Hey Luv-lies,

Whew! I’m sooooo glad that February is here!  Now I’m not one who usually wishes for my days to go by rapidly, but January was a real bear!  Not just for the crazy weather. But for some reason, last month, the scale has for some reason stopped being my BFF.  I successfully got through the holiday unscathed!  Not a pound to be gained!  As a matter of fact, I reached goal someway between the latter part of December  and the New Year.  (Yes!  Smack dab between the Christmas and New Year holiday.  I lost AND reached goal)!  Talking about being on a high.  Ahh. Yeah.  So of course, going into January my thoughts were, ‘Humph! I successfully got through the  endless barrage of  holiday delights & treats, six weeks of maintenance shouldn’t be thaaaat hard’!  Now don’t get me wrong, in no way did I then, or do I now, think that at any time, this lifestyle change is ever a piece of cake {pun intended}.  But I was fairly confident that I’d get through the six weeks of maintenance at best, uneventfully.  And what with the unveiling of The Simple Start Program rolling out at the start of The New Year, I thought – ‘No Brainer.  Two weeks of  Power Foods.  No tracking.  I can do that. Right?’   NOT! 

So what the hell happened!?

I followed the two weeks of The Simple Start Program.  Continued to run five days a week – averaging twenty-five miles a week.  Even made a ‘2014 New Years Inspiration to complete one half-marathons this year. *aside – I’m pretty much on track {woo. another pun.  Not intended this time :/} with this*.  And then there were the Zumba Classes that I live for – to the tune {uh-oh. another pun.} of at least five to six times a week!  With all of this compliance, I wasn’t too concerned when the first two weigh-ins of the month – of the year!, for that fact – were the same.  No loss.  No gain.  Perfect.  That was a welcomed ‘plateau’ because,  I was into maintenance, after all.  Fast forward (or should that be ‘fast forward backwards?’) to the last two weeks of January.  Not. So. Good.  Why?  Yep! You guessed it.  Although there was no change in how I was ‘working the program’ – I stayed on The Simple Start  for the last two weeks of the month (why not?… I didn’t gain….  Until week three…) only, I added a (light. very light) weight training regime to the mix.   Those last two week weigh ins ….

Gain!!!!  Yesssssss!!! Gain!!!! {forgive me for yelling so loudly.  I am fuming!}  To the tune of a total 3.6 lbs!!  First things first.  with this much gain, I’ve totally blown the criteria for continuing on my maintenance journey *heavy sigh*.  That’s a bummer.  Needless to say, I HAD to share my not-so-good-news with my fellow members in this week’s meeting.   And true to form, the support that I received from my fellow members was uplifting and reassuring.  They reminded me of the non-scale successes that I have achieved and reminded me that, with the addition of a weight training regime (even a very light one) I’ll be sleek, toned & trimmed just in time for bathing suite season.  And that continued adherence to this lifestyle journey is, in and of itself, commendable.  I thank my fellow group members for their understanding and honesty….we’ve come to be to do that for each other.

My take away on the whole matter …  its’ about perspective.  Focusing on the successes.  Celebrating the achievements.  And remaining steadfast in one’s goal despite difficulties and/or delays in achieving success.  If I had to put it in a word….. Persistence

What’s your take on this?

Do Tell?