“To climb steep hills requires a slow pace at first.” – William Shakespeare

So this week I did not meet my 10% target, but I did lose some weight! I’ll take any weight loss over none any day. There were several changes in April:

1. I started a new job. With this new job came a new bus route to work. I went from a comfortable 20-minute bus ride to a 2-hour, 3-bus transfers ride. Whoa!
2. I FINALLY got my license reinstated. *this is a HUGE deal*

The new job brought on several new challenges. The biggest challenge has been finding the time and energy to exercise. Since I have started this new job, I haven’t been able to run on a regular schedule. I wake up at 5:00am to get to work by 8:30am. I get off from work at 5pm and it takes me about 2 hours to get home. So when I get home, I cook dinner and go to bed. Rinse. Wash. Repeat.

It hasn’t all been negative. My new job is awesome and I am loving this place so far. Plus, I have found ways to earn Activity Points and burn some calories:

1. It takes me 3 buses to get home. I have opted to not catch the 3rd bus and have been walking the rest of the way home. It’s about a 40-minute walk. The weather has been so gorgeous. I just had to take advantage of it and enjoy!
   

   How can one be sad when they see a pretty rainbow?

2. I downloaded the Daily Burn channel on my Roku and have been exercising to different workout videos. I tried kickboxing for the first time,and I think I’m in love. Also, I tried a few yoga videos, and I have finally accepted the fact that I’m just not cut out for yoga. (more on that another time..)

So although I’m not raking in the Activity Points as I once did before, I am earning some points and that’s what’s important! Weight Loss is a challenge and it’s something that will take time. I realize this and I finally accept this fact. Weight Loss doesn’t happen over time.

This week has been monumental in the sense that I got my Driver’s License reinstated. For 2 years and 6 months, I was not allowed to operate a motor vehicle in the state of Texas or pretty much any state. I worked hard to earn my license back and I’m so happy about it.

You had your Driver’s License suspended? How in the heck did that happen?!

Well, when I was in my early 20′s, I got a few traffic tickets for driving without car insurance, and for having expired inspection & state stickers. I racked up a pretty hefty bill in traffic tickets. I held off on paying any of the tickets for as long as I could and eventually it all caught up to me. I was pulled over again except this time I was in much more trouble. Not only was I driving without car insurance, and expired stickers (again), but I was also driving around with a suspended license!! Turns out when you don’t pay your dues…your license will be suspended. The cop who pulled me over could have taken me to jail and he probably should have taken me in, but he didn’t. He let me go…sort of. He allowed me to take my car home (he followed me), and when I parked the car, he stripped off the stickers and told me “You need to get your shit together.” He then warned me that if he saw me driving again without insurance, valid stickers or license then he would promptly take me to jail without hesitation.

It’s all fun and games until someone loses their damn license…

  After this whole thing went down. I was in a state of panic. I did everything in my desperate power to fix this situation quick, but at the end of the day it became quite clear: This was going to take a while….

I had racked up over $2,000 in traffic tickets… and I paid them ALL off. It took me 2 years to pay off my tickets, and then another 6 months to pay on my surcharge fees (which I’m still paying on) in order to get my license back. One things clear: They don’t fuck around here in Texas!

Having my license back feels great. I am so proud of myself for making this accomplishment. It was a very tough road and believe me, I will never drive again in those dangerous conditions. I’m proud that I got myself out of the mess that I put myself in the first place.  I will finally drive my car home on Friday. Thanks to my family who is awesome,and I love them all to pieces!

Getting my license reinstated took time and a lot of hard work. A lot of tears and sweat (and in some extreme cases: blood….just kidding). It didn’t happen overnight; it took a lot of sacrifice to earn my right to drive again. Well, weight loss is the same. It’s going to take a lot of time and hard work to lose the weight. It’s about perseverance and keeping your eyes on the prize. It’s about those frustrating moments when you step on the scale and you didn’t lose a pound. It’s about those angry moments when you’re trying to push up a hill, but you stop and the rest of the run is ruined. It’s about looking at your co-workers enjoying cupcakes while you sit at your computer and loathe in self-pity. It’s about fitting into a pair of pants that you gave up on and feeling like a million bucks. It’s about all of those things. Weight loss happens in sequences. In steps. Brick by brick. I see this now and it’s as if someone has splashed water on my face. Finally, I GET IT! I am now more determined than ever to reach my targets and earn my body. I know I can do this.

Two years ago, I didn’t think I would ever drive again and here I am days away from having a car. So there you have it.

I want to get healthy.
I want to look better.
I will eat right.
I will exercise.
I will earn my body, and I will earn my prizes.

See you guys next week.

WITH A CAR!!!!!

Looking forward to my next prize. There’s a book I wanna buy!

