Turn that frown upside down

"It is our attitude at the beginning of a difficult task which, more than anything else, will affect it's successful outcome."
-William James

They say attitude is everything - and I think there may be some solid truth to that. Especially when taking on a task as seemingly mountainous as losing 100 pounds. Let's face it - that's no small potatoes. As a matter of fact, it's the equivalent of 10 large bags of potatoes, if you want to get technical. That's a huge amount of chub and blub we're talking about. You have a bad attitude going in to try to shed something as significant as that, and you may as well call it quits before you even begin. It's kind of ironic because let's face it, no one is HAPPY about having to lose 100 pounds - so the question is: How does one get the right attitude about tackling such a big, difficult task???

 

I wrote yesterday about the past and how easy it is to sometimes let the ghosts of days gone by control future actions. The attitude is that since failure was such a prevalent part of the past, it's bound to be a significant part the future, too. That way of thinking is NOT the attitude needed to begin this journey - so I am banishing it from my thoughts completely. POOF - gone!

In all honesty, I feel rather optimistic about climbing this mountain, even if it is the biggest thing I have ever had to do, to this date. In fact, I find this much more difficult than switching careers mid-life, and trust me when I say how crazy-ass hard I thought that would be - especially in the beginning when I ventured back to school after being out of the academic loop for the last 15 years. And yet, I did it (or, am doing it anyway). And what's more is I am excelling at it! I have never had that kind of determination in my life, but I hope to find it again, as I tackle this next life challenge to getting myself healthy.

My attitude truly is everything in terms of how successful I am at losing the weight this time. Staying positive, and hopeful, and determined, even when things are not all sunshine, rainbows and chirping birds, is going to be key in making this work. Not feeling as though the instant I slip up that the world is ending so why give a shit, will be crucial to navigating these often temptation-infested waters. I feel so positive now - I wish I could bottle up this feeling and open it and chug it with wild abandon when those days or weeks do come when the results are not what I want or expect them to be.  I know this will be challenging - especially when the negativity pill seems much easier to swallow at times.

So - I asked the question of how to get and keep the cheerful attitude when ticking off pounds 1 through 100? I think it starts with support.  I just sent my new blog link to a few close friends and family that have seen the ups and downs of my weight loss attempts and have been supportive through each and every battle I have had with the scale. There are some who walk in similar shoes and I think understand this struggle more deeply than others, and then there are some who might not have had to deal with this first hand, but are still very supportive and believe in me nonetheless. I have humbly asked them to share this ride with me, and support me through the good, the bad and the ugly. With their encouragement and those of others perhaps in the blogging community, I can get through this and not feel alone.

My dear and wonderful husband is also a huge source of support. He is by far the strongest pillar of strength I have and I know he has my back on this 1000%.  But without the right attitude coming from this girl (pointing two thumbs right at me), I don't stand a chance. Being positive is a choice. Just like eating the right foods, in the right portions, and getting in exercise, it is something I will choose to embrace each day. And that is how I will make these 100 pounds history for good.

It's a New Blog, It's a New Day, It's a New Life, and I'm Feelin' Good...

Welcome to my first day, and first post of my brand spanking new blog!!! I finally manned up and did it....out with the old and in with the new! For those that have followed me, you know I have been desperately wanting to shed not just physical pounds, but also the old skin of my previous blog -  http://weightwedding.blogspot.com/  - and in turn, begin a new blog - a clean slate if you will. It might seem a little weird but I have my odd ball reasons for doing this, no matter how ridiculous they may seem.

Since this is not my first weight loss rodeo (but is intended to be my last), I am under no delusions that the simple act of dropping an old blog site gives me a leg up on dropping the pounds; but I did feel as if I needed the symbolic change of starting fresh with something that is strictly about THIS particular journey.

My old blog focused on life before marriage and the goals surrounding losing weight so that I could look good in a white dress. I didn't exactly meet the goals I had set and when I went back to read old posts (as I often did), I would always end up opening a huge can of self-berating whoop-ass on myself when I reviewed my various failed attempts at losing weight. I felt like I needed to cut the cord so to speak, and give myself a change of scenery, even if it's only web-based.

I have decided that with this blog, and this new start, things are going to be different. I have been reading so many wonderful and inspirational blogs (see blog list) and the main thing I notice is the positive attitudes and the dedication other people have to getting healthy. For anyone who has tried to lose weight in the past, it can be a long and winding road for sure...undoubtedly,  there will always be bumps and hills and various other forces to be reckoned with, but the important thing to know is that it is navigable. I have to keep reminding myself of that. This is not some insane venture I am taking on that has never been attempted before - this is something that people are doing for themselves EVERY DAY. And I do believe that I, too, will have one of those glorious "after" pictures someday....

I now realize that my past behaviors have lead me to give up when I had a bad day, adhering to that unhealthy all or nothing approach that so many people adopt when trying to shed the pounds. I have decided that that isn't going to be my mojo anymore....I am OK with slow and steady. I just want to see progress being made, not excuses be handed out left and right. I also want to be upfront about my progress and that is why for the first time I have decided to include pictures of myself, no matter how embarrassing. These pictures do not lie, no matter how much I'd like them to.

Deep down, (until today when I took those bare-my-soul pictures) I think I had some warped image of what I looked like (sort of the reverse of anorexia??), and maybe in some ways I was able to shut out the reality of my image to the outside world that way. It's odd, but for me, fat was more of a feeling I had, not necessarily a look. However, in the past 6 months especially, as my weight ballooned, I started to avoid mirrors, cameras and anything that would show me the results of my bad behavior. But one thing you can't escape is the feeling that you have when your clothes don't fit. Tight pants are tight pants and no amount of camera avoidance can change the way they feel or the red ring they leave around your waistline. And for this reason especially, I need to make this change.

So, I have thought long and hard about what I want this blog to represent. It's not just a story through words, but it also will be a story through pictures, stats, and gained information. Weigh-ins will be on Fridays and progress pictures will be posted monthly. I hope you will join me as I make the way to a new me.
100 pounds.
1000% determination.