Reclaiming My Life

If you read the subtext of last week’s post, you could probably infer that I was pretty upset that change wasn’t happening fast enough. What a difference a week can make!

It’s not that I have lost more weight, but last Monday we did my measurements for the first time since Week 1. My hips have dropped 1.5 inches, my waist 1 inch, and my chest went down from a 41 to a 38! On Saturday night I put on a blazer I haven’t worn in a while and I was able to easily button it and close it with space on the inside. In short, I’ve learned that my body handles losing weight differently than expected. Stepping on a scale isn’t a good way for me to measure success. It really comes from taking measurements.

And then I stepped onto the treadmill this Sunday and was able to run at a speed of 5MPH for 30 minutes without stopping. A first at both that speed and amount of time.

My favorite part of this week was Devon’s (my nutritional adviser) visit to my house to do a food audit on my kitchen. For the most part, Lauren and I have a very healthy kitchen pantry. Aside from the very obvious bad things (e.g. frosting, boxed brownie mix, and candy), I was floored by something I used to buy regularly from Trader Joe’s has M.S.G. (Monosodium glutamate) in it! Well, not by that name exactly, but I learned there are over 10 other names that can be used for this food additive. In this case, “soy protein isolate”. Needless to say, we threw out all of the remaining bars and will never buy them again.

 
We all know this, but you really have to read every label on the food that you buy. Beware of additives, artificial flavoring and excessive sugar! The high fiber raisin bran that my girlfriend likes to eat for breakfast has more sugar in 1 serving than a Snickers bar! Seriously, eat a candy bar for breakfast. You’ll have a better time!

Because of my diet change and workout routine, I literally am able to sleep at night without waking up and in the morning I rise with energy. My stomach pain and digestive problems are all but gone, my skin is clearer and, of course, I am thinner. It’s only been a month of doing this program, but I feel like before I started I was slowly deteriorating and now I’ve reclaimed my life.

I thought exercise was stupid. I didn’t want to make the time to get the right food to properly feed myself. I wasn’t taking the time to listen to my body. In five weeks I feel so different. It’s like I was a car that needed a tune-up and an oil change. As humans, we’re able to adapt to most situations, but when that situation is so gradual (say a lifetime of poor eating and lack of exercise), you don’t realize that there is a completely different person who is stronger, faster, thinner and happier inside your current body.
G