Saturday, August 21, 2010

Week 34: Major Milestone






Kathy's Week 34 Stats:
Today's Weight: 127!!!!!!!!!!!!
Goal Goal Goal Goal Goal  !!!!!!!!
Last Week's Weight: 128
Starting Weight: 151
Total Weight Loss: 24 pounds!!

Since January 1, in addition to losing 24 pounds, I have also lost 4 inches from my waist and 4 inches from my hips. I have gone from barely fitting into size 14, to comfortably fitting into size 10. I have greater strength and energy, my muscle mass has increased, and I have lots more endurance.

When I began in January, I set a goal of 135 pounds. Then I found the Happy Weight Calculator, which indicated that a better goal for me would be 134 pounds. Fine, I thought, what's one more pound? I changed the goal to 134. 

However, by the time I was getting close to 134 pounds--early June, about week 24--I realized that I didn't want 134 to be my end goal any longer. Once I started the weight-training program and saw my weight really begin to drop, I decided to rethink that goal of 134.

About that time, I noticed that my wristwatch was getting loose, and I tightened the wristband another notch. And funny thing--when I went back again to the Happy Weight Calculator, I had to recalculate my "Frame" size--based on wrist size--because I had lost so much weight since January.

When I calculated in a smaller frame size, along with increased exercise and activity, my new Happy Weight was 127! Wow, I haven't been able to consistently maintain that weight since I was in my early 30s. I was so excited to think I could achieve that healthy weight goal again in my 50s!! And I made it to 127, for the first time in years, this morning.

Can I stay here at this wonderful, healthy, slender weight? I've been able to fits lots of exercise into my schedule this summer, but as a school teacher, I know I'll soon be back into the hectic/stressful grind of back-to-school.

Achieving goal weight today is just the beginning of my healthy journey for the rest of my life. I need to eat healthy foods, exercise consistently, and keep stress at manageable levels in order to be healthy and fit. Just because the scale said 127 this morning, does not mean that I'm through with healthy updates here The Skinny. Maintaining weight loss can be just as difficult as losing the weight in the first place!

Thanks, Skinny friends, for your support and encouragement! It has really meant a lot to post here each week and hear your suggestions and atta-girls. You've really kept me accountable!

Along with The Skinny, I couldn't have made it to this point without the support of my best friend--my darling husband and sweetheart--Mark.

He gladly eats the healthy foods I fix, exercises with me, and encourages me with compliments and thoughtfulness. He's lost some weight along my Skinny path, and he's been gaining strength and endurance, too.

We are loving our Skinnier life together, and we have so much fun with our health and strength.

9 comments:

kati said...

Congrats Kathy! That is awesome. Relish the feeling, you deserve it!

Katie Lewis said...

Wow! Congratulations Mom! That is awesome. And I must admit that I am a little jealous. :) And I have also been thinking a little about changing my end goal. Still not sure. We'll see. For now, I'm feeling very fat from our weekend of family fun times (and it's not over yet), so I think I'll just try to think about your happy weight success instead of the yucky number I saw on the scale earlier today. Haha. Yay you!

Dorothy said...

Hooray! You are an inspiration to anyone who wants to give it a try. Good luck maintaining with your school schedule. I bet you'll be fine...you've learned what works for your body. Keep it up!! :)

Carou said...

Way to go Kathy! Your journey has been an inspiration.

Lisa Lou said...

Wow! Congrats!! So awesome!

Lauren @The Little Things We Do.... said...

CONGRATULATIONS kathy! i'm so incredibly excited for you! apparently i need to get my butt in gear to keep up with you :).

Annemarie said...

Wow, Kathy. This is so great. I'm proud of you for sticking with this program. You look wonderful, and even better, I can tell you feel great. Having a healthy body with lots of energy to do all the things you love is such a gift.

Enjoy it! You deserve to feel GREAT about all this hard work.

alee said...

WOOHOO!!!

That is really wonderful! Congratulations on making it to your goal :) However, you are right that sometimes staying consistent is just as hard as losing the weight in the first place...so just keep doing all of those healthy things you have been doing!

I am so proud of you! :) Good job!

Perils of Paulene said...

Congratulations to you, Kathy. I am very excited for you. That is a tremendously wonderful success. I have found that exercise is a lot more fun than it used to be. Perhaps it's because I have found a friend to make the walking more enjoyable. Maybe, it's because the Jazzercise is feeling more like dancing now that I have better balance and coordination. Maybe, being older has finally made me smarter. Whatever it is, I fully agree that being in shape and moving is FUN. Love, Paulene

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