a newsflash for you.

However, Scott Tousignant has put together an awesome report and blog, all with the goal of obliterating obesity. It is his goal to put a stop to this unhealthy weigh of life (pun intended). Since I've been borderline obese before, and have since worked with several obese people, I understand how hard it is to get those people to change. They say they want to, they may even take a couple of steps towards it, but then, they scare themselves off somehow and just never get started. However, once there is that "click" it just seems to happen, and people find that they can take the initiative, keep plugging away, and eventually be successfully at a healthy weight, living a healthy life, and are enjoying themselves for once (even if they do think their thighs are still too big- *cough cough*).

Yes, losing weight is hard. It's not so much the whole taking off the pounds thing as it is making those changes, facing the emotions, and understanding the society that put you there in the first place. It's the changing of behavior that is hard. It's leaving the comfort zone and mediocrity behind. It's not easy.

And that's why you fall down. Why you have bad days/weeks/months, where you either gain a little weight or only maintain what you have so far. And it's also why you pick yourself back up, dust yourself off, and decide to plug away at it again. And it's that constant pick-up, constant re-focus on the efforts, and that consistent decision not to hate yourself anymore that makes you a successful person. A successful person doesn't suddenly live in utopia. Even successful people have their problems, weaknesses, and flaws. However, they are just really good at picking themselves up, dusting off, and going again for the goal.

Do you really think that one workout's going to make you a successful person? Do you really think that one bad meal decision is going to ruin your entire effort so far? Do you really believe that watching one t.v. show is going to turn you into a sloth?

Really?

I hope not, because it's the consistency of completing one workout, eating one quality meal, or one tv shows, that does it. C.O.N.S.I.S.T.E.N.C.Y. One workout, done two or more times per week. One quality meal, repeated 4-6 times each day. One less t.v. show, each night.

THAT's what does it.

That's what turns you into THAT Healthy Person. THAT successful person. THAT person who seems to have their act together all the time, so much so that others see them as perfect.

That's a lot to live up to, by the way. Others will expect more of you. Are you up to it?

(It's also why I'm so honest on my blog. I'm already enough of a perfectionist, and I don't want others thinking I am perfect, since I don't need the pressure ;)

To get the report, which is free, just visit http://obliterateobesity.com/ and sign up. It will be sent to your email.

Carrie
Written on behalf of myself and THAT Healthy Person: Lose Weight, Not Your Mind