It's time to go public

I'm scared. I'm fearful. I hate to fail. Will it happen again? And again? And again?

This is why I (we) started this blog. We've heard and read so many times that if you make your weight loss journey public then you'll be more disciplined in how and what you eat. I'm challenging myself in hopes that "going public" is true.

I'm blogging with a sweet close friend of mine, Lyn (I'll let her tell you about herself), who lives almost three hours north of me. It seems that the issue of our weight always creeps into our phone and IM conversations, whether we swim together in a pool of pity or share encouraging tips and experiences. So, instead of fighting the long distance, we decided to tackle our weight together - here, on this blog.

Just a bit about me.....I won't go into the details of childhood, although I have great memories and will most likely share them as this blog progresses. There's no background story of child obesity or struggle with the pounds. Rather, I would just say that my three pregnancies were hard on my body and it didn't help that I had my children within two years of each other. Just ask my dentist. She waited almost three years to fix some of my dental issues because I was always with child. Now, I can't blame my weight gain on simple pregnancy. I think it's easy for a SAHMW (stay-at-home-mom/wife) to get so overwhelmed that she puts herself on the back-burner and tends to the children and chores before her own health. I have just gotten comfortable and L-A-Z-Y. My husband preached about idols of the heart in church a few Sundays ago. I was convicted because I know that my appearance has become an idol in my life.

I can become consumed with how I feel about my body. I purposely don't weigh myself regularly but I do feel that the scale is tied to my ankle, being dragged around everywhere I go. My feelings toward my weight tend to spill over into all the other aspects of my life...and that's not good.

Well, why do I want to lose this weight? There's a list of reasons. I won't divulge them all here. My first inclination is to answer that I want to be "healthy" and feel better. I want to keep up with my kids outside when playing. I want to enjoy daily activities and wearing clothes that don't "creep" or "expose". A friend challenged me to remember of my purpose in life. What's the purpose to life? To glorify God and enjoy Him forever. So, how does that look in the frame of weight loss? It means that I should be excellent in all things, bringing him glory even in how I eat and take care of my body, His temple.

I encourage any tips and comments. I began last week counting calories (1500 per day) as well as returned to the gym on a regular basis. My gym contract is up in May '09 so I have a little less than a year to lose the amount I want to lose. We are going to DisneyWorld with the kids for the first time next summer so it's a great goal-time to shoot for. Not to mention that we'd like to try to get pregnant late that same year.

Well, pictures and stats will come soon. Not that I'm looking forward to it or anything.

Off to bed I go,
JM