Goal Rewards

I feel like a new person. It's amazing what half a month of good diet does to improve you. I have energy. I'm happier. I'm less angry. I'm closer to me than I've been since illness overwhelmed me.

So, I'm thinking making 25 lbs weight loss will signify one reward that does NOT require purchase. It will be: being able to wear my wedding ring again :) I haven't been able to wear it since the first 3 months of my marriage. It's sad, but true. I've had 3 cheapo replacement rings since that time, but low quality metals & ever expanding fingers don't really mix with psoriasis & the constant hand-washing of daycare work. I quit wearing a wedding ring altogether probably about a year ago. I don't like that. Aaron hasn't taken his off since I bought it for him 6 months into our marriage & even before that not even his $20 Wal-mart ring that turned his finger green. Not wearing mine makes me feel unfaithful in a way. I want to be able to show the world ALL THE TIME how much I love my hubby. I think being able to don it again will feel like a huge mile marker for me. I'm so excited to make it to that goal!

I'm not certain what my 50 lb weight loss goal will be, but you can bet your wooden nickel that it will be both  awesome & meaningful to me. I'm liking the idea of shopping, maybe for new clothes?

Progress Report

Since I started this blog on July 7th (18 days ago) I have lost:

•  11 lbs
•  4 inches from my waist & hips
• &  my lack of enthusiasm for moving forward

Really, I feel more determined every day to keep this going. I feel like I'm doing it the right way, for the right reasons & I'm not letting negativity or disappointment dictate what I put in my body. It's so freeing. I know it will be a long time until I get it all off, but it's coming off, ounce by ounce, day by day, 1 good choice at a time. I have had more road blocks than I thought imaginable in the last 18 days, but writing has helped me through them. Knowing that if I mess up I'm accountable to way more than myself has kept me going so many times already. They say if you can make it through the first month, a habit is developed & it's easier from there. I'm gonna make it to one month & breeze on by. 

I've been contemplating setting goals so that I can keep pushing myself forward & I'd like to set up a few specifics that are broad enough that I don't beat myself up if I don't quite make it on time & that are specific enough that it's a bit of a stretch. If I, as recommended by most diet plans, lose 1-2 lbs a week for the rest of the year, I'll have lost around 30-50 additional lbs by the end of 2012. Thus my goals are as follows: 

• 25lb total weight loss by my birthday in October
• 50lb total weight loss by New Year's Eve

Now the exciting question is: HOW DO I REWARD MYSELF IF I GET THERE?!

Today I feel: