365 Days, 60 Pounds (with pics!)
bajoyba
Posts: 1,153 Member
Hey guys! Yesterday was my anniversary of joining MFP and day 365 of counting my calories and logging my food accurately, so I thought maybe I should create my own thread to share my progress. I know how much the success stories motivated me in the beginning, so hopefully this will do the same for someone else. This is not so much a Before/After post, because I'm not done yet! But I've come a long way from where I started, and I've accomplished so many things that I never thought I could.
There's no particular reason why I decided last January to make a change. Strangely enough, I was never one of those people who had low self-esteem because I was overweight. I actually really liked myself and felt attractive when I looked in the mirror. I've always been a larger person, and my mom's side of the family consists of large women, so I guess I just figured it was my genetic fate and that I would never be small. Sometimes I wished my body was slim, strong, and more capable... and sometimes, yeah, I just wanted to feel like I looked good in a bikini. But most of the time I was happy with myself, and I grew up being told I was beautiful.
I was a size 12 for all of high school, and except for a brief stint in a couple of required gym classes, I never exercised. I also really like food. So after I graduated and didn't have to work out for a grade, I slowly began to put on weight, but I didn't really realize it because I never weighed myself. Between ages 18 and 26, I put on about 50 pounds, and little things started adding up.
Last Christmas, my mom bought a new scale for her bathroom, and I decided to weigh myself out of curiosity. 235 pounds. I had a minor freak-out moment, because that number was much higher than I was expecting it to be. My knees were starting to hurt all the time, and I was noticing that my belly was beginning to hang in places it hadn't before. I felt bloated, and shopping for clothes was becoming increasingly more difficult. And then I saw my nightmare picture: a photo my in-laws had taken that Christmas day. I didn't look like the person I saw when I looked in the mirror.
Here are some other before pictures:
And some embarrassing ones, which were actually taken after I'd already lost 10 pounds.
Then, at the beginning of January 2013, I stumbled upon MFP, and the rest is history. I didn't know anything about diet or exercise when I signed up, and I got lucky enough to find some educated and successful people to take advice from. Many of them often get called out for being "mean" and "unsupportive" on the forums, but they have a wealth of knowledge if you are willing to listen. Some of them are on my FL and some of them aren't (yet!), but I never would have made it this far without them! Thank you for teaching me that although weight loss isn't always easy, it IS simple. I managed to stick with it because I learned that I didn't have to starve myself, exercise excessively, or eliminate anything from my diet. My belief is that you should eat as much as possible in order to reach your goals.
I've lost all of my weight eating around 1700-1800 calories a day. I try to eat a balanced diet, but I also eat what I like, which includes pizza, beer, and dessert. I've bounced around quite a bit with my exercise, but I've done lots of Jillian Michaels videos (circuit training) because I really don't enjoy working out for more than 45 minutes at a time unless I'm bike riding or out for a walk. I've recently started lifting heavy, and I've discovered Ashtanga Yoga, which I'm kind of in love with.
Now for some recent photos:
And Christmas this year:
I still have at least 20 pounds to lose, but I've discovered a moderate way of eating and moving that I know I can stick to for life, and I only wish I had done this sooner!
There's no particular reason why I decided last January to make a change. Strangely enough, I was never one of those people who had low self-esteem because I was overweight. I actually really liked myself and felt attractive when I looked in the mirror. I've always been a larger person, and my mom's side of the family consists of large women, so I guess I just figured it was my genetic fate and that I would never be small. Sometimes I wished my body was slim, strong, and more capable... and sometimes, yeah, I just wanted to feel like I looked good in a bikini. But most of the time I was happy with myself, and I grew up being told I was beautiful.
I was a size 12 for all of high school, and except for a brief stint in a couple of required gym classes, I never exercised. I also really like food. So after I graduated and didn't have to work out for a grade, I slowly began to put on weight, but I didn't really realize it because I never weighed myself. Between ages 18 and 26, I put on about 50 pounds, and little things started adding up.
Last Christmas, my mom bought a new scale for her bathroom, and I decided to weigh myself out of curiosity. 235 pounds. I had a minor freak-out moment, because that number was much higher than I was expecting it to be. My knees were starting to hurt all the time, and I was noticing that my belly was beginning to hang in places it hadn't before. I felt bloated, and shopping for clothes was becoming increasingly more difficult. And then I saw my nightmare picture: a photo my in-laws had taken that Christmas day. I didn't look like the person I saw when I looked in the mirror.
