As Summer Comes to an End

As summer comes to an end I am actually feeling really good. September has always felt like a new start to me (probably because I spent 18 of my 31 years in school) and with September I always find myself refocused. This September is no different. I'm not sure if it is just because I got back from two weeks holidays or if it is the fact that September is here, but I'm motivated, excited and ready to take on the world again.

In order to take advantage of my new found focus I have remastered my plans for weight loss. I struggled some over the summer which is normal for me, but I will say I'm extremely happy with the last two weeks. While on vacation normally I would use the excuse of being on holidays to do a free for all on any food that comes into my path but not this time. I stopped tracking my food but I was mentally aware of what I was eating. I made sure to keep up with my activity and tried to balance out the drinking and the bad choices with twice as many good choices. In the end it all paid off and I only gained 1 pound while I was on holidays. I know it is still a gain but compared to past vacation this is a big win for me.

Anyway I digress and should get back to my new plan. I have tweaked my exercise routine to adjust to the fact that I don't have my roller skating pass anymore. I am still going to be skating at least once a week on Wednesdays, but I am also budgeting to go once every two weeks on a weekend, just to keep it up. For September when it comes to working out my goal is pretty simple - just to keep on moving. I have decided to move my work outs back to the evening right after I get home from work so I can sleep in. I have also worked in a mix of my DVDs as well as my treadmill and of course skating to keep everything fresh and fun. I'm hoping in shifting everything around it will help kick start my weight loss again for the fall.

Of course exercise is only part of the equation in losing weight. I have also tweaked my plans for food. I have made a bet with myself that I will not eat out anywhere for the entire month of September. I have found that over the summer I was getting increasingly lazy when it came to cooking and was more likely to grab something out (especially for lunches) then I was to make anything. So to combat that I have come up with a schedule where I will cook and freeze meals on the weekend. I'm taking the lazy factor out of the equation. I'm going to make it fool proof to eat really good food, quick and easy.

I love food and I'm tired of avoiding that fact. I can love food and still lose weight. It is way more satisfying to eat really good food in smaller portion than it is to eat OK food in large portions. We all have to eat so we might as well just chose the things that make us feel good about eating and still let us become healthy. It is my opinion that it is better to really enjoy your food than to eat something because you should or for any of the other reasons people eat. For me I have found that in letting myself enjoy things like the occasional dessert or some chips that I keep myself from going crazy and binging.

This September I invite you all to join me in giving up fast food and try to create meals that are substantial, healthy and really good. I had said at the beginning of the summer that I was going to start to including recipes and I will make an effort to share my recipes with you all this month, to help you find great food that comes from our own kitchens.