I lost 20% of my body weight in 300 days.
RunsWithBees
Posts: 1,508 Member
Currently age 43
Height 5’11”
Highest weight 209 lbs
Goal (and current) weight 167 lbs
In maintenance for over 4 years
Lost at the rate of about a pound per week. Simply eating less and exercising after a lifetime of being sedentary. Started with walking, then hiking, now running. I’ve learned that eating less is for weight loss and exercising is for fitness, but they compliment each other and doing both yields the best results. And you absolutely have to be honest with yourself about how much you are really eating! (really!!!)
I decided I didn’t want to follow my family’s tradition of ending up with type 2 diabetes by middle age. My wakeup call was my liver beginning to show signs of non-alcoholic-fatty-liver-disease before I was even 40 and I hated being asked nearly every day by someone (from working with the public) when my baby was due when I wasn’t pregnant
(my child is all grown up) Also I would get short of breath just climbing a flight of stairs, I couldn’t even walk around the block. But now that my liver is back to normal, fasting glucose is fine, and my cardio is excellent, what keeps me going is I’ve found my passion for trail running! (and I love wearing bikinis Lol) 
It wasn’t always easy, there were plenty of obstacles but I just kept my eye on the prize. Patience, patience, patience was definitely necessary! I’m also hypothyroid, pcos, and anemic so had to work with my doctor to get those under control. It took me 3 whole weeks to lose the very first pound (!)
but after that my body figured out that I was not going to quit so it stopped fighting me so much and I started losing a pound per week. I had to make up my mind that I wasn’t going to let anything stop me from reaching my goal. Don’t let anyone convince you that you can’t lose weight and look fantastic in middle age, it is entirely up to you what you want to accomplish. It won’t be easy, but you CAN do it!
Hopefully this thread will inspire others to keep reaching for their goals regardless of how old they are... age is just how many trips you’ve made around the Sun, it doesn’t have to limit or define you. Make time for the important things in your life and make the most of the time you have now! Peace
Height 5’11”
Highest weight 209 lbs
Goal (and current) weight 167 lbs
In maintenance for over 4 years
Lost at the rate of about a pound per week. Simply eating less and exercising after a lifetime of being sedentary. Started with walking, then hiking, now running. I’ve learned that eating less is for weight loss and exercising is for fitness, but they compliment each other and doing both yields the best results. And you absolutely have to be honest with yourself about how much you are really eating! (really!!!)
I decided I didn’t want to follow my family’s tradition of ending up with type 2 diabetes by middle age. My wakeup call was my liver beginning to show signs of non-alcoholic-fatty-liver-disease before I was even 40 and I hated being asked nearly every day by someone (from working with the public) when my baby was due when I wasn’t pregnant
(my child is all grown up) Also I would get short of breath just climbing a flight of stairs, I couldn’t even walk around the block. But now that my liver is back to normal, fasting glucose is fine, and my cardio is excellent, what keeps me going is I’ve found my passion for trail running! (and I love wearing bikinis Lol) It wasn’t always easy, there were plenty of obstacles but I just kept my eye on the prize. Patience, patience, patience was definitely necessary! I’m also hypothyroid, pcos, and anemic so had to work with my doctor to get those under control. It took me 3 whole weeks to lose the very first pound (!)
but after that my body figured out that I was not going to quit so it stopped fighting me so much and I started losing a pound per week. I had to make up my mind that I wasn’t going to let anything stop me from reaching my goal. Don’t let anyone convince you that you can’t lose weight and look fantastic in middle age, it is entirely up to you what you want to accomplish. It won’t be easy, but you CAN do it!Hopefully this thread will inspire others to keep reaching for their goals regardless of how old they are... age is just how many trips you’ve made around the Sun, it doesn’t have to limit or define you. Make time for the important things in your life and make the most of the time you have now! Peace
248
Replies
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You look amazing. Great job!!3
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trail running!!! (my son took these photos on old-school black & white film)
52 -
I’d never worn a bikini when I was younger, too insecure. Now that I have worked hard to achieve my goal body I wear them every chance I get!
65 -
Woa1
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Very inspiring! Thank you for sharing 2
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Trail running really makes me happy!
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Wow!! This is amazing!! Great job!!1
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You look fabulous - truly stunning. I'm amazed you run barefoot! Is that usual in trail running? In muddy UK that wouldn't be possible, but it looks lovely. And brave!1
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You look fabulous - truly stunning. I'm amazed you run barefoot! Is that usual in trail running? In muddy UK that wouldn't be possible, but it looks lovely. And brave!
Barefoot running is a thing here in the UK, not widespread but is a thing
https://www.barefootrunninguk.com/2 -
You look fabulous - truly stunning. I'm amazed you run barefoot! Is that usual in trail running? In muddy UK that wouldn't be possible, but it looks lovely. And brave!
Thanks! I prefer to run barefoot, not many people do but it just feels natural to me. I started doing it because I used to get terribly painful shin splints and I researched that running barefoot could prevent that so I tried it (I mean... there was life before Nike, right?) It worked! No more shin splints and it’s so fun I just kept it up. Makes me feel like a kid again! I do love to run in the rain and mud
Whenever the ground is too hot or not adequate for barefooting, I wear some really thin sandals called Xeros. Been running this way for over 3 years and I average about 600 miles per year 11 -
motivatedmartha wrote: »You look fabulous - truly stunning. I'm amazed you run barefoot! Is that usual in trail running? In muddy UK that wouldn't be possible, but it looks lovely. And brave!
