Thursday, September 19, 2013

Remember the scale is just a number...

After another crazy few weeks of running and adventures, achieving new PR's for my 5k and half marathons and just having some great weekends with my friends and family, summer is quickly coming to a close.  I can guarantee that the adventures will not end there!  I have more adventures to come this fall and I am already looking to 2014 and some events that I want to check out, challenges that I walk to tackle or adventures that I want to take.

I also realized that I have not posted anything about my ongoing mission to get back to a healthy weight.  You may recall my post from the end of July regarding the Biggest Loser competition at work.  Right after that round ended, we started the next round! After my success in the last round, I had dreams of continuing on that momentum.  Unfortunately, my body had different ideas.  Overall, in the last 6 weeks in this round, I have maintained a pretty consistent weight.  It gets frustrating seeing the pretty much the same number on the scale week after week.  

I decided this week that I am not going to worry about what the scale says.  No, I am not giving up on getting to my goal weight.  I am going to refocus on what I need to do and keep on this long and winding road.  I have been very pleased with my runs in the last few weeks and can honestly say that I have been feeling great after each run/race.  I also have found jeans in my closet that I have not been able to fit into in over 3 years. The scale just hasn't moved. Over the last year, I have come to realize that my weight loss and any inches lost never happen at the same time.  When I first started working out with my trainer, I was frustrated because the scale was hardly budging - for the first 2+ months!  However, each time we did measurements, they inches were disappearing. Then things would turn around, and the the scale would start to move... but the inches would slow to a crawl.   Since August, when I had to change to morning training session, we have been more focused on getting going and working through each weeks workout - at 5:30am!!! These workout have also been more focused on preparing me for the endless weekends of races that I have been challenging myself with.  We have not had the opportunity to take any measurements. 

This morning, was finally measurement check time!  We didn't realize until the morning that the last time we did measurements was July 9th.  I was curious to see how things went!  First was the scale... down about .4 from last week.  Just what I figured. I know that I have been watching what I have been eating, but I have also not been as focused on this as I have been in the past.  I know that I can work on this, and probably should get refocused on my meal planning, food choices and a consistent workout schedule. Now for the real results!  In the last 6 weeks, I am down a total of another 7 inches!  Guess that explains why my jeans are fitting better (or not fitting anymore in the case of a few pairs of shorts!).  I will take it, enjoy it and use this as continued motivation to keep moving forward.

We all need to remember that each of us is different.  Different in they way we lose weight, work through challenges, and even the way that we use the tools that we have to work towards our goals.  The key is to learn what works for you, how your body reacts to what you do and how you are going to move yourself forward toward your ultimate goals!  Just remember, don't give up on what you want - with hard work and perseverance, you can achieve whatever you want!   

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