Back to attack the fat!!

I've been feeling like such a bum lately, but I just haven't been able to drag myself back to the gym for some reason. I haven't been motivated. I was justified in not spending as much time exercising while school was going on, because last semester truly was insane, but it has been two months since school ended and in that time, I have just been lazy. No excuses. Once you stop a good routine, it IS hard to get started again. Why is it that the bad habits are the easy ones to keep? Someone's gotta do something about that. God???

I still found little tidbits of awesomeness over which to rejoice during my gym hiatus, and those at least made me want to get back to Fitness Kate status. Here is a small list of victory tidbits:

*last week I went to Tucson for my amazing dad's 70th birthday! While I do bring my pillow with me when traveling, I do not include my own personal (and much larger than normal) towel in my luggage. My mom's towels are the standard towel size, and I could never get them to close all the way around me before. This time was different! I did a celebratory post-shower-heck-yes-I-fit-in-a-normal-towel!!! dance, and then almost lost the towel, which was fine because I didn't think it would close anyway so no one was around.

*Again in Tucson, I put on my mom's apron that I made for her from my Katydid apron collection and noticed that it fit much nicer than it used to, and I felt thin and girly and swishy. If swishy isn't something you can imagine, click on the link and look at the apron. Check out the ruffled bottom, and then imagine wearing it. You want to swish, don't you? Even if you are a man. Don't lie. When I had a giant belly and no waist, I loved my aprons on everybody else, but I never thought they looked cute on me. No more! I rock the apron and want to wear it continually as a cute accessory!

*I went to Travel Town with the School of Awesome (which consists of my Aunt Jo, cousin Gillian, nephew Eli and me) yesterday, and when we needed to get to the train ride as quickly as humanly possible because the last train of the day was leaving in four minutes, I picked up the child and ran like the wind! Being able to do stuff like that is so important to me!


*A bathing suit top that I bought years ago because it was cute and inexpensive actually fits me now. I honestly thought it never would! Buying it was wishful thinking.

There are more, but I'll save them for another time. It was a combination of those moments of victory and a little prodding from my friends and people who read this blog that got me into the gym today for the first time in months. One of the big reasons I started writing this blog was for accountability, and thanks to many of you who read it and count on it for motivation and notice when I haven't written in a while and ask me to write, I want to make sure that this blog and my struggles and successes continue to be a good source of motivation for you. I know that it can be so hard to stay motivated sometimes, but it's nice to know that none of us are in this struggle alone! I'm also incredibly happy that I didn't gain a bunch of weight back, which proves that I can maintain my weight pretty effortlessly after losing. I was right to not adopt any crazy unsustainable diets!

So as this new month begins, I am ready to get back on track and continue evicting the fat from my body. My goal for the month is to fit into size 16 jeans, and to weigh 199 or less. How exciting to know that soon I will be able to wear the size clothes I wore when I was a junior in high school. I can't wait to try my green prom dress on at the end of the month!I also have a really cute skirt that fits quite snugly now that I can't wait to wear when I'm down another size. That was another wishful thinking purchase years ago, but I will be able to wear it soon!!

One more thought to end this post: Last month the School of Awesome went to the Getty museum, and we found a sculpture that is the perfect representation of my weight loss journey. I am at the middle stage right now, with the heavy past being shed, and the hope of a lighter future springing out of the top. This is my new mascot. A true picture of "Tomorrow is a Lighter Day!"

Out with the old

Just to be cliche: Out with the old, in with the new! And also pretty soon it will be: Out with the old, in with the really old.

Let me explain. I have this thin pink sweatshirt that I used to wear constantly. It's perfect for cool weather, it's not too bulky to shove in my purse, and hey... it's pink. I'm not gonna lie, I love pink. A lot of my friends make fun of me for it, but I'm embracing my girlyness and there's not really much that anyone can do about it. I also like to cook and bake and watch extremely girly movies, through which I will most likely cry while I endure more mocking by my friends. Tonight I was with my friend Rocio and I mentioned something about a guy that I think is particularly cool and Jesus-loving, and also cute, and I could physically hear her rolling her eyes. I also happen to be wearing pink today, so I'm sure that added to the element of disgust for her. Oh yeah, pink! That was what I was talking about!

So anyway, this sweatshirt has sort of been through the ringer, and my mom has been trying to get me to get rid of it for years. She hates that it looks perpetually dirty, and that it's all stretched out. It doesn't even really look pink anymore, but I have been putting off throwing it away until I could find something similar with which to replace it. I never wear it anywhere except the gym anyway.

I was at Target recently, and found one I was gonna buy until I saw the $30 price tag. I am quite marvelous at finding good deals and not spending a lot of money, and in my mind, $30 can get a whole lot more than one sweatshirt. A few years ago, I bought an entire summer wardrobe for about $120, and I still wear those ten dresses. So I continued on my quest for a replacement sweatshirt, and found the perfect one at Walmart the other night for only ten dollars! I tried on the 16-18, which fit, but I didn't want to buy something that would fit now and be big in another few months, so I tried on the 12-14, and although it was a little snug, it looked fine, and I decided to get it. I also found a pair of size 18 jeans for $15, so I got those, and I'm super ecstatic to be in a size 18!! I haven't been able to wear an 18 since I WAS 18! In fact, this was the first time I have been able to shop in the regular section of a store in a really long time. I almost cried.

Here's the old sad dull pink stretched out sweatshirt:


And the new one. I totally feel thin when I wear it:


The size 18 jeans:


And there you have the "in with the new" segment. As far as the "in with the really old", perhaps you remember the post with all the pictures of how fat I used to be, which you can read here if you haven't seen it. I claimed there that my goal was to fit nicely into my high school prom dress again, and while it still doesn't zip, it does sit on the right place on my waist, which is a huge improvement over the last time I tried it on.

Here's what it looks like now:


So there you go! I'll try that dress on again in a couple months. In the meantime, I'll keep claiming "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" (Philippians 4:13), because I know that it is only by His strength that I have come as far as I have. I could never do it on my own! Believe me, I tried.