FailBlog

I was discouraged with my progress about a month ago so my trainer had me set 4 week month goals with a reward/consequences for success or failure.

The goals:
*Lose 15 pounds
*Complete a 5-7 day cleanse
*Log food daily
*Walk at least 10k steps per day, 6 days per week

The reward:
My Chargers bolt tattoo

The consequence:
*No tattoo
*500 words on why I failed

The title of this blog pretty much explains how I did. I hate to use the word "fail" because I
completed all the goals except for the big one, the weight. I'm beginning to think that my scale hates me. I have lost over 35 pounds and I feel better than I have in more than 15 years. I can feel the progress I am making in the gym, getting stronger, doing more on my knees and really enjoying the process (even climbing convention center stairs). I am down three pant sizes and everywhere I go I get positive feedback from friends and family about the changes they can see. So, even though I am disappointed that I didn't succeed in all my goals I am not going to consider it a failure.

The why's:

First off, I set the weight goal too high. I planned on the cleanse losing me 8-10 pounds which was unrealistic. Throughout my whole weight loss journey I have been committed to doing it "the right way". To me that means eating right, exercising and making positive life changes. When I chose a cleanse I wanted something that allowed me to eat solid food but to still get the benefits of some of the more drastic types of fasting cleanses. I chose The Elimination Diet from a book called Clean, and really the diet worked. I could feel the effects of eating only fruits, vegetables and organic lean proteins...10 days of no processed foods, but huge weight loss was not one of the benefits.

Second, life got complicated. My life is always complicated, but the last two weeks it has been kicked up a notch. I try to plan my meals, exercise and steps around whatever I have going on in a given day but it's hard when I am also responsible for for what is going on in other people's lives too. Six days ago my mother had bypass surgery and over the weekend it was my daughter's birthday so between trying to spend as much time at the hospital as I could and trying to not let the hospital affect the birthday celebrations, my goals took a backseat, actually my goals ended up in the trunk.

Lastly, stress affects weight loss--that's what my trainer said when I realized I wasn't going to make the weight loss goal. I have to believe that it does because for 20 days I ate well, took between 10-15 thousand steps a day, did 40+ minutes cardio everyday, met with my trainer twice a week, took two boot camp classes a week, gave up soda and drank my 8-12 glassed of water a day, if it wasn't stress then I am correct and my scale is an evil bitch and she just plain hates me!

Given the fact that I feel amazing and my clothes are falling off I'm going to try my best not to focus on the "failure" and just remember that I can only do what I can do. I have 26 days to get my tattoo, I'll set a new goal and keep moving forward.