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| March 1-November 1 |
I guess I can start with answers to the simple, and most often asked questions:
Was it difficult to lose all the weight?
Yes. Very. Not only physically, but a raging war with my own mind, and self control on the daily.
How long until you saw results?
I felt like I was getting smaller, almost immediately. Within a couple of weeks.
Others, however, didn't start noticing until about, 5 months in. So I had been training from March, until August, before peoples started asking if I was losing weight. At that point, I had lost about 35 pounds.
What's your secret?
I don't have one. I eat healthy, and I work out. Basic. What everyone tells you to do.
But I didn't take shortcuts. Let me tell you about it.
Okay, first of all.
It did come to me, all at once. A moment of being fed up, and it happened at work.
I weighed 223 pounds. And the fact that I can even say that, is a lot, because for so long I was so ashamed of that number. One time I was in the gym with a friend, and he got on the scale, and was talking about how FAT he was, and how he had hit 200 pounds, and that was so "disgusting".
And that moment stuck with me, because at the time, I weighed 20 pounds more than that.
But anyways. I weighed 223 pounds, I was sitting at my desk at work, and I couldn't cross my legs. Meaning I couldn't cross one leg over the other sitting in my desk chair. My thighs were too big and my belly got in the way. And that was it. I was tired of it. I was tired of being out of breath from a walk, I was tired of hating what I saw when I looked at myself. I was tired of always having to wear stretch clothes because regular things didn't fit.
So I bought a workout program, I spent $40 dollars that I didn't have, and went for it. I explained to Dyllon that I felt like I really needed to try this program. That I felt like maybe it could get me motivated. The trainer was always so positive and helpful, and that's what I needed. Not someone screaming at me about how I could lose the weight. So he said ok, and I bought it on 3/1/2016.
PIIT 28 by Cassey Ho is a 28 day program where you do HIIT Pilates training for 28 minutes a day. Moves like plank jacks, quick squats, mountain climbers, and other things. You do those moves for 45 seconds, and then have 15 seconds off before you move on the the next move. There are 7 moves, and you do this for 4 rounds. Easy right? Yeah. Okay.
Before I got into working out, I was always ready to take the easy way out of a workout.
I would go to the gym, and if I burned 100 calories on an elliptical, that was good enough for me. I'm not saying that's not good, because getting up and moving your body, IS good, in comparison to not. But it wasn't enough for ME. I was doing just enough to get by. Always. I can guarantee there were so many entries in my search history like "Easy Ab Workout" or "How to lose weight fast".
Let me be the first to say that though that seems to be what everyone wants.
IT. IS. NOT. POSSIBLE.
At least by most standards.
Most people, when seeking "quick" results, are wanting to see total body change in a few weeks. I was one of those people. It can't happen. First of all, it's not healthy. Losing 10 pounds in a week, IS NOT POSSIBLE (in most cases). Restricting your diet to 1000 calories a day, IS NOT HEALTHY.
And I see that now. So when I started PIIT 28, I was ready to give it "just enough" effort and see my body change. What I got out of it, more than anything though, was not body change. It was change of mind. My mindset did a complete 180 in a matter of days. I created a fitness instagram, where I followed people in the PIIT 28 community, and we lifted eachother up! It was like a diary, full of people there to support you. I would write about my bad days, or my good days, and this group of people, on the same journey as me, would pop in and cheer me on, through good and bad.
I highly recommend it.
The trainer for the PIIT 28, Cassey, became my favorite person and my worst enemy.
She stays so positive, lets you know you're capable. Strong. Beautiful. Encourages you to post "sweaty selfies" and step out of your comfort zone.
I can't thank her & PIIT 28 enough, for lighting my fire.
I completed the 28 days, and by the end, I wasn't cheating, or taking the easy way out anymore.
I had a new sense of confidence. I hadn't lost any weight, but my mindset had completely changed. I was ready for a new challenge. The annual "Mud Run" in my town was coming up, and though I had done it in 2015, it had taken me almost an hour to complete the 3 mile obstacle course. This was my new challenge. So my husband, brother in law, and I, started to train. We started slow, running 1 minute, and then walking for 2 minutes. One mile at a time. Slowly we changed it, from 1 minute running to 2 minutes running, and 2 minutes walking. Then 2 minutes running and 1 minute walking. It was hard. I suffered shin splints. I struggled with my asthma, and I wanted to just stop. Then one day, I had a similar moment to the moment when I was fed up with not being able to cross my legs. I looked at Dyllon and said "I am going to run a mile today without stopping." And I did. And my fire was burning brighter than ever after that. I just kept pushing. Run more, run further, for longer. Don't stop, and if you do, only for a few seconds. This changed me even more.
It was May now, and I still hadn't lost any weight. My body was changing though. That was for sure.
I weigh the same in both of those photos.
Suddenly, I lost all fear, and I started showing my real self. Not being ashamed.
I have no shame in admitting, and I was the #1 person, for knowing my angles and using them in pictures. That's why, I think, for the longest time, people didn't notice a change. Because I was basically lying about how I looked through photos.
