was reached tonight. I went to weigh in and lost 3.6 lbs this week for a total of 100.2 pounds.
I started writing this post 2 weeks ago because I wanted to remember everything I wanted to say. I've thought about what set me on this journey and all that I can say is that it was time to do it. There was never any one thing that led me here. I just thought "What the #$%& am I doing? I can fix this." I have 2 sisters who are about the same size and shape as I am, both younger, and they have both had lap-band surgery. That was not an option for me, not just because of the cost, but because I don't think that it would help me to learn how to live a healthier lifestyle. Everyone has to find their own solution and I chose Weight Watchers.
I can honestly say that I have been on plan since the start. Fortunately I was not a binge eater. I rarely ate really large meals. My issue was with eating the wrong things like deep fried Dutch croquettes, cheesecake, potato chips, fast food, fried meats, salami and cheese. I never ate veggies and rarely ate fruit.
The other thing I was not doing for myself was exercising. I will be 50 years old in a few weeks and have probably not exercised or been physically active for 20 years, the same 20 years that I have been obese. In September 2005 I sustained a knee injury that reduced the minimal activity I did to next to nothing. It was all I could do to walk short distances at work. It took almost 18 months to have it diagnosed and repaired. During that time I gained an extra 40 lbs.
I started Weight Watchers January 9, 2007 and had my knee repaired on February 28, 2007. I started to add exercising around mid April as I had to wait 6 weeks before I could do any after the surgery. That was probably a bigger change in my life than the food program. I think the first time I went for a walk I went around the block. Then I added the next street. Then the next and so on until I was walking about a mile. I got an iPod, put on the tunes and that helped get my mind on something other than the walking.
Then one day when it was raining I tried a DVD someone recommended - Walk Away the Pounds (WATP). I think I made it half way through the 1 mile walk the first time. I now do the 3 mile walk every morning before work.
Here are some of the changes that have come with the loss of 100 pounds:
I can now sit in any chair without fear, even ones with arm rests.
I can wear ladies runners instead of men's because my feet are thinner.
I can wear sexy underwear, which makes me feel sexy.
I can use anything that has a 250 lb restriction, like exercise equipment, amusement park rides, tanning beds, step ladders, etc.
I fit everywhere.
I can cross my legs
I can wear seatbelts comfortably
I can wear heels
I can travel with ease
I can wear sleeveless tops and dresses
I can shop places other than Pennington's
I can drink 6 glasses of water a day and enjoy them
I can wear a bathing suit without hiding
I can wear shorter hemlines
I can wear my original 1976 wedding rings
My goal when I started was to lose 50 lbs by my 50th birthday. That gave me 36 weeks. I never would have thought that I would lose 100 lbs in 32 weeks.
I want to thank my family - My husband Mike and son Chris for their support and especially my daughter Lauren, who has accompanied me on this journey and had lost 56 lbs herself. We have teamed up and supported each other all the way. We have not missed one weigh in and stayed for all but 2 meetings in 8 months - except this week when Lauren was in Europe and missed my 100 lb loss.
I would also like to thank all the members of the Weight Watchers forum for their support and encouragement. I could not have done this without your feedback, with special thanks to the Good Morning and Good Evening crew on the 200+ board and the Healthy Hotties on the 100+ board.
I would also like to thank my co-workers who have supported me.
I would also like to say that if I can do this at my age and absolutely change my whole life, anyone can. This is not about the physical changes, it's almost all psychological. If your head is not in the right place, all the dietary changes you try to make will not work.
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Thursday, August 16, 2007
The next step...
was to follow the plan. Week one was surprisingly easy. I guess that was because I was determined.
The best thing to come out of that week was that my daughter decided to join me and see how it worked. That was a big step for her. She had been overweight since high school and wanted to be thinner. I think it's harder for young people because it is too easy for them to just eat what their friends are eating. I never asked her if she wanted to do it with me. I knew it had to be her desire to try it or it wouldn't work.
We both followed the plan that week and found that having a buddy in the house was working well for us. We really started to check out the nutritional value of the foods we were eating. I don't think I ever read the packaging before but it is really easy to figure out if something is good or bad for you.
The end of that week brought my first weigh in. To my amazement I lost 13 pounds that first week. I knew that it would only happen that first time but when you start with a big loss like that, it really makes you feel like you've accomplished something. It really gets you focused on continuing.
My daughter joined that week and had her weight recorded. We always add 5 pounds onto her weight loss total because we give her credit for being on the plan that first week with me. She is now at 56 pounds lost and has less than 20 pounds until goal. She looks fabulous and is obviously more confident. She also seems much happier. Oh, and she has a whole new wardrobe!
