The journey really begins NOW

I cannot believe it's been just over 24 hours since I left Fitness Ridge with tears of joy in my eyes after surpassing my wildest dreams and losing 11 lbs and 4 inches (including 1.5 inches from my waist alone!) in one short week. I was so proud, so overwhelmed to see that my very hard work paid off, and gave me the jumpstart I need to reach my healthy life goals.

Of course, the real work begins now. During "graduation" Saturday night, all of us who were leaving Sunday received a tee shirt that says, "I survived The Biggest Loser Resort at Fitness Ridge!" What I need is to be able to say, "I survived being on my own without a chef and personal trainer to keep me on track daily." That said, I have a plan and I will work very hard to put the lessons I learned to work in my "normal" life without letting them take over my life. So far, so good. It helps to know I have so many cheerleaders out there urging me on. It really does.

Now that Fitness Ridge is behind me (for now...don't be surprised if I go back next year for another week...I loved it that much!) I am settling into the rest of my vacation. Yesterday I drove to the Grand Canyon, a place I had always wanted to visit. The drive itself was spectacular (I even saw a herd of buffalo!) and the Canyon....it truly took my breath away. I don't even have words to describe how amazing it is (and if you've been reading my blog, you know I can usually ramble on about anything : ) If you've been to the Grand Canyon, you already understand. I felt very close to God, especially this morning when I was up to watch the sunrise and the paths were not yet filled with people yapping on their cell phones (those who could get service, that is)...hard not to feel the presence of a higher power when surrounded by something so astonishing, so beautiful.

As if that experience weren't enough, on a whim I decided to change my plans slightly and instead of staying at the North Rim another night, I drove to Zion National Park, which was just as mind-blowing. The pictures I took will never measure up to the splendor of the real thing, but they will help me remember how lucky I am to have had this wonderful experience.