December 08, 2022

Three Things Thursday: Weight Loss

After yesterday's post, I thought it would be fitting to do a Three Things Thursday about weight loss. Even just reminding myself of these is helpful when trying to lose weight! Here goes:

Three things that helped me get started:

1) Making a pact with my sister. She asked me to do Weight Watchers with her and we would talk every evening to check in and see how it was going. I didn't want to let her down, so I stuck with it. (When I lost 100 pounds, she even treated me to a fun makeover! We got our hair, nails, and make-up done :)


2) A DietBet. As much as I really dislike the whole concept and the way it's executed, I have to admit that it helped me get back on track when I needed it. There is something about those weigh-ins that keeps me motivated.

3) Making a plan. Writing out a meal plan for the week and making sure I have all of the groceries to cook the meals I choose. I also try to make the meals as simple as possible so that I don't get overwhelmed that first week.


Three things that I found really difficult while losing weight:

1) Social situations were hard; not because of the food that was available, but because people would constantly ask why you weren't eating this or that, and surely one little bite won't hurt, etc.

This picture was from my BEST birthday ever! When I turned 30, Renee and Rachael organized a surprise 30th birthday party for me with our "Winers" group of girlfriends. I literally had ZERO idea it was happening and it was such a fun surprise!



2) Changes in my routine. I am a very routine, stick-to-the-schedule person, and I feel very "off" when I stray from that for some reason. On days that I had appointments, for example, I wasn't able to eat at the times that were most comfortable for me, so I would have to rearrange things. Or when the kids had sports games, I had to try to cook dinner around that. Basically, I wish I could be more flexible when it comes to my routine!

3) Dealing with cravings or urges to binge. Binge eating is a beast in and of itself and has to be dealt with differently. But cravings are just temporary thoughts that won't go away, usually triggered by smells or photos of food. When the urge is very strong, it's super hard to say no!


Three things that I found very rewarding:

1) Fitting into smaller jeans sizes. I started in a size 24, and the lowest I'd been in my adult life was a size 14 (I may have been a 12 for a minute). I loved being able to fit into the next size down. I started with a pair of jeans that were one size too small (so, a size 22 at the time). I tried them on each week until I could button and zip them. Then I bought a pair a size smaller (20) and tried them on each week until they fit. And so on... I did this all the way down until I wore a size 4! It was crazy. I turned all of my too-big jeans into a large denim quilt.



2) I stopped being too self-conscious to have my photo taken. I used to delete photos of myself as soon as I saw them because I was horrified at how fat I looked. I loved being able to be in photos and feel good about myself, even when I wasn't at my thinnest--if I was eating right and feeling healthy, I didn't mind having my photo taken.

3) This sounds odd, but I actually started to feel feminine--I always wanted to feel like a "girly girl" when I was in high school and college. For some reason, I just felt unworthy of wearing cute clothes (if I could even find any in my size!) and I felt like wearing make-up and doing my hair was a waste of time because people would never see me as feminine; I felt like a sexless blob. And I wanted to look girly! As I lost weight, I started to take better care of my appearance, which made me feel a million times better. And I actually felt pretty for probably the first time in my life. I even treated myself (and Jerry, I guess! haha) to my first teddy from Victoria's Secret.


Three things that I would say to others who are getting started:

1) It's going to be hard. If you expect it to be easy, you will be very disappointed. Losing weight involves changing up habits that you probably spent a lifetime building. But it's worth every sacrifice. And then the new habits don't feel so hard.

2) It's never-ending. There is no finish line. As you can see from my post yesterday, I always have to watch my weight because I've never been able to figure out maintenance. It's so easy to give up, or just "take a break"--but then that leads to weight gain and you're right back where you started. You truly have to view it as a lifetime commitment.

3) Only make changes you're willing to make for the rest of your life. This is ALWAYS my first piece of advice! Here is a detailed post about what I wish I knew when I was losing weight.


And there you go! I really ought to go back to some old posts and update them or rewrite them--just reading some of my old posts helps me to remember WHY all of the planning and headache is worth it in the long run. I feel better physically and mentally when I am "thin" (by "thin", I mean at a comfortable weight for me). Sometimes it's easy to forget that!

3 comments:

  1. I'm right there with you in never having mastered maintenance! I consider my weight loss journey a success because I lost 75 pounds ten years ago and for the most part have kept them off. BUT it's been a neverending up and down journey to stay in my desired weight range. I would like to be around 150 and every time I get down around the 152 or 153 point, something happens in my brain and I start letting up my guard a little and relaxing my eating habits. Then the pounds start creeping back on and before I know it, I'm back around the 165 point, and then the cycle of having to lose that 10 pounds starts all over again. I can't even tell you how many times I have lost that same ten $#%@=× pounds.

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  2. These are so helpful. I've had to find my own triggers because I think they're different for everyone, but what a great reminder of the long haul, the illusion of easy, and things that will help. THANK YOU!

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  3. Just curious as to why you haven't put more of a focus on figuring out maintenance? It is easy to get off track but constantly focusing on the number on the scale is maddening. I have been up and down 25 pounds for years. I'm back down and bound and determined not to let the number control me. I currently am doing calorie counting one week on and one week off. It lets me live but keeps me on track. I make sure I'm active 4-6 days a week (HIIT training as that keeps you burning calories all day) as this is a HUGE key to maintenance and mental health. If I workout in the AM my whole mentality changes and I want to stay on track and be healthy. If I do overeat or binge tomorrow is a new day and I refuse to let that control me anymore or think I did "bad". I just encourage you to figure out maintenance more and not focus on the number on the scale so much. And also-give yourself grace. You are human and a woman with up and down hormones all month. Be kind to yourself.

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