Hello everybody… wow, I just realized that it’s been over six months since I have written anything on this blog so I guess this means I am moving on to other projects. But, before I go I wanted to really close this chapter and share a little of where I’ve been and where I’m going. I will not deactivate the blog so the recipes, ideas, tips, stories that I have shared will continue to be here. All of it, warts and all.
OK… so, weight-wise. I have gone up. My last post was about continuing with adding green smoothies to my routine. That lasted until the cold weather settled in (sort of) and since then I went off the rails pretty badly. My depression flared and that didn’t help either and I ballooned to 197 lbs. I am, as of today, at 185 lbs. about 25 lbs over this year’s lowest but still 40 lbs. under my all-time high and I am happy about that.
Mid-december I had a major depressive episode and I realized that it had been building up for a while (since around June): I had lost interest in a lot of things, missing a lot of gym classes, and overeating sweets (mostly oreos). I finally exploded in tears and anger and had to get back on my meds, make an extra effort to drag myself to the gym and took on the Scarsdale Diet (with modifications) which is a simple and pretty easy diet to follow. After a week I was down to 186 lbs. and I’ve been using it as inspiration to plan my meals from then on. It’s been working. I am currently much calmer, little tears, and better at controlling my bouts of anger but there’s a lot of work to do still ahead.
Today I was reviewing my list of 2015 New Year’s Resolutions and I see that I only fully completed 3/10:
#3 Start a Race Bib Collection: I did that… I ran/walked one 5K every month this year and now I am the proud owner of 12 race bibs. Not bad.
#5 Pay off credit card: I am so happy to announce that I am credit card debt free. WOO HOO!
#7 Visit friends: In April, I had to take a trip to Washington DC (I’m in SC) for some errands and stayed a few days to visit with two of my graduate school friends. I had an amazing time and will cherish those memories for a very long time.
So… all in all… not bad. Now, I hope to receive 2016 in a better mood.
2016 New Year’s Resolutions
- Begin a New Chapter: I’ll be moving to a different country next month. Keep up with my adventures on Instagram.
- No longer obese: Another year is another opportunity to stick to good eating habits and exercise routine. This year I learned that I have to keep my depression on check.
- Keep running: I’ll continue signing up for 5K’s and running in general. The goal for 2016 is to keep track of all my runs and reach 150 miles by the end of the year (that’s 3 miles a week; it’s doable).
- Read 50 books: Here I go again. I only read 17 books in 2015 and 20 in 2014. Obviously I went the wrong direction. 😆
- Save Money: Last year’s money goal was to pay off the credit cards and I did so this year I’ve decided to go with the 52-week saving challenge. Wish me luck!
- Volunteer: I wanted to join a group in 2015 and failed at that. I participated in little volunteer projects but not to the level of commitment I really want so I’ll try harder in 2016.
- Visit Venezuela: It’s been nearly five years since I have seen my family in Venezuela. It’s time to correct that.
- Write a Novel with #NaNoWriMo: Another one from 2015 – I have a story stuck in my head; hopefully I can let it out in 2016.
- Keep a Food Diary: I used to be pretty good at writing down what I ate. I don’t add a lot of detail so it’s not that hard but this is one of the things that I stopped doing around mid-year and that I know really helps me with weight loss.
- Conquer one item from my Confidence Bucket List: Another goal from 2015 that went unfulfilled.
OK… there they are. 2016… I believe I am ready.
The Extra Pounds 