Sharing this former fat girl's secrets one at a time!

Working out - extra points and rewards. (Please remember that when I write things like this post it is based simply on me. My life, the way I do things. NOT meant to change you or serve as medical advice. Simply to inspire thought and help you think outside your box, as so many of you have done for me.)

When I started this journey, um, eight months ago I could not move myself. I have medical reason that I am in pain, but my lack of movement went beyond them. I am in pain now, still now I am a runner and I Zumba - my medical "problems" have not changed, I have. It didn't happen over night and it was not easy, or how about it was not as easy as sitting on the couch. Only, it really wasn't that much harder. I wanted something I could do, in the house, without hurting too bad, regardless of the weather. I wanted as easy as it got. I found this stationary bike. Then I set a goal of 30 minutes a day three times a week. Not much, I know, but a world more than I was doing! At first I did it watching My Name Is Earl on Netflix, then - as I started using the higher settings and really working out - I used my computer to watch music videos and sing! 30 minutes was a lifetime in the beginning, then it started to slip by as I worked out more. I used the site 43Things.com to track my work outs and before I knew it a month had gone by. (I still use 43Things.com to track each month's workout challenge.) On November 23 last year I turned 30, I also turned into a runner. My GF and I walked into a gym and tried the treadmills. I was in love. Through all of this I would rush home or to my book to figure out how many points I had just earned and have myself a Skinny Cow ice cream sandwich, only here is where I differed from most of my Weight Watcher contemporaries. When I ate my ice cream sandwich, which was mainly on days when I worked out (though there were a few emergency days) I took the points from my daily points, I have NEVER used work out points to eat. I merely allowed myself to indulge because I had done something. They say you can and should eat those points, but for me it made no sense. I was working so hard, they were so lovely. On more than one occasion I had people fuss at me, but I was losing and having my ice cream. Why would I change that? I have had friends say that their leader told them to eat those points, or that they don't lose when they don't have extra after a workout. Well, this journey is a personal one and you must figure out what works for you. I do not use workout calories or points - I never have and with the exception of my upcoming wedding vacation or something BIG like that I can not imagine myself doing so.