Kari’s Blog

Well, I took the whole week of Christmas off, thinking it would be great to get the house in order, go for a few runs, and really start the year off right - and then Christmas Day I got siiiiiiick as a dog.  I’ve been laying in bed and on the couch for the past four days.  Sure I’ve lost a little weight - I can barely eat- but not exactly how I was hoping to do it.  Plus, what a waste of vacation days!!

 Hubby & I went to the grocery store today and I stocked up on healthy lunch items to start off next week!  My goal is to work more veggies into my diet, even if I have to ’sneak’ them to myself.  So I bought baby spinach and I’ll shred it up and mix it in with my tuna for sandwiches, etc.  That way I don’t notice it but still get the nutrients.  Silly, but it works. 

We made plans for New Year’s Eve…since I’m afraid I’ll still be sick and not feel like going out on the town, we bought Season 3 of “Lost”, and are inviting friends over for a 16-hour viewing marathon.  We’ll start at 7 and finish around Noon on New Year’s Day.  :)  Happy New Year, buddies!

So I just had a meeting with a “Health Coach” at my company - we have this program where you can do a health assessment and they’ll help you figure out what you need to work on and keep you accountable with check-ins, etc.

I don’t like posting numbers because really they’re only meaningful person by person, but for full-disclosure, here’s where I am at as of today’s check-in:

Weight:  150 (clothed)
BMI:  25.7 (s/b between 18-25)
Body fat %:  30.4 (s/b below 32%, so that’s decent)

I know that the weight where I feel great about my body and my fitness is right around 130-135.  If I could get to 135 before my trips next year (so, by March 9), that would be so fantastic I can’t even describe it.  OK, I just counted on my calendar and that is TWELVE weeks from now.  Losing 15 pounds in twelve weeks is so completely doable. 

Normally I set smaller goals for myself, to account for those days when I know there will be slip ups.  But you know what?  I NEED an aggressive goal.  If I can go on my three big trips next spring feeling fantastic about how I look, that will make them so much more enjoyable.

GOAL:  I will lose 15 lbs by March 9, 2008. 

That’s an average loss of 1.25 lbs per week.  The health coach is willing to have twice monthly check-ins where he’ll weigh me and do my body fat analysis, so I will have that to keep me on track.  He highlighted for me what I know is the case - I need to be CONSISTENT with my exercise.  I try to hit three times a week, and some weeks I do it, and some weeks I get zero.  That’s not doing me any long-term good.  Guess when it changes?  Right NOW!  I have already worked out today and have a plan to do the same tomorrow.  I’m already on my way to accomplishing my goal!

Well, I had a very normal weekend - meaning, I didn’t really take any steps on eating healthier or getting exercise.   Argh!  I am very tempted to say “fugheddaboutit” until after the holidays are over, but I know the “I’ll start tomorrow” mindset is no good…today’s as good as any day to get focused!

My main struggle right now has been getting back into regular exercise.  I get out & about often enough - walking to & from the store, walking the dog for 20 minutes every morning (hubby takes the evenings!)  and longer on the weekends….mini-hikes around the city with friends, etc.  But sustained cardio exercise has been out of the picture for several weeks.

I think I’m going to go back to what worked for me at the beginning of this year - dragging my butt out of bed 90 minutes early and going to the gym before I even get showered & dressed.  This takes a little pre-planning - putting my clothes for the day in a backpack the night before, with my hairdryer, makeup, etc.  But when I was doing it before, I always felt so great knowing that I had the exercise done for the day, and I was less likely to sabotage myself with snacks throughout the day because I didn’t want to undo all the good I’d done with my hard early morning work!

So hear this:  Tomorrow I will work out for 45 minutes before work!  I am going to plan to hit the treadmill, I will probably have to do some combination of walking & running while I build my endurance back up, but at least I will be burning calories!!

Hellooo!  I have been gone from this site for a long, long time….no excuses really other than a busy crazy summer!  But, I have new goals and I have missed blogging about my journey, so I’m back & better than ever.

Short summary:  I got married in July (yay!  I’ll add a couple pics later), honeymooned, changed jobs, got accepted into an international study program, and well it’s been a blur to say the least. 

Our wedding was wonderful, everything was very “us” and we had a relaxed, beautiful garden dinner with our friends afterward.  The VERY next day - I had an interview for a study exchange program next Spring.  I think they were impressed with my dedication for showing up the day after the wedding, and I was accepted!  So, I am going to South Korea in March & April for a four week business study exchange.

Actually, I’m going to be traveling a LOT next year.  As of right now, I have on my schedule:

Early March - 1 week in Costa Rica for work
Late March through Late April - 4 weeks in South Korea
Mid-May - Vacation in Playa del Carmen, Mexico

 Which is basically the reason I’m back here.  I gained back 7-8 pounds after the wedding, and all autumn I kept thinking Oh, 7-8 pounds, that’s so EASY to lose, I’ll do it without even thinking about it.  But…I didn’t.  In fact, I gained 5 more!!  So now I need to lose at least 10 pounds before my trips if I am going to feel comfortable meeting people for the first time and feeling confident about my look in general.  I need the “check-in” mechanism of this site again.  I hope some of my great buddies are still out there (and not TOO disappointed in my for my long hiatus!) and that with their help, I can stay on track and knock these pounds off by February!

So my concrete goals are:
 - Exercise minimum 3 times a week through end of December
 - Exercise mimimum 4 times a week starting in January
- 1200-1500 calories per day, tracked on Sparkpeople.com

That’s what worked for me before, and I know it’ll work again if I just stick to it.  So here I go!