The best thing to come out of that week was that my daughter decided to join me and see how it worked. That was a big step for her. She had been overweight since high school and wanted to be thinner. I think it's harder for young people because it is too easy for them to just eat what their friends are eating. I never asked her if she wanted to do it with me. I knew it had to be her desire to try it or it wouldn't work.
We both followed the plan that week and found that having a buddy in the house was working well for us. We really started to check out the nutritional value of the foods we were eating. I don't think I ever read the packaging before but it is really easy to figure out if something is good or bad for you.
The end of that week brought my first weigh in. To my amazement I lost 13 pounds that first week. I knew that it would only happen that first time but when you start with a big loss like that, it really makes you feel like you've accomplished something. It really gets you focused on continuing.
My daughter joined that week and had her weight recorded. We always add 5 pounds onto her weight loss total because we give her credit for being on the plan that first week with me. She is now at 56 pounds lost and has less than 20 pounds until goal. She looks fabulous and is obviously more confident. She also seems much happier. Oh, and she has a whole new wardrobe!
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
The start of my journey...
began on January 9, 2007 when I decided it was time to lose some weight. I gave myself the challenge of losing 50 pounds by my 50th birthday, which is September 24th.
I had not dieted for over 20 years so I knew that I would need support. I went on-line and saw that there was a Weight Watchers meeting starting in 15 minutes just a few blocks from my house. Decision made. I called out to hubby that I was going to a WW meeting and that I would be back later.
On my way to the meeting I was thinking that it would be great. I would not be out of place and I would not be the biggest person there as I was everywhere else. Well, I was wrong. I was still the biggest person in the room. I still felt out of place. But I was determined and I joined.
My first weigh in was not a surprise as I had weighed in at the doctor's office shortly before that. Quite a few new members there are shocked at their weight when the first join. When you are over-weight you don't tend to have a scale around. Out of sight, out of mind.
At the meeting there were several women who were reaching their goal or reaching lifetime and they had lost a total of 20 or 30 lbs. I was starting to feel even worse about myself when I realized that most people had very little weight to lose. Although I challenged myself to lose 50 pounds that was just a fairly short term goal as I knew that I had a total of over 150 lbs to lose if I really wanted to be honest.
The meeting itself went well and all newcomers are asked to stay behind to go over the plan with the leader. The leader is great by the way, and has lost about 60 lbs on the program herself. The plan is easy to follow and you can eat anything you want. There is no food plan you have to buy. You just pay to be a member and go to the meetings. The food you eat is determined by you. You just have to be accountable for it and count what you eat.
I felt better at the end the meeting than at the start and decided to give it a try. When I got home I discussed it with hubby, asked for his support, and told him it was my decision to start and it would be my decision of how long I continued, but that I was at that time determinded to go for it.
I reached my 50 pound goal 5 months early, on April 10.
I had not dieted for over 20 years so I knew that I would need support. I went on-line and saw that there was a Weight Watchers meeting starting in 15 minutes just a few blocks from my house. Decision made. I called out to hubby that I was going to a WW meeting and that I would be back later.
On my way to the meeting I was thinking that it would be great. I would not be out of place and I would not be the biggest person there as I was everywhere else. Well, I was wrong. I was still the biggest person in the room. I still felt out of place. But I was determined and I joined.
My first weigh in was not a surprise as I had weighed in at the doctor's office shortly before that. Quite a few new members there are shocked at their weight when the first join. When you are over-weight you don't tend to have a scale around. Out of sight, out of mind.
At the meeting there were several women who were reaching their goal or reaching lifetime and they had lost a total of 20 or 30 lbs. I was starting to feel even worse about myself when I realized that most people had very little weight to lose. Although I challenged myself to lose 50 pounds that was just a fairly short term goal as I knew that I had a total of over 150 lbs to lose if I really wanted to be honest.
The meeting itself went well and all newcomers are asked to stay behind to go over the plan with the leader. The leader is great by the way, and has lost about 60 lbs on the program herself. The plan is easy to follow and you can eat anything you want. There is no food plan you have to buy. You just pay to be a member and go to the meetings. The food you eat is determined by you. You just have to be accountable for it and count what you eat.
I felt better at the end the meeting than at the start and decided to give it a try. When I got home I discussed it with hubby, asked for his support, and told him it was my decision to start and it would be my decision of how long I continued, but that I was at that time determinded to go for it.
I reached my 50 pound goal 5 months early, on April 10.
Sunday, August 12, 2007
It's a start!
Well, here I am creating a blog without knowing what the heck I'm doing. I hope this will be a place where I can be creative and put my thoughts into words.
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