Happy New Year!

Today's weigh-in: 207.8.

I had really hoped to start off 2016 with my lowest weight in years (which was yesterday's weigh-in of 207 flat), but I apparently ate a lot yesterday. I'll try to do better today.

So, the low carb diet has been working, although not without its difficulties.  Despite what some low carbers say, I do feel that I need to be mindful of the calories I consume, but of course most of my attention goes to making sure I'm not eating carbs and am eating fat.  The whole thing still seems weird and counterintuitive to me, but it seems to be working.  Since starting this diet on October 26, 2015, I have lost 23 lbs.  Prior to the diet, I had lost only three lbs the entire rest of 2015.  I would say that is evidence to suggest that the low carb diet has merit.  I'm hoping to continue the weight loss.  I don't really have any "goals" exactly; I just want to lose as much as I can.  I guess when the weight loss finally stops, it will be time to put myself in maintenance mode.  I'm sort of hoping that will be down around 150 lbs, which would be about an 80-lb loss, but I don't know what is possible and what is likely.  The milestones coming up would be 206 (the weight I was when I found out I was pregnant with Brendan), 200 (the weight I was right after we moved to Billings), and 175 (my previous lightest weight back in 2006 or so).  It will also be nice to be back in the weight ranges for my boats.  I'd love to start boating again.

Since it's the first day of the new year, I guess it's time for some resolutions.  Some of these are hard and fast goals to accomplish, others are just things to get better about.

1) Obviously, the weight loss is the first item.  Like I said, I don't have any specific goals in mind; I just want to keep losing.  My husband has lost almost 50 lbs on this diet, more than twice what I've lost.  I need to keep at it.  Not that it's a competition, but still... Part of my desire with the weight loss is to start incorporating exercise.  It boggles my mind that I've lost over 20 lbs without any kind of exercise at all, but I'm pretty sure that the weight loss won't continue, at least not at its present rate, without a little help.  I'd like to exercise 3 times a week, for now, maybe for about 20 minutes or so.  I'll start small.

2) Do a better job at work.  This one is pretty non-specific, and encompasses a number of things.  I've been intending to compile binders for all the units I teach in each class, which will include a unit rationale and overview, a schedule, the standards alignment for all the assignments, the assignments themselves, and any additional materials.  That would be nice, to have everything right where I can find it, instead of digging in my file cabinets over and over again.  That doesn't mean that I'll always get to everything; I never do.  I'd also like to do a better job of getting stuff graded quickly.  I started out ok this semester, but now I'm way behind.  I'm currently trying to grade an essay they turned in back in mid December, a travel brochure they turned in right before break, AND the rough draft of an argumentative essay that must contain comments and corrections...by Monday.  Great.

3) Clean up the house.  I have a few specific jobs that I want to accomplish.  I need to finish sorting/tossing the toys in the basement.  They've been stuffed into plastic tubs for long enough now that I'm sure the boys won't even remember most of them, let alone want to play with them.  It's just a matter of getting them out of the house without the boys noticing.  I'd like my husband to build some storage system down there; that would certainly help.  I also need to get my Magic cards sorted, alphabetized, and stored.  I'd like to make some new decks, not that I ever play anymore, but I can't really do that if I don't know what I have.  Lastly, I'd like to get some storage baskets and tubs and such for the bathrooms, to more easily store things like makeup and stuff like that.  Right now things are just kind of all over the counters or tossed under the sink, which doesn't help us find anything.  I'm sure there's a lot of other stuff I could include, like sorting my clothes and getting rid of stuff that's outdated or doesn't fit, but I'm reluctant to do some of that with the weight loss that's progressing.  I need to finish the clothing purge I've been doing for the boys, and I'm sure my husband needs to do some for himself.  There's also the matter of printing photos and putting them in the frames that have been sitting idle for, gosh, years now, and we need to put away all the Christmas stuff.  That's plenty for now.

Anyway, that's a good place to start.  Time to go grade some essays.