Success

I must give myself a pat on the back.  I've been living a healthy lifestyle for almost two years now, did lose weight as a result of it and maintained my weight at goal.

Ok. I did slip once in a while. Earlier this year, I went back up to 130 lbs.  But I quickly shed the pounds off before it went out of control.  And now I must admit, rather proudly, that I look fantastic in my vacation photos.

So as I was browsing through our photos earlier today, while I had my brother giggling on the phone [my siblings and I do that all the time--look at photos together while on the phone and laugh, make fun of, or compliment ourselves], I couldn't help but feel ecstatic about how my body has changed.

Yes, those are my abs right there! I didn't cut my head in Photoshop and put it in someone else's body, or vice versa.  I do actually have a 6-pack now (I did count the packs and there are indeed six of them, hehe), would you believe it? Well, it's in there somewhere, I promise.  And sometimes it shows, like in this photo, when I get lucky and some amount of lighting, shadows and the right angle, along with some holding of breath, work together to give me such a flattering look!  Of course I hold my breath to tuck my tummy in!  Heck, even models with perfect bodies do the same when they have their photos taken.  Why shouldn't we?

Like my friend Chelo who recently blogged about her ongoing success with weight loss, I owe this look to exercise (mine is just cardio and pilates), a balanced diet, and discipline--lots and lots of discipline.  It helps to have a disciplined husband who knows exactly what "moderation" is. He inspires me too!  I have yet to do better with getting the right amount of sleep, but I'll get there.

I am inspired--yesterday by Chelo's blog and today by this photo.  I am beyond motivated.  I am committed to be in it for the long haul, for life.  It took a lot of hard work to get to this, turning back is no longer an option.

Join me in raising a glass.  To being healthy and looking good!!!  :-)