Truth is Perceptive

Don't change the Facebook photo. That is the person you want to be, right now you are in a rut. You have been able to tell us all your weight and we are moving past it together. Not to mention Facebook on a whole is just a pack of lies.

Most people fluff up their lives, bedazzle mediocrity or take slutty photos to make them feel better about losing their panties at the bar last weekend. Do you really think all of those "happy family" photos are really happy? Chances are Mom is on prozac and Dad has a collection of Coors Light beer cans he has built into a fort. So we lie about our current figures? I bet no one puts their actual weight on their driver's license. I was on the verge of putting my younger age on there. Life is perception.

Should the world rid itself of make up? Tanning lotion? Padded bras? I say no. As long as you are not going under the knife to change your appearance, then show off the person you want to show off.

I am not changing my photo until I am confortable taking one from the waist down.

XoXo

Meltdown

Hello, my name is Liz and I just had a meltdown after seeing our groceries. My fiance is a chocoholic. He ate an entire box of Fannie Mae pixies yesterday. We are in week three and I am already imagining people as giant cookies. I have a mixture of wanting to punch them and wanting to eat them. This can not be healthy.

I know there are those 100 calorie packs, but they are not satisfying. When I eat them, I just lie to myself and say they were filling The only way they would be appetizing is if I dipped them in a tub of frosting before eating them. I feel like I need to start a club: Phat Kids of America. Our symbol would be a tub of frosting with a spoon sticking out encircled by bedazzled jewels.

I need a hobby something to get my mind off of food. My old hobby of baking is doing nothing for my waistline. I can not fit into any of my clothes. I was thinking that working out might be a hobby but I realized I hate it.

I am sitting here in a post-meltdown shame wondering how I am going to show my face outside of my room. My dog witnessed the whole thing and I could tell that even he was embarrassed for me.

Any hobby suggestions? I am between making clothes for my dog or paper mache hats.


xoxo

Emotional Food

Hello ladies! Long time, no blog. I just got back from Rio where I spent the last few days at Tim's grandfather's funeral. It was a tough few days, but more than anything I felt like my life was put on hold. I know that sounds a bit selfish, but I just realized how easy it is for life to get in the way.

When we were at the hospital last weekend, there were no healthy options. Hospitals push simple quick food. They are like McDonald's with less flavor. Throughout all of the chaos of the week, I realized a few things: 1) I can make quick healthy food and 2) I can make healthy choices when I am out eating.

One other thing I realized is that we are trained that food and emotions are interconnected. To show sympathy, people brought food. Generally you do not have time to cook when you are grieving, so it is welcoming. Yet all the food is quite fattening. Not a single person brought fruit to the visitation or funeral. I had "Tater-Tot Casserole". Who knew that even existed?

I have some to realize that food makes people feel better and the fattier the better. I am not alone in the world when I turn to face a sandwich and smile. Just because I am not alone, does not mean I am going to let this keep going. I am going to put these past few days behind me and just take a step forward. If there is anything that this has taught me, is that my body is on loan to me, and well I want it to look damn good. So good night for now ladies. MUAH!

The Diction of this Blog is Quite Misleading

When I read the titles of many of these blogs words like temptation and seduction pull me in. Alas, it is nothing dirty, but a girl can hope.

I think everyone falls off the wagon, and we need to just let it go. If we dwell on it, then it starts to poison our attitude for future days. Then we lose direction and just accept that one slip-up necessitates diving into a package of Oreos.

I fear the "eating out" hurdle. I know I can make healthy choices when I am out eating, but I love cheese. Not to mention fried cheese is practically a food group in Wisconsin. The others being fish, beer and sauerkraut. You can get different kind of fried cheese here. They all have distinctive, delicious flavors.

I have been doing well. I have the fiance on board with some healthy decisions. We have brown rice and tacos for dinner. Mine were stuffed with lean meat, tomatoes and lettuce. His were stuffed with all of the above plus sour cream and cheese. His looked so much better.

I wish we could all stay more positive. I know this is just the beginning of our Biggest Loser competition, but I think we need to include one really awesome thing about ourselves at the end of each blog. Maybe it is a strange skill or a little story. We center most of our lives around losing weight, which causes us to lose sight of everything wonderful that we already are. Sure we have a few pounds to shed, but when we do ... we will awesome and slim!

Positive thought: I am excellent at making pop-up greeting cards.

I miss bread.

Bread and I are like a set of frenemies on the Hills. I hate its existence but I can not live without the constant drama it brings to me. I have an addiction. I love it. I wish I could say I have forgiven it for its power it holds over me, then I could just forget it. I feel like telling Heidi off in a passive aggressive manner would be easier than giving the kiss off to the perfect sourdough roll.

Think about it, bread is the root of everything wonderful. The perfect sandwich. A Five Guys burger. Not to mention, it is the perfect partner to a great bowl of soup or it can be used to scoop into cheese or spinach dip. In my eyes, it can do no wrong ... except add unnecessary calories to my life. I can only think of the perfect french bread with the right amount of crunch on the outside and the soft, warm inside. Yum. What is it that you say? Control? Portion size? Hah! I appreciate your stock answers, but if I could do that then I would not be in this predicament.

I have been off of excessive bread for two days. Where is my poker chip? Where is the meeting of my peers? I will tell you where they are at?! Panera.

I should add that I ran two miles today and ate well. At least I can add something positive to the end of this blog.

XoXo-
E.L

And so it begins...

I am one quarter of this battle against the bulge. My story is a string of clichés, but like all cliches, truth lies within it all. Last September I moved to Milwaukee, a city where everything is served beer battered, covered in cheese, or in the form of a sausage. Most of the restaurants are chains of fast food or specialize in fried fish. As I regularly work sixty hour weeks, I generally fall victim to the carry out dinner.

On top of all of this, I am engaged. I have less than 18 months left before out 11/11/11 wedding. Dress shopping has always been the bane of my existence, and now wedding dress shopping makes me feel like a shadow of despair is looming upon me. I have always been quite top heavy, so working with my proportions has never been easy. Now I have to worry about finding a wedding dress. After a preliminary visit to a bridal shop, I have realized that in my current size I have very little options. In addition to size concerns, I have a limited budget which means getting a custom dress is not an option. Everyone I have spoke said to take into consideration the idea of “bridal sizes.” Sizes tend to run smaller. So if you are a size 8 in real life, then your wedding dress will need to be a real life equivalent of a size 12.

So here I am at the beginning of this 12-week battle of wills. Led mostly by vanity, but with a real desire to start living a healthier lifestyle. So let's start this out with a smile. The weather is gorgeous and the sun is shining bright. I can not wait to see what this summer brings.

-E.L.