Karly's Long Road: Countdown

My 'blog time' has been diminished due to a change in our church schedule! Now we don't get done until 2pm, and it's easily 3pm/3:30pm by the time kids are fed, Slade down for his nap, and Lukas is settled for quiet time! I used to be able to take a little nap and then get both blogs done! Last week I was so tired that I took a nap instead of blogging, thinking I would fit it in this week. You can tell that didn't happen since it's Sunday again! Am I the only one that feels like I can't get everything done that I should/want to?

Anyway....I now have two weigh-ins to report.

January 28th: (1 week after being home from Buffalo)

Lost: -5 lbs

Total Lost: -82.4 lbs

*Got 80 lb star*

February 4th:

Lost: -2.6 lbs

Total Lost: -85.0 lbs

*Got 85 lb star*

yEa!

To say I am excited is just a teensy-weensy bit of an understatement! I am tHriLlEd It is hard to believe I could actually, really, myself --- lose 85 lbs! But I also know how hard I have worked and am thankful that it's paying off!

You know what else it means, right?

The COUNTDOWN to 100 pounds has started!!!

I am 15 pounds away from reaching the 100 lb mark. That is a mark that has always seemed so far fetched, so unattainable, so somebody else I read about in a magazine. Not now. Now it's my turn to reach that monumental milestone! It's not my turn because I won the 'weight loss lottery' --- it's my turn because I decided to take control of my life and of the kind of future I will have.

Kind of funny story:

I mentioned above that I got my 80 and 85 lb stars. I was telling my Dad and he asked if they were gold, or silver, maybe bronze? I said, "They are gold STICKERS with a 5 on them!" He said, "You are this excited to get a STICKER? I thought you were getting bling!" ABSOLUTELY I am excited! Every one of those little 5 lb stickers means the next goal was met! I love looking at my bookmark on the fridge and seeing those 17 stars there! That is such an accomplishment for me. It's a tangible thing to show I reached that mini-goal. I have found that those 5 lb mini-goals really add up beautifully!

I know my last post was not too exciting...just lots of mumbo-jumbo that I needed to write to have it all make sense in my head. But one of the things I talked about was really confirmed to me when I lost 5 lbs after being gone for a week. One of my biggest road-blocks to successful, permanent weight loss was getting off track and not being able to get back on. It was all or nothing. Fire or Ice. I was doing perfectly or whetever is the opposite of perfectly! In Buffalo I was finally able to enjoy a 'splurge' and get right back on program. I had a mentor named Karen at Diet Center many, many years ago. I have always remembered her saying that "one day won't kill you, but a week will!" By golly, she was right! Even though I did splurge, and kind of 'fell off the wagon' a bit for that 29 hours, I was still able to lose the next week because I just picked up and kept going. That right there is one of the most VALUABLE lessons I can teach myself.

I also had a friend tell me that she can apply these lessons I talk about to her everyday life. She talked about how it helped her realize that just because she doesn't read her scriptures one day, doesn't mean she can't do it the next just because she wasn't 'prefect' at it. Thanks Sylvia! You are so right. These are lessons that go far beyond just food.

And speaking of friends, that is the other thing I have been thinking about these last few weeks --- how much I appreciate all the support all of you are giving me! My mother-in-law Cindy sent me a card, my sister-in-law Lindsey made me a CD of some of her favorite workout music, my sister Cinda sent me an e-card, my Dad did a blog about me on his blog, I have gotten phone calls and messages on this blog, messages on facebook, nice messages and emails from people I don't know who have been shown my blog by other people, etc.! I cannot express how much it means to me. You guys are the chorus in my head cheering me on when it gets tough!

THANK YOU!

These are two quotes I like.

Opportunity may knock only once, but temptation leans on the doorbell.

~Unknown

You must take personal responsibility. You cannot change the circumstances, the seasons or the wind, but you can change yourself. That is something you have charge of.

~Jim Rohn

We are all in charge of ourselves. That really is the only thing we can REALLY change. Thankfully, we can lean on and support each other as we help each other, but we ourselves have to do the actual work, no matter what goal we are reaching for. That is another 'duh' moment I have had through this process. I may have all the support in the world, and people that wish they could do some of it for me, but it comes down to me. Just me. I have to be the one to decide what I will put in my mouth, if I will write it down, if I will exercise, if I will drink my water, and on and on. I am so grateful I have finally decided to change this part of me. It makes me a happier and healthier Karly!

I told my Mom I would post a picture of the hat she knitted and sent me.

I LOVE it Mom. Thank You!