At my heaviest I was 203 pounds. I still have a hard time believing that. I was overweight and I didn't know I had a problem. I was always thin and could eat whatever I wanted without an issue, but in college the weight crept up on me. My clothes started feeling tighter, so logically I bought bigger clothes. I started wearing clothes that stretched. That made the problem go away, at least in my mind.
But all that changed in the summer of 2011 when someone took a photo of me and I couldn't recognize myself. Who was that person? I went digging and found a photo from a few years before and put them next to each other and it hit me. The best way I could describe it was like looking at a weight loss commercial. You know the one with the left photo showing the "before", which is of an overweight person and on the right is the "after" photo showing the amazing results. But it was switched for me, I was small before and large after.
For my height and frame I should have been 140-145, yet I was 60 pounds over that weight. I estimated that I gained about 10-12 pounds every year for the past 5-6 years.
At first, I felt regret, then I got mad, and then I got even. Many times before I complained about wanting to lose some weight, but it was just talking, I never committed myself to actually doing it.
This time I could feel it was going to be different. I took just these simple steps:
1. Replacing Junk - I first started by throwing away all the junk food I had in the house. For example, I threw away chips, I replaced soda and only drank water. I went to the market and bought fruits and vegetables. I bought hummus to replace any dips and started snacking on carrots and celery. I stopped eating take out and didn't stop at fast food restaurants.
2. Balance - I made sure I wasn't just eating meats and starch, like potatoes. I had to balance my plate. I read somewhere that it takes meat and potatoes 14 hours to digest, but adding fresh fruits and veggies accelerates that process. So I cut my meat and potato portions and started eating veggies and fruits like blueberries with my dinner.
3. Stop eating after 7 - I don't practice this anymore, but in the beginning I did. I had to set up some rules to have order. After 7 PM is when I would look for snacks out of boredom, so I made sure I pre-planned meals. I knew what I was going to eat for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks the next day.
4. Finding a Partner - I have a great partner. My boyfriend and I have been together for 12 years. We were slim together and we gained weight together. I used to eat what my boyfriend ate and would match him. If he had 6 slices of pizza, so would I. The only sport I was doing then was competitive eating...on my couch. Now, I made sure I ate no more than half of what he ate. We both started making changes together. Having a partner is the key because when one person wants to give up, the other person can motivate the other and we did that for each other.
I started noticing a difference and that year I lost 20 pounds.
I needed to kick up a notch. I was worried about doing any exercise because I had back issues. My lower back was always sore and I constantly pulled it with the most minuscule activity. I did physical therapy, but the pain didn't go away.
I started walking for a few weeks, and then I felt like I could jog a little bit, and once I started jogging, I felt I could run. When I was able to run I started playing basketball again. The activity helped me lose another 10 pounds. I was at 173 and I felt that I could finally enter martials arts and feel confident keeping up.
Martial arts incorporates strength training and cardio among other techniques. For example, at my dojo we have to run, dodge, do squats, sit-ups and push-ups to warm-up. My master encourages us and says, "If you want to lose weight, make muscle." I started seeing definition in my arms and stomach. After a few months I lost another 10 pounds. I reached my original goal of 168 and now I am currently 163.
I have people come up to me that haven't seen me in a while and ask me what I did to lose the weight. And when I tell them the changes I made they look at me like I am lying. I think they hope I can give them a magic pill or secret to losing weight. I am not going to lie and tell you it was easy, it was hard work. I didn't see quick results. It took time. Sometimes I would workout so much and not see any difference for weeks and months on the scale. However, I felt a difference in my body and my clothes, but my weight would just stay the same and after a few months it would dip again. Weight loss is about commitment. You need to be dedicated and you will see a difference.
Lastly, I don't make big goals, because achieving small goals keeps me committed. For example, I didn't tell myself when I was 203 that my goal was 130 because if I didn't see 130 on the scale I would feel defeated.
So, instead I made mini goals. When I was 203 pounds my goal was to see anything with an 8 in it, that would be 180-189. When I was 180 something pounds, my goal was 170-179. I kept doing that. And now I am 163.
I still have goals and I am currently working on my new goal of 158. Between us, my ultimate goal is 140-145. I constantly remind myself about the positive changes I have made in my life. I am so happy I lost those 40 pounds. It has made a huge difference in my life. Some of the best include not having back pain, being able to walk and tie my shoes without losing my breath, clothes fit (bonus), practicing martial arts, and gaining lots of energy.
I am reminded of my achievement everyday with the little things. The other day I was at the market and I picked up a 5 pound potato bag and it was a pretty heavy a bag. I smiled when I remembered that before my weight loss I was walking around with 8 of those potato bags on my body.
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