Put'em Up! Put'em Up! No Cowardly Lion Here!

I’ve discovered I love boxing.  I like slipping on the gloves, strapping down the Velcro, tapping my knuckles together, getting my stance ready, and punching.  Right now I box a little every Friday with my trainer.  He puts on punch mitts, I wear fight gloves, and he teaches me how to swing.  Each boxing session is a workout that leaves me red in the face and out of breath; each jab, each hit, each upper cut allows me to knock out my tensions and aggressions.  I will literally back my trainer up against the wall and it feels good!  I love the feeling of rhythmically hitting and hitting hard.  Oh yes, I will be adding a heavyweight punching bag to the my home gym.  I’ve done a little research and boxing for exercise can be a cardio boom and whether I’m picturing the person who cut me off at the intersection, a disruptive student, or sexy skinny person, I may like this punching thing a little too much.  Anyway, this chick will be leaner, stronger, and tougher.  Let me remind you, as I mentioned in my earlier post, one of my other forms of exercise is circuit training (using free weights) to increase lean muscle mass in order to boost my metabolism.  So, while the pounds may not be dropping as fast, I do feel myself getting stronger and I can tell my body shape is slowly changing.   I am hoping to hit the 15 pound mark very soon.  I am close! 

Part of my positive attitude right now is my support system.  I read recently that those who are most successful in losing weight and keeping it off have the following people on their team:

1. The food friend- the person who cooks with you, eats with you, grocery shops with you,  helps make the healthy lists, supports smart dining out choices, gets on board with all the good food and eats essentially what you eat do

2. The workout buddy- the person who gets down and dirty and exercises with you, is an accountability partner, sweats with you and motivates you, works hard with you and suffers through the pain with you

3. The encourager- someone who has persisted through challenges, someone who will be encouraging, someone who will understand when things get tough and not look down on you but not let you give up either, someone who recognizes the good things you’re doing

I believe I have a solid team in place and I understand that I cannot do this alone.  I do not think that any change in life is easy and I am not too strong or too weak to admit that I need people in my life to help me accomplish this. 

In many of my literature classes we encounter stories with a protagonist, often an underdog, on a quest in order to reach some sort of tangible goal. Oftentimes, the physical journey is full of obstacles and challenges that the protagonist must overcome.  In fact, some of these obstacles are either tempting or incredibly dangerous.  However, it is by facing these challenges that the hero tests himself, gains a better understanding of himself, receives some sort of enlightenment, and develops physical and mental fortitude.  Hopefully, each obstacle I face serves as a lesson.  I want this journey to lead to better physical, emotional and mental health and a new understanding of myself and my capabilities.  Let me say again that I embrace the beauty and boldness of my size, and that this journey is not about being thin.  This journey is about being healthier and strong.  I want to better the things about myself that I am able to.  I want to empower myself.  I want to be a woman of love, yes, but also of action and determination.  Lord, help me box myself out of my weaknesses!

Hara Hachi Earthlings!

Obviously, I’ve been slacking in my blogging portion against this war on fat!  OK, I just cracked myself up.  Honestly, I sometimes feel as though I’m writing to no one or myself or space.  Is anyone out there?  Hello?   Hello?  Hello? (faint echo)   After talking with a friend, I’ve decided that it’s important for me to keep expressing my thoughts, as well as my frustrations, and to impart all my new knowledge! So here it goes space friends. 

I am tracking how much I eat and how many calories I'm eating. Again, my get healthy plan is not about extreme diets but simply making smarter choices and embracing new information. Keeping a log of what I eat, and being diligent about it, is a great way for me right now to do this. Tracking my exercise is an added benefit. For me, logging my food is about understanding my food choices and how much they cost...what am I willing to spend on my food- I'm teaching myself to look at the price tag before buying.  As I stated in my earlier post, my research showed me that there seemed to be a consensus among health experts regarding the formula for determining calorie intake and it was the same as the Loseit! one so I've been consistently logging my every morsel, drink and exercise for the last two weeks. This, I am particularly proud of!  A study in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine found that keeping a food diary can double your weight loss.  Score!  This is reason enough for me to keep track! 

Did you notice that scholarly little reference? I've also been reading quite a bit and I'd like to share some of my findings that I think are useful or profound or profoundly useful. I won't share all my wisdom at once because as Mark Twain said, “be careful reading health books, you may die of a misprint.”  Therefore, I think it’s wise to ingest a few tips at a time. 

Okinawans practice a type of calorie and weight control, naturally, called “Hara hachi bu,” which basically means eat until 80% full and then stop.  You need to pace yourself as you eat, stop at 80%, and let your stomach have time to tell your brain that you’re full.  The island of Okinawa happens to be one of the healthiest populations on earth.  This practice is different than the American version of “eat until you must unbutton your pants for the ride home” because it tastes so good I can’t control myself.  This is sometimes followed by cries of,  “who said ice cream?”  Hara hachi bu.  Eat slowly.  Pace yourself.  Enjoy.  Stop before you’re too full. 

I have also continued working out 3 to 4 times per week.  This has been going on for about 5 weeks now.   My main goal for exercise was to decrease blood pressure, increase heart health, improve mood, and boost energy.  I am a bit shocked to say that already my doctor has lowered my dose of blood pressure medicine.  This is encouraging.  I also keep reading over and over again that exercise, especially circuit training (working with weights), increases metabolism.  As a woman with PCOS, I need the help.  Basically, to banish fat and build muscle, which I want to do, I need to do strength training a couple days a week and cardio a few days a week.  I can do this!  I am meeting with a trainer once a week for 10 weeks to make sure I’m working hard but working safe.  Last week was meeting number one and a bit of boxing happened.  I gave him a beat down...  Just saying!

Well earthlings, after all of these positives, I will end with my frustration.  After 5 weeks, I have lost about 9 pounds.  I feel like it should be more.  Call me greedy but I am working my A*S off.   I truly exercise hard.  I do NOT cheat on my eating.  I eat smart and healthy and good while still enjoying what I eat.  I log my food and calories daily.  However, the last two weeks have been a mystery for me.  The scale has not been moving.  I talked to my doctor about a medication I’m on to see if that might be an issue.  I’m going to try drinking more water.  The book I’m reading now says if you feel like you’re hitting a plateau it may be one of three things:  1.  your body is changing but the scale is not,  2.  you need more calories  3.  you need less calories.  I’m trying to be patient and I’m thankful I have a good team in place! 

I have a vision and it requires sacrifice and change.