17 weeks of changing habits

The "experts" (whoever THEY are) say that it takes 21 days to change a habit. I've been on this journey for 17 weeks...that's 119 days. I think they need to factor in a lot more than I have been.

Take, for instance, holidays. When you're trying to make better eating & exercise "habits", a holiday thrown in here or there just might make a difference. Another "wrench" that can be thrown in the "changing habits" mix is birthdays...and bronchitis!! In other words.....LIFE HAPPENS!

My habits haven't changed so much that I can resist temptation and focus 24/7 on exercise and healthy eating, but that's what this is all about.....it's a JOURNEY. I'm not sure when I'll reach my destination, or if I ever will...but I'll keep going forward and pray that with each passing day, my habits are changing.

I grabbed this from an article I was recently reading about changing habits...

Think "half full" and take these steps to help you change your behavior:

1. Pinpoint the habit you want to change and analyze it. When and where do you do it? Why do you do it? Be specific about how you do it.

2. Describe what you'd like to do instead. Be specific. Write it down.

3. Develop a new routine that will help your new habit take root. You may need to change your environment, if possible.

4. Be consistent. Remember, you'll need to practice the new behavior every day for 21 days. Skipping a day and thinking "just this once won't matter" will lead you to failure. When you stray from the new habit, you don't pick up where you left off. You start over! And the more often you start over, the more difficult it will be to succeed.

5. Ask for help. This is hard to swallow for some. But if you're honest with yourself, you rarely make significant achievements without the support of others. Choose wisely. You'll need to trust those people and be sure they will tell you want you need to hear, not what you want to hear.

To date, I've lost 23 lbs and 18 3/4 inches in 17 weeks. I'm proud of that. BUT....I'm feeling better, my bronchitis is 99.9% gone, the holidays are past for another year, and peanut butter rice krispy treats with chocolate icing are from birthdays past, so GAME ON!!!!!

.....um, what about SuperBowl Sunday!?!? ;)

Small setback

Well, maybe not a setback, but I little stall in my exercise...

All due to a pretty severe case of bronchitis I'm battling right now. UGH!

Walking up and down my stairs here at home make me lose my breath, and then cough, and then cough some more....

So, while I'm sticking with the healthy eating for now, much more than a simple walk around the house is out for me.

I've heard from Tammy, Greg,
and Linda on their journeys of getting healthier...tell me how YOU'RE doing!

...sneaking in....

HELLO!!! :::echo::: I know.....I know......I've failed miserably at blogging!!!

I've accepted it and moved on....now you do the same. ;)

The past few weeks haven't been bad at all, they've just been overly busy and a little bit stressful. I haven't done horrible in my eating, but I have failed in the food journal category, so I'm sure I could have done much better.

I'm down a total of 23 lbs from September 23rd...so almost 4 months. We have 4 more months on this particular "monitored" journey, so I'm shooting for at least 25-30 more off by the end of May.

I've started teaching water aerobics and I'm not sure I could love it any more than I already do! It's a blast! And all my fears and anxiety and feelings of inadequecy were dispelled the first week that I taught. The ladies in the class are AWESOME! and so incredibly encouraging, for which I'm mighty mighty grateful. I'm looking forward to having a long "employment" there and keeping this up even after my Greatest Thriver journey ends. :)

I've had Mike take another pic of me tonight, just so I could continue to monitor my progress in pictures. I'm obviously not going to be vain, because I'm showing you these non-makeup, non-hairdo pictures!...

September 08



January 09



I'll doll myself up soon and take some better pictures. HAHA!

Oh, and I almost forgot to post some of the best news....we did measurements this week! I've lost a TOTAL of 18 3/4 inches!!! OH MY GOSH! I KNEW my butt was smaller! ;)

Hey!

Where'd that 4 pounds go?

Changing our Habits

My blogging has fallen on the way side. I'm sorry for the lack in posting and updating. I guess I need to at least give ya'll a nibble once in a while, huh? :)

Things are going well. I'm feeling great, I'm eating well, I'm increasing in my exercise routine each week. My clothes are getting more and more loose! YAY! My total weight loss to date is 16 lbs. We haven't measured recently, but I know I've lost even more inches.

Thanksgiving week was difficult. Not with my eating on Thanksgiving day. The odd schedules with meals and exercise threw me off a little, and I gained a pound. BUT...I didn't let it get me down. I'm even more focused and on track this week, so I'm counting on making up for that pound and losing even more. :)

I shared these thoughts with some dear, wonderful cheerleaders of mine....

Seriously...one day at a time here....but I'm really very excited about my journey right now and where it may possibly take me. I have these crazy ideas that get me all giddy inside. :) I'm really beginning to feel my habits changing.

So....my goal for this week is to stay focused on the health aspect of what I'm doing and make a more conscience effort to change my daily habits.

Happy Health and Bountiful Blessings!
Kim

Set a good example!

It has come to my attention that my Thriver Journey blog has been recommended for viewing as an example of journaling, sharing experiences, etc. Well, my fellow Thrivers, obviously I'm not so good at keeping up with my blog, because it's been 12 days since I've updated! UGH!

So here goes...as we are already into the week of Thanksgiving!

I'm going to pass along some great advice...given by my illustrious trainer!

This is a LIFEstyle change we're making. NOT a quick fix. We're changing bad habits that we've made over the course of several years, if not our entire lives, into good habits and it's going to take a while to do this.

Thanksgiving comes ONCE a year. Enjoy it! Don't gorge yourself, but allow yourself to taste all the amazing Thanksgiving food without ANY of the guilt. Have a piece of pumpkin pie! But have a smaller piece. Have some stuffing, but just have a couple of bites instead of a cup or two! (speaking from experience here!)

My plan is to eat a few less calories the day before and a few less the day after.....it will all balance out! I don't want to show a gain this week because of what I ate, but I'm also not going to feel guilty for one bit of it.

I'm thankful for SO much this year, but in regards to my new, healthy lifestyle....I'm incredibly thankful for The Greatest Thriver program. I don't know what is different for me this time, embracing the new habits, exercise, etc., but Thriver has given me the push I needed and Laurie (and Amber!!) encourages me every step of the way. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!

This picture was taken several weeks ago...




And this one was taken just last week...I can tell a difference, can you? :)

I'm shrinking!!! :)

Yesterday was measurement day!!! 6 weeks since I started my journey. 11.6 lbs lighter, and 14 inches G.O.N.E. from my body!! I'm thrilled with the way I'm feeling, both physically and emotionally, about myself, my journey, and the new and improved way I'm looking at food! :)