1 month check-in

FOR EXERCISE NEWS... I have been slowly adding more and more exercise to my routine. I started walking about a month ago. I did 20-30 minutes, 3 mornings a week. Then (thanks to a saint of a husband who gets up with the baby every morning) I have been walking 5 mornings a week.

Just this week, I have started going to the gym 5 mornings a week.

This is my first exercise goal reached! I wanted to be going to the gym 5 days a week by the end of June, and that's exactly what I'm doing!!!

The thing that is really exciting to me is that, 2 months ago, the thought of getting up early to work out at a gym FIVE TIMES A WEEK seemed next to impossible. I hated working out. I hated the gym (freakin' skinny people). And I hated the thought of getting up even one minute earlier than I had to.

But my husband heard a guy give his testimony at church. The guy was over 400 lbs. He was so overweight that he would fall asleep sitting up. When he finally had his "wake up call," he started taking baby steps to reach his goals.

He started walking 5 minutes a day. Then 10. Then 30. Then he started going 1 mile. Then 2. Then 3. Then jogging. And so on and so forth.

Now, he is in his healthy weight range, and he runs marathons!

That story has been in my mind from the beginning of this whole thing. Two months ago, the thought of getting up and going to the gym 5 mornings a week sounded like torture.

Now, I totally look forward to it. It's my guaranteed 30 minutes of "me time" every single morning. If I want to quietly walk out in nature, I can. If I want to take a steady pace and call my mom while I walk, I can. If I want to hit the treadmill with my ipod, I can. If I want to watch TV on the elliptical, I can. 30 minutes, all to myself. Every day.

I can honestly say, for the first time in my life, I ENJOY exercise.


My next exercise goal: By the end of July, I want to do 30 minutes of cardio and 30 minutes of strength training 5 mornings a week.

ON THE DIET FRONT... not much has changed. I have started tracking my calories over at myfitnesspal.com, and it has been a total eye-opener! I had no idea how many calories I was actually consuming in a day, even if the food I was eating is considered "health food".

So, my goal for the next week is to cut out one bowl of cereal (I eat 2-3 each day) and replace it with fruit. I also plan to switch from sugary cereal (Honey Nut Cheerios being my drug of choice right now) to a whole-grain or bran cereal. I'm still researching to determine which one is the best choice. Finally, I want to switch from 2% to 1% milk (going to skim milk by the end of the month).

So that's it for me! No weight lost yet (mainly because my calorie intake hasn't changed much), but I'm telling myself that it's not just about the weight loss. I'm SO PROUD of myself for exercising on a regular basis. The weight loss will come as I change my lifestyle.

For me, it can't come soon enough...