Deal with the Devil

Above: My art classroom

Gretchen: When I lose 28.7-lbs [lost 4.6 already since the new year], and if I can keep it off for a bit of time, I'm going to reward myself by saving money and hiking Mt. Kilimanjaro.
Mom: If Jessica Biel can do it, well... you'd really need to be in shape.

Blink. Blink, blink.

My inner goddess rises from her chaise lounge and flips my mom the bird. I hurry to shush her because that's not an appropriate way to treat your elders.

I've never been one for New Years Resolutions because, honestly, I have the attention span of a gold fish --on a good day-- when it comes to self-improvement. But last year I was able to lose quite a bit of weight; unfortunately, I turned around and gained it right back during the fall. (Not really sure why the motivation was lost.)

This year I've made a few resolutions that I think I can stick with, none of which are too unrealistic. They include, but are not limited to (daily practice):

• floss
• moisturize (face) --never done this before
• 500 calorie exercise (or 3,500/week)
• 30+ minutes of US and world news

I'm sure I've mentioned it, but I got a new roommate. She's been a great sounding board because she understands what's realistic and pushes me to do what's optimistic. Last month I was telling her about my lull in exciting life events. Heart recently broken and sour to the idea of moving on. No real zest for anything. She asked me what I was currently doing to actively improve the quality of my life.

Blink. Blink, blink.

Inner goddess gives me a salute and ducks behind the chaise lounge. Thanks for the support.

Wait, someone isn't going to make my life better for me? New Roommate didn't say anything that I hadn't heard before, but she approached the delivery of the message a little differently.

What AM I doing to improve my sense of self?

Fast forward to now.

Improvement started on a Tuesday evening; last Tuesday, specifically.

I started taking evening classes at an art school in Pasadena. Currently focusing on painting. (Image of my classroom at the top of this post. As always, click for larger image.)

Unrelated, I've started throwing knives (at a wooden target in the shape of a busty lady that I painted myself--she's gorgeous if I do say so myself), but that's probably worth a separate blog post on it's own. Because who just starts throwing knives, right?

I've also decided that I'm overweight. Objectively speaking it's true, no getting around it --and it's a big, fat round It. Will losing weight improve the quality of my life? In terms of exciting events, no. In terms of general health, of course. So I'm going to focus on art (and knife throwing) and losing weight in a healthy way. I'm going to pay attention to my weight --use a spreadsheet that T. made-- but not obsess. I'm going to watch my caloric intake, but not count.

I've started a new exercise routine, too. During my lunch break, I walk/jog 2 miles (5 days/wk). It takes me about 20 minutes when I'm being lazy, which still leaves me with a few minutes to eat lunch. (Nowadays, my lunch is a yellow bell pepper, loosely measured hummus and a piece of fruit. Sometimes, if I'm feeling crazy, I'll eat a sandwich on pita bread.)

After work, on days that I don't have class, I've been walking 2-6 additional miles OR doing Jillian Micheal's 30-Day Shred. On the weekends, I've upped the hiking. Last year, even when I was gaining weight, I was still hiking. Now I'm hiking for longer periods of time, pushing myself. This past weekend I hiked 8.5 miles on Saturday and another 8 miles on Sunday. I'm going to start branching out in terms of trails, too. Get some variety going. I find that I need hiking for my own sanity. I'm a NW girl, born and raised. The honeymoon period after moving to SoCal was pretty short lived. Hiking is a way for me to escape the city, something that I need.

So, if I can get down to a healthy weight (which may even mean less than 28.7-lbs, I'll have to gauge how I feel and look), I'd like to hike up Mt. Kilimanjaro. (Financially speaking, it wouldn't happen until 2011, at least.) I've always wanted to go to Africa and, recently, I saw these photos in a Google search aftermath of Jessica Biel's hike and it looks gorgeous! Gorgeous! But I feel like I should be in better shape to attempt that hike. (Internet says you don't need to be in Perfect Shape, but says that you'll enjoy it more and be more likely to make it to the top if you're healthy.)

Anyway, that's the news on my front. Art and knife throwing and weight loss and living a better life. No more sleepwalking, for now.