Dusting off the treadmill

Hi Everybody,

Cindy extended me an invite to this support blog so here I am. This is a perfect time too. Twenty plus years ago I was a model. We just unearthed my two portfolios and Robert (my dh) has been scanning them and putting them on the computer. My oh my, I will never get back to that girl. It's okay though. My 20 year old self was 5'7" and 117ibs. What is funny is that is too much weight for a model of 5'7" but if you saw the pics (and I will see if I can snag one and post it) you would think I probably needed to eat a sandwich...or two. LOL That was 40lbs ago. I am only interested in meeting my old self halfway. So, 140 is what I am shooting for, even though 20lbs seems like Mt. Everest to me. Stupid, I know, but still...it seems almost impossible.

So, I gotta dust off the very nice treadmill in the basement (which is finished and nice to hang out in) and just start walking. These are my initial goals:

1. Drink 8 glasses of water. Seems like no big deal...but it is for me. I know I don't get enough water. Coffee is another story.
2. Walk on the treadmill for 30 minutes, at least 3 days a week, to start. I love music, but for walking I really enjoy listening to books. So, I gotta find some fun fluffy book to listen too.
3. Cook more at home. We are blessed (and cursed) to be able to eat out ALOT. There are alot of calories in restaurant food. I love to cook (especially to bake) so I really need to get back into that...as it feeds me both body (and soul).

I am not going to put myself on a time table either. If I lose it slowly enough, it won't come back quickly...if ever. The point is to change stuff slowly so that it becomes habit. I really want to become pregnant again and I don't want to be doing something so extreme to my body (like really lowering calories or tons of exercise) that I would have to abandon it, if pregnant someday. It needs to be something a pregnant 41 year old could do. So far, the above 3 goals seem perfectly fine if I should be blessed enough to ever find myself pregnant again.
So, thanks for this great idea. I am glad I am here.

However, tonight is my husband's 42nd birthday so we are having 40 Cloves and A Chicken (40+ garlic cloves, tons of olive oil, thyme, cooked for 2 hours....amazing!) A big crusty French Boule with fresh grated Parmesano Reggiano, some wine, and a big, homemade Chocolate Cake (served with milk and/or coffee). So, even though I am cooking tonite....I don't think it is going to help with those goals....but hey! it's not New Years Day yet!

~Rachel in ATL.