So, day three was great. Again, I was perfectly on plan. How seriously am I rocking!?? I know, it's just 3 days but boy, it feels sooo good. I've actually had calories to spare over the past three days and, today, I got my designated water intake in before I left the office tonight. I can't tell you how many times I ran to the ladies today but, hey, I'm all watered up!! It sort of helped that our office was five million degrees today for some reason. Yesterday I struggled with water because I was freezing and drinking cold water just didn't do anything for me. Today though, those old rads were banging and clanging and it was a sauna in our little cubicle village.

I'm so happy that Carla brought the Weigh-in Wednesday back this week, I missed her and the WiW.

Did you decide to start fresh again in 2004? Are you as excited now as you were a year ago? Where are you now compared to where you were a year ago? What have you learned during the year? If you kept chugging all along, what has helped you through the holidays?

I did start fresh again on January 5. I didn't intend to take a break over the holidays, it just sort of happened that way. I really admire those folks who were able to keep it together during the holidays (or the ones who re-started January 1 -- once I decided that I was on a break I figured that I'd go straight through until the weekend was over). Compared to where I started, I'm doing great. I exercised at least 5 days a week for the best part of 2003 and I'm very proud of that. My eating wasn't always the best, particularly in the last part of the year when (as I wrote about yesterday) I shit going on that was beyond my control. In 2003, I learned how to eat healthy and not feel deprived. I also learned how to actually enjoy exercise and pushing my body. I never thought that you could actually like exercise. That statement isn't entirely true actually, I know many folks who love exercise but I always just thought that they were sick or something!!

Overall, I lost a nice chunk of fat and gained some muscle along the way. I've become reacquainted with my family doctor and I now see her once a month (sometimes for just a few minutes, sometimes longer). It's nice to have someone keeping an eye on me who is an actual health care professional, someone who knows me and who cares about me. As, I'm sure many other fat girls (and former fat girls) have done, I used to avoid going to the doctor at all costs. It's not that my doctor ever said anything directly about my weight, it was just a weird paranoia that I had, like she wouldn't take me seriously if I went in about something because I was fat. I now see how stupid that was. Fortunately, she's given her blessing to my entire program, is a great cheerleader and a fabulous source of advice. Also, she's run a huge number of tests on me and, fat aside, I'm ridiculously healthy.

The most important part of it is that I'm feeling good, physically and emotionally. I know that 2004 will be another successful year in my quest for health and fitness. It'll happen that way because I want it to. I will do good things for myself because I deserve it!! That might even be my mantra for 2004!!