New Year, New You Challenge

Well, the new year is here and I have officially kicked myself in the ass! I have committed to a 30 day challenge.  My goals for this challenge are;

1. To drink at least 2 litres of water  a day.
2. To workout at least 4 days a week.
3. To greatly reduce my intake of "white" carbs.

Two out of three of my goals are keeping with  my personal mantra for 2014. I no longer make negative resolutions. I have made positive ones instead; to get together with friends and family more often to keep in touch and to find the positive in every day. This challenge is a positive for me too. I am increasing the amount of healthy  choices in my life. I am also making peace with my body the way it is today. I am no longer waiting for an improved body to love. If we don't love who we are now, how can se expect to be successful at making positive changes? As I think many of us have experienced throughout the years, we only set ourselves up for failure with this way of thinking.

Consider this quote from a recent Facebook post; "What if our only New Year's Resolution was to love ourselves more........" Be kind to yourself, focus on the positive, and when you need words of encouragement,  turn to your various support groups.....family, friends, and your online communities.

Yours in Health,

Sheri

When Small Steps Turn into BIG Steps

           "If you have taken the first step, you are already half way there." 

Have you ever heard the expression? I don't know who ever started this saying but I'll bet they were talking about changing their lifestyle to be a healthier one! This is hard work! It is easy for everyone, including ourselves, to point out the "don't" and "shouldn't", the "never" and "can't" in our diet and lifestyle. Why is it that everyone points out the negative?! Well I am here to that there is always more positive than negative in any situation; sometimes we just have to search hard to find the positives when the negatives are right there "in our face" so to speak.

A friend shared this on their Facebook page just the other day. Sometimes, just when we need it the most, we come across a picture or a saying that feels like it was put there just for us. On this day, I needed to be reminded what small step originally started me on this journey to a healthier lifestyle. Today I decided it was time to share this one small step with you.

We need to go back to a cold February day in 2012. I was waiting for my medications to be filled at my local Costco pharmacy and I saw this book on the counter. I read the title, "The Vice Busting Diet" by Julia Havey and immediately thought, "Man, have I got vices for YOU to bust!!!!" When the pharmacist came with my scripts I jokingly said to him, "Is this book free!?! There is no price on it!!" To my utter surprise his reply was, "Yes it is free. Please help yourself to it!" Being one to never pass up most things free and one to usually try anything to help me lose weight I thanked him and added the book to the other stuff in my supply bag. And this is where the book stayed; forgotten, buried, and ignored until the end of June.

As I was sorting through and storing my teaching supplies from that school year I came across this book in the bottom of my bag that I did not even recognize at first. After reading the title a few times I remembered how this book came to be here and thought, "well, why not Sheri, might as well try reading this one, nothing else has worked!"

And that, right there, was the smallest of steps in the right direction that ended up being the biggest step of my life! You see as I taught that school year my negative eating habits had gotten out of control; I was a huge closet eater and would pick junk up to eat each and every day on my way to school and even on my way home sometimes. I weighed the most I had in almost 10 years and knew I had to do something but felt like I had tried everything and always failed. I knew if I did not do something I would end up on my same path that ultimately ended my father's life; type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. Yeah, remember those scripts I was getting filled? One was for high blood pressure!

I began to read Julia's book and became immediately hooked. For the first time ever I was reading advice from someone "who had walked the walk and now talked the talk!" This lady had lost over 100 pounds over 15 years ago....she knew what she was talking about from personal experience! By the end of the second or third chapter I had question, and so, after reading her invitation for me, the reader, to contact her I sent her an email. I told her a little bit about me and my story and to my complete surprise she emailed me back and asked me to call her!! Can you believe that!?!

Julia ended up coaching me through my first three months following her program. We would speak once a week on the phone and also had contact on Facebook when needed. She still is there for me over a year later; not as often but if I need her to help I know she is only an email away. She checks in with me and asks how I am doing and I am honest in my response. Sometimes it is a GREAT response and other times I admit that I am struggling. She never fails to offer my both advice and positive motivation. I love her for that; she has never, ever, left me feeling anything but positive.

