I have a headache

I am done with day 2 of juicing. I have to admit, this time seems incredibly difficult. I don't feel full, which is probably a result of not drinking enough juice. My husband decided he wanted to juice with me and to be honest, it's both helpful and harder at the same time. Helpful because I don't have to be tempted by his food, and hard because that means more juicing and clean-up. Either way I am glad to see him juicing. He also struggles with his weight. He is about 40-50 pounds overweight. He is very active. He plays football and has a fast paced job. But he is a terrible eater. He eats a burger almost every time we go out to eat. I worry about him. I know he will have to watch his weight for the rest of his life because obesity runs in his family. He needs to make the changes now before it's too late.

Back to how I am feeling....I am already trying to talk myself out of doing 7 days of only juice, I think I may just settle on 3 days. We'll see how it goes. I have a headache and my stomach is growling. I keep telling myself one day at a time! We went to the Hippie Place tonight (Health food store). I ventured out and got juice that had beets in it. Um, not my favorite. It tasted like dirt. And I'm not really a big fan of dirt. But I drank it anyway. My son did not like it and gagged when I gave him some. He prefers chocolate milk, but then again who doesn't? I think more than anything I miss the act of eating. Of course I miss food, the taste and smell. But I want to chew on something! I want to eat something, just for the sake of eating it. Which makes me realize how much of a mental thing eating is for us. I believe that you can conquer anything that you first put your mind to. I have to challenge myself as much mentally as I do physically. If I am defeated in my mind, I will be defeated in everything. This is not going to be an instant fix and I won't see results overnight. This is going to be a lifelong challenge that I am going to have to work a day at a time. I know that being healthy is not only what you eat but also the physical activity that you push yourself to do. Currently my activity level is at about a 5 out of 10. Just average. I am not so lazy that I won't get off the couch to change the channel, but I am also not running sprints around the house either. So, on that note, I am going to challenge myself to train for a 5k. I have always wanted to be a runner. But it terrifies me. How can someone run that long and not fall over dead!? I know that it takes a lot of training, and again I am up for the challenge. I plan on starting Monday (today is Saturday). I will just take the first step and see where I end up.

Well, it is off to bed for me. Until next time....

Step 1...Here we go!

Self Image. I am convinced that every woman struggles with it. Some of us struggle more, or longer, or in different ways. But at the end of the day I'm sure we all have something we would like to change or improve about ourselves. My struggle started at about age 15. I have never been considered morbidly obese, just 20-30 pounds overweight. I have lost and found those 20-30 pounds more times than I like to admit. And as the years go by I find it's becoming difficult to lose and keep the weight off. At 28, I have a pretty active lifestyle. I am married to a wonderful man, I have a 19 month old son, and I work with some of the best people in the world at my church. Even though I enjoy my life, I want more! I want to go to the beach and feel comfortable with myself. I want to buy clothes that look flattering and not just try to find what will fit without showing my muffin top too much. I want to run a 5k and a half marathon one day. But for now, I will start with step one, which brings me to my first post...

The Scale. It can be your best friend or your worst nightmare. Today it was a horror movie. I stepped on...169.8! Now with the exception of being pregnant, which I gained 50+ pounds, I am currently at the heaviest I have ever been. I don't want to focus so much on a number, but I would like to have a goal to work towards. I am short, 5'1", so a healthy weight for me is around 130-135. I do not care to be skinny, I want to be healthy and feel good about myself. So here's to never seeing 169 again.

I have tried every diet pill or program known to man. Sure it works initially, but I have never been able to keep the weight off. That's because it's not only about losing the weight, it's about getting healthy. If I focusing on getting healthy, I am convinced that the weight will come off eventually. I am starting something I have never done before. I am trying to cut out meat. I will still include fish in my diet, but beef and chicken are out. I am hoping that I can last, I love meat, so I know this will be very difficult. I am beginning my journey with a juice fast. I have watched several documentaries about juicing and I have tried it before and loved it. It is a challenge because there is a lot of time that goes into preparing the fruits and vegetable, juicing them and then cleaning everything up. I have decided that I will juice a large amount only once a day to cut down on all the work. I will also go to the juice bar a couple of times a week.

This morning I made 64 ounces of juice which will last me one day. Surprisingly I like the taste of the juice. It is very refreshing and clean tasting. I feel good after I drink it. My goal right now is to juice for 7 days, then incorporate one meal a day in after that. I really hope that I can keep this going. It will be a challenge mentally more than anything. I have to wrap my mind around the fact that fried foods and sugar are killing my body. It occured to me a couple of weeks ago that I never see old obese people walking around. When was the last time you saw someone that was obese and in their 70s? Never. I want to live a long life, I want to see my grandchildren. So I have no choice, I can't wait anymore, the first step to the rest of my life is now.