As of this morning I am down 31 pounds. It seems that I hit a mini plateau there for a bit but I am happy to report I am back on the down slope of the curve. I worked a lot this week and did miss some of my workouts due to working around 60 hours. Somehow I still lost weight. The body is a funny thing.

My clothes are getting bigger and bigger each week but I still see myself as "fat" and still say to myself that I can't do certain things until I lose more weight. I am definitely proud of myself for all my hard work but some days still don't feel smaller. I also don't see a difference in the mirror but all my friends and family keep telling me I'm shrinking.

As far as delaying life until I lose more weight, people of all sizes go jogging, fall in love and make their dreams become reality. Being on the road to my goal weight shouldn't stop me from doing anything and if I'm honest with myself it isn't the weight that is stopping me. It's my own fear and insecurities. I will get to my goal weight. I know that but being healthy isn't just about being fit and thin. It isn't just the number on the scale. It is also about having a healthy mindset. That is what I need to spend some time and effort on.

The last few weeks I've really upped the intensity of my workouts. This is wonderful but it also means that my hunger levels have increased as well. I've had to learn how to balance my hunger levels much more effectively.  This has not been easy. I've also had a ton of client events recently. I end up leaving the office early to travel into the city, missing my snack which leads to finding a healthy dinner option more challenging because I end up absolutely starving. 

What have I done to counteract this increase in hunger you may ask?  I've resorted to such tricks as eating frozen grapes as an example. They are zero points and very juicy so they fill me up. You just have to learn to fill up on foods that are zero points and drink lots of liquids.  It's kind of like shopping and getting the most for your money. For those that know me it is quite typical for me to relate anything to shopping, one of my favorite activities :) This new way of eating isn't easy but I continue to fight the fight!

Below are a few extra tips to deal with business dinners, cocktail parties and just not feeling motivated. 

Find polite ways to refuse fattening cocktails and passed hor deuvres. After a few occasions these methods will become ingrained and natural responses. 

Keep some inspirational quotes or music on your phone or at your desk for days you don't want to work out. 

Sometimes I feel absolutely ravenous like I could eat three meals in one. When this occurs I eat my planned meal and wait 20 minutes to see if I am still hungry. 99% of the time I am satisfied-it really works! (Note:  I didn't use the word "full" because I haven't felt "full" since I started this plan :))

Back to work these past two weeks after my wonderful vacation in California. As I mentioned last week I saw lots of plastic surgery even on the nannies. The thing with plastic surgery is unless you go to a top surgeon you usually end up looking worse afterwards. I am not saying I would never have plastic surgery but I believe in trying diet and exercise before you resort to those measures. 

The other great thing about California is the weather and the beauty of nature all around. It is impossible not go hiking, camping, cycling and swim because it is just too beautiful to stay inside. People have much more active lifestyles out on the West Coast. 

On one of my recent flights I sat next to someone very overweight. So heavy that in fact I was physically uncomfortable because her arms and legs went into my seat on the plane. Then she ordered the most fattening foods possible on the menu times two. This didn't make me angry though. Instead I could relate. I was never over 300 pounds but I probably ate like I was and I was certainly uncomfortable in confined spaces.  I had a long talk with my neighbor on the plane and she gave me some great advice on some things I was struggling with and I also feel that I helped her with her food issues. We exchanged contact info and have been corresponding about our different goals relating to weight loss. What I learned from the experience was that you never know when you will make a difference in someone's outlook or when someone unexpected will inspire you. 

This week I am blogging from my vacation in beautiful Newport Coast, California. It is so beautiful in fact that I am considering moving to the West Coast. More on that next week though. When trying to lose weight vacations can pose some very serious obstacles. Those obstacles and how I overcame them this week is what I'd like to talk about today.

I am lucky in the fact that I am vacationing with friends that are extremely fitness oriented. The first night I arrived my friends downloaded a two week free pass for me to their gym and we went everyday except for one. Obstacle number one of not exercising on vacation was avoided. Additionally, the great thing about being at a different gym was that I switched up my cardio routine for the whole week. I even tried another new class called Zumba. One of my girlfriends is a Zumba instructor and now looks like she could be a Playboy model so it is a pretty grueling workout. It is a combination of high-impact cardio with tons of lunges and core work set to Hip-Hop and Latin music. I loved it but was extremely sore the next day in all the right places. I now understand why my friend looks the way she does.

Another obstacle of vacationing can be eating out a lot and being in unfamiliar places. For the first time in my life I had a great vacation with my friends and didn't focus the whole trip on what disgusting fattening food I was going to eat. I ate healthy local produce in conjunction with fresh seafood and meats and was 100% satisfied with my healthy choices. Go me :). I also kept skim milk, almonds and a few Larabars around just in case starvation set in. You see I planned ahead so there were no pitfalls.

I will have to wait until I get home to weigh myself but no matter what the scale says I know I had a very successful week. Next time I'd like to discuss all the plastic surgery I saw (huge fake breasts everywhere I looked but mine were still bigger :)) and a very interesting plane ride I experienced.

