plateaus.

plateau.  


a period or state of little or no growth or decline.  [dictionary.com]


i, ali mahterian, am at a plateau in my weight loss journey.  i've been at this plateau for about 5 months.  i'm trying to think of the reasons why i'm not losing weight.  here are my reasons :


[1] i lost 55 pounds in 6 months.  that's a short period of time  i'm thinking that my weight loss is still trying to catch up with my body.
[2] i'm actually eating.  when losing weight, i didn't eat like i am today.  since i've learned the concept of portion control, i'm eating all of the foods i want to -- pizza, ice cream, bagels [all GF & DF, of course].   because i'm so excited to actually be able to eat the food i love, i'm not eating portions which would allow me to lose weight -- i'm eating portions that keep me at a steady weight.  not complaining there.
[3] since i'm not in school, i have more time on my hands to be bored, thus consume exuberant quantities of food because i have nothing better to do.  [good news -- i don't really do this]


those three reasons, i believe, are kind of why i'm not losing weight.  that, and the fact that i'm not exercising -- or wasn't.


exercise.  i've always told myself i absolutely HATE exercise.  detest.  loathe.  despise.  exercise is one of my least favorite things to do.  or was** one of my least favorite things. now that i'm 55 pounds lighter, i like exercising. [cam, you were right]. i went for a walk with annie a couple of nights ago, and i started off jogging.  i jogged up my street.  for those of you who know me, you know i hate running.  this little milestone of being able to jog up my street [yes, up. as in up a hill] made me realize how far i've actually come on my weight loss journey. although i may be at a plateau, i've come a long way.  and the only reason i stopped wasn't because my legs were hurting, it was because my lungs/heart were out of shape.  so i guess this means i've got a lot of working to do if i want to be in shape.  


and you know what?  after i exercised, i felt great!  for years i've literally refused to exercise.  and now i actually want to do it.  i have a desire to do something i hate.  this is a big thing for me to take in...  the hard part is getting my workout clothes on and starting.  because starting is the hardest part.  but once you're doing it, you feel great.  that's how it was with my weight loss.  once i decided to finally start, i felt great.  but before i started, i had the worst attitude -- i refused to change because i thought i was fine just the way i was.


exercising is like weight loss -- the hardest part is actually getting off your butt and doing it.


xx ALi

i apologize

i apologize, my friends.


i apologize for not posting a blog post in a super long time.
i also apologize for not filling ya'll in on my life.


i, ali mahterian, have two jobs.  not one job.  two jobs.  two jobs in this economy where some people can't even get one.  can i just tell you fols that i might be the happiest girl alive?


and they're good jobs.  job number one is working at a hospice owned by my neighbor.  i work as an office assistant, and i help out with the payroll.  payroll might be my favorite part of coming to work... people think i'm weird for loving numbers so much, and they're just speaking the truth.  job number two is working as a seasonal cashier for, get ready, NORDSTROM!  that's right.  i have a job at nordstrom.  i will be working as a cashier during the anniversary sale, women's half yearly sale, and men's half yearly sale.  i'm pretty stoked.


other exciting news in my life :
[1] camp twitch and shout is less than two months away!
[2] i'm officially a size 10 :]
[3] annie, one of my best friends, is home!  
[4] my dog still continues to favor me out of everyone in the house.
[5] and i'm absolutely the happiest i've ever been.  even happier than 3 weeks ago when i said the exact same statement :]
[6] oh, and i just found out i can't eat peanuts.  not exciting news, but new news.


and just before school ended, apartment 102 took roommate pictures.  they look awesome.

 this is us looking beautiful, as always.

 this picture captures the essence of all of our personalities.

and i'm just plain obsessed with this picture.

xoxo,
ALi

what love really means

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PgGUKWiw7Wk

the above url is a link to a wonderful song.  please, please, PLEASE listen.  [i promise] you'll like it.


the song is called "what love really means", and like any girl, i ponder that question more than i should.  


there's a line in the song that says "who will love me for me?"  before someone can love me, I have to love me.  I <-- capital i.  it's hard to love someone who doesn't love themselves.  and i've finally figured that out.  having changed drastically over the past 8 months [not only physically, but emotionally/mentally] i have finally learned to love myself.  instead of critiquing my flaws [but let's get real, i have very few], i have learned to compliment what positive attributes i possess.  


thinking of my non-perfect qualities, i wouldn't change anything.  shocking?  it shouldn't be.  my positive attributes mixed with my flaws mixed with my quirks make me the person i am -- the person everyone loves.  people love people with challenging pasts; they like to see what trials have molded the person into who they are today.  


at the end of the song [which is a christian song, by the way] it says "i will love you for you."  the artist is referring to Christ, but i like to think of it as my future husbands words.  it's comforting to know that someone will love me for me, despite what i've gone through [which actually isn't a lot.  i've been pretty blessed]  


 am i the only person who is excited for someone to love me as much as i love them!? [besides my parents/sisters/dog/family]  i'm freaking out over here!!!  but again, i think that love means loving yourself enough to allow others to love you.  don't think of your flaws and put yourself down when you could be praising your positive characteristics.  that's something that i have had to figure out for myself, and now that i've adopted that principle in my life, i'm the happiest i've ever been.

I LOVE ME FOR ME!