Getting back on track for 2010

Well, I will start off by saying somthing good and something bad about 2009 in relation to my weight loss.  The good is that I am down between 65 and 68 pounds (depending on the day you catch me on).  The bad news is I am only down between 65 and 68 pounds (depending on the day you catch me on).  Don't get me wrong, I'm not upset to be down that much weight; it's just that the bulk of the weight was lost from the date of surgery until early in 2009.  After that, it bobbled, zig-zagged, stalled, and just did all sorts of weird crap for months on end.  Some of it was self-inflicted.  Much of it was not.  ALL of it was totally frustrating, especially at the end of the year where I was working out three days a week, often 1 1/2 to as many as 3 hours each session -- and the scale. didn't. budge.

It's a combination of needing to just do what needs to be done and not focus on the scale so much, but it's so hard because it's what we do -- those of us who have dieted and gained weight over and over and over again.  It's hard not to get discouraged when you're busting your ass at the gym and you don't realize the results you want which shows you, "Yeah, you busted your ass this month.  Here's a 10-pound weight loss."

I need to focus on the positive this year and not focus on the negative.  I need to remember that if I keep doing the right things, the right things will happen.  Though stuff isn't in place yet, the flooring is laid in the basement, so I can do some of the stuff down there that I want to do now.  Not only that, I am taking 18 credit hours this semester, which will have me on campus four days a week now instead of three.  That gives me one more day in the gym.  I also still plan on doing a 5k this spring.  There's one in April and another in May.  If I do each weekly podcast over two weeks, the original 9 week program would take me 18 weeks, which would take me to May.  There may also be others I haven't found yet that would be around that time or June-ish to give me a bit more time.

This year must be the year of focusing on the positive aspects of this journey and not focusing on where I screwed up or why the scale isn't saying what I want it to.  I need to be happy with what's gone and now focus on small victories and quit looking at the big elephant.  It's all about eating it bite by bite, right?  :)