After Rob and I were married in April of 2004 I felt like my life was spinning a bit out of control. There was so much change for me, I had just gotten married, moved to Texas, I decided to quit my job - which required me to travel three weeks out of every month - so that I could be home with my husband, I had moved away from my mother and sister who are my best friends and confidants and I didn't know a soul beyond my husband. Now that I can look back on it without cringing I can honestly say that I went through a bit of a funk,,, okay, I didn't just go through a funk, I really went through a bit of depression. This surprised me because I have always been a happy person and very upbeat,,, never did I think I would go through a bout of depression. I cried at least five times a week for the first month I was in Texas, sometimes for no reason at all. I missed who I had been, an independent, self thinking, free person who was confident in who she was. Because I had changed my entire life I felt I didn't know where I belonged or who I was. Now that I can look back on it with a bit of perspective I realize I tried to change too much all at once, I should have done it in phases and I probably would have been much better, but unfortunately we don't always have the forethought to think things through at the moment. Everything turned out for the best of course and I have a wonderful life,,, always have,,, but this little back story allows you to understand the meaning of this post.
Due to the changes and the bit of depression I went through I got really good at feeling sorry for myself and sitting on the couch eating junk food. When I quit my job I decided I would take a couple of months off, get our home in order and really give myself some time to find decent employment. Well, you can only clean your house so many times before you go insane. We ended up getting a puppy because I had always said that the second I got off the road I would buy a dog. When we bought Laila I can easily say that she took up all my time and I threw myself into playing with her and taking care of her, but even Laila can only stand so much attention,,, the dog needs her sleep! Once I stopped smothering the dog I found that the couch and TV were great occupiers of time. Not a good thing, people, not a good thing. I started putting on weight quickly and one day I looked in the mirror and I didn't recognize myself anymore - physically or emotionally. I decided I needed a change and I needed to get back on track in regards to my health. I discovered a program called Body for Life and Rob and I instantly committed to the lifestyle. It's a great program that calls for really clean eating six out of the seven days of the week. On the seventh day you can eat anything you would like,,, or rest like God did. Your choice. The Challenge - as they call it - lasts for twelve weeks and it makes it easy to track your progress. The thing I really like about this program is it isn't just a diet program it is really a lifestyle program and it's not only based on what you eat, it also sets out a workout program for you. Every other day you do weight training to build strength and on the other days you do a 20 minute high-intensity cardio session. That's it. So really the longest you are usually working out is 45 minutes a day and it's tremendous the results you can see in such a short time. I ended up sticking with the program for eight weeks when I lapsed because I started a new job and I lost the commitment. But in that short eight weeks I was able to lose 15 pounds and you could actually see some definition in my arms and legs, it was wonderful. I also remember how good and healthy I felt and my energy level shot through the roof. It was such a great feeling to wake up and not feel tired in the morning.
Why am I telling you all about this? Well, I have decided to take back my health again. After having Avery and just kind of eating when I can and not being great about my workouts I decided I needed a structured program. Now that Avery is on a schedule and it's not such a guessing game I think it will be easier to focus on my health. I started back on the program yesterday but just in a couple of days I can feel the difference. That difference I am feeling may all be mental but I figure it's a good place to start! Since I am going to be turning the big 3-0 in a few months I figure this is also a great way to set some kind of fitness goal for myself. If I could lose 10 or 15 pounds by the time my birthday rolls around I would be really proud of myself.
Finally, in the end there is something I have been thinking about a lot and really focusing on. The fact that my child will learn about health and fitness from her family is a huge reason for me to do this. I want Avery to have healthy parents and learn the correct way of eating from us. I want her to be healthy and active and how can I want this for her if I don't want it for myself? The fact is I do want this for myself and hopefully the good examples I set for my daughter will lead her to live a healthy and active life as well. I really feel it's one of the greatest examples I can set for her.
