The Next 40 Days & SSSD Challenge

I have exactly 40 days until my next trip. It's a good amount of to plan and implement some solid lifestyle changes that will help me reach my goals. For these next 40 days I have the luxury of time since I am on summer vacation. I wish I could say that I have no work to do during this time, but that is not the case. I have quite a few tasks that need to be completed in terms of my research and writing along with a humongous list of things to do that needs to be tackled (is it just me or does the list of things 'to do' always seem to grow?).

I've also joined the Summer Sizzle Slim Down Challenge (SSSD). I know I'm more than a week behind all the other participants, but better late than never I guess!

I really benefitted from the Ready for Summer Challenge that was hosted by Maren. Not only did the weekly challenges provide some sort of structure for me to follow, but the support from fellow bloggers served as a huge source of motivation. I'm hoping the SSSD will help me do the same.

The SSSD Challenge started on June 3 and will end on Sep 2 -- it's perfect timing as it covers my entire summer vacation. Within this time period I have two more trips planned - a 2 1/2 week trip (July/August) and then a 5-day trip in August. Actually, the rest of this year is filled with several other trips as well - particularly my best friend's wedding. So, I'm basically going to be setting weight targets with my travel dates as guidelines.

I'm merging my personal goals with my SSSD targets - here's the plan.

1. SSSD -- before/after pictures; measurements; weight

Pictures. Pictures. Pictures. Ugh!!! I've been resisting posting these details up until this point. My hesitation is a combination of embarrassment and shyness since I have friends that I see on a regular basis who read this blog. There's also the issue of privacy of course. Once it's up on the Internet, anybody can see what you're posting ...

Despite these hesitations, I've decided to post a bit more about my journey.

The main reason for this is because I have found this blog to be incredibly helpful to me -- very cathartic. I am also quite proud of the progress that I have made so far (something I never would have even been able to say before). I still have a long way to go, but I've worked hard to get to where I am now ... and I intend to share the rest of my journey as well. Finally, and probably most importantly, I have drawn such strength and motivation from other bloggers who have faced their fear and have posted all the details about their weight/measurements/photos etc. Some of the transformations have been phenomenal. These blogs have shown me that it is possible ... I can do it ... I hope that through my blog I can impart even a fraction of the inspiration that I have received from others.

I'm still apprehensive so all I'm going to do is start with a few pictures. I've posted these on a new page that will be at the top of my blog. These will count as my 'before' pictures ... we'll see how I look on September 2nd!

I weighed myself this morning and was dismayed to see a 1 kg gain over the past week. Still, I'm confident that once I get into a regular routine (including sleep - I've been up since 1:45 a.m. - damn jet lag!!) things will fall into place (and fat will fall off my body!!). I also took my measurements. Most of my measurements have stayed the same, though I was happy to see 1/2 inch lost around my abdomen and another 1/2 inch from my thighs and calves -- not sure how that loss translates into the number on the scale. Oh well.

I'll be weighing myself every Sunday and measuring myself on the 1st Sunday of every month.

My Long-Term Weight Loss Targets
July 23 - lose 7 kg (15 lbs) and maintain until after my August trip
September 2 - lose a total of 10 kg (22 lbs) [end of SSSD Challenge]
October 6 - my best friend's wedding (ceremony 1) - lose a total of 14 kg (30 lbs)
December 18 - my best friend's wedding (ceremony 2) - lose a total of 18 kg (40 lbs)

Those are some big targets. I hope I can reach them.

2. SSSD -- Week 1 challenge: Track your food; Week 2 challenge: 6 hours of exercise
I'm combining these two challenges together since I missed Week 1.

Tracking my food is going to be a priority over the next few months (maybe forever??). I've become careless with my portion sizes and I've been slipping more and more into the whole 'a little bit won't hurt' mentality. I don't think that a little bit will hurt ... but do that on a daily basis and it's not a little bit anymore! So, starting from today I'm tracking my food. I'm not using any websites to do this because I don't think I'll be able to keep it up. Instead I've got a little chart that has space for me to fill in all the nutritional breakdowns etc. of everything that I eat. I'm going to fill it in myself.

I've been hearing a lot about the Paleo eating plan as well as the Dukan diet. I'm not going to follow a particular type of diet -- however I have downloaded the books and plan on trying out some of the recipes. I'm still figuring out the exact details about my daily calorie intake and amount of protein etc. I'm guessing I'm looking at a daily calorie intake of around 1400-1750 depending on my workouts for the day.

I've also got to come up with a workout plan. There's tons that I want to do - CrossFit, Zumba, Boxing, Body Balance, Weights - but I haven't figured out what my schedule is. I have to get the gym's summer schedule. I also have to confirm what days there will be CrossFit training. So my intentions are there, but the plan has yet to be organized.

I've told myself that I'll take the next few days to rest, get organized, and catch up on sleep ... it's always a bit counterintuitive to me to just sit down and do nothing ... but I really do think I need the rest. It's been a very hectic past 5 months (not to mention 4 1/2 years)! In any case, taking this week off to recuperate kind of negates Week 2's challenge of 6 hours of exercise ... terrible start to the challenge, isn't it? I'll do what I can, but after writing all this stuff down I feel like it won't really be until the upcoming Sunday that things really start to fall into place.

I've got more to write in terms of my summer plans, but I think I'll end this post here for now and continue tomorrow. In the meantime, this summarizes my basic summer plan quite well: