#noexcuses Week 7

Happy March!

One more week left until the first weigh in for the #noexcuses Lifestyle Challenge. I have a number goal in mind for next Monday, but I am trying to remind myself that it does not matter if I don't hit that goal. Goal setting is such a slippery slope for me. I am pretty positive that the one and only time I have ever hit a number goal was last year when I destroyed my pre-Disney goal.

I maintained on the scale this week, which means I am still 1.2 pounds away from that number goal I had set for myself for week 8. 1.2 is completely doable in one week, but I was pretty sure I would have hit it this week. I gave myself a splurge day last Saturday, but was spot on the rest of the week. My total calorie deficit last week was over 4500 calories, which should amount to more than a one pound loss on the scale; but it didn't. I know that it doesn't always happen the way it should, but learning to let go of that isn't going to  happen overnight.

I had grandiose plans of staying completely on track until the 8 week weigh in on March 11th, but I completely derailed today. March is notoriously a tough month because we have lots of birthdays. My daughter's birthday starts it off on March 1st. I was super proud of staying on track on both Friday and Saturday (through birthday tacos and homemade crumbcake). The pizza, chip/dip and crumbcake that's in the house for Mary's party today kind of did me in. Oh well. Such is life. I can still have more than a 3500 calorie deficit between tomorrow and March 11th, but as was just proven this past week, that doesn't necessarily mean the scale will cooperate. So, all I can do is try and the scale will do what it is going to do.

In other news, February was a pretty good month for my weight loss. From 2/1 to 3/1 I lost 8 pounds. I don't think I really put a number out there in my last couple of posts when I was talking about the time it takes to lose weight; but I (of course) have a goal in my mind. If I could average a loss of 4-5 pounds per month I would be beyond ecstatic. Looking at my weight loss so far this year I am right on track with that goal and that makes me super happy. My loss between Jan 1st and March 1st is 10.8 pounds (remember, the reason why my weight loss for the challenge is higher is because I gained a few pounds between 1/1 and 1/12 when the challenge started).

BUT, I need to continuously remind myself that if I don't hit a goal I set for myself it doesn't matter! It is totally OK to set goals to have something to work towards, but it doesn't mean I'm a failure if I don't reach those goals.....especially if I still end up at a lower weight than where I started. If I set a goal to lose 14 lbs in the first 8 weeks of the challenge and end up losing 13 does that mean I failed? Obviously not. Why is it so hard for me to remember that? I'm having a moment today where I need to remind myself of this fact. It is amazing to me how I can have a week (or 2 even) where I feel so positive and so happy and then all of the sudden my brain switches back to my old way of thinking and I feel like what I'm doing is not enough.

I need to remember to focus on those NSV's. This past week I may not have lost weight but I got on my treadmill yesterday and ran 52 minutes with no walk breaks. It wasn't fast, but it was 52 minutes of straight running. I am pretty sure I have never done that before. Also, last week when I went out shopping (to keep myself from eating), I bought new workout pants and they were a size medium!!! WHAT?!?! I honestly can't remember the last time I wore a medium. I also bought a new tank top for myself to help remind me what the goal really is. You can't read it since it's backwards in the pic, but the shirt says Goal Weight: STRONG AF! It's not a great pic, but I'll share it anyway; those are the medium pants that I had just bought and my new tank top. My arms may be my biggest insecurity (because, really, they are SO huge), but look at that muscle! There may be a lot of fat on the bottom of that arm, but there is no denying the muscle that is there either. The scale isn't everything and perhaps one of these days I will actually believe that!

On to week 8........