Hello, again!

[psychic-lipstick]

I joined the Need Fitness Rebellion a while ago, but lost my way. I'm back now. Since I'm starting over -- and hoping to do it right this time -- I thought I'd introduce myself as a newbie.

I gained weight in college and grad school and am now...rejoining life. I've been in a terrible cycle, losing and gaining the same forty pounds over and over. I'm not happy about my body right now and I want to lose about 30 pounds.

I'm an academic, and a writer. So, I spend a LOT of time standing in front of a classroom or sitting at my desk. I do manage to go to the gym 2-3 times a week for about 30 minutes, but it's really not enough. My diet is atrocious around deadlines (fast food is convenient, when you're in a hurry) and I have a sweet tooth. I tend to fall into depression sometimes and I have a turbulent life outside of work (family with health problems, divorce in my not too distant past). Lack of physical discipline and personal commitment to health and fitness has put me in this shape and I hope to change it!

So...Hi, to everyone! I hope to be active on the boards and in life while I try to achieve my goal.

[TMedina]

Welcome to the fun - I hope your stay is a long and rewarding one.

[psychic-lipstick]

Thank you, TMedina.

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[SuperSweed]

I definitely feel you there, life gets a little rough from time to time. What matters is that you keep getting back on the horse, so good on you.

[psychic-lipstick]

Thank you, SuperSweed. I hear that community is good for accountability and that both of those things reinforce commitment, so I'm hoping to make a real change by committing to this!

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[TMedina]

Do you have any thoughts about an exercise plan?  Any fitness goals to speak of?

[psychic-lipstick]

I'm hoping to develop a plan to follow. I want to do the upcoming six week challenge, but I'm still trying to figure out how it works, here. I have some vague ideas about changes I want to make, but no SMART goals, yet.

My goal is to lose 30 pounds. I think that I need to stop eating processed food and fast food, even though it is convenient. I also need to cut down on sugar and snacking on sugary things when my emotions are running high. I also need to have consistent small meals instead of skipping meals all day and then eating unhealthy stuff one time, late in the day. And, I need to exercise more; right now, I manage about 2-3 times in the gym, where I spend 20-30 minutes on either the elliptical machine or the treadmill. I miss yoga, longer workouts, more regular workouts, and walking or running in nature; so I need some variety in order to motivate myself. I also need to work on shaking off some of the depression. I think that I might need an accountability buddy of some sort so I don't feel so alone in the process, too. My family is very critical and it makes me feel ashamed of my weight and embarrassed to try harder; exercise and diet begin to feel like punishments instead of choices. So, I also need to stay strong in asking my family to back off on the unhelpful criticism and to remember that I am doing this for myself.

[Companion]

I have 30 pounds to go as well. I also have some mental health issues with anxiety and depression, so I get it. I do not have the factor of unsupported family fortunately. I feel for you there.

when you talk about the convenience of packaged foods, I totally understand that. What I have been trying to do is make real food as (or more) convenient as the garbage so I used to put in my body. For example, every night I set the table, a package of oatmeal, and a spoon directly in front of my microwave. That is much more convenient than driving through McDonalds. for lunch I pack things that do not need to be prepared. Hard boiled eggs, baby carrots, cherry tomatoes, etc. That way I am eating light all day and can enjoy a big dinner, because I like to feel full in the evening.

my portion sizes are slowly becoming more reasonable. However, I always leave room for at least a little junk per day... This week, lime sherbet.

it sounds like right now you are doing mostly cardio. That is good, especially for your heart, but it's not going to do much for you in terms of losing weight or getting stronger. And we all want to build muscle, because more muscle burns more fat. Have you done the basic body weight routine? That's what I am doing, just every other day, and I'm only doing one circuit per day because it is still hard for me. I don't want to make it so hard that I stop.

sorry if I made this sound all about me, that is not my intent but yet me is what I know the most about. I hope that we can encourage each other as we both work towards our 30 pound goals.

[hwrdfrnd]

If your having trouble sticking to a workout schedule maybe you just haven't found the right exercise routine for you. If your enjoying it you will make time for it, I sometimes get mad when I have to skip a workout. Try your hand at bodyweight, weightlifting, or whatever and if you find one that really resonates with you it stops becoming a chore and turns into a hobby/ obsession.

As far as diet goes making small changes over time worked well for me, why jump off the wall when you can take the stairs :-)

I'm not 100% on my diet but I'm doing loads better than last year at this time and I'm ok with that for now.