Monthly Archives: April 2010

Totally off the subject…

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As many of you know, I am reporter for the Echo Press newspaper in Alexandria, MN.

Because of this, I have been afforded many different opportunities…I have been skydiving; I have been a firefighter for a day; I have done ride-alongs with both our police department and our sheriff’s office; I rode in the MX-2 airplane, the world’s first and only airplane to use Ethanol fuel; and I have had the opportunity to meet some of the neatest people in and around my community.

Well, yesterday, I added one more thing to my list of firsts…I got to ride in a helicopter. Life Link III now has a base in Alexandria (read about it in next week’s paper) and I interviewed the crew, including the medic, the nurse and pilot. They took me up in the helicopter, which was way awesome! I even got to take a picture of my house from the sky! Seriously, it was the neatest experience. Helicopters are way cool.

Here’s a pic of me in the Life Link III chopper:

Thanks to Mike, the medic; Jamie the nurse; and Mike the pilot for an awesome adventure!

A morning at the doctor’s office…part 1

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Well, I had my yearly check-up today. It went great…I think. 

My blood pressure was awesome, especially since I haven’t been taking my blood pressure pills in a very long time. I actually can’t remember when I went off of them, but I am guessing it was more than six months ago. It actually could have been a year ago. Regardless, I was thrilled when the nurse said the numbers out loud…108/70. What? Seriously? Yes!!!! I am back to having a normal blood pressure. That made my day.

And so did getting on the scale. Sort of. It just goes to show you that scales are different and it does make a difference on time and what you are wearing. This morning at home, at about 7:30-ish, my weight was 144. Even. 

At the doctor’s office, at about 10:30-ish, my weight was 146. Still happy about the number, but two pounds difference? Wow! Kind of weird. Kind of. But like the nurse said, after I told her that at home, three hours earlier, I was 144, I was wearing clothes and clothes makes a difference. Really? A two-pound difference? Whatever. I didn’t care. I was still happy with my number and the nurse actually gave me a hug after I told her I was excited to weigh myself and that I had just lost a bunch of weight.

The nurse is actually in the process of changing her lifestyle and has lost 20 pounds herself. That was so exciting to hear. She said she has been struggling though and that hearing my story was inspiring and gave her what she needed to get back on track. I wanted to jump up and give her a great, big, bear hug. But I didn’t. But I sure wanted to. I loved that I was inspiring to her. That makes me happy. I had her look back in my chart to see what my heaviest weight was and it was about 185, although there were three times that it said, "no weight listed." She said I must not have wanted to weigh myself those times. What? I didn’t think there was an option of not weighing yourself at the doctor. I always thought people HAD TO get weighed! Doesn’t matter. I was happy to step on the scale today. Very happy, indeed.

So, after visiting with my doctor (she’s a nurse practitioner, actually), whom I absolutely love, I was off on my merry way. My doc was very proud of me, too. It was kind of cool when she walked into the room and addressed me as Miss Skinny Minnie! That was kind of cool, really. It was nice to have a doctor tell me that I was doing the right thing and that she was proud of me. Maybe now I can finally, after 16 years, get out of my head what my doctor said to me when I was pregnant with my son.

He said, "You know that saying when you’re pregnant you eat for two?" I, of course, replied with a big grin on my face, "Yes!!!!???" And then he replied with, very dryly and somewhat stern, "You should really try eating for one."

I remember leaving his office, waddling to my car and bawling before I could get my key in the ignition. Then, I promptly went to the Dairy Queen and ordered a Peanut Buster Parfait. If my memory serves me correctly, that was the best darn Peanut Buster Parfait I ever ate!

Well, I should be getting my cholesterol results sometime this week. I promise to share those when I get them in the mail. I asked my doctor to please include what my numbers were last year at my visit. Should be interesting!

The scale

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For the past week, I decided to weigh myself every day and see how much the scale actually changes. Not that it really matters, but I thought it would be kind of fun. The results weren’t that surprising, though. But it was still fun.

My scale is a digital scale that not only measures my weight, but it also measures percentage of body fat, bone density, percentage of water and my body mass index (BMI). 

