In my latest attempts to improve my health and body – while losing weight – I have decided to approach the situation differently. And as it turns out, it may not be so strange after all.

Little background – when I was 29 years old I quit smoking, alcohol (with the exception of a glass of wine once in a blue moon) and caffeine.  Part of the reason I did this was because I was diagnosed with an arrhythmia that is now under complete control with a beta blocker (medication which keeps heart rate low and steady). At that time I was about 145 or so.  I was not happy with my body – as I never have been. But looking back, I do not know what my problem was. I only WISH I could look like that again. HERE is a picture. This is about 2 months before getting pregnant which was a couple weeks after the diagnosis. SOOO...due to the medication and of course, the pregnancy, I gained about 70lbs. Yikes is right.

Now...my “baby” is about 4 ½. And I still have about 30lbs to loose.  During these last 4 years, I have tried EVERYthing. Bought a treadmill, DVDs, gym membership, weights, balance ball, Nutrisystem (2 months worth), yada yada...Those 30 pounds do NOT want to budge. I have spent months weighing my food, writing EVERYthing down, counting calories, joining different weight loss websites...again, yada yada.  So, a couple months ago I decided that I those typical weight loss methods were just no good for me. I became obsessed with the numbers, with every morsel that went into my mouth. The scale was an enemy that made no sense to me. How could I have been making so many significant changes with virtually no change on the scale? It made me furious.

So, I basically decided to chill.  I will buy food that is healthy and not have temptations in the house.  If I have a weekend day splurging, I do and TRY to do this without feeling guilt. That is something that will take some time. Only when I do “splurge” I do not stuff myself, ever. I stop eating before that full feeling. I eat smaller meals or snacks throughout the day. Though, I do still need to work on eating breakfast everyday. I basically try to eat when I feel hungry and stop when I am not. I eat only things I really like when I splurge too. I try to eat it slower. And I do not drink any calories.  Water, decaf iced tea, decaf coffee...and a diet decaf soda here and there is all I drink. I have not weighed myself in months. No measurements either. I am going to base results by how my clothing fits, how I look naked and how I feel. The scale is a joke anyway. They are never exactly right and our bodies change so much through each day. Hell, around my period – I can gain 7 pounds in bloat!! That is no exaggeration either...unfortunately.

I have also increased my exercise. I use my treadmill about 6 days a week and will do anywhere from 30-50 minutes. I also use my hand weights and balance ball for ab exercises 2-3 times a week.

My mom and husband have said I look thinner. Not sure how honest they are being. But I do feel my pants are a little looser. Anyway...I was reading an article last night and found out about THIS.  It is called Intuitive Eating. And it is pretty much what I have been doing on my own. I thought it was so interesting that it was actually being practiced by others intentionally. Check it out.