Getting Started

Today is the first day of the rest of my life. I can be anybody I want to be. How many times have you said these very words to yourself? How long did the commitment to yourself stick? I myself have said these very words every few years. Every time I switched schools, even semesters with different professors, and into jobs and rolls - I will be better. I can reinvent myself and be who I aspire to be. Three years ago my husband and I moved to California from St. Louis for a fantastic job for him. Four months later I also found a great job and the first thing I thought to myself is - who do I want to be? I want to be someone that is confident, intelligent, driven all the normal charastics that I thought I wasn't. Well, it didn't take too long to feel like I was "back to myself". It's amazing that I didn't think in the first place that I originally possessed these qualities. 

I noticed after I got married, I started gaining weight again. I gained about 1 pound a month for about 30 months. Then last September 29th I broke down in the car on the way home. I picked up my husband from work and I was crying by the time he came out I was in tears. I was crying so hard he had to drive home because I couldn't see the road. I was tired of complaining about being fat and not fitting in any of my clothes. I was sick of it and not doing anything about it. Well, I did try. In June I joined a gym and was going about three days a week. I joined the gym, worked out and gained 7 pounds! I was furious and I hated the gym. So I begged my husband to help me change. Two things I learned about myself were 1. I need a partner to keep me accountable that I can rely on and 2. I need to be consistent. I asked him to start running with me three times a week and make a 5 week commitment. After serious deliberation, he agreed. 

The first day I couldn't run 3 blocks! I weighed 167 pounds and was a size 12. This was the heaviest I've ever been. I did not want it to continue. I wanted us to make a commitment to each other to live a happy and healthy life for each other, for our family members, for our potential children and for our friends. I was not happy and I finally realized that I have the power to change and I was ready for the challenge. It took me 18 minutes to do my first mile that day. 

It's been 8 months now and I've consistently run three times a week almost every single week. The holidays were hard because we did some traveling, but we brought our running gear and hit the treadmill once. We did a lot of walking though and paid attention to what we at. I'm running between 3 - 3.5 miles now each day. I've lost 27 pounds to date and have about 12 more to go to reach my final goal. My 3rd wedding anniversary is coming up July 1 and it was my goal to fit back into my wedding dress at my wedding weight. I have about 4 weeks and if I continue to my goal of 1 pound / week, I think I'll make it. :P