The determination to keep going!

I don't know how to start this post today. I've sat here for 5 minutes and started, erased, and started again five times. Even now I'm still not sure what to say. The thing is, it's not really hard to talk about, I just don't know where or how to start. I guess I'll just start by going back to the last post and telling what has been happening since then.

Around mid-October Lee started going to school! He's taking night classes at Stevens-Henager. For the first few weeks it was quite hard to find time to keep going to the gym. I was working all day, then we had a little more than an hour and a half to get dinner and for him to get ready before he had to go to school for a few hours. By the time he got home, it was too late to go. He was doing homework even on the weekends. Unfortunately, we started using school as an excuse.

At the first of November when we went to get weighed, we discovered that both of us had lost weight! We didn't really feel much joy, though, because we realized that we had probably just lost a lot of the muscle weight.

We fell back into old routines. We stopped walking in the mornings because it began to get cold and too dark to see. We tried to start doing Sweatin' to the Oldies 2, like we did last winter. We were successful for a little while, but soon stopped doing that, too. Because we stopped exercising as much as we should, we didn't realize that we started slacking on our eating habits, as well.

When we checked our weight this month, we discovered that we had both put back on a significant amount of weight! When they tell you that it has to be a lifestyle change, they aren't kidding! We discovered just how easy it is to backslide and get into old habits.

This month, we decided to get back on track. Lee is now only going to class two nights a week so we have a little more time to go back to the gym. We also started doing Sweatin' to the Oldies 4-6 mornings every week. We're trying to get back on track with our eating, as well. It's a little slower than we would like, and not having money to eat healthy doesn't help (snack foods and instant meals are so much cheaper than fresh foods!), but we've tried to start adding some vegetables and fruit back into our diet, as well as starting to limit our intake again.

It's been physically hard getting back to the gym, hard on our bodies. We leave the gym in quite a bit of pain, haha, but we discovered something amazing: we missed going and are loving being back! Even now, I find it really strange to think that I actually like going to the gym! Will wonders never cease!? It's kind of funny. For a while we thought that we would have to give up going because we couldn't afford it. I was so sad about that! It still amazes me. I'm still not a huge fan of cardio of most types, but I love doing the weights. I also love how I feel after I leave the gym. It helps so much with our physical health, but also our mental health. It really does help to go work out frustration and stress at the gym, and almost like taking a mini-vacation from the world. While working out, you don't have time to think about all of the bad things in life, all you can do is focus on the workout. It's refreshing.

We've got years to go before we're satisfied with our physical health. We know this. It's a daily battle of ups and downs. We're going to have more setbacks, more backsliding. That's reality. But we've got something we've never had before now: the determination to keep going!

I know, I know, it's been way too long. Once again, I have reasons, but no excuses. In any case, the biggest reason would probably be laziness, but other factors would include disappointment, stress, and the ups and downs of life.

As always, a lot has been going on here since I last wrote. I guess all I can do is just start typing and try to get everything up to speed.

Lee and I decided to go back in July to get weighed. Our results weren't as bad as we thought they would be, but there really wasn't any loss, either. It's was pretty disappointing, but it seemed to add a little more to our motivation. We also added something new to our efforts: we joined a gym! Really! Us! Honestly, I never thought that we would ever join a gym. I used to think that we could do well enough on our own. Don't get me wrong, we have done pretty well. However, we realized that we had hit a wall, or plateau, if you prefer that term. We need some extra help that we can't get on our own.

We experienced the fear that so many overweight people have: that they will be looked down upon by the other patrons at the gym. Trust me, there really are more skinny people at the gym than fat people, but there are also others who like us if you look hard enough. After signing up, on the first day we went, we almost gave up. Psychologically it was quite hard. We actually did leave, but sat in the van in the parking lot and said a prayer and talked things out. Lee decided that we needed to go back, so we gave it another try. When we got inside we ran into a guy who talked to us about his experience (he also used to weigh a lot more, but now looks SO much better) and he gave us some encouragement and advice. He told us to just ignore everyone else and pretend that it's just us and the machines. If we make that our focus, it will be easier. He was right. It made all the difference!

I guess I should say how it started: well, actually, Lee and I just decided on a whim to at least go check out the Sports Academy. After all, it really doesn't hurt to look. We talked with their membership person to get some information, and managed to get a great deal! It was too good to pass up. When we found out how much the normal rates are for two people (over $100 a month!), Lee asked if there were any deals that we could make, such as sponsoring. The nice young man called his manager and when he came back, we were offered a 2-for-1 deal if Lee would agree to be sponsored! That basically means that they will track his progress and Lee has given his permission for them to use his results in advertising.

It's also really cool that we were able to get a deal where we pay basically 2-for-1. Lee and I are a package deal when it comes to this weight loss thing. We do it together. Before we started working together we didn't have any lasting success. Since we finally decided to do it together, we've kept at it much longer than we ever have by ourselves. It also helps going to the gym together.

We have actually met some really great people at the gym! Most of the people we have talked to have been very kind and even helpful! There are still those times where it gets uneasy when people look at us, but overall it's been a great experience.

We get a few free visits with a personal trainer, as well. We got 3 from signing up, and another two as part of our deal. Our trainer also arranged for us to pay for further meetings at a discount. Rob is a good guy. He's been in our situation himself. He was once morbidly obese and has not only lost a lot of weight, but come to enjoy what he was doing and wants to help others, as well. It's nice having someone who has been in our shoes because he can understand, sympathize, and encourage us.

We've started seeing some changes for the good, too. Lee is at his lowest weight in years at 508 lbs, and I'm back down to where I was in November at 288. Not my lowest, but I'm going back down. The biggest positive results we've seen is how we feel. I'm really surprised at how much we enjoy going. We don't go as often as we planned, and some weeks are better than others, but I'm quite surprised at how we've stuck with it! Honestly, I am also quite excited that I can now go swimming more often!!

We took a few pictures but they didn't work out so we'll try again and post them later.

That's it for now. I promise to try to keep up with this more frequently! :-)

Frustrations, more ideas, good news, and . . . ducks?

May 25, 2016

May 25, 2016

I have so much to say, but I don't know where to start. I guess I'll just start typing, and I can edit so it makes sense, right?

I've been getting very frustrated that I haven't been able to lose weight or any inches. I had some inspiration the other day that we've been making efforts to work on.

First, I have a very hard time drinking water. I believe I've mentioned it before, but I really don't like drinking water. However, the thought came to me the other day that that could be a lot of why I'm not losing any weight: I don't drink enough, of anything. I paid attention to how I drink during the day, and realized that I probably drink a total of 16 - 20 oz of any liquid on an average day! I just don't think about it. Now, there are days that I might get about 40 - 50 oz, but my water intake usually stays around 20 oz. The daily recommendation is at least 64! That has to change.

Sorry if it's not a completely clear image.

I've set an alarm to go off every hour to remind myself to drink some water, now I just have to make myself take more than a swallow. I think that's why I don't drink more. When I'm thirsty, I take a swallow or two of what I'm drinking, it satisfies the thirst (or so I think), and I move on.

When I'm at work, I have a lot harder time on certain days. On the days we do exams (I'm working in an optical store and the Optometrist is only in twice a week), I'm usually so busy that I don't sit down at my desk for more than a minute or two at a time; and sometimes it's so hectic that it's at least 30 minutes before I can even take a breather. On those days, I often can't even stop for lunch, just snack when I get a chance to take a bite or two. I think I'll just have to be more diligent before and after work, and on the days that we aren't really busy.

The second idea that came to me is that we eat too many processed foods. We eat a lot of frozen foods, boxed foods, and instant foods. A lot of this is for convenience, and time restrictions, but the biggest reason is because it's cheaper. We want to cut back on pre-made foods, as well as starting to limit our carb intake. We won't be going fully paleo, but cutting back. The difficulty that we're going to run into now is that our food stamps (Yes, we're on food stamps. I'm not going to get into it so don't start. We don't make enough to pay our bills and buy food so we get help with food so we can pay our bills. Enough said.) have been cut by about 1/3 of what we were getting. Now we have to try to pay for fresh foods, which can be so much more expensive. I know that it's going to be worth it for our health, but it's not going to be easy.

Speaking of not easy, we started calisthenics this week. Can I just say a big fat "OUCH!!!" Just 20 minutes of calisthenics left us sweating, out of breath, and feeling more worn out than either walking or aerobics! The after-effects didn't just leave us sore, I was in literal pain! We are going to keep it up, but I can now say that I must be a glutton for punishment . . . or just very determined to lose weight.

Ok, enough of that. Now I want to tell you a story about our walk today. We went out for our 1.5-mile walk, and almost half-way through we found a female mallard duck making a lot of noise on the side of the road, but staying right by the corner. If you haven't guessed already, her babies were trapped down a storm drain!

Not picture from today.

Not picture from today.

We couldn't just ignore her, so we called the city dispatch so that they could send out Animal Control. They weren't on duty yet, so we had to just walk on and hope that they would help her when they could. I'm still hoping they were able to help her and her babies! Sadly, it's such a common occurrence that you can find a lot of pictures about rescues like this all over the internet. Maybe I'll take a moment after I finish this to make sure they're not still there.

Finally, for the best news of all: we took our measurements this weekend and compared them to a year ago when we started charting it. The results: Lee has lost a total of 4.5 inches in his waist! He is looking so good, and everyone is commenting on how they can see the results. Unfortunately, Lee can't see it, himself, but we usually are the last to see things like that on ourselves. I am so proud of him! Weigh-in is next weekend; we're crossing our fingers.

Adrenaline junkies?

I have a few things to talk about today. The title mentions one, but there's more. I'll start with our walk yesterday.

Yesterday morning started out pretty bad for me. I won't go into personal details, but let's just say that I was VERY depressed. Lee took the chance to use one of the tools that he has learned for dealing with stress and depression: he suggested that we go for our walk. As I said in the last blog, usually we go walking on Saturdays around 8, yesterday we left around 7. We weren't going to wait. It didn't take long for the exercise, serotonin, and adrenaline to do the job. Let me just say for those of you out there that suffer from depression: while it doesn't solve your problems, a regular workout program does wonders for the mind, body, and soul; and if you are feeling really bad, get up and move, no matter how you do it. It really is hard to focus on what's bringing you down when that serotonin starts working.

While we were walking, we decided to try some different types of moving to mix it up, as well as exercise other muscles. We basically just experimented with different ways to move our arms, and different ways to walk. One example is to pump your arms as if you are running, pushing your arms back and forth further than they move naturally. Another example is to do jumping jack arms, another is to just hold your arms out to the sides and let resistance work on your muscles. We also tried walking backward and sidestepping, as well as other ideas. We decided that on weekdays we don't have time for any of these, so we'll just work on alternating speeds on those days. On weekends, however, we have more time to spend on other types of movement.

Today we started out with the intention of taking a leisurely walk in the rain. Let me just say this: I don't think we know how to walk leisurely anymore, lol. Before long, we started doing some of the arm movements we discussed; then after a few blocks, we started some of the walking alternatives. We talked about it and decided that we must be adrenaline junkies now. We like how we feel after exercising and it just doesn't feel right anymore to take time off. Any day we can't exercise for reasons beyond our control, we get down and are up and ready to go the next morning.

Our efforts are paying off again. We did measurements and were weighed again yesterday after our walk. I am at least maintaining my measurements and weight, but I'm excited to say that Lee has lost 1-2 inches from his waist and chest and has lost 3 pounds in two weeks! We've realized that the biggest and hardest obstacle that we have to overcome now is our eating habits.

We've made efforts to limit our intake and add fruits and vegetables, but now it's time to really make some changes. We have decided to take most of our snacks out of our daily diet. We won't be purchasing anything in bulk anymore because that just leads to binging on it because it's there. We will only have snack foods in limited quantity, and try to avoid purchasing them until we want them. Of course, we aren't going to take anything away from our diet, just severely limit them. For example, yesterday we went on a date to Aggie Icecream and got single scoop cones instead of buying a half-gallon which we might binge on. Today we're making cookies and only baking 3 per day and freezing the rest.

I don't know if I'll ever be able to lose the weight that I want to. I've worked so hard over the last year and more, and have actually put on weight. However, I've maintained my overall measurements and I'm feeling so much better, have more energy, and most of the time I'm happier. I'm not giving up, but I'm going to try to not let it get me down.

Unexpected inspiration!

Today we had some unexpected inspiration. It's Saturday so, of course, we went on the mile-and-a-half walk this morning. We got out a little later today because we went out to eat breakfast for a mini-date, then stopped at the weekend outdoor market on our way home. We were originally going to go out around 8/8:30, as we usually do on Saturdays, but this morning we didn't leave until about 10:00. I think it might have been inspired.

As we were about 2.5 blocks from the end of the walk, a car approached us from behind, then pulled up next to us. A man we don't know leaned out of the window and started talking to us. He told us with a smile that, "Thanks to you guys, I've joined a da** gym." He said that he and his wife see us walking every day, and we have inspired them to go walking every day now, as well. He laughingly told us that he can only get around the block a time or two because he's so out of shape, but that we need to keep it up because we are an inspiration. He then said goodbye, did a U-turn, and drove away.