Here are my measurements starting on Monday, April 19 and ending today, Sunday, April 25. I always weigh myself in the morning and with no clothes on, in case you wanted to know. And most of the time, it is after I have had my breakfast!

Monday – 4-19-10 at 8:10 a.m.
Weight: 145.2 pounds
Body fat: 26.1 percent
Bone density: 5.2
Water: 53.9 percent
BMI: 23.3

Tuesday – 4-20-10 at 5:45 a.m.
Weight: 145.4 pounds
Body fat: 26.8 percent
Bone density: 5.2
Water: 53.4 percent
BMI: 23.3

Wednesday – 4-21-10 at 5:55 a.m.
Weight: 145.4 pounds
Body fat: 26 percent
Bone density: 5.4
Water: 54 percent
BMI: 23.3

Thursday – 4-22-10 at 5:45 a.m.
Weight: 145.4 pounds
Body fat: 25.6 percent
Bone density: 5.4
Water: 54.3 percent
BMI: 23.3

Friday – 4-23-10 at 8:30 a.m.
Weight: 146 pounds
Body fat: 25.9 percent
Bone density: 5.4
Water: 54 percent
BMI: 23.4

Saturday – 4-24-10 at 8:25 a.m.
Weight: 143.4 pounds
Body fat: 24.5 percent
Bone density: 5.2
Water: 55.1 percent
BMI: 23

Sunday – 4-25-10 at 8:30 a.m.
Weight: 144.6 pounds
Body fat: 25.2 percent
Bone density: 5.4
Water: 54.6 percent
BMI: 23.2
 

Back in October and December of last year, I was weighed using a body composition analyzer at the tech school. It recorded a whole bunch of things, but the main things were weight, body fat and BMI. Here are those results:

October 28, 2009 at 9:16 a.m.
Weight: 145
Body fat: 28.5 percent
BMI: 23.4

December 12, 2009 at 12:28 p.m.
Weight: 148.6
Body fat: 29.1 percent
BMI: 24

My weight and my BMI hasn’t changed much, but my percentage of body fat has and that makes me happy!

Even though it kind of really doesn’t matter, I will continue to keep track, especially my body fat. I don’t necessarily want my weight to go down, but I would love to see the percentage of body fat keep going down. That would make me very happy.

Tomorrow, I have my yearly physical and I cannot wait! Sounds odd, I know, but I can’t wait to see my numbers…blood pressure, cholesterol and of course, weight. I plan on asking the doctor to look through my chart and see what my highest weight was. It should be interesting and of course, don’t worry, I will blog about all these numbers when I get the results back!

Bad day

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This is going to be very short and well, not so sweet.

Today was a very crappy day. Work – at both of my jobs – was very stressful and busy. And, to top it all off, I had a very angry lady yell and then hang up on me because of a story I wrote in the newspaper. Yikes. I don’t know if I have ever had that happen to me. YIKES!

And so because of my crappy day, I ate half a brownie at lunch (it was a HUGE brownie!). Luckily, though, it was after the delicious salad I ate. Then, I ate two cupcakes at work. Another YIKES! Oh, I also ate more popcorn at work! AARGH!!!!!

I haven’t had a day like this for a very long time and I hope I don’t have another one again for a very long time. I can’t wait to go for my run tonight. It is going to feel sooooooooooo good!

I’ve been lazy

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It seems that I have been a bit lazy lately. At least when it comes to updating my blog. It’s not that stuff hasn’t been happening. It has, which is why I have been lazy…or maybe it’s just busy. Naw, it’s probably lazy. Or maybe it’s a combination of both. Who knows!

With the beautiful, gorgeous, wonderful weather we have been having, I have been spending some time outdoors. I so much enjoy being outside. Well, when it is not windy. I am so not a fan of Mr. Wind. But I am such a fan of Mr. Sunshine! I wish I could spend even more time in the big, bright, beautiful sun, but it also seems that with the nicer weather, there is more to do – not just with home stuff, but work, too.

And also, unfortunately, there has been more television to watch lately. Darn it.

