I’M BACK ON THE WAGON!

So between the holidays and out of town guests and quitting my job at Weight Watchers, I’ve been a bit, well, not just falling off the wagon, but underneath it and run over. Several times.

But I’m back on it. I’ve brushed myself off, put my work-out clothes back on, downloaded the WW app on my new phone and purged my kitchen of everything I could without my family killing me. I’m back, baby!

Here’s what I’ve learned, with a little help from an article written by David Kirchhoff, President and CEO of Weight Watchers.

1. We make over 200 food decisions per day. And those of us trying to eat healthy probably make way more than that. This can be overwhelming, so keeping a food diary makes me more mindful of what I’m eating. I’m not always great at it, but I do my best!

2. If I deprive myself of what I really, really want, I’ll never succeed. That doesn’t mean I can eat an entire package of Oreo cookies, but it does mean I can have one or two.

3.  Whatever I eat, I own it. Period.

4.  I don’t surround myself with my “trigger foods.” I try to manage my environment as much as I can, given I have a husband and two growing boys in the house with me.

5.  I try to have a plan as much as I can when it comes to meals and snacks. If I “wing it,” I’m setting myself up for failure.

6.  Routines work. Yes, they can be boring sometimes, but they help me stay in control.

There you have it! Even though I’m not a Weight Watchers leader anymore, I’m still a Lifetime Member, and right now I need them more than ever! But whether you go to WW, another diet place, or just want to eat healthier, I applaud you. And don’t let those New Year’s Resolutions drift off by mid-February. This is your life, take control!!!

Karen

 

NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION UPDATE

Okay, we’re into March now, so it’s time to ‘fess up on how we are all doing on our New Year’s Resolutions! On my blog post at the beginning of January, I told you about my 2 (yes, only 2, it’s all I can handle!) resolutions: to continue losing weight to reach my 50 pound weight loss goal and to become more organized.

Resolution #1 is going great! I’m up to 42 pounds lost, and still going strong. In fact, I’m shaking it up a bit. While I’m still on Weight Watchers and still love their program, I’m deviating a little bit and counting calories (gasp!) and not just points now. It’s been interesting to see the difference. I’m also changing up my workout routine. I’ve been seeing a personal trainer to get me started in strength training. (At her prices, though, I told her I’m only paying for 4 sessions, so she better cram everything she can into those sessions!) Since I’ve only had 2 sessions with her so far, the only difference I see is HOW MUCH PAIN I’M IN!!! I’m sure it’s not reflected in my mood, though, so I can’t figure out why everyone in my family, dog included, seems to run away when I enter a room! Hmmmm.

Resolution #2 is… well… let’s just say it’s a work in progress. I thought that having my calendar on my phone would be great. But really, it’s just confusing me more. See, I can’t give up my “book” calendar, so sometimes I’ll have something on one calendar and not the other. Great example: Melissa and I moved our weekly meetings from Thursday afternoons to Monday afternoons. I changed it on my phone, because it was with me, but forgot to change it on my “real” calendar (I guess in my mind it was already changed), so of course I made lunch plans today with a friend, totally forgetting about my business meeting in the middle of a REALLY busy time at work. AND right before we are both taking vacations for spring break. (Turns out her son has been puking for the past 2 days and we can’t meet anyway, so I’m off the hook, but still…!)

However, I am getting better with my “piles!” I’m trying to stay on top of putting things away before my piles get out of hand. “TRYING” being the operative word here. Baby steps!

So how are your New Year Resolutions going?

Karen

THE RESOLUTIONS I REALLY WANT TO MAKE … AND KEEP!

We’ve all heard, and I’ve even written, about making New Year’s Resolutions that are small changes, so we don’t give up after a week or a month. But what are the ones that we REALLY wish we could make? And KEEP? That will somehow, magically work? Here are mine:

1. Lose my remaining 18 pounds by the end of the month. And still eat everything I want to eat. In abundance.
   
2. Become the perfect mom, never yelling at my kids, which will turn the boys into the perfect children, always doing what I say the first time, so I don’t have to yell, and so on, and so on, and so on.
   
3. I haven’t printed out any pictures since the first day of kindergarten, and the boys are now in 3rd grade. I’d like to get all those done by the end of this week.
   
4. Have our new website up by tomorrow.
   
5. Have my entire house cleaned and organized by the day after tomorrow.
   
6. Keep it that way all year.
   
7. Learn to salsa dance next weekend.
   
8. Enter the 2010 Olympics as a figure skater. (Does it matter that I can’t stand up on ice skates?)
   
9. Have Karmel Publishing make our first million by April. (After all, we’ll have our new website up by tomorrow, right?)
   
10. Never lose my temper, ever, all year long. (BWAHAHAHAHA!!!!)
    

So, what do you think? Can I do it?

Karen

LIFE RETURNS TO NORMAL!

FINALLY! The kids are back in school and the husband is back at work and I can get back to my normal routine. I don’t know why Winter break seems so much longer than Summer break. I guess just because there are really no pressures during the summer. I know it’s going to be a long, lazy 3 months, and I prepare for it. I plan time to work and to exercise and to get everything done. But winter break is full of holidays and errands and family and eating and so on and so on! It seems like there’s not a minute to spare, yet nothing gets done! So after 2 weeks, I’m exhausted!

But, as I said in my last post, no worries! It’s all worth it, knowing my kids had a great Christmas and a great winter break.

So now, the catch-up begins. And so do the New Years Resolutions. I’m really not one to make these grand gestures to make drastic changes to my life, which will probably last one week, at the most. Rather, I think New Years Resolutions are about making small, yet significant changes, to make me a better person. (I tried explaining this to my 8 year olds. One said that he wants to become a better video game player and the other said he will remember to feed the dog more, which, by the way, hasn’t happened yet. We’ll work on this some more!)

So here they are: My first resolution is a continuation of last year’s. In 2009, I began working out and eating healthier, and so far I’ve lost 34 pounds. I plan on working harder at this (it’s the snacking that gets me!), and continuing to work towards my 50 pound goal. Also, as a side note, I’d like more of this to rub off on my husband! (The kids I can control to some degree, but not DH!)

My next resolution is to be more organized in my business and my life. (I know, I write books about organizing information. I should be more organized myself, but for some reason it’s just easier for me to tell others how to do it than to do it myself!) Again, nothing huge here, just small changes, one at a time. I’ve already started using Google Calendar, which syncs with my phone, so I always have my schedule with me. See, small changes!

That’s it! Just two New Year’s Resolutions for me! Wish me luck!

Karen