If there is one thing that I have learned in weight loss, is that you should always have a goal in mind. There should always be a reward that you have predetermined, something to look forward to (besides looking and feeling healthier of course!) I thought I would take this time to post a few pictures of the things that I look forward to rewarding myself with when I am all done losing weight! It is so great to revisit these things every once in a while so that it keeps my motivation high, and I can get excited all over again! I am a big fan of one piece bathing suits, but I can also appreciate the bikini. I know that these bathing suits will more than likely be discontinued before I am ready to buy them, but these are the ones that I am currently in love with, I absolutely love J. Crew's bathing suits, so I am sure when I AM ready to buy a bathing suit you can guarantee that is where I will be getting my bathing suit. I am sure even if these aren't available I will find more than one that I love!
The polka dot one comes in a light gray that I love! Anyway, I am really looking forward to buying bathing suits similar to these for not this bathing suit season, but next. Which brings me to my next topic... I have realized that my goal date is far to aggressive for the amount of weight I want to lose, and quite unrealistic if I want to make sure that this weight stays off! If it comes off easier than expected than great, but I am not going to aim to lose 2 pounds per week (the maximum recommendation for weight loss). I have started frequenting this website http://www.caloriecount.about.com. It's a place that you can go and log all of the foods that you have eaten throughout the day, and it gives you all of the nutritional information that you have taken in that day! It is fantastic for calorie counting! On top of that they have a great forum and a community full of people from people needing to lose 100+ pounds to people who have already lost the weight and are just trying to maintain their weight now. There really is a group of people for every kind of person, filled with encouragement and motivation. Anyway, what I quickly learned is that you shouldn't lose more than 1% of your body weight per week. So as of right now, it wouldn't be healthy to lose more than 1.6 pounds per week, so that is what I am aiming for! As I continue to lose weight, that will go down, and I will lose less per week, but instead of this being a quick fix (which it started out as, I just wanted to be skinny again!!!!), it has turned into a complete lifestyle change. It's a fact that I am sick of being overweight, but I am so sick of it that I don't ever want to revert back to being overweight. So slow and steady it is, it is much more likely that I will keep it off if I continue this way! My previous goal of losing the weight by July has been thrown out the window. I am now hoping that by the end of the summer I will have lost it all, but I am not going to kick myself down if I still have a couple months after that, after all who knows how many of these plateaus I am going to have to deal with, ugh! The last time I lost weight, it was so unhealthy, I lost 2 pounds a week without fail right down until I was 121 pounds, it's no wonder I gained it all back and then some in just a couple of years! Well not this time, no way, no how!
Speaking of plateau, I have been stuck at 165.5 for the last week and a half, well this morning I was at 165... so here is to hoping that it has broken. I think I shocked my body a bit yesterday by eating under my 1200 calories (not on purpose, it just happened, and I wasn't even hungry!) It's possible that my eating a normal amount today will just pile that .5 pound back on, but I am hoping that I shocked my body enough to get rid of the plateau and that I will continue to lose.
Everyone who is reading this, who is thinking about trying the calorie counting way to lose weight, don't hesitate to send me an email amanda_arch@hotmail.com because I have done a tonne of research on this matter, and am more than happy to answer any questions about it that you may have! As I mentioned before, I enjoy being a support system for people just as much as I enjoy having a support system for myself.
Big hugs!
I love your blog. It really is an unfortunate, but at the same time fortunate realization about making a lifestyle change. Unfortunate because it is tough and an ongoing struggle, but fortunate because it gives so much back! Not just in appearance but of course overall health. It does seem that slow and steady is a better method but it can certainly get frustrating! I bet adding exercise is really going to help you get over the plateau, and more than likely even though you may not see it on the scale immediately you may lose inches. I always find after a few weeks it at least makes my face feel thinner (which is a major thing I miss from being thin!). Also remember you will be building muscle which is heavier than fat, BUT burns more fat.
ReplyDeleteThat is the site I used to use, I will have to dig out my old account info or start a new one! Right now I am cutting back and making healthier choices and making routine exercise my first priority. Once that routine gets established a little more I'll give CC another chance! The first day workout was great I was so ready for it, the second felt awful like it would never end and last nights was great again! Still hard and...not a lot of fun but I love when they don't feel like they took forever and ever! I am also trying to go for a lunch walk when work is not toooooo nuts. We had a client that we did a video for called "wellness belts" and I ended up getting one for additional revisions so I am wearing that everyday now too. It is a weighted belt that just makes your body work a little harder throughout the day. I hate it for sitting but love it for walking, makes a walk feel worthwhile! I find fresh air always perks me up and improves my mood too which leads to not wanting comfort food as much. PS. The BBQ show didn't win yesterday haha.