Becoming Healthier and Happier One Pound at a Time! Comments Welcome!

[Lifelong_Dreamer]

Hi there! This is my first WISH Journal so please bear with me.

I suppose I should start out by telling you a little bit about myself. My name is Lessa and I am turning 26 in just two and a half weeks. I have been struggling with my weight for a long time now, pretty much since high school. It saddens me as growing up I was very athletic and active. I played on the school soccer, volleyball, basketball, and track teams. I also was a gymnast for many years. That all changed when I entered high school. I seem to have retreated into myself becoming very shy and distant and uncomfortable with my looks. I think that in part my weight gain was a way for me to "hide" from the world.

I am tired of hiding and living this false life. I am making many changes in my life and one of the most important changes is going to be a concerted effort to get active again and start taking off this weight! I am also heading back to school to get my second degree, this time in Nursing. If I am going to centre my working life around helping others be healthy well then I should do my best to be healthy too, right?!

Here I am at age 12 after winning first place with my relay time in the city track meet. I am in the front on the right in the grey shirt.

And here I am now

My starting weight as of this morning is 210. I have been yo-yoing between 200-210 for over a year now. I am hoping that with enough dedication I can finally get myself back into the 100's again.

Feel free to comment, offer tips and helpful suggestions and share your own experiences. I am going to do my best to update this journal on a regular basis so you can all follow along on my journey to lose weight and become healthier and happier!

 

[Lifelong_Dreamer]

Well now that you have heard all about me you are probably wondering what my plan of attack is, the pounds don't just melt away on their own though I sure wish they did.

Well here are some of the tools that I plan to utilize while working towards my goal.

The treadmill

My goal is to use the treadmill for a MINIMUM of 30 minutes every day. Whether it be walking or jogging I plan to be on that sucker. I have discovered the Couch to 5K plan so I am going to give that a whirl. I may not follow their timeline exactly but I will do my best to stay close to it.

I bought the DVD last year and have only used it a handful of times. I am going to try and make an effort to use it on a regular basis from now on.

My Wii Fit. My dad bought this as a birthday present for me last year. For the first few months I used it all the time but lately it has been collecting dust. It does not give a very strenuous workout but it mixes the routine up a bit and it is fun. I also plan on using the balance board to track my weight.

The jump rope

I love the jump rope, I remember when I was younger eagerly looking forward to participating in the Jump Rope for Heart program each year.

And of course I will be making sure to drink lots of water!

In addition to this I am going to incorporate long walks outside whenever I can. My work schedule is very funky and I often work nights and sleep during the day so often the hours that I have free to work out it is dark out so not very safe to be out walking around, especially for a big klutz like me who would be likely to fall and injure myself.

 

[Lifelong_Dreamer]

Well so far today I have chugged down 1L of water and walked 20 minutes of the treadmill and did 30 minutes of yoga with the assistance of my Wii Fit (haven't memorized the poses yet). I also did 100 skips/jump (what is the proper terminology for jump rope?). I am off to work in a few minutes and I don't get off until midnight so not sure if I will be up to more when I get home, we'll see!

 

[Lifelong_Dreamer]

Well I didn't update yesterday. It was kind of a wash. Didn't exercise but my eating was okay. Went to the movies with my brother to see Harry Potter and I resisted the lure of the nachos and Pop at the refreshments counter.

Today I have done well. Did half an hour on the treadmill and then just over 30 minutes of yoga. Also been eating well today. Had my bran flakes and skim milk for breakfast and grilled chicken breast for lunch. I am at work tonight so I brought along carrots and a banana to snack on.