Miss Moon Gets Healthy.... And Starts Over (Again!)

Ugh! I hate that I am writing this post, y'all! The past few months have been difficult, and I admit that I used it as an excuse to slack off on my "Get Healthy" routine. And as a result... I've gained four pounds.

Now four pounds may not seem like a lot, but those four pounds felt like such a failure to me. It was the motivation I needed to cut the crap, stop making excuses and get back on the treadmill, literally!!

So I started again last week, and I discovered I felt really great about it. Despite that areas of my life that are not quite as savory, I drag myself to the gym after work, I sweat and push myself and walk away feeling like a rock star!!!!!

I am going to try to keep this momentum up. Last year I dropped two sizes and now that its August... I have less time to match (if not exceed that!). But I resolve to do it!!!

Miss Moon Gets Healthy: And Joins a GYM!!!

As I promised, I bought myself an early Valentine's Day present: A membership to the Planet Fitness here in Brooklyn!! And let me say here, that I will not be one of those people who post on FaceBook.... all the time! LOL

I'm super excited. I plan on making my first visit sometime this week!! Hooray!! So for the months to come, instead of walking stats, I hope to be sharing my gym stats! And when the weather warms up, I will be back to walking in addition to the gym! Hooray!!!!!

This will be my first time visiting a gym, so if you have any tips or suggestions, let me know!!! I hope I can do it!!!

Miss Moon Gets Healthy: October Stats

I'm back with last month's walking stats and my Miss Moon Gets Healthy progress. I did really really well this past month, I think. The only hindrance was the appearance of Super Storm Sandy, because as a result I didn't walk for an entire week during the clean up process.

I actually had the golden opportunity to go shopping to get a few new items for work, and the funniest thing was that I was so hesitant to get a smaller size. It was like I was paralyzed with fear that if I bought these smaller sized clothes, go home and they don't fit... I will feel like a failure. I had to pep talk myself with the obvious statement that if they don't fit, I can return them for a larger size. And the most fabulous thing was that I didn't have to return them. The smaller sized clothes fit me just fine. And it was a bizarre concept to me... I am actually two sizes smaller than I had been for YEARS!!!

I am so very close to my year end goal, and now that I'm working, I understand the importance of keeping the walking going. I don't know if I can realistically walk 20 miles a week, so for November I will shorten the goal to 10 miles a week. Once I get used to the process, I will up the ante. I also would very much like to join a gym by year's end, because once the weather gets colder here in NYC, I'm not going to want to be walking around for an hour and a half a day! LOL

On a side note, my tee shirt says, "My Vote Rocks"... because it TOTALLY does!! And so does yours! So be sure to get out there and vote today!!!!

Miss Moon Gets Healthy: September Stats

I did it, y'all! I kept the promise I made to myself at the end of August. To paraphrase the song, I picked myself up, dusted myself off... and started all over again. I had a great month, to be honest.

This month, I am keeping momentum going. I've put myself to the challenge of walking at least 20 miles a week, and I aim to stick to that goal. I really need to improve the food I eat, as I've slacked more than a little bit. This month, I will work my arse off to improve this, too.

Me in my "Post Walk Un-Pretty" glory!! LOL

I am looking forward to the challenge, as I feel like I have the endurance required to achieve my goal for the year!!! Super duper close to it, can't turn back now!!

Miss Moon Gets Healthy... and Realizes She HAS Lost Weight!!!

So Picasa has this new feature (Perhaps it's old and I'm just noticing it) that recognizes faces and groups photos together based on the photos. It was in perusing that album containing nothing but my face (a cringe-worthy at times, but fun experience) that it finally dawned on me that yes, Audrey... you've lost weight!!! Pictures don't lie.... unless you use Photoshop! LOL

I remember reading an interview Ricki Lake had given about her weight loss where she said that for years after she had lost the bulk of her weight it was difficult to look at herself in the mirror and not see her former self. I think this will most likely be the case for me as well. Despite all the evidence that proves I've lost weight, it's still a difficult concept to accept for me.

As a matter of fact, I think Ricki and I might be "weight loss twinsies", because her story sounds a lot like me earlier this year. Fingers crossed I'll have similar results!

This month has proven to be a great one for me, as I've returned to my "Get Healthy" routine full throttle, and I am very excited to see if I can reach my goals for the remainder of the year. And this time next year, wouldn't it be great to post a three picture comparison?!?! Yay!!!

Miss Moon Gets Healthy... By Staying the Course!!

I find myself at a crossroads in my "Get Healthy" journey. On one path, I see myself the way I'd like to be if I continue on my journey: healthier, slimmer, more energetic, feeling loads better about myself. 

On the other path, I see the destination if I allow myself to give up my goals: I become the inactive, unhealthy, unhappy woman I was before I started on this journey. 

