Down 80lbs Officially in 7months (PHOTO)...

tifanietiberio · January 2012

Hello Everyone!

So this morning I am down 80lbs since June 2011. I say officially because I had a nasty stomach virus right after Christmas and I wanted to give it a couple of weeks for a true weigh-in.

So here it is- before I started, when I was down 50lbs and this morning at 80lbs down (it's a bit grainy but i used instagram).

Even I can now see the physical differences, but the differences that you can't see are just as enormous. I am not even the same person that I was six months ago. I am so much more confident and genuinely happy-ish... which is a big deal for me. i mean, i lost mayer, my whole life, and i didn't fall apart (yet)- and in the past i have fallen apart of far less. i was able to stay relatively healthy and somewhat sane. it's not to say that i am not terribly lonely and sad 99% of the time but i am trying to stay on the path i started while i still had him.

losing weight has me gaining (play on words intended) so many things- a job that i adore- where it really seems like i am valued and appreciated. deeper friendships bc i am not too miserable or embarrassed about my appearance to leave my house. just a different attitude when i walk around. i had no idea that making this change in my life would beget so many other positive developments.

and i have all of my MFP friends to thank for this. i could never have had so much success without your support. when things were really dark, you all kept me from giving up and i appreciate that so much. xoxo

so here it is......... the official 80lbs down photo. i would like to lose 25 more, but i know that will be a slow process until i decide to really incorporate exercise, but i am doing this in the way that works for me.

down80lbs by tifanietiberio, on Flickr

wren176 · January 2012

Wow what a change! You look awesome and you can tell you feel fantastic!

pal26 · January 2012

Oh my god that is great, just read your post and it has really inspired me, I need to lose 2 stone and just can't do it, have started the whole exercise thing, use to box (the only thing i enjoyed) but i have a shoulder injury preventing me from boxing and hadn't been to the gym properly for over a year. just back into it (just gyming no boxing as shoulder is still bad) but am so uninspired as i hate the gym.

So tell me how did you do it?

Pal

mleoni092708 · January 2012

Amazing! You look beautiful and you should feel beautiful too

Great work!

psmith64 · January 2012

That is a really noticbale change. You should be proud of yourself, 80 lbs is a great loss to achieve and will be very inspirational to others on here.

Regards

Paul

thagberg2011 · January 2012

Great job. You look fantastic!!!

MzMiller1215 · January 2012

Wow! I can definitely see the change. Fantastic work! I know you are proud!

sarahstoltman · January 2012

That is amazing!!! you are an inspiration to me! Keep up the great work

jaynabelardo · January 2012

that's awesome!!!...congratulations to you...does the 80 lbs put you at your goal weight??

Hunskers · January 2012

Tif,

I AM SO EXTREMELY HAPPY FOR YOU AND PROUD OF YOUR ACCOMPLISHMENT. You have shown how strong you are in every part of your life. You look amazing!

tifanietiberio · January 2012

that's awesome!!!...congratulations to you...does the 80 lbs put you at your goal weight??

honestly, i don't really know. when i started this, i just assumed it would be like every other attempt at losing weight- i would lose 10-15lbs and then gain 20lbs back and be mortified. so i never really set a goal. i guess my goal was to not look like a monster. so i guess i am near to that point. but number-wise, i would probably be ecstatic if i could lose 20-30 more, but honestly i think if i lost 10-15 more by the time the weather got warmer, i would be pleased. but who knows. at the moment, i would just be thrilled to maintain what i have already lost.

loraloha74 · January 2012

You are an amazing inspiration to me! Thanks for sharing your story. CONGRATS!!!!

276NoMore · January 2012

if (and when) the time comes that i need motivating positive thoughts about the benefits of losing weight, can you share some awesome changes that you have experienced through your journey. i know for me, my blood pressure has already gone down to 107/76 (last year it had been up to 165/129). also, i am now getting in more hours of sleep at night without having to go race madly to the bathroom. these "benefits" are always so inspiring to think about when i am experiencing a moment of need ...

omna379 · January 2012

Great Job that is an awesome journey Congrats ...

lcnelson · January 2012

You look absolutely amazing and I know you feel even better than that! I have to tell you I lost my white boxer Sasha on Thanksgiving day this year. She was 10 and the love of my life. Your posts about your loss gave me some comfort, so thank you for sharing. Congratulations on so many different accomplishments:)

Captain_Tightpants · January 2012

Amazing and inspiring!

