Ah, spring has sprung

Yeah, it's sprung all right .... right into my sinuses, making me snottier than usual, with a cough that won't quit. Ugh and blech.

On the plus side (no pun intended), I really feel like I've developed a rhythm to this eating-to-lose-weight gig, as well as the working out bit. At first, I was feeling down because this co-worker is going to the gym every goddamn day and bragging about all she eats and how much she walks, blah blah blah and so on. However, I may be younger, but I'm not as spry. Should I not have these plates in my foot, yeah - I might work out all the time, too ... in a perfect world where someone could always watch my son, and I didn't have homework, and could wake up any time of day or night and go to the gym. In this perfect world, I might also have no plates in this thar foot, and could stand and run and jog all over the country. Also, I'd be fit and light and wouldn't have to embark on this journey.

This is why perfect worlds don't exist.

What happens when you don't have the money for convenience foods, like I've experienced these last two weeks? Why, you learn to cook for yourself, like in the olden days. Sure, I had a bad week in this past month, but I feel like I not only climbed back on the wagon, but I might be standing firmly on top of the bulkload, looking out over the landscape. I've developed a routine for breakfast every day, which is amazing to me. I learned to make an omelet, and if I eat enough fiber in the morning, I'm full for about 3.5 hours, and then I grab a quick snack. I eat oatmeal in the morning, with a piece of toast or two - I love that 45 calorie wheat bread. Green tea is a must for breakfast, sometimes fruit, sometimes fat-free milk .... all the fiber really keeps me going, I've noticed. I've also been cooking a regular lunch instead of heating up a frozen meal, and it feels good. While I'm not going to discount the goodness of Lean Cuisine, Michelina's or Smart Ones - they do come in handy - I like the feeling of eating something I've prepared even more.

I've also come to love organic foods, which is something I did not think would happen. Matt and I bought some organic french fries one day, and they were seasoned in the bag with garlic and something else. Low in calories, and they were worlds better than the frozen bagged fries, like Ore-Ida or whatever. Not that I haven't even my weight in frozen fries over the last 2 decades - I'm sure I came close. But these were light and airy and just .... good. I also bought some organic whole-wheat tortillas, and while I've been lauding praise over whole-wheat tortillas for awhile now, these were just absolutely delicious and wonderful. I used them to make vegetarian enchiladas last night, and also chicken fajitas with rainbow peppers and onions. I'm learning all kinds of new recipes and ways to live, and I love it.

While not all days are conducive to proper exercise, I've been drinking plenty of water, walking to the park with Jacobi on days it's nice outside, packing to move, walking up and down stairs ... little things. I know it all adds up, and that's what I'm counting on. I've realized that it didn't take me 3 months to gain all this weight, and it's not going to all come off like butter, like magic .... or with a pill. It's a slow, steady, gradual decline that I'm on, and I'm okay with that. I love knowing that I'm becoming healthier and expanding my horizons for both nutrition and exercise ... and that everything will be okay.