How I’m getting motivated to be more healthy – #tow

#tow – What on earth is that?

Well, it stands for “twitter off weight” or “take off weight” which ever you choose.

We “congregate” around a hashtag #tow.  This means that when we want to tell the “group” how we're doing with our healthy decisions:  exercising and eating well, we include #tow in our tweet.

I use tweetdeck and have #tow as a term that I follow – then when I go into tweetdeck at home in the evenings, I can see the comments from some of my favorite health buddies – Typewriter (Mark Bell) and Jenny Hertel (her blog). 

This isn't a fancy thing to join – it isn't anything big – just a small group of people who want to make healthy decisions and want to encourage each other.  No website, no anything — Mark is down 16 lbs and Jenny is down 6 — I'd like to say I'm down but I'm just happy to hold steady over Thanksgiving AND to put exercising back in my schedule – which is a HUGE deal for me.  (I rode 40 minutes on the exercise bike yesterday and 30 minutes today.)  My clothes are fitting much looser and I just feel better.

I'm done with fad dieting and have just rebounded with the biggest weight gain of my life — just came off a high protein – heavy exercise and weight lifting program that I loved but just wasn't sustainable w/ my kids in middle school – and when I stopped – I gained 50 pounds in one year — I'm not kidding and it is hugely embarrassing to have to admit that.

So, I can sit around and feel like a failure or I can decide that I'm too young for life to be over and reclaim my body and my health.  I'm ready to have clothes that fit and be happy with how I look and am reclaiming myself.  I turn 40 next April and goodness knows I'm not done yet.  Are you?

Of course, it is pretty doggone awful to admit this on my blog, but you know what — somebody else out there might need to do the same thing.  Getting healthy is tough and the prerequisite is to DECIDE you're going to do something.  I like to work out in the morning, but right now – I can't do it.  So, I'm doing it after dinner – yes, I'm having to change EVERYTHING to do that, but life changes.

I'm really convinced that the only way to permanently lose weight is to make lifestyle changes and that is what I'm doing.  Eat less, exercise more, have a variety of colors on your plate and don't eat after 7 pm!

My Mom has lost almost 20 pounds (pre surgery) following just a change in her lifestyle and it makes a lot of sense to me.  

Anyway, I thought it would be helpful to explain what that #tow thing is when it pops up in my twitter stream and to point out that this can be used for just about anything.  All you have to do is agree upon a term.  Anyone is welcome.  No, we're not making nings or anything else – just encouraging each other and sharing. 

I just really appreciate the “way to go's” that I get from the others in the group and knowing that they'll tweet me if I don't check in every so often!  It is really nice to have some people to be accountable to!

twitter weight loss health lifestyle trends