My Weight Loss Story

So I technically started this blog a year ago with the intentions of posting weight loss tips and about my running, etc. At that time I still wasn't sure of myself and I didn't feel like anyone wanted to read it and I didn't feel like I was any kind of expert on the subject. Flash forward to a year later, I am still not an expert but I'm a hell of a lot smarter about this lifestyle that I now lead and I feel like I should pay it forward and inform/motivate others through this blog. Thanks for checking it out and I'll start with my updated weight loss story. I originally posted this after my first half marathon back in October 2012. The before pic below is from 2007 at my highest weight ever non-pregnant (193). The after pic is from last month on our 10-year anniversary getaway (133 lbs)

MY WEIGHT LOSS STORY

I have reflected a lot lately on how I got here and how much further I still want to go. These last 10 pounds are going to be the hardest I think, but I am totally fine with taking my time and doing it the healthy way.

I think back to the very beginning of this...Christmas night 2011 to be exact. I had gotten a new sweater or something like that and I tried it on and was just SO unhappy with how I looked. My husband had gotten some new running gear and I was always so amazed at how healthy and fit he was. I thought to myself that he deserves a wife who cares about her health as much as he does. I thought about the woman I was when we first met. Totally fit with rock hard abs. I know he didn't fall in love with me for my appearance but I still thought about how it's not sending him a very good message that I had just completely let myself go. I love him and I want him to know that I still love him enough to want to be healthy and fit for him. I also thought about my daughter and the message I wanted to send to her. I want her to know the importance of staying active and being healthy. I don't want her to obsess about her weight or about being skinny, but I want to show her by example that hard work pays off and she can accomplish anything if she puts her mind to it. So I started this journey for THEM. Along the way my motivations have evolved and once I lost the first 20 pounds it also became about me and proving to myself that I could do it. I felt so awesome after the first 20 pounds that I briefly felt like I should just stop where I was. But I quickly gained 5 pounds back and I realized that I was far from done and I still had a long way to go to change myself. That was around April, which is also when I decided I was going to do the Rock N Roll Half Marathon. I started the Couch 2 5K that month and completed it in June. I did my first official 5K in August and then a 4-mile run after that. For most of June and July I was convinced I didn’t really want to do the Half Marathon. I loved running, but I had myself convinced that I didn’t want to run 13.1 miles. But I realized that was the old me talking and the new me wouldn’t back down from it just because it sounded hard and miserable. I was going to do it. I didn’t get to train as much as I wanted to, but I still finished and the next time I run a half marathon my time will improve. I’m not striving to be an elite runner or even to really compete. I just want to do it to prove to myself that I can. And to also show my daughter and son that hard work pays off. So in a way running has changed me and it has definitely changed my body. It has brought me and my husband closer together and made me realize even more how amazing he is. The whole 8 years that I was overweight he never ONCE said anything to me about my weight or asked me to lose weight. Sometimes I wonder if he even realized that I was overweight, but I don’t know how he couldn’t. He was just being nice. That’s who he is and he inspires me every day to be the best I can be. I’m sharing this because if I can inspire just one person to start their own journey then that just makes my journey all the better. You don’t have to settle for anything. Grab life by the balls and make it YOURS! J

 

UPDATE AS OF 4/22/13-

Since writing that weight loss story in November 2012 I have lost 5 more pounds and I am down a total of 55 pounds. I still run and I have now realized the importance of cross training. I do Jillian Michaels Ripped in 30 6 days/week and have 3 new Jillian DVDs on their way this week so I can change it up a little bit. I gave up diet soda a week ago and I have seriously never felt better. My energy level is much higher, which I wasn’t expecting. I have discovered a love of fruit infused water, so I’ll be posting some of my favorites on here.

 

Me after my run tonight. It's not a pretty sight, but damn it felt good!