MAINTAINED!!

What inspires you?????????????

Week 21
Weight loss = 0 pounds
Total Weight Loss = 28 pounds
% Weight Loss = 0%
Total % Weight Loss = 10.03%

That's right, it's another weight maintenance week.  Slight bummer considering I REALLY REALLY wanted to be down 30 pounds by this week.  But, it's only 2 pounds away which is better than 30 pounds away.  Right?

So I'm always talking about staying motivated, keeping on track, get back on track when you fall off track, telling you what is my track, etc, etc, etc.  So today I'm going to mix it up a little bit.  I'm going to let you know what inspires me to keep going when it would be SO easy to stop.

#1 - GOOD HEALTH
Losing weight can help you improve your current and future health status.  You can decrease your health risks by decreasing your BMI by one point.  Since beginning this adventure 21 weeks ago, I have been able to reduce my BMI by 4 points.  That's a ton of health risk reductions!  I don't particularly want to develop diabetes, heart problems, or cancer so I am going to keep at this to help keep reducing my risks more and more.

That's right, I don't want to have to wear prosthetics when I am older because I have bad knees from carrying around too much weight my whole life!

#2 - PHYSICAL APPEARANCE

Let's be honest, that is a top inspiration on pretty much all of our lists.  I've mostly been inspired by seeing those around me do so well with weight loss and see how great they look.  My mom has been working on losing weight for the past couple of years too.  She is doing great and she looks fantastic.  My mom looks the best she has ever in years.  In fact, this is the best I've seen her look that I can remember.  Sooner than later she is going to be unrecognizable to us all.  Keep up the good work Mom!  You are an inspiration to all of us, especially me. 

There is also a celebrity that I admire too.  I think that Jennifer Hudson looks fantastic since losing weight recently.  She did it through physical activity and the Weight Watchers program (which is one of the only programs I would support someone in starting if they want help with losing weight and feel they can't do it on their own).  Jennifer Hudson is a curvy girl (like me!) and I thought she was beautiful before she lost weight.  Now that she has lost weight she is still just as beautiful but she looks so healthy.  I feel her weight loss is an inspiration because it is obtainable and not unrealistic.  I have even considered hanging her picture up in my room to help me remember what I am working towards. 

 

#3 - JILLIAN MICHAELS

That's right!  Jillian Michaels inspires me when I am doing her 30 day Shred workout video (thanks for the recommendation Carla!).  Towards the end of the video you are SO TIRED and all you can think about is wanting to stop or slow down.  Yet every time when I am about at that point, she gives this little speech about needing to keep going.  She tells you how easily it would be to stop but you have to push yourself through the pain.  The pain means you are getting stronger and it's going to get easier the more and more you do it.  So I keep going. 

Jillian and I have a love and hate relationship.  Even though she has an amazingly awesome name, I sometimes hold spite against her name when I am working out to her DVD.  Luckily it is only for a few short minutes. 

#4 - FASHION!!!!!!!!

If you know me then you know I love fashion.  I blame it partly on my mother.  Sorry Mom, you are getting a lot of mention in this post this week.  When I was little she would dress me up all girly (I am the youngest and only girl in the family, now you understand).  I remember going school shopping and her telling me we had to find things unique and personal, so that I didn't have the same clothes as all the other girls at school (which I appreciate now that I am older).  In fact, I wore clothes from a company called "Little Miss Pris".  So it's only natural for me to love clothes when I was surrounded with frilly girly clothes as a child.  The only problem is I can't wear what I want to wear quite yet and have it look the way I want it to.  For example, I LOVE the look of boots, especially tall boots.  But I can't buy boots yet.  I can't fit the calf size most of the time, especially with the boots that I would really really like to wear.  But I am A LOT closer to fitting in the boots than I was last season.  Hopefully you will see me sporting boots by the end of this season if not next.  We'll see! 

Yes, I do want to own and wear (on a regular basis) red cowboy boots.  "Pulling them off..."

#5 - Love

Yes, I am talking about love in the sense that you are all thinking.  But I am also inspired by loving myself.  A lot of my close friends seem to be finding love and getting married lately.  I am SO excited for all of them (especially you, Kate and Alejandro!).  But I am SO READY for it to be my turn again.  But love doesn't come easy, especially if you don't love yourself as much as you want someone else to love you.  So I am motivated and inspired to keep going, because I feel that over the past couple of months I've been able to rediscover my self worth.  I feel better about myself.  With each pound going away it's almost like another heavy burden goes with it.  I remember that fun and extremely outgoing girl from my life pre-2004 (before all this weight started coming on again), who was fearless and confident.  She's coming back.  So I'm going to keep going with this.  I want to find and love that girl completely again so she can be completely loved for who and what she is. 

So there you have it.  These are just a few of the things that really inspire me to keep going.  So I'm going to get on track!  Whoops, I did fall off track but I'm back on again.  Physical activity daily.  Track my calories and be aware of my food choices.  No excuses!  30 pounds......you're going to be easy to reach by next week.  It's going to be a piece of cake!  (No, I will not be eating a piece of cake in the process.)