Regretfully, there will be no walking stats for this month, because I honestly did not walk. I managed to leave the house and walk briefly around my neighborhood for various errands each day, and I still manage to eat far better than I was.... but I haven't been giving it my all. The heat rash was a big reason, but I think that the main reason was fear of what will happen when I reach my goal. I've come to realized that being a big woman is so much a part of my own personal identity for myself that it scared me to see myself dropping the weight and getting smaller so quickly.

I know I have to get over this, because it's my health I'm doing this for... not for becoming some skinny minnie. I don't want the diabetes and high blood pressure and cholesterol concerns members of both sides of my family face. I'm discovering that this is the greatest motivation out there for someone like me.  

I am two sizes away from reaching my goal for 2012, and quite realistically, I can achieve this goal if I continue on the path I started at the beginning of the year. I kept it simple, and I reaped the benefits. 

So I promise to you all... Audrey is going to stay her course. She is going to walk.She is going to eat well, she is going to stay motivated, and come October, she will be sharing her September stats with all of you!! And I am going to need your help and support more than ever now!!!

Miss Moon Gets Healthy: July Stats

July was a much better month for yours truly! I had (many) moments of not feeling very motivated, but I still managed to get out and walk this past month. I am noticing that I'm walking less and burning less, but I really want to improve that. I have to... if I want to reach my fitness goals by year's end.

The same reason why there is no present picture is the same reason why I haven't been able to walk this month yet. I broke out on my face and neck with a horrible case of prickly heat (which is a nice way of saying heat rash). Sweating makes it worse, which makes it difficult to heal, so I've been sustaining from walking just now until I feel better. Now you know what my last post was about as well.

Fingers crossed the rash clears up very soon, so that I can be out and about and getting healthy!!!!

Miss Moon Gets Healthy: And Drinks Water... Lots and Lots of Water!!!

I know for a lot of people, drinking water is a huge bummer. A necessary one, but a bummer nonetheless. And you all might consider me a bit of a weirdo, but I happen to LOVE the way water taste. I happen to think that cold water is the yummiest thing when you're hot and thirsty! I love it, my body definitely loves it, so I drink it.

When I started on my journey to getting healthy, I knew that one of the first things I needed to do is to remove all the sugary sweet drinks I consumed and replace them all in water. And I did... in the past three months, I can honestly say I've had a diet soda once, an iced tea, and a vitamin water. I can literally count the non-water drinks I've had. Everything I drink (with the exception of my daily green smoothies.. yep, that's still going on!) is water. Don't believe me?

Pictured: LOTS of bathroom trips!!

I snapped this photo this past weekend to show the amount of water I consume in a single day. Three 50.7 fluid ounces of filtered tap water (in a smart water bottle, 'cause I'm fancy like that!), and I enjoyed a 25.3 fl oz bottle of Perrier with dinner (it's a great way to fool yourself into thinking you're having a soda with dinner!! lol). All together, that makes 177.4 fluid ounces of water I drank. In one day.

Some days I drink a lot more, some days I drink a bit less. But on average, this is what I work with. When I don't pick up a Perrier (or a Pellegrinno, which is my fave!), I will drink another 50.7 ounce of water. Frankly, my love affair with water is waning a bit, but still I do it. Why? Here's a few great reasons:

Lose weight: Drinking water helps you lose weight because it flushes down the by-products of fat breakdown. Drinking water reduces hunger, it’s an effective appetite suppressant so you’ll eat less. Plus, water has zero calories. 

Look Younger with Healthier Skin: You’ll look younger when your skin is properly hydrated. Water helps to replenish skin tissues, moisturizes skin and increases skin elasticity.

Better Productivity at Work: Your brain is mostly made up of water, thus drinking water helps you think better, be more alert and more concentrated.

Better Exercise: Drinking water regulates your body temperature. That means you’ll feel more energetic when doing exercises. Water also helps to fuel your muscle.

Less Likely to Get Sick and Feel Healthy: Drinking plenty of water helps fight against flu and other ailments like kidney stones and heart attack. Water adds with lemon is used for ailments like respiratory disease, intestinal problems, rheumatism and arthritis etc. In another words one of the benefits of drinking water is that it can improve your immune system. Follow this link for further information on how lemon water can improve your health.

Relieves Fatigue: Water is used by the body to help flush out toxins and waste products from the body. If your body lacks water, your heart, for instance, needs to work harder to pump out the oxygenated blood to all cells, so are the rest of the vital organs, your organs will be exhausted and so will you.

Good Mood: Your body feels very good and that’s why you feel happy.

So drink up, everybody!! 

Miss Moon Gets Healthy: June Stats

June was definitely a redeeming month for yours truly in regards to my Get Healthy plan! I successfully gave up meat for the entire month, embraced and conquered my 30 Day Green Smoothie challenge, and reached new heights with my walking!!!

