After years of struggling I am finally ready to change

lakc21
lakc21 Posts: 4 Member
in Introduce Yourself
My name is Lisa. I'm 35 and have been overweight most of my life. In high school I played softball but even then I struggled to keep up with the endurance of my teammates. In my 20's my weight fluctuated a lot. Around 29 I started eating healthier and exercising. I lost some weight and felt better. Then, I just stopped. Not sure why. I went back to my old habits of eating anything and everything. Now at 35 I am over 300 lbs. I have struggled with depression and anxiety throughout my life. At my heaviest I weighed 372 pounds. Without much trying I managed to get down to 350 then 335. I didn't eat as much and moved a bit more. My girlfriend of one year is committed to helping me. She is younger, in much better shape, and is a constant source of motivation and inspiration. She has helped me see that I can do this and that I can conquer this. In Dec 2016 towards the end of the month I decided to start tracking my diet using my fitness pal. At the time I weight 335. As of today I am down to 323. We are eating healthier and starting to exercise with beach body on demand. I feel so motivated. My goal weight is 165. Once I reach that I'll go from there. I am determined to be healthy and to make this a permanent lifestyle change. What I'm struggling with the most is inactivity and my craving of fast food. My job keeps me sedentary and in a vehicle for long hours. I want more energy and to feel better. I look forward to sharing my journey with you all. God bless!

Replies

  • success313
    success313 Posts: 100 Member
    Hi Lisa!

    Just wanted to tell you that YOU CAN DO THIS! I am at a similar starting weight, the same exact goal weight, and similar circumstances. Although it feels like I am going to have to move mountains to do this, it will be SO worth it. Kudos to you for taking the first step. Good luck to you on your journey. =)
  • kitten8u
    kitten8u Posts: 19 Member
    really glad you've found the motivation - you can do this!!
  • lakc21
    lakc21 Posts: 4 Member
    Thanks so much! Looking forward to getting this done.
  • RavenLibra
    RavenLibra Posts: 1,737 Member
    YOU are awesome... welcome... YOU are going to be just fine... cravings stem from an unbalanced diet... and from your body trying to tell you what it needs to function properly... anxiety... depression...may be a symptom of that imbalance as well... practice some form of meditation to get you through the anxiety... spend some time visualizing yourself "after" we all lose sight of what we are doing "this" for once in a while.. so keep your eye on the prize... when you are eating... eat your protein first... and eat slowly... make sure there is lots of colour in your diet... green, orange, red, yellow, purple, colour will ensure you are getting the proper nutrients... seek out foods with colour... stay away from anything that comes in a package... avoid high impact activities... focus on stretching and strength to begin with...

    I see exercise like this...there is an outdoor set of stairs near where I work... those stairs are my white whale... it is a popular "torture" so when I go... I don't run... but I make my best effort to get to the top (equivalent of an 11 story building) twice... of course there are younger and fitter folk who run...take the stairs 2 at a time...I once heard a woman brag that she had done them 14 times in one afternoon... anyway... I see these young fit... healthy people passing me...lapping me... but my thought is... I wonder how fast these people would be IF they had a couple 20 lb bags of flour draped over their shoulders.. wrapped around their mid section... and that is where you are at... YOU are a healthy happy individual wrapped (by your own account) in about 8 X 20 lb bags of flour...so take your time... see a doctor... and focus on the prize... one 20 lb bag of flour at a time... the road is going to be long and bumpy.. you will have doubts, you will quit... but none of that matