Week 1: Holdin' Steady, Technically

If there's one thing that I learned from marathon training, is that accountability and dedication are (some of the) keys to success.

In the quest to finish 26.2, these things manifested themselves in a few ways - I trained with friends, tracked and charted my progress and told everyone I would run a marathon (which is different than planning to run one).

It seemed to work - and I figure that I should adapt that philosophy and approach to shedding these 10 (or so) pounds. Mind you, I'm fully aware that losing 10 pounds is not nearly as impressive as running a marathon - although I might argue that in some ways and at some times it seems harder.

I certainly don't plan to shout my efforts and progress (good or bad) from the mountain tops like I did with marathon training. I don't think you'll see a Facebook status update or Tweet about this subject (I hope).

I'm aware that some people will look at me, roll their eyes and sigh when I tell them I want to drop weight - in that familiar way we do when "skinny" people complain about being fat.

While it's nice to know that some people think of me in that category and I admit I probably wear pant sizes that some women wished they could buy, this challenge is not just about getting skinnier or trying to fit into smaller size (but wouldn't that be nice!?).

It's about feeling good about myself, it's about having my body catch up to the fitness level I know I've already developed inside, it's about conquering the black 10-pound cloud that hovers over me.

It's about not having that sense of dread when I get the email saying Race Day photos are up online. (Anyone who's seen pictures of themselves running in running shorts can relate to that, I'm sure.)

Knowing that I'll be stepping on the scale every Monday, filling that number out on my chart and providing a weekly update will provide that sense of accountability I need for myself. Here's the report after my first week.

WEEK ONE:

• Weight: 144.5 lbs*
• Gain/Loss: 0*
• Exercise/Activities: 10m running, 58.8m biking/spin, 1 session weights (arms)
  

*Note: My first "weigh-in" clicked in at 140 pounds on TC's bathroom scale. This morning, that dial showed the same number. Figuring I probably won't consistently have access to TC's bathroom scale at the same time and day of the week, I also weighed in on my bathroom scale this morning. The result, as you see listed above: 144.5.

Luckily, because I'd already weighed myself at TC's, I knew I was holding steady for the week (still a bit disappointing, I admit). Still, seeing 144.5 on the large digital read-out at my feet made my heart sink when I stepped onto the scale at my place. Hopefully I won't see it again anytime soon.

That's not to say that I was entirely surprised. I suspected that TC's scale lightened me up a little. Plus, I didn't feel like I did an overly good job at "being good" this week. I certainly didn't expect to have dropped many pounds or any at all, really. Sure, I was able to get in a lot of activity - but let's not forget that I've had at least this amount of activity every week during my last four months of marathon training - but I felt like I hadn't had the focus that I needed to when it comes to eating properly.

My goal for this week is to buckle down on portion size and eating out - and to manage to squeeze a few runs or workouts into an incredibly busy work-week.

Sometimes I'd rather just plan for a 18-miler at the end of the week. Seems so much simpler.

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