How It All Began

Hello everyone. I'm Lauren Alderman, and I'm completely new to this blogging thing, so bear with me as I get used to it.

A year ago, April 17th, 2009, I decided that it was time to take charge of my life and lose weight. I weighed about 235 pounds and consistently made unhealthy eating choices. Over the past year, I cut out sodas, made healthy eating choices, and incorporated daily exercise into my life. I started out walking, which has now evolved into running. I also heard about Jillian Michaels and her videos, and began using them consistently in my workouts. Throughout all this, I've lost a total of 120 pounds, (give or take a few pounds depending on what I ate the days before) putting me between 115-120 lbs. and about 16% body fat.

I'm at where I want to be. I've fought and won the battle. Now I'm fighting the war. I'm going to keep on "walking".
The questions are, how do I maintain this weight and body image? That's my struggle. I like where I am. How do I stay motivated to continue exercising for the rest of my life? How much is too much? How often am I allowed a treat? How many calories should that treat be?

(Just a note, I run about 30 minutes a day, and then do a Jillian video, or go to my personal trainer- all in all, i exercise about an hour everyday, and eat about 2000 calories.) On the weekends, I tend to splurge and eat a little more.)
Example: Friday-sweet treat
Saturday- fast food
Sunday- out to eat, sweet treat

I'll never know the answers to these questions unless I do a little experimenting, and this blog is a place for me to record these experiments and gain advice from you all. I appreciate any and all feedback, as I begin this new phase of my journey.

In the meantime, have a healthy day! I'll blog a little bit later about the specifics of what today has involved.