Day 3 of Week 9 Goals That Help Drop Weight

Weight today: same

Total lost: 15 pounds in 8 weeks

1/2 cup of oatmeal:150
2 tsp of sugar: 30
1/3 cup of skim milk:30
1 tbl of powder creamer with coffee:30
with sweet-n-low:0
total:240

1 Ritz cracker:17
some pretzels:25
2 eggs:140
1 lefse:60
1 Laughing Cow Garlic Herb cheese spread:35
1/2 cup of fat free cottage cheese: 80
3 1/2 oz of strawberries:27
1 tsp of sugar:15
1 tsp of Smart Balance Light Butter:15
1 tbl of powder creamer for coffee:30
with sweet-n-low:0
total:434
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running total: 674

3 oz banana:75
vanilla protein shake:110
4 oz banana:100
total:285
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running total: 959

4 oz potato:88
2 tsp of Smart Balance light butter:30
4 oz chicken breast: 140
2 tsp of Bacon Ranch dressing:23
1 tbl of powder creamer for coffee:30
with sweet-n-low:0
1 Blue Bunny Bomb Pop:40
total:351
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running total: 1310

Today's challenge: Getting my butt in the gym today.

Actual fitness: 60 minute leg workout, 450 abdominals, 2-mile run

Note on Picture: These are the Bomb!! Blue Bunny Bomb Pop:only 40 calories. They are a creamy ice cream confection with cherry, lime and blue raspberry flavors in one serving.

Goals That Help Drop Weight

Since, there so many good things to say about goal setting, I think I'll just say a few more things.

One of the other strategies (from the arsenal I have) that I will use to lose weight involves adding a fitness goal in combination with my weight loss goal.

When I say fitness goal, I mean to plan for a fitness event like a 5K walk, a bike race, or some other type of event that requires you to train and work-out for in order to compete in that event.

This type of goal, (as any good goal) will take place at a specific date in the future. In order to be ready for this goal, you must plan your work-out routine ahead of time.

This provides structure and direction for your daily and weekly work-out routine, and gives you something to mentally and physically strive for while performing your work-outs.

Work-outs may be harder to stick to, if the only reason your are working out, is to lose weight. Watching your calories alone should bring on the weight loss. But working out, brings more than just lose weight loss. It sculpts your body and makes your body become more powerful and more useful than it was before.

People who are fit and active will use their body to compete in events... kind of like a hobby (no, they're not crazy). So, instead of being being active to keep the weight off...they are being active to achieve something. All the while...the fitness goal is causing them to come into the gym on a regular basis, it's causing them to become active. Losing weight becomes the side benefit of working toward this goal.

This is an active mindset.

We're not working out because "we have to", but we're working out because we have this business of a 5k run to complete six weeks from now. People who live a lifestyle of being fit and active do so also because they enjoy the camaraderie and competition of a race. They enjoy the feeling they get from training to achieve something, and then achieving it.

But most importantly, they just love to live in a body that is strong, agile, and energized.

I have a perfect example. Since I've been working out these last several weeks and dropping weight, I've become more active. The other day, my daughter wanted to shoot some hoops with me. I felt like lightening out there on the court, dribbling the ball, cutting up, down and around the court. I think I was more impressed with my abilities than she was. But, this is what living an active life is all about. I was having a great time and my body being active was just part of the fun.

My fitness goal for this period of weight loss is training for a half marathon. My 10 weeks are up in a few weeks, but my event is scheduled for September 28. This is the reason I do at least two five mile runs during the week and then insanely long runs on Saturday. This Saturday I will run 11 miles.

I'm not doing this to lose weight, really; I'm doing it for the race.

So, besides weight loss, what's your fitness goal?