What's It Worth?
I weigh in on Sunday's now. Last Sunday, I gained 2 pounds. To stay on target with my "30 by 30" goal, I needed to lose 4! Normally, I wouldn't sweat it. I mean I knew my period was coming (*gasp* I menstruate, big shocker!), so its likely that most of the weight gain is from water retention; I highly doubt that its 6 pounds worth, but it is what it is...I didn't lose the 4. That left me with 18 pounds to lose in 23 days in order to meet my goal. Not the best odds.
Part of me wanted to slip right back into my old tricks and do this crash diet--the 3 Day Diet that claims you can lose up to 10 pounds--my so-called quick fix! I even tried to convince one of my best friends to do it with me for support. I wanted Julie to say that it was a bright idea and it would get me where I wanted to be, but both she and I knew that I was only kidding myself. Quick fixes never stay "fixed" for long, and you don't really get where you want to be, you only set yourself up for failure later. Quick fixes are really just the lazy way out.
Instead, I wised up and faced some hard facts. I set this goal in January, but didn't start until the end of March, and although I've been doing good jump-starting my big lifestyle change toward healthy living, I'm still falling a little short. So, this is where you just have to ask yourself: What's it worth? Really worth. How bad do you want to reach your goal? Because to really meet your goals in life, you have to work for it--and I mean hard. When you can really answer that question for yourself (and mean it), then there's nothing you can't face to make it happen.
For me, with this goal? I really, really want it! I want to wake up on my birthday and say I met a goal I set my heart and my mind to doing, and know that I did it for me, that I worked hard to make myself better and that I worked toward a better future for me and my family. I've set a lot of goals in my 20's; some happened, some didn't, and that's ok with me. I love my life. But this goal....I want to at least know I gave it my all and however many pounds I weigh on my birthday morning, I can stand tall and be proud of myself that I didn't just quit when the odds were against me. And, that is the difference between the woman I know myself to be and the woman I was too much of a coward to be in the past. Giving it my all now is a part of this version of myself that I know has always been there, but I wasn't ready to acknowledge it or work hard enough to know it or trust God long enough to show me who He re-created.
So, I did the math (afterall, that's all dropping weight comes down to--calories in vs. calories out). I need to aim for losing a pound a day (HARD--not impossible, but definitely really, really hard). According to Fatsecret.com, at rest I burn 3200 calories a day. I am currently at an RDI of 2200 calories, and to lose 1 pound a person must burn 3500 calories. Therefore, based on the intake/outtake factors, I need to burn a minimum of 2500 extra calories a day just to have a chance at losing the 1 pound! We're talking some pretty hard work over the next 18 days! I understand that there are so many other factors to take into consideration as well when it comes to weight loss, like metabolism, muscle mass, etc., but I'm no expert! However, if I do what I know to do at this point, then at least I know I gave myself a good shot at reaching my goal. I also get that I can reduce my RDI to better my odds, but I don't want to deprive myself, or reduce my RDI too early. (I'm saving the big RDI drop when I plateau!) That doesn't mean I have to use all my calories everyday, but at least I'm not limiting myself on the days I need more energy. So, there you have it.
I started this balance of calories on Wednesday, and so far, I've lost a pound a day! WOOT! I'm worth the hard work it takes to getting what I want. Its my birthday gift to myself. What better way to bring in the 30's than losing 10% of your body weight and significantly improving your health!? That is priceless :) I can't change the mistakes I made in the past that got me to this point, but I can sow good choices today to reap the benefits tomorrow!
Part of me wanted to slip right back into my old tricks and do this crash diet--the 3 Day Diet that claims you can lose up to 10 pounds--my so-called quick fix! I even tried to convince one of my best friends to do it with me for support. I wanted Julie to say that it was a bright idea and it would get me where I wanted to be, but both she and I knew that I was only kidding myself. Quick fixes never stay "fixed" for long, and you don't really get where you want to be, you only set yourself up for failure later. Quick fixes are really just the lazy way out.
Instead, I wised up and faced some hard facts. I set this goal in January, but didn't start until the end of March, and although I've been doing good jump-starting my big lifestyle change toward healthy living, I'm still falling a little short. So, this is where you just have to ask yourself: What's it worth? Really worth. How bad do you want to reach your goal? Because to really meet your goals in life, you have to work for it--and I mean hard. When you can really answer that question for yourself (and mean it), then there's nothing you can't face to make it happen.
For me, with this goal? I really, really want it! I want to wake up on my birthday and say I met a goal I set my heart and my mind to doing, and know that I did it for me, that I worked hard to make myself better and that I worked toward a better future for me and my family. I've set a lot of goals in my 20's; some happened, some didn't, and that's ok with me. I love my life. But this goal....I want to at least know I gave it my all and however many pounds I weigh on my birthday morning, I can stand tall and be proud of myself that I didn't just quit when the odds were against me. And, that is the difference between the woman I know myself to be and the woman I was too much of a coward to be in the past. Giving it my all now is a part of this version of myself that I know has always been there, but I wasn't ready to acknowledge it or work hard enough to know it or trust God long enough to show me who He re-created.
So, I did the math (afterall, that's all dropping weight comes down to--calories in vs. calories out). I need to aim for losing a pound a day (HARD--not impossible, but definitely really, really hard). According to Fatsecret.com, at rest I burn 3200 calories a day. I am currently at an RDI of 2200 calories, and to lose 1 pound a person must burn 3500 calories. Therefore, based on the intake/outtake factors, I need to burn a minimum of 2500 extra calories a day just to have a chance at losing the 1 pound! We're talking some pretty hard work over the next 18 days! I understand that there are so many other factors to take into consideration as well when it comes to weight loss, like metabolism, muscle mass, etc., but I'm no expert! However, if I do what I know to do at this point, then at least I know I gave myself a good shot at reaching my goal. I also get that I can reduce my RDI to better my odds, but I don't want to deprive myself, or reduce my RDI too early. (I'm saving the big RDI drop when I plateau!) That doesn't mean I have to use all my calories everyday, but at least I'm not limiting myself on the days I need more energy. So, there you have it.
I started this balance of calories on Wednesday, and so far, I've lost a pound a day! WOOT! I'm worth the hard work it takes to getting what I want. Its my birthday gift to myself. What better way to bring in the 30's than losing 10% of your body weight and significantly improving your health!? That is priceless :) I can't change the mistakes I made in the past that got me to this point, but I can sow good choices today to reap the benefits tomorrow!
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