a change would do you good

Weight: 255lbs (-5lbs)

Well weigh in went very well and I am ecstatic with having lost 5lbs in two weeks. I thought that since this update is so close to my last that I would use this post to explain a bit more into who I am as I did not do that in the beginning.  So here we go...a bit into who I am.

(buying noodles for RA training)

I am 24 years old from Long Island, New York. I grew up on the water and have always enjoyed that fact about my life. I have worked in the food industry since I was 14ish. I worked my way up from a bus boy to a food runner to a host to a waiter to a bar tender. I managed in and out of different restaurants bars and have always enjoyed being in that field. I graduated from Iona College with a bachelors in elementary education. At Iona is where I developed my passion for student affairs. I worked in admissions, residential life, orientation and was involved in the activities board and a fraternity. By being involved I met many wonderful mentors who led me to this career.

From there I moved to Indiana, P.A. where I worked in Residential Life as an Assistant Residence Director and I spent time working in Service Learning and I spent a summer at Washington and Jefferson College working in Conferences and Events.  I earned a Masters in my two years at Indiana University of Pennsylvania in Student Affairs in Higher Education.

Now as far as how all this connects to my weight - well it's quite simple. I kept making excuses that I would have time after college...after grad school...well guess what there are no more excuses I can make. I now have all that time I have spent the last 20+ years in school that I can now redirect towards myself and building myself into the person I want to be physically. After all I put plenty of time getting myself where I wanted to be professionally and education wise.

Till next time..

Weight: 257lbs (-3lbs)

Today marked six days in a row at the gym. I have been doing cardio for 30 minutes a day and sweating a good 25 of those minutes. I have been pretty happy with the work I have been putting in. Being a Residential Life Coordinator (RLC) makes my job hours all over the place. What I have found to work best is to put into my calendar (and my coworker/co-gym-goer) and to go immediately after work. By scheduling it in I have found that it is harder to put off.

I was able to have a cool adventure today . Barbara (my co-gym-goer) and I worked out and then headed to Orlandos Veg Fest. Although I am not a vegetarian it was really exciting to learn about the culture and try the food. I got to try many things (meatballs, hot dogs, mac and cheese) all very satisfying. You really could not tell it wasn't the real thing (minus the mac and cheese, nothing can replace that). I was happy to experience a different world and see the animal rights side of healthy eating. I truly wish I had the will power to commit to a life like that but that sounds like a different blog for a different day.

Lastly -  I made a step in the weight loss direction - I purchased my own scale. Now what stinks is it weighed me in higher than the last one but I am waiting for official weigh in tomorrow to determine if its all that vegan food or not. I am telling myself that the scale needs time to adjust mainly because I have worked to hard to have gained weight.

Till next time and heres hoping that tomorrows weigh in goes well!

First Success

Weight: 257 (-3lbs)

As noted above I have hit my first weigh in. I was planning to do this in the privacy of my home but I was out at Publix and noted their giant scale. I thought if I am able to put this all online, why not weigh myself in public. Luckily, my college friend, Laura was visiting and able to provide some moral support as I stepped onto the scale as if I was about to enter a rollar coaster.

As the scale settled I was able to read that I had lost 3 lbs. Now - I assume it is mostly water weight, but I am still pretty happy with this. I thought what a smart plan - weigh in and then go shopping. That way I am in the health mindset as I shop. Laura also provided me with some great shopping advice. I am now a perimeter shopper as that is where the healthiest options tend to be (minus the bak ry).

Now I am aware that this is supposed to connect to student affairs but I thought this first moment should be documented. Also - it was nice to see a friend from college and not consume crazy amounts of food. Both of us were really conscious about what we were eating and we were able to plan our meals (even at Disney) and stick to our health regiments.

Tomorrow a coworker and I are signing up for Planet Fitness. Now if your like my mother you are probably asking "Why not use the gym on?". Well as you may or may not be aware I live on campus...I work on campus...any excuse to get off campus is both mentally and now will be physically good for me. I am really looking forward to this experience and will hopefully be heading there a lot.


Until next time

Weight: 260lbs (I weight in on Sundays)

So I am still at it and doing my best to make the best choices for myself weight wise. Navigating the cafeteria can really make that a challenge but one I am glad to accept. I have been sticked best to salads and some of our fun toppings to mix it up. Being on a meal plan always add this challenge to most student affairs workers.

I want to comment more however on the celebrations that go on in our field. So being the "bubbly" people most of us in the field are we like to celebrate occasions. However, I learned this week that we must stop associating cake, cookies and sweets with these events.  The most recent celebration across offices was "Boss Appreciation Day" which don't get me wrong - it is definitely appropriate to celebrate your boss but these hallmark holidays really kill me...and are making many of our belts a bit tighter.

So when it was asked my opinion on getting a cake I finally said it - No, thank you. I am not trying to get my office on the habit of healthy snacks. So we celebrated our fantastic supervisor with some 100 calorie popcorn and some mixed fruit...and believe it or not...it was still a good time.

Till next time...

the first 24 hours

Weight: 260lbs

I assume like most things the first 24 hours will be the worst. I have spent my time since committing to this change researching classes, finding a weight watchers meeting, creating a play list (see below) and just finding ways to make this part of my new life.

I know for a fact that Mondays are my worst days since my staff meeting is from 9-11pm. That means that I will be using Mondays as my day off from intentional activity. Some new intentional activity...ditching our trusty golf cart and walking across campus, its a beautiful view after all  Another intentional activity is dancing in the shower..okay well maybe not intentional since the shower has been  my stage for my never ending pop concert since I was a child but I will still chalk it up to healthy living.

I figure goals will be super important in this process. My first goal is to make it to tomorrows meeting (9am) and eat healthy tomorrow. Small goal I know but it's a SMART one ;)

One of my favorite parts of this is integrating music as motivation. I have made my first playlist for working out and I must say it is pop lead. Take a look...always open for suggestions.

Until next time..

Weight: 260 lbs.

I will start off that this blog will not be grammatically correct at all times, it may not provide those "Carrie Bradshaw" words of wisdom but what it will hopefully provide is an outlet of pride and frustration as one S.A. professional attempts to lose the pounds without sacrificing the time I like to provide my students.

The field of student affairs is a bit hard to describe. Some would classify us as the pizza and balloons people on a campus. While what we do requires a masters and integrated use of theories and best practices the pizza is most definitely present.

Along with the pizza are the doughnuts, the soda and everything else that makes students attracted to programs. Many of us professionals in the field have a really hard time not giving all of our time to our students so we cave into the poor choices provided at such events. After a recent visit to the doctor I realized that if this is going to be my profession...my life, I must make a change for the better.

Join me won't you as I challenge myself to shed the pounds and support myself by writing down my thoughts.

Tonight I will be walking the Hatter Track following this post. For those who don't know it is a track set on the outskirts of campus for a safe and measured walk. I belive it is about 2.5 miles. Let's hope Scout is up to the challenge.

Thanks for reading...until next time. :)