Striving to be "normal"

Many opportunities have arisen this past week. I will elaborate more when things are more concrete but I will say that it has motivated me to push myself a little harder. I am going to start a separate page on my blog dedicated to my new ambition, healthy cooking. As my friends and family know, I am not a cook. I can cook and do on occasion, however, I am fortunate enough to have a wonderful husband that enjoys cooking. My goal is to start researching healthy recipes with less processed food and to blog about my experiences and recipes... the ups and downs. My goals are to not only continue to fuel my own body with healthy foods but also my family's.

The upcoming changes involve me being more of a role model and helping others reach their health goals. In this sense, I'm grateful for this week and my four pound weight loss. I was looking up the BMI to see how close I am to my goal and realized that the range for my height is 111 lbs. through 150 lbs. I'll be honest, I cannot articulate how excited I am to be considered in the "normal" range. It's a little defeating to think that my ultimate goal of 140 lbs (which is sooo very close) is not actually in the middle of that spectrum. I know, I know... I should be happy and elated and I've worked so hard and I have muscle.. yada yada yada... I just think of others that are struggling and how long it has taken me to get here... I guess my real question is, how many people are actually in the normal BMI range?!?

I know that my senior year of high school I went on a crazy dumb diet and lost a bunch of weight super unhealthily and was in my BMI range. I also see some naturally thin people that I know are within the range... but realistically, I think many people are in the overweight range. According to Everyday Health over SIXTY percent of American adults are considered overweight or obese. What an eye opener! I also read an article by the CDC and have to say, although it is frustrating to realize that I am close, I need to push a little further to know I'm well within my normal & healthy weight range. The CDC mentions that adults that are overweight or obese are at an increased risk for the following:

• Hypertension
• Dyslipidemia (for example, high LDL cholesterol, low HDL cholesterol, or high levels of triglycerides)
• Type 2 diabetes
• Coronary heart disease
• Stroke
• Gallbladder disease
• Osteoarthritis
• Sleep apnea and respiratory problems
• Some cancers (endometrial, breast, and colon)
• 
  

SCARY!! But the silver lining is that weight is something that we can overcome and control/ maintain unlike other causes of diseases (i.e. genetics). Healthy life style changes are extremely difficult since it is very much mind over matter, but it can be done! Those of you struggling or just starting out, you do NOT have to do it alone. There are many tools, groups, people that range from free to very expensive that can help in your journey.

Like I've mentioned many times before, prayer, Weight Watchers, the YMCA, my fitbit, and myfitnesspal.com have all helped me. Later this week I'll compile a list of others that may be able to help those of us seeking assistance!

Happy Martin Luther King Jr. everyone!