My friend retorted, "Everyone worries about that."
I was worried and I was fixated for years but I never took real action to remedy the situation.
I could have sat there daydreaming all day long hoping the weight would magically come off.
Either that or I would fill my days with excuses like...
"I'm still young. I'll lose it when I feel like it.""I know how to lose weight."
"I'm still pretty."
"My boyfriend loves me regardless."
"You can't tell that I'm X amount of pounds."
"I wear my weight well."
"I don't eat that...much."
"I'm stressed."
"I don't have time."
Denial. Excuses. Bullshit.
Whatever you want to call it.
I wasn't being honest with myself.
If you read my first post on this blog (A phone call changed my life..), you know I finally reached my breaking point October 2009 when I first started off on this journey.
I've had many ah-ha moments throughout my battles with weight loss when I would start off determined to shed this weight once and for all only to revert back to old habits and gain MORE weight back.
What was different this time was I decided to find a permanent solution and not a temporary fix.
1. Read anything and everything about weight-loss (magazines, online sources. whatever.)
2. I found diet forums on SparkPeople and 3FatChicks where I read other people's struggles and triumphs. It was easy to find inspiration from other people's before and after stories. Online support was pivotal in my success.
3. I recorded everything I ate for a week to see what I was really eating (no fudging). After that, I kept a food diary for a year or so tracking my calories before I eased into intuitive eating since I understood portion control at that point.
4. Analyze my patterns and history/time line of weight fluctuations.
When do I gain? What do I struggle with? What doesn't work?
5. Step on the (oh-so-dreaded) scale to see what my starting point was (for the record: 191.5 lbs).
6. Take it day by day, week by week..
7. Set mini-goals so I wasn't overwhelmed. I congratulated myself every time I reached a new decade: 180s, 170s, 160s, 150s, 140s, 130s, 120s...and so on. It was easier to imagine losing 5 lbs than thinking about losing 70+ lbs.
8. Plan my meals ahead of time: 3 meals and 1-2 snacks. Prepare meals at home and stop eating out.
Chose high-volume, low-calorie foods to stay full longer.
9. Rid my apartment of junk food. Read nutritional labels.
10. Slowly incorporate exercise. I soon realized though food intake contributed to weight-loss more than exercise. I can't undo bad eating habits with exercise.
11. I wrote down a list of reasons why I wanted to lose weight. I re-visited this list every time I lost motivation.
12. I took progress pictures every month in a swimsuit.
13. Stopped drinking my calories in the form of sugary drinks. Switched to water, tea and black coffee with skim milk (in the mornings).
(was never a big alcohol drinker so that wasn't an issue)
Hope some of these things that worked for me is helpful! Remember, everyone's journey is different and what worked for me, may not work for others.
Another thing is consult a doctor (and hopefully he/she gives sound advice.)
Some great sayings that kept me moving..
Progress not perfection
Losing weight is hard. Maintaining weight is hard. Staying fat is hard. Pick your hard.
If hunger is not the problem, then food is not the solution.
What are some sayings that kept you going?
Have a wonderful weekend everyone.
4 comments:
At church our pastor talked about the fact that confessing our faults does nothing to better us unless we put action towards changing them. We can admit all day long until we are blue in the face that we are overweight or unhealthy but until there is action befind those words then they are futile. You go that ball rolling
Like you, I have come to see through the BS and am honestly able to admit what led to my weight gain. But unlike you, I am not consistently disciplined. I still see food, instead of exercise, as a solace. I wish I had just 10% of your discipline when it comes to exercise. I've "known" you from the 3FC days and am very proud of you for staying on track and taking such good care of yourself (and your family). In those moments when you feel like you're struggling, let yourself relax a little, because you're very able to get right back on the horse. Sometimes it's the brain, not the body, that is begging for some downtime!
I loved this line: Progress not perfection.
I am an ALL or NOTHING type of person. If I had one slip up, and it could be as stupid as eating a handful of M&M's and I'd say "f*ck it" and then eat like shit for hours, days or weeks.
Progress not perfection will be my new motto - thank you!!
There is a lot of great suggestions in your post! For me I need to remember if I slip it's not the end of the world. I need to enjoy myself too.
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