10 pounds - the HARD way!!!

10 lbs. The hard way. That's 30,000 calories. Whooo hooo!

Back in May, when we went to England, I bought a pair of capri's I couldn't fit into because I had the full intention of fitting into them later. Last month I noticed my shorts were getting a bit baggy. Now those capri's from England don't just fit, they are starting to get a big baggy as well.

When I decided to start losing weight, I had no idea how much work it was going to be. My life isn't normally a very active one. I sit for an hour in a car to work, to sit for 8 hours in front of a computer and return to the car for an hour for another ride home. To sit down for dinner and then sit while watching tv. Very active.

To first solve a problem, you gotta know what the problem is. The weight was the symptom, the problem was something else. Should be simple, if the number of calories burned is greater than the number of calories taken in, a person should lose weight.

Simple my ever widening butt. It had been mentioned to me that I was quiet the snacker. Hmm.....perhaps I should know for certain. Soo.....I went to www.my-calorie-counter.com and started logging. (it was a long process to begin with.....Mama likes to snack.)

To start with, I was taking in about 2,000 - 2,5000 calories a day. Sometimes I would binge and take in 3,000. With no exercise, this can't be a good thing. The normally active person should take in 2,000 a day, those with less activity should take in less. I did some research and found what my weight should be for someone of my height and build. At that time, I was a bit (a very big bit) off. Hmmm.......

Okay, start getting serious about working out at the gym. Next, work those calories down to 2,000 a day. Alright, keeping track. Working out. Trying not to snack as much.....

Next step. Increase the weight lifting. The more muscle that you have, the more calories you burn during low activity. The number of calories that one burns sitting increases because protein burns more fat. Great. Gotta burn what comes in before you can burn the stored stuff.

Increase the weight lifting. Decrease the calories. I cut the calories back to 1,700 a day. After a while, the endurance to the exercise was increased and I could actually work a harder routine. This was getting to be fun. I felt better. I needed less sleep and my clothes were no longer too tight.

Aggravating pound after aggravating pound would slowly slip off. I found it was best not to weight myself every day but rather to try about once a week. Especially since little things can cause your weight to change. You can drop a pound and the next day be 2 lbs heavier.

This got to be quiet addicting. I was sweating and making progress. (thanks to my friend's education, apparently your ears don't sweat. that's just your scalp dripping down to your neck, or off your ears, either way.....)

Okay, since I had a grasp on the 1,700 a day, I cut it back to 1,500 a day and do my best to work out no less than 3 times a week, rather 5. If I can't make it to the gym, I would walk around the quarry. It was not flat land nor was it even.

It's not that you can't have what you want to eat, you just cut it back. Don't eat the whole donut, eat half. Not a big piece of cake, a smaller piece. You could eat the whole piece of cake, you just can't eat as much for dinner that night. And it seems that this is catching on because now we make healthier meals for dinner. This means you can eat the same amount have less calories. It's great! Even the kids are shrinking in the middle.

Now, I have raised my weights again. Some of these have raised over 100lbs from what I began lifting. The flabby wings on the back of my arms no longer exist. My thighs have shrank a bit. The belly is cut in half. There is more definition in my face. The second chin is gone.

The waist line is shaping up. There is muscle definition beginning around my middle. When I look at my feet (not that I have EVER been able to see them), my belly doesn't stick out past my boobs. And embarrassing as it is to admit, guess where the first place is that you lose weight? Uh-huh. They don't shrink, they deflate. This calls for a whole other set of weight lifting. Gotta get the girls back where they originated.

This has been quiet fun though. To keep myself on the 'butt-blaster' longer, I've been reading books. Seems Ben Franklin wasn't the saint we all were raised he was. The Twilight series is very well written and this is a good time for devotions.

My oldest daughter used to be able to beat me in arm wrestling but recently I even beat her left-handed - which she is. Ha ha ha! Boooyah! Even my husband has mentioned that when we wrestle I hurt him. He he he......

10 lbs = 30,000 calories. The hard way.

The goal is another 15 lbs and I've recently started running. It's difficult with shin splints but I will endure. So far I went from being able to run for 90 seconds to up to 10 mins. Still puny, but you have to start somewhere and build on it.

This Sunday I have a fitness competition for work. I have high hopes!