Week Five: This is becoming real.

It's 6:59 in the morning. Did she forget? Oh, I hope she forgot. Please, Lord, make sure she forgets. *Beep*, *Beep*,  *Beep*. Oh, crap! My alarm. I scramble to muffle it under my pillow and turn it off. There's a 10 second silence where I'm listening so hard that I swear I could hear my heart beat. *Tap*, *Tap*, *Tap*, *Tap*. Dang it. She's up. I slam my head in to the pillow in annoyance. The door creaks open. "GOOD MORNING, JENNIFER. This is your coach speaking, it's time to wake up. We've got work to do."

...that is what my mornings have looked like this past week. 7 a.m. wake up calls by my mother a.k.a the short, peppy version of Jillian Michaels. We've been walking around the block which is just short of 3 miles. I've been drinking, walking, dieting, and sweating my ass off. This is not fun, this is not pretty, and this better freakin' work.

This week, I've been getting really serious about the workouts, the diets, and the mindset. I'm down 2 pounds since last week and that is encouraging. I'm almost up to 8 glasses of water a day - I'm at 6 to 7. I've also begun reading the book. There's a lot of good tips in there and some really good recipes that are low fat, low carb, and low calories. Have you guys heard of a spaghetti squash? No? Good. Me neither. Well, it's really good. My mom and I made this recipe the other night and it was ten types of delicious. We also tried this recipe and it was EVEN MORE delicious. I swear some of the recipes that I've found in the book or online are even better than some of the fatty recipes that I used to make. You should try them!

Overall, this whole weight loss thing is becoming real. I have a real date, I hate a real deadline, and I have a real desire. I want to look and feel pretty on my wedding day. I want to wear my mom's dress. I want to be healthier. I want to be happier. 


Until next time - I can do this, I will do this - I promise.

Week Four: Ex-squeeze me?

Well, I got engaged on Tuesday! I'm engaged! I'm engaged! I'm engaged . . . I'm engaged. Holy shiz, this means that I have to get real about this weight-loss shin dig. P.S: Isn't that the prettiest freakin' ring you've ever seen? You agree? . . . me too ;)

I called a local bridal shop and started asking them questions about restoring my mother's wedding gown and I got quite a bit of information. However, they're not so sure they're going to be able to fix it or make it fit me and my frame. Even if I lost all the weight, my mom is a very different build than me. A dress can only be taken out an inch at the very most, so I have to see if it's even possible. If not, I may be back to square one on the wedding dress front. HOWEVA, I'm going to go on as if I still am trying to fit my booty in to that dress. I'm doing this, people! I'm doing it!

I also started on new job on Monday and if I'm being 100% honest, I haven't walked once this week and I've eaten really crappy. I'm just making excuses - but it has truly been a really big week for me. But, if I'm going to be serious about this, I need to MAKE time for healthy. My dad says "Can't means you just don't want to bad enough" and as sad as it is, it's true. If I wanted it as bad as I say I do, nothing would stop me. Therefore, I need to get my booty in gear! I'm jumping back on the band wagon and my parents are going to be my drill sergeants. Hip, hip, hooray!

The new work out regimen: Walking in the morning, spinning class in the afternoon.

Water: MORE, MORE, MORE. Stop drinking pop entirely and replace it with water, lots of it.

Special dieting: I was thinking about doing Shakeology, have you heard of it? I hadn't either until a few months ago. It's a BeachBody protein shake that's full of vitamins, minerals, nutrients, and all that good shiz. Oh, it's also completely organic. I'm going to research it a bit more.

Book: I've bought the book, but I actually need to read it. Oh, by the way here's the link if you're interested: The Fast Metabolism. It's relatively cheap and has some great reviews.

Until next time, I'm going to work on this, I will make it - I promise.

Week Two: You Can Do Better Than That

There I was, sitting, watching Say Yes to the Dress being envious of all the thin girls and their beautiful wedding dresses and it hit me: "Me sitting here is the reason that I don't look like that." I walked up to my room, put on some yoga pants, my walking shoes, and grabbed my iPod. As I was walking out the door with "Tik Tok" by Ke$ha in my ears, I thought "You need to do this more often." Thus the new ritual began. Every day before my walk, I go up to my upstairs closet and look at my mom's wedding dress. I think to myself: "Am I ever going to fit in to this?", "Is it even possible for me to fit in to this?", "Yes, I'm going to freakin' do this."

