Happy Thursday!

Happy Thursday!

In exactly ONE DAY I’m moving into a new apartment that’s WAY closer to work. I. Cannot. Wait. This also means that in 4 days, I’ll be starting the Achieve program. Before I start, I thought I’d lay out some challenges that I’ve faced in the past with other programs and brainstorm ideas on how to avoid those again.

1) Food Prep

This has ALWAYS been one of my biggest personal health and fitness struggles. If I have food prepped and ready to go for the week (mainly breakfasts/lunches), I do alright...most of the time. However, there are times that laziness or the food-lover in me kicks into over-drive. For example, the laziness comes out when I don't "feel" like actually going to the grocery and taking a few hours to cook food for the week or next few days. The food-lover comes out when I already have stuff prepped, but then I decide it's not what I want, so I buy something less healthy for lunch instead. I also tend to run a bit on the late side in the mornings (Any NON-morning people out there?!), so when I don't have my breakfast and/or lunch already packed, I may be in too much of a hurry to pack it before I leave or I may just think "forget it, I can't be late, I'll get something at work", even if it won't be healthy.

Things I Can Do:

-Make more easy, freeze-able meals

-Plan more (but how, exactly?)

-Get up earlier and/or pack lunches on work nights

I honestly am not sure what exactly I can do. Suggestions would be appreciated! I guess I'm not 100% sure how to MAKE myself be motivated to take several hours out of my day off to prep food or how to convince myself to take a few extra minutes at night to pack a lunch when I'm already exhausted.

2) Not Having "Enough" Success

I feel like this can be a big hindrance for me. Logically, I know that these things take time and you don't always see results right away. Especially if I'm going to be getting in shape and building muscle, the scale might not necessarily always be the best judge of success. However, mentally/psychologically, it's hard for me to continue with enthusiasm if I see little to no success within the first week or two of a change.

Things I Can Do:

-Stay active on the Achieve social media site

-Continue going to meetings

-Enlist accountability partners to encourage me. 

Suggestions would be appreciated here too! I think I'll start with a small goal. Starting Monday, every time I find myself disappointed in my success (or lack thereof), I'll try to write down one thing I'm proud of from the previous week or day.

3) Making time for working out

Honestly, I think this might change for me, but historically, it's been a struggle. Since I'm moving closer to my work on April 1st (no, that's not an April Fool's joke), I'll only be driving 10 minutes one-way instead of almost an hour! WOO HOO! Spending 2 hours of my day in my car is exhausting, even though it's just sitting. If I'm going to work out when I come home, I have to be REALLY motivated. Consequently, the number of workouts per week I've done lately has dwindled.

Things I Can Do:

-Bring workout clothes with me to work

-Have a workout area ready to go at home

-Plan ahead, schedule out my day, and DON'T COMPROMISE

By bringing clothes to work, I can go straight to the gym or to the walking trail or wherever it is I need to go without first sitting on the couch and realizing I missed last night's episode of Scandal. Another thing I tend to do a lot is make excuses and compromise. For example, if I plan to workout at 3:45pm after work on Tuesday, and then everyone decides to go to happy hour after work, I need to prioritize and just go do my workout instead of making excuses like, "I'll work out tomorrow."

4) Prioritizing

I'm sure I'm not the only one, but there are so many times when I do what I WANT to do rather than what I SHOULD do. It's a constant battle. This kind of ties in to all of the previous 3 challenges that I've dealt with. I might get a wrap from the cafeteria at work instead of bringing and eating one of the lunches I prepared for the week. I might go to happy hour with coworkers or friends instead of going home to work out or do food prep. I might get caught up in a TV show that I missed and decide the couch is way more appealing than a workout session or cooking a healthy dinner. You get the gist.

What I can do: 

-Make a list and put it somewhere obvious

-Start making my health a priority

Hopefully in time I'll be able to bring updates on what actually works for me and be able to share strategies I've discovered. :)

What are some of your challenges and goals??

How do you stay motivated and prioritize to help you stay on track??

T-Minus 8 Days

Let's start with an intro. I'm Courtney. My nickname is CoCo, but that's a story for another time.

I'm a pharmacist, lover of Jesus, and Butler grad. I love food and wine and especially trying NEW food and wine, which is probably how I got myself into this mess. Let me explain.

This is a picture of me from Saturday.

This is a picture of me from 5 years ago.

In 2013, I graduated pharmacy school, and a few months later, I got out on my own and moved into my own apartment. During the last few years, I've tried diets and workout plans and accountability partners. Sometimes I was trying to lose weight, sometimes just trying to maintain, but every time I eventually fell off the wagon.

I've never been "skinny", as you can see. I'm the hungry one on the left. :)

I've always struggled a bit with my body image (haven't we all?!), but I've really never felt uncomfortable in my own skin until now. To be honest, I don't have an excuse for how I let myself get this far. I imagine it was a combination of too many unhealthy meals, too many glasses of wine, and not enough self-control. 

Starting on April 4, I'll be joining Achieve. If you don't know what Achieve is, join the club. Ok, I guess I do know a little bit about the program. I know several people that have joined and had a lot of success, including my mom! From what I understand, it's a lot like Weight Watchers or similar programs. Weekly meetings, online tools, and food logging. One of my favorite things about the program (from what I hear!) is that I'll be learning which different combinations of foods to eat and the WHY behind each of those combinations. I think it will be a good kick in the rear to get me back on track and eating healthily again.

I don't really feel comfortable sharing my weight or measurements yet, but I as I continue my journey, I might begin sharing more. Until then, I'll share my goals.

My goals:

1) Lose weight - of course. My goal is to lose 30 pounds at a reasonable rate of 1-2 pounds per week.

2) Lower my cholesterol. I've never had high cholesterol, but at my health screening for work a few weeks ago, it was on the border. 

3) Get in shape! I don't have a specific goal or timeline here. However, I would like to run a half marathon within the next year or two.

4) Gain confidence back. I've really lost a lot of confidence within the last year. I've probably gained 20 pounds in the last 2 years, and although I'm a successful, independent woman, it's made me a lot less confident in myself.

I'll be using this blog to share my ACHIEVEments (see what I did there?) as well as my failures. I'm also hoping to share and review new recipes, strategies, and workouts. I may throw in a few non-Achieve-related blog posts here and there as well, just to keep you on your toes. ;) Hopefully this will also serve as my accountability tool. 

I will NOT fall off the wagon this time!