How tall are you?
Probably somewhere between 5’2” and 5’3”. Unfortunately, God didn't bless me with the gift of height and legs to my chin.
How much do you weigh?
Currently 183 (lost three pounds
recently!)
How much have you lost since you began losing?
22 pounds. My
heaviest was 205. (I know, right?)
What has been the most difficult thing about losing weight?
Being patient with results. I’m learning that results don’t come for free. And
results happen slowly.
What’s your guilty pleasure?
Currently, it would have to be
cheese and any kind of cream-based sauce like sour cream or mayonnaise. I try
to limit it, but I haven’t cut it out of my diet. I believe (most) things are
okay in moderation. And by moderation, I don’t mean every day. Unfortunately. (:
What health food do you love that most people wouldn’t think
about trying?
Oh gosh…anything different or outside the box. I have tried fish
tacos (love them) and am gonna try some stuffed sweet peppers next week.
Variety is the spice of life! And it keeps you from getting bored. Who wants to
eat broccoli and chicken every day? Not me. I also recommend buying one new
vegetable and fruit each week and experimenting with different recipes. Try
allrecipes.com for some ideas. This week I’m trying my culinary hands at some
fresh artichokes. We’ll see how that goes. I do know that the lady at the
check-out counter doesn’t like them because she said “Oh shit!” when the stems
poked her finger. (Oops!)
What do you do with the nay-sayers in your life?
I say
fah-get-aboud-it (in the best Italian accent I can muster up!) Seriously, just
know that there are some people that can never be pleased. I have those people in
my life. No matter if I lost 10 pounds in a week, they’d say I should have lost
12. And I can almost bet that when I lose more weight, I’ll hear “you’re
getting too skinny!”. Remember: this is for YOU. No one else. Don’t go to those
people for encouragement – you’ll just be disappointed. First and foremost, YOU
congratulate YOURSELF for your accomplishments. Find ways to reward yourself (not
with food). And go to the positive people in your life to share your successes
with.
What do you do when you have bad days where you feel like a
failure?
I blog about it (see previous blog post where I was super discouraged). I
also keep going. I don’t go order take out like I used to. Even though I still
want to, I don’t drown myself in cheese fries. I try to continue to do what I
know is right – eat healthy and work out. Eventually, it pays off. For instance, last week I was so discouraged because I had actually gained two pounds. But when I weighed in this past Sunday, I lost two pounds (in addition to the two I had gained). And I lost an additional one between Sunday and Today. So, work does pay off.
What’s your best diet advice?
Don’t do diets just to lose weight. Look
at it as a lifestyle change. I believe losing weight is 70% diet and 30%
exercise (that's just my personal belief). Your diet lays the ground work for what happens with your muscle and
metabolism.
What foods should I eat if I’m trying to eat healthy?
I’ve
been trying to eat whole, unprocessed foods for the majority of the time. It’s called eating “clean”. A good
rule of thumb is to do most of your grocery shopping along the perimeters of
the store. Most of the stuff in between the aisles is highly processed. This is
a general rule of course. Fresh produce, low-fat dairy, and low processed lean meats are the best. I try to be aware of sugar. I do this because I tend to gain all of my fat around my mid-section which is often associated with Type 2 Diabetes. And I don't want to join in on that party.
What’s your current workout plan?
I am doing a combination
of three workout videos. They are: Jillian Michael’s 30 Day Shred and two
videos from The Firm series. I workout six days a week for at least 30 minutes
a day. Eventually I’ll change it up, but for now, it’s my plan. And it involves
a good combo of intense cardio, strength training and stretching.
What’s a big diet or fitness lie people believe?
Many folks
believe you can spot reduce. You can not. You can’t do 100 sit ups a day and no
cardio and expect to lose weight only in your stomach and get a six pack. It
doesn’t work that way. Cardio is a MUST. (I know, it kinda sucks sometimes.)
Wouldn’t it be nice if the DVD had a prompt at the beginning of the video that
said “please select the following area you would like to lose weight from
today”?
Final words…
I put my weight loss off for way too long. I made excuses. I
don’t know how many times I said “this is my last fast food burger” or “this
one bad food choice won’t make that much difference”. But now I look at my
decisions as steps. I can take a step forward or a step back. It’s up to me. I
don’t torture myself if I want a Snickers candy bar. I’m not that fanatical about it. But
I make more healthier choices than I make unhealthy ones. The only person
standing in my way was me. Now, I’m actually rooting for my own team...Team Danielle 100%! Many times in life, you have to be your biggest cheerleader (not in a totally self-absorbed or conceited way, but in a healthy "I love myself" way).
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