Measurements, Motivation, and Meal plans

     Good morning!! So here we are on the last Monday of 2014... New Years day is on Thursday and with that comes all the resolutions and new diets or exercise programs for the majority of people. I always try to say I'm not doing any of that and I'm just doing my own thing without all the dumb broken promises to myself. Most of that is just me trying to justify or feel better about all the failed attempts of my past. So, every year it gets a little harder or a little more annoying to think about the same stuff. I am really kinda sick of it and would love to have a new years where I don't have to think about weight or diet or exercise. Or to still be sitting here thinking "maybe next year". Even when you pretend it's not an issue or something that's on your mind, it doesn't go away. It's like when someone mentions the amount of food you eat or looks at your plate with a judgmental look and you find yourself wondering if skinny people feel this way. But... no matter what your weight situation is or what your hang ups are, no one will ever judge you as hard as yourself.
     Now... this whole motivation thing... what is it, where does it come from, how do you make it stay?? These are things I have wondered for pretty much forever! Once you start something and pour your whole self into it it's easy to ride out the momentum and keep it going, and even easier when you begin to see results. But what happens when you start to get a little cloudy in your vision, or when you take a little time off, or when things just hit a random stand still. As I sit here in between holidays knowing that my food choices have been shit and that my gym schedule has completely fallen apart, I just don't know how to light the fire back up. I know I love what I was doing, and I know I was seeing better results than I ever have before, but for some reason I'm just in a funk.
     I don't really do well with free time or sitting still, and I am currently in the middle of a 2 week break from work. So.... that puts me in this weird emotional spot where I just lose my motivation. I hate it, I'm aware of it, and yet I still let it happen. I am a creature of habit and do best when I have a routine, so set schedules and strict meal plans all work really well for me, but the slightest change in plans can offset everything I'm doing. Weird how it works, but its always been that way for me. Anyone have any input on this?? Suggestions on how to keep it going or get back on??
     Speaking of strict meal plans... we just signed up to follow a slightly more intense version of the fit2fat2fitplan we had been following before the holidays. It starts on the 4th, so this week will be the prep week, which usually involves purging the house of bad stuff and stocking up on the good stuff. Luckily for us, we've already been doing this so it's just the holiday crap we have to get rid of and Saturday we will shop for the new menu to batch cook on Sunday. If you have any interest in checking this thing out, the new plan is at 2fitathome.com, the free version we were doing before is at fit2fat2fit.com.
      Last but not least.... as I've been promising, here is the chart of our measurements so far. You can see that there are some solid results, but also some stand stills. There is still far too much weight and inches to be lost for there to be a plateau for either of us. Something definitely needs to be shaken up here in the next couple days to get this thing going full force into the new year. So I guess a resolution needs to be made, but rather than some empty promise or putting a number on things, I will keep it a bit simpler: No more excuses!!!! That is the best thing I can do for myself at this point.
     Happy New Year to each and every one of you that reads this. Thank you for your continued support. Be safe, and take good care of yourselves.
   -Jamie

DAWN	20-Sep	10/17	Diff.	24-Nov	Diff.	27-Dec	Diff.
Neck:	16	16	0	15.25	0.75	15.25	0.75
Bust:	50	49	1	49	1	47	3
Waist:	48.5	46	2.5	46	2.5	45	3.5
Hips:	57	54	3	54	3	53.5	3.5
Right Arm:	19	18	1	16	3	15.5	3.5
Right Thigh:	30.5	27.5	3	27.5	3	26	4.5
Right Calf:	21	20	1	19.75	1.25	19	2
							(-20.75)
Weight:	286.8	284.2	2.6	276	10	276	10
JAMIE	9/20	17-Oct	Diff.	24-Nov	Diff.	27-Dec	Diff.
Neck:	15.5	15	0.5	14.5	1	14.5	1
Bust:	46	45	1	45	1	45	1
Waist:	42.5	41	1.5	41	1.5	40	2.5
Hips:	48.5	47.5	1	47.5	1	46	2.5
Right Arm:	17	15	2	15	2	14	3
Right Thigh:	30	28.5	1.5	28.5	1.5	28.5	1.5
Right Calf:	19	18.5	0.5	18	1	17.5	1.5
							(-13)
Weight:	236	229	7	227	9	227	9