Progress Report - August 2010

I have been extremely happy with the progress I am making while getting myself fit and healthy. I continue to follow CALP and even though I am allowed to eat three to four times a day, I am still satisfied with two. Of course, if I consider my two cups of black coffee that I drink every morning as my first meal of the day, I would be having three. I have never been hungry in the mornings and this program does not require me to eat breakfast, which is perfect for me. I have been enjoying my Reward Meal, RM, during the noon hour recently, and it is working out well for both my husband and me. We decided to switch the Complementary Meal to our evening meal because we would rather eat our big meal earlier in the day.

I still begin my Reward Meal, RM, by preparing a salad for me and anyone else that wants one. I thoroughly enjoy my salads because I add other ingredients that I love and actually look forward to eating them everyday. The best part about the RM is that there is nothing that I can not have as long as I keep my proteins, vegetables, and carbohydrates balanced and eaten in a one hour period. I am always satisfied with my meals and just knowing that I can have anything that I want the following day, is extremely motivating as well as satisfying!

This program is the perfect way for me to eat since I have always included and enjoyed the meat/protein portion of my diet. The Complementary Meal(s), CM, are the other meals that are eaten everyday. I make sure to balance the same amount of protein with craving-reducing vegetables during this meal and have found that this combination really works well for me. Not only do I get to enjoy a delicious meal, but it keeps me satisfied for hours.

I continue to exercise six days a week with a few changes to my routine. I have been including Callanetics in my exercise schedule since I stumbled upon it back in November, 2009, and have been reaching the goal I set for myself every month. I have also reached my goals every week with Walk Away the Pounds and now use five different dvd's that I have accumulated. I never set any goals with my Bowflex since I am okay with missing a few as long as I continue to make every attempt to get them done three times a week.

I can not believe how satisfied I am with the results of my body. Of course, I can not believe how big I allowed my body to become either. My last Christmas gift to my family were photographs that I have accumulated over the last thirty years of my life with my husband. I was slightly overweight before I met my husband and dieted thousands of times over my lifetime using the only diet I was familiar with, a low fat diet that required me to use nothing but willpower since I was starving all the time. I had absolutely no idea that I was beginning my carbohydrate addiction by eating foods that would spike my insulin levels and would only cause me to want and need more. As soon as I would reach my goal or give up entirely, I would resume eating the way that I used to and any weight that I had lost would return. I have photographic evidence of exactly how much my weight actually fluctuated over the years.

It appears that I am losing inches from the top of my head down and from the bottom of my feet up with them both working towards my midsection. Of course I am getting smaller in that area too but I believe it will be the last area that will go. Since I have been exercising and building muscle for over two years, I like the way my body is toning up even though I still have another twenty pounds or more to lose. I have been going through pictures that have been taken during my weight loss journey and I am ready to get them posted soon!