Non-Scale Victory

5 weeks after I had the baby, I tried on some of my pre-pregnancy clothes. I was horrified at how much weight  I had to lose just to be able to pull them on completely. Rather than continue to wear maternity pants (that I was having trouble fitting into because the fat from my belly was apparently dropping into my thighs), I went out and bought some pants that were a size 16, which is the largest I've ever worn. Prior to getting pregnant, I was wearing a size 12. Not tiny, but not overweight either.

Yesterday I had more than one person mention how baggy my size 16 pants looked on me. I agreed. They looked kind of pathetic and I was constantly pulling them up. So this morning, I pulled out the one pair of size 14 jeans I own. I told myself "If they don't fit, its OK. They will someday." THEY FIT! Yes, my belly is pushing at the waist more than it did before I was pregnant, but they are not too tight and I'd say they are my size!

I stepped on the scale and confirmed I have still not lost any additional weight and am still hovering at about 173. But I HAVE lost a pant size which is still a victory! Keep in mind when you're starting exercise or dieting that Non-Scale Victories are just as awesome and are a perfect boost to help keep you going!

SLOWinski

The first time I met my coach, he actually thought my name was Slow-inski. I admit it. I am a slow-a** runner. In fact, my brother questions if what I do can even be considered running or jogging since I'm so incredibly slow. I see his point. When I get on a treadmill, I start off by walking at a 3.5 miles per hour speed. Its a comfortable pace for me. When I run, I increase the treadmill to a whopping 4.0. I'm pretty sure some people WALK that fast. But that is my running speed. S-L-O-W.

In 2006 when I trained to run my first half-marathon, I started off feeling great. I had some days where I ran more miles than were scheduled and I kept pushing myself to try to go faster. Within a month and a half, I ended up with Achilles tendonitis, which is basically where your heel hurts anytime you take a step walking or running. I was told I got it because I tried to do too much too fast. I did physical therapy and got over it, but the therapists kept telling me I had to take it easy. Therefore, I am cautious increasing that speed on my treadmill now. I'm just starting out and my body may be working with me, but only because I'm being nice. I have a feeling if I over did it, my body wouldn't be so cooperative.

At this rate, it will take me about 3.5 hours to finish the half-marathon if I "run". Oddly enough, thats how long it took me when I walked the race with just a tiny bit of running too. People do say you go faster race day because you're so excited and full of adrenaline. So who knows? Maybe I can finish in just 3 hours (still only going 4.3 miles per hour).

So for now, I'm just gonna plan on settling in to the back of the crowd at the race. The fact that I have actually gotten on my treadmill and "run" most of a two mile distance is already an accomplishment. If I can do the same with 13.1 miles, it will be awesome. And I'll just have to constantly keep in mind:

Day 33 - Healthy Lifestyle Vs. Dieting

Many of you have already expressed your opinion on how you feel about living a healthy lifestyle versus being on an official diet. I've heard from many people that they think committing to live a healthy lifestyle is much more important than being skinny. Eating healthy fresh foods, exercising regularly and taking care of yourself in general are all extremely important and should be a part of everyone's life ALL of the time, not just when you want to lose weight.

I started this resolution exclaiming I just wanted to lose weight. I want to get down to a lower weight, then worry about maintaining a healthy lifestyle. But with my busy life with time constraints and stressors everywhere, I'm starting to realize "dieting" may not be the best idea. I have also just joined Team In Training to train to run/walk a half-marathon, who highly suggests NOT dieting while training. This is because you are pushing your body to gradually run more and more miles. Therefore, the coaches want to make sure you have enough calories to handle those extra miles and strains on your body.

With all of this said, I am not dieting like I had originally planned. But that doesn't mean I'm eating everything I want. I am absolutely eating healthier. For example, this morning I had steel cut oats (yes Chris, I finally took your advice) and for lunch I'm having Nutrisystem chili. But I also let myself have a piece of brownie someone brought in as a treat. I'm not obsessing over the calorie counts right now. As my body gets more adjusted to the miles and I feel more comfortable, I might start counting calories again, but my TRUE hope is that if I stick with this TNT training program and do my strength training, I will STILL lose weight and get toned up.

At this point, I have not gained any weight since stopping my calorie counting about 10 days ago. I MAY have lost about 1 pound, but my scale is not digital and those little lines are hard to see with my aging eyes. HA HA! If I start to GAIN weight, I will definitely start counting calories again.

As for my training, it officially began on 2/1. I'm only doing 2 miles for my run/walks this week, but they have gone well. I have been able to run OVER half of the time! VERY good for me. And at our group training, the coach said my form looked good which is great to hear because it was NOT good in my last attempts at training. I actually felt really good at Saturday's training (although, I may need to look into seeing a urologist about the possibility of surgery).

Tonight, despite my ups and downs in success, I am getting a massage! This is my first "reward" of any kind really for the work I've done so far. I can't wait!

Finishing with a good quote that I need to keep in mind. Healthy lifestyle will get me there in the end. All I need is patience.