Not Fat, Just Happily Married

I will be the first one to admit that I have gained a significant amount of weight since my wedding last September (over 30 pounds). I am not going to say that I am proud of that but I am not surprised by it either. I read somewhere (Cosmo I think) that the average woman will gain up to 30 pounds in their first year of marriage. A lot of factors goes into to this but that would could turn into a whole different Blog. My contributing factors are simple Birth-control, eating the same portions as my husband, slight depression, and limited activity.

I guess the reason I am writing today is because I have realized this has to stop the weight gain before I become unhealthy. So here is the start to my personal weight loss challenge. My plan is to loose the 30+ pounds I have gained and hopefully some extra. And then continue to maintain a healthy weight after that. I am going to aim for 5 pounds every two weeks.

I have no idea how I am going to start this but I am going to and that is all I can do. I believe that a good beginning would be to eat healthy and take baby steps working out. This walking challenge I also found in a Magazine will be a good first baby step to being healthy...

THE WALKING CHALLENGE

Week One

Monday, Wednesday, Friday: Walk 3 miles in 60 minutes.
Tuesday, Thursday: Walk 10 minutes before each meal.

Week Two

Monday, Wednesday, Friday: Walk 2 miles and do a climbing session

Tuesday, Thursday: Walk 4 miles and try to finish in 60 minutes or less

Week Three

Monday, Wednesday, Friday: Walk 3 miles in 45 minutes and add a climbing session

Tuesday, Thursday: Walk 15 minutes in the morning and before dinner, trying to cover a mile each time.

Week Four

Monday, Wednesday, Friday: Walk 4 miles and a climbing session.

Tuesday, Thursday: Walk 2 miles in under 30 minutes.

Climbing Sessions: Outdoor stairs or hills in neighborhood. Work them into walk. After ever 5 to 20 minutes go up and down once. Try for 4 flights of stairs or 4 hills spread out throughout the walk. Stairs at home: hit the stairs at home at the end of your walk. Take them 2 at a time and then come down slowly. Repeat 4 times. No Stairs or hills nearby: Using a curb, step up and down, for about 10 minutes. Lead with your right foot for 5 minutes and then your left for another 5.

Weekend Walks: When the workout plans get sidetracked, just reschedule. Do your Tuesday walk on Saturday and your Friday walk on Sunday. As long as you fit in 5 workouts in a 7-day period, you'll be on your way to a healthy BMI. And those weeks when you stick to the Monday through Friday schedule, push yourself a little more and go for a really long walk or hike. (1 to 2 hours) on Saturday or Sunday. Then give yourself a well-deserved pat on your ever-shrinking backside.