1 year in - Lifting and Eating the Food

Since it's been a year, I thought that I would post my pics cause I consider myself a success story already. Hell, aren't we all just for being on here and trying?

My story is, as is a lot of other people's, one that is still ongoing. I have a ways to go, but I love where I am going and the way I am getting there. Mine starts similar to a lot of people's, one day I just really knew I needed to lose weight and I went on a "diet". Cut my calories to 1200 per MFP and lost about 12 lbs. I found myself hungry all of the time and that I would have crazy cravings for sweet things that seriously sucked. So I started looking around to see what else was out there to help with cravings. I found a lovely group of ladies that were doing something called Stronglifts (weight lifting) and I joined up and decided I would give it a go. I became absolutely amazed at what it did to my body and decided to try another experiment of the dreaded "upping my calories!!!". Oh no!!!!

Yep - I have gradually gone from eating 1200 a day to eating 2000 currently. Since then I have lost another 8 lbs give or take. If I don't eat the calories, I dont' have enough energy to fuel my lifting which I absolutely love. I can do more when I eat more.

I lift 3x a week and try and run 2x a week. I give myself rest days and also let myself enjoy food and life.

I have lost more than 11 inches from around my waist - more inches from my thighs, hips and arms. I wore a size 18 when I started and when I was married in February I was wearing a size 12 dress. I wear approximately a 12/14 in jeans a M/L in shirts.

My starting weight was 214 and I am go back and forth between 194/196. However with that weight I continue to reduce size and inches. While I am the same weight, I have still lost over an inch from each thigh within the last two weeks. My body has drastically changed it's shape and size even though I've only lost 18 lbs. I am the size now that I was when I was 25 lbs lighter. This is because of lifting weights. I track lean body mass and have gained 9 lbs since January. I also try and eat a certain amount of protein each day. I've had to make some dietary restrictions lately due to health issues - potential celiac, so I need to reduce the gluten in my life sadly. But I still don't deprive myself.

My journey is slow and steady - and that's the only way this works. There's no quick fix and I absolutely refuse to starve myself.

I love my body no matter what the size but I am definitely becoming more comfortable in my own skin that never existed before. That has definitely come from lifting weights. This is about so much more than weight loss and about having a healthy relationship with yourself for the rest of your life.