Day 325: A Step
"The best feeling in the world is finally knowing you took a step in the right direction. A step towards the future where everything that you never thought possible, is possible."
Starting Nutrisystem was a turning point in my life. I can't think of any other recent event in my life that I would consider a step in the right direction. Things happened in my life but they were mostly out of my control, rather than a conscious decision on my part. I made the decision to give Nutrisystem a try. I finally admitted my weight was out of control and I needed help. It wasn't an easy decision to make and it was also a significant financial commitment, as I knew it was something that would take 18-24 months. There were no guarantees. This was no quick fix. Nutrisystem would provide the tools but I had to pick them up, figure out how they worked, and use them to my advantage. I also had to figure out the exercise component of weight loss. Sure, you can lose weight without exercising but it takes much longer and besides, physical fitness contributes to improving your overall health. I've always been an "all or nothing" type of person so there was no question I would pair exercise with proper nutrition. I had also had significant success using a treadmill over 20 years ago, so I knew what was possible. Even so, on that day I didn't think about what was possible. I think deep down inside I was expecting failure and didn't want to get my hopes up. Even as the pounds came off I didn't give much thought to what was possible. When you have no expectations there is no disappointment, and that was how I had lived for many years. Expect nothing, try nothing, feel nothing. I don't know exactly when my outlook changed but somewhere along the line I started to think about "when I reach my goal weight". That was a big step because it doesn't leave any room to NOT reach it. There is no "if" in this conversation. When I started I was looking at losing 154 pounds - nearly half my body weight - and it seemed like an impossible goal. Today I'm down to the last 40 and that doesn't seem quite so frightening. Saying you need to lose 40 pounds sounds a lot more doable than 154 ! Still, I have to keep working just as hard because those 40 pounds aren't going to disappear on their own. I haven't changed my game plan. I will continue to eat mostly Nutrisystem food until I reach my goal, but I am starting to think about how I will eat "after Nutrisystem". This will be a challenge because I don't like to cook ! My plan is to make my own frozen entrees so I don't have to cook frequently. I don't want to live on processed foods for the rest of my life so the transition from Nutrisytem to home cooking will be necessary. I will also continue pushing myself to exercise as much as possible. This part of my daily routine will not change after Nutrisystem. I will continue with the same level of exercise for years to come. This journey has consisted of many steps and there are still many to come !
Breakfast was a 2.1 ounce 160 calorie cherry cheese roll with macadamia cookie coffee. Power fuel was a 5.3 ounce 80 calorie Light & Fit strawberry cheesecake yogurt. Second cup of coffee was butter toffee. Morning snack was a 155 calorie chocolate shake with peanut butter powder. Lunch was a 3.7 ounce 200 calorie grilled chicken sandwich that I dressed with buffalo sauce. I also had a huge chef salad, so dressing added 30 calories. Afternoon snack was a 90 calorie veggie cake and a 5.3 ounce 80 calorie Light & Fit caramel apple pie yogurt with a cup of brown sugar crumble coffee. This left 405 calorie for dinner and an evening snack. Dinner was a 7.5 ounce 220 calorie chicken fettuccine alfredo that I served over riced cauliflower. Evening snack was a 1.8 ounce 140 calorie s'mores pie. Total calories for the day are 1155 and I got 64 ounces of water in.
I planned to be on the treadmill at noon today but a late second cup of coffee and my morning snack delayed that until a little after 1 pm. I did a 39 minute Lake Tahoe interval hike with John Peel. It had ten 2 minute intervals that averaged around 2.8 mph with 1 minute recoveries in between at around 2.5 mph. It had quite a bit of max incline so I definitely sweated a bit. Even so, I never felt like I couldn't finish the workout. I had lunch after that and although the couch looked inviting I forced myself out to the front porch to get those lights up ! I'm glad I bought 2 sets because one 18 foot set only made it halfway around the porch ! I also hung the large silver and teal glitter snowflakes I had bought for the windows. There are 6 front windows and I hung one in each window. They'll be pretty when the sun catches them. It took me about 90 minutes to hang the lights, put in a couple nails where the hooks were off center, string the snowflakes and then sweep up the floor and put everything away. It was just after 4 pm when I got done and it was already starting to get dark, so I plugged in my tree and sat on the couch admiring the porch lights and my tree. Yep, it's early for holiday lights but I don't care. I spent so many years with no decorations and even last year it was hard to embrace the holiday spirit and put up a tree. I used to decorate quite a bit for Christmas and I'm slowly getting that spirit back. I watched some tv and had my afternoon snack then went back out to the porch to break down the remaining large cardboard boxes from my treadmill and my tv. They were huge so I've been avoiding that task for quite some time, but today was the day to "git 'er done" ! All but one piece of styrofoam is broken up and bagged for the trash and the 2 boxes are ready for the curb too. Once that task was done I got back on the treadmill for workout #2. I did #7 of 24 in the Alps series with John Peel, which was only 19 minutes but it had a lot of max incline. This was another interval workout but the interval speeds and time frames varied widely because of the terrain. Speed never went beyond 2.9 mph. I used to be so afraid of max incline (only 10% on my treadmill) but I barely get out of breath now when the speeds are slow. Not a bad day: 58 minutes, 2.4 miles, 424 calories burned.
