The enemy - "Holidays"

Wow!! Not feeling very happy today. Stepped on the scale and tears almost came down my eyes. I am 146 pounds. Not fair! It doesn't take very much for me to gain weight but it is very HARD for me to lose it. I knew I was going to put on some pounds after my trip home (NG), but damn, 5 pounds in a week. Everything, within my site was stuffed into my mouth. Do you know that's one of the major challenges we will all face as we go through this journey (You may find that this blog is mostly about weight-loss, diet and exercise because I feel the most important step is getting to a healthy and comfortable weight first). As we move into the holiday season - first thanksgiving, then Christmas (or Hanukah), and new year, the parties never seem to stop. And when you have the parties, that comes with lots and lots of food. Where ONLY the strong-willed survive. And I am sure you have guessed by now that strong-will (when it comes to eating) isn't one of my strengths. But if I have people walking this journey with me, we are going to have to stay strong for each other and learn that will power baby!

So here are some tips to help in avoiding the dreaded holiday weight gain:

1. Always go for smaller portions - Use a small soup bowl to give you a mental image of what to eat at a single sitting. Think no more than 1 cup of carbs (16 tablespoons or 227 grams), more of protein and veggies.
2. Try to pick the healthier options - Don't pick up that juicy, scrumptious looking chocolate cake instead go for popcorn or some healthier alternative available. And if there's none...psych yourself into believing that there will be some when you come back later and hopefully its all gone by then. LOL!
3. Drink your recommended 3 liters of water per day - Yep! you have to drink that water. OMG! We seriously underestimate the power of water. Even as I write this blog, I can barely drink 1 liter of water per day. The goal is to get to the point where I am drinking 3 liters per day. I think i will dedicate one post to the benefits of drinking water and it's role in weight-loss. You will be surprised believe moi.
4. Use this as an opportunity to practice will power - If we are truly honest with ourselves, we will see that "will power" is really the "crux" of it all. Every major lifestyle or habit change involves an enormous amount of will power. That's why you hear of people that go on this crazy diets where they are eating just fruits, No carbs, only meat etc and are able to maintain it for sometime. It is because they have will power. I have tried every diet known to man but I am never able to go beyond day 3 at the most and that's because I don't have the will power when it comes to diet. But I am determined now to change this and I am hoping as my blog matures I will have developed it, even if not for myself but at least for my readers (fingers crossed).

I think this will be a good opportunity to reiterate why this blog even exists. Let me put out the disclaimer right now. I am not a nutritionist, I am not a personal trainer, I am no expert on these matters; I am just a single, young woman who genuinely wants to make some serious permanent lifestyle changes in the area of diet, exercise and pure living. And I figured that there might be others, who are embarking and have struggled for years just like me. I always feel it helps to share with others - generally have a support group. If you are looking for expert advice, I suggest you make an appointment with a PT or a nutritionist. I also feel that by writing about my milestones, struggles & challenges and successes and mentally telling myself that I have an audience I will be more motivated to continue. So, you are welcome to leave your comments, questions, etc and just general check-up on how things are going for you. We are not perfect individuals, if you are you probably shouldn't be here. We are not perfect, so expect to see ups, downs and plateaus. But I am determined more than ever to take this challenge for myself and for anyone out there that's following this blog. One bad characteristic of mine is that I never follow through on many things in my life...and this is an opportunity for me to prove myself wrong. So let's have fun blogging...