Going to the GYM when your 320 pounds :(

This post pulls at my heart strings...I have so much to say about this so I'll try to pull it into cohesive thoughts lol.

• 6 yrs ago I weighed 316 lbs & made a commitment to myself that I was going to start going to the gym regularly & keep at it no matter what.
• At first, I was EXTREMELY self-conscious. But I did it anyway, & learned how to use all of the equipment & got on the treadmill to walk even though I just KNEW everyone was staring at me (they weren't).
• One day, after a couple of months of going 4-6x/week, I saw a woman not much smaller than me on the treadmill running. RUNNING. And when I looked at her, I thought, "if she can run, maybe I can too!"
• The next day, it was pretty dead in the gym so during my obligatory treadmill walk, I decided to try running. I ran for 30 whole seconds. Not only did I not die, but I felt AMAZING, because I had broken through whatever That Thing was in my head that had me thinking I can't do stuff because I'm fat. The ball was rolling.
• Fast-forward to a year after I started & I ran my first 5k without stopping.
• Another year & a half later I was down 85 lbs & had completed 12 races, including a 10k, 10 mile, duathlon, & half marathon!

In the interest of full disclosure (& to prove that I'm human) I'll share that after the half I stopped actively trying to lose weight & focused on exercise. I did a bunch more races but gradually started picking the weight back up, & after a running injury last year am starting again with weight loss. But I know it happened because I allowed it to & that's ok. Everyone who is or has been overweight has gone through stuff that got them there, & we don't have to stay there if we don't want to.

What I want you to know is that at 316 lbs, I thought that losing weight would be The Thing that would restore my confidence in myself, but it wasn't. EXERCISE was. When you first start exercising regularly, I won't lie, it kind of sucks. You hurt everywhere & feel guilt over what you've done to your body over the years by not caring for it properly...but that only lasts a couple of weeks. Even with the soreness, you feel good about finally giving your body something it needs.

Then you get stronger. After a few workouts, you realize you can do more or do it longer. Keep challenging yourself & stress those muscles so they grow - & you WANT them to grow, because the more muscle you have, the more calories you burn when you're not exercising. Use exercise to break through those mental barriers that you may not even realize you had, because they were built brick by brick, so slowly you didn't know it was happening until now.

After a few weeks, the workouts are getting easier & you discover that the confidence you thought would only come with reaching your goal weight is already HERE because look at how awesome you are in the gym! If you catch someone looking at you, smile! What you don't know is that a year or two ago, they may have been where you are today & they are silently cheering you on in their head. They may want to share an encouraging word but don't want to offend you. Break the ice & say hello.

Next thing you know, everyone at the gym knows you & you have this whole crew of buddies to look for when you're there. You don't have to find someone to go with you on a day you don't feel like going, because you know when you get there someone will be happy to see you.

You also discover that you're sleeping better than you ever did, & your ability to handle stressful situations has greatly improved, seemingly with no explanation. Well, the explanation is the gym.

Ok...I've just talked myself into going back to the gym. I'll see you there tomorrow