We were a little awed by the experience, and a little bit in shock. We have had so much support and encouragement from all of you who read this blog, and we are so grateful for that support. However, we didn't know we were an inspiration to complete strangers in our own neighborhood. We don't know who he is, but he has now inspired us to keep going. We've talked before about our religious beliefs; today we discussed it, and we can't accept that the timing was coincidental. If we had gone out at our normal time, we may not have had this wonderful experience.

It gets hard sometimes to keep going. Weather restrictions, health, mental health, and even pure laziness are, at times, very BIG obstacles. We started this blog last year as much for our own inspiration as to inspire others. We hoped that if we had the responsibility of keeping up the blog, it would help us be more motivated to keep going. It has worked out that way, too. We also hoped that we could inspire others, but mostly that we could show people that they aren't alone in their struggle to get healthy. You have all shown us that we aren't alone, either.

I'll close with another "Thank you," and the pictures from today's walk.

New disappointment, and new motivation.

We went out for our "long" walk this morning. It was a beautiful day and we were so excited to be able to go 1.5 miles instead of the mile we do weekdays due to time constrictions. After the walk, we were so excited, feeling really good, so we decided to do our monthly weigh-in. Good feelings gone.

It was so disappointing. Lee and I both went up in weight by another pound. Ok, so it's just a pound, but we were so sure that the muscle we've been developing would have started helping us to lose weight, not put it on.

I should say, however, that the exercising and eating better must be doing something for our attitudes and mental health. We didn't stay disappointed for long. Within minutes we turned it around and started to discuss how to use it as motivation. We also started discussing how to get past this plateau and step it up a notch.

This is one of my motivators. I'm a little nervous about sharing it, but it's real. I hope it helps others, as well as us.

Tomorrow we do our measurements. Crossing fingers, hope it will show better results.

Hooray for Lee! Twice a day!

March 28, 2016

March 20, 2016

There isn't a whole lot to talk about today, but I do want to say how extremely proud I am of Lee. In the last 3 and a half weeks, Lee has been out walking nearly every day, twice a day! Lee started walking in the mornings while I was at work as a way to deal with his depression and restlessness. Then, in the evenings, he would go walking again with me. He has gotten up to walking 2.5 miles every day, 1.25 miles each time!!

April 6, 2016

April 14, 2016

March 20, 2016

March 28, 2016

We went in last weekend to get weighed and were disappointed that our weight had gone up. We were really hoping it meant that we had developed muscle. The next morning we did our measurements and found that in some of the lower body both of us were smaller by about 1/2 to one inch, while the rest of our measurements were pretty much the same. I'm no expert, but if we had gained fat weight, wouldn't our measurements have also gone up? Still hoping the weight gain is muscle.

April 6, 2016

That's pretty much everything today. Here are pics from the last 3 weeks!

April 14, 2016

New Pics, New Exercise, Same struggles

Happy Spring! 

It has really been a hard year so far, and it's only mid-March. We are definitely still struggling with exercising and eating right, but we've come up with some alternatives that we hope might help.

I started searching online for ideas for fun exercises. I found a lot of pages that recommend activities that we used to do as children. One page specifically said that, as children, we got a lot more exercise and activity without knowing that's what we were doing. We went outside and played: on the swings, jungle gyms, playing tag, throwing frisbees, playing catch, etc. We were doing things to have fun, and getting exercise while we were at it. As we got older, our ideas of fun "matured." Those "mature" activities became a lot more sedentary. We stopped being active. Yes, a lot of people in the world keep up with their active lives, playing sports and other physical recreational activities. However, our amount of time spent on these activities has lessened for nearly everyone as we've grown older. Life gets in the way and we just don't have as much time for play. Play, according to this site (I wish I had kept the link to share with everyone), is just as important for us as adults as it is for kids. Playing is a great stress reliever, a positive mood enhancer, and a physical boost for our bodies.

I really connected with this idea of playing. I started realizing that I've gotten away from having fun just for the sake of having fun. The idea of having fun and getting exercise at the same time is very appealing to me. I got on Facebook and let all of my friends know that I was going to start going to the park every Saturday to find some form of play. I've invited everyone who can to join me. My friend took it a step further and started a Facebook group about it.

