Talking Myself Into Losing Again.

This week I had ‘THAT TALK” with myself.  The talk I’ve known was coming; the talk I’ve been fighting against all year.

You see, back in January when I hit my “target weight” I had worked long and hard to get there.  I had reached a point where the very words “weight loss” or “body fat composition” would make me stick my fingers in my ears, singing a loud and lusty “La-La-La-La!”

I had had it.

I would not journal another day.  I would not count calories.  I would not watch food or exercise intensity.  I was just going to continue as I had been and relax for a while.  BUT…

When i had the pinch tests done by faithful old trainer, Guido, they still showed a 30% body fat.  One time slipped down to 28%, but it didn’t stay there.  So I knew that although I’d reach a goal, I had not yet reached my final goal.  Which was to be at a healthy body composition for my age.  No matter what the weight was. Something more like 25%.

Still for most of this year I maintained my weight.  Up or down a pound, it would average at that goal number.  However, over the last few months I’ve been hurt or sore or busy or distracted and not working like I used to.  Several pounds showed up and did not recede.

My clothes still fit me the same, but I see that middle getting thicker. I never buy clothes to fit over my middle, so clothes fitting isn’t a good guide.  I have to take action now to nip this in the bud.

So I had the talk with myself.

Deb, I said, you worked hard and felt proud and knew that more work was coming.  It’s been almost a year.  I’ve been patient with your child-ish pouts at any hint that you had to consider changing something up.  But it’s time to put on your big-girl panties and get to work.

It won’t be so hard this time.  Last time you lost 40#.. and burned more fat than that.  This is just a tune-up.  Just a few weeks of eating more mindfully, of working more carefully.  This is just getting back to what you did so well just a year ago.

I’m doing it. Slowly.

I journalled food (I HATE that), and found that I eating the same calories that I burn on days when I work out lightly. (so what does this mean about the days I don’t work out?  Yeah.) This is part of the “information gathering” stage.  What am I doing now so I can know what to adjust.

I looked at my workouts for the past few weeks.  I worked almost as hard at weight training, but the cardio has slipped a bit.  And the total trips to the gym or hours spent moving has declined.  Another point in the info gathering stage.

Next step is to make a plan. Set a reasonable goal.  Give myself a great reward to work toward.  When that’s in place I get down to the work.  Sunday will not only be the beginning of another week; it’s the beginning of a new stage of work.