One last final thought… I wanted to give a shout out to Lori and Nathan. Two very dear friends of mine. They both joined Weight Watchers (Lori, not recently and Nathan just recent), and we have all decided to support one another in our weight loss goals. I’m so happy to have WW buddies and what’s better is I know these two from college. I want them to know that they also motivate and inspire me to reach my goals. Congrats guys and I love ya both! Let’s lose some weight, ya’ll!

God gives every bird a worm, but he does not throw it into the nest” – Swedish Proverb

On the right track!

When you decide to lose weight; every person SHOULD think about what motivates them because without it, healthy weight loss is impossible. You will continue to fail, and that frustration will grow into something worse: giving up. So think about what motivates you and write it down on paper. Be honest.

Weight Watchers inspired me to create this plan. My goal is to lose 50 pounds, I have broken down this goal into 13 smaller goals or targets as I have named them. For each completed goal, I will reward myself. These rewards start off small and grow bigger with each goal. They are material things and don’t involve food or anything like that. The ultimate goal will get me the ultimate prize: a Canon DSLR camera. 

My Weight loss Targets are:
Starting Weight: 184

I invite you all to keep up with me as I go on to this new journey. My Weigh-In Day is Wednesdays. I also invite you to create your own weight loss goals and keep me in the loop. I want to support you as well! And we’re off!

Best,

Mica

You can have anything you want if you are willing to give up the belief that you can’t have it – Dr. Robert Anthony

To most people, I look a bit on the hefty side. Most people wouldn’t believe that I have run in 9 races in the past year and a half, one of them being a half-marathon. They wouldn’t believe that despite being overweight, my health is in pretty damn good condition. Blood pressure is excellent, lung capacity is superb, heartbeat is strong, and yet, I feel the constant need to prove myself to others that I can run a mile without dying. I don’t “look” like a runner, and I would be lying if I said that it didn’t bother me.

When you think of a runner, you envision a lean and toned athlete. Heck, when I think of a runner, I envision a lean and toned athlete. But I don’t look anything like the woman up top at all.  On most days, I look at myself in the mirror and smile knowing that I don’t look like the average runner. I feel so powerful when I put on my running gear and pin a bib to my shirt. The number on the bib represents me. It is my proof that I ran the race and anyone who doesn’t believe me can read my bibs and weep! I take pride in all of my bibs because even though I don’t look like a runner, I feel like a runner. But today I had a bad day…

 Body image has always been something I struggled with. I often compare my body with other body types that I will never be like. I know you shouldn’t ever compare yourself to someone else. It’s completely unfair to you, and to the person you’re comparing yourself too. With that knowledge, I still compared myself to every female that was in close distance to me. It didn’t help my self-esteem that I ate like a spoiled King during lunch. I felt ashamed of myself. Here’s why:

•  I went out to lunch with Aaron and a friend. I ordered a big, giant, juicy burger topped with cheese and avocado accompanied with a bag of fries. I ate all of my food. Not a single fry was left over.
• Later on, Aaron and I went to Costco do some shopping, but before we did the shopping, we stopped and grabbed some frozen Gelato. Besides the fact that I was completely stuffed from lunch, I still indulged in my Gelato. By the time I finished my Gelato, I felt like I was one burp away from bursting into confetti. I was THAT full.
• For dinner, in honor of National Grilled Cheese Day, we made a whopping turkey, pesto, grilled cheese sandwich. I asked Aaron if he would make me a 2nd serving of grilled cheese. I’m glad he stood his ground and didn’t make me another sandwich. Bless his heart!

Right now, I am trying to decide how to enter this all in on my Weight Watcher’s tracker. I don’t even know where to begin! I just want to enter “JUNK FOOD” and value it at 3 billion points and hide in a corner. I don’t know why I chose to eat the big juicy burger instead of a healthy salad. I don’t understand why I ate the Gelato when I had a big lunch. I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror, and I almost started to cry. I didn’t look like a runner… I looked like a hot New York mess. I looked sloppy and slushy. I was embarrassed. All I wanted to do was get out of that store immediately and go home to change into my sweat pants. Where’s Hermione when you need to apparate home, huh?!

My goal is to look and feel like a runner.

It has been a struggle to lose weight these past few months. I have been yo’yoing back and forth. No consistency. I’m holding myself accountable. I haven’t been making smart food choices. I haven’t been taking care of my body. It’s been a twisted form of punishing my body with unhealthy foods and then wallowing in guilt over it; then waking up the next day to repeat it all. There are definitely some things that I need to change in order to reach my goal. Now what is my goal? My goal is to look and feel like a runner. I want to conquer my cravings and make better choices. What are your thoughts? How do you conquer your cravings? How did you stop the yo’yoing dieting?