So excited!

Just a quickie post at lunch to announce that life is great here in GISrunner-land!

I'm losing weight. In fact, I've lost 7.5 pounds in a little over two weeks and 5 inches overall. My pants have gotten quite baggy! I feel absolutely wonderful, too. I'm finally making good nutritional choices, have cut the crap out of my diet and it's paying off big time. This Body by Vi 90 Day Challenge is working like a charm!

Since I've been feeling so much better and am not lugging around quite as much blubber, my runs have improved, too. I'm still slow but I'm increasing the running intervals and reducing the walk portions. My last 2 long runs have been 6 miles and I finished both feeling that I could have kept on going. I even managed to do a 5-mile midweek run. That is huge for me!

And just to share one thing today that really made me smile - here's the end of an IM this morning between my husband Taylor and me ("love you so much in the world" is our little saying that our daughter started when just learning to string words together into sentences)

My "A-Ha!" Moment

Taylor and I directed Vacation Bible School at our church this summer. It was a wonderfully uplifting spiritual experience and I have no doubt God was working in the lives of both the children and adults.

But ...

looking back at the pictures afterwards so I could compile a slideshow for worship service, I had an "A-Ha" moment.

I. AM. FAT.

Wonderful ... even worse from the back ...

I'm almost never in any pictures we take of family events. I'm always the one behind the camera.The only pictures of myself on this blog are the tiny profile picture from a trip to Disney World in 2007 and a head and shoulders shot of Kate and me at the Patriots 5k in April 2009.

I look at myself in the mirror daily and think "sure, I need to lose some weight, but I really don't look that bad."

I've been lying to myself without even knowing it. The extra 40 pounds I've slowly been gaining these last years is taking a toll on my body. I look awful. I don't feel as good as I should every day. I firmly believe it's the main reason I'm still run:walking my way through training workouts 2 years after I first laced up a pair of running shoes.

I'm sick and tired of it and it's going to change RIGHT NOW.

We all know the only key to losing weight is making permanent changes and incorporating a healthy lifestyle into your routine. It's simple but oh, so difficult: calories in (and quality calories at that) through smart nutrition choices and calories out through some form of movement (as you know from reading this blog that's primarily walking/running for me).

I've always enjoyed being active. I played basketball, softball and any other type of "ball" sport I could find in our small, rural community. Although I definitely have my share of lazy bones, in general, I enjoy getting out and staying on the move. It's more of a challenge now that I have to schedule workouts among everything else as a wife and mom who works full-time, but it's still doable.

My problem has always been making good nutritional choices and portion control. I'm now on Day 2 of the "Body by Vi" 90 day challenge. So far, so good and I'm 1.5 pounds lighter today than yesterday although I typically fluctuate 1 to 2 pounds every day. So, we'll see what my weight is next Friday morning for the true results.

This morning's breakfast was a strawberry-banana shake with the Visalus nutritional shake mix. It's delicious and I've almost finished it and am very full. I'm not sure what type of fruit I'll add to my lunch shake yet. (Ignore the camera date - I would never have the time to take a picture on a weekday morning!)


Wish me luck - hopefully this blog (which I'm also copying to my Body by Vi challenge site - will be a major part of accountability for me. I hope so. I am ready to CHANGE!

Three Things Thursday

1. I'm still dealing with vertigo. This is the longest it's ever lasted and obviously, it's impacting my workouts. I did manage 2.9 miles this past Sunday evening, but dizziness and running just don't go together. I can only take the medication at night before bedtime because it makes me so sleepy and my busy schedule doesn't have any other time that I can take it and then lie down. I've started doing some specific movements/exercises that are supposed to help, so we'll see.

2. I won a giveaway at MCM Mama's blog! I'm looking forward to trying the Nuun, Shot Blocks & Gu! Thanks to Alma for commenting on my last post to let me know. I'm behind on reading blogs and didn't even know about it!

3. I'm considering posting a picture taken of me a few weeks ago at Bible School. It was a "whoa!" moment for me when I saw the picture. Good grief, I don't think I look *that huge* when I see myself in the mirror ... sigh ...