Perspective

Today did not start off on a good note, but things got much better at the day's end.  Why did my day not start off on a good note, you ask?  Because of the damn scale.  Yesterday, when I weighed in, I was down .8 of a pound from last week.  Not great, but still a loss.  This morning when I weighed in, I had gained weight.  So the Birthday Challenge update for this week is a 0.7 lb weight gain over last week.  It is hard to post a weight gain on my weight loss blog, but I want to be honest and real.  You get the good, the bad, and the ugly from me!  Remember how jubilant I was after the first week when I lost 3.2 pounds?  I was cautious though because I knew some weeks would be better than others and let's just say this past week was not great.  I realize that it is just a minor weight gain, but I'm definitely not looking to go in that direction.

I was pissed this morning after I weighed in; mad at the scale, at the world, just generally ticked off.    However, as the day went on, I started to put things in perspective.  3 weeks into my Birthday Challenge and I'm still down 4.2 lbs in that time and to-date, I've lost 41 lbs.  Not too shabby.  Matt and I were talking about a Biggest Loser challenge that he is participating in at his work and it got me thinking about the percentage of my body weight that I've lost.  So I did a quick calculation and since the first of the year, I've lost 14.36% of my body weight.  That's pretty awesome and seeing that number and reminding myself how far I've come was the push I needed to get past my bad mood.  It's all about perspective!

I also got in a good workout at lunch.  The heat index at lunchtime was around 99 degrees, so I nixed the thought of an outdoor run and decided to do a few miles on the recumbent bike.  I did about 7 miles and it felt great!  I was still a little perturbed at the scale at lunch, so getting those few miles in on the bike was good for me.

I also received an exciting e-mail today that helped brighten my spirits!  You may notice to the right a brand new badge on my blog.  I am now a Sweat Pink Ambassador!  I noticed that many of the bloggers I follow are Sweat Pink Ambassadors and I was intrigued (pink is, after all, one of my favorite colors and I have been doing a lot of sweating lately!).  I checked out the Fit Approach website (www.fitapproach.com) and fell in love with their mission:  

"We believe that kicking ass is best done in pretty shoes. We've learned that real women sweat, and sweat hard. We know that assertiveness, strength, and ambition are the ultimate feminine qualities. We concede that sometimes it takes hours to get ready, but we're also no strangers to just rolling out of bed and going. We're convinced that we run faster in pink shoelaces. We believe in pushing ourselves, and we believe in giving ourselves a break, too.  We're all about the rush of endorphins and the thrill of the challenge. We're all for looking great and feeling even better. We're committed to finding our best fit, and making it stick. 

How do we get there? We climb. We journey. We balance. We reward."

So what exactly is a Sweat Pink Ambassador?  Sweat Pink Ambassadors live the Fit Approach mission every day: they sweat hard, play hard, and inspire those around them to achieve their best selves.  How awesome is that?  I filled out an application a few weeks ago and I received my e-mail notification today that I am now a part of the Sweat Pink Ambassador community!  I am so excited to be a part of this inspirational and positive community and I'm looking forward to connecting with others who are trying to reach their health, fitness, and life goals!   

"Don't lose faith. You got this."