I know, not good. My family is huge into American Idol, which takes up two days a week. Plus, my ultimate, favorite show just started…Glee! I love, love, love that show. And we just found out that one of our other favorite shows started, In Plain Sight. And then there is also a new show that recently started, Parenthood. That is a rocking show. Very real. Love it. Love watching it with my son. But, UGH, too much television! I really try not to let myself get sucked in, but sometimes, I just can’t help it. Dang it. Stupid shows.

And I am not sure if it’s all the exercising I have been doing lately, but man, have I been craving sugar AND salt. It’s been crazy. At times, uncontrollably crazy. 

At work, we have a popcorn machine that is used every day. I typically don’t ever eat popcorn. Ever. But for some reason, the last week and a half, I bet I have eaten popcorn every single day. And my gosh, it is SOOOOO good. Seriously. But I told myself that after this week, no more. Or at least not every day. I probably only eat two cups worth, but still, it’s really not that good for you. Although it doesn’t have butter on it (thank goodness), it is made with plenty of oil! And…..salt. But that’s the best part about it!

Also, once again, I can’t seem to satisfy this sweet tooth of mine. I haven’t gone all out crazy, but I have slipped….a little. Or maybe a little more than a little. So okay, in the last four days, I have eaten a small blizzard at DQ (Friday); my favorite treat at Cold Stone Creamery (Sunday); and a caramel pecan sundae at Culver’s (Monday). I kind of did it as an experiment – or at least that is what I am telling myself. As I wrote about last time, the blizzard wasn’t really "all that" or just not what it used to be, you know. So, I wanted to see if maybe I was losing my taste for ice cream, hence the treats at the other two places.

To my disappointed and pleasure, I am not losing my "need" or cravings for ice cream. The disappointing part was that I still LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the taste of ice cream from Cold Stone. The pleasurable part was that Cold Stone is an hour away from me so I can’t go there every day. As for DQ and Culver’s treats, I can take ‘em or leave ‘em. So, I guess that was a little exciting to know. Neither one of them, which are both located in Alexandria, really do anything for me anymore, which is good. I am so not complaining. 

The one good thing with all of this, however, is that I haven’t gained any weight….YET! Actually, I don’t think I will with all the exercising I have been doing. Thank goodness for that, I guess!

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Ups…and downs

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We all have our up and down days. Sometimes, I have more down days than I do up, but that’s okay. Right?

For the most part, everything is going along swimmingly. For the most part, I said. I still have my days where I want to eat everything I see and sometimes, I do. But here’s the thing, I am exercising like I have never exercised before. And for me, that’s huge. 

I have been keeping track of my exercising and on average, I exercise at least six days a week. Whether it’s running, circuit training, toning, boot camp or spin class, I try to do some sort of exercise six out of seven days. I like to mix it up and not do the same thing every day and I like to have that one rest day. Most of my workout sessions last at least 30 minutes, but can last up to an hour and a half. Seriously, I’ve never exercised this much. EVER. For that, I am proud.

So what about the eating? Well, that could still use a little more work, but you know what, honestly, I am happy about my eating habits. Most days.

Even yesterday, which was not the best at all, I didn’t beat myself up…which is what I would have done several months ago. I did fine until after work. I ate my usual breakfast, had a good-for-me snack, my lunch was just fine and my afternoon snack was healthy. But after work, things started going downhill.

My husband and I had to run errands and on our way, I suggested we stop at the DQ to try the new caramel brownie blizzard. To his credit, he questioned it and reminded me that blizzards are so not healthy. But, as usual, I convinced him that it was okay because I exercise. By the way, he’s been running with me lately and it has been awesome. I am so happy he started exercising again and I am so happy we are running together. And the best part, we are keeping the same pace! I love running with him. Even though we don’t talk much when we are running, I love having him by my side. Corny, but true. That really is how much I love him. Okay, enough gush.

So, we had our blizzards and really, I was not impressed. I should have ordered the Heath one or cookie dough or Reese’s. Well, actually, I shouldn’t have ordered any! But I did. And, truly, I was disappointed. It was just alright. Nothing spectacular. And so not Cold Stone Creamery. I think I have been spoiled.