We all need those positive motivators in our lives, especially while on our never-ending journey to be the healthiest person we can become. Julia always reminds me that even if I have had a bad day, week, or yes, a bad month, it is not really bad; bad would be completely reversing all of the positive changes I have made since July 2012. EVERY step is a step forward, even a step that keeps you in the same place you were yesterday. I have had many days and weeks like that over the past year and a bit. But if I kept track on a calendar (which she actually suggested that I do!) I would see how many more good days I have had than bad days!

I hope, that through this post, and my blog in general, I can help motivate and educate others who are on the same journey as myself.  Maybe you are just beginning your journey; well welcome aboard! If you are further along on your journey, I hope you will share your experiences, insights, and yes your struggles on here with me.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post and I look forward to continuing my journey with you!

Sherig

Welcome to Forty Something and Getting Healthy Blog!

Welcome Friends!

My name is Sheri and I have fought my weight and been unhealthy for as long back into my childhood as I can remember. Just as many of you, I have tried almost every diet out there and had some success only to have all the weight and more come back on.

Last July I decided to finally start making permanent changes in my life to eliminate the unhealthy habits and replace them with healthier choices. I started following "The Vice Busting Diet" written by Julia Havey. After contacting her she also agreed to help me in my journey. IF you don't know about her; look her up on Facebook or at www.PGX.com. All of her materials are free to download and use thanks to the makers of PGX.

PGX is a fiber supplement that is used to increase your fiber, assist in your water intake, and help you feel full and not give into cravings between meals. Combining this with Julia's down to earth, small step approach to losing unwanted weight has been a combination that has allowed me to cut out my biggest vices.

I had my last piece of chocolate on July 22, 2012......yes I know how unthinkable it is for some of you to give chocolate up! For others it may be fast food, pop, ice cream or chips......but there are those things that you eat every day and can't seem to stop at one or say "no thank you" to. Those Julia would call "vices". Until I know I can control them instead of them controlling me I can't have any chocolate, pop, or ice cream.

It has been a struggle and to be honest, pop and ice cream have been harder for me than the chocolate...and I was a chocolatholic! But something I started doing was forgiving myself and having a "no blame, no guilt" attitude. Julia often reminded me that as long as there are more positive days than unhealthy days I am still moving forward on my journey!

I am glad you have decided to follow along with me on my journey....or now.....our journey! I have had the on-going support of so many family members and friends that I will never be able to thank them! You need a support system to help you. You need someone to complain to when you are impatient and don't see the number on the scale going down as much as you think it should be (I am only weighing myself once or twice a month). You must have someone who will say....."Ah...yeah...no Sheri.....you ARE going to the gym.....so get your a** off the computer and I will meet you there in 15 minutes". And....most of all.....although if you are like me you don't take compliments well but, deep down but LOVE to hear them.......you need people to recognise your efforts and applaud you on your journey.

So here I am......9 months into my journey. Two weeks ago I joined a local gym to increase my workouts ( I had been walking to work toward participating in a 5K but felt I needed more in a workout). I have begun not only doing cardio but also strength training and working on my core. I have had some amazing ladies offer encouragement and advice and am feeling even better about where I am going in this journey. I am also participating in my first 5K walk/run this coming Sunday! I can't wait to participate knowing that a year ago I would have only sponsored someone else to take part in this fundraiser!

So.....enough about me......here is my blog. I am going to be chronicling my journey in several ways. I will be adding recipes, inspirational quotes, exercise techniques that I find and like, my struggles and my accomplishments, my goals; both long-term and short-term, and anything else relating to my journey. I hope you respond with your thoughts, tips, and advice! I WON'T be sharing with you my weight or any other "numbers". This journey is not about a set size or weight for me. I will share how much I am up or down on the scale but that is it. I have over a dozen goals set out at this point and NOT ONE has a number in it! A number does not equate to how much stronger I feel, or how much more I can run and play with my children. It has nothing to do with how much less my joints are hurting and even less to do with how much better I am feeling about myself.

My first words of encouragement to you is this;

Don't focus on the numbers......doing that will only sabotage your efforts to become healthier. Healthy is not a number....it is a state of mind combined with good food choices and an active lifestyle.

So until next post, get out there....get active.....and commit to just one healthy choice at a time!

Yours in health,

Sheri