71.9 miles is fantastic considering I dropped my daily walks down to once a day!! And I am very, very happy to announce the most exciting results of them all....

Not my most glamorous picture, but I'd just came back from a walk! 

I've gone down TWO sizes from the beginning of the year, and have gone from a size 26 to a size 22!!!! My aim is to reach a size 18 by the end of the year, and if I continue on this path, I am confident that I can do it!!

The goal for July is to continue the Green Smoothie challenge (I'm loving it!!), keep walking (I will need some new sneakers, as I mentioned on the Miss Moon's Musings FaceBook page), keep motivated,  and keep pushing on to my goals!!!

Miss Moon Gets Healthy: And Learns to Eat When She's Hungry!!

I'm a woman of my word, what can I say?!? LOL

I've never been the type of woman who stereotypically overeats when depressed or sad. When life hands me lemons, I don't immediately run to the tub of ice cream. Quite the contrary, when I'm depressed, I seldom eat. I don't get much of an appetite in those times.

Life has been going very well for me lately, so of course I've been eating regularly. In starting my "Miss Moon Gets Healthy" journey, I've noticed that the potential for overeating doesn't happen when I'm sad... it happens when I'm BORED!!

As I've mentioned before, I've dealt with insomnia for most of my adult life. And on many nights, I'd be up, wide awake, and watching Bollywood movies on my laptop on Netflix. My mind would wander to thoughts like, "Mmmm.... some potato chips would be great right now!". And I would pause whatever movie I'm watching, which most likely stars hotties like ShahRukh Khan, and run to the bodega around the corner of the 24 hour 7/11 in my area. 

Recently, such a thought popped in my mind. I was immersed in the film, "Swades" (Great movie, by the way! Check it out! It's streaming on Netflix!). So I paused the movie, got dressed, and went outside to visit 7/11. This was around 3 o'clock in the morning. When I got there, I was staring at the bountiful display of potato chips, in every flavor imaginable, and a single thought popped into my mind -

"Will any of these bags of potato chips help you to reach your goals?"

The answer was a resounding "No!", so I walked over to the beverages for a big bottle of water, grabbed a green apple, and went home to munch, sip, and swoon! LOL

I wish I could say that since this moment, I've steered clear of chips, cookies and other things that taste great, but aren't great for me. But alas... I've succumbed. But I am learning how to stay away when boredom strikes me, and I am confident that I will use my self-control to reach my fitness goals!!

Miss Moon Gets Healthy: With a NEW Way to Reward Herself!!!

At the start of my fitness journey, I would periodically give myself a little treat to reward myself for the hard work I've accomplished. The treat?!? A thick juicy bacon cheeseburger from Jake's BBQ here in Brooklyn. Sooo good! They're on Seamless Web, my Brooklyn friends... check 'em out!

When I would indulge in my treat, it didn't feel unsatisfying, but it also didn't make me feel great either, when I'm honest about it. I didn't feel TREATED... I felt a bit... guilty for doing something I felt was counterproductive to all I'm trying to accomplish. And I've always been a person who believes that good things should be rewarded, and if you choose to reward yourself with a burger, or cupcake, or WHATEVER food you love... I say more power to you!!

I just came to the conclusion that for me... my idea of a treat wasn't a burger. Sorry, Jake's! LOL What really brought home the message of my "A-Ha!" moment was a pin I spotted on Pinterest (That site is a great motivational tool for me, feel free to check out my boards if you haven't already! There's a whole "Miss Moon Gets Healthy" section):

When I saw this, I immediately thought to myself, "This is what I needed to read!!!". I promptly thanked the Universe for the sign that I was making the right choices for my life, and I vowed to pick different treats for myself to reward my workouts. 

And it's really worked out well for me! I'm slowing reprogramming myself to not equate unhealthy food with rewards. Because the way I see it... if junk food is a treat, what's healthy food?!? A punishment! And it really isn't (Except wheatgrass... I'm sorry, but Yecch! lol).

I've treated myself to an eyebrow waxing, those adorable new earrings from Dean + Gray, a new lipstick, and I had to take a moment to include my reward for April.... Do you remember my Quest for THE Bag 2011?!?!? Well......

Not my most glamorous photo, but I was just back from a walk and THE Bag was in the mail, so I had to snap a photo!!! LMAO

What better message that you're on the right path then something you've wanted for OVER A YEAR (!!!!) suddenly becoming a possibility!?!?!? I found it for a STEAL on eBay! And thanks to my wonderful mother (who accepts weekly repayment plans), it's MINE!!! And the feeling I felt when I put that bag on my arm.... was satisfying!!!!

And I looked at my Get Healthy path in a new light. I was tenacious enough to keep checking eBay for over a year until I found THE Bag.... Imagine how far I will go if I put that much zeal into getting healthy and losing this weight?!? I think I do... so let's see how far I'll go between now and next year!