Fat to Fit Friday!

ARGHHH  I left my cell phone at home this morning.  I feel naked it with out it, and not naked in a good-lets-have-dirty-sex kinda naked, the vulnerable, I just left my best friend naked kinda way.  I am sad, I know.

I am doing a link up with Jenna, Lori and Marcy.  FAT TO FIT FRIDAY!!!  (I tried to paste in the button but it didn’t work for me!  So click on their names yo!  They are inspiring!!!) 

It’s taken me a year and a half to lose 30 pounds.  Slowest weight loss EVER.  I have lost considerable inches.  I proudly tell people, I have lost 11 inches off of my lower abdomen, ELEVEN!  I am immensely proud of that.  I would have listed my measurements here just to make this entry a bit more interesting, but I keep that shit in my phone.  Bah. 

Clearly, you may not want to take my advice for a “fast” weight loss.  I have tried a few fad diets, and I always get angry at myself as I know they are not a long term fix.  The long term is retraining myself how to eat.  MODERATION.  LESS JUNK.  (I am not giving up on ALL my treats; I just have to learn MODERATION.  I am 5’3”.  I can’t consume 3000 calories in a day and not workout.  I LOVE to eat. 

Lately (beside a minor fad diet attempt earlier this week) I have been trying to eat a NET of 1400 calories.  I do a Jillian DVD (I love that bitch) 4 to 5 times a week and I play hockey once a week.  So I get 5 to 6 workouts in a week.  In the last two months it has been more like 5. 

The biggest thing I have learned, I have read it repeatedly from the most inspiring of bloggers, “You can’t out work a bad diet” and “Weight loss is 80% in the kitchen and 20% in the gym.”  It’s true.

A few things I find that help me stay on track the most:

1. PROTEIN PROTEIN PROTEIN

Last year my husband and I joined our local YMCA.  Our first visit entailed a visit with a personal trainer.  (He was this stunningly ripped young jock, that I TOTALLY thought I would be intimidated in talking too, but he WAS SUPER nice and was not judgmental AT ALL.)  When I talked to him, I complained how I was ALWAYS starving.  He pointed out that I was only getting one serving of protein a day.  UP YOUR protein.  Count out your nuts, eat your lean meats, budget some calories for a bit of cheese. 

2. Consult with Professionals around you

My very first time talking with someone about my weight was my family doctor.  He brought it up out of concern.  I remember hearing my Aunt tell awful stories of how her doctor made her feel like crap about her weight.  I imagine it must be hard for a doctor to sit down and tell someone to lose weight.  The doctor doesn’t say it to be mean, they say it out of concern.  I often wonder if my Aunt was more embarrassed then anything and viewed her doctor as attacking her, when maybe if she looked at it as he was trying to help her it would have been more beneficial. 

My doctor gave me the world’s greatest pep talk.  (He is a sweet little ol' British man, so you picture him talking)  When the switch finally flipped for me and I was ready to make my lifestyle change, I took all of what he said to heart:  start small, find an exercise you LOVE, cut out the junk, keep track of your calories.  When I saw my doctor a few months ago he made me feel like a million bucks, he was so happy for me.  As I felt I have stalled again, and falling back into my old ways, I called my doctor up and asked him to send me to a dietician.  Doctors are/have resources!  Use them! 

Talking to the trainer also helped.  It was intimidating, but my trainer was really nice.  I was embarrassed to talk to a super hot guy about how my legs jiggle and I have been a fatty all of my life, but he was a professional and he was very supportive.  My husband also really liked talking with the trainer.  I think both my husband and I wrongly judged the trainer, thinking he wouldn’t understand, but he did and he was a great resource that we were both happy we tried.

3. Keep a Food Diary

I had to be made accountable for EVERYTHING that I ate.  It also helped me to realize, even though I was hitting my calorie quota, I could have been doing better to eat healthier calories.  1400 calories of potato chips may be the same as 1400 calories of veggies calorie wise, but the fat and sodium is drastically worse in the potato chips versus the veggie.  Plus 1400 calories of veggies is a HUGE amount of food, 1400 calories of potato chips is like a few handfuls.  Not filling at all.

4. Keeping a blog/following bloggers

Every morning I read my list of favourite bloggers.  I love them.  I don’t comment as much as I should, but I faithfully read every morning.  I find them inspiring: their success, their struggle.  To see real people succeed, to see real people try (like me!)  I also find writing helps keep me on track.  A lot of the times I write an entry and then I never post it.  Like yesterday for instance, I blogged about how I wanted KFC REALLY, REALLY bad.  I got it out of my system; I went home and ate salad, heart smart pasta, tomato sauce and garlic bread (hey a girl needs a bit of a treat to take the edge off every now and then.)  I save these entries in Draft form and never post them.

5. Take Your Measurements and Take Progress Photos.

On days when the scale shows a number that makes me want to say FUCK IT, I take my measurements and compare.  I keep them all in a book and I can see how far I have come.  (I take pictures of the pages and put them in my cell phone so I can look at them) I lost 7 inches off my waist and I have lost 11 inches off my lower abdomen, I have lost 6 inches off of my upper thigh!  I need to focus on the positive as I have the terrible habit of, if the scale shows I am up a pound, I self sabotage and grab Wendy’s at lunch.  (Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind a planned treat once in a while, but blatantly saying FUCK IT and stuffing my face with anything edible, preferably high in fat/calories in a fit of rage is not right.) 

I don’t like posting pics of my face on here, but I should brave it one day.  When I was at my absolute heaviest I took BEFORE photos of me in my underwear and sports bra.  I look at these pictures regularly.  The transformation thus far is impressive to me; it’s amazing what thirty pounds can do.  The thing I stare at the most is my face.  In my before photos, I look sad.  Like emotionally sad.  My skin was a mess, my eyes are sad; there is no hint of a smile.  I was unhappy.  Now when I take progress photos, it’s amazing how even when I try not to smile in the photos, my eyes are shining.   The girl in the BEFORE photo, is hands down my biggest motivation.  Anytime I plateau or get frustrated, I pull out those pictures. 

My skin is a shocker to me.  I have rosacea; I have papulstalar which looks like acne.  In my before photo my face was at it’s worse.  Currently I am off the birth control pill (which is suppose to help the rosacea) and my dermatologist warned me that my skin will probably get even worse going off of the pill: the thing is, he was wrong.  My skin, while still not perfect, is the best it has been in years.  I chalk it up to the healthy eating, exercise and loss of weight.  The stress my body was under was also probably making my skin worse as stress triggers rosacea flare-ups.

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I know, I know, you have heard all that stuff before, about a billion times, but for me, they really do help!  (Disclaimer: I also have the world’s slowest weight loss happening.  Meh)  And every now and then I have to stop and make a conscious effort to follow them.

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And as I have no recent photos to jazz up this entry I leave you with a picture of my wedding shoes, because, who doesn't want to look at shoes?!?!  Steve Madden.  I LOVE anything retro pinup look. The funny thing is I spent a fortune on them and only wore them for photos where I was sitting.  I wore running shoes the rest of the day!  haha!