After we got done having our blizzards, we made our way to Walmart, where we shopped for, I think, about an hour and a half. I was happy that my tummy was full because I probably would have bought stuff I would have regretted. After Walmart, we headed to Target, where we proceeded to wander around the store for, oh, probably an hour. 

While at Target, my son called and decided that we should go to China Buffet for supper. Yeah, right. That was so not happening for me. I actually was still feeling kind of ishy from my blizzard. So, instead, I dropped my hubby off there and him and my son had supper (yes, it was like almost 8 p.m.) and I headed home to put away all our purchases.

When I got done emptying all the bags, I decided I was kind of hungry. Kind of. And instead of opting for the salad I know I should have had, I ate a large bowl of frosted chocolate mini-wheats. And then a Lindt white chocolate truffle and then, some Doritos….and then, nothing. Seriously, why is it that when we have one thing bad (the blizzard) it just continues. So, instead of shoveling more in my mouth, I popped in a piece of gum instead. Besides freshening up my breath after eating my son’s Doritos, it made me stop eating.

And although it wasn’t an all-out, pig-out session, it was still more than I needed. But, I really was okay with it. Truly, I was. I actually didn’t feel guilty. Why? Because I knew that this morning (Friday) I was getting up early and exercising with Tina and then tomorrow morning, I am picking Tina up at 7:30 a.m. for an hour and a half boot camp and spin class session and then on Sunday, I am heading to St. Cloud for a three-hour roller skating session with two of my bestest high school friends. So, I think it is okay that I had a blizzard and it’s okay I ate the cereal and I think it is okay that I ate the Doritos and the chocolate. 

And I think it is okay if on Sunday when I get done roller skating that my friends and I stop at the bestest ice cream shop ever…Cold Stone Creamery, here we come!

Oh by the way, the other reason I find it okay is because just this week, after stepping on the scale, I realized I am 10 pounds UNDER my Weight Watchers goal. TEN POUNDS! I now weigh 145 pounds. My son is 16 years old and I am FINALLY what I was before he was born. I have FINALLY reached my pre-baby weight. It may have taken me 16 years to do it, but I DID IT!!!!! And I am happy and proud.

Lunch time madness?

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I am a creature of habit. During the week, and for the most part, on the weekends, I eat lunch around 12:30 p.m. Today, I didn’t leave to go home for my lunch until 12:30, which meant I wouldn’t be eating until about 1 p.m. And that is late for me.

But not a big deal, right? Well, with the morning I had – I was at a meeting, a not-so-fun meeting, for more than three hours! – I was a little fit to be tied. I couldn’t wait to leave work so I could home and eat. I was starving and I was kind of stressed out. I ate my breakfast this morning a half an hour earlier than normal and I didn’t get my mid-morning snack because I was at the meeting.

As I said, I am a creature of habit. Breakfast is between 5 and 5:30 a.m. every day (except weekends); snack is between 9 and 10 a.m.; lunch is typically around 12:30-ish; afternoon snack is between 3 and 4 p.m.; and supper….well, that could be anywhere between 6 and 8 p.m.

So, on my way home, because I was so stressed, I kept thinking that I should skip going home, where I always make a healthy lunch, and go somewhere else. You know, somewhere bad. Here is the dialogue that went on in my head (yes, I occasionally talk to myself, although I don’t always answer):

"I should go to McDonald’s. But the burgers are kind of greasy and gross and I guess I am not really in the mood for grease." I used to eat two cheeseburgers, a large fry and diet coke (kind of stupid, I know) nearly everyday while I was in college. I loved McDonald’s. The burgers were awesome and I loved the French fries. They were always salty. I do like their chicken sandwiches, but I wasn’t in the mood for chicken. I rule it out and keep driving.

"Burger King? God, no, I can’t even stand the smell when I am in the parking lot." When I was teenager, I worked at a Burger King and ate the food ALL the time. I loved it. Now, I can’t stand it. Really, I can’t stand it. The thought kind of makes me gag. I rule it out and keep driving. 

"I know…Dairy Queen, yeah, that sounds good. But I want more than just a blizzard or malt for lunch. It won’t fill me up and I will feel sick afterward." I also used to work at a Dairy Queen and loved, loved, loved it. I always wanted to own one someday. Kind of glad I don’t. I ruled that one out, too, and keep driving.

