Been kinda busy lately. Picked up a new treadmill and a rocking chair through MaxSold.com - they do estate auctions, all online. It's really fun, but also a little dangerous. I almost got a cedar chest too, but it got priced out of my range. Then I put some bids on some doll house furniture - I have a nice dollhouse (well, sort of nice - someone was throwing it out and I picked it up) and even some small Disney Princesses to go in it, but no furniture for them. Someone else wanted them more, though. I did get some Greek dolls, though. And I do love my new rocking chair. It's the old-fashioned kind. Could use a little refinishing but I find I don't even mind that there's no cushion. It's my new favorite place to sit in my house. I really should take some pictures, huh?
I spent Conference weekend helping a friend get to and from the hospital, then another friend - well, maybe it wasn't so much help, but since this is the friend that just lost her mom I did want to spend some time with her. And we had to see Captain America. Which was fabulous (see review to the right). So Sunday I binge-watched Conference. Not sure I remember a whole lot, so I really do need to read through the conference talks now. I did like Elder Bednar's talk on the guy with the truck, though. That was fun. I know there was another one that kind of struck me as well, but since I wasn't really taking notes (I was knitting) I don't remember.
I had a really good talk with my PT Joni this morning after our session. We talked a lot about how it's so easy to get discouraged when we are trying to make changes in our lives and it doesn't look like we're making any progress. I actually haven't lost much weight in the nearly 8 months I've been working out with her, but I'm so much stronger and more able to do things. Another friend has remarked that my whole complexion just looks better. The pants I put away last fall (they're not winter pants) are now getting so loose that I wish they had belt loops. My sewing machine may be getting some tailoring use soon.
Side note - so grateful to my Mom for teaching me how to sew, and even providing me with a sewing machine (20 years ago, for Christmas - still works. Gotta love Kenmore).
I spent last weekend putting sewing machine to good use yet again making a bridesmaid dress for a friend. It turned out really pretty, although there was a point I wanted to just chop it all into pieces. We had several fittings too, as I tried to make the dress she really wanted. I think she's happy with it, though.
So. Lifestyle changes. Bodies don't want to change their comfortable 'set point', so resist losing the weight that they've accumulated over many years. It will get easier, but it will also take a couple years for it to get easier. I've been thinking a lot about how easy it can be to use willpower to lose that 20 pounds or whatever, but without the lasting change, it not only comes back, it brings friends.
At Stake Conference a few weeks ago the talk that really made an impression on me was given. There are 5 steps:
1) Acknowledgement - you need to acknowledge that there's a problem. In my case, last September my 'ah-ha' moment finally came, and I accepted the reality of my health or lack thereof and my weight.
2) Will Power - it can get you started, but it's like an afterburner on a plane. It doesn't last long. For me, it got me to call Joni and set up Personal Training. It got me to join the Lean Eating program with Precision Nutrition (at Joni's recommendation). It got me started.
3) Hard Work - with out hard work, there is no progress. Sad, but true. Can't just wish for things to happen. Those pounds are not going to fall off by themselves.
4) Persistence - at some point the will power will burn out and you just have to keep going. Last week, due to some injuries (I fell on the ice) I wasn't able to work out, and we even decided to skip my PT session. It was kind of nice to get to work early in the morning, and to get things done. I got to sleep in a little every day (or at least it felt that way). If I didn't have Joni to return to this week, I may have taken me a lot longer to get back in the saddle. But I did, and now I am.
5) Industry - Day by day, bit by bit, or as my friend says, "Every day in every way it just keeps getting better and better"
3,4, and 5 kind of go together in my mind - can't really do one without doing the others at the same time.
