My 30 Day Challenge

This blog, all of two days old, was inspired by Steve Pavlina’s blog. And this post specifically was inspired by Steve’s 30 Days to Success post.

You know this site is about losing weight. For me, I have a target of losing 23 pounds. To make it a more credible goal I am giving myself a date to reach that goal. This morning I pulled out the scale. After fiddling around with the dial to get it to read zero, I stepped up, watched the needle flicker and there it is was, 190 pounds. Not the 185 pounds I advertised yesterday. Seems the Thanksgiving holiday eating spree kicked in.

So what time frame am I talking about? I plan on losing 23 pounds and weighing 167 pounds by the end of 2007. On December 31, 2007 I will weigh 167 lbs. That’s 3.981 pounds every 3 months, 1.769 pounds per month, 0.442 pounds per week, 0.063 pounds per day. There, I said it. My experience with putting goals down in writing is that it works. There is nothing like the written word for being accountable, especially when others know what you are planning. Do me the favor of reminding me occassionally about this commitment.

As I mentioned, this post is about 30 days to success. I am going to run a test on myself for the next thirty days. Starting today, December 1st, 2006 I will no longer snack after finishing dinner. I can still have a dessert after dinner, I just can’t go back to the kitchen and “graze” through the pantry or poke my head into the fridge looking for something to snack on, nothing sweet to drink either. If I am still hungry after dinner, then I can eat a carrot or an apple or a banana or a glass or water or tea – something healthy. No popcorn, no cookies, no extra dessert. This test serves two purposes, one is to lose weight. I can’t imagine that I won’t lose at least some weight. And second, and probably more importantly, it reinforces the mindset that I can accomplish anything I set out to achieve.

This reminds me of a quote from Goethe that goes like this:

“The moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one’s favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance which no man could have dreamed would have come his way. Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it. Begin it now.”

Reflecting on my eating habits, I think this is where I am doing the most damage to my health. Since I spend a good amount of the day sitting, I need to be careful with the calorie consumption. Besides the afternoon candybar I have become so familar with, its the after dinner snacking that is impacting my weight and overall health. So goodbye evening snacks for the next 30 days.

By the way, I haven’t had a candybar since I mentioned stopping the afternoon candybar express. I know, it has only been a few days, it is a start in the right direction.

[tags]weight loss, steve pavlina, goals, calorie, success[/tags]