As of this morning I have lost 25 pounds.  I am very excited as I have met my first goal and surpassed it.  I think I might have mentioned the importance of small measurable goals.  You shouldn't say to yourself I am going to lose 50 pounds by such and such date. Life and weight-loss unfortunately don't work like that.  You don't want to set yourself up for disappointment because that could trigger feelings of failure. A better way to set-up your mini-goals would be to say I am going to lose 20 pounds but with no specific deadline or if you are the type of person who needs deadlines to function or get motivated make them about exercise. 

An example of this would be an exercise goal I set for myself for the month of June. I promised myself I would workout at least five times per week.  I also said I would track my exercise and my food intake.  More on food tracking later.  Each day I recorded my workouts, what I did and for how long.  Now when I look back at the month and see the classes and hours of exercise I've logged it is incredibly motivating.  This will be something I continue to do. 

I also diligently tracked my food intake. Anything that went into my mouth was recorded, portion sizes, quantity and time of day. I've realized from past failed attempts to lose weight that this element is essential.  When you measure or weigh your food and try to eyeball it or write it down later you are always eating more quantity wise. Tracking my food will also be key to meeting my next set of goals. 

Remember, it only takes 30 days to form a healthy new habit :)

As of this morning, I have lost 16 pounds. I had another successful week and even tried a new class at the gym by accident. Don't worry, I will fully explain...

It was this past Thursday which is usually one of my spin nights. It is a 45 minute class and a good way to gear up towards Friday. I had a very long busy day at work and didn't even have time to eat my pre-gym snack or drink my eight glasses of water. I told myself it is only 45 minutes and I can get in a few glasses of water during spin class. I changed and showed up to class with some friends from work. The gym manager was in the studio and upon arrival tells us that our instructor is stuck in traffic and that they are having a bootcamp class instead.

I have seen this bootcamp class at the gym while on the elliptical and it is the scariest thing I've seen in a gym. One of the trainers who is a Marine teaches it. He wears a whistle and blows it every 45 seconds. There is a circle of equipment with labels next to each station. Things I would never think of doing on my own because they would induce way too much pain and suffering.

Anyway, once it was announced that bootcamp would be replacing spin I looked at one of my girl friends and started to walk out of the studio to go do the elliptical. The instructor with the whistle told us to try it. I thought to myself great-I had no snack and not enough water today. How the hell am I going to do exercises as if I'm training to be in the army. Then I said to myself each station is only 45 seconds and I can do anything for only 45 seconds. That phrase no pain no gain also circulated through my brain. So I stayed and convinced a third friend to stay as well. Was I crazy?

The instructor turned the music way up. Some of my favorite songs to workout to by Katy Perry and Rihanna pumped through the speakers. I got excited and felt good. For the next fifteen minutes I did push-ups, squats, lunges and cardio all with weights and got through the first round. My heart was pumping at well above the normal 150 I usually maintain during spin, I could feel it. I was sweating like an eskimo in a sauna. I slirped some water down and we started round two and I somehow made it through that as well but I was deteriorating fast. I had some more water and really wanted to walk out but of course I didn't. I pushed through the pain and exhaustion and completed the third round.

The instructor complimented my efforts and told me I should try his Navy Seals class the following week. I replied that maybe I would. How much harder can Navy Seals be? Ha Ha, I'm sure a lot harder but maybe that saying no pain no gain is really true. I was very sore the next day but for each time I moved and felt one of my sore muscles I was that much prouder of myself. The human body is a miraculous thing and if we push ourselves we really are much more capable then we think. I learned that this week.

This week I’d like to discuss enablers. You know who I’m talking about. Those friends and family members who exhibit the following behaviors. Let me set the scene. You are out at a trendy restaurant all dressed up. You have had a great meal of salad maybe some grilled fish. Also, you have just communicated to your friend all about your five workouts and successful eating plan for the past week and the waiter plops down the dessert menu. Your friend looks at you and asks if you want to share a brownie sundae. My normal response a few weeks ago would have been of course :) But lately my response has been that if I am going to have anything it is going to be some plain fruit.

I have learned some valuable lessons the last few weeks. Your loved ones and friends aren't going to change and you shouldn't expect them to. Your transformation is about you not them. They didn't make you fat or put the food in your mouth all those times you overate and ate the wrong things. They also don't mean to harm you when they offer fattening desserts or food. That is how they show their love at times. So it will be you that has to change. What I mean when I say that is you will need to change how you respond in certain situations. Instead of getting angry just explain that you are trying to make positive changes with your health and leave it at that. The funny thing is that your good habits might start rubbing off on them. If they don't that is perfectly fine as well as long as you do the right thing for you.

I think it is very healthy to love others don't get me wrong but sometimes it is healthier for you to not be so engaged in their behavior. Women especially are guilty of this. The constant advice giving and worrying about others. It is our nature to care too much at times. I know I have been guilty of this. I tend to focus on other's problems so I don't have to focus on my own. That is one of the reasons I gained so much weight. Then I gained more when I got angry and frustrated that my friends and family wouldn't take my advice and didn't even seem to appreciate all those suggestions I constantly gave.

I have tried to just "let go"! I still love everyone just as much as I always have but I am getting less involved in their drama. I think my relationships are improving because of this lesson. I know my relationship with myself has improved and isn't that the most important relationship of them all? Fin
-zoftig princess