What were my underlying reasons to start getting healthy?

Recently I was asked the question: "What started you on your journey?"  After hearing the question I had to sit and think for a minute causing the person to ask another question, "Was it so you could find a significant other?"  Well the second question produced an immediate response. No I did not start my journey in order to obtain a boyfriend, for I already had a boyfriend (now my husband) who has always loved me for who I am.  He was not scared away by my size, and when asked how he could love me back then he typically shrugs and says easily.  So no, becoming more attractive to impress the opposite sex was not my main reason.  Perhaps the vain part of me did want to become more attractive for him, but I did not do it solely for the purpose of vanity.

I think the most underlying reason for why I began my journey is because I wanted to live.  I no longer wanted to be the girl who was slowly killing herself with food and piling on the weight.  I want to live to be old enough to have great grand children.  I want to live long enough so I can enjoy the world and travel.  I want to spend my whole life with my husband, without worrying if my obesity was eventually going to kill me.  I was tired of being tired.  Walking up stairs winded me, sometimes even walking from my car winded me.  I worked with children and I could not play duck duck goose with them without sweating and needing a break.  It was mortifying, and I realized I could no longer lead a life where living was not my priority.  Food had become my comfort, but this comfort was slowly killing me.  I had to change my ways so I could truly live.

So there you have it, the reason I started was because I wanted to live.  Simple as that.  Before this I was on the road to death.  Slowly dying with every bad thing I ate and every elevator instead of the stairs that I took. If you think about it living is a pretty big motivator.  Especially when you realize how much you actually have to live for.

10 Steps towards a healthy life!

1. Get prepared for your new life! Get excited about changing your life and get prepared to make the change for good. Realize that this isn't another fad diet you are going to start, this time you are going to change your whole lifestyle.  This time it is forever.

2. Evaluate the people in your life. So you want a fresh start? Then you need to take a closer look at the people you surround yourself with.  Are they good influences on you or do they tempt you with every step you take. If they are  the latter as hard as it is you may have to try to let them go, or at least keep your distance until you are strong enough to stand up for yourself and tell them no!

3. Clear out your pantry. Check your pantry for things that may tempt you later on. If you feel like you aren't strong enough to have it in your house yet get rid of it.  It is easier to stay on track without temptation at arms reach.

4. Write down your feelings. When you feel bad and want to binge eat, write down how you are feeling.  Finding what triggers you to make unhealthy decisions may help you in the future.  Also, write about why you are making this change, why it is so important to you to live a healthy and productive life.  You can look back on this for support and encouragement when you are having a bad day.

5. START! You can only do so much preparation and think about it so much before you start. Make small changes first, this small changes with grow exponentially into bigger changes.  Once you start making the bigger changes you will be amazed at your momentum.

6. Make sure the good out weighs the bad. We are all human and as humans we slip up.  Just make sure that you don't let one slip up turn into a roller coaster of bad decisions.  One cupcake will make you gain a pound.  As long as you stick to your work out schedule and continue to eat healthy you will be fine.

7. Count your calories. That means logging them daily. Log everything, because the more you log the better idea you will have on your daily calorie intake. The better idea on you caloric intake the easier it is for you to see what you need to change in your eating habits to lead a healthier life.

8. Write down your goals. Write them down and hang them up! I hang mine up in my bathroom, that way I can see them every day. They serve as my daily reminder of why I never want to go back to where I was and why I intend on living a healthy life for the rest of my life.

9. Get an accountability partner. Find someone who is willing to support you no matter what.  Someone to lean on that you can talk to about your daily activities.  This person should be there to support you and be there to listen to you.  You in return can do the same for them.

10. Celebrate your victories no matter how small. Celebrate your change in weight. Celebrate your non-scale victories as well.  Can you walk up a flight of stairs without being out of breath? Can you finally tie your own shes? Can you fit into a pair of jeans you wore in high school? Are people noticing your life change? Celebrate everything you can.  For all our victories no matter how big or small are all proof of our strength.  Proof of our courage and proof that we can do this.

Eating out

I absolutely love to eat out. There is just something about going out for a meal and not having to do a darn thing.  Don't get me wrong, as you can see from my blog I love to cook but once in awhile it is nice to have someone else do the cooking.  That way I even get out of doing the dishes!

What we all fail to remember is that it is okay to eat out! Now, am I saying that we should all eat out every day? No.  More than once a week? Probably not the best idea.  However, what I am saying is that as long as you plan it out ahead of time eating out can be less of a bad thing and more of a fun thing.

Now, it's time to get planning so you can go out!

Step 1: Find nutritional values for the place you want to go.  Most restaurants now readily provide nutritional information for there food.  If you cannot find any nutritional information online for where you want to go you can always call them and ask if they have it available at the restaurant.

Step 2: Plan it out! Figure out what you want to eat before you leave the house.  Are you going to have a dessert? If so which one? How is that going to affect what you choose as your main course?

Step 3: Plan out what you are going to eat through out the day before you go out to eat.  This way you are sure to stay around your caloric goal for the day!  If you plan on using a lot of your calories allotted when you are out to eat, try eating a bit lighter earlier in the day.

Step 4: Don't just think you have to get a salad.  A lot of the times you will be surprised to see that the 'healthy' salad you thought you were getting ends up having more calories than the food you were really craving.

Step 5: Enjoy your food, just because you are living a healthy lifestyle it doesn't mean that you can't enjoy your food.  If you want the high calorie eggplant parm that comes with spaghetti and sauce, get it!  Just remember to use portion control.  Ask for a box right away and put half of your meal in it.  That way you aren't tempted to eat more than you allotted your calories for!

Once you have a plan eating out will become less stressful.  It will become fun again and you will be able to enjoy yourself instead of constantly worrying about how this meal is going to affect your day.

Goal setting!

Whether you are at the end of your weight loss journey or at the beginning everyone has goals.  What are your goals? Write them down and hang them somewhere that you will see daily.  That way, when you are having a bad day you can remind yourself why you are working so hard.  You can remember what you are trying to accomplish.

Reevaluate your goals every once in awhile.  See which ones you have met and see which ones you would like to change.  If you meet all your goals, strive to come up with new, more challenging ones.  Life is all about challenging yourself.  Challenge yourself to do something you think is impossible at the moment.  Then, when you accomplish it you will realize that EVERYTHING is possible if you work for it.  Nothing comes easy, so keep working, keep setting goals and keep living healthy!

My goals at the moment:

1. To keep defining my abs, I want a tight body.
2. To do yoga 2 times a week.
3. To work out 6/7 days each week.
4. To work towards doing running race of some sort.
5. To love myself completely.
6. To focus on gaining muscle and not the pesky number on the scale.
7. To log my weight weekly (just to keep track).

These are just my health goals, feel free to also write down your personal life goals. :]