Example:
The photo on the left was taken by my dad, on his camera. The photo on the right, was taken by my dad, on my phone. Doesn't look like the same person right? Angles my friend. Turning my body to where I look smaller. Hiding most of my body behind Dyllon. Hiding my body any way I could. I would have NEVER posted that photo on the left. Because you could see me for who I was.
Not fat. Just me.
The photo on the right, was not me. It was the only part of me that I was willing to share.
And now here I am. Posting photos like this:
Here I am world. This is me. Happy with my body or not, it's time to stop hiding.
By July, I checked my weight, and I had lost 35 pounds. My confidence was already so high, I hadn't been checking the scale. People were pointing out that I was losing weight, I was getting complements. But it didn't matter as much to me anymore. It was more mental. All of this has been about a changed mind.
Not to mention my husband, who has loved me no matter my size. Who has gone to run with me in the cold. Who has gone to a spin class even though he didn't like it. Who has pushed me to every limit I have and who has helped me stay sane when i'm battling with my own opinion of myself.
I'd be defeated if it was not for him.
So now that i've given a big long story about how I started and my slow progress. Let's talk about how i'm doing it now.
It's all about balance.
DISCLAIMER. This is how I AM doing it. It might not work for everyone, but it's working for me.
On Monday's, we eat pizza in my house. And as much of it as we want. That's the only day where we eat something that carby, fatty, and fully of just. Junk. And it's fine. One day a week. I'm still struggling with food. With not feeling guilty every time I eat any kind of junk food. That's been my whole life. Restricting myself, and then binging. It's a never ending cycle. I have this mindset that if I eat one thing bad, that suddenly i'll gain it all back, and be worse than I was before. It's getting better, but it still lingers at times.
On an average day, that isn't a Monday, i'll have a coffee at breakfast, and if i'm going to eat bread, which I rarely do, it's also at breakfast. I will have oats, or eggs, peanut butter, a wrap, some cereal with almond milk. My biggest meal of the day is always breakfast.
For dinner, is when I'll usually have my medium sized meal. Sweet potatoes, ground turkey tacos on corn tortillas or a bed of spinach, salmon, asparagus, stir fry, just to name a few. Not too restricted, but fresh enough. Fresh fruit, fresh veggies, meats, and a small amount of cheese. No bread, and no dairy milk. Almond milk is my friend.
AND WATER.
I'm telling you, I don't want to hear "I hate the taste of water."
Yeah. Okay, we get it. But whether you hate it or not. Your body HAS TO HAVE IT. Put some fruit in it, a cucumber, something to improve the "taste" for you, but if you DO NOT DRINK WATER, then your body will not like you. I drink over a gallon of water a day, and even if i'm the slightest bit dehydrated, at this point, my body lets me know.
My throat gets dry, my head hurts, I feel sluggish. Drink a bottle of water, and i'm fine.
Find a way to drink water. It will change your body.
Workout wise. I try to do some kind of cardio 6 days, do calisthenics (push-ups, sit ups, bodyweight workouts) 3 days a week combined with cardio a week and give myself 1 rest day.
This is not a set schedule. Some weeks I take 2 rest days. And while it's a constant battle convincing myself that it's okay, I still have that lingering thought like I do with the food. "What if I never workout again after this rest day, and I get big again, and I lose all this hard work?" I'm trying to teach myself, that if I want to take a rest day, it's not because i'm lazy. It's because I need it. I always want to work out. I'm constantly thinking about it, it's my favorite thing to do, but if i'm tired and just not feeling it, it means I don't need to go. It's a learning process. Teaching myself about my body, and learning to listen to my body.
Some days I run 3 miles, some days, I just run 1. Some days I go to a spin class. Some days I just go for a walk. But I move. No matter what I move. If I don't feel like leaving home, I go on youtube, and find a workout there, and do it a couple of times. If you want a secret, I don't have one. I just keep moving. I work out. A lot. I eat small meals. I take a day to rest. I take a day to eat pizza. I drink water.
Another important thing.
I take progress photos.
If you're looking in the mirror, it might be easier to be blind to progress on a day to day basis, but if you look at photos side by side, the progress is evident. Be real. Don't suck in. Don't try to hide parts you're self conscious about. Take a photo of you, in an outfit and go back a year later and take a photo in the same outfit. Your mind will be blown. Mine still is. Little victories are so much more.
Don't expect immediate results, just be patient and persistent, and change will come. Set small goals, but don't be disappointed if you don't reach them right away. Love yourself. Strive not toward skinnier, but stronger. Not running longer, but running faster. Not the scale, but what your see in the mirror. Know you're beautiful and try ( still a battle for me) to tell yourself daily. You don't have to run 20 miles a right away. That's the worst mistake. Start small. I started with 28 minutes of Pilates a day. Yoga. Only running a minute at a time. It has to build, or you'll fall off too easily. Don't over-do it to begin with or expect too much of yourself. I learned the hard way.
I honestly, didn't think it was possible. But it is. Believe it is.
In late October, I hit the 55 lb mark. I instantly started thinking of new goals, how I can change more. How I can make myself even healthier.
My goals have shifted, from losing, to toning. Running a 10k maybe? New challenges. Never settling. That's the key. That's the only advice I can give.
JUST DON'T STOP. NEVER STOP.
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