Incentive Plan

It has been quite a few months since I've posted anything here! Either that or I've been caught in a time warp. Sometimes my life feels that way. Time twists itself inside out.

At my weekly weight loss group, we are talking about developing personal incentive plans and this is what I came up with: I have a special stash of money that I earn from singing. I use it for personal things, gifts for my husband, etc., instead of taking money out of our joint account. I will be giving $200 of this to a trusted friend, with a written promise to lose thirty pounds by our first meeting in January. If I do not, I must donate $100 to a charity of my choice. Then, after three more months, if I do not lose the rest of the thirty pounds, I must give the rest away to charity.

It sounds harsh, doesn't it? I've been so unmotivated I had to make it something I'd work for, and work hard. That is an average of five pounds a month for six months. I know I can do that. But will I? That is the burning question. I have a deep desire to do it.

Monday Weigh In

I've been doing okay with my eating, not so much with walking, but my dear hubby shared his virus with me. Feeling slightly better today...not completely well though.

This a.m. I weighed...194. Couldn't wait till Thursday to share that. Hurray! Been a while since I've seen these kind of numbers on the scale.

I know that still sounds big, and it kind of is, but bear in mind that I'm 5'11".

That's 25 pounds GONE.

Maintaining

Wow, it's hard for me to keep up with posting here. I have another blog, and I have a family and a life. We're doing spring cleaning and painting this week.

Last night at TOPS(Take Off Pounds Sensibly) I "turtled", which means I weighed to same as last week. Not good news, but not bad either. I'm eating okay...a little bit of something I shouldn't now and then...but basically I'm being good. I'm not walking like I should though.

Does anybody have any extra motivation they're not using right now, that I could borrow?

Thursday Weigh In

The numbers are in, folks...

As of this morning I weigh...197.5 pounds. Yeah! I hope the 200's are gone forever.

Man Pants

So, hubby had a birthday recently and I took him to a Mexican restaurant for lunch, just the two of us.

I was wearing stretchy workout pants (not that I'd worked out that morning or anything) and decided to change into jeans and a nicer shirt. I pulled on the jeans--still lying on the floor where they'd been thrown with abandon (ahem) the night before--and discovered they were tight. No way, I thought dismally. I couldn't have gained that much since I last wore these. Then I looked down and noticed they were way too short. I laughed. They were my husband's!

Then my heart leaped with joy as I realized I could actually fit into his pants! He's six feet and 165-or-so pounds. I'm an inch shorter, though my legs are considerably longer than his, and my stomach had been too...um...girthful to ever put on his pants, let alone ZIP and BUTTON them.

Progress!

Good News, and More Good News

We're leaving town tomorrow morning for an out-of-town basketball tournament and won't be back till Sunday, so don't miss me too much, ok? Ha.

The good (I hope it turns out to be good!) news is that last night I *did* get elected to be the new leader of our TOPS--Take Off Pounds Sensibly--group beginning April 1st. The two previous leaders promised to help me with whatever I need. Hubby told me that I need to change my title from leader to dictator. Very humorous, honey.

The other good news is that I lost the three pounds I gained last week.

And finally, my eating habits, including drinking lots of water, are good. I need to walk today. We're having a contest at TOPS where the first one to lose ten pounds wins the pot...we each put in a dollar. The lady who is determined to win is a bit flustered, I think, that I'm right on her tail. She is a nice person, and I'm glad for her that she's been losing so well lately. But it's a fight to the death, baby! Well, or until I collapse on the treadmill.

A New Responsiblity

A couple of weeks ago the leader of our TOPS weight loss group asked me if I would consider being the new leader, beginning April 1st. After asking questions and talking to hubby, I've decided I'm going to do it. I will have a co-leader, secretary, treasurer, and other members taking on certain tasks, so I think it's do-able. When she first asked me, I protested a bit, saying that I'm a fairly new member (end of July). She said I was enthusiastic and had made good progress, that she thought I'd be good. That was nice to hear.

I'm hoping it will be an extra little push of motivation to keep losing weight through exercise and healthy eating. If I'm the leader, I want to be a good example!

I've started walking again after slacking off for a while. Yay me!