Health | The Misadventures of Mrs. B

I’ve been putting this off. As much as it really, seriously doesn’t bother me to tell the truth about my weight and measurements, especially in light of the fact that I’m working to change things for the better…I still have to take a deep breath prior to posting these “before” photos.

As I told you a couple of weeks ago, I was accepted into the Shaklee 180 blogger program and since March 1st have been drinking Shaklee smoothies and eating their meal bars and snack bars. Also provided were energizing tea and metabolic supplements. The Shaklee180 weight loss program promises that I’ll lose belly fat (which, as you can see from the photos below, I need help with) and of course to help me maintain muscle while losing weight.

It helps that I think everything I’ve tried so far is delicious. My favorite smoothie involves the vanilla shake powder, almond milk, frozen peaches, vanilla extract and cinnamon. It’s ridiculous in an amazing, “I could drink this every day for the rest of my life” way.

So without further ado, here are my “before” pictures:

And my stats:

Bust: 49″

Waist: 45 1/2″

Hips: 50″

Arms: 14″

Weight: 230 lbs

It can only get better from here, right? I’m trusting that the Shaklee weight loss program, plus the support of my wonderful fellow bloggers, will get me through.

Stay tuned for my progress for the next six months!

Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post as part of the Shaklee Corporation blogger program. I have received free products, online support and incentives for participating. My opinions are honest and my own. People following the weight-loss portion of the Shaklee 180™ Program can expect to lose 1-2 pounds per week.

Oh and by the way, did you see that I’m hosting a giveaway which closes Monday March 11th? Rob is going to redesign the blog of one lucky reader! Don’t miss the chance to enter!

Do you have any weight loss goals you’re pursuing in 2013? Tell me about them!

If you’ve spent any time at all reading my blog (and if you have, I humbly thank you, truly) you know that weight has been an issue for me throughout my life.

Even when I was a little girl and not overweight at all, I was still bigger than the other girls in my class. Taller, bigger boned, with chipmunk cheeks. I would never be tiny and petite like my classmates.

Kids don’t understand that. To them, “big” means “fat”. “Fat” usually means “Picked on mercilessly”.

Over time it was that image of myself as the “fat girl” that, along with other issues, led to compulsive overeating. It sent me straight to 280 lbs by the time I turned 25.

That compulsion still lingers in the back of my mind, even though I’ve lost a lot of weight since I was at my heaviest. Even though the mental picture I have of myself carries a lot more respect, admiration and love than it did when I was mindlessly shoveling food into my mouth until my chest hurt.

Yes, things have gotten better. The fact remains, though, that I need help releasing the rest of this excess weight.

Which is why I’m over the moon excited about what I’m sharing with you right now.

Last week I found out that I and 89 other amazing, lovely women were chosen as Shaklee180 bloggers!

What does this mean? It means that I’ll be spending the next six months working hard. Getting down to the nitty gritty. Letting this amazing sense of responsibility I have towards my life, my health and my happiness trickle down into some concrete hard work. And Shaklee (not to mention my fellow bloggers) will be by my side.

I mean, it’s one thing to know that I need to make positive choices. But I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve been resting on my laurels, letting my 12,000 steps-per-day goal be as far as I go sometimes, eating that extra piece of chocolate (or two) since I only had a salad for dinner. Having that extra glass of wine (or two) because “it’s the weekend”.

So the Shaklee180 program could not have come at a better time.

I’ll be sharing my “before” photos with you soon (the program starts March 1st) and I hope I’ll have you all by my side, cheering me on as I bare it all.

In my next #Shaklee180 post: Before pictures/measurements and my ultimate goals (both for my weight and my self-confidence!).

If you want to chat with me or any other Shaklee blogger, check us out under the #Shaklee180 hashtag on Twitter!

This is a sponsored post as part of the Shaklee Corporation blogger program. I have received free products, online support and incentives for participating. My opinions are my own. People following the weight-loss portion of the Shaklee 180™ Program can expect to lose 1-2 pounds per week.

Do you have any health or weight loss goals? Tell me about them – we can cheer each other on!

I love seeing all the veggies in those photos up there. When you start trying to focus on how to include healthier foods in your daily diet, it becomes like a game after a while. How can I make this meal healthier?

Looking at it like a game > Looking at it like a chore.

Jackie’s comment from last Monday had me laughing at myself:

Today… I went to the gym and then finally splurged and bought myself the “good” shampoo & conditioner.

This was SO me for the longest time. Years and years. I would buy the 99 cent shampoo and conditioner as a rule (ask my husband, he’ll confirm this).

Even when I was no longer a “poor college student”, I was still certain that it made no difference if I bought cheap shampoo, so without a second thought I’d buy whatever was least expensive. I even viewed getting a haircut as an extravagance.

The issue here, as I see it, isn’t that I didn’t want to spend the money. It’s that I wore this almost as a badge of honor – you couldn’t get me to pay more than 99 cents to wash my hair. I enjoy living life on a cross, evidently.

And forget having my hair professionally colored – my grays would just have to make do with boxed color. Assuming I ever got around to coloring them, anyway. And believe me when I tell you that my grays are b-a-d.

Why did I do this? Why did I not care how I looked?

After all, I could afford a haircut for heaven’s sake. And a slightly more expensive shampoo. And coloring one’s hair, while not the most exciting experience, isn’t difficult.

I just figured it wasn’t worth spending the time and money on.

Or, rather, I wasn’t worth spending the time and money on.

This went on for years until finally, for my birthday this past year, I decided to splurge and get my hair professionally colored and cut. And anyone who’s ever had this done as opposed to home coloring and letting their split ends run amok for years at a time knows how I felt when I left that salon.

Like a new woman.

And it didn’t hurt that Rob told me repeatedly how much he liked my new ‘do.

I go back every four weeks now.

And I feel silly for having waited so long to make this change. No, it’s not cheap – but in how many other ways was I spending the same amount of money without giving it a second thought? Lattes from Starbucks, the salad bar at Whole Foods because I was too lazy to pack my own lunch, etc. Several days a week, every week.

In retrospect, I probably spent more on those extravagances than on my hair.

So like so many other shifts, this one involves deciding what’s more valuable – an extra twenty minutes a day to zone out in front of the news while I could be packing my food for the day, or feeling more presentable and attractive?

Duh.

Feeling good about ourselves shouldn’t be looked at like an extravagance, but rather an investment. So whether it’s spending money at the salon, or on slightly-more-expensive healthy foods, or spending time at the gym or going for a run, it’s a much better use of your resources. Go for it!

And if you ever feel guilty for spending these precious resources on yourself and you find yourself asking “why”, remember what they say in the commercials: Because we’re worth it.

Do you spend money to get your hair/nails/whatever done regularly? Or do you cringe at the expense, like I used to?

Share with me – how have you honored yourself this past week? How do you plan to do so going forward?