Six Pounds Down!

I woke up this morning to a very pleasant surprise: a visit to the (usually dreaded) scale, telling me that I've lost six pounds since starting the Pounds for Primates program.

That's already $450 for the chimps!

Maybe that money will help this guy enjoy his well deserved retirement:



Or maybe it will buy some snacks for this guy:



And it's all thanks to you, my super-duper, awesomely wonderful sponsors and supporters!!

Seriously, knowing that this money is going to such a great cause is the best possible inspiration and motivation a dieter could ask for.

I'm feeling great overall--just cleaner, brighter, happier, and lighter. It's amazing what a difference six pounds can make.

Now I just need to do this five more times--and then maintain it at a less strict level for a lifetime. You know what? I think I'm up for the challenge. Feeling this good and feeling this sense of early accomplishment is great motivation to keep going.

Big thanks and love to all of you who are sponsoring and/or supporting me,
Deb

Feeling Good!

Greetings, sponsors and well-wishers!

Just a little progress report: It is with the utmost joy and relief that I announce to you that I am over the worst of the sugar and flour cravings! This is a momentous occasion, as the last few weeks have been filled with recurring instances of this type of exchange within my own poor addled brain:

Weak Deb: OMG, that Top Pot Pink Feathered Boa doughnut in the lunchroom looks SOOOOO delicious. I've done really well on my diet overall in the last week or so... So, what harm could one innocent little pink doughnut possibly do? I've earned it!

Strong Deb: Are you kidding me?!? Do not even THINK about putting that thing in your mouth. Think about how hard you've worked to overcome the sugar and flour cravings. Do you want to undo all of that hard work in one fell swoop? Be strong. In 15 minutes, you'll be glad that you didn't eat that doughnut. Trust me.

Weak Deb: But it's just one doughnut. In the grand scheme of things, it's not that...

Strong Deb: For pete's sake, will you just STOP? Pretend that the doughnut doesn't exist. Let someone else's arteries get clogged. Besides, will you please think of the chimps??????

So, you can see what I was up against on a regular basis. The last couple of weeks have been pretty difficult. To tell you the truth, though, it was a lot easier than I'd thought it would be. It turns out that I do have the strength and discipline to make healthful choices about what I eat! What a revelation!

Now that I'm over the worst of the cravings (aka the Detox Phase), I'm going to focus on reducing portion sizes and getting myself to the gym.

And guess what. Thinking about the chimps really does help. It's a surprisingly powerful motivator. I love animals way more than I could love a fleeting doughnut.

Even a Top Pot Pink Feathered Boa.

THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(Update: OK, Blogger finally allowed me to add a title. I guess it was just feeling temperamental earlier. Poor little Blogger!)

For some reason, Blogger isn't letting me enter a title for this entry. Hmmm... I guess I'll have to come back and add a title later (assuming that feature will ever work again).

How are all of my wonderful sponsors and well-wishers doing? As soon as I'm able, I am going to title this entry "THANK YOU!!!!!!" The response has been fantastic, and I am so touched that so many of you have stepped forward to sponsor me or offer your moral support, or both.

Because I'm a big weenie, I am not going to post on the blog what my starting weight is. If any of you want to know, I'll tell you privately. I know I shouldn't care, but I do. What I'm going to do instead is give you a weekly progress report, detailing how much weight I've lost and how everything is going in general.

Weight-wise, there's not much to report yet. I am eating much more healthfully than I had been, and I already feel waaaaaay better. The scale hasn't moved much yet--maybe one pound lost so far--but I'm hoping the healthful eating will start making a difference on the scale soon.

I have had a few moments of weakness in the last few weeks. There was my birthday, and what's a birthday dinner without dessert? (I can say, however, that it was worth it. It was a fabulous dessert.) And there was the infamous Birthday Trifecta celebration with my friends Deb and Wendy last weekend. (All of our birthdays are within two weeks of each other's, so we have a group celebration each year. It's honestly one of the highlights of my year.) Again, I had some dessert (again, worth it) and two cocktails. Not too horrible, but I do need to be more strict with myself for about a month or so, just to get all of the cravings and sugar residue out of my system.

But on to the exciting part of the post: a sponsorship update!

So far, you wonderfully generous friends and family have sponsored me at a total of $63 per pound lost! How great is that?!? My goal is to get to $75 per pound, and I've decided to kick in the remaining $12 per pound myself if necessary just so I can reach that nice round number.

So, how can I thank all of you for your generosity and thoughtfulness? I need to think of some special way to express my gratitude before these five months have passed. Stay tuned...

In the meantime, please accept this heartfelt THANK YOU!!!! You are all superstars. Whether you're sponsoring me or cheering me on, or both, you are all the ones who are making this count. A million thanks!

Love,
Deb

So Far, So Good

Well, I'm about a week into this diet. I'm feeling so energized and motivated! (And for those of you who know me well, you'll be pleasantly surprised to learn that I did not write that in a sarcastic tone of voice.)

Honestly, these early sponsorship pledges and your moral support have given me just the shot of motivation I needed at this early stage. I'm feeling a good sense of momentum, and I hope I can sustain it.

The sugar and flour cravings haven't been quite as overpowering as I had expected them to be. Sugar and flour are my weaknesses (especially when held together with butter), and I expected to be crawling out of my skin for a few weeks while I broke the time-worn cycle of craving, giving in, and crashing. But, at the risk of jinxing myself, it hasn't been as difficult as I'd thought it would be. Yay!

To tell you the truth, the worst part of this so far has been not drinking. I've gone out with friends a few times over the last week, and it sucked drinking sparkling water. (However! Sparkling water served in a wine glass is somehow more enjoyable than straight out of the bottle. Who knew?) Alcohol is a relatively easy thing for me to give up, and the only time I miss it is when I'm out with other people who are drinking. I might need to avoid those situations for a while. Oh, well; it's only for a month or so. Then I'll go back to my favorite summer cocktail, which just happens to be relatively low on the glycemic index: Absolut Citron with soda and a twist of lemon on the rocks. In diet-friendly moderation, of course.

Oh, booze... How I miss you.

OK, I'm done waxing sentimental about liquor. For now anyway.

In the next couple of days, I'll post a sponsorship and weight-loss update. I am so touched by and grateful for those of you who have stepped up and sponsored me at this early stage. I'm equally grateful for those of you who have offered your moral support and encouragement. It's great to have so many people rooting for me and for the chimps!

THANK YOU, ALL!

As a token of my appreciation, here's a cute picture of Bear: