My Nutrisystem Journey

                                                                             🖤  Get well soon Tommy ! #teamrivs #RageOn 🖤 “If you feel "burnout" setting in, if you feel demoralized and exhausted, it is best, for the sake of everyone, to withdraw and restore yourself." – Dalai Lama  –  It's day 37 AG (after goal) and day 969 of Nutrisystem. I was definitely starting to feel burned out and exhausted in my professional life and I have to agree with the Dalai Lama when it comes to withdrawing and restoring yourself. Don't get me wrong .. I'm no martyr. My job is important to me and that means I always want to give it 110%. Learning new things is always a challenge and I made a conscious decision to put in the extra effort for myself. It was NOT ask...

                                                                                       🖤  Get well soon Tommy ! #teamrivs #RageOn 🖤 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” –  Matthew 11:28   –  It's day 30 AG (after goal) and day 962 of Nutrisystem. Weary and burdened is an accurate depiction of how I've been feeling. I started this blog to document my journey to physical and financial wellness, because I knew I needed it to keep myself accountable. I still need that accountability but I reached a point where it was becoming a chore, instead of an enjoyable outlet. A big contributor to that feeling is the changes in my professional life. I've mentioned that our team is takin...

                                                                           🖤  Get well soon Tommy ! #teamrivs #RageOn 🖤 " Make the most of yourself by fanning  the tiny, inner sparks of possibility  into flames of achievement.”  –  Golda Mier  –  It's day 24 AG (after goal) and day 956 of Nutrisystem. Sparks of possibility definitely burst into flames of achievement when it comes to my weight loss journey. The sparks were tiny when I started Nutrisystem because I'd never had much success with losing weight and keeping it off. I remember thinking if I could lose 2 pounds a week it would "only" take 75 weeks to lose 150 pounds. It ended up taking a lot longer (more like 131 weeks) but all that is important here is the fact that I s...

  🖤  Get well soon Tommy ! #teamrivs #RageOn 🖤 "Start this Sunday with a clean heart. No doubt, no tears, no fear, no worry. Thank God for his priceless gifts and miracles throughout the world . " Today is day 23 AG (after goal) and day 955 of Nutrisystem. I'm not what you would call a religious person but I ran across this quote and it fit my mood for the day.  No doubt, no tears, no fear, no worry. This is the way I want to start every day and there is no reason I can't. A sense of peace has settled over my life and God willing, it will stay that way for a good long time. I can't help but believe there was some Divine Intervention over the past couple of years to help put my life on its current track. I say this because I don't think I could have gotten where I am today on my own. As a result, I spend a lot of time being grateful for the blessings that have been bestowed on me. I feel like it cleared the way for me to address the things in my life that I c...

🖤  Get well soon Tommy ! #teamrivs #RageOn 🖤 "People wait all week for Friday, all year for summer, all life for happiness. " It's day 21 AG (after goal) and day 953 of Nutrisystem. There's a lot of truth in today's quote. I've talked a lot about all the years of my life that were wasted yet I continue to basically wish my life away waiting for Friday or summer. I can't really say I'm waiting for happiness because I've found enough of that to be satisfied. This week I am especially glad it's the weekend because it's been tough. With training and the challenge of new things at work my stress level has been at an unprecedented level. I keep telling myself it's temporary, because it absolutely is. I am blessed to work with an amazing group of individuals led by an absolutely amazing superwoman of a boss. We embrace the concept of team and we're committed to ensuring the success of the team as a whole and each other as individuals. We...

  🖤  Get well soon Tommy ! #teamrivs #RageOn 🖤 "Each new day has a different shape   to it. You just roll with it . " It's day 20 AG (after goal) and day 952 of Nutrisystem. Today definitely had a new shape to it. I was wide awake around 4:15 am and finally gave up trying to go back to sleep and got up just before 5. After a cup of coffee and an early breakfast I logged in to work, hoping to get a few things done while it was quiet. I accomplished that and actually got a lot done before 8 am rolled around - so I had a much less stressful day. I rarely start work that early and don't plan to make a habit of it, but it felt good to get a head start. Once we're done with training and I get the hang of the new work things will settle back down to a more reasonable pace. I do love a challenge and this is definitely that, so I'm not complaining ! I'm just trying my best to take my own advice and just "roll with it" ! Too often in the past I would fal...

  🖤  Get well soon Tommy ! #teamrivs #RageOn 🖤 "You are stronger than your challenges. Believe in yourself and  stay strong . " It's day 19 AG (after goal) and day 951 of Nutrisystem. It doesn't happen often but today I was a bit stressed and overwhelmed at work. We have a lot going on, we're busier than ever and we're learning new things every day. I love new challenges and I know that with time things will settle and the new stuff will become old hat ... but the process of getting there will have a bump or two (or twenty!) in the road. It's not like I've never had to learn something new over the past 36+ years ! I only bring this up because I found myself standing in front of the refrigerator this afternoon, not knowing how I got there or why I was there. I stood there with my hand on the door handle and told myself to take a deep breath and breathe .. and that everything was going to be ok. I knew why I was there - I was doubting my ability to lea...

  🖤  Get well soon Tommy ! #teamrivs #RageOn 🖤 "If you don't like the road you're walking, start paving another one . " ~ Dolly Parton ~ It's day 18 AG (after goal) and day 950 of Nutrisystem. The day I signed up for Nutrisystem was the day I started paving a new road for myself. This road only goes in one direction: forward ! There will be no going back to my former 300 pound self. It sounds terrible (to me) but I left her behind. I had no choice. It was either move forward to something better and new or stay on that old road and die fat, unhappy and full of regret. I also won't go back into the credit card hole that I dug myself out of. After years of struggling to pay my bills it's nice to have money left over once they're paid now. The road to financial security is a one way trip as well ! Same goes for fitness. I have veered off course when it comes to the Total Gym but I'll fit that back into my day eventually. I'm thinking that startin...

  🖤  Get well soon Tommy ! #teamrivs #RageOn 🖤 "Let's begin our work week thinking about our power to do awesome things. " It's day 17 AG (after goal) and day 949 of Nutrisystem. I have a tendency to always focus on the things I didn't do or the things I don't do well, instead of giving myself credit for my achievements. This holds true in both my personal and professional life. Everything seems to come with a "but" attached to it so I'm actively trying to change that. That's the simple message behind today's quote. Today I spent some time thinking about all the awesome things I've done over the past 949 days on a personal level. The day my Nutrisystem journey began I was stepping into uncharted territory and forging my path day by day. When I look at the big picture I've done some pretty awesome things ! So that's the vibe I choose to start this week with and I plan to work at staying in that space indefinitely !  Breakfast...

  🖤  Get well soon Tommy ! #teamrivs #RageOn 🖤 "Sometimes the most productive  thing you can do is relax . " It's day 16 AG (after goal) and day 948 of Nutrisystem. Saturday is definitely my day to relax completely but Sundays I try to be more active so I can ease back into another week ! Most Saturdays are spent with my mom and I treasure every minute spent with her. I was up super early yesterday (6:40 on a Saturday is super early for me!) so we started the day with breakfast at Flo's Diner. Food was delicious ! From there we headed to our happy place, Turning Stone Casino. We had dinner at Emerald's and spent a few hours at the slots. I also indulged in a little retail therapy and picked up a new set of leggings and, thanks to a casino promotion, scored 2 free summer maxi dresses ! Today I lounged around all morning then finally got myself together and went shopping. First stop was Christmas Tree Shops to pick up some k-cups that were on sale along with more ...