Day 87: 146 LBS

Today, I took a leap of faith and enlisted a trainer to help me along my way towards 125 lb bliss. At my local gym, Synergy on Long Island, I met with Lenny Pace today and wow, had I been working out wrong all this time!

My 'core' is SO WEAK. I was doing these exercises called 'the plank' and 'bird-dogs'. I kept collapsing! I couldn't squat to save my life. I kept wanting to put all my weight on my toes but I found out today, you're supposed to put your weight on your heels and keep your back nicely arched.

Because my hips kept collapsing, I did this exercise that looked like something out of a bondage film. I had bands wrapped around my ankles and was squatting and walking like a crab around the gym. It was pretty funny. I could feel muscles in my legs which I didn't know existed.

I'm really out of shape. I mean, really out of shape.

Stats:

Cardio: 40 min elliptical resistance 6
Strength: Active warm-up, lunges, squats, abs, wood-chop.
Weight: 146

Breakfast: Starbucks Coffee black
Lunch: mozzarella string cheese stick and soup
Dinner: Salmon and quinoa

Day 63: 153 LBS Breakthrough!

Today's stats:

Cardio: 60 min
Strength: Abs
Organic multivitamin
Popular Name Brand Weight Loss Supplement

I did it! I'm so happy. My size 12 jeans are almost becoming loose on me now. I don't have to pull to button them anymore and I feel much more energetic lately, maybe it's the new year.

Day 62: 156 LBS Thinspo

As I had previously mentioned, Thinspiration, exists widely on the net. This is a mixed bag. Like anything, these sites can be beneficial or harmful depending on your ability to handle a healthy perception of it's purpose.
For instance, a sick person would see these photos as a means to stop eating and become anorexic.
A healthy way in which websites like this can be viewed, would be the way in which a skinny friend would come into your life.

Everything in moderation.First and foremost, I strongly urge all readers to stay healthy! A BMI of 18 + is necessary for vitality and beauty! Being anorexic is NOT attractive and men like curves! For the most part, it's all in your head. How healthy or slim you want to be is a personal preference but remember, there is nothing attractive about sickness.
On the other hand, strength and definition is very sexy! Now, if I can only get the guts to start doing weights...

As personal inspiration, I can flip through these pictures and find before/after photos to be very motivating. It's like having a virtual skinny friend to guide you along your journey. A woman without vision is a woman without the power to succeed.

Day 61: Happy New Year

Everything in moderation, cupcakes sparingly ; ]
I made these cute cupcakes with a kit I found at Marshall's. Aren't they adorable? Over the holiday season, I got a new SLR camera which I can't wait to use. Hopefully I can take some really good after photos once I reach my goal of 125 lbs!

With a new year, means new goals and dreams. I know I CAN do it...but I've been thinking that it might be a good idea to enlist a personal trainer to help me with my workouts. Going on the elliptical everyday has become kind of monotonous and it's been difficult for me to break through this plateau of 156 lbs.

My skin keeps breaking out. I don't know why. At 26 yrs old, you'd think that acne would be a thing of the past. It's annoying. I went out to dinner the other night and some guy made a comment about a few pimples I had around my chin. What a nasty bitch!
It's true, we live in a vain world. I won't let that bother me. I'll keep plugging away at my little gym routine and continue working on my bachelors degree at school. There isn't enough time in this world to let jerks try to bring you down because of a few pimples or extra pounds.

Writing my goals of 2011 down in my Molskine journal, AGAIN I write: 125 lbs. The difference? I will be finally after all this time!

So what did I do with these yummy cupcakes? I had TWO and gave the rest away. The rest of my diet has been pretty good. Avoid eating out like the plague and if you do, try to eat half of what you are given.

Alcohol intake can kill a diet. I used to drink nearly a half bottle of my favorite Rioja beside my flat screen LCD every evening. I've gone down to a glass every few days and on the weekends, Kettle One and Soda with slices of lime.

TIPS

Trust me, YOU can do this. If I can lose 20 lbs in two months. You can too! I wasn't even super strict on my diet or anything. It's just slowly incorporating the 'crazy healthy diet' into your life as you go on.

Check it out, all you have to do is make a schedule of approved dinners that are easy to make and rotate around the week. That will help you at least lose your first 20 lbs, forming a routine. That's what you have to do... That is what got me here.

Lunches can be salads with chicken and a little cheese BASALMIC DRESSING - forget that blue cheese ever existed. It's poison. Learn to get used to oil and vinegar. It'll become a staple in your everyday.

Dinners:

A
Salmon & Asparagus
One one baking sheet, lay aluminum foil and asparagus, drizzle with olive oil and sea salt/black pepper
Preheat to 400 degrees, drizzle olive oil over a 1 lb piece of fresh (preferably wild) salmon and sprinkle sea salt/black pepper
Bake 20-25 minutes or until it appears well-done with brownish edges.