For the last 2 Saturdays, I have gone down to the park and played Frisbee Golf. Lee joined me last week, and my friend and her 5 kids joined me yesterday. As the weather warms up, I would like to include other activities, as well. Some of the ideas that I have come up with are:

swinging, playing on the jungle gyms, flying kites, playing catch, having water play (water guns, water balloons, etc), playing tag, hopscotch, kickball, horseshoes, croquet, lawn bowling, volleyball, badminton, and a few others that I can't remember right now, lol.

On a different note, Lee and I have also been looking at other exercise videos. We're still doing mostly Sweatin' to the Oldies 2, but we're trying to get more ideas of things we like that we can do. For the last 2 days we've also done short walks. Getting up and moving around, even just for 10 minutes, is better than being sedentary all day and just exercising for 20 - 30 minutes at night.

One of the biggest reasons for being more active throughout the day is really for the psychological benefits. This year so far, as I mentioned, has been a hard one. It has really affected both of our moods, and there have been a lot more depressing days; some were very bad days. Exercise releases endorphins which help us feel better, and we could really use more of those.

Although I talk a lot about how hard it is to exercise, I have to admit that it's been just as hard (or even harder, if we're being honest) to stick to a healthy eating lifestyle. For the most part, we haven't really gone back to how bad we were eating a year ago, but we also haven't continued to improve our eating habits. We've kind of just stuck with where we're at. All of the information we've been told says that the majority of weight loss comes from how we eat. We've made healthy changes to our diet, but we're still not at the point where we can honestly say that we're burning more calories than we eat.

I've mentioned before that I've had a hard time losing weight, especially in comparison to Lee's success. I've thought a lot about it, and I'm kind of ashamed to admit that I've not been doing as much as I can. I've made small changes along with Lee, but as I'm already a bit healthier than he is, I realize that I can do so much more. I also realize that I'm subconsciously trying to avoid making those changes because they are going to be hard. The next step for me is going to have to push those feelings aside and focus on why I'm doing it. There is a part of me even now telling myself that I can't do it. It's time to start eating even less and adding more fruits and vegetables . . . and drinking a lot more water (I absolutely hate plain water).

As an ending to the blog today, I'm going to post current pics of Lee and I walking today. I do have to say that I'm really enjoying going out with him again. We don't really look all that great in the pics, but that's not why we're out there, right? Enjoy!

Inspiration

We've really struggled with exercising in the last two months. I think I'm getting tired of Sweatin' to the Oldies, and aerobic exercise is really hard on my bad ankle. Winter can make it difficult to find alternate forms of exercise. We both really miss walking, but it's been a very cold winter; combined with the inversion, that sets off my asthma. Also, Lee still struggles with the bone spur in his heel.

It was so easy to use these excuses to not exercise. However, I then started noticing that I was getting more stiff and sore. It was harder to move on some days. I don't think I've added a lot of weight, but the exercise was keeping me more limber, & I was losing that. We needed to find some inspiration.

On the plus side, we've been doing a lot better with our eating. We packed away our big plates & glasses, and started eating smaller meals on medium-sized salad plates. We also try to have fruit or veggies with every meal. We're even going to add veggies to some meals that don't call for it. Since we don't like a lot of veggies, I'll chop them up small enough to not notice, but still get the nutritional value.

We were doing better, but we needed to be exercising as well. In addition to how stiff and sore I was starting to get, we found another source of inspiration: other people's stories. We've seen a few shows on TV lately that show just how bad it can get, & reminded Lee of where he started. Interestingly, it was one of the things that got us up and exercising again.

I still can't do the aerobic exercises very well. Pounding my foot on the ground and forcing my ankle to bend with some of the exercises is excruciatingly painful. Instead, I am trying just to move how I can and keep my heart rate up. It seems to be working ok. I really need to find a way to afford to go swimming on Saturdays. That's what I'm working on now.

Watching these stories of other people's struggles with losing weight made me realize how much we may be inspiring other people with this blog and our story. If you are inspired by our story, please share it with others. That has been the idea all along.

Below are some links to some of the things that have inspired us.

http://www.fruitsandveggiesmorematters.org/easy-ways-to-add-fruits-veggies-to-your-day

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1162150180463324&id=276701919008159

Happy New Year!

Can you believe it's 2016?! Wow! Happy New Year, everyone! I just realized that Lee and I have been on this journey for almost 10 months now! In this post today, I want to review our year last year, as well as catch up since the last time I blogged.

