Confetti and Balloons Please!

I can't believe it! I really can't! I did it! This is the most surreal moment I've ever had! I can't stop using exclamation points!!!

I REACHED MY GOAL WEIGHT!



Confetti :)



Goal: the weight that I started this journey trying to reach. The number that I chose in my head when I was 18 years old. The battle that I have been fighting for the past 11 years. I have finally won! When I first set out

I Hate Waiting

This is my first week back on a regimented workout routine and I AM SORE! In a way, the soreness is a good thing because it means my body is definitely feeling the workouts - but on the other hand, soreness is painful and uncomfortable. I know the soreness eventually goes away but it certainly reminds me of why it's better to just stay in the habit of working out. Starting up again re-starts the soreness!

The hardest part about this round of workouts is the waiting. I won't be able to tell for a couple of weeks whether or not my new diet and workout plan are working together. A couple of weeks doesn't seem like a lot of time, but when you've already been plateaued for a year - you know that a couple of weeks could bring you good news, or could end up feeling like more wasted time.

But the only thing I can do to tell if it's working is to ride it out and wait and see. As with most people, I want results and I want them RIGHT NOW! There are literally so many factors that could be contributing to me not being able to lose any weight and unfortunately, the only way for me to figure out what's going on is to try a bunch of different solutions and wait to see what works.

It's a very lonely experience. Even though several people are willing to offer their advice and experience, no one else is going through this situation with me. Most people have already figured out their problems, or have never had this experience in the first place. Spending a year being dedicated to intense workouts and clean eating with only a few pounds lost to show for it is really taxing on your psyche. Sometimes I'll look back and think to myself "maybe I just didn't try as hard as I thought I did." But then I'll look at my workout calendars and my food logs and I see the work that I put in and I know that I'm doing all I possibly can.

And now all I can possibly do is wait.

Don't Just Stand There, Let's Get To It!

My biggest weight loss problem over the past year is breaking plateaus. I've been able to lose a little weight this year, but nothing near what I should have been losing in comparison to the work I put in. We are NOT all cookie cutters. If there was one workout and one diet plan that worked for everyone - there wouldn't be thousands of diets and workout plans. There would be 50 versions of the same one, but that's not the case. We all lose in different ways - so right now the toughest part is figuring out what my body needs to lose the weight.

I've tried doubling my workouts, cleaner eating, reducing carbs, increasing carbs, reducing calories and increasing calories. None of these things have worked for me. Most people can't seem to understand when something that worked wonders for them doesn't work for someone else. They assume you must be doing something wrong or maybe your'e not quite calculating your calories correctly... Get over it people. Just because it worked for you, doesn't mean it will work for me. I tried it, and it didn't - so pick your jaw up off the floor and move on. Understand that some of us are gonna have to try several different methods to get to the results that we want. I only just recently found some other people who are experiencing the same difficulties as I am - so at least I don't feel like such a freak of nature anymore. One of the hardest things is to feel alone and hopeless. So at least I've found people who are helping me try other methods.

I am STILL ten pounds away from my goal weight and I haven't been able to shake any of them even with super clean eating and intense exercise. I took a break this summer to give my body a rest and re-set. Well, now it's time to get back to the drawing board and get back to work. I'm determined to get my body to where I want it to be and giving up is just not an option for me. If you haven't started working on your fitness journey, there's no time like the present. I have been through it ALL so if you need help with where to start - send me a message and let's get to it. There are no excuses for how you look and feel - it's completely up to you.

Step Outside Your Little Box

I think it's easy for us to get so stuck in something, that we are very relectant to change. Even when we complain that we don't like the way things are going, we don't always want to switch things up because "what if it starts working?" I recently had a friend help me change my resume since I've been getting very little if any response to what I've been sending out. For the most part, it was more format changing than content. I liked the new look and everything, I was just kind of being lazy to use it. I already had my old one saved to my computer and in my e-mail. It was just "easier" to continue to send that one out. But I finally sucked it up and made the necessary changes to start using the new one. To my surprise, I actually heard back from a job I applied to. Was it the new resume layout? Who's to say? The point is - I wanted a change, I asked for and accepted help and gave the change a try.

I find a lot of people are in the same boat. They don't like the way things are going, they ask for help and feedback and suggestions - and then don't make any changes. Because they're scared, lazy, or want to wait until what they're doing works. How stupid is that? I can't tell you how many people I know have had diet/exercise questions ~ I have given them advice of things that have worked for me ~ and they respond with "well this is what I'm doing so I'm going to stick with that for a while." I'm thinking "hello? Did you not just say that wasn't working? Why would you continue to do what you know isn't working?!" But in the end, I can't change things for you. If you want to continue on doing something you yourself said wasn't doing it for you, that's up to you.

The thing is, most adjustments aren't permanent. Why don't you just try one of the suggestions you've been given and if after a week .... two weeks it doesn't work, then don't do it anymore. What have you got to lose? If you've already conceded that what you are doing isn't working, what will it hurt to try something else? It's certainly a better idea than continuing to complain and ask for advice that you will never take.

xoxo,
sweet charity
<3

Patience

I'm super frustrated to realize that I currently weigh the same as I did before I started P90X. I remember running every day this summer in addition to my X workouts. How in the hell am I still having weight problems? What's it gonna freekin' take? I can't believe that this many years later I'm still having to work this hard to drop pounds. I can't believe I'm not at my goal already. Frankly, this is bullshit! I'm on day 3 of this Michi's top tier challenge. It's just so depressing being obsessed over calorie intake. Am I taking in enough? Too much? Am I working out hard enough? Am I doing the right workout? There's so many freaking questions and honestly - with the work I've put in, I ought to have seen better results by now. It all just feels so completely unfair.