I thought about pizza, but the only pizza I will eat nowadays is Angelina’s and it is not open for lunch. But it sure sound good. Dominos sounded, well, gross, as did Papa John’s, Pizza Hut, Pizza Ranch and Godfather’s. Really? Come on, it’s so greasy. Ewww.

So, I drove home. A little disappointed, but actually, kind of happy. I drove by a man who was out running and I actually thought to myself, which really surprised me, "I wish I could be doing THAT right now." I, me, was envious of a man who was out running. Seriously, how cool is that? It is cool, right?

As I walked in the door when I finally made it home, I saw the bag of Doritos sitting on the counter and wanted to dig in, but didn’t. I didn’t want the aftertaste and really, they just weren’t worth it. Really, they weren’t. I knew they wouldn’t make me feel any better. Truly, they wouldn’t.

Instead, I whipped up a smoked turkey sandwich on a Thomas bagel thin with a piece of Weight Watchers string cheese and a sweet potato in the microwave. It really hit the spot. I was really, really hungry and it was just what I needed. I also had a vanilla, sugar-free, 60-calorie pudding for dessert and it was perfect. The exact sweetness I needed to end my meal.

As I head back to work, I am now looking forward to the nectarine, plum and apple sitting on desk that I bought this morning before work. Hmmm, which one….or two….will be my afternoon snack?

Hitting the nail on the head

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The other day, a fellow blogger friend hit the nail on the head with his blog posting. It was terrific! In fact, I loved it so much I had to ask him if I could steal some of what he wrote to post in my own blog. Jim, aka Father Knows Last (areavoices.com/jimlindlauf/), told me, "by all means, use my words any way that fits your message."

He also told me that my blog has given him ideas for material the last few months and so he was happy to repay the favor. How cool is that? Thanks, Jim. 

Jim’s blog was simply titled, "Dieting." Simple, right. Yes, it really is. His basic message was if you want to "diet" to lose weight, you will, but that more than likely, you’ll probably gain it all back when you stop "dieting." His message is the same as mine. It’s not about "dieting" and losing weight fast. It’s all about making lifestyle changes that will last, well, the rest of your life. You need, and should want to, make these changes. Not because you have to, but because you truly WANT to.

Here’s what Jim had to say; his words are in italics (And my thoughts are in parentheses and bolded):

I heard some talk this weekend about “going on a diet,” and the names “South Beach,” “Atkins,” and “Nutra-System” entered into the discussion. I heard praise piled on these “diets” for a variety of reasons. “I lost 10 pounds in two weeks using the ‘South Beach Diet’” said one person. “I like getting my food in premeasured ‘Nutra-System’ packets” said another. Both people had experienced considerable success using these “diets” in the past and knew they would work again. I also know these systems work: I’ve seen people lose a lot of weight by following the directions prescribed in these popular programs on many occasions. (Yep, he’s right. Several years ago, I lost about 45 pounds on the Slim Fast plan. And, yep, you guessed it, I gained nearly all of it back when I quit the plan and started eating real foods again. I hadn’t learned a thing on that plan.)

I tried to shift the discussions to living a healthy lifestyle instead of “dieting” to lose weight…(YES, PEOPLE, THIS IS WHAT I AM TALKING ABOUT!) The question I want to ask today, though, is: Why do these “diets” work for short-term weight loss, but the people who lose weight using these methods almost never keep it off? (See, just what I was saying earlier…I didn’t keep the weight off.) 

I know there is only way to lose weight and keep it off, and you, my readers, are going to be the fortunate ones with whom I’ll share my secret. Every pound you lose must be due to a permanent change in your lifestyle, or you will gain it back! It’s that simple, but also that hard. (Again, this is what I have been trying to say. He couldn’t have said it any better. PERMANENT CHANGE! That is what it is all about. Seriously. Honestly. And like Jim said, it’s that easy, but also THAT HARD!)

