I grew up playing sports and being active. All the way through high school I was in excellent shape and I looked great (even though I didn't think so at the time). Then college happened. I gained the Freshman 15, plus a lot extra. Then lost it all after working my second summer at Cedar Point in 2006. Continued my bad habits and my weight shot back up after returning to school and stayed that way until January 2008.
I spent Christmas vacation of 2007 in Florida. I hated going out because I did not look good in my clothes. I had love handles and muffin top plus a pudgy face and thunder thighs. No one wants to see that in a bathing suit or a mini skirt, not even myself. So, I avoided it and just stayed inside. I vowed that my "New Year's resolution would be to lose weight and get back into shape. And so, my weight loss journey began.
I weighed 168 lbs. when I started in January 2008. I started running and going to group fitness classes. I also completely changed my diet. I gave up Taco Bell, pop, and most sweets. This was very difficult for me as I had a slight addiction to Taco Bell and went more often than necessary. But I had faith in myself, and I stuck with it. From January through August I lost 28 lbs., taking me to my lowest weight of my adulthood - 140 lbs. I looked great and I felt awesome. That fall I ran three 5K races and was at the peak of my fitness. I had also became a vegetarian.
And then I met Brent. My [now] Husband, and everything changed completely. I started eating meat again. I lost interest in running. And I had no motivation to even attempt to go to the gym. The pounds slowly started packing themselves on, but I was comfortable and didn't care, at least I pretended not to care. Over the next couple of months I made several (failed) attempts at jumping back on the wagon... better diet, start running again, the list of goals I made was endless but the motivation never lasted more than a few days, week at the most. Brent was by my side through it all, telling me I was beautiful no matter what, so I just continued what I was doing.
October 30, 2009 changed things. Brent proposed! Now I had a wedding to plan and I had to look good in my dress. This sparked my motivation for a little while, but again it died off and my efforts as shedding weight were wasted as I regained the few pounds I managed to lose. I figured I still had plenty of time, so why rush it.
Until March 16, 2010 happened. After a long drive back from Ohio and a quick trip to the bathroom, we were starring at a stick with two pink lines! Even though we had decided we wanted a baby, neither of us expected it to happen so soon. Now I really needed to start taking care of myself and body. Unfortunately, neither of us expected there to be a few complications with the pregnancy that sidelined me from almost all exercise for the entire 9 months.
On November 3, 2010 our beautiful baby girl was born via emergency c-section, a surgery which kept me away from any physical activity for 6 additional weeks. At this point it as had almost been an entire year since I last exercised. I had lost all of my endurance and strength, so it was basically like starting from the bottom. Because of this, and my ever increasing exhaustion from having a newborn I never fully jumped back on the wagon. I would exercise a day here and a day there, plan and make healthy meals occasionally but I couldn't get in a routine and stick with it. The 25 lbs. I lost immediately after giving birth slowly started creeping back on.
So here we are today. My little girl is now 7 months old, and I am almost back at the weight I was when I gave birth. Not a place I ever wanted to be again. After a highly depressing vacation in Chicago, where I was humiliated in front of several dressing room mirrors by how bad I really did look I decided it was definitely time to change things around. No more being lazy. No more excuses. I need to start setting good examples for my daughter so I will be here for her for a long, long time.
If I want to change my body, I first have to change my mind... and that's exactly what I'm doing. I plan to keep my daily logs on myfitnesspal, as well as write about my journey in this blog. No more wasting time, the time to start is now.
Some stats:
Low weight - 140 lbs. [August 2008]
High weight - 216 lbs. [November 2010 - taken the day I gave birth]
Current weight - 203 lbs. [June 5, 2011]
Goal weight - 140 lbs.
I do not have any set plans for myself. I do not have any set work out goals in mind. I just know that I need to start eating better and moving, and hopefully after a week or so I will fall into a routine and have more specifics to post.
Lets do this.
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