Here are some other before pictures:
And some embarrassing ones, which were actually taken after I'd already lost 10 pounds.
Then, at the beginning of January 2013, I stumbled upon MFP, and the rest is history. I didn't know anything about diet or exercise when I signed up, and I got lucky enough to find some educated and successful people to take advice from. Many of them often get called out for being "mean" and "unsupportive" on the forums, but they have a wealth of knowledge if you are willing to listen. Some of them are on my FL and some of them aren't (yet!), but I never would have made it this far without them! Thank you for teaching me that although weight loss isn't always easy, it IS simple. I managed to stick with it because I learned that I didn't have to starve myself, exercise excessively, or eliminate anything from my diet. My belief is that you should eat as much as possible in order to reach your goals.
I've lost all of my weight eating around 1700-1800 calories a day. I try to eat a balanced diet, but I also eat what I like, which includes pizza, beer, and dessert. I've bounced around quite a bit with my exercise, but I've done lots of Jillian Michaels videos (circuit training) because I really don't enjoy working out for more than 45 minutes at a time unless I'm bike riding or out for a walk. I've recently started lifting heavy, and I've discovered Ashtanga Yoga, which I'm kind of in love with.
Now for some recent photos:
And Christmas this year:
I still have at least 20 pounds to lose, but I've discovered a moderate way of eating and moving that I know I can stick to for life, and I only wish I had done this sooner!
11
Replies
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Amazing change!0
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Awesome job. You should be proud! You look wonderful.1
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Aaaaahhhhhh, you are such a beautiful person! Congratulation on all your accomplishments so far!
1 -
I love you and you are so beautiful, in and out! I am proud to be your friend. not only do you know your stuff, but it's clear that you are motivated and determined and your hard work has totally paid off. great job girl!!0
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Congratulations.
This is what doing it right looks like.
Stunning.0 -
Wow.
Awesome.
:drinker:0 -
WOW! You look fantastic! Congrats!0
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You look fantastic!0
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WOW! You look fabulous!!0
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Would you be offended if i said you look awesome and then added on "dem hips tho" Cause you look awesome and dem hips tho.
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Thanks everybody! You guys are making me feel awesome. :blushing:0
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Amazing job! Your right, You were beautiful before, but even more so now! Very motivating. Thanks for sharing!0
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Looking good! Impressive!0
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What I love this post for is how you're all "I'm okay I look good...but I can look better!" Cheers to having a good self esteem at all the sizes and an accurate set of eyes for your own beauty!:flowerforyou:1
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You look absolutely gorgeous, and I *LOVE* your positive attitude sooo much!!!!0
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Great work! Love your shape. :flowerforyou:0
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You're adorable, and so is your attitude!
Congrats!0 -
Thanks everybody! You guys are making me feel awesome. :blushing:
In return, just promise to give us a heads up when you post the next round of pics in 20 pounds (or sooner).
:flowerforyou:0 -
WhooHooo!!! :drinker:0
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Great job! Love seeing your joy.0
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Thanks everybody! You guys are making me feel awesome. :blushing:
In return, just promise to give us a heads up when you post the next round of pics in 20 pounds (or sooner).
:flowerforyou:
Deal!0 -
Beautiful! Just what I want to do this year! You are an excellent role model for me to follow. So glad we became friends! Way to go!0
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Looking good! Love your attitude! :glasses:0
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Wow! I love your story but I also love your weight loss 'attitude', it is so refreshing to hear someone say I eat between 1,700 - 1,800, far too often people seem to be on 1,200kcals.
Thank you for sharing your story
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I love everything about this!!! The down-to-earth attitude, the results, the look on your face in the current picture. You rock!!!!! You're body looks already amazing.0
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One word... WOW.
You were beautiful before without a doubt, and beautiful now. You are a knockout! You have that nice hourglass figure going on. Keep at it girl! 0 -
ditto!! exactly what I was thinking!! so beautiful! very motivational!Amazing job! Your right, You were beautiful before, but even more so now! Very motivating. Thanks for sharing!0 -
WOW - GREAT!!!0
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Good job hunni. I would like to know what size were you when you stared and what size now? Also, just to conquer, you were beautiful even before 0
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You look Amazing! Great Job!0
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