Healthier me

I shared on Facebook that I'm down over 11 pounds and I can now pull my jeans off without unbuttoning them... an overshare? Maybe... but here's the thing, I wanted to be accountable to me and posting allows me to keep my accountability. I've tried other things, diets, personal trainers, supplements, weighing my food, measuring portions, some of them have worked, some not so much. I've lost weight before but I've never maintained it since having kids.

I can tell you what's working this time. Making ME a priority is working. Putting ME first is working. Loving ME is working. Pushing myself to be the best ME is working. Having accountability to others is working. That's what's different this time. I really want this to work for once and for all. Not just for the weight loss, for the energy, for the stamina, for quality of sleep, for the ability to go up and down a hill chasing my kids without stopping to get winded and needing to take a break. I want to bike with them and be active with them. I want to hike through the forest, up hills, in valleys and not struggle. Building memories is important and I don't want their memories of mama to be complaining about tired joints and being winded when playing.

What am I doing? I'm doing Weight Watchers. Why am I sharing? Because people on Facebook asked and clearly other people struggle as well. Lots of people are trying to find the perfect fit for them. For me, this is the perfect fit, it's teaching me balance and accountability. My mom raved about weight watchers in the passed and it's worked for her before. This time, we are doing this together. Along with her, some other people near and dear to my heart are also doing it too. It's their journey to share so I'll leave it at that. It's the accountability of people reaching out asking how I'm doing and me reaching out saying "what's for lunch?" It's connecting us in ways other than being related or our kids, it's helping us mamas find balance in our lives. Balance that ever eludes most of us. Balance that I still struggle with. Balance that I'm working hard towards each and every day.

I'll be sharing from time to time what I'm eating, what I'm doing, how things are going. This blog was started to educate and if this helps just one person, it's worth it. If it's educating you in some way that you didn't already know, it's worth it. Sharing my struggle and my journey also makes me vulnerable but it also holds me accountable.

And if you are wondering, we aren't talking about weight loss at our house. We're talking about being healthy and making better choices. My daughter picked salad because she watched me pick salad. She picked a little less dressing than normal because she watched my choices. She's eating more veggies and picking healthier snacks. I'm teaching her health. I'm teaching her strength. Those are qualities that are important. I'm teaching her that I'm working out to be strong not because I want to look good in a swim suit. I'm teaching her that I want to run faster and lift stronger weights because being strong makes me feel good. Pick your words wisely especially in front of those little loves!