40 years, 40 weeks, 40 healthy goals!

[dismom301930]

Hi all,

I turned 40 last week and I figure it's about time to get serious about my health. I decided to make 40 small goals for the next 40 weeks to try to achieve a healthier lifestyle. I want to hold myself accountable so I decided to post on the DIS! I will post every week (even if no one reads it!) which I think will help keep me on track.

A little about me: I have been married for 15 years, and have three daughters ages 13, 12, and 9. I am about 40 pounds overweight. Thankfully, I love healthy food - but unfortunately I also really like sweets and salty foods, and I know I eat too much. I have tried "diets" in the past and they work for a few weeks or months, and then I go "off" and gain all the weight back. So my new plan is to focus on health, rather than weight. Hopefully, weight loss will be a bonus!

My plan is to set a goal for myself each week and then hopefully continue to keep up the healthy habits that I started that week for the remainder of the challenge. I become a slave to the scale if I weigh myself too often, so I plan to check my weight every two weeks with the goal of losing one pound every two weeks (so 20 pounds total for the length of the challenge). If I lose more, that will be great! But since I am focusing more on health, I think the "slow and steady wins the race" approach might be best for me this time.

The Challenge officially started this past Monday (11/18) and will end on Monday, August 25th.

Goal week one: Get a complete physical (including bloodwork) and schedule my yearly appt. with my OB/GYN and my first-ever mammogram.

I have not had a regular physical since I was a kid. I am pretty good about going for yearly check ups with my OB/GYN and my dermatologist. But I figure I am due for some bloodwork, at the very least to establish my baseline numbers. Plus high cholesterol and type 2 diabetes run in my family, so it would be good to check in on those numbers.

I actually made an appointment for tomorrow morning with a doctor recommended by a friend (I don't even have my own doctor!) so I will post after my appointment. I am waiting to schedule the mammogram until I see her tomorrow because I don't know if I should schedule it through her or my OB/GYN.

I am feeling very optimistic about this challenge. I will post updates every Monday, if not more often! Join me if you want!

 

[pjlla]

First of all... HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Second... congrats on taking the big step to make the rest of your life healthier! What a great example you are setting for your children!

I'm impressed that you are so organized and have your appointment scheduled already. I FINALLY had a full physical about 3 years ago... hadn't had one in YEARS. And the ob/gyn thing?? Don't ask! I'm even behind on my mammograms at this point. But you are on a roll!

I know you plan to post here and keep us updated, butif things get lonely here and if you have any interest in joining the WISH monthly challenges, feel free to hop on board. We are mostly a weight-loss group, but we all have a big interest in eating healthier and exercising and the weight loss goal you set is entirely up to you.

Just wonder if you have an eating "plan" in mind or if you are just going to wing it. Love to hear more about your journey as you get on your way!..............P

 

[pjlla]

How did the physical go? Did you get your mammogram scheduled? How was your bp?? Was the doctor impressed with your plan?............P

 

[dismom301930]

Thanks for the encouragement, pjila!

My appointment went well. Blood pressure and EKG were both good. Got a script for bloodwork and mammogram, so need to schedule them. Will call today to schedule mammogram, and will try to do bloodwork the first week of December.

The doctor was very nice (my first time meeting her) but she definitely suggested I lose some weight. I weighed 189 and I am 5' 6 1/2". We set a goal of 150, so I was pretty accurate in my assessment that I have 40 pounds to lose. She liked my approach setting small health goals, but reminded me to keep an eye on overall calories.

I don't really have an overall eating plan. Honestly, I have tried various diet approaches before (including counting calories, food journaling, etc.) and I have not had long-term success. So that is why I decided a new approach is in order.

I really like fruits, vegetable, whole grains, etc. so I am trying to eat healthy foods without counting calories. I am allowing myself to eat as much healthy foods as I want. For example, I made a delicious black bean, corn and pepper salad yesterday. Because of the beans and corn, the calories are probably pretty high, but it is healthy and kept me full so I didn't limit myself to a certain sized portion. Bonus - two of my three daughters had it last night, and my youngest took it to school in her lunchbox today!

At this point, I am just trying to fill up on the healthy stuff so I am not tempted by the unhealthy foods. But I will definitely allow myself occasional treats so I don't feel deprived. So even though I do not have a specific "diet", I guess I do have a plan. In addition, I will be setting new goals each week and it is my hope that I will follow through with these new habits for more than one week each!

Thanks for telling me about the monthly challenge, pjila. I will join for December! I am still going to keep my weight loss goals very modest (apprx. 2 pounds a month) so I don't get discouraged if the weight doesn't come off quickly (which is what sometimes would happen in the past). I am hoping that if I focus on living a healthy life, that the weight loss will eventually follow. We will see! Thanks again for your support!

Finally, I just noticed that there is a "Journals" section on this board. Mods, please move this thread if you think it belongs there.

 

[dismom301930]

First week was very successful! As I mentioned in PP, I had my physical and scheduled both my bloodwork (12/3) and my mammogram (1/3).

Goal week two: Focus on drinks. Reduce number of calories consumed in liquid form, as well as caffeine and artificial sweeteners. Drink more water.

I tend to drink a lot of coffee throughout the day (decaf after dinner) with creamer and sugar. I also drink way too many diet cokes, and I really like sweet drinks (especially sweet iced tea and lemonade). So my plan for this week is....

• limit my coffee to 2 or 3 cups in the morning and drink tea in the afternoons/evening when I would typically reach for coffee
• try to replace some of the creamer with skim milk and reduce the sugar in the coffee
• replace diet cokes and sweet drinks with unsweetened iced tea or water
• drink more water

An additional goal this week is to have a reasonable Thanksgiving meal. I will try to limit my portions of mashed potatoes and stuffing, load up on veggies, and only have one small serving of dessert.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

 

[BernardandMissBianca]

You are doing great!!
I also turned 40 this month, the 24th. And I have another 40 pounds to lose too. I've dropped 30 so far but I've been hovering around 170 for the last 6 months.
I'm currently training for the Princess 1/2.

Working on your drinks is a great place to start. I quit soda cold turkey 2 years ago Oct 24, it was tough but I am so glad I did. I don't have the heartburn issues, I lost 5 pounds, and my mind is so much clearer. I do still drink some hot tea and iced tea and an occasional Starbucks but I actually find that a lot of times I would prefer plain water.

You are doing great! Keep up the good work!