290 to 178 = a new me!
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caitbouchard
Posts: 7 Member
Hi 
When I first began losing weight I was always very active on this site and it helped me more than I can even explain. In the past year or so I have been less and less active because I have become more comfortable with keeping up a healthy lifestyle by myself from day to day but I often find myself back here looking to both give and receive inspiration. A little over a year ago I made a post on this very success story thread and now that it has been disabled I thought I would post it again with an updated picture so that maybe it will inspire someone else to be the very best they can be or even just pick someone up on a day when they are feeling a little down because I guarantee that if I can do it you most certainly can
*The first picture at the bottom of this post is of me at my heaviest time - exactly 4 years ago this month. The second is of me just a few days ago. Proof that anything can happen if you really put your mind to it!*
Now a little back story:
I want to start out by saying that no matter what, every single one of you are beautiful regardless of your weight or how you look. If you are comfortable the way you are and you are happy with how you look, I'm so proud of you. I am in absolutely NO way trying to encourage you or tell you to change who you are. However, this is for all of you girls and boys out there that are sick of looking in the mirror every day and being disgusted with how you look, but being too afraid to do anything about it.
Original Post (slightly updated):
Hi, my name is Caitlin. I'm currently 20 years old and I want to share this relatively quick "life story" with all of you. There was a point in my life, specifically during my grade 10 year of high school through February of my grade 12 year, during which I fluctuated between my heaviest of 290 pounds and 260 pounds, when I would honestly look in the mirror every single day and cry. Cry because I was disgusted with myself. Cry because I thought I would always be like this. I couldn't imagine being anything but fat. Luckily, I was blessed enough to live in a place where I was never bullied for it, which I know is hard to imagine for most people. Not once in my life was I ever bullied for it. But I knew that people probably talked about it behind my back or at the very least that the bullying would come out full swing once I got to university. People often say that fat people disgust them because it's all their fault and that they can change it whenever they'd like to. I wish that they could be put into our position. Honestly, I was scared to try because I was scared to fail. I knew how much hard work it was going to take and how long it was going to take and it just depressed me further. On top of that, what if it didn't work at all? I would be like this for the rest of my life. Now don't get me wrong, I know there are billions of conditions in our world that are worse than being obese, but to me at that point, I felt trapped. I felt like no one would ever love me. I didn't participate in any events or go to any parties all throughout high school because my self confidence was at absolute 0 or below, if that's even possible. I always felt like people were staring and that my weight was like the elephant in the room that everybody noticed, but no one wanted to mention. Yeah, it was that bad. It was affecting my life in every way that it possibly could. Healthwise, socially, emotionally. There were days when I didn't even want to leave the house because of it. There were days when I just didn't leave the house because of it.
It was actually January 1st, 2012 that I mustered up the courage and decided that it was finally time to change. A new year, a new beginning as they all say, but for me, I was going to make that statement ring true. Starting at 260 pounds, I cut all fast food and pop other than diet out of my diet completely and began going for walks everyday ranging from 45 minutes to an hour. I had a phys. ed class for the second half of my grade 12 year, so that helped a lot. I tried to implement as healthy of foods as I could into my daily diet, such as salads, boneless/skinless chicken, etc. I became very health conscious in regard to following calories and fat specifically very closely. Basically, I turned my entire life around for the better. I cannot describe to you how amazing it feels to step on those scales and every single week see the numbers go down lower and lower and lower. I never thought that I would see myself anywhere close to just 200 pounds let alone under 200 pounds. Never in a million years. When the day came that I stepped on that scale at the numbers popped up as 198 I can honestly say that I have never felt a greater sense of accomplishment. Today, I weigh in at around 190 pounds. The lowest I have been at consistently since the beginning of my journey was 178. I have been fluctuating back at forth between that and about 190 for the past year but I'm still so proud of myself. Now I know to a lot of people that would still be considered ridiculously fat. I'll be the first one to say that yes, I am still overweight and I have no intention of stopping until I am at a healthy weight and happy about it. But I can tell you that now, instead of looking in the mirror at myself and crying in disgust, I look in the mirror and cry with joy because of how far I've come. Sure, there are still days when I feel down and I feel like I should have tried harder and I shouldn't have snacked here or had this extra cookie for dinner, but then I look at a picture like this, and I realize that it's okay. I've come this far and I know I can make it the rest of the way. It's still a struggle every single day when my friends go to McDonalds and I have to politely decline their invitation or when I'm at a party where everyone is chowing down on chips and dip, but I'm worlds happier this way. I also know that you can't just lose weight and then go back to what you did before and expect to keep it off. Losing weight and eating healthy is a lifestyle change that you must continue for the rest of your life. But any progress is good.
