Wednesday, March 30, 2011

This is an important journey.

I received a phone call a few minutes ago from an old friend. We reconnected on facebook recently and she has been following my journey. We'd both been pretty proud of our curves in the past. Calling ourselves PHAT( Pretty Hot and Thick) . So I kinda of dreaded having the conversation  with her regarding my weight loss journey.
We made small talk but when the conversation turned to her health, she had horrific news. At five feet tall weighing two hundred and eight pounds her health is failing. She has has type two diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and her joints hurt when she walks. This woman is thirty years old and dreams of doing so many wonderful things. She is a social worker and has a beautiful spirit that matches her amazing smile. With a husband and a daughter to take care of, it is a scary  that these preventable ailments are endangering her life right now.
So when she asked me what made me want to change. I explained that I wanted a long life, so that I could see my children grow and develop into the men. That I was tired of being tired,sluggish  and out of shape. That I wanted run and walk with my children without being tired and out of breathe. Over the years I let overweight become obese, again and again. I would diet lose weight and work out for a period of time. Then abandon it because it was too hard.  I thought  I was big boned and that being the correct weight would not look right on me.  I maintained thoughts that kept me chained to a body image that I was unhappy with. I listened to people in my life who wanted me to be happy. So they lied to me and told me, that I was not "really" fat, just thick.
The reality is that I made unrealistic goals and expectations for myself when it came to weight loss and  could not meet them . So I quit when I realized that I could not continue and  reach my goal.  Knowing that I am a motivated and determined person. This issue bothered me non stop, that I failed to get my weight in order. So I realized  when I was pregnant with my son, that I needed to change. I had to go see a a cardiologist  and they found some minor blood flow issues with my heart. They doctor said  in a very nice way that, I was too fat. He explained that once I had the baby and lost weight I would be fine. To imagine that my weight would endanger my heart devastated me. It was that scary moment that catapulted me to want to change FOREVER!
So I am not on a diet, I committed to a lifestyle change. That is why I call this a journey because I know there will be up and downs. I don't think for a minute that this will be easy but I am in this for life. Each of us have different struggles in our lives. This is mine and I am not ashamed of it but I am doing something to change it. I asked her permission to include her in this blog post. So if your reading this, I hope that you are ready for  a change because I am going to call you and nag you constantly. Get ready!!!

Friday, March 25, 2011

Closet Woes

I love shopping but, I also think that there are some pieces in my closet that I am emotionally attached to. I know it sounds silly but I have some pieces that I looked fabulous in regardless of what I used to weigh. I have now entered a place where I cant wrap my wrap dresses enough to make them fit, the tailor refuses to take in my lucky pants anymore and my favorite heels are too big. 

I have bagged up my 20's,18's,16's and today it appears that the 14's are on the way out the door. I feel like my house is a consignment store.  I am very happy about this accomplishment.  Before I started this journey I used to see clothing on the clearance rack in a smaller size and buy it. It sounds insane but it was for "when I lose weight".  I have not completed my journey but I am no longer in the plus size section or stores.   I can  walk into Express and Limited and find my size.  Stores that I used to pass and say " one day".  Well today is the day and I have no idea what to buy.

I am fully capable of dressing the plus size Keisha but at my current size I am weary. Excited but weary, I still pick up an XL and take it to the dressing room. Only to ask the attendant to bring me a smaller size.  I guess it might take a bit of time for my mind to catch up with my body.  As summer approaches I am sure I will get there.  So I am picking up a few style magazines and learning how to shop for the new me.

Sunday, March 13, 2011

A plateau, naw just a change!!!

A few weeks ago my weight loss start to slow down.  Considering the fact that I have been faithful to my diet and exercise routine I know that I should be seeing more progress. Instead of getting discouraged I decided to do a bit of research and realized that I was going through a PLATEAU.

A plateau occurs because your metabolism slows down as you lose lean tissue . When you lose weight, you lose both fat and lean tissue.  Losing weight can slow your metabolism after time . So  in order to lose those additional pounds you  will have to rev up your  activity or decrease your caloric intake . So I figured I needed to change up a few things to stay on track. I realized that my menu , workout routine and schedule was predictable.

I knew that I could not reduce my caloric intake.  When I looked my menu I did notice I could change how I received my my calories. So instead of eating five  meals a day I switched to six smaller meals. I switched from chicken to turkey and  from beef to fish.  I  increased the amount vegetables I was consuming and started to weigh and measure every thing.

Now my workout routine is completely of my own creation. I run  five days a week and weight train two days a week.  Considering that I am running almost four  miles a day I know that my activity level is high but I decided to switch my routine completely.  I purchased P90X for my husband in October and I decided I would try it out. So now I am running 3 days a week a doing P90X 6 days a week.

The results was a six pound weight loss!!!!!!!   Plateau Busted!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Are you looking at me?

I have a confession to make. I am the woman on the treadmill, dancing, playing air drums and smiling( I don't sing out loud). I cant help it , music is what keeps me going at the gym. I am in a zone and  I am not concerned what others think about me at the gym. Look, laugh, point and stare all you want.  I am having a blast in my own little world.
The irony of this situation is, I used to be the woman who thought she was too fat to go to the gym. I thought that people would look at me because I was overweight and laugh at me. Now I could care less who is watching me.
Gym time is a time for me to work out all the stress in my life. I run, kick , lift or push it all away. I am usually stress free 10 minutes into my workout and that is when a huge smile spreads across my face. If you have children then you may know how difficult it is to work out at home. My children are pretty young so they are usually hanging on some part of my body while I am home. When I am working, I am dealing with students and administrative duties all day. So working out on campus is not fun and actually kind of weird if you ask me.
When I hit my gym, where you wont find any children and I have never seen one student there yet. ( knock on wood). I am in my own private oasis where I can work on becoming a better me.  I have learned a lot of lessons  while dragging my self along this journey.  Learning to carve out time daily to dedicate specifically to myself  is the best lesson I've learned  yet.