Journal Entry #2 November 14, 2009

I've always been interested in fitness and a healthy diet but have never consistently exercised or eaten enough vegetables. I have done a lot of research on these 2 topics and have learned a lot. I've finally decided to implement all that I've learned into a fitness program to reach my goals.

At first I considered joining a gym because I thought paying money for a membership would make me finally "commit."

So I went down to my local gym thinking I could just sign up for 3 months, reach my goals, and it would be worth $150.

But I found out that it required an 18 month contract (of $40/per month) plus $120 up front = $840!!! Are they serious?? That's all I could think - I mean I want to get in shape but I don't have that kind of money and even if I did I wouldn't spend that much when I know I can reach my goals without any exercise equipment at all.

So I sat down and went through all the research I had collected over the years on fitness and health and devised my own routine to lose weight.

And so far it has been highly successful! After 2 weeks I've already lost:

4.5 lbs
19 total inches (on different body parts) - see: my progress chart

Which is why I felt compelled to share my fitness plan and results with the world. If people only knew they could reach their fitness goals without spending a dime then they might give it a try.

As far as I can tell the only reason I'm obese is that my lifestyle is very sedentary and I didn't exercise and I ate a lot of fat in my diet and I had a tendency to eat seconds servings regularly for dinner which added a lot more calories and fat into my diet and I didn't eat very many vegetables or fruit - only a couple per week.

I do not have any digestive problems. I'm not a binge eater and do not have any issues with food (such as bulemia).

I anticipated that it would take 3.5 months to reach my goals but after the 1st week's results I think I may be able to accomplish it in 6 weeks - hence the name of my blog - hehe I guess I'd better do it in 6 weeks for my blog title to remain accurate! lol

I want to add that I always think for myself and listen to my body. I don't do anything which I think is unsafe (such as eating too few calories) or exercising beyond what my body can handle. I think as long as people use their common sense they can lose weight. A lot of information out there has "limitations" written in them - such as you can only do this and do not do that - instead of worrying about what other people say do what you think is best for your body. There's no hard and fast rules, each person's body is different, and the "ideal" weight described for each height is not set in stone, in fact:

"When you lose fat and gain muscle, you can weigh more than the Ideal Body Weight tables say is right for your frame...because muscle is heavier than fat...but with a lower percent of body fat, you'll be leaner and fit smaller sizes." pg. 99 The Fat to Muscle Diet by Dr. Vash

You can find out more about this in my post: Eating Too Much Fat