5'4" female 218 down to 120 pics

My goal was to be hot (and hopefully 125lbs) by the time I went to a wedding in Sept. It seemed like such an ambitious goal at the time since I had only left the hospital with baby in tow that day. I was 213lbs at the time and that was actually 5lbs less than I had been before I got pregnant. I would like to say it was all baby weight from the previous babies but the truth was I had been bouncing around 200 for almost 15yrs.

I am the youngest of 3 girls and my sisters are twins, blonde haired, blue eyed, perfect little size 4 hour glass shaped twins. Then there was me. My nickname was chubby and even though I was around a size 10 for my teen years I felt fat. I went for a jog one day when I was around 14 and I went past some boys out on the basketball court and I heard one of the boys ask "Who is that?" For half a second my heart soared because someone had noticed me but then the other boy answered "Its one of the Malone girls” The first asked "Grace or Jeanne?" and the other answered "No the ugly one" . He didn't know I could hear, he wasn't trying to be mean, he was even someone I considered a friend but that was how I was known. I was the fat sister. Now I am not saying feeling fat made me gain weight. The truth is I was 218lbs because I love food and the little voice in my head that says don't eat that is not nearly as loud or as fun as the endorphins I get from eating. In the end we have to look at the reasons we are were we are and then either let them go or figure out a way to work with them. I decided part of the goal was to surprise the family and be the smallest one, and as for food, I gave my little voice a megaphone by tracking what I was eating.

My youngest (the cutest little angel to ever grace the earth) was born Jan 20th 20012 and the wedding was Sept 30th 2012. I needed to drop 88lbs in about 8 months. I thought well it’s aggressive but doable. Then I remembered I would be up all night with baby and up all day with toddler and it seemed impossible. I will say I have one thing working for me. I am stubborn. Have you heard the phrase “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result"? Well that phrase was meant for me. I can keep doing the same thing stubbornly even without the result I want. I decided that this time I was going to eat less calories than I burn and I was going to keep doing it even if the scale didn't always tell me what I wanted to hear.

I made my goal (plus 5lbs extra for vacation cushion) and I kept it a secret (that was harder than the diet). My husband and 4yr old walked up to my sister's house first. I grabbed my bag from the car and walked in. Both of them were there and they looked puzzled for a moment. One of them said "where is the rest of you?" the other just stood with her mouth open. I was actually thinner than either of them for the first time in my life (I was probably thinner at birth but since I can't remember it doesn't count) . They actually insisted upon recording the moment when my mom saw me. I had a lot of moments like that over the next few weeks and it was really worth all the hard work.

I would love to say the greatest part of being thin is feeling healthy but I have discovered I am too vain for that. The best part is having people make eye contact with me. I am outgoing and friendly but it wears on your soul to have people look away every time when you smile at them. Some women are nice enough to smile back but most people didn't even see me. Other great stuff about being thin: Clothes!! the fit they look cute and I needed a whole new wardrobe! Not running from the camera! you would have thought I wasn't even living in my house as there are very few pictures of me. Energy! My precious little angel does not sleep, (I will take tips if anyone has them for getting a baby to sleep through the night) but I am still able to function during the day and even keep up with my 4yr old and the herd of teenagers that descends upon my house in the afternoons.

Funny downsides they don't tell you about: I'm cold! I live in AZ and the house is around 74 degrees and I am wearing fuzzy socks and a robe and I am still cold. Seats everywhere are hard! I went to Disneyland a few weeks ago and I must have bruised my butt bones dozens of times cause every ride that use to just have fun bounces now seemed to have bone crunching drops. Seat belt panic! When I ride in my car I panic at least once every trip thinking I forgot to buckle my seatbelt because I no longer feel it cutting into me.

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After pics

Awesome job! Do you have any advice for someone just starting out? I am mentally ready, but I just don't have the motivation to move my body.

Some people aren't going to agree with me but I say start small. Fix your diet first. When you start to lose weight and your diet makes you feel better it is easier to work out. For now get use to your new diet and make little changes to your activity level. (park further away, take the stairs, play with your kids/pets). When you are ready to work out, be sure you pick something you enjoy. That might be hard to imagine now but something will catch your eye. Think about what you liked to do as a kid, chances are you will still like it as an adult.