So…after many failed attempts to quit smoking, I finally succeeded and have been successful for over a year now. Now, I have to tackle my next problem.

FOOD. I love it.
I love to shop for food, I love to cook it and of course I love to eat it! And, there’s really nothing wrong with that, the problem is that I don’t exercise and too many of the things I eat, aren’t good for me. “Hello…..Heidi, you’re 38, your kids are leaving the nest, and it’s going to be your time with Geoff soon, so now is the time for change.”

I tried Weight Watchers, and even though the plan sounded simple enough, and my mother did great on it, I just couldn’t make it work for me. I did Jenny Craig and although it worked for the time I was following it to the letter, I can’t afford it. And if I am being completely honest, it’s no better for me than what I could make myself – it’s just not realistic for me to eat out of little packages for the rest of my life. It might take off the weight, but it won’t solve my problem of making bad choices. Which is why when I stopped the plan, the weight came back.

I’m not stupid, but I finally realized what it will take for me to be as successful with this.

Commitment.

I was completely committed to quitting smoking. I didn’t want to do it anymore, even though I loved it. I have to adopt that same attitude again, only for something else. I am not pleased with myself, my choices or my laziness for the past 15 years.

It’s been one week since I made the decision to alter my life in a major way once again.
I went to Borders, and bought two books. Jillian Michaels ‘Winning by Losing: Drop the Weight, Change Your Life’, and ‘The Biggest Loser 30-Day Jump Start’.

I have done the shopping, preparation and planning for the past week and I never realized how long it takes to prepare everything (and I mean EVERYTHING) that I put in my mouth. The best thing for me, is while I am getting these meals ready, I am thinking about them. How they’ll taste, why I should be eating this instead of something ‘on the go’ or the fast food that I love so much. I don’t feel deprived, and am eating things I’ve never had before. It’s a mind-set and I’m there.

The only thing I haven’t done yet is to start the exercising – with graduation week, company from out of state and out of the country, repainting the inside of the house and running to and fro with kids appointments, I just can’t get into the schedule until next week. But I’m ready. So far, I’ve lost 6 lbs, and its great motivation to stay on track.
The family is supportive and they actually like the recipes that I’m making. This to me is phenomenal. I have to admit, it is delicious.

Feel free to grab the book/s and do this with me, your support would be appreciated, not to mention beneficial to you!

Rock on with your bad self,

H