Apr 30, 2019

Losing is a Good Thing


I had a moment yesterday. I have been regularly walking a mile with one of my top supporters, Chantal!  We started walking around the time I started Weight Watchers. I was trying to find ways to ease into a healthier life. I was NOT about to pick up running. I needed to start somewhere.  I opted for: taking the stairs more and regularly walking a mile. Walking a fast-paced mile and talking at the same time is HARD. I was out of breath the whole time. Yesterday, I didn’t feel that at all! I felt like we could have kept going, talked even more, and walked a little faster. That was ground breaking for me.  
I had an even better moment today! I hit a big milestone of 20lbs down!!! For two months, I’ll take it! I haven’t really seen a difference in how I look. It has been defeating at times. I would look at the scale, get on, off, and back on again. Yes, indeed, I was down. I couldn’t see it. Not until today when my friend, Laura, took this picture of me holding 20lbs of PASTA. Then I put it side by side with an old, but recent photo. NOW, I see it.



I have never been so happy to lose. I haven’t felt this good in a long time. I can do small things and not die. That is why I started this journey in the first place. My goal was never and will never be to “get skinny”. It is to be comfortable doing the things I love to do. My health should not hold me back from the things I want to do. Two months ago, I made a commitment to myself. Looking back, I am so glad I did.

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Apr 16, 2019

Stop Lying.


WHOOPS. I missed last week, but that made me “on time” for my post this week. Last week, I went up 1lb and that sums up the entirety of the whole week for me. Zach and I went to Utah this weekend to visit family and friends. It was my first trip while doing Weight Watchers. I was positive I couldn’t travel and stay within my points. Yeah, I totally used some weekly points. Not all of them though! It was slightly shocking to me when I got on the scale this morning and was 2lbs down. OKAY. I can do this!

It’s funny to me to notice the difference in how I felt last week when I had gained and then compare it to this week and being down on the scale. Last week, as every meal approached or boredom set in, my thoughts turned negative and stayed there. This isn’t worth it. It takes too much time. I have to plan ahead.... Blah. Blah. Blah.

I am starting this week with a rejuvenated view.

Isn’t this true for all we do? When we fail, don’t do as well as we planned or had hoped, we get in a negative headspace. Why try then? What’s the point? I was fine before.
LIES. I didn’t start this journey for kicks and giggles. I did it because I saw room for improvement, growth, and to feel better. I would say this is true for all my endeavors in life. I didn’t give up when I wanted a bachelor’s degree, when I wanted to try out for the voice, when I wanted to go on a backpacking trip through New Zealand and Australia by myself to swing on the world’s largest swing, or when I wanted to buy my first home (and then second). 

The facts of life are simple. If we look for it, we can find it. We will always be able to say why we can’t do something. How about we ditch the easy way of doing things and focus on finding the reasons why we CAN do it.

We are stronger than we think. Whatever your current journey may be, you can do it. Set backs happen. Stick with it and look for the reasons you can. That is my goal for my journey to a healthy Meg.



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Mar 28, 2019

I try.


We've heard this thousands of times in our lives and sometimes we say it ourselves. 
When it rains, it pours.

Stress is difficult to manage. There are millions of self-help books, Ted Talks, podcasts, etc. For me, hearing someone else describe how to manage MY stress isn't helpful. They don't know all the nuances of what causes my stress. They don't know that I have 3 really big projects at work and a bunch of smaller projects. Or that I don't feel adequate or that I don’t feel like I am contributing as much as I could because I am stretched far too thin in all aspects of my life. 

My whole life I have managed my stress by crying, eating, sleeping and if it is nice—being outside. Eating is not a healthy way to manage stress. It is everything in me to NOT succumb to my intense craving for an order of Small Sweet Pork Nachos from Costa Vida. Cheers to discovering how to overcome that coping mechanism. I would say I am open to suggestions, but I am not. I need to figure out what works for me. Not what works for someone else. Yes, sometimes we do cope the same way as someone else. I’ve always been someone who has to learn for myself even if it is the more challenging way to learn.

The more stressed I get, the more depressed I am. It’s a cycle that is hard to break, but we MUST break it.


SO. I focus on the good. Most of the time. Okay, I try.

Another week has passed and another pound down.
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Mar 20, 2019

Life lessons from bad food.

Okay— I am a day late! I AM SORRY. Honestly, for no good reason too. I need to put a meeting on my calendar to remind myself to sit down and write every Tuesday night!

 

Today’s wisdom is inspired by a very bad weekend of eating really good food. And by really good food, I mean ‘BAD for you’ food! 

 

Real talk. I turn into an empty bottomless pit with constant cravings right before I start my period. (Yeah, I went there!) I don’t think I am alone in this problem, but maybe I am. 

 

For those unaware of how Weight Watchers works, you are given a standard allotment of Daily Points and then an additional bucket for your “Weekly Points”. My goal is to avoid eating all weekly points. If necessary, I’ll have some here and there. If you don’t use all of your daily points they can roll over into your weekly. So I got to the end of the week and had all of my weekly points left. UNTIL Saturday. I ATE ALL THE THINGS! *Face Palm* In one day I ate all my Daily Points and my Weekly Points too. HELP. 

 

At that point it turned into a total mental game. I was ready to quit. It’s not worth it. After one bad day- I was ready to give up the entirety of my goal! What the heck! My mental game isn’t as strong as I would like it to be. I kept going forward and tried to reset. And despite the bad food and period bloat (YES that is a totally real thing) I lost 1 ½ lbs. That was the real eye opening moment for my mental game.

