My year on MFP with pics

I joined MFP the last weekend of April 2012 to see if I could figure out why I was gaining so much weight. I was convinced that it wasn't my diet or lifestyle, but that I must have some type of endocrine problem, or retained water, or was just big boned... Bahahaha! Ummmm, no! I was taking in around 3000-4000 calories per day! Needless to say, it was like a slap in the face, waking myself up to reality. My husband and I have been struggling with infertility for quite a while now. I had read that if I lost 5-10% of my body weight, our chances of conceiving would greatly improve. This is what, finally, caused me to make this change in my life.

May 1, 2012 I started my MFP journey per MFP's calorie recommendations at 252lbs. The first thing I realized was that I needed to give up my soda consumption... or I would starve to death! This was, probably, the most difficult part of my journey. I was an addict! At the time, I couldn't even tell you the last time I drank a glass of water.

I spent the 1st 6 weeks or so focusing on staying within my calories, giving myself 1 "cheat" day per week. Then, I started exercising. After reading so many of the forum posts about JM's 30DS, I thought I'd give it a shot. OMG! I still remember those weeks... Thinking... I know I look ridiculous, but I'm gonna do it anyway. It was soooo hard!

Now, I have no cheat days, but I do have a few bad days here and there. I still eat more crap than I should, but I'm still a work in progress. I try to focus on my weekly goal, instead of my daily goal. Yes, I do eat back my exercise calories, and I average around 1500-1600 calories/day.

I workout 2-3 days per week, with a goal of 3. I've discovered a love for running and strength training. I struggle with asthma and cold weather is a trigger for me. I did more strength training in the winter, and now that it's starting to warm up (sort of), I've started doing more running again. I love both! I've joined a co-ed softball team, and I've run a couple of 5ks... with several planned this summer! I have no gym membership, so that's not an excuse guys. Just saying...

May 2012 - May 2013
Weight 252lbs - Weight 179lbs
Size 22W/24W - Size 14 regular
Shirt XXL, 2x - Shirt M, L
5k in 65min - 5k in 34:17
Resting HR 110 - Resting HR 50

So, still no babies with some recent devastating new... However, I've now lost 29% of my original starting weight. Pretty amazing, even to me!

When I started this journey, I tried to be realistic in setting goals. My goal was to lose 30lbs within a year, then I started reaching for a goal below 200lbs, then I reset again for an "overweight" BMI. Well, well, well... I had to reset my goals so many times! Lol! I crushed all those goals and made it to 179lbs with a total loss of 73lbs!!! I'm not finished yet. My new goal is 152lbs to make an even 100 pounds lost and be within a normal range BMI. I'm 5'6. I plan on starting maintenance when I reach 150!

I know this is already pretty long, but I want to give a shout out to all my awesome MFPeeps! Love you guys!!!

The pics...