april2005

Hi everyone! It has been a long time since I have sent an email around, but life has been so very busy! I just finished directing our high school play last week and it was very successful! I am trying very hard to recover from all of that.

Directing a play is a great way to lose weight! I dropped 10lbs in about 1.5 weeks. I do not recommend doing it that way, but it was a great plateau breaker :o). I now have 11lbs to go!

I have splurged a few times the past 2 weeks, but the beauty of the way I am losing weight and creating a lifetime change of eating habits, eating a little bad stuff isn't going to hurt me, especially if I eat a small portion and try to eat it earlier in the day. Deprivation and suffering should not occur when getting into shape or you are sure to fail. Self-control and balance are the keys!

The problem with going on some of the quick fix diets such as Slim Fast, no sugar, low carbs, etc., is that it may help you drop the pounds off quickly, but because it isn't an ideal diet that you can stay on the rest of your life, you are bound to put the weight back on as soon as you get off it. Make lifetime changes, not temporary ones. Make changes you can live with the rest of your life!

If you are having trouble keeping your motivation because you are not seeing immediate results, here are some tips for keeping it going:

1. Back off the scale and only weigh yourself once a week. When you're just beginning your weight loss program, once is plenty because you don't want to discourage yourself.

2. Place a photo of the heavier version of yourself in plain view. This reminds me every day what I don't want to slip back into. It reminds me why I lost weight in the first place and helps prevent me from sliding back into old habits.

3. Visualize everyday. Everyday, you should visualize how you want yourself to look. After you have attained your weight loss goals, then just imagine yourself doing some wonderful new things in your new body. This really does help maintain motivation to keep the weight off.

4. Keep setting your sights farther and higher. If you have already attained your ideal weight, simply set some new goals or standards. If you don't, you will most likely fall back into your old habits.

It's harder to maintain something than to achieve something new, so if you have reached your ideal weight, why not set a goal to add some muscle mass.

Most of all, never give up! There will always be obstacles in all areas of life. Just don't allow yourself to use them as excuses to keep from achieving the ultimate freedom you deserve.