Jim then talked about how "diets" are short-term fixes, which I wholeheartedly believe. That is one of the main reasons why I love Weight Watchers so much. It is not a diet. Period. It teaches you to eat real food and deal with real-life scenarios. By the way, Jim is also a Weight Watchers member. That is so cool. I am so proud of him. (By the way, because I am an employee of Weight Watchers now, I have to let you know that the opinions expressed in this blog are mine and mine only. They are not necessarily the views or opinions of the Weight Watchers company. I truly apologize if this gets monotonous, but it’s something I have to do. Sorry.)

Jim also talked about making healthy changes one simple step at a time. His advice was to make a change and practice it until you can continue it with little or no effort. When I first started Weight Watchers, I focused on my food because I knew I had to get that under control before I could even begin to think about exercising. I had to make simple, easy changes to my eating habits first. Yes, as all of you know, I do still struggle with this and every now and then I stray, but not nearly as much as I used to and not nearly with the same amount of food. My binge used to be a medium or large-size blizzard. Now, a small one does the trick. 

I truly am happy with my eating habits. Seriously. My portions are almost always in check. Yes, there are plenty of times I still weigh and measure my foods. But, I don’t have to; I CHOOSE to. I eat tons of fruits and veggies and other good-for-me-foods, but I do also indulge and that’s what keeps me sane. I don’t tell myself, "I can’t have that." When I do that, I lose all control. 

And now that my food is under control, which by the way, didn’t happen overnight, I have now started focusing on my exercising. In fact, yesterday, I had the best run ever. I ran 3.02 miles (basically, a 5K) in 33 minutes and 44 seconds. My first 5K, which was in September 2009, I ran in 44 minutes and 8 seconds. Seriously, how cool is that.

At any rate, people, I loved Jim’s message and it’s something I believe needs to be shouted from the rooftops. I am so glad I finally decided to take this journey. What about you? Have you started your journey? Believe in yourself and you can do it. I know you can. Go for it. Try it. Do it. I bet you don’t regret it. I know I don’t.

Holiday horror?

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Just when you think you have your eating under control and things are going really well, a holiday has to pop up and throw everything out of whack. For one day at least.

Yesterday, my hubby and I drove to my sister’s house in Jasper, Minnesota. It was about a three-hour car ride, which wasn’t too bad. My day started great with my usual breakfast and my usual good intentions. It didn’t last too long, though. 

My sister asked me to bring dessert. Yes, me, the dessert queen. Not that I bake and made extraordinary goodies, but as I have said over and over again, I love sweets and desserts are right up my alley. To try and stay somewhat healthy, though, I decided on angel food cake, strawberries (no sugar added) and fat free Cool Whip. 

Because there was going to be about 25 people, I brought two angel food cakes, one huge bag of frozen strawberries and three small containers of Cool Whip. I thought I was the only one bringing dessert. 

Wrong. I was one of four people bringing dessert. My brother was also told to bring dessert and he brought a store-bought chocolate cake with that really good sugary frosting. Yep, one of my weaknesses. He’s an evil man. (Just kidding). Two of her in-laws brought desserts, too – cute (and delicious, I might add) frosted sugar cookies in either an egg shape or a bunny rabbit shape. Of course, I ate one. One with lots of frosting. 

The other desserts were apple crisp, which I stayed away from and Special K bars, which I surprised myself and stayed away from.

Oh, but did I mention that shared a piece of that chocolate cake with the oh-so-nummy sugary frosting with my niece. Did I mention it was a huge piece and I basically ate the frosting side because she doesn’t like frosting (wish I was that smart!). 

Oh, and I bet I forgot to mention that I also ate a piece of my dessert, the strawberry shortcake with maybe more Cool Whip than angel food cake. Good thing it was fat free, huh?

At least I skipped the green bean casserole (eww, that is one of my most disliked foods of all times – always has been, always will be!) and the creamy cole slaw. Not a real big cole slaw fan either.

Too bad I didn’t stay away from the mashed potatoes and gravy and ham and bread and veggies (wait, I guess those are good for me, right?) and dip (yes, I ate tons of dip!). Dip that I think was fat free, but didn’t really matter because I may have eaten half the container. True story. 

Good thing I didn’t eat supper. Bad thing that I decided at 9:30 last night that I needed two more pieces of angel food cake, two huge scoops of strawberries and half a container of Cool Whip! AARGH!!!

