This is a picture of the Asparagus that I ate for dinner tonight :) My sister called me today out of concern that I have not been eating enough calories....it is true that on some of the days this week I have been rather busy, and I probably haven't eaten as much as I should....it is important to make sure your eating enough and often enough to keep your metabolism up, I know this is something I need to keep a closer eye on, and I don't want to give any kind of impression that it is ok to skip meals or eat too few of calories.....for my size I should be eating at least 1,800 calories a day, and for even a small woman, you should eat no fewer than 1,200 calories per day......I think the reason my calorie levels have been so low, is for 2 reasons, one is that I don't think I ever really eat enough, but now that I am not eating starches or sugary things I am consuming a lot less calories, but overall I am feeling satisfied, and I am not wasting away or anything, but if you find that your weight loss has slowed down or stopped, or if your feeling tired, then you might want to look at your calorie consumption, instead of lowering it to lose more weight, you may need to raise it :) Also, I have been doing a lot of sewing today, and I then got up and straightened up the house, and loaded the dishwasher, I didn't reach my goal of 30 minutes of increased heart activity, but I did  11 minutes, and my weekly average is still more than 30 minutes per day, so that is good :) I burned twice as many calories today as my goal, and I am still using more calories than I am consuming :) So, hopefully I will meet my 3 pound goal this week, but this might be a week that it won't appear that I have lost anything, due to circumstances beyond my control, but after this week is over, it is possible that I will see my loss from this week and next week, too :) It is important to figure in all factors before you get discouraged at a lack of weigh loss :) My plan is to start adding some treadmill or bike time into my workouts, too.....

I would like to take moment to talk about self-esteem, and confidence....where it comes from, and often times how it is torn down.....most of us aren't going to have a negative opinion about ourselves because of what a stranger might say, I mean, do we really care THAT much about what someone we don't know really thinks about us....it might hurt us briefly, but it shouldn't change our lives....the truth is, a strangers unkind words are usually just reinforcing something we already thought was true because someone we love, someone that we have allowed into our trusted inner circle has already planted those seeds of doubt and feelings of insecurity in our minds, and we have carried those negative and destructive words around in our heads and hearts for a good portion of our lives......unfortunately, some people say hurtful things, they are sometimes the same people who are suppose to be lifting us up, and giving us to the courage to face our fears, and conquer our doubts......it could be a parent, sibling, best friend, or boyfriend, they may have had good intentions in what they said, just poor tact, or they may be fighting their own battles of jealousy, or insecurity.......I think often times we never get past those feelings we had in high school of just wanting to fit in and feel normal, but let me tell you.....normal is another word for AVERAGE, and you don't have to stop with just being average, you can achieve greatness!!!! And the worst thing you can do, is let someone else's destructive words be what is holding you back from who you can be.....and who is it that each of us can be??? I will tell you.....you can be the person that looks in the mirror and sees how unique and wonderful you are :) You can be the person that doesn't see every flaw and imperfection, but instead sees the challenges you have overcome, and the success that you are :) You can be the person that doesn't wonder when someone is looking at you, if it because they think you are ugly or fat, but instead choose to think they are looking at you for a positive reason.......If you can't stand up to that person who is continually making you feel like you are a failure, then at least stop taking it to heart......fill your life with positive and helpful things, be the encouragement to someone else that you want to have in your life....and it will come back to you.......you will feel better about who you are when you invest your life into the lives of others :)