And the honeymoon is over...!

Well, it's been three full weeks of working out. Today I rolled over and made an obscene gesture to my alarm clock. That was particulary unfortunate because it's set to the Christian radio station... Does inadvertantly flicking off the Christian radio station have any bearing on my relationship with God????

Then a wonderful thought came to...a day off! Yes! I've read that it's a good idea to take one day off a week. Brilliant idea, whomever came up with that one! But then the guilt set in. Rita, you'll lose your momentum. You'll eat all day. You'll gain 10 pounds. As the day wore on, I started to realize that those fears are just that...fears. We can be controlled by them or we can take a rational approach - a day off is good for muscles. Eating a little more one day is just that - one day. Can I tell you how freeing that is? Just to know that it's ok. Getting that straight in my head (thank you, Holy Spirit!) made me want to work out tomorrow even more! So I'll be up and at the gym at 7 for an hour bike or so and then I've managed to convince a friend to hike up at the Delaware Water Gap with me. Now I just need to convince myself! LOL

Another week and it will be four full weeks of working out and eating healthy and going to bed early. They say habits take 6 weeks to form. I'll let you know.

Thanks to family and friends for prayers and funny sister poems!

The best part of the day...

Ok, the miracles never cease....I actually got up for the gym on both weekend days! What the heck?! I'm almost feeling like I WANT to go to the gym. Thank you Lord!!!

Ok, I had a real cool thought that I wanted to share. I have been thinking how great this morning gym thing was but I didn't pinpoint the best part until the other day. This is the biggest payoff: I go through my day liking myself. Simple but so profound.

Most days I would go through the day feeling mildly guilty for putting food in my mouth and for the "impure thoughts" I had about exercise and the gym in general. It would be a daily mental battle to pscyh myself up to go to the gym after work, despite the other demands on my time. And if I didn't go, I would feel like a slug for the rest of the day and the day following.

Now, see if you can follow me here because it's so huge...I like myself and I can give myself a break during the day. If I see someone thinner I just say "Well thank goodness I worked out today. I'm well on my way to looking like that." It's turned a negative into a major positive. Every day at work begins with me already being victorious - I've drank (drunk/drinked/etc.) at least 1/2 the required water for the day, stretched, and burned a few hundred calories, not to mention the emotional victory of just getting out of bed at that icky hour.

Bottom line - I spend the day feeling great about what I've accomplished instead of in a guilty fight with myself. IT FEELS GREAT to get that out of my brain. In the past two weeks, I haven't WORRIED ABOUT MY WEIGHT. It's slowly getting under control.

Whew...I'm glad I finally got that down here. It was so profound for me. Imagine...spending more mental energy feeling good about yourself instead of tearing yourself down. It really makes the days brighter. It's hard to explain but I hope I've done it justice.

Ok, now back to the real. Do not under any circumstances allow teenagers you're supervising order scicillian (how the heck to you spell that?) pizza. God or no God, there's really no defense against double cheese and a thick crust. Trust me on that.

Who'd a Thunk it?

Well, I'm almost at the end of my second week of working out/eating healthy, etc.

Good news - I was down 4.4 at Weight Watcher this week. Thank you Lord! I really needed to see that number this week - to prove that a healthy diet, more sleep, and exercise really do produce results. I think the fear of all people starting a new lifestyle is that maybe it's all a myth and that it's not really possible without starvation or getting run over by a truck. You know - I actually considered what would happen if I lay down on the curb and stuck my backside out into traffic...I still have some logistical details to work out though...

Other highlights of the week - LOVING going to bed early. It has forced me to just say "enough." Housework, school work, hobbies, crafts, etc will never be done (unless I hit the lottery and hire a personal assistant. Wouldn't that just be the best? But I digress.) so why not take care of myself and give myself a more peaceful week in the process. Getting more sleep has helped me get up on time, think clearly, eat better (I don't have to have the sugar to stay awake during the day), and generally function at a higher level. And I'm darn happier! :)

So glad Biggest Loser has started - both on NBC and at Woodland School where I work. I'm taking home that cash!!!! Whoo hoo!

Thanks to Melissa for her encouragment!!! And thanks to everyone at school for their help - such as removing the cookies from the teacher's room table. Thank you Christine!

I made it!!!!

Ok, no......I didn't make it to a triathlon yet but I hit a very important hurdle. 5 days of going to bed early and getting up at a painful 5:00 to be at the gym at 5:45. Whoo hoo! Go Rita Go Rita!

The key here is bedtime...! I FIRMLY encourage everyone in this crazy world to GO TO BED (for some of my friends reading this, they'll be chuckling and emailing me some insightful 'bed' comments and I thank you ahead of time) early and get up early. I'm finding myself with tons more energy at work and a decreased use of my main drug...diet Coke!! LOL

Week 1 down. Biking this weekend with Rebecca. Thank you to Boots for fixing my bike.

Only 5 zillion more weeks to go. Wow...I need a nap!! ha ha

6:52 AM Day 1

I'm not planning to post every single day though Lord knows I should just for my own sake...but I had to mention this...as I struggled out of bed this morning (5:20 AM) I had a a sense of excitement that doesn't usually accompany that time slot. Then when I got in the car and flipped on the radio, 103.5 had the tail end of the Black Eyed Peas "Let's Get it Started", yeah! (see my Sept 9 post) A sign from the Lord? Maybe He works through KTU?!

34 minutes on the treadmill. 5 walk/2 jog. Must visualize the body coming across the finish line if this whole jogging thing is going to work! LOL

Thank you Mary Pat for the abs help.

No flabby arms in Mexico!

Here we Goal!

My goals for the week starting 9/10/06:
a) Go to the gym at 5:45
b) Hit Mass at 6:45 at LF
c) Start eating healthily - fish, lean protein, LOTS of veggies - 6x per day -lots of water
d) Stick to that schedule no matter what.

Obstacles to that plan
a) Getting to bed on time
b) Desiring to eat everything that contains flour and sugar, regardless of the taste
c) Desiring to "buck the system" even if it's a system I created for myself

Helpers for that plan
a) MPW goes to the gym and wants to go in the morning
b) the Lord
c) Seeing pictures of myself in Lake George Summer 2006
d) my niece asking me why I'm having a baby even if I'm not married...auugghh!
e) Envisioning pictures of me in Puerto Vallarta, November 2006
f) New friends made online such as http://mommymeepa.blogspot.com/2006/09/pictures-from-my-second-triathlon.html#comments



It will be interesting to see if "publishing" my plan and keeping a regular journal like this will actually help. Hmmm...we'll see.

Let's Get It Started....!

Hi friends! I've never done this before but I've also never had such a daunting task in front of me. So here goes...the transformation of Aunt Rita!