The Stranger in the Mirror

When I was a little girl, my favorite Disney movie was Mulan.  I loved everything about that movie, including the music.  (Note: I still love Disney music listen to it at least once a month or so!)  I loved that Mulan was not afraid to break gender barriers and do what needed to be done to save the day.  No waiting for prince charming for this gal!  But I digress, one of the earlier songs is this movie, "Reflection," has always resonated strongly with me (and is the reason for the Mulan reference in the first place).  The lyrics of the chorus are particularly salient to me at this point in my life:


"Who is that girl I see / Staring straight / Back at me?
Why is my reflection someone / I don't know?
. . . When will my reflection show / Who I am inside?"



I have always felt like a fit girl trapped in a fat body.  As I packed on the pounds in college and my first year of graduate school, the reflection in the mirror became a complete stranger.  Who is that girl?!  She does not look like the person I see when I picture myself.  So, taking a cue from my childhood hero, Mulan, I decided to do whatever it takes to make the girl in the mirror reflect the woman I am inside.


So, this past Sunday (July 22, 2012), I began a journey to change my lifestyle to reflect the healthy and fit person I know I can be.  I braved the scale and the tape measurer (not pretty!) and started a comprehensive fitness and healthy eating plan (more on this in a future post).  By the time I complete my Master of Science in Higher Education (May 11, 2013), my outer self will reflect who I am on the inside.  I can't wait to finally see the real me!

What you'll find here

I intend to post about anything relevant to the process of changing my body and my lifestyle.  

I will include a couple of updates about my Invisalign treatment.  I'm currently on tray 7 of 10 to close a large gap between my front teeth, so I'll post a couple updates here and there, but since I'm almost done, this will be a small minority of my posts.

I will share my daily food collages so you can see what and how much I'm eating.  I believe eating healthy can also be enjoyable and delicious and that will be reflected in my food choices.  As I test new recipes and try sneaky ways to "hide" vegetables in my food, I'll share my triumphs and misfires.

Finally, you can expect to see updates on how my workouts are going.  That can be anything from increasing the weights I'm lifting or switching from low impact to high impact in my cardio workouts.  I'll share my mini goals along the way and celebrate when I reach them!