Shootin' for that 5%

Statistic:  Only 5% of people who lose more than 10% of their body weight retain that loss after 5 years.

That is horrible.

What does that mean?

Does that mean that 95% of the people are incapable of keeping it off?  That if they just worked out a little more, or just ate a little less, they could remain in the 5% category or increase the percentages?  One of the big eye openers, and areas of forgiveness within myself is to find out that my weight is a factor of dozens of
reasons - some way out of my control, or until recently, out of my knowledge base.

I believe that in losing weight it is about the basic formula of:
Energy In less than Energy Out = Weight Loss

However when it comes to keeping it off I think that there are thousands (if not hundreds of thousands or more) things you can do to increase your success rate.  I don't think that it is as simple as calories in / calories out at that point.  I think that it has to be MUCH more than that.

I have opened my mind to many things beyond just what choices I put into my mouth, and what physical activity I am/aren't doing that all can ultimately effect my waistline.

The Status of my Love Tank
The Status of my Fuel Tank
My Stress Level
Considering the origins and prior diet of my food before it came to my mouth
Nutritional density of my food
Fitness Routine
Finding Fitness Opportunities in Every Day Life
Building Muscles for Tone and Long Term Metabolism Boost
I was overweight and possibly obese pre-puberty - I will never get to goal and then be able to go back to anything of my former life and expect to keep it off.  For me to be fit and healthy I am making a FOREVER commitment to consider my weight, food, and nutrition each and every day.


One of the eye openers for me is that I now understand that Obesity means that my body tissue is in an Inflamed state.  My fat cells are all inflamed and the fat cells on my thighs are bad, but the ones on my heart and in my organs are much worse.  Unfortunately I can't choose which ones to heal first - I have to keep going until they are all in a healed state.
 
Think about the foods you eat, the quality of life you have, your mental state, what you put in your fuel tank and what you have in your love tank - these can all effect your waistline and your overall health in ways greater than pizza and the couch.  You might be gaining for reasons more than your dinner choices and lack of exercise.


Here are just some things that I am doing in the MUCH more category to help my overall chances of success.  I want to be part of that 5%.

Over time I am eliminating as many unhealthy chemicals as I can from my life.

In my Food:
- I started eating only raw fruits, raw veggies, lean meats, dairy, double fiber English muffins as my main bread source.  I have good fats - nuts, extra virgin olive oil, natural peanut butter.  Mostly raw, or hot washed, because I don't like to cook. =)
- I buy only lean meats - I am working on getting them all from local, but ground turkey is still from Safeway.

- I buy organic whenever I can, and some items I won't buy if they aren't organic

- I have recently stopped using the microwave
- I only eat off of small ceramic plates and small ceramic bowls
- I only drink milk, tea, coffee and water
and more..

In my Environment:
- I rarely wear make up since I found out that it all has cancer causing properties. 
- For now, I stopped coloring my hair, I am going to grow it out to my natural color for the first time in 14 years- I have stopped using plastic bags.  I use paper bags for produce, and reusable bags for groceries.  If I forget the bags, I take the whole cart to the car and unload in the seats and then get the bags at home.
- I only use 100% cocoa butter as lotion
- I stopped using aerosol anything.
- I stopped burning scented candles.
and more..


I do things to increase and encourage my overall fitness and to burn calories:
- I reorganized my lower level to include an ample area for our exercise equipment and to exercise
- I included an area where I can hook up the laptop for routines from the web, and the spark people videos
- I park on the far end of the parking lot.
- I bring up 2 carts to the front of the store
- I bring my cart and one back up to the front of every store when I leave
- I eat most of my fats and carbs with protein for breakfast and lunch to fuel me through the days activities
- I wear a pedometer all the time.  I pin a cute flat model from Sports Authority inside my pants so it rests at the top of my right thigh.   I track this daily - don't know where you are going if you don't have the data
- I track all of my food - don't know where you are going if you don't have the data
- I track all of my fitness - don't know where you are going if you don't have the data
- I measure myself once a month - don't know where you are going if you don't have the data
- I don't ride in the car with the air conditioner on anymore.  Aside from the environmental impact, I read increasing your body temperature by 1 degree increases your metabolism efficiency by 14%.
and more..

I am also working on being as happy as I can. =)  It can be a lot of fun!  I am working on it in all facets of my life - my relationships, my work, my life, my thought process, my internal dialogue, my workouts, every minute. =)

I am shooting for the 5%.  =)