Now, for some tips. I know it's going to be hard. Possibly the hardest thing you've ever had to do. But I believe in you. I did it and I KNOW you can too. Don't push yourself too hard though. Find a pace that's good for you and stick to it. One big tip - don't cut snacking out completely. Allow yourself a little 'cheat' once or twice a week. You want that extra dessert on Friday night - have it. If you allow yourself to cheat every now and then there is less of a chance that you'll end up binging one day. Do exercises that you enjoy rather than forcing yourself to do ones that others say worked for them. I enjoyed going for walks immensely, so I looked forward to my walk each day rather than having to force myself to do it. Also, don't feel bad if you miss a day here and there. Make it up later or just simply forget about it.
I guess that's really all I have to say. Good luck to all of you out there starting on this rough but totally rewarding journey. I KNOW that you can do it. Even if no one else believes in you, I do
When I first began losing weight I was always very active on this site and it helped me more than I can even explain. In the past year or so I have been less and less active because I have become more comfortable with keeping up a healthy lifestyle by myself from day to day but I often find myself back here looking to both give and receive inspiration. A little over a year ago I made a post on this very success story thread and now that it has been disabled I thought I would post it again with an updated picture so that maybe it will inspire someone else to be the very best they can be or even just pick someone up on a day when they are feeling a little down because I guarantee that if I can do it you most certainly can
*The first picture at the bottom of this post is of me at my heaviest time - exactly 4 years ago this month. The second is of me just a few days ago. Proof that anything can happen if you really put your mind to it!*
Now a little back story:
I want to start out by saying that no matter what, every single one of you are beautiful regardless of your weight or how you look. If you are comfortable the way you are and you are happy with how you look, I'm so proud of you. I am in absolutely NO way trying to encourage you or tell you to change who you are. However, this is for all of you girls and boys out there that are sick of looking in the mirror every day and being disgusted with how you look, but being too afraid to do anything about it.
Original Post (slightly updated):
Hi, my name is Caitlin. I'm currently 20 years old and I want to share this relatively quick "life story" with all of you. There was a point in my life, specifically during my grade 10 year of high school through February of my grade 12 year, during which I fluctuated between my heaviest of 290 pounds and 260 pounds, when I would honestly look in the mirror every single day and cry. Cry because I was disgusted with myself. Cry because I thought I would always be like this. I couldn't imagine being anything but fat. Luckily, I was blessed enough to live in a place where I was never bullied for it, which I know is hard to imagine for most people. Not once in my life was I ever bullied for it. But I knew that people probably talked about it behind my back or at the very least that the bullying would come out full swing once I got to university. People often say that fat people disgust them because it's all their fault and that they can change it whenever they'd like to. I wish that they could be put into our position. Honestly, I was scared to try because I was scared to fail. I knew how much hard work it was going to take and how long it was going to take and it just depressed me further. On top of that, what if it didn't work at all? I would be like this for the rest of my life. Now don't get me wrong, I know there are billions of conditions in our world that are worse than being obese, but to me at that point, I felt trapped. I felt like no one would ever love me. I didn't participate in any events or go to any parties all throughout high school because my self confidence was at absolute 0 or below, if that's even possible. I always felt like people were staring and that my weight was like the elephant in the room that everybody noticed, but no one wanted to mention. Yeah, it was that bad. It was affecting my life in every way that it possibly could. Healthwise, socially, emotionally. There were days when I didn't even want to leave the house because of it. There were days when I just didn't leave the house because of it.
It was actually January 1st, 2012 that I mustered up the courage and decided that it was finally time to change. A new year, a new beginning as they all say, but for me, I was going to make that statement ring true. Starting at 260 pounds, I cut all fast food and pop other than diet out of my diet completely and began going for walks everyday ranging from 45 minutes to an hour. I had a phys. ed class for the second half of my grade 12 year, so that helped a lot. I tried to implement as healthy of foods as I could into my daily diet, such as salads, boneless/skinless chicken, etc. I became very health conscious in regard to following calories and fat specifically very closely. Basically, I turned my entire life around for the better. I cannot describe to you how amazing it feels to step on those scales and every single week see the numbers go down lower and lower and lower. I never thought that I would see myself anywhere close to just 200 pounds let alone under 200 pounds. Never in a million years. When the day came that I stepped on that scale at the numbers popped up as 198 I can honestly say that I have never felt a greater sense of accomplishment. Today, I weigh in at around 190 pounds. The lowest I have been at consistently since the beginning of my journey was 178. I have been fluctuating back at forth between that and about 190 for the past year but I'm still so proud of myself. Now I know to a lot of people that would still be considered ridiculously fat. I'll be the first one to say that yes, I am still overweight and I have no intention of stopping until I am at a healthy weight and happy about it. But I can tell you that now, instead of looking in the mirror at myself and crying in disgust, I look in the mirror and cry with joy because of how far I've come. Sure, there are still days when I feel down and I feel like I should have tried harder and I shouldn't have snacked here or had this extra cookie for dinner, but then I look at a picture like this, and I realize that it's okay. I've come this far and I know I can make it the rest of the way. It's still a struggle every single day when my friends go to McDonalds and I have to politely decline their invitation or when I'm at a party where everyone is chowing down on chips and dip, but I'm worlds happier this way. I also know that you can't just lose weight and then go back to what you did before and expect to keep it off. Losing weight and eating healthy is a lifestyle change that you must continue for the rest of your life. But any progress is good.
Now, for some tips. I know it's going to be hard. Possibly the hardest thing you've ever had to do. But I believe in you. I did it and I KNOW you can too. Don't push yourself too hard though. Find a pace that's good for you and stick to it. One big tip - don't cut snacking out completely. Allow yourself a little 'cheat' once or twice a week. You want that extra dessert on Friday night - have it. If you allow yourself to cheat every now and then there is less of a chance that you'll end up binging one day. Do exercises that you enjoy rather than forcing yourself to do ones that others say worked for them. I enjoyed going for walks immensely, so I looked forward to my walk each day rather than having to force myself to do it. Also, don't feel bad if you miss a day here and there. Make it up later or just simply forget about it.
I guess that's really all I have to say. Good luck to all of you out there starting on this rough but totally rewarding journey. I KNOW that you can do it. Even if no one else believes in you, I do
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Replies
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Wow! You look fab! Great job!0
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You look absolutely amazing, you should be so proud of what you have achieved for yourself!0
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Incredible success! Congratulations!0
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A new you is right, congratulations. These pictures are amazing and I commend you on the hard work and discipline you had to get it done! And, I know it's never done, maintaining is another challenge but if you made it to here, you've got the rest!0
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What a phenomenal journey - physically and emotionally! Congratulations. (And thanks so much for sharing!)0
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jaw dropping change. serious. the best one iv seen on MFP
from -2/10 to 8/10. strong change, srs. no whiteknight0 -
OH MY GOODNESS!! you look freaking amazing!! I honestly wouldn't guess that you are 190 pounds in the second picture. You have totally inspired me for today! I love when younger girls post their success stories because I feel like it's mostly older women posting these kinds of things, which is awesome, but just not the same for me since I'm 18! Thank you so much for sharing! You are so beautiful! 0
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I almost teared up reading this! So beautifully said at the beginning; we all need self acceptance, NOW or we will never learn the strength to love ourselves continuously throughout our efforts!
I also want to say that you look beautiful and healthy and not AT ALL overweight.
Thanks for sharing.0 -
You look absolutely stunning. Well done and way to power through. You are such an inspiration 0
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really cool0
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You look beautiful. Thank you for sharing your inspiring journey0
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Seriously?? You are at 190 in the second picture? Like the other person said...would never had guessed that. (Ok, edited that since I saw the topic title said 290 to 178...so guessing your at 178 in that pic. You look less than that too )
You look Awesome!!
Great success story, I wish you well in maintaining where you want to be. I'm hoping in the future I can post my own success story here. I just started my journey to "The same me in a different package" this week so I've got a way to go.0 -
thank you all so much for your positive comments! they mean so much to me and you all inspire me so much especially to those of you who are saying I don't look like I weigh 190 in that second picture
because I actually do! it was just taken a couple of days ago having gained those 12ish pounds back has had a huge impact on my self-esteem/motivation many times and hearing that makes me happy haha thanks again and I'm so glad I could help even if just a little 0 -
Well done! You look great.0
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Gorgeous. Well done. Congratulations on all you have achieved, and thank you for sharing.0
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Loved your story!! So inspirational! you look great and I love your dress sooooooo much lol 0
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Wow, u look awesome!!0
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Seeing what you have done just makes me want to scream and jump for joy! I feel the same way you felt at your heaviest, right now. Joining this site and seeing success stories like yours is motivating me in a way like never before. Thank you so much for sharing. Keep at it! You are FAR from fat. You look amazing, and congratulations on your success!0
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You look amazing and sound so positive about life - well done :flowerforyou:0
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You look fantastic, well done.0
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