Fertilehealthy

I started this year with high hopes and expectations.  And on paper it may seem as if I haven’t accomplished much…  I’ve lost only about 20 pounds this year, I never went back to gym after falling ill (with the flu) in February and I haven’t really eaten healthy these last few months.  I started smoking again and at some point found myself in a pit of despair and hopelessness.

But that’s only half the story.  The positives far outweigh the negatives.  First of all, I completed an 80 day Juice Feast.  Sure it was hard, and of course I was supposed to continue eating healthy afterwards, but I am still so damn proud of myself for seeing that through.  And I’ve experienced enormous personal benefits as a result of my Juice Feast, like losing my compulsion to binge-eat and letting go of my desperation to get pregnant right this minute!

Secondly, I have maintained that 20 pound loss for over six months now.  That has never happened to me before.  I would lose weight, gain it all back and then some.  My weight had been creeping up and up for years.  But this year I will end at a lower weight than when I started.

Thirdly, that pit of despair turned out to be a place where I could work through a lot of the issues that have always caused me to sabotage my own efforts.  The last month or so I’ve made some real progress.  I feel so much more empowered and ready to face my challenges.

And they are many:  I still weigh over 300 pounds.  I am unfit.  I am insulin resistant.  I am infertile.  And now I seem to have high blood pressure (I’ve been feeling rather odd the last few days).

But I am reminded of my mantra:  Yes I can.

Yes, I can lose weight. 

Yes, I can go to gym. 

Yes, I can heal my body. 

Yes, I can make 2009 my year!

But why wait for 2009?  There are still six weeks left in 2008.  Should I just continue poisoning myself for the next six weeks and hit it hard in January?

That is just not an option!

Six weeks…  Why does that ring a bell?

Oh yes, Dr. Joel Fuhrman has a six week program to help people turn their health around.  It’s like a bootcamp and prepares you for the Life-program which comes afterwards and runs for… um… life.

So, from tomorrow I will be doing Dr. Fuhrman’s Eat To Live program.  But that’s not all, in one week’s time I will make a long-overdue return to gym, where I will re-launch my Walk Off Weight program and start doing Pilates again.

I’m going to have my blood pressure and cholestrol taken tomorrow, so that I can have an idea of where I’m starting from.  I’ll be doing it on a regular basis and post the improvements on my Weight Stats page.  Watch this space.

I’m aware that there may be one or two obstacles in the way, like Christmas Eve Dinner (with my family) and Christmas Lunch (with my in-laws), but you know what?  I can’t delay for six weeks because of two meals.  And two meals, even if I over-indulge scandalously (which I somehow doubt), will not negate the good work accomplished during those six weeks.

And the best part of it all?  I’ll hit the New Year with momentum!