More progression pictures

Again, the scale is stuck.  Hasn't moved down in almost 2 months.  So I thought I'd go back to my tried and true way of seeing progress...pictures!

This first picture is from about 4 months/10 pounds ago.

This next picture is today.  Quite a difference, I think! (excuse the mess I am...just home from the gym)

Not bad for a 10 pound change!

100 pounds down, in pictures

Today was a BIG day.  I got to the 100 pound mark.  Exactly.  188.4.  Still have some weight to lose, some goals to accomplish, but what a milestone this was.  And I thought I'd post some pictures, mostly to remind myself of how far I've come, and how I don't EVER want to go back.

This first one is January, 2010.  Yes, Jenna is completely adorable.  Me, not so much.

This next one is probably May, 2010.  Helping Jenna at the petting zoo.  Again, not good.

This next one might be the worst picture EVER taken of me.  To me, it's rock bottom.  I hate posting it, but then again, I need to remember how rock bottom looked.  June 2010, right before I started this weight loss journey.

Fast forward about 6 months.  I had lost about 35 pounds, but then we moved and I started a new job.  I think I gained almost all of that 35 pounds back.  This is December, 2010.

In June 2011, I started using MyFitnessPal.com.  That website has been instrumental for me, in being accountable with logging my food and exercise to helping me see exactly how many calories I was eating.  When I started there, I weighed 268 pounds.

November 2011, I was having quite a bit of success with my better eating and exercising.  This next picture, I was around 220 or 225 pounds.

Kept it up, and by February (this picture is from my birthday), I was probably around 210 pounds.

July 2012.  I had finally made it under 200 pounds.

And then this picture is from today.  188.4.  100 pounds lost.

So there's my weight loss journey, in pictures.  So far.  I know there's more to come!

More progression pictures

Just curious to see the differences in workout gear from January of this year until now.

January 2012

July 2012

Not bad.  I'll take it.  :)

Goals

As I continue on my weight loss journey, I'm starting to think about goals I want to attain.  I want to shift my thinking so I'm not so obsessed with the scale and instead I'm focused on my goals.

So first, of course, have to be weight loss goals.  The first weight loss goal will be 188 pounds, because that will be 100 pounds lost.  I'm 4 pounds away.  Sometimes, I step back and think about it, and 100 pounds?  That's unreal.

After 188 pounds, 163 pounds will be the next weight loss goal.  That's 125 pounds lost, and originally, that was my ultimate goal.   I was around that when I met Jason, the last time I was really healthy and in shape.

From there, I'm not sure what my ultimate weight loss goal will be.  Depending on how tough it is to get to 163, I might stop there.  But I'll be honest, I'd love to be under 150.  I'm 5'5", and weighing in the 140s for my body type would be amazing.  Haven't been that since high school.  144 would be truly amazing because that would be half my original weight.  But like I said, not sure if I'll be able to get there.  We'll see.

Then I have fitness goals.  First, running.  I want to run a 5K in under 30 minutes.  That's not very fast but it will be a big improvement from where I am now.  I also want to beat my husband in a 5K.  I'll admit it, I'll gloat when I do.

In February, I plan on running The Cowtown 10K.  This past February, the Cowtown 5K was the first one I ran, so a year later, it makes sense to go further.  And since my birthday is in February, it's a good birthday present to myself.  Then the following February, I plan on running The Cowtown Half Marathon.

Other fitness goals?  I want to be able to actually complete the 30 Day Shred without stopping.  Silly, but I still haven't gone past Level 1, so I need to work on it.  And I think when I get to my original goal weight (163), I'll get the Insanity series.  That thing blows my mind.

Oh, and one more purely self involved goal.  Those who know me well know I LOVE People magazine.  I've had a subscription for years, and the day that I get it in the mail is affectionately referred to as "People day."  Well, they've had an issue every year for people who have lost a lot of weight...regular people whom they profile and share their stories.  I want to be in that issue.  It's a silly little goal, but I'm going for it.

Updated scrub pictures!

I got a BUNCH of scrubs from one of my coworkers who has also lost a lot of weight.  Finally fitting into them well.  The first picture is from December 2011.  The second, from tonight.  I didn't think there would be such a big difference but there definitely is!

Feeling good and planning for the big 100!

Great weigh in this morning...my weight loss total is up to 90.4 pounds!  Wow.  I've been hovering between 85 and 90 for so long that I'm happy to finally get over that hump.  And it makes me more motivated to keep going!

So now I have to start planning on my reward(s) for 100 pounds lost.  And there are definitely going to be some rewards!  Originally, when I first started this, I had said at 100 pounds lost I'd like a makeover and a date night with my husband.  But, I think I'll push that off for a little bit.  Maybe when I reach my original goal, which was 125 pounds lost.  I don't want to spend a lot of money/buy new clothes when I'm still hoping to drop a size or two.

One reward is definitely going to be a BIG bouquet of flowers.  From me, to me.  I love fresh flowers and I had been buying a bouquet for every 10 pounds I lost.  But the last couple times I've lost 10 pounds (gotten into a new 'decade'), I've decided to wait and buy a BIG bouquet of flowers.  What can I say, they will make me smile!

Another reward is going to be some gambling.  Let me be honest, if I lived nearer a casino I would probably have a gambling problem.  I love playing some slot machines.  But I try to only do it once, maybe twice a year.  I went this year on my birthday and actually won, but I think I'm going to have to do it again!

And a third reward will be new running shoes.  The shoes I have now work okay, but they are getting worn. And I want to start getting more serious about running.  My plan is to start running 5Ks again in September, probably run one a month, and then hopefully work up to a 10K in February.  I want to get fitted for running shoes, to make sure I don't have any weird things going on with my feet or the way I run, and then I'll be buying some new ones!

So that's the plan for now.   Exciting times!

Progression pictures

So it's still taking awhile to see the scale move down consistently.  But I've been going through old pictures, and that helps.  I've posted some of these before, but I like having them from beginning to now.  This first one was fall of 2010, I think.  Or early spring 2011.  Close to my highest weight, definitely.

In all the next ones, I'm wearing the same shirt (don't think it would have fit in that one above!)  This next one is at 247 pounds.  Probably last summer sometime, not sure of the exact date.

The next is September 2011, at 228 pounds.

Ooh, this is getting kind of fun!  :)  The next one is March 2012, 205 pounds.

And the last one is this morning...look at this picture, compared to the last and guess how much I've lost in the last couple months!!

Surprisingly, I'm only down to 201.4 in this picture.  What a HUGE difference in appearance, even though the scale only shows a 3.6 pound weight difference.  Pretty dang proud of that, so I thought I'd share!