Day 16 This was me.

This was me a year ago. In all ways measurable, this is how I looked 16 days ago, too. Since then, I've lost only 4 lbs, but I've been eating clean and adding extra exercise into my life. It's only been 16 days, so there's probably no significant difference yet in how I look, but I know that yesterday I wore the pants that I was wearing in that picture, and they fit slightly less tight than they used to fit.

So, I wanted to make this picture part of this record. When I tell people I have 40 lbs to lose, they often say, 'No you don't', or 'Where?'  because a body in motion is harder to see bulk on than a body in a picture. I have a body type that keeps the extra weight mostly between my ribcage and my knees, with a smidge in my breasts and my arms. If I took off my shirt, you'd see my rib cage, but my belly is soft, and my butt and thighs are pillowy. So, while I am eating clean, trying to lose fat, Iam doing some arm work, but my main focus is ab and leg work.

I know that's an especially bad picture, like I'm trying to hide, but somehow appearing bigger in spite of it, but it is my shocker picture, the one I refer to as motivation. The one I show myself to say, 'See? You need your health back!'

Do you have similar pictures? Instead of hiding or deleting them, could you use them, to motivate yourself, and later celebrate? You don't need to hate the, they are pictures of you. You wouldn't be where you are today without that past self, so don't chide her for being a slob, tell her it's going to be ok, and you're working on a solution.

ETA: It's been 16 days, as I've already mentioned, and I've made mistakes in my eating, but overall, I've not been any more hungry than usual, I had good resons for my bobbles. As the song goes, 'Je ne regrette rien!' I had a packet of coconut M&M's on day 14 to celebrate 2 weeks of clean eating. At my sister in law's birthday party, I had half of a white bun with dinner (I found it tasteless, so I didn't want the other half), and a moderate slice of ice cream cake. The cake was just enough to enjoy, not enough to overpower me with sweetness. I'm proud of B, he had a slice half as big, and he was satisfied. So, improvement, not perfection, and it's been over 2 weeks of improvement so far.

Wherever you are, take care of yourselves, and good luck on your journeys.