Near the beginning of 2015, Lee and I started talking about how hard it was to do the things we used to do. Over the years of our marriage, we've spent a lot of time trying to start losing weight. We made a lot of mistakes, tried fad diets, started exercising but stopped for months at a time, etc. Most of our hurdles were psychological. We both suffer from depression and extremely low self-esteem. Every set-back set off our self-hatred and we would blame ourselves and tell ourselves we could never succeed.

So what started the change? Our faith. Honestly. A few years ago, Lee and I started reading the scriptures, praying, and going to church again. It was slow going for that, too, but as we started having success, and building our testimonies in Heavenly Father and Jesus, our self-confidence began to grow as well. We attribute all of the great things that have happened in our lives over the last few years to Heavenly Father. Without His help, and our willingness to do what is right, we might not even be here at this time. I know that sounds melodramatic, but I really believe it to be true. Without His love, guidance, and our faith in Him and each other, I know our depression would have either taken our lives or put us in a much worse state.

This picture is from March 31st and April 1st of last year. This is when we first started out. There have been a lot of ups and downs, most of them not recorded here. It was so much easier at the beginning to be motivated and work at losing weight. We have noticed as time went on that a lot of that motivation has dwindled.

Over the last month and a half, we've had bad illnesses, injuries, holidays (which everyone can agree is bad for staying healthy), financial difficulties, and so much more that has gotten in the way with exercising and eating right. The truth is, however, that we just let it get in the way. We know it.

It's been hard getting motivated again. We've fallen back on old habits: exercising only when we feel like it, eating more unhealthy foods and less healthy foods, etc. I admit that I miss going walking with Lee. It was great to get outside, away from home, enjoying the sunshine and nature. It was great talking with Lee about things without anything getting in the way. We don't have that connection when we do aerobics. Don't get me wrong, I love doing Sweatin' to the Oldies with Lee. He can make almost anything fun. However, I think it's harder for me to be motivated to do on my own when Lee can't exercise with me, and the same for him. At least when we were walking, we both enjoyed going out on our own if we had to. However, Lee's problems with his heel haven't improved and Sweatin' is easier on his heel; we just need to find those motivators that will help keep us going.

These pictures were the last pictures we took. This was in November. This was another motivator that we got away from. I think when we stopped walking and started exercising inside, we forgot about pictures. We don't have anything more recent, but we are going to try to get some done this week.

Today we went to get weighed again. Surprisingly, and happily, Lee has lost more weight!!!! We didn't start tracking our weight until June last year, but he started then at 533.6 lbs and today he weighed in at 509.8!!! We're trying to find out from our doctor what his highest weight was recorded as, but we know that he started around 580. This is his lowest weight in over 5 years, and he lost 11 lbs since we weighed in last month!!!! While we were still at the hospital where we got weighed, Lee was very excited abut losing 11 lbs. He turned to a guy who was walking past and told him about his weight loss. The guy told him congratulations and that it was a great accomplishment. We were feeling pretty excited. As we approached our vehicle outside, we heard a siren turn on and off. It is a hospital so the siren isn't unusual, but it was just a few feet behind us and was just for a second so it caught our attention. We turned around and there was a Highway Patrol vehicle driving on the road behind us: it was the guy that Lee had talked to and he was pumping his arm and smiling at us! We had had no idea he was a cop! For us, it was a really cool moment to be sharing this victory with someone we didn't know. Then when he showed his support again, it was even more cool! What a great guy!

Once again, my weight has gone up. I am at 291.6 lbs. This is higher, by 2 pounds, than I've been since June. If I want to be honest, I'm getting very discouraged. I'm almost ready to start starving myself. What is it going to take for me to lose weight? A part of me doesn't want to say any of this. Lee gets very discouraged and volunteers to stop losing weight so that I'm not alone. It's very sweet that he cares so much about me, but it's encouraging to me when he loses weight and does so well. I'm so proud of him, and I would feel worse if he stopped because of me. I don't really know what I'm going to do, but I'm not going to give up. I guess that's something, right?

We have a mantra that we say when we start to get discouraged, when we need to boost our attitudes, or when we're encouraging each other: "TEAM EARL!" Our team includes each other, Heavenly Father, Jesus, the Holy Ghost, our families (here and on the other side), our friends, and each of you who have supported us through the last few years. Thank you for all your love, encouragement, and support! Here's to another year, a healthier year, and more weight lost!