Monday, September 10, 2007

Coming soon to a blog near you

A new me. I gained an obscene amount of weight when I was pregnant, like 60 pounds. Waaaay more than what they say is healthy. And B was a tiny baby -- 5 pounds 14 ounces -- so I can't blame much of it on him. Funny aside: I made M promise that no matter how big I got when I was pregnant, I'd never weigh more than him. He had a hard time keeping ahead of me toward the end there, poor guy. Anyway, back to my chubby self: about two months after B was born, a month before I had to go back to work, M and I both went on the South Beach diet. It was hella expensive and there's no way I could do it when I'm not home full-time, but it really worked. I got down to about 8-10 pounds above my pre-pregnancy weight.

And I stayed there. Nearly four years later, here I sit, still 8-10 pounds more of me than I like. I know there are lots of people out there who have genuine struggles with their weight and would probably give their right arm to be just 8-10 pounds above their ideal weight. But I'm living my own life, and I am starting to despise the body I'm living it in. It's time to take charge.

So here it is: I turn 40 in about two and a half months. When I turn 40, I will be the same weight I was when I turned 30. Since I only have a vague idea of what my actual weight was at 30, I've picked a number that I think is close. I'm setting the goal at 9 pounds less than I am today. Good thing I'm not aiming for my weight at 20 -- that's more than 30 pounds less than I weigh today, and I definitely haven't gotten any taller or anything. I was a skinny little stick back in the good ol' days. I remember trying to gain weight so the smallest size of Levi's 501s shrink-to-fits would stay on me. Ah, to be 20 again. No, scratch that. I'd just like to have the body of a 20 year-old and the mind of a 40 year-old. But I'm going to be realistic and aim for the 30 year-old bod.

Can I do it? I'm not known for my motivation when it comes to exercise. I love a good long walk or a sweat-inducing hike, but it's hard to find the time to work those in at the regular intervals I need to lose weight. I need to get back into a running habit, and I need to do strength-training twice a week.

I am, however, known for my love of cooking and food. Especially food that involves cheese. Not good when a body wants to shrink. My goal: more vegetables & fruit, less meat & dairy.

I'll check back in at the end of the week to report on my progress. I hope there's some to report! Anyone want to join me?

4 comments:

Mamacita said...

Oh, I'm ALWAYS trying to lose weight. Its a lifestyle obsession. And yes, I'm the one who would give anything to be 8-10 pounds over my goal weight. But its hard to lose at any weight, any size so good luck to you! And its never too late to exercise more and eat more fruits and veggies! I also turn 40 in about five weeks.

J said...

I ran tonight. Well, I hiked/ran/walked. 10 minute hike to the trail I wanted to run on, 20 minutes of running, 10 minute walk back home. I got a stitch in my side that was so bad it hurt to walk, hurt to breathe. Tomorrow will be better, I'm sure. Please!

"M2" said...

yeah.............I'm joining you.
premenopause after fertility drugs
and I need to loose 18 pounds.
I am disgusted
I did 33 minutes on the treadmill yesterday and now my legs hurt.
Maybe it won't be so bad tomorrow.
Sugar is my problem.... sugar and bread

J said...

My legs hurt today too! And the second day is always the worst, so I'm a little afraid of tomorrow. I can see myself getting out of bed & collapsing to the floor. Sugar is my problem too. Not so much bread.