Staying on Track in 2017

Thank you Jenny Craig for sponsoring this post. — Get serious about losing weight with Jenny Craig!

For many years I didn’t make any New Year’s Resolutions or set goals. It seemed too cheesy and cliche. I changed my mind a few years ago, however, when I realized that if I didn’t set any goals I wouldn’t reach them. The last five years or so I have found setting goals helps to live a more purposeful life and achieve my goals.

Here is what I am doing to keep on track with my goals to make 2017 amazing.

I use a bullet journal. At is core, a bullet journal is just a book where I keep any and all pertinent information. I make daily lists, track ideas (for blog posts, projects, etc), funny quotes from the kids, and more. I take notes at appointments and jot down reminders. My bullet journal is not pretty, fancy or filled with lovely drawings. It is my lifeline. In fact, I call it my Magical Green Notebook. The real magic is that all of the information I need is in the same place…not all over the house on crumpled pieces of paper!

I am using time blocking to be more productive. The idea behind time blocking is simply to block out times during the day to accomplish tasks. I do what I can during the prescribed period and stop when my time is up. For instance, I will have “work on email for 20 minutes” in a block. I will then tackle my email. During that time block, I do nothing else. I don’t hop over to Facebook or read blog posts. I just work on the task in front of me. When my timer goes off, I stop and move on to something else.

Improve my health by losing weight. For most of my adult life losing a few pounds meant the discipline of smaller portions, skipping dessert and upping my activity level. But guess what? That method quit working sometime in my mid-thirties. Changing hormones, age, and medication I take for my adenomyosis have all contributed to stubborn weight gain that doesn’t want to leave.

If you’ve been reading for a while you might remember that the last two years me (and select children) have opted to do A Month of No Sugar. And guess what happened? Nothing. I didn’t feel better or worse and my kids didn’t feel better or worse. I still see articles about how sugar is the new cocaine, spawned in the depths of hell by Satan himself. What I learned is, *I* am not addicted to sugar (though I love sweet things), cutting out sugar did not improve my energy level or help me lose weight.

Back in 2011 I actually got down to my ideal weight by cutting out all dairy and wheat (doctor’s orders since I was breastfeeding Apollo and they thought he had severe allergies), juicing and running daily. I felt great and lost weight…but starting January 2012 Apollo was on a medical roller coaster that wouldn’t stop. He quit napping and I could no longer run. Frequent hospitalizations meant I couldn’t juice regularly. Doctors ruled out allergies and eating wheat and dairy-free became nearly impossible while I was at the hospital with Apollo. In September 2012 I was diagnosed with adenomyosis, which often left me in debilitating pain.

So back came the extra pounds.

Jenny Craig encourages you to eat plenty of veggies. For this Philly Cheesesteak, I chose to saute extra peppers and onions to pile on my sandwich.

This year I am trying Jenny Craig. Because I make 95% of the day-to-day decisions when it comes to our kids (since Chuck is at work) I suffer from serious decision fatigue. When I talked to Chuck about trying this I told him I just didn’t have it in me right now to do something as intense as the no dairy/no wheat/juicing/running. He told me he totally understood and encouraged me to give this a try (I’m one week in).

Jenny Craig offers personal support (I talk to my consultant once a week by phone), has a holistic approach to healthy weight loss (mind, body, and food). All my food is premade (I add in fresh fruit and veggies). I chose to go with a pre-made plan so I do literally no thinking. I eat what my menu tells me to eat. Period. I am so committed to this I…wait for it...bought a microwave. Friends, we haven’t owned a microwave in 20 years but I needed something simple and easy and this fits the bill. Wish me luck.

Use my Fitbit to track activity. After asking your advice on my Facebook page, I ended up purchasing a Fitbit Charge 2. I love it so much I should probably write an entire post about it and how it is helping me to keep caught up on laundry! In addition to my Fitbit, I have also joined a “strong and stretchy” exercise class that focuses on strengthening core muscles (something sorely needed after my c-section).

So there you have it. Lofty goals. Concrete plans and lots of determination.

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of CLEVER and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

Results not typical. Members following the Jenny Craig program, on average, lose 1-2 lbs. per week. I received promotional consideration.