I've been going longer lately: 3 miles to 3.5 miles. Just think people, I've only got 10 more miles to go until I'm ready for my half-marathon. HAHAHAHAHA. It's okay - you can laugh. Me laughing doesn't mean that I don't think I can do it - I just know it won't be some record breaking time. I'm just going to try my best and give it my all - that's all I can do.

I've been on my water-drinking game lately! BOOM! I've gotten myself up to 5-6 glasses a day which is saying something considering I was at like 1-2 Diet Mountain Dews and no water at all. I've noticed some changes that I think are related to the water drinking. I feel so much more clear. I don't know how to explain it. I feel like I can see better, I feel better, my skin looks better, and my eyes look brighter. Looking back my body was probably like "What in the hell does this little woman think she's doing trying to make me walk? I've got no water to sweat out!" My poor body - I'm treating you better you little nugget, don't you worry.

This week eating has been about the same. I've just been eating my yogurt, granola, and strawberry concoction every morning and my turkey sandwiches like it's my lunch duty. Momma is keepin' me in good health by introducing me to grilled vegetables and stuffed mushrooms. The grilled veggies I can handle but those mushrooms smell like boxer sweat and they taste like baby poo. Icky. But, either way, I'm trying to get those fruits and veggies and kickin' those carbs out!

P.S: I bought the book. Now, now - don't get too excited. I haven't even opened it. AY YI YI. I'll get there people. One step at a time - or if you read the last post, shall I say one bite at a time ;)

Until next time - keep faith, I'll get there, I promise.

Week One: Holy Shit Balls.

My heart is pumping, my chest is rising and falling, and I'm pouring sweat. Wow, this actually isn't that bad. . .

JUST KIDDING. This sucks. I am so ridiculously out of shape, a 3 year old learning to walk could beat me. As I explained this to my dad he replied "How do you eat an elephant?", as I shrugged my shoulders he stated "One bite at a time." Maybe a food analogy wasn't the best choice for this moment because all I want to do is go to eat all of Tim Horton's Bake Shop.

At least I went, at least I'm trying. I saw a quote once that said "No matter how slow you go, you're lapping everyone on the couch." This gives me motivation.

Here's the numbers:

Walking: I've walked every day this week, 2 miles a piece. Not a very good pace though. About an 18 minute mile. I want to get it to a 14-15 minute mile. I will get there.

Water drinking: Not so hot. I just forget . . . and I want Diet Mountain Dew way more than I do water. I will work on it. That's a promise.

Eating: I've been eating yogurt, strawberries, and granola every morning for breakfast after I get back from my walk. I've had a turkey sandwich and some more yogurt if I want it for lunch. Then, I've been having whatever my mom makes for dinner. But, don't fret because she feasts on two saltine crackers and a piece of gum. Okay, maybe I'm exaggerating - but it's healthy.

Book Status: Non-existant. I need to buy that book! I will by the next post.

What's this all about?

Well, here I am. 22 years old and still struggling with my weight. I'm graduating college in a month and I'll be finished with my education. Big events are coming up in my life too - a wedding? Maybe it's just wishful thinking, but maybe not. I've been with my boyfriend for almost 4 years now and we've talked about marriage a lot. But, one thing always creeps up in to my mind - my weight. I don't want to get married looking like this. I want to feel and truly look beautiful. Oh, yeah - one more thing: I want to wear my mother's wedding dress. This would normally be no problem except the fact that my mom was 110 pounds when she got married. There's no amount of sucking, tucking, or wiggling that could get me in to that baby. The only thing that is standing in between of me and that gown is about 40 pounds. "But, Jenn. How are you going to do this?" Well, let me tell you.

Am I a morning person? No. Am I a veggie person? No. Am I a exercising person? No. Am I about to be? YES. Here's the plan. Every single morning I'm going to get up and go for a walk. There is a plan for my workouts - a half marathon training program. I signed up for one in December and it takes place in August. Next, I'm going to drink a shit ton of water. You hear that people? A SHIT TON OF WATER. Then, I'm going to increase my veggie eating index. That shouldn't be hard since my current daily percentage of veggies is at zero. I've also researched buying a book called "The Fast Metabolism" and it is supposed to be a great way to kick-start one's metabolism and weight loss. I'm game for that.

This blog is going to be my daily accountability check to ensure that I'm walking, eating right, and drinking that water. I will post my walking route, my mileage, my time, my water count, and what I plan on eating that day. I will also talk about any problems that I'm having or any positive things that I have noticed. I'm excited for this to start. Here we go. Operation Skinnyfer has commenced. You ready?