Reaching for the Goal

January 2009 Update

2009-01-17T22:22:00.000-08:00

Well I haven't stuck with anything for the past two years. I am close to my heaviest weight ever and need to get focused. For this year one of my goals is spiritual and physical well being. I have been fairly consistent on the Quiet time - not perfect, but almost everyday. I have started walking 1 mile a day on the treadmill. My goal is to walk 6 days a week. I have walked 10 days this month and also done some strength training exercises each of those days. I need to work on consistency in this area - walk even when I don't feel like it or can't get to it first thing in the morning. On the health front I wanted to start drinking more water each day and I haven't been doing well at that at all. I have been eating healthy breakfasts to start off my day and that is a positive thing. Tomorrow is a new day. This week I want to drink at least 48 oz of water a day, continue to eat a healthy breakfast each day and not eat anything within 2 hours of bedtime. I will try to post each day with an update of how I am doing.

Struggling

2006-06-12T16:38:00.000-07:00

After having such an awesome first week on weight watchers - I tumbled greatly and actually gained a few pounds back. I even ate well during a weekend of gatherings only to fall off the wagon and binge afterwards. Well, here we go again and I am going to try to remain firm . . and diligent . . . things that are definately a challenge for me.

May Walking Challenge Update

2006-06-12T16:02:00.000-07:00

I didn't make my goal - but I did get very close.

May Walking Challenge

2006-05-31T11:06:00.000-07:00

I have walked 13.5 miles -- 90% of my goal of 15 miles!!

Its a START!!!!

2006-05-26T14:52:00.000-07:00

I have been using weight watchers online for a week now and I have lost five pounds! I am so happy to finally have made some progress. I know I won't loose five pounds every week, but it still gives me hope that I will start seeing smaller numbers on that scale! It is nice to have my clothes fit and not squeeze me anymore. The next size is awaiting me in my closet, although it will be a few more pounds before they fit.

Keeping Track - Todays Water

2006-05-23T23:02:00.000-07:00

I have had 87.5% of my goal of 8 cups water today!!

What's New

2006-05-23T22:51:00.000-07:00

I haven't been posting very often as of late - life has been happening around here and blog time has not been as often as in the past. Over the past couple of months I have incorporated exercise and drinking more water into my daily routine. I have been trying to eat better but have not had much success in the weight loss department. After much thought, I decided to join weight watchers online and give it a try. I started last Friday and have been doing pretty well. It is helping me to stay accountable and to recognize what types of food I have been eating. I have already seen a weight loss (although, I haven't reached my first weigh in date yet). This week has been very encouraging. The weather has been a bit showery this week and so walking outside hasn't been an option for me, fair weather walker that I am, so I tried one of Leslie Sansone's walk and firm videos. I really liked the routine. Unfortunately, the video came from the library and there is something wrong with it, making it very hard to watch. I will need to find another option. I also tried some pilates mat exercises today and really worked some muscles. I am so out of shape, but pressing on toward the goal.

My Week

2006-05-11T15:14:00.000-07:00

I am feeling pretty good overall. I have been walking consistently and drinking water, not yet at my 8 glasses a day consistently but close. I am changing little habits, such as snacking in the evening. The new rule is that I can have a snack, but it has to be healthy - goodbye chips and salsa. I have learned that I am not good at counting calories - but I can figure out approximately what a breakfast should contain and keep it to some healthy choices. I am trying to find what "works" not what doesn't work. This needs to be a lifestyle change. I am enjoying my walks, getting some fresh air, seeing God's great creation and yes, a little time away from the house and the children. I use this time to listen to tapes or cds. I have taken in lectures on Excellence in Christianity and also listened to worship music. In so doing, I am working on my spiritual well-being at the same time as my physical. My biggest struggle right now is being patient - I want to see dramatic change - I know the change will come but I want it NOW.

Life is a journey

2006-05-04T19:04:00.000-07:00

I didn't quite reach my goal for April - but hey, I did walk 5 of my 6 mile goal and that in itself was an achievement. I haven't exercised in such a long time - this took a real effort and I am so glad that I did it. I will work to reach my goal for May.

Up and Down

2006-04-27T18:50:00.000-07:00

It has been an incredibly busy week and thus I haven't been eating right. I really struggle with healthy eating when we are too busy. The bright spot and I mean "bright" is that it has been beautiful here in the PNW and that makes me feel emotionally better. Being on the blubberblogger list has really helped me not to forget my committment and motivated me to go for my walk today. Tomorrow is a new day - I will do better, I will drink my water and pursue my goals! Actually, why wait until tomorrow? I will start right now and get a glass of water and make sure I don't eat unhealthy snacks tonight!

Bite Size Pieces

2006-04-19T22:40:00.000-07:00

For my spiritual goals - the bite size piece is just to start reading and praying every day! Right now we have a family devo time and report on what we read in our bibles that day and also pray and sing together. This really helps me stay focused.

My current baby step toward physical health is drinking 8 glasses of water a day and walk in our neighborhood three times a week. I also need to stop my unhealthy evening snacking.

What are my goals?

2006-04-19T22:25:00.000-07:00

As I move forward in the journey of my life, I once again ponder this question. What are my goals? What should they be? Do I even have any? Well, yes, I do have some and I need to figure out how to break them down into bite size pieces.

First of all, there is my spiritual life and health. I feel that I am in a constant struggle for consistency in this area. Sometimes I wonder if something is really wrong, why don't I keep myself in the word and leaning on the Lord for help? Well, all I know is that I need to keep working at it and that He is always waiting there to help me.

Second is my physical health. I have struggled with this since my teen years. In Highschool I was at my thinnest, eating a very unhealthy diet and keeping very busy. After I got married, my weight crept steadily up and then we had children and it was up then down, then up then down - I think you get the picture. About four years ago I started a new way of eating with the Prism program. It was a program in which you work to understand why you over eat and also was a very restrictive low carb diet. It was broken up into 6 week phases and each phase added back foods that you had given up. I lost a total of about 50 pounds and although not down to my goal, I felt great and weighed less than I had in years. I kept the weight off for about 2 years and then had an emergency appendectomy and went off my good eating and have since gained every pound back. It is important to me to be in good physical condition so that I can keep up with my boys and be able to join them for fun activities. Another thing that is a concern is the fact that my mother has had type 1 diabetes for over 30 years and now my father has just been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. I know if I don't get into shape and start eating right that I will likely face some serious health issues down the road and I don't want to go there.

Another area that I feel the need to improve is in the area of homemaking. I have trouble staying motivated in keeping up a menu and cooking, keeping up with the chores and clutter around our home. I chug along pretty well for awhile and then I just get tired of it and then things snowball and boy is it difficult to get on top of things again. I really want to work toward keeping a more consistent routine going.

OK - there are some big, general goals . . . I hope to break them into smaller bite size chunks in my next post.

Yippee!

2006-04-17T20:15:00.000-07:00

I have had 100% of my goal of 8 cups water today!!

A Tough Day

2006-04-12T22:20:00.000-07:00

Today was a difficult day for me. The children had some struggles with school and I was feeling like a failure, which means I was a bit depressed. Thankfully, I didn't do my normal stuff my face as a result. Eating went pretty well and although I didn't drink all of my water today, I drank more than I have been. The next two days could be a bit tricky as I am going out to my sister's for a visit. I am going to try to walk while I am there, but we shall see how it goes.

Welcome!

2006-04-12T17:35:00.000-07:00

I joined the Blubber Bloggers egroup yesterday and decided to start this blog as a journal of my health, both spiritual and physical. It is my hope that this will be a tool for me to stay accountable in my endeavors to get healthy.