Coming to a "Six-Days-A-Week" Exercise Conclusion.

I was talking to my husband yesterday, trying to delve a little deeper into why I may be struggling unusually hard lately to stay on program. I think I've had somewhat of a breakthrough atleast to part of the reason this may be so.

Every time I buy a magazine that touts "100 lbs lost!" or "People who lost half their size!" I check out their routines. Of course I dwell on the most extreme one, and more often than not they are "having" to exercise daily, usually running "3-10 miles".

ARE YOU KIDDING ME??!!??!!??!!??! EVERY DAY????????

This was a bit disheartening to me. I mean I do run, but I can't say I enjoy it. I enjoy the feelings it gives me afterwards, but I sure don't enjoy strapping on those ole jogging shoes and getting out there. My enjoyment of it BEGINS when I have 10 steps to go until I'm FINISHED.

SO, I think I'm afraid of the level of exercise I will HAVE to maintain once I'm down to where I want to be, and that is helping me to sabatoge myself so I won't get there. Because if I get there, the only two roads to go after that is daily exercise OR gain weight back. And I'm not ready for either of those possibilities at this point, so I'm avoiding having to make those choices by slowing my weigh loss or stalling out at 160. (My goal is 118, but a healthy weight for me starts at 141...)

I think at this point in my weight loss journey I just need to start running a casual 2 miles 6 days a week and see if I can take it, see what value it adds to my life. I may find, as I'm sure these ladies have done, that it is SO worth it to make the sacrifice of daily exercise in order to look and feel my best, and be healthy. I'm just afraid I won't have the motivation to do that once I'm down.

Looking at the above mentality, though, it's kind of like saying "I don't want to lose weight because I MIGHT gain it back...." I mean, that makes NO sense. You can't succeed if you don't even TRY.

So, as I type, I am reconciling the fact that I will need to strap on my running shoes as soon as my baby-man is done drinking his formula and watching his "Wiggles" and get out there for a half an hour.

When I was in High School and losing weight as a Senior, I got out there every day and ran 2 miles. It was part of my routine, and I never missed a day if I could help it. It was what my body needed to maintain its weightloss, and come to think of it, it wasn't hard. It was just another discipline thing. Perhaps I won't have to run "3-10 miles a day" and can just keep it to 2 to maintain my weigh loss. I guess I'll never know if I don't get there and see.

So, here's to a great week of 100% on-program eating, and daily runs (starting yesterday) with one day off (if I want to take it).

I'm sure I'll see a pretty good drop over the next few weeks if I do this. Hopefully I'll be in the 140's by July. (That is 12 lbs from now)