Tomorrow is my first official day of vacation and I have absolutely nothing planned ! I need to store my patio furniture so I will probably cross that off my to do list. I also need to make a grocery list. Beyond that the day is wide open so I'm going to just enjoy it, because I'll be out and about on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.
On that note I'm about ready for a shower and bed !
Breakfast was a 2.1 ounce 160 calorie cherry cheese roll with macadamia cookie coffee. Power fuel was a 5.3 ounce 80 calorie Light & Fit strawberry cheesecake yogurt. Second cup of coffee was butter toffee. Morning snack was a 155 calorie chocolate shake with peanut butter powder. Lunch was a 3.7 ounce 200 calorie grilled chicken sandwich that I dressed with buffalo sauce. I also had a huge chef salad, so dressing added 30 calories. Afternoon snack was a 90 calorie veggie cake and a 5.3 ounce 80 calorie Light & Fit caramel apple pie yogurt with a cup of brown sugar crumble coffee. This left 405 calorie for dinner and an evening snack. Dinner was a 7.5 ounce 220 calorie chicken fettuccine alfredo that I served over riced cauliflower. Evening snack was a 1.8 ounce 140 calorie s'mores pie. Total calories for the day are 1155 and I got 64 ounces of water in.
I planned to be on the treadmill at noon today but a late second cup of coffee and my morning snack delayed that until a little after 1 pm. I did a 39 minute Lake Tahoe interval hike with John Peel. It had ten 2 minute intervals that averaged around 2.8 mph with 1 minute recoveries in between at around 2.5 mph. It had quite a bit of max incline so I definitely sweated a bit. Even so, I never felt like I couldn't finish the workout. I had lunch after that and although the couch looked inviting I forced myself out to the front porch to get those lights up ! I'm glad I bought 2 sets because one 18 foot set only made it halfway around the porch ! I also hung the large silver and teal glitter snowflakes I had bought for the windows. There are 6 front windows and I hung one in each window. They'll be pretty when the sun catches them. It took me about 90 minutes to hang the lights, put in a couple nails where the hooks were off center, string the snowflakes and then sweep up the floor and put everything away. It was just after 4 pm when I got done and it was already starting to get dark, so I plugged in my tree and sat on the couch admiring the porch lights and my tree. Yep, it's early for holiday lights but I don't care. I spent so many years with no decorations and even last year it was hard to embrace the holiday spirit and put up a tree. I used to decorate quite a bit for Christmas and I'm slowly getting that spirit back. I watched some tv and had my afternoon snack then went back out to the porch to break down the remaining large cardboard boxes from my treadmill and my tv. They were huge so I've been avoiding that task for quite some time, but today was the day to "git 'er done" ! All but one piece of styrofoam is broken up and bagged for the trash and the 2 boxes are ready for the curb too. Once that task was done I got back on the treadmill for workout #2. I did #7 of 24 in the Alps series with John Peel, which was only 19 minutes but it had a lot of max incline. This was another interval workout but the interval speeds and time frames varied widely because of the terrain. Speed never went beyond 2.9 mph. I used to be so afraid of max incline (only 10% on my treadmill) but I barely get out of breath now when the speeds are slow. Not a bad day: 58 minutes, 2.4 miles, 424 calories burned.
Tomorrow is my first official day of vacation and I have absolutely nothing planned ! I need to store my patio furniture so I will probably cross that off my to do list. I also need to make a grocery list. Beyond that the day is wide open so I'm going to just enjoy it, because I'll be out and about on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.
On that note I'm about ready for a shower and bed !
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