Introduction

Introduction

Hello all,

For much of my life, I have tried off and on to keep a journal. But, I LOVE to write, and I try to always put my best into what I write. So for me, a journal takes a lot of effort. All I can think is, "What is the point of spending time writing something that no one will ever read?" Heck, what if I could actually write something that helped someone? If just one person can learn from me, then the effort would be worth it!

A little about me

I am in my last year of my Master's in Biology as well as my teaching certification. You might have noticed from the paragraph above that I love to help people learn - mostly because I love to talk, communicate, and share my experiences and view of the world, but also because I hope to help people by giving them the tools to succeed in life by learning how to learn and from learning some of what I know. That being said, I am no expert of everything. I am one of those people who is a jack of [a lot] of trades, and master of few. Learning comes natural and easy for me, and I LOVE expanding my knowledge and learning new things.Therefore, sometimes I find it difficult to learn everything about one topic before another catches my interest. As an example, I have changed my major many times in my 7 years of college. I went to college to be a music teacher, but fell in love with biology. I decided I wanted to be a doctor, but fell in love with animals, then biochemistry (but calc 2 was too hard), then insects, then nutrition, then religion and philosophy, then teaching. From the teaching program, I discovered geology, and I wish I had time to learn more. The last election fueled my interest for politics and law. Oh the sadness of so many great subjects and only one life time. 

Through grad school, I allows stress and the heavy work and course load to get the best of me. Though my weight at the start of grad school in the fall of 2010 was 172, by March 2013 the feedback on the scale made me realize I had to make a change in my life. Before Spring Break 2013, the scale read 212 pounds, and I'm just 5'6". YUCK! I knew I needed a change in my life.

Additionally, my boyfriend of about a year and a half saw his weight reach higher than ever before. Both of us qualified as obese - not over weight - OBESE! I was shocked, mortified, depressed, disgusted, disappointed... the list of bad emotions goes on and on. We started cutting portions and eating out less, and I lost 7 pounds in a few weeks. 

By April first, I weight in at 204.6 with a waist of 45.5 in (yee-gads!), and I started the South Beach Diet!!

Phase one was great for getting my cravings and blood sugar under control. I lost almost 7 pounds and 2.5 inches. 

April and May were difficult months. The basement flooded (thanks to April... showers? more like continental hurricanes!), and finals were very busy! Though my weight loss slowed and my diet was not as clean, I still managed to weigh in today at 191 with a waist of 40inches!

I have decided that I need some accountability and an outlet to express myself and document my progress. That's when I came up with the concept for Expedition Well-being. In addition to this blog, I have a website, Expedition Well-being. Between the two, I hope to develop a resource not only for myself, but for others as well. I hope to inspire others, to keep myself motivated, and learn from others as well! Please feel free to leave comments on my blogs and the web pages so that we can have a community of people able to learn from one another through shared experiences and a diversity of knowledge!

WE CAN DO THIS!!

Stephanie