 

When we fail once do we really think that means we should give up completely? I am sorry— my one bad day of eating does not mean I need to be destined to a life of being overweight and unhealthy. 

 

When we fail, we pick ourselves back up, and keep moving toward our end goal. That’s life. Or that is how to be successful in life. 

All in all, I'm taking it all one day at a time.

 

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Mar 13, 2019

Real Talk with Meg

Okay. We’ve talked about this before—and maybe even a 100x. And reality is, we are going to talk about it again. Weight loss… except I want to talk about it as being HEALTHY.

After my recent work trip (2 weeks on the road), I faced some rude realities. I felt like a tub of LARD. I know—I shouldn’t refer to myself as such. But dang! I did not feel good. Something needed to change.

In an effort to stay on track, I am being very open and honest about the steps I am taking. I want people to know. I need the support and encouragement. Sometimes that support might be calling me out on what I am eating. All of my coworkers are aware, all of my family knows, and most of my close friends know. And a promise to myself is to share how many pounds I am down each week. That regular check in is what I need to stay accountable. I will simply add it to the bottom of every post.

I started Weight Watchers last week. Yesterday was my first weigh in and I was down 10lbs. UH. Okay. Clearly there is weight to shed. I know it won’t continue to come off so quickly, but it sure felt good to see that number. Along with watching what I eat, I am exercising regularly, and I am not eating after 7pm.

After today, I will be posting every Tuesday. (Weigh in day!) It may or may not be about how I am feeling. Most of you know it will be the ramblings of my everyday life.

Yay to 10 lbs lighter! 


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Nov 2, 2018

Catching up

WOW.
It has been an incredibly long time since I have written a post. And to be honest I am not sure I can really pinpoint why. I enjoy writing. I enjoy sharing the things that I learn through my everyday experiences.
Here I am, back at it again. It now seems like it has been so long that I am not sure where I even try to start. Do I go back to where I left off and try to fill in the last 631 days? No, probably not.
Let’s start with today. *cue the monologue*  
I looked back at my most recent blog post and, as I did, I realized what I needed. And what did I need? To read exactly what I had written 1 year and 8 months ago.
Oh, the joys of finding yourself in a similar head space years later. Let me clarify- life is great! However, there are pieces and many moving parts in my life right now that aren’t something I would classify as “great”.
I’ve been here before. I have gotten through it before. I should have ALL the answers right now. I don’t. Each new life experience comes with a new set of nuances. Which means new skills are required to overcome and tackle the experience. We can and should still use our past experiences and learnings to aid our efforts.
Recently, I let myself get down and I forgot my own strength. Last night, I had a friend remind me that I wasn’t giving myself enough credit. WHY do we put ourselves down? Why is it so easy to forget all the good that we are and that we have?
So, my real question? What do I do now?
Stop.
Recognize the lies you are telling yourself.
Cut it out.
Write down your strengths. (This can be difficult. Stick with it.)
Write down all the good things you are blessed to have. (This can be experiences, relationships, or tangible things.)
Continually reflect back on the good things.
Help others through this process. We all go through it at some point in life.
Repeat as necessary.
We determine our attitudes. We are responsible for getting ourselves out of the negative head spaces we find ourselves in. We are strong enough to do it!
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Feb 9, 2017

PURPOSE- You have it.

Over the last few months I've felt purposeless. I hate to admit this and feel almost silly saying it.
I fell into that stupid pit of self-loathing and doubt. I was at the place where you sit there and look for external validation from everyone around you that never seems to come. AND you forget you are the only validation needed.

NO ONE CAN GIVE YOU PURPOSE. YOU, ALONE, MUST FIND YOUR PURPOSE. (and when I say 'alone' I mean you and God.)

I am not sure there is much worse of a cycle to get stuck in than the never ending "why does nobody care about me" thought process. Does anyone notice I'm not around? Anyone care? Well, if I am being completely honest with you... I wouldn't care about me when I am in that negative head space. Who really wants to be around negative people for extended periods of time? It's exhausting.

There are so many factors I can blame. Seasonal depression, anxiety, stress, and the fact that I have a really comfortable bed. The mixture of a constant inversion, lot's of changes at work and new responsibilities, and what seems to be a full-on Elsa winter, but the reality is there is a solution. What is the key to happiness?
Willing service to others is a key to enduring happiness. President Kimball said: “God does notice us, and he watches over us. But it is usually through another mortal that he meets our needs. Therefore, it is vital that we serve each other.” - Richard G. Scott, "Finding Joy in Life" May 1996
 I am blessed to have friends and family members who helped me snap out of it. The second I forgot about myself and got out there and served others the happier I was. It's a slow process and starts with small acts of service. Unfortunately, it doesn't happen over night even though I wish it did.

How did I get out of it?
  1.  Friendly reminders that this wasn't me.
  2.  Continued follow-up from friends and family on how I was doing. (Sorry if I didn't respond to you- I was being too self centered to see a hand reached out to me.)
  3.  I made daily goals-- nothing too big.
  4.  Every night I wrote down at least one thing I was grateful for.
  5. I started going to the gym every other morning.
  6. I bought a ridiculously expensive alarm clock. It simulates the sunrise and makes your room gradually as bright as day!  
*Note alarm clock on night stand* Also just wanted to show off Roxy. :)

Everything else seemed to fall into place while I was preoccupied accomplishing my list above. I didn't even notice when things seemed to change suddenly it was just better.

Everyone has their own path to happiness and finding their purpose. I can only share what helped me. Sometimes all we need is a reality check.

Also, I stumbled upon a blog post I wrote almost three years ago that goes hand in hand with this post. For a reminder that 'YOU IS IMPORTANT' go here.


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