Journey Toward a Better Me

Over the past couple of weeks, I have begun a journey toward a better version of myself. As a school counselor, I always talk to my students about self-awareness and growth. They have heard me say many times that our ultimate goal is to become the best versions of ourselves, and what that looks like will change at different points in our lives. Therefore, we are ALWAYS growing and becoming "better."

About two weeks ago, Princess Natalie decided to point out to this Queen that I was still sporting a "big, fat belly." Well, kid, I totally agree! (and so did the King when he so sensitively stated, "Why are you getting upset? She is only stating the obvious." Thanks, hun...) Anyway, since sophomore year of college, I have been putting on weight. I am soooo tired of it. Overall, am I happy with the wife, friend, coworker, mother, leader, etc that I have become? Heck yes. But in my journey toward a better me, I KNOW I need to get healthier. Since I am not sure we will be adding anymore princes or princesses to our kingdom, I figured that now is the time to ease into a healthier lifestyle. I did not want to make huge changes that I knew I couldn't handle. I'm choosing to start with small things and transitioning into bigger changes as time goes on. My goal is not to lose weight, per say. I know it isn't wise to begin a "diet" when only being a couple of months post partum and breastfeeding. However, all of us can benefit from healthy changes.

There is this really cool free app for my Droid called My Fitness Pal. It allows you to track your calories eaten and spent. The coolest part of the app for me is that you can scan the bar code of what you are eating and it automatically enters the info! It has really helped me in being conscious of what I am putting into my body. Previously, I would have just eaten as many chips as I wanted with my sandwich at lunch, but now I know that about 13 chips is 140 calories...WOW! Some days those 13 chips are totally worth the calories, and other days I know that I should skip the chips to be able to enjoy something else later. Who knew that my favorite treat (a root beer...) was over 300 calories. Um, no thanks. I am not restricting what I eat, but I am keeping better track so that I don't eat way more than what my body needs.

So far, I have lost 5 pounds. It doesn't seem like much, but it certainly is a start! It has been rewarding to step on the scale in the morning and see the numbers go down. Sometimes they go back up, too, but that's ok...its a journey, remember? I also have been keeping track of my measurements and I'm especially proud that I have lost 2 inches around my waist and 1 inch from my hips.

My favorite part of this journey is finding creative ways to MOVE more. I am not a big fan of exercise. If it feels too much like work, I don't wanna do it. Ugh. It hurts to even admit this, but, man, can I be lazy!. I would love to be a runner someday but that will take time. I hate running. My friends all say that once you start, though, you learn to love it. Whatever. Maybe I will get there... I really enjoy dancing, though, so I have been working on my moves while the girls nap. We have Dance Central on the XBOX 360, so that is a fun change up. Princess Natalie loves helping me do jumping jacks, her version of yoga, and other things. She is so funny...she will do a "move" and have me copy her. Hey, it burns calories, right?!? Ruthie even helps me out. Yesterday I held her for extra weight as I did some kicks and lunges down our hallway :)

Hopefully, by focusing on being healthy and not on just losing weight, I am impacting my princesses in a positive way. It is so hard to not focus on being thin, though...just remember my mantra: its a JOURNEY toward the best version of ME.