70 down...30 to go!

Weight loss to date:72 lbs.

Well, I am a little over seven months into this journey and I have hit my 70 lb weight loss mark. My goal is to be down 100 lbs by Jan. 10,2012. That will be my year mark.  I was really worried that I would plateau again after going back to work, but I lost over 6 lbs in the first 7 days back with kids.  I just find that I am so tired when I get done at work, I lose motivation for the gym and running. I really have to force myself to get out and do it.  I know this is just a part of adjusting, and I am sure it will get better. 

I am keeping up with both Zumba and running. I am currently trying to get to Zumba 3 times a week and I am trying to get at least 4-5 runs in a week.  Yesterday when Matt and I went out running I ran my fastest mile ever. I ran it in 11:14. My goal is to get down under 11 minutes. I am finding that the more I run, the faster and easier it gets.  We are less than a month from the Dirty Girl 5K.  I am excited and know it will be a great accomplishment. I am going to try and hit up the 1K loop at Memorial Park a few more times to get an actual 5K run in.  I did it a few weeks ago and it felt amazing to say that I did it. 

I am noticing at work that being 72 lbs lighter makes a big difference.  I notice that I can keep up with the kids more and when I sit on the floor with them it's soooo much easier to get up.  A few of my kids from past years told me I look really different.  I am only 16 lbs away from weighing 199.  When that day comes I know I will be doing a great happy dance!!!!! For those of you following me, please pray that I stay motivated and keep my focus on getting into "One-derland"!

Thank you for all of the support and well wishes you all give me. You make me feel great and I know that you are cheering me on. Love you all!!

one goal down...more to go

Weight loss to date: 68lbs

Many of you facebook friends already saw this, but I actually RAN a whole 5K this past week.  Matt and I went to Memorial Park, to the 1K loop.  Initially I only planned to run 3 laps around. Somewhere during the 3rd lap I got a second wind and decided that was the day to try and run (with no walking breaks) the 5K distance.  I am not gonna lie and say it was easy, because my legs felt like they were on fire!! I thought I was gonna have to crawl to the car after. LOL! But, I am feeling pretty amazing knowing I conquered one of my major goals.  I initially wanted to conquer this by mid September, so I am ahead of the game.  My new goal is to keep running the 5K distance and just work on improving my time. I finished in 40 minutes the first time, so I would like to be able to do it in 37 minutes or less by the Diabetes 5K on September 10th. 

In other news(ha ha), I found that going back to work was more exhausting than I thought it would be. It does feel great to be up moving around so much though.  I try to stick to a routine of going to the gym/Zumba/water aerobic at least 5 times a week and running the same.  I am finding that these workouts are great stress relievers for me.  I just focus on what I need to be doing and let eveything else go.  I am hoping to be down to my 70lbs lost goal by the end of this week!! Stay tuned....

Some Random thoughts on my journey

weightloss to date:65 lbs.

I am feeling a little irritated tonight and I don't know why. So I figured if I write some random thoughts I would feel better.  I don't think I am irritated about my journey, but if I don't regain focus it will hinder what I am trying to do.  So, Matt and I went for a long run tonight.  We are up to 2.5 miles on our neighborhood runs.  I am pretty excited about how far we are running now. I just wish I could get my legs to move a little faster. I figure if I just get out there and push as much as I can, my times and distances will get much better.  I am not really gonna stress over it.   I started running the second week in June, and could barely make it through a 30 second run, and now I am running 2.5 miles. I feel like I have made some pretty good progress.  According to my run tracker, I have logged 41 miles since the beginning of July. 

My weight loss is going pretty well. I am happy that I was able to kick my plateau and continue losing.  My goal is to be in "One-derland" by the Dirty Girl race in September.  "One-derland" is being at a weight anywhere in the 100's.  I know it seems silly but that will be an amazing feeling for me.  Once I hit 199lbs, I will have lost 88 lbs altogether.  I am at 222lbs today, so I have some hard work ahead of me.  I think getting back to a routine and schedule will be just what I need. 

I think my biggest issue lately is letting little things bother me and then I stress all day.  I have to learn to let things roll off my back.  That is maybe why I love to run so much. I just let my cares go and run.  A lot of times I pray in my head while I run and spend time with the Lord. 

My goals for this week are to spend more time with the Lord to learn to destress and enjoy every minute of every day!!

Back to school, back to routine :)

It is upon us...school starts in a week!  Most teachers are dreading going back to work, but I am pretty excited. I always get a little excited to see my co-workers and get into the daily grind. But I am mostly excited about all of the kiddos I get to meet.  This year I am really excited to go back and get back into some sort of routine. 

