Journal: Happy New Year 2012

Well, I have maintained my weight loss for another year. I did, however, weigh in over my leeway 4 times, but I always got it back off by the next week. I have to admit my exercise really hit a low this year. It's hard to find ways to stay motivated when you don't have to exercise.

I started back on my Couch 2 5K regiment last week. I have tried it a couple of times and by the 4th week or so my knees start to kill me. I am going to move up slower this time. I am going to try to do one set of regiments for an entire month instead of just a week. Maybe my body just needs more time to adjust.

I also ate horribly over the holidays, but I am already back on that track too. I am back to making sure I have a "free" vegetable every day with my meal and am choosing the healthier snack options for my sweet tooth.

I also gave up eating chocolate. It's not even for health reasons. It's because I found out that chocolate tends to come from cocoa farms that use child slavery. I looked and looked for a good fair trade chocolate option and couldn't find one, so instead, I gave up my most beloved food! I haven't gone without it completely, I will have an occasional chocolate treat if a friend makes one or it's at a fellowship dinner or something, but I won't buy it and don't eat it on a what used to be a daily basis. I had to say goodbye to the chocolate fat free pudding cups I loved so much, but it's been fun (though somewhat hard) to find a good alternative.

For now I get my sweet fix with fig bars. They are fat free and only 60 calories. That's a pretty sweet deal and cures my craving. If only didn't have to have something sweet with every meal!

I also DO eat breakfast now. My entire schedule has changed and I get up very early in the morning so waiting to eat until lunch was not very practical. I am glad to have found that I have incorporated it in without putting on the weight. Again, it's making healthy choices and giving up some of the evening snacking I always looked forward to. I haven't really missed those though because I adjusted the time of my other meals which means I eat dinner later and having gotten up early I am off to bed sooner so I don't need as many snacks late at night.

Well, that is my year in summary and my plan for now is to keep on exercising and keep this weight off for yet another year. I hope your weight loss, exercise and healthy living goals were met last year as well, and if they weren't, may they be this year! You can do it!