Loser of the Week; Half Way There

Introducing the first of many "Loser of the Week" articles on Tales from the Scales.  Each week, we will be profiling a loser.  If you know of a loser that you'd like to see featured as our "Loser of the Week"  please e-mail Beth at scaletales@gmail.com.

For our first week, we will be featuring Jan.  Jan has lost a great deal of weight.  While her journey has been successful thus far, she still has a long road ahead of her.  Jan has an incredibly positive attitude with just the right approach to continue with her journey, I know, just by reading her blog, that it won't be long before we see her reach her goal.

In her own words, Jan writes about her weight, the loss and what it takes to continue every single day.  You are sure to be inspired by this story.

When the first weigh in day of Tales From The Scales occurred in May of this year, there were nearly three hundred participants. I was one of them. I had started my diet about a week previous to the start date for the challenge. When I began my diet, I weighed 259. My all time high was the winter before at 272. I weigh 220 today.

As the weeks progressed, I saw a lot of changes in my body shape and size and am still seeing those, but more importantly, I see changes to my lifestyle, changes in how I perceive food and how I feel about food.

I have never been able to diet successfully because I lacked the self-control to either see it through or keep it off afterward. I found that with nearly every diet, I would “lose it” at about 20 days and quit. Will I stop before I reach my goal this time? Will I gain it all back? Time will tell, but I have a really good feeling this time. I feel like I am learning a lot and I will take habits and knowledge with me when I reach my goal and stay there.

I started this effort out differently. I started with four main points.

1. Exercising by walking on my treadmill a half hour a day, every day.
2. Not drinking sweet drinks, not even diet pop, not one sip
3. Trying to eat healthy foods, especially more fruits and veggies.
4. Being morbidly obese, I asked my doctor for a prescription for Meridia. I take      one 10 mg capsule every other day.

So, 68 days into this life style change, I have some deeper understanding for how my body works. By going off the sugar in the soft drinks and junk foods, I have stopped craving them. As I have been exercising first thing in the morning every single day, my ability to walk faster has increased beyond my expectations and now I am up to an hour a day (3+ miles) and have added weight lifting and arm exercises as well.

My metabolic rate is up. My body is more muscular and I am burning fat even when I am sleeping. It’s not up with drugs; it’s up by exercising early in the morning and not sleeping during the day like I used to. It’s up by eating a diet rich in fruit, vegetables, seafood and whole grains. I am fueling my body with out drenching it in the 370 grams of fat and 6500 calories a day I was eating before this diet.

I am more aware of the caloric and fatty value of food, as well as its carb load. I know a good fat from a bad fat and I know where my caloric and fat intake is every second of the day. I eat three meals a day and 2-3 snacks. That’s fruit, not Oreos. Don’t let that snack turn into a junk break.

When I have a craving, that if I am hungry for something that I know is going to be wrong for me, I get out a can of veggies or some fresh fruit. If I am not hungry for that healthy snack, then I know that I am just craving, not really hungry. When I am hungry enough to go for fruit or canned veggies, then I am really hungry.

I have learned to listen to my body at meal times and stop eating when I am full. It’s ok to throw some food away. It’s far more wasteful to store it on your butt for ten years.

I hope that those who are still committed to the weight loss challenge will be encouraged just by the fact that they have dedicated eight weeks to being in the fight on their weight loss journey. They have been here and have been dealing with their weight. Some have gained, some have lost, myself included, but we keep pressing on. That is so cool!

I hope that those who feel like the challenge was beyond them might come back and let us know where they stand. Get back in the fight. It’s your life. Take control of your food. If there are pressures to overeat, just remember that when that meal is down the sewer, it’s you who has to pay the price for it, not your dining companions.

In my case, my husband is not thrilled with the changes I have made. We used to make each meal an occasion to celebrate, I was (am) a heck of a cook, and all the while I got fatter and more disabled. You have to make the time for your own exercise routine and allow yourself the luxury of eating healthy.

Another thing, ditch the TV at night. Those ads are killing us all. You may not be driving out to Taco Bell, but if you are going to the kitchen after dinner is over, then you are seeing a result from the bombardment of food ads.

Go to bed early. Just do it. No one is hungry when they sleep. Work a full day, sleep well and then get up and work out ~ even if you are just walking around your living room. Just do it. Sweat. Let the sweat run down your face. It’s your body. What are you going to do with it?

You can follow Jan's journey here.

Comments

[Melissa @ A Box of Chocolates]

What a superb idea to have a loser of the week. It is a great way for us to get to know each other and maybe learn some new tricks that we could use in our weight loss journey. Thanks Jan for sharing your story and congrats for doing so well these past few months. I'm cheering you on!!!
Mel

[evette]

This is like so very motivating, everytime I read Jan B's loss I have to count out the months with my fingers LOL. It makes me think to myself wow that goal to set to the 190's could be acheived a LOT sooner if you'd make more sacrifices and this is proof.

I know every person/body is different and my results may not be the same. But I also know I'm eating very similar to how Jan is eating, yet I'll slack on workouts, or if I eat a lot of fruits and veggies rather than carefully planning out to be sure I'm getting in enough I'll think gee I've probably eaten too little, let me grab a bag of chips to offset things! So this is truly motivation to become more committed. I'm doing well but could be doing much better. Keep up the good work Jan and thanks for the motivation!