It seems like I just sorta did whatever I wanted all summer, with no routine or agenda.  While it was great for a while, it was horrible for my eating plan. I am one of those people that gets bored and eats.  So my goal for the summer was to get up and move when I got hungry.  It worked for a while, but I am just sick of sitting around.  I am looking forward to working everyday, working OUT everyday and getting on an eating schedule.  I am also looking forward to not eating out so much! 

I am going to keep up my running.   I plan to leave work and go run as much as I can.  Running has proven to be a great stress reliever for me.  I am pushing myself to new goals and doing some things I never thought I would ever do.  I am really looking forward to the Dirty Girl Mud Run in Sept.  It is a 5K with various obstacles along the way.  www.godirtygirl.com

I am also looking forward to what the kids have to say when they see me after a long summer.  The few I did see this summer just stared at me and smiled!

So, here's to the best school year yet!!!!

A runner???

So, on Thursday I ran my first "race".  I only say it like that because there was no actual winner or loser, just a bunch of runners out running for fun.  Anyway, I thought it was a really good way to break into the running scene.  I did really well, considering it was a 2K.  I finished with a time of 15:18, which was my fastest to date.  So I decided that maybe I need to try to do less walking intervals so that eventually I am just running without any walking at all, and I want to increase my distances. Today while out running with Matt around the neighborhood, I started to think about all of this running I am trying to do.  I just got to wondering if avid runners laugh at people like me.  I mean some people go out and run like 10 miles a day and here I am with my measly 1.25 or 1.5 miles a day and I am dying.  So, I wonder, should I just jump in and try running like 3 miles, or should I keep doing what I am doing and take it slow?  I think I have been doing pretty well considering I have only been running for about a month or so and that I am still heavy.  I think I will just keep chugging along and see where this all takes me.  I was actually feeling pretty good after my run today.  For a quick 18 minute run I only walked at total of about 2 and a half minutes.  My goal by the end of July is to run without any walking intervals.  Here's to running without stopping!!!

A day at the doctor

Weight loss to date:59 lbs.

So, today I went to the doctor for my physical.  When I began this weight loss journey in January I thought they told me I weighed 282 lbs. Turns out I heard wrong and I was actually 287. I know it's just 5 lbs, but ewww! When the nurse brings me back she is in total shock that I have lost so much weight and is literally falling over herself to hurry and get my doctor.  He was very proud of my progress so far and said everything was looking good. My blood sugars and bad cholesterol are great.  My good cholesterol is low, but it's sort of a genetic problem. I have been on meds for high blood pressure for over 3 years now.  I have been working so hard to get my bp down and was so excited when the doctor said I am doing great and took me off the meds.  This, I think, was way more exciting than the number on the scale. I guess it sorta showed me that I am getting healthier.  Not sure what I was really feeling but all sorts of emotions hit me at the same time and I started crying all the way home.  I guess I was relieved, happy, annoyed with my old number, and just overwhelmed.  The doctor actually told me I was too healthy to be there and kicked me out. Ha ha!

Tonight is my first big(okay, it's only a 2K, but it's big for me) race.  I am really excited and very nervous. I don't want to look like an idiot out there with all of these runners.  I am going to have Matt take some pictures when I finish and I will keep everyone updated on how it goes!!

Peace out Plateau!!!!

Weight loss to date: 55 lbs
Woo hoo! I have finally kicked that plateau in the butt! I have lost 5 lbs this week and finally got off of the 50 lb. plateau.  Thank goodness. I was starting to worry.  :)

As far as other things go, I am training hard for a 2K race on the 14th.  I have been going up to the high school and running as much as I can. A 2K is 5 laps around the track. When I started running it about a month or so ago I was doing it in about 18 minutes.  This morning I went up and did my 5 laps in 15:58! I feel like I am getting stronger and can do so much more now than when I was 282 lbs.  I am also signing up for the Dirty Girl Mud Run 5K in September.  Not only is this a 5K  but there are various obstacles along the way. I am so exctied I cannot even wait!  I will keep blogging about training for that event.  Right now I am just focused on the 2K. 
I got a lot of great advice when I started to stress about the plateau.  I have some pretty amazing people out there supporting me. Thanks!! I think what really helped was that I just started drinking a TON of water and took a few days off of work outs.  It seemed to be just what my body needed.  I am so ready for the next 50 lbs to come off. Next week I meet with my doctor to see if I can come off of the blood pressure meds.  If this happens, I will be amazed!! I also met with another doctor last week that I hadn't seen in over a year and she was so excited about my weight loss.  She is going to try and help Matt and I figure things out and try to get us in a good place to try for a baby!!!!!
I feel great and cannot say thank you enough to those of you who are supporting and pushing me through this! I was very unhappy in January and very sad that I let myself go the way I did. Now I put my health as a top priority and I feel AMAZING!!!!