Outlining Challenge #2

I've given a lot of thought to how I want to approach my Get Healthy Challenge, and I wanted to come up with a plan that incorporates things that have worked for me in the past, as well as things that I know are manageable...  When I attempt things that simply aren't workable for me right now, I fail.  I have three kids.  I'm a stay-at-home mom, home all day with 2 rambunctious boys.  My days are not my own right now, and I need to carve out time that makes sense to focus on myself.  This has never been easy for me, but I'm determined to try...and not get discouraged when days go by (and they inevitably will) where nothing works out the way I planned.  So here's the rough outline of what I think will work for me--everyone is different, so I don't know that this would translate to anyone else's efforts!  And I'm not sure how successful I will be, so I will probably be tweaking things along the way.

• Enter my daily food intake into my WebMD food journal...make sure I'm cognizant of everything going in my mouth, and gain an understanding of how it all breaks down and where I can make improvements.  Like, I know I eat too many carbs and not enough protein, for example.

oops...that piece of Jake's birthday cake after dinner last night did me in!

• Enter my daily physical activity--be that exercise or just the housework that makes up my every day life (going up and down the stairs a million times with loads of laundry has to count for something, right??).  Try to find ways throughout the day to increase my movement and activity level.

this is my idea of lifting weights

• Dedicate at least 30 minutes to real exercise at least 4 times a week--Jillian Michaels videos, my treadmill, the elliptical (if I can make my feet not go numb), walks outside when the weather is nice...whatever it takes, but actual exercise where I can zone out and work on burning calories.  I have been running on my treadmill in previous exercise efforts, but I'm not sure that's the right exercise for me--for one, I hate running, and for two, my knees really bother me.  I may be a power walker from here on out!

• Drink more water.  WebMD says I should be drinking 64 ounces a day, to maintain health and curb hunger.  I already drink a lot of water, but I'll make that 64 ounces my daily goal. 

• Measure my food.  This may seem silly, but my biggest problem with food is that I way overindulge...way overindulge.  Yesterday morning, I got out a measuring cup and measured one cup of Rice Chex and one cup of milk for my breakfast--not only does this help me figure out my calorie intake, but it stops me from mindlessly pouring bowl after bowl of cereal while checking my email.  Today, I measured some peanut butter to put on apple slices at lunchtime--otherwise, I just lose track of how much I'm putting in my mouth.

measuring is essential for my success!

• No eating after the kids go to bed.  The kids go to bed at 8pm, and the time after they are out of sight is my biggest difficulty food-wise.  After a long day, I deserve a sweet treat...or 30.  I've already stopped buying ice cream to cut myself off, but like a true junkie, I find ways to indulge my sweet tooth.  Old chocolate from 2 Easters ago is not out of play when I'm on the hunt far back in my cabinets for something to eat after the kids go to bed.  It would be comical if it wasn't so desperate and depressing.

• Go to bed before midnight.  I love to sleep, and 8 hours of sleep every night will help me be healthier and happier during the day, and give me more energy to get done what I need to get done.  By going to bed by midnight, I'm also cutting myself off from those long late-night hours when I get hungry and go hunting for a snack.

So that's my plan in a nutshell.  Like I said, I'll be tweaking it as this Challenge goes on, because I'm sure some things won't work for me, or the things that work for me in the beginning won't be as effective later in the process, so I'll need to modify and change things up.  This won't be a quick fix--I'm typing that mostly for my benefit, because last time, my healthy effort only lasted 10 days because I got discouraged and bored (and sidetracked by candy!).  This time around, I need to be in it for the long haul--if I consistently lose 2 pounds a week every week until I hit my goal weight, I will be at 128 pounds in mid-May.  However, that's unrealistic--there will be some weeks when I lose 2 pounds, and others when I won't.  I could go weeks without losing any pounds--you just never know how your body will react as it tries to get used to a new routine.  So I need to be gentle with myself and with my expectations, and stick with it!