Caribbean fun!

I've been in the Dominican Republic for the past week and have had an absolute blast! We have been on the beach, at the pool, partying, and relaxing. 

The Dominican men love curvy American blondes, so the attention from them hasn't been surprising. But, attention from other men has been surprising! It is an adjustment, that's for sure. 

Watching what I eat has been a struggle here, especially with the alcohol. I wouldn't be surprised if a few pounds snuck on this week. But, it's back to work running and eating right when I get back home. 

Tomorrow we are getting pedicures and soaking up our last day in the Caribbean. We fly out on Wednesday back to Richmond. Then I fly back to Indy on Friday. 

Here's a picture of my new swimsuit body! (Let's be honest, I'm FAR from a swimsuit body, but I certainly look better!)

1 week!!

Oh my goodness, I can't sleep because I am so excited about my vacation! 

I just got back to Hillsboro today from my moms. I played flute with the Urbana Pops Orchestra on their concert last night. I will be honest, I am pretty rusty as far as flute playing is concerned. I haven't done any hard core playing since my Millikin days 6 years ago. It took some serious work to get myself back in shape. By the concert, I finally felt like a competent flutist again. I really need to play more; I love it and I have an incredible instrument that does a lot of sitting in the case. 

I also managed to lose another pound while I was in Villa Grove. Woo!! I did my second day of C25K while I was there. I have yet to do my third day. I had some sort of bronchitis or something going on. Anyway, I've been hacking up a lung for multiple days. I would like to be able to breathe again before I do day 3 of C25K. We'll see how I feel tomorrow. 

I went to visit my dad today before I left. Even though our relationship has been pretty hit and miss, he has always been very supportive of my surgery. He always asks me how much weight I've lost and has a huge smile when I tell him the number. Support is everything to me- it keeps me going. There are days where I just really need encouragement, and I never have to look far. 

I will be getting blood tests done soon to check cholesterol, triglycerides, etc. After years of dreading those numbers, I'm actually excited to find out what they are. My blood pressure has never been high, but always on the higher end of normal. It did drop at my last appointment. Yahoo! My BMI is also down 10 points. My doctor's goal weight for me is still considered "overweight" according to the BMI chart, but I think that anything less is pretty unrealistic for my build. 

Sticking to no sugar! I didn't have any stupid mistakes this week. I am really happy that I've been able to stick with that- for the most part. I think it has made the biggest difference in my life and I can attribute my continued weight loss to it. 

Hopefully the next update will be from the sunny beaches of the Dominican Republic! I might even get really brave and post a swimsuit picture!

Skinny jeans!

Feeling good in skinny jeans for the first time ever!

I have had some struggles in the last few days. I'm going to be 6 months out soon and it's getting tougher because my portions are larger. It's up to me to use this as a tool. I try to keep myself motivated with pictures and what not. If how I feel and look after an 80 pound weight loss isn't enough motivation for me, then I don't know what is. 

The good thing is that my body will not tolerate large amounts of added sugar! I ate a cupcake on Tuesday (yes, hi, my name is Amy, and I'm stupid) and I spent all day Wednesday paying for that poor decision. I'm actually quite relieved because that is great motivation to NEVER DO THAT AGAIN!

I am officially starting the c25k app tomorrow night! Exercise will definitely help me meet my weight loss goals. It will be a necessity as my food portions get larger. 

I know I will have tough times and setbacks in this journey. I'm not so naive to think that it will all be puppies and rainbows the whole time. But I also know that a setback does not have to ruin the entire journey. 

Back on track!