You see, I did that every year, for 5 years.
Each year I steadily gained 10 lbs.
Each year I said that THIS was going to be the year I lost that 10, 20, 30, 40, and 50 lbs.
I never did.
I got pregnant instead. And gained 35 lbs.
Then I had my son in 2009 and decided I was just going to TRY to lose weight.
No empty promises. Just honest EFFORT.
So this is what I did to lose 60 lbs. in 11 months.
1. BABY STEPS
I started so incredibly small. I was a fast food addict. I ate fast food 2 times A DAY! I was consuming upwards of 1500 calories, per meal! So I cut out the fast food.
It wasn't life changing, and I still ate like crap at home, but I was cutting out 1500 calories right off the bat. I don't care which way you slice it, weight loss will ALWAYS be calories in vs. calories out.
2. MAKE HEALTHIER SWAPS
When I started feeling like I could put a little more effort into my other meals at home, I started paying attention to what I was eating. Not in a "I'm going to eat grilled chicken and veggies for every meal" kinda way, but in a "I'm making sour cream chicken enchiladas tonight for dinner, how can I swap out some of these ingredients for healthier options?" kinda way. So I'd swap out the full fat sour cream I normally used for fat free sour cream, or greek yogurt. I swapped out the full fat cheese for low fat cheese. I swapped out the flour tortillas for corn tortillas.
I'm not saying low fat, fat free substitutes are the BEST option, but for ME, they were a BETTER option at the time.
Remember, weight loss is forever about calories in vs. calories out. By making these swaps in every meal I made at home, I was cutting out hundreds of calories, and STILL eating the things I loved.
3. DON'T OVERTHINK IT
If you were thinking while reading that last paragraph "but isn't fat free stuff full of chemicals?" Then you are overthinking the process.
I ate fast food for every meal for YEARS, fat free anything was a thousand times better than what I was doing. I realize that is a major concern for some people, I'm just saying to make better FOR YOU choices than what you are currently doing. That looks different for everyone.
If you're eating McDonald's every day for lunch, big sized with a large Coke, maybe you get a kids meal with a Diet Coke?
They DO NOT have to be these mind altering changes to be effective!
4. MOVE
It took me 3 months into my journey to actually start working out. I didn't feel like I could until then. I started with an old pair of tennis shoes and an oversized tshirt and gym shorts that rode up when I walked.
I printed off the Couch to 5k Program (back then in the days of Blackberries, we didn't have apps on our phone to download it) and ran/walked it 5 days a week. The program only called for 3 days a week, but I couldn't keep up with the workouts on just 3 days a week, so I repeated the 3rd day, 3 times each week to be able to keep up.
It was hard. I cried so much every time. My thighs rubbed together and I could physically feel everything jiggle with each step. It pissed me off and made me so mad at myself for allowing myself to get there.
5. ACCEPT IT
This brings me to the most crucial part, acceptance.
Look, I was angry. I had 60 lbs. to lose and thinking about that number seemed damn near impossible. I was mad that it seemed everyone else around me could eat whatever they wanted and not gain weight. I was mad that no one else I knew ever worked out and always ate like crap and didn't have weight problems.
WHY WAS I SO FOCUSED ON THEM!?!??!
I had to accept that this journey was about ME, and not THEM! And that if they can eat hamburgers and not workout, it's NONE OF MY DAMN BUSINESS ANYWAY!
I also had to accept that they had NOTHING to do with wether I was successful or not. They didn't force feed me fast food. They didn't make me sit on the couch every day after work instead of getting off my butt.
Accept what YOU'VE done to YOU. Own it. Yeah it sucks. But now guess who's the only one that can change it??
YOU!
Put the blinders on and stay in your own lane and focus on yourself!
6. TRUST THE PROCESS
How many times have you heard that? Probably tons. Weight loss is not linear. Meaning you most likely will not lose weight every day, so don't weigh yourself daily (I recommend every 2 weeks), and trust that you're doing what you can, even when you don't see the scale budge!
7. DOCUMENT
Take pictures, measurements, whatever you need to. I took pictures with every 10 lbs. I lost and it motivated me to lose the next 10!
8. KEEP GOING
This trumps all other tips I have for you.
You will stumble, you will have crappy meals, you will miss workouts and have bad weekends and bad months, YOU ARE HUMAN! And it's OKAY!
But recognize that behavior and get right back in it!
9. CALORIES IN VS CALORIES OUT
Have I beaten that into your head yet? Weight loss is ALWAYS going to be about calories in vs. calories out. Basically that means you need to be burning more calories than you take in. It's science. And it will never change.
That being said, there are many ways to achieve this goal.
Keto, Intermittent Fasting, Paleo, Clean eating, Whole 30, South Beach, and ANY OTHER DIET YOU CAN THINK OF all have one common denominator- they focus on consuming LESS CALORIES.
Period. End of story. That cannot be argued.
So find what works FOR YOU!
Your best friend might have lost 40 lbs. by doing keto but you can't fathom not having carbs (girl I feeeeeel that in my soul! :P), it might not be for you!
Try not to focus on a specific way of eating at first, just make better decisions than you did yesterday.
Whatever you do, DO NOT QUIT! Even if it takes you months, or years! Small steps every day lead to BIG RESULTS over time!
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| left was 2009- right was 2014 while training for my first bikini competition |
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| 2019 |
