Lately

Holy crap I haven't blogged for a whole month?! Guess so. Well, as you might have seen on facebook, I've lost a total of 20 pounds! Booyah! 158 baby!

My plan was to not weigh myself for a whole month. I was getting too obsessed with seeing the numbers change at least a little bit every day. For a while, seeing that I "lost" even a tenth of a pound every day kept me motivated. Then one day, I "lost" a half a pound in one day. I put "lost" in quotations because your weight is a combination of so many factors it's ridiculous. The scale could say I lost more weight in a day just because Baden and I got in the hot tub one night, and not loose any the next day because I had a little more salt in my dinner. So to any of you out there trying to loose weight, beware! Weighing yourself every day is not a realistic representation of change!

Anyways, now I'm trying to do every two weeks. Next weigh day: Wednesday October 26th. As long as my curiosity and will power don't get the best of me before then... :)

I know I've only been doing this for about 3 months, but I feel like I have some wisdom to share.
Here's what has been working for me:

1. WALKING! I'm still an aspiring runner, but for now, walking is melting the poundage away. It helps me sweat a lot, get some rosy cheeks and heavy breathing (not to mention burning pure fat), without leaving me feeling exhausted and beat up. Basically, walking allows me to burn between 400-500 calories per workout, 5 times a week. Running was so intense I always needed a day to recover. And since I use a treadmill instead of walking outside, I can tell you I usually do 3 miles, on a speed of 3.8 and an incline of 3.

2. Little bursts of exercise. I walk the stairs going up to my floor at work every morning and after lunch. A total of 8 flights. I also have little 5 pound weights I've been using to work on my arms and I'll do a quick set of 15 here and there at home. And I work on my abs and stretch a lot. Anything to get the blood going.

3. Working full time. I know people can't just go out and get a 40-hour-a-week job to loose weight, but I highly recommend it! For me, it's added a great sense of routine. I'll have a 100 calorie muscle milk mid-morning, a fruit smoothie I make at home for lunch, and another muscle milk a few minutes before I leave in the afternoon to help fuel my work out. And that's all I bring to work to eat everyday! I'm a snack-er at heart and so not being home all day with all my food available all the time has been invaluable.

4. Knowing the difference between hungry, thirsty, and just bored. I eat when I'm hungry, drink water when I'm thirsty, and chew sugar-free gum when I'm bored. Chewing gum helps get my mind off snacking just 'cause and I can think about doing something else instead. Hint: try Extra's Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream gum. They have a bunch of dessert flavors that are awesome.

Any of you out there trying to loose some weight? Keep your chin up kid! You can do it! I don't mean to be a cliche, and I'm not at a maintenance phase yet, but seriously. If I can do it, you can do it!