April - December 2021 Health Goals: Last Health Post for 9 Months

9 months.  That takes me through the end of the year, so my next health post will be in January 2022.

I've just realized that I need to stop blogging about this, simply because there's natural highs and lows to the weight loss process, and posting is getting me too caught up in the lows.  Reporting an off month, or more, threw me off, and now I'm getting back on track.

These 9 months are going to be a discovery process.  I've been watching a lot of YouTube videos and reading articles online, so there's a lot of things I want to try.  "Calories in/Calories out" keeps popping up.  "You have to be in a calorie deficit to lose weight."  I don't like counting calories, but it's come to the point where I need to try.  It's not long term.  Get a sense of what I'm eating.  Play it by ear.

I'm also going to weigh myself everyday.  Bought a scale to replace the one I threw out in frustration awhile back.  But... what I'll be doing is paying attention to my average weight.  So weigh everyday, divide by 7, and track that number to see if it shifts down, maintains, or goes up, and analyze accordingly.

A fun challenge I'm giving myself is to take all my cookbooks (went a little crazy on Amazon marketplace a few years back) and make 3 recipes from each book by the end of the year.  Though I also got historical cookbooks as well, so that will be interesting.  I got the Food Network Kitchen app and paid for the upgrade to get more recipes and instruction videos.

With exercising, I'm not going crazy like last December.  Learned my lesson!  This will be trial and error, but my goal is to find a balance.  Walking, elliptical, indoor bike, and strength training.  I have quite a few exercise DVD's, plus Amazon Prime, plus YouTube, so I'm just going to have fun.  Do a strength workout 2-3 times a week, a new one each time, and just have fun discovering what I like vs not like.

There's a lot here to keep me busy.  I'm not giving up.  But I do need to chart and experiment quietly.  In January I'll say how it all went.  What worked.  What didn't.  There will be no before and after photos, as that's just something I don't want to do.  Doing it for myself privately, and that's good.

These next several months will be interesting.

Wish me luck!!!  And good luck on your goals.

Sarah