Day 1: Let's Start That Cleanse!

HELLO FELLOW BLOGGERS! ... I gave you a heads up, now I bring to you my "new and improved" (I'm sure that's up for argument) challenge- Wedding dieting! As I have mentioned, I have grown to appreciate food A TON this year. It seems the only time I socialize anymore is to meet with people to grab lunch, dinner, or bake with them... Which has clearly made an impact on my waistband. When Stephen and I first started dating, I was a solid 139 pounds... up three from my lightest since high school, but still fairly fit. During my time in Pullman, I had packed on the pounds- up to 166 at my heaviest. After dropping those thirty pounds, I had sworn I would never let myself get that heavy again. Although I am nowhere near that weight, I am gaining. I yo-yo pretty badly... one day I'll be down to 142, the next up to 146. It's annoying, especially considering the awful weight issues I've always had.

Weight has always been a sensitive subject for me. For whatever reason, over the years, my weight has repeatedly been an issue. People will make offhanded comments about it, my family has never been polite when it comes to being overweight, etc. If I gain weight, it will literally be the only thing I can focus on for days on end. VERY UNHEALTHY. My weight is what I measure myself up against. I don't want sympathy of any kind, I just think you all need an understanding of where I am coming from.

It became even worse over the course of dating Stephen, which sounds awful... he and I love to eat and food and cooking together... plus, on top of that, he is VERY supportive of my looks. Which is amazing... I have never dated a man who continually tells me how wonderful and beautiful I am. Usually, the men I date make comments about weight constantly... which did WONDERS for keeping my waistline a little more trim, but did nothing good for my self-esteem. So I have been enjoying life, and food, and by BMI shows it.

I want to be small again. I hate how my thighs are always rubbing together. I hate how I have gained more muscle over the course of the summer with my personal trainer than I have had in years, and yet no one can tell. I hate that I can work out five days a week, and yet my pants are getting TIGHTER. I hate that I woke up this morning, tried to put on my engagement ring, and it hurt to do so. ENOUGH IS ENOUGH.

I am starting clean today. I've been researching diets for months, and I think I have finally found one that I am eager to try. My diet is starting today with the Jillian Michael's 7-day cleanse. I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to shed that access Holiday water weight, and see what it is that I really need to lose. The cleanse is easy- you combine 60 oz. of water with one dandelion tea bag, one tablespoon of sugar free cranberry juice, and two tablespoons of lemon juice. It actually doesn't taste bad either- I took my first 24 ounces of the cleanse with me to Zumba this morning, and I am already almost done. It has a zesty, spicy taste to it, one that I can actually stomach, and let me tell you what- it really does make you have to go to the bathroom. Sorry, but just be prepared for that. Anyways, I am going to do this for the next seven days and report to you what I find. My diet will consist of watching my caloric intake... I'm hoping to eat between 1500-1700 a day.

So what are my goals? Cleanse for 7 days, start my official diet after that, while working out at least four days a week. I want to bring my starting weight of 146.6 pounds to at least 135... one pound under my smallest a couple of years ago. My personal trainer said that 135 is perfectly healthy, but if I wanted to push it, she said to hit 125 if I could. Considering I haven't been 125 pounds since my senior year of high school, I thought that might be a little much... but who knows? If I can hit 135, maybe I'll keep going.

I took "before" pictures this morning... but I won't post those. You don't want to see. But I will keep you updated on my progress. The ultimate goal? Spend my entire honeymoon in a bikini... or less. You know what I mean? Here is the official guide I pulled the cleanse off of: