It’s halfway through the month already so I thought I’d give a little update and how I’m doing with my goals.

Activity:
I have biked every day this month for at least 5 minutes. The longest I biked was 30 minutes, but usually I am doing 15 or so. I can feel it getting easier and I’m already able to turn the resistance up for longer. I don’t get tired quickly anymore… the fitness is improving and I feel great about the habit I’ve built! I’m also walking a lot more every day; I’ve gone over 7500 steps/day every day except one (which was 5722, when it rained and I just don’t like walking in the rain!). I have not hit 10,000 steps yet but I am getting close with a high of 9321 this month.I started strength training today and plan to do it 2-3x/week.

Eating:
Wow, I got some interesting comments on my last post where I showed some of the things I am eating! I guess there’s no pleasing everyone. I’m just doing what I think will help me with three things:
1. Staying calm about my eating (not restricting, counting, obsessing, or feeling guilty about my food).
2. Enjoying my food
3. Getting healthier (including losing weight, by eating nutritious things)

I make no claims that this WILL result in weight loss this month. I don’t know! But it is helping stabilize my blood sugar by cutting back on carbs and sugar. I don’t have the shaky, hypoglycemic crashes I’ve had before. It is improving my quality of life by giving me more energy, and I am in a good mood. When I prepare and eat my food, I am smiling, relaxed, and content, instead of feeling stressed, worried, deprived, or driven by insane urges to eat. There is something of value in peaceful eating. I won’t ruin it with yet another restrictive “Diet.”

I plan to continue with things as they are until I see what I weigh on May 1 to get the big picture of how this exercise and eating is working for me, weight-wise. I know it is working for other aspects of health and for my mood, but it *does* need to result in weight loss (my goal is 5 pounds this month). So if something is out of balance, and I don’t lose weight or only lose a pound, I will make some new and different goals for May to adjust for better weight loss. I might increase my biking minutes/day goal or my steps/day goal. I might go from strength training twice a week to a solid 3x/week. Or I might cut portions or decide to eat on a different schedule or eat less red meat and more fish, or more vegetables, or hey, maybe even less cheese! But if I don’t lose much, I am not going to make the same mistakes I’ve made in the past and get frantic and desperate and upset that the pounds are not coming off fast enough for me and do some drastic change. Gradual, peaceful, loving change is my friend. I do what gives me health AND joy. And that is how I hope to lose weight and maintain the loss for life.

(c) Escape from Obesity – Read entire story here.