And the Battle Begins.....

So about 65 % of Americans have this in common.... anyone? anyone?

 It is being OVERWEIGHT! It's no secret that I have been gaining weight over the past few years. Since my senior year of college I have gained a significant amount of weight.  It has been a daily struggle for me to change this. I was little, very little(for me) in high school and college(even though I didn't see it back then). I am no longer satisfied with the way I look.
I am 26 years old and, of course, I want to look good! I am still single for goodness sakes.  Now I say that somewhat jokingly! I know that the average american woman is a size 12 and look at Cindy Crawford(beautiful)...she is a size 10!
 I know that I am a loving, caring, person with a great personality and I am surrounded by lots of friends and family that could care less what I look like. I have so much to give and so full of life, if people can't see that then I dont need to surround myself around them. I dont want people to think that I am so into my looks because that is not what makes up a person but I do want to feel good and  be healthy.  My main goal  the past few months has been to get HEALTHY. With it does come losing the weight. I want to be able to wear shorts and skirts again and not feel awkward in a bathing suit(I have been self-conscious about it for a while).
My fathers side of the family suffers from heart disease. My grandfather( whom I never met as my dad was only 16 at the time) died at the early age of 40 or 41 due to a heart attack. My father had a heart attack at the same age or 40 or 41! He is doing well now, thank goodness. We as a family have struggled with being overweight. Now I am not going to throw a pity party and say there is nothing that I can do,it's my genes and that is what I am destined to be! I may never be a size 2 or even a 6 again, but I can control my weight, get healthy and not give in to the genes that I have been handed down. I want to be difiant and fight back!
My uncle is prime example of that. He never wanted to become overweight or struggle with heart disease. He has made it his mission to work out every day, eat right, and lessen the chance that he will ever suffer from a heart attack as did his father and brother. He is such a healthy food nut. He actually is an inspiration to each of us to do better. He has taught his wife and children the importance of exercise and eating right. My aunt always asks the girls "would your father want you to eat that"? Usually the answer is "no" and that is that.
I was tired of saying "I want to lose weight" and not being completley proactive so now I am.
I have been looking up different programs that work up toward becoming a runner. Now, I am not a runner. In fact, I have always hated running. I am trying it though! I will probably never run a marathon but I am doing it for me! I started following a plan for beginners just to get the weight off. Who knows, if I can become a runner, I might keep at it. If I dont, then I will maintain my weight by powerwalking 4-5 days a week! My main goal-just be healthy!

Here is the plan:
1st week: warmup walk for 5 mins. Run 60 seconds, walk 90 seconds. Continue alternating this for 20 minutes straight. Cooldown.
2nd week: warmup walk for 5 mins. Run 90 seconds, walk 2 minutes. Continue alternating this for 20 minutes straight. Cooldown.
3rd week: warmup walk for 5 mins. Run 2 mins, walk 3 mins for 20-25 mins then cooldown.

You keep at it until you can slowly increase your running to 20 mins straight! I am not there yet, so we will see!

The only way to lose weight and get healthy is to stop lying to yourself and making up excuses! It is something you have to want in order to acheive. I WANT IT! No more excuses or blaming my weight gain on other things. I do have a B-12 and Vitamin D deficiency (most people do) but I know that it may account for only .01% of me gaining weight, but the rest is all on ME! ( I really need to remember to take those supplements!)
So here I am, determined more than ever to lose weight and get healthy!