Summer’s almost over (although you’d never know it by the temperature here in Key Largo)
and I’m looking forward to the relatively cooler temps of the fall.
Something else I’m looking forward to is getting back in shape. Since I left my job at the Key Largo Chamber of Commerce 16 months ago, and starting working from home, the only exercise I get is walking from my office to the fridge.
And it shows. The first month after I left the Key Largo Chamber in April 2012, I gained six pounds! Six!
Unfortunately, Mom’s visit a few months back did nothing to help me get back on track – I won’t tell you how many tubs of ice cream and dozens of doughnuts and cookies we ate during those three weeks – and now I’m 10 pounds over where I was 16 months ago.
Honestly? I feel awful. My clothes don’t fit right, my joints ache, I’m tired all the time and worst of all, my self-image has taken a real beating.
Can you relate?
I’ve had a weight issue my entire adult life. Maybe “obsession” would be a better word for it. At one point, I weighed 223 pounds, and could only fit into size 22 dresses…the kind with the ties in the back that could be adjusted.
On a 5-foot-7 frame, there is no other word for it than “obese.” Actually, check that: There is — my doctor said I was “morbidly obese,” and he wasn’t talking about my depressed frame of mind, but the fact that my weight could and would eventually kill me.
I hated it, and hated myself. So I made a special effort and lost about 40 pounds in the next 10 years. But as I mentioned, it’s creeping back again.
No more. This has to stop.
This is why I jumped at the chance to work with a great team of people at Boom! Social — my social media coaching team — to join a 90-Day Challenge. We’re going to support one another, and cheer each other on to lose some weight and get healthier, because it’s always easier to do it with friends.
And then I thought, “Why not invite my buds to participate in this challenge, too?” It’s not necessarily about losing weight – although the number of overweight and obese people in our country is huge (pun intended). It’s about general fitness, putting on muscle, or maybe even gaining weight if you need to. (P.S. I am willing to donate some of my “personal body insulation” to anyone who wants it!)
What better time, with the holidays coming up, to take the challenge to feel good — physically, mentally and emotionally — and look great, too.
So April 21, I went public. I went on my personal Facebook page and pledged that I would lose 20 pounds in the next 90 days. I was so pleased and heartened by the number of friends who support my challenge and thrilled with those who said they, too, were up for the challenge.
Change is easier with company
I know that it’s hard to make changes (boy, do I know that!) and some people may not agree with drinking protein shakes as a way to lose weight. I get that; I’ve never done this before myself. But if you’re in a place right now where you need a jump-start for losing pounds, this could be exactly what you’ve been looking for.
For those who want to participate, a private, secret Facebook group has been created for daily support for the 90 days, where we can ask and answer questions and keep us all on track with mini-challenges and accountability, plus working through the mental and emotional aspects of weight loss.
If this sounds like something that would help you get in gear to shed pounds in time for the holidays, let me know and we’ll talk.