Even though I haven't posted in over a year (lol) I am back to it yet again!
So after reading my last blog entry in January of 2017, I am excited to chat about where I'm at right now. I mean, I'm not in a much better place physically but I feel like I've got a really good lifestyle situation right now that will be helpful in achieving my goals.
One thing I don't talk an awful lot about in any blogs, is the actual goals. I see I've done a lot of tracking numbers, but I don't really touch on the actual goals themselves.For me, I couldn't give a rip about my numbers. The happiest and fittest I ever felt, I weighed 215. Peoples bodies are all so different, how can anyone judge each other and themselves based off of some measurements? Its just ridiculous. I am 5'2", so of course anytime I gain or lose 10 pounds you'd think it'd really really show. However, I am here to say I've been over 200 for a majority of my life as a mother, and alot of people are actually shocked to hear what my weight is when I tell them. I see ladies posting pictures online in groups I'm a part of that show their before weight and they were absolutely huge. I mean I know I'm big too I'm not saying I"m not, but these ladies were noticeably far larger than me yet weighed the same as me. This is a bad thing though, because from what I understand this means I have compacted weight which is harder on the internal organs.
Which, brings me back to my discussion about my goals. As I've said, I couldn't care less what the numbers are. I'm not 14 and I'm not self conscious about what people think. I am living my life in this skin on this planet for a short time in the big picture of things and I want to enjoy it. After I had Ruby I weighed 265, and somehow over last summer, the summer of 2017, I put on 16 pounds from June 2017 to November 2017. I'm really not sure how or why it happened. I know I was struggling with some stress and anxiety, but I don't think it was that major of a deal that it would cause such a drastic weight gain in such a small time... but I was in the process of learning how to deal with that stress and anxiety. I had been doing it wrong and letting it prohibit me from getting out and being active. I have struggled on and off with major social anxiety issues. So when I'm stressed or anxious about anything, the last thing I wanted to do is go be social or active, I found myself hiding away and sticking close to home.
My goals are first and foremost, to take care of myself mentally. Life is a roller coaster for us all. Working full time is stressful, and being a stay at home mom is stressful. I'm somewhere in between. Life in general is stressful for different people for different reasons and I 100% believe knowing how to handle your stress and how to release your stress is the #1 step in healthy living. I make it a point to live in the moment. To 'shut my brain off' if you will, and to just mindlessly live my life. I push all stresses away. I focus on the smiling faces of my children, and the gratification I get from keeping my home clean, and making sure I get outside every single day and be active.
My other goal aside from taking care of myself mentally, is to feel good. I totally enjoy working out, I totally enjoy going for walks and hikes, I enjoy being able to put on clothes and have them fit how I want them to. That simple process of getting dressed in the morning can either make or break how you feel about yourself sometimes lol... When I'm putting something on I think wiill look cute and I look like a sack of potatoes it's pretty disheartening! I miss the feeling of throwing something on and just feeling good, having it fit right, and not having to spend a ton of time piecing together the perfect outfit that fits and also camouflages my chub hahaha....
Anyways, since November I have lost 26 pounds. The first months from November up until around February I have no idea how but I had lost 15 pounds. I think that was around the time I was really focusing on my mentality and not letting myself get stressed and anxious. Then from February until May 9th, I had only lost an additional 2 pounds. It is May 24th right now, and I have been eating Keto for almost a month now. Keto is essentially low carb, high fat, and moderate protein. Since May 9th I have dropped an additional 11 pounds. The benefits to a keto way of life are astounding. I never feel hungry, I always have energy, and the 'fasting' aspect of it helps me keep a clear focus on things. I feel proud of myself for doing this, as it was definitely a learning process getting started. It took a lot of understanding and research to know exactly what keto was and to figure out for myself whether I thought it would be beneficial or not, and then it took even more to get started. Once I was 2 weeks in, I watched "the magic pill" on Netflix and that was super inspirational too. It definitely inspired me to implement healthier things into my kids diets. They are already pretty healthy eaters, and I was adding in things such as pasta that has zero nutritional value. The kids have been on board with eating healthier and although Silvana sometimes wants something different from what we're having once she's tried it, we are all doing pretty dang well.
Anyways today my measurements are: 250 lbs
Around belly button 55
High waist 42
Middle 52
Neck 16.5
Bicep 15
Upper Thigh 29
Calf 19
In comparing my measurements now to my measurements when I was both 265 and 214, I found it interesting that my upper thigh is always about the same measurement haha.
My goal is to be healthy, happy, and to enjoy life. Plain and simple. As far as what I'd like to see on the scale, although it really doesn't phase me as much as what I feel like and how my clothes fit- I'd ideally like to see 150 on the scale. Which means I have exactly 100 pounds to go and its a scary prospect, but since I'm not focused on my weight... I can instead focus on how great I've been feeling and on keeping myself busy to get out all of this extra energy. The weight will continue to fall off, I'm sure of that!
That's all for today, I have children to wake up for school and chores to do and errands to run... but if you're reading this and you're interested in the keto way of life, I highly encourage you to do a little googling on it. It's pretty interesting stuff. The science is there behind it, and there are thousands of people with pretty solid before and after pictures and weight losses within short amounts of time. Can't hurt to try! :) I will be posting more on my story and my experience with keto, as well as tried and true recipes I've found that I love and that have made this process a breeze!
Have a good day ya'll. <3
