September is...

...National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month. My life has been topsy-turvy lately, so please forgive me for not acknowledging this HUGE event
sooner.                                         

The CDC recommends parents take the following actions to help children keep or reach a healthy weight:

Promote healthy eating habits by providing plenty of vegetables, fruits and whole-grain products. Limit intake of sugar-sweetened beverages, such as soda or juice. Also encourage your family to drink lots of water.

Look for ways to make your favorite dishes healthier. The recipes that you prepare regularly, with just a  few changes, can be healthier and just as satisfying.

Get rid of high-calorie food options. Although everything can be enjoyed in moderation, reducing the amount of high-fat, high-sugar or salty snacks in your home can help you and your children develop healthy eating habits.

Reduce sedentary time by helping kids stay active. Children and teens should participate in at least 60 minutes of moderate physical activity most days of the week. Some examples include playing tag, jumping rope, swimming, dancing, and walking.

Limit the time your children watch television, play video games or log onto the Internet to no more than two hours per day. Encourage your children to find fun activities to do with family members or on their own that simply involve more activity.

Parents it's important you lead by example. A few changes here and there can make a huge difference. It all starts with YOU! Let’s show our kids we love them by not pacifying them with sweets, treats, and food but with genuine love.

Pleased as Punch!

I’m feeling mighty good. Let me count the ways…

1. The blog has a small but steady readership – thanks!
2. Farewell Fatso’s Facebook page is just shy of 100 “likes”

3. To date, I’ve lost 141 lbs. and counting…

4. I can officially fit into a department store sized large shirt

5. My BIG wardrobe is gone forever

6. My outreach continues to work. Last week another friend decided to join the gym – citing my diligent FB posts as one of her reasons. I’ve recruited at least four people that I know of.                      

7. And, last but not least my success story now graces the walls of 24-Hour Fitness.

Yep, I’m kinda like a rock star. Seriously, what a great honor to have my story featured on 24-Hour’s Member Success Story wall. It feels good to know that my hard work is noticed and finally I didn’t even have to self-promote (smile).

I’m so thrilled to have you all to share my story with, it cleanses and motivates me. I hope I continue to inspire, and inform you all. Just a heads up, I’ll be taking about a week off from blogging to revamp the blog. I plan to add more childhood obesity related materials, recipes, and information about the highly controversial school lunch programs. Y’all ready to start a movement? Until then check out Farewell Fatso’s FB page for updates.

The Perfect Fit

Ladies: I’m sure y’all can appreciate what I’m ‘bout to say. Fellas: Consider yourselves warned – the subject matter may be more than you care to hear about it. Anyway, since I’ve lost a substantial amount of weight, my clothes aren’t the only items sagging. Oh my goodness, my undergarments. I should be ashamed of myself wearing raggedy underpants like the ones I have currently in rotation. In my defense, however, since I’m still working on loosing weight I don’t want to buy new undies quite yet. That’s a pretty lame excuse, isn’t it? Secretly, I really want to hold out on buying new ones until I can shop at Victoria's Secret.

As if my underwear weren’t already embarrassing, the bras I’ve been wearing are disgraceful. Bras are supposed to support and give a neat appearance – ha! Not the ones I owned, spillage, sagging, and more spillage -- until finally, I had enough! On Monday, I finally broke down and went to Lane Bryant for a bra fitting. Soon as the clerk, Dawn, started inching towards my bra she could tell it was way too big. Heck, even the untrained eye could tell it was too big. Dawn was astonished when she compared the measurements with the old bra size I was wearing. Needless to say, my bra size decreased tremendously. On a quest, to figure out which bra would work best for me, I tried on several different styles, different colors, and even different sizes. Yikes! What an overwhelming experience. An hour later I left the mall with the perfect fitting bra. Ahh, it feels good to have support and no spillage. Now, I need to buy new underpants. So, not to overwhelm myself, one thing at a time.

Large and in Charge

Yesterday, my daughter walks in my room with a blouse she had never worn. She asked, “Mom do you want this?” I’m looking at the crisp white wide collar blouse thinking umm… I can’t fit that. I grab the blouse from her to further examine it, the tag indicates size L. Yeah right, no way - I can fit it, it’s a large from a department store. For whatever reason, probably a tinge of hope it might work, I still decided to check the blouse out. So I’m pulling the fabric and tracing the outline of the blouse. All along she’s saying “I think you can fit it.” After a few more minutes of debating back and forth with her (really it was all the internal demons), I tried the blouse on… Low and behold the blouse fit. Yes, it fit!

Humph. Shake my head. I’m still in disbelief as I write - I can wear a large from a department store. Does size really matter? Yes and no. But, in this particular situation, size matters so much to me. It’s not just about the blouse being a  large, but more importantly it’s yet another barrier I’m breaking through. My entire adult life I’ve been confined to shopping exclusively at plus-sized stores, but it looks like that too is coming to an end. I’m large and in charge, and lovin’ it!

Stay tuned… she has a size 14 denim skirt I’m eyeing.