Let’s see, when is the next holiday?

Oh, by the way, here’s a photo of me on my sister’s horse yesterday. Ya, I am so not a cowgirl!

My sister, Karen; her horse, Lexie; and me!

I didn’t stay on too long…maybe five minutes. 

My mom, who is 76-years-old, also got on the horse…I was so proud of her. Here she is:

My mom!

A little something I wrote

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Here is the column I wrote for today’s issue of the newspaper I work for, the Echo Press.

You can either click on the link below or I have also copied and pasted the article below. Enjoy!

www.echopress.com/event/article/id/73643/group/Opinion/

A 20,000 milestone reached

I did it. I finally reached the number I’ve been aiming for.
And I only have my readers to thank.
So, thank you. Thanks to all of you who have taken an interest in something I have become so passionate about – my blog.
I reached the 20,000 mark for the number of hits I received on my blog in one month. My total so far for the year is 51,363 – 16,703 for January, 14,425 for February and for March, my best month so far, 20,235 hits.
Thank you.
Started on January 9, 2009, my blog was first titled, Confessions of a Fat Girl. At 190.2 pounds, I started the blog anonymously.
Since that time, however, I revealed who the blogger, the “fat girl,” was – me. I didn’t think hiding behind the “fat girl” persona was fair to my readers.
Additionally, I have also added a word to the title – former. Why? Because the 190.2-pound woman doesn’t exist anymore – she is my former self. She, I mean me, is now more than 40 pounds lighter.
Confessions of a [former] Fat Girl can be found on the homepage of the Echo Press website, www.echopress.
com, toward the bottom.
It can also be found directly at www.areavoices.
com/fatgirl/.
You see, I started the blog shortly after I joined Weight Watchers, which was on November 19, 2008. Yes, right before the holidays.
I decided to start the blog, to write about my weight loss journey – my journey to a healthier lifestyle – because I thought it would make me more accountable for my actions, or at times, lack thereof.
It wasn’t about the “diet” I was embarking on because truthfully, diets don’t work. Plain and simple. Period. A diet is temporary. A lifestyle is forever.
In the first month of blogging, I received 1,927 hits. Now, a little more than a year later and I have multiplied those hits by more than 10.
That’s crazy. Unbelievable. And, to be honest, a little awesome.
In my blog, I write about my ups and downs, my challenges, my successes – no matter how big or little. I share stories about my eating habits, my exercise habits or lack thereof. I have even shared recipes and tips that I have learned – not only from Weight Watchers, but other websites, such as Hungry Girl (www.hungry-girl.com).
I am honest and forthcoming and sometimes, people might think I reveal too much information.
I’ve written about the times when I have totally noshed an entire bag of chips or package of cookies or container of ice cream or the times I have hid cookies under the front seat of my car.
I talk about my feelings – both bad and good. I even divulge information about my weight – you know, the actual numbers. I really don’t hide anything. The numbers on the scale and my clothing sizes are discussed on a regular basis. I put it all out there for everyone to read.
Why? Because I want people – both women and men – to know that they are not the only ones who struggle with weight. They are not alone. There are plenty of us out there who struggle on a day-to-day basis.
Now that I am where I want to be weight wise, I hope that my blog encourages others to take on the challenge; to begin their own lifestyle change. I want people to know that if you really, truly, honestly put your mind to it and put forth an effort, you can do anything.
By some of the comments I have received, I think I have been an inspiration to others. And by that, I am humbled. Truly humbled.
In addition to my blog, I have also now started a Confessions of a [former] Fat Girl Facebook site. It’s a fun way to interact a little more with my readers. If you want, check it out, become a fan. I would love to have you.
And, if you have some time, I would love to have you check out my blog. I’m not an expert by any means. I am just a normal person who struggles just like the next person. But I’ve come a long way in my journey and to be honest, I have enjoyed the ride – no matter how many bumps I’ve endured.
So feel free to jump on board. Maybe next month, I can reach 30,000 hits.

“It’s Our Turn” is a weekly column that rotates among members of the Echo Press editorial staff.