Fit by 40

Fit by 40 - Expanded

March 16, 2010

different
Seeing myself in a whole new way, photo by and of Mama.

As I approach June 3, 2010, my 40th birthday, I find myself pushing far beyond my physical “Fit by 40″ goals. In addition to physically fit, I desire to be “FIT” as it relates to finances, familial relationships, future goals, friendships, spirituality and general well-being. Getting fit wholly requires hard work…the kind of work that requires thinking, talking, dreaming and changing. This work demands that I am able to separate my truths from the truths of others and to be able to step outside of “the” box. It requires that I am willing to see things differently in an effort to be true to myself.

Over the past few months I have been working on answering a list of questions leading into my Mid-Life journey. Sometimes, the process of facing the answers is painful, real, and scary. Most of the time I am finding the experience exciting and exhilarating. Finding the time for this type of FITNESS regime gives me the power and strength to make my Mid-Life journey a spring board to a happy, fulfilling, and wonderful life adventure instead of the opposite, a self inflicted and very common “Mid-life crisis”.

FIT BY 40 Questions

Where and when do I feel the happiest?
What life experiences do my family and I want to have?
Where and how will I make a difference?
What are my god given gifts and talents?
Are my choices serving my family and our values?
What hard choices am I willing to make for “financial freedom”?
What does it mean to me to be “financially free”?
What type of work makes me excited?
Needs vs. wants?
Scratching below the surface for what constitutes a “want”.
How do I clear the clutter that keeps me from being my best self?
How do I balance security and status quo against what I dream for my whole of my life experience?
How do “sameness” and “acceptance” of “what is” play a part in my life?
Where am I allocating my time and does it adhere to my values?
How do I give my children an education and life experience that will encourage “thinking” as opposed to “test taking”.
How important is it to give children a long stint of an address vs. living in other places?
How much risk can I handle?
How do I grow my relationship with God?
How does community fit into my family values?
How do I make family relationships as meaningful as possible?
What has GOTTA go in my life?
How can I become a better citizen of my country in the second part of my life?

Elation

February 26, 2010

elation
This morning I woke up and got on the scale. WAHOOO!!!!!! PROGRESS….I dropped into the 120’s. 129.5lbs to be exact. I saw a “2″ instead of a “3″.

Last Sunday, I was with my “Weight Loss” friends eating dinner and someone pulled up a website that I hadn’t visited before, Livestrong.com - The Daily Plate. A weight loss questionnaire popped up and asked the following:

How much weight do you want to lose a week? ANSWER: 1.5 pounds
How tall are you? ANSWER: 5 feet 2.5 inches
How much do you weigh? ANSWER: 132
Daily Activity Level? ANSWER: Moderate

Based on those answers I am supposed to eat 1344 calories a day to lose 1.5 pounds a week. If you want to increase the calorie count, you need to exercise. The program lets you play around with all types of variables including exercise type and time and showed how those activities would increase calorie allowances.

Here is the best part! You can then use the Livestrong.com - The Daily Plate website as a food and exercise diary (which I have) to track every single second of exercise and every single morsel of food. For the past 5 days, here is what I have learned:

I had no idea how much I was adding to my calorie count by taking a bite here and a bite there. I am an overeater. Never thought so, but I am. When I stopped taking those extra bites, my calories goals didn’t seem too difficult.
The more I exercised, the more I could eat! CAN I GET A HALLELUJAH???? I have walked 12 miles since Sunday and fit in a few exercise DVR’s with weights. I am amazed at how much more motivated I became when I connected…walk….eat more….walk…..eat more.
I still had enough calories left over at the end of the day to have a glass of wine by not taking all of the extra bites of food throughout the day. Now seriously, this weight loss thing isn’t turning out to be that bad.
Writing it down DOES, I repeat, DOES make a difference. I really don’t want to type in “sleeve of chips ahoy” followed by hitting the button that says “I ATE THIS”.
Having a date with someone to work out at 5:45am doesn’t allow for excuses. I mean there is no way I would not show up knowing my friend was also up at 5:30 waiting for me.

Some of you may be rolling your eyes, or thinking, “DUH, pick up any magazine or book and they will tell you the same stuff. Yes, yes, I know. But boy did it feel good this morning. Good to see that number on the scale. Good to go downstairs and jump up and down with excitement with Hubby. Good to fit into a pair of pants that I haven’t fit into for a year without a “muffin top” spill over. Good to know that I do have control to do this thing right!