Would you mind giving us all a few tips on how you did it? (eating patterns, workouts, mind games etc.?) :-)

kimmerkay · January 2012

You look terrific!! You must have worked your butt off to lose that fast.... Great job!

tifanietiberio · January 2012

if (and when) the time comes that i need motivating positive thoughts about the benefits of losing weight, can you share some awesome changes that you have experienced through your journey. i know for me, my blood pressure has already gone down to 107/76 (last year it had been up to 165/129). these "benefits" are always so inspiring to think about when i am experiencing a moment of need ...

i think a big deal for me was when i officially dropped from "MORBIDLY OBESE" to just plain old "OBESE" - i am now OFFICIALLY just "OVERWEIGHT" but for some reason the drop from morbidly obese to obese was a bigger deal to me than the drop to overweight.

the other big deal was when my jeans fit and then became too big. i have a terrible habit of not trying things on and for the past couple of years i had purchased many pairs of expensive jeans, in the biggest size available, and then when i got home realized i couldnt even get them over my thighs. and then a few months ago i started trying to see if they would fit- and the did- and some of them are too big. THAT was a very big deal to me also!

i wish you the best of luck- i know you can do it!

tifanietiberio · January 2012

You look absolutely amazing and I know you feel even better than that! I have to tell you I lost my white boxer Sasha on Thanksgiving day this year. She was 10 and the love of my life. Your posts about your loss gave me some comfort, so thank you for sharing. Congratulations on so many different accomplishments:)

i am SO very sorry for your loss. i know it must be unbearable. i want to tell you that it will get better, but i am still not sure of that myself. the thing that keeps me going the most is telling myself that mayer wanted me to be happy and well and if i fall apart, then i am doing him a disservice. he was my soulmate, and he stuck by me until he knew i was in a better mental and emotional place then i had been for a really long time. so i do this for him. but i know your heart is breaking, just try to stay strong and grieve in the way that you need to. there is no set timeline or appropriate behavior to deal with losing the love of your life. and don't let anyone tell you there is.

pangela13 · January 2012

Great Job you look fantastic.:)

SaintOnEarth · January 2012

great work

. I am happy you have come along so far in your journey. Keep up the great work!

jeaninemckinney · January 2012

Great job! I cannot believe how different your face looks! Truley amazing and inspiring! You should feel so proud of yourself and good luck with the rest of your goals!

tifanietiberio · January 2012

Amazing and inspiring!

Would you mind giving us all a few tips on how you did it? (eating patterns, workouts, mind games etc.?) :-)

ok, i am totally being obnxious and posting too much, but i am trying to respond to everyone-

how did i do it? i think i was ready for starters. i don't know what happened, but i just decided i couldn't deal with the way i looked and the way i felt. i had gone to the doctor and not only was i just ridiculously overweight, but i had second degree sunburn from memorial day weekend. i was just mortified and my doctor was like you suck at life (well he didnt say that, but he may as well have)

so i started really slow- but the first chunk of weight (like 15lbs) came off really fast and that helped me to feel like i could keep it up. when i went back to my doctor 6 weeks later, i was down 27lbs. he was like "if this were a test you would get an a+" so that really gave me the boost to keep it up.

as far as what i do- it is not the healthiest, and i will be the first to admit it, but i had to do what worked for me. so 90% of what i eat is pre-measured, pre-packaged and microwavable. essentially, my own version of nutrisystem. i basically live on lean cuisines, skinny cow ice cream, string cheese, special k w vanilla soy milk. probably once a week i eat actual vegetables and grill a chicken breast or a nice cut of filet, but that is pretty much it. i eat 1200 calories a day and have done so this whole time. i am an event planner, so if i have an event and am running around like a crazy person all day, i try to eat a couple of hundred more to make up for the activity, but that's it. but i do log EVERYTHING- alcohol included (and in the process of mourning there have been many days where dinner was liquid, but i have cut that back quite a bit since the holidays)

and now that i feel like i have a better handle on what works and what doesn't, i have been able to incorporate more "normal" food into my life. like eating ham and mashed potatoes at christmas didn't stress me out, i just ate really small portions and that was fine for me. because nothing tastes as good as it feels when i weigh myself or people comment on the weight loss.

i recommend doing what works for you. i always make this point- if i werent eating lean cuisine pizzas, i would be ordering pizza. so for me, that works. i plan to start exercising and attempting to eat more fresh food in the coming months, but i am one of those people that will just wake up one day and be like, ok, today is the day. it's just how i am. when i feel like i am pressured to make changes, i tend to shut down and make things worse for myself.

so that's pretty much it, feel free to friend me or send me a PM for more deets.