Set Points and Makeovers

Sorry about the radio silence. The last couple of weeks have been mildly frustrating. I've been bouncing back and forth between 205 and 205 for two weeks now. The funny thing is when I lost weight for the first time 3 years ago I spent 6 weeks stuck at 205. I know that my body has set points when I lose weight, places I plateau for awhile. But I didn't think it would be the exact same point, I wonder if it will hold true for the next one? It will be interesting to see if I get stuck at 195 like I did last time, won't it?

Anywho, this last week we celebrated my husband's and my son's birthdays. We went out to lunch at a Brazilian Steak House (you know, the place where they bring around the meat on the swords. Combine that with the amazing salad bar and it makes a great low-carb place to eat out.) Afterward we were waling around the outdoor mall in downtown Salt Lake when I saw this little store called Betty Paige. Their window display had these adorable 1950's style dressed and skirts. My husband encouraged me to try some on so I went in and basically got one of everything that was in my size. The styles were all Marilyn Monroe-esque. Cinched at the waist and curvy through the bust and hips. In the dressing room trying on that first dress I had a revelation.

I've hated shopping my whole life. Clothes never seem to fit me like they do other people. Pants are tight in the hips and gap hugely at the waist. Dresses strain across my bust and hips and bag around my stomach. I'll get to the point where I have one outfit left in my closet before I go out and go shopping. Part of me has always attributed this to my being over-weight, that's natural right?

But then I stood in the dressing room and pulled on a dress that was specifically designed for a woman with an hourglass figure. And it fit like the proverbial glove. Curvy through the hips and bust and narrow at the waist. I stared at myself in the mirror and felt like I was bathed in the light of a blinding epiphany. Yes I was still overweight, but here was a dress that was designed to look good on a woman with my body shape. And it did!

Then I tried on 6 more outfits, each one that fit great and looked great on me! And I started to see how other women could love shopping. So then I spent way too much on that very first dress (thanks honey) and then died my mousy brown hair black to match. If my weight loss has stalled this week, at least I'm having fun!

Weigh-In Apr 2

Sorry about the hiatus guys. I had one gnarly case of strep throat that lasted for 10 days. (That's right, I said gnarly.) While I was sick I didn't follow my low-carb rules. Heck while I was sick I didn't even follow my personal hygiene rules. I mostly laid on the couch and moaned...a lot. And when I was hungry I ate whatever sounded good to me. So you can understand that I was a little apprehensive when I stepped back onto the scale this week. Then let out a huge sigh of relief when it said 207. Only 2 lbs up, I will totally take it. Thank you weight loss fairies for not blowing me up 8 lbs in addition to a horrible week of mucous and moaning.

So onward to better and less germy things! Please-oh-please. Kicked off my eating again yesterday and also started the weight lifting again. Instead of moving on to the next month I went back to week one and added heavier weights.

I've been reading a lot lately about goals and I usually tend to have vague, pie-in-the-sky goals. I want to be better about setting concrete goals that I can see and my husband can graph (he's mad about graphs, engineer you know). So I'm setting a new short term goal. I'm leaving for Arizona in exactly a month. In Arizona May is swimsuit season, unlike Utah which will still be yo-yoing back and forth between gorgeous days and blizzards. So I'm making a goal to be 195 when I leave for Az. That's 12 lbs or 3 lbs a week, which I know is on the high side. But here goes nothing.

All right, lurkers, I know you're out there. What's your short term goal? It doesn't have to be weight related, just throw it out there...in print for the world to see. Then go drink some water.