Wedding Weight Loss

So, tonight I joined 24 Hour Fitness.  The zoo actually partially reimburses employees for gym memberships, so I should have done it sooner.  I've balked at spending the money, since I work at a pool and can swim laps for free.  The only problem is that the swim teams make it hard to find a lane.  OK, there's also that whole self-discipline thing.  As in, I have none.  At least not when it comes to eating well and working out.  So left to my own devices, I can talk myself out of swimming laps pretty easily. 

It's not so much the wedding that kicked my butt into gear, it's the wedding pictures.  I will be IMMORTAL in those pictures, and I want to be in the best shape possible.  I'm comfortable with my body in general, but I have gained a little too much weight in the last year.  And yes, it is about getting rid of this sneaky underarm flab that has ninja'd it's way onto my body, but it's also about just getting healthier and stronger in general.  When I first started at the zoo, I was down to a size 14.

So today, I weighed myself and am at 240 lbs at 6' tall.  Some times I feel OK with my body:

See?  Not terrible.  I'm lucky I'm so tall.  Then, there's this picture:

Uh...ew.  So, it's to the gym I go. 

And both of these pictures were taken about a week ago at the AAZK conference. 

I don't want to loose weight too quickly for two reasons.  One, I want to do it the right way, by forming new habits.  And two, because I don't want to do all this hard work and still have six months to go, meaning I have to stress about maintaining the loss to fit into my dress. 

Luckily, I've got two friends who are already good about going to the gym. Part of the reason I joined 24 Hour Fitness was so that I can be guilt-tripped into working out more, and because I am a social person.  Working out is more fun and satisfying if someone else is there to see you do it.