(188) Wow! It's Been Half a Year!

I have this one-pager calendar that I use all the time at work, and way-back-when, when I started this journey, I started pencilling in the days that I have been working on losing weight.

My goal, then as well as now, has been to make life-style changes that would be healthier for me and my family.

So now it's been half a year in the process and here is some of the the progress I've made. (And while my numbers aren't nearly as dramatic as Allan or Patrick or Karen, Anne H, Jack, Kelly, or Christine, it's still an accomplishment.) (And by the way, there are so many more of you that are doing a fantastic job!)

I don't drink pop anymore.
I don't go to McD's anymore (or Wendy's, Taco Hell, Arby's, BK Lounge....)
I don't get a bucket of McDonald's sweet tea every afternoon, or ANY afternoon for that matter.
I order water to drink on the very rare occassion that I eat out.
I rarely eat out anymore.
IF I eat out, I order salads or something off the low-cal menu.
I eat fresh fruit every single day, usually several pieces.
I eat more fresh veggies.
I drink far less sugary fruit juice.
I drink vegetable juice now.
I drink lots of water every day.
I eat significantly smaller portions at every meal, (no more than 4-6 ounces of meat (split into two meals) per day, sometimes less)
I don't eat chips, cake, cookies, candy, ice cream, donuts, pastries.....
I don't eat french fries
I eat much less pasta

There are more things I do differently, but these are the most significant

As a result.....

I weigh less...15% less than I did 6 months ago.
I feel SOOO much better.
I don't have "stomach issues" anymore
Trips to the bathroom are uneventful, as opposed to urgent, irregular (either too often or too seldom) and uncomfortable
Stairs are easier
Exercise is easier
No more "head rushes" in the afternoons from the excessive sugar in the sweet tea.

And next month I go in for my check up: bp, cholesterol, weight, etc. I am expecting good results!!

So....six months into this, I am feeling pretty good about my results. I have made more changes than I expected, and they have been easier than I thought they would be. I was really worried at the beginning. I was afraid that it would be too hard to give up the things I loved and ate and had gotten used to. I was afraid that I would fail, that I wouldn't be able to force myself into new habits, or that it would be too difficult.

There have been some moments....oh boy! just this week was one of them! I wanted to over-indulge in the worst way! But I did something else instead, and the urges passed....and I felt much better about it afterward. And that is how much of this has been. Stick it out for a little while, and it gets easier. And easier.

Six months, lower weight and lots of new habits. And its the habits that make all the difference, because that is what will help me maintain my lower weight...forever.

Yay!  :)