Weight Loss and Fitness Past

I've created this space as a spot to track my fitness and nutrition.  This is something I've been struggling with for years.  My weight loss journey and my love/hate relationship with working out and eating well have been through a lot of ups and downs.  However, this is something I'm becoming more and more interested in, and the more I learn about nutrition and fitness, the more I want to fuel my body the right way and be kind to it.

A bit about my weight, nutrition and fitness past:  Back in high school (1997-2001) I weighed 130-135lbs, which at 5'6" is a great weight for me.  I was on cross country and track, as well as the soccer and basketball teams, but I wasn't an all star on any of the teams.  Like most teenagers, I was pretty active all around, but my eating habits were atrocious.  I remember going through massive bags of peanut butter cups or Doritos all by myself and not even thinking about it.  Of course, I continued the poor eating habits when I went away for college, but other than walking around campus I wasn't getting much exercise.  This quickly added on the pounds and by the end of my sophomore year I was up to 152 lbs.  The summer of 2003 was my first experience with Weight Watchers, which my mom suggested to me.  I sort of flirted with it, but never really gave it a good try.  I also left my college that summer and decided to take classes at a community college back home.  This left me feeling bummed out and lonely and led to eating more.  The following spring I decided to give Weight Watchers a real try, and lost 15 pounds, bringing me down to 137.  I felt attractive and thin, but since I was still leading a pretty sedentary lifestyle I didn't feel fit.  Over the next few years my weight crept up to the 140-145 range, but I still felt pretty good about myself.  However, in 2007 I moved to Texas and became a flight attendant.  Very quickly, my weight sprang up to 155 + and though I tried to follow WW several times over the next few years, even getting down to 147 at one point,  I eventually ate my way up to 173lbs by the beginning of 2011.
I turn 28 on July 3, in just over 2 weeks.  The closer I get to my 30s the harder it gets to shake this excess weight.  I know WW works, but I don't know if it's right for me at this time in my life.  I've recently run my second Half Marathon (13.1 miles, for all you non runners) and the more I run the more I realize I need to be fueling my body and not just counting points or calories.  I want to be aware of what I'm putting in my body and learn more about what I should be putting in my body.  I'm hoping that being more aware of how I fuel myself will cause me to lose weight naturally and healthily.  I also really want to focus on making my body fit and strong, not to mention faster!

Daily/Weekly Goals:

• Track my food here in words, points and pictures
• Track my workouts and my running journey
• Focus on eating more whole foods and fewer processed ones

Long Term Goals:

• Run the Long Beach Half Marathon (10/9/11) in < 2:23:52 (just under an 11 min mile)
• Participate in a triathlon
• Get back into the "normal" BMI range
• Become ACE certified (personal trainer or group instructor)