Wow!! Was that an amazing game yesterday or what?? I'm not a huge football fan but that was a great game. I went to my first SuperBowl party and hung out with some friends of mine. I took a little break from the dieting and enjoyed some of the food that was there; you know a nibble of this, a taste of that. I had Rotel dip which is one of my all-time favorites and this buffalo chicken dip that was sooo good. I could have eaten the entire bowl easily. I was actually suprised I liked it since I'm a wimp when it comes to spicy stuff. Mild is usually more of my speed. I'm making an effort to be more social these days. When you are heavy it's easy to isolate yourself or as I call it become "an army of one". It can be especially hard when many of your friends are competitors or very lean. Remember that song from Sesame Street, "One of these things doesn't belong here, one of these things just isn't the same"? Sometimes I feel like that lone apple in the group of bananas. Hahahaha!!! Anyway, I digress.

I think that I'm one of those people who does best when I have a goal or some kind of date to look forward to. My first short term goal is to be below 200 when I go see a friend of mine and go to the Jr. USA's in Charleston, SC in May. It's a totally doable goal as long as I stay focused and stick to my diet and training. Sometimes when you have so much to lose looking at the big picture is overwhelming, so little goals make you feel like you are still accomplishing something even though the Big One is still a long ways off. I try to attend at least one national level show a year, sometimes more if possible. Seeing these athletes at their physical best is so motivating. The energy is so positive at these shows. I really enjoy them..local ones as well. In 2008 I was fortunate enough to attend two national shows..Jr. USA's in Charleston and Nationals in Atlanta as well as one of the local smaller shows in the Atlanta area. I'm a people watcher so I really get alot of bang for my buck at these shows, not to mention I always walk away with a renewed motivation to do better with my own diet and training. Ahhh..if I could just go to a show every weekend I'd be set.