Barefoot running is a thing here in the UK, not widespread but is a thing
https://www.barefootrunninguk.com/
And I save a small fortune on not buying running shoes! but I really do it because it’s just so fun!!! 7 -
So fantastic!! How did you not get discouraged and give up while waiting weeks to lose the first pound? How were you so sure that it would eventually work?4
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Nice job! You got me curious and I ran my numbers. I don't think my loss was as healthy as yours as I pushed it a little much. 30% in under 250 days. This is not a competition you want to win; I lost a bit of muscle that took some work to get back. You did it right.3
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Wow, amazing transformation! I love that you're an avid barefoot trail runner. I feel like that would be so grounding and centering. I always enjoy my runs more when they are away from traffic.
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Wow! You look great. Awesome accomplishment1
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So fantastic!! How did you not get discouraged and give up while waiting weeks to lose the first pound? How were you so sure that it would eventually work?
I just had to trust the process and give it time to work. I could feel improvements in my cardio and walking was becoming easier so I knew something was happening! I really think patience is the “secret ingredient” to weight loss that more people need to take into account. I had tried the impatient route many times and failed so I figured I’d do something different this time and it sure paid off.9 -
You absolutely rock!!!! So inspiring, and you’re so right about patience being so important. So happy for you!3
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Wow, amazing transformation! I love that you're an avid barefoot trail runner. I feel like that would be so grounding and centering. I always enjoy my runs more when they are away from traffic.
It’s great to go out on the trails to get away from it all! I go every chance I get, it really helps me decompress from everyday life.1 -
CarvedTones wrote: »Nice job! You got me curious and I ran my numbers. I don't think my loss was as healthy as yours as I pushed it a little much. 30% in under 250 days. This is not a competition you want to win; I lost a bit of muscle that took some work to get back. You did it right.
Congrats on achieving your goal! Definitely slow and steady is the way to go, I learned that by trial and error. Maintenance is another beast all together so currently focusing on that. I do allow myself to gain about 5 lbs over the winter and lose it by the time summer rolls around.
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We've been pals for a while now and I didn't know a lot of this. Great post! I am sure it will inspire others - it will inspire me to keep it in maintenance! Thanks for sharing! 1
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your beautiful my friend!!!! 8
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Seeing “300 days of weight loss” typed out makes me think of this...
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monkeefan1974 wrote: »motivatedmartha wrote: »You look fabulous - truly stunning. I'm amazed you run barefoot! Is that usual in trail running? In muddy UK that wouldn't be possible, but it looks lovely. And brave!
Barefoot running is a thing here in the UK, not widespread but is a thing
https://www.barefootrunninguk.com/
And I save a small fortune on not buying running shoes! but I really do it because it’s just so fun!!!
Did you find you had to toughen up your feet or did they do fine right off? Do you always run soft surfaces?1 -
monkeefan1974 wrote: »motivatedmartha wrote: »You look fabulous - truly stunning. I'm amazed you run barefoot! Is that usual in trail running? In muddy UK that wouldn't be possible, but it looks lovely. And brave!
Barefoot running is a thing here in the UK, not widespread but is a thing
https://www.barefootrunninguk.com/
And I save a small fortune on not buying running shoes! but I really do it because it’s just so fun!!!
Did you find you had to toughen up your feet or did they do fine right off? Do you always run soft surfaces?
Didn’t have to toughen up my feet so much as getting my form correct. Took me about a year for my feet to fully adapt and be able to use all the muscles, tendons and ligaments that weren’t used to being used. A nice unexpected thing that happened was I developed nice strong arches after a lifetime of pancake flat feet! Also my posture improved greatly and I wasn’t clumsy anymore, it’s like my feet “woke-up” and finally worked exactly as they were meant to. I actually prefer to run on firm surfaces. My favorite is a nice smooth sidewalk or packed dirt trail. My least favorite is grass because you can’t see what’s lurking underneath and that’s not good for foot placement. I don’t know if I’m getting any benefits from running barefoot but I continue to do so just for the fun factor! And I guess in a way it makes me feel closer to my ancestors who got around just fine even before Nike
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These were exactly the questions I was asking! Thanks!! Think I'm going to give it a run or two and see what happens 2
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These were exactly the questions I was asking! Thanks!! Think I'm going to give it a run or two and see what happens
Please start out very slowly!!! Just like you wouldn’t start out immediately lifting 500 pound weights, you have to start small and build up gradually. It’s easy to do “too much too soon”. Do a bit of research into The Pose Method and Chi Running to get your form down and do some easy walking and hiking to get your feet used to new surfaces and textures. Again... please go slow and very short distances to start out with! And have fun! It shouldn’t be painful or uncomfortable if it isn’t fun then change something you are doing until it feels light, easy and fun
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Thank you for your story. We are the same height and I am 47. I would love to get to 170. I been stuck at 190 a long time. I know its my eating I just need to get my head in the game.I workout weight 5x a week and cardio. I see what I can look like and I am liking it. You might have gave me that boost I need to get this done!4
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Get it girl! You are incredible!1
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Hot mama !!!!2
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You look great and must feel wonderful. Looking at your "before" pics, I'm betting people told you that you didn't need to lose weight--but the "after" shows the difference and, more importantly, your health is so much better. Thank you for sharing--truly inspiring.3
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