B
Stubbs Marinated Chicken
Buy fresh organic chicken breast halves, marinate them by placing the breasts in a biodegradable plastic gallon bag along with the marinate, allow to marinate at least a day.

C
Flank Steak Marinated with Soy Vey and unlimited salad/steamed broccoli
Broil 7 min each side.

Those are a few which you can do EASILY.

Day 58: 156 lbs the plateau

What an awful, terrible thing. the weight loss plateau. Maybe it was because of the holiday season, either way. That time of year is stressful no matter what religion you follow. Just being a human during the holidays is stressful enough. There's 'Holiday soiree's', family functions or as I call them, dysfunctions, and shopping? Forget it. Next year, everyone is getting a huge hug and THAT'S IT.
Malls become reckless epicenters of anxiety! How can you enjoy spending time with loved ones when it's all about buying and fighting for store bought goods? No wonder so many people become intoxicated during the holidays. So dangerous. I think we need to re-evaluate the real importance of these things!

Recently, we had our dysfunctional family dinner. It's always a really delicious event. It's easy to become tempted into gorging myself with mashed potatoes (my fav) and gravy. I could commit carbicide! Instead, it's good to use that old trick: Drink a full glass of water before eating. I know it sounds cliche but it helps. Turkey is great, even a little stuffing is okay but be careful to avoid more than a fist measurement of carbs and tasty bad stuffs.

HOLIDAYS ARE THE ENEMY. It is crucial that you remember that a moment on the lips is a lifetime on the hips. If you see the amazing spread of food as an opportunity to gluttonize, then your eyes will sabotage your game. Keep your game on, focus on the reason you're there in the first place. Conversation and sharing with loved ones. Don't zone out in temptation.

Stay on the path. I will break this plateau. I WILL break this plateau.

Day 44: 154 lbs

154! Only two more pounds until I hit my 20 lb milestone. How exciting! No more appetizers, at least like I was eating. Appetizers are so inviting. I love wings, especially now when football is on. There's nothing more fun than hanging out with friends, watching the game and eating wings.

I was looking for weight loss inspiration on the web recently, or as another blog calls it, 'Thinspiration'. So many girls fall victim to becoming utterly obsessed with trying to be anorexic or sickly because they feel they have to be in order to be loved. It's terrible. My heart goes out to everyone out there who has emotional eating disorders, such as myself. When I was in LA, I went to the gym and tried dieting, even tried having the 5-factor-diet delivered to my house. It didn't work. I gained nearly forty pounds between 1/09-1/10. Why?

When it comes to weight loss, you must realize what weight really is. My acting coach in LA, John Coppola of Studio C artists, was my Glinda or good witch. He helped me more than he will ever know. The way he coached his actors was a form of archetypal study. Every week, I would meditate and literally 'meet' a fictitious alternate-personality who resided within myself. One of these was my saboteur.
My saboteur was a biker boot wearing, Johnny Cash type of guy. He would make sure I'd lose my keys before an audition or would get into an accident on the way to a production. He helped make sure I failed. Once I 'met' him, I could isolate him and take away his power. When this happened, I started realizing how much he had effected my life and my life began to change for the better.
That's when I met HER, my gluttonous fat and lazy archetype. She would sit on the couch and watch TV, smile and whisper things in my ear like, 'Stay inside today. You can go outside tomorrow. Skip the gym. Make an entire batch of rosemary potatoes and eat enough to feed a small army. Then throw it up.'

If you even have the slightest attachment to food, then you must confront the person who destroys your potential! Close your eyes, envision yourself surrounded by a glowing light, finally from the ground up, you will see this archetypal character before you. Meet him or her, ask questions, find out why you've been hiding from your potential and take away the saboteurs power!

Post traumatic stress, losing a loved one, and peer pressure can be sabotaging your happiness. Don't let it. This weight loss is about you and only you. It's not a contest, it's not about jealousy of others or of yourself, it's a letting go. Letting go is the most important step.

I had been hiding behind my weight gain for some time but by adding even a 10 minute meditation or talk with friends about inner feelings, will help you become healthy mentally so you can move forward in being healthy physically.

It took me awhile to realize just how important this is because you can't change, if you can't find a problem!

Now that I have established my stance on the psychological process of losing weight. I will soon share philosophies on Thinspiration which must be viewed with a healthy mind.

Day 37: 156.5 LBS

I can finally wear my cute Size 12 stretch jeans.

I hit the gym only twice this week and still lost a lot of weight. I think most of it is just water weight. I hope I can keep this going. I fluctuate every day and I just don't understand why one day these jeans button and the other day they don't...

Oh maybe because today's photo is outside of a cheap steak house...

Today's stats:

Gym: Nope
Breakfast: 3 egg white omelet with cheddar cheese, ham, and spinach.
Lunch: Starbucks black coffee with sugar-free hazelnut
Dinner: Porterhouse steak, marinated. Baked potato, French Onion Soup, and WINGS.