Week 1: Facing the Giant (reflection in the gym mirror)

Day 1: I won't lie. I was not rearing to go on this Monday morning. I woke up tired thanks to baby Rinks and his insistence on waking up at 4am but I reminded myself that perserverence is key. Well, that and I already posted my plan on a blog for everyone to see so to slack on day 1 would be pretty sad, even for me. My plan is to eat a diet following the blueprint of a lean protein, a starch, and a leafy green at each meal, all within 1,400 calories with one "cheat meal" per week (if you want details on my diet, let me know and I will be happy to bore you with my day to day meals). I also joined the gym (dom, dom, dom) where I am doing a weight training schedule 4 days a week (alternating muscle groups), cardio 2 days a week, and 1 rest day. I chose this because I really like weight training and really don't like cardio, so I figured I need to go with what I think I will stick with long term. So I started with shoulders/back/legs today and I was surprised that I was able to pick up where I left off before pregnancy, although things seem to be flapping a little more these days.

Day 2: This whole pressure cooker approach to reaching my goal seems to be working well for me. I haven't been tempted to cheat in a whole 48 hours! This, my friends, is a revelation. I am starting to cook more and this definitely helps with knowing exactly what you are eating. Word to the wise, do not wear sleeveless to the gym when you are just starting out because chances are you will do as I did tonight and completely focus on your back fat waving at you as you do chest fly's and be tempted to go home and eat 6 ice cream sandwiches. (Oh wait, is that just me?)

Day 3: I literally rolled out of bed this morning, unable to bend my legs or torso. But today is Ashley's (my husband) birthday and we are going out tonight, so the show must go on. In preparation for this, I kept my eating clean the whole day so I could have a little room to play for dinner- which I kept clean by ordering the shrimp skewers and broccoli (impressed? Me too). Confession: I had three... ok, four bites of his Brownie Obsession dessert but I consider this a victory as the old me would have taken it hostage. I didn't work out today because I didn't have time due to the birthday celebration, so I decided to make this day my "rest" day which worked out well since I can't move my arms. Flexibility, there's an App for that.

Day 4: I got on the scale this morning (against all the expert's advice) and I have lost 2 pounds! So what if it's water weight, or I can't walk without holding on to the nearest object; I feel like I just won the weigh-in on the Biggest Loser. Victory is Mine!! Tonight was a challenge as my friend asked me to dinner at a pizza joint. Oh what to do, what to do? She is a skinny bitch and ordered Fetteccine Alfredo (seriously?) and it took every fiber of my being not to dive face first into her plate and molest her meal right there at the table. Maybe I haven't evolved as far as I'd like to think. Anyway, I restrained myself and ordered a thin crust veggie pizza with a (tiny) green salad... all while fantasizing about her meal the whole time. Nope, definitely haven't evolved. I got back to my weight routine tonight at the gym where the florescent lights were very cruel to my arms.

Day 5: I am Miss Fitness 2010. Today, amidst the falling snow and sleet, I took my happy ass to the gym and worked out among the exclusive dedicated hard bodies. As it turned out, I was the only one there with sleeves or cellulite but I didn't care, I was high on my newfound discipline. A page has been turned people.

Day 6: What do you do when a huge ice storm comes into your town and traps you in your home? Apparently, if you live in my house then you eat pizza ALL DAY long and start drinking at noon. Needless to say, I fell off the wagon and landed on a large cheese pizza. But guilt is a useless emotion so I refuse to feel guilty about it and will just come back tomorrow with renewed motivation.

Day 7: Drum roll please... I am sitting here 2 pounds lighter than I was when writing you last week! A small victory in this journey to uncover the potential that this body is capable of and ultimately the change that we are all capable of.

Weight Loss to date: 2 pounds! Stay tuned for more to come...