I am now three weeks into my “80 pounds in 80 weeks” weight loss challenge. The first week I lost 2 pounds by adding 15 minutes of exercise and 32 ounces o f water to my daily routine. The second week, I prepared healthy snacks on the weekend to prepare me to battle the afternoon munchies, 
but my weight remained the same. This last week, I kept a food journal and actually gain a half-pound. Ugh! I guess anyone reading this can tell that this is real life. There are no one-and-done solutions to weight loss, and real people don’t always lose weight every week.
I knew the food journal alone would not cause me to lose weight on its own. My purpose behind keeping the journal was to get a more accurate picture of what I actually consumed and see if I could learn more about when I make my poorest food choices and possibly why. For example, I noticed when I am alone, I tend to choose fattier, more indulgent foods. When I am surrounded by healthier eaters, I want to fit in and I tend to make better choices. This is not surprising to me, but seeing it in black and white makes it more official, and I can use that knowledge to prepare myself for more success.
While I am trying to make some healthier food choices, I am not yet ready to prepare for a diet overhaul. For whatever reason, denying myself unhealthy foods makes me crave them even more. I feel deprived, and this leads to me feeling like this is “just a diet” I am committing to for a period of time as opposed to a lifestyle change. I know I need to focus on the positive (like eating more vegetables instead of cutting out all sugar), and I know this will come in the near future. But for this week, I am going to continue avoiding food commitments or restrictions.
My goal for this week is to increase my daily exercise to 30 minutes. Implementing 15 minutes of exercise each day for the last three weeks has been helpful. I have been working on “waking up” some muscles I have long-neglected, but it is time to focus on improving my cardiovascular health. To do this I will not only double the time I work out, but I will make sure the exercise focuses on getting my heart pumping. I have a couple favorite workouts from days gone by; they are Biggest Loser Cardio Max and Biggest Loser Weight Loss Yoga. As I get moving more (and increase the sweat-factor), I hope to shake off a few more pounds while strengthening my heart and get headed back in the right direction.
When your weight-loss journey doesn’t go as planned, how do you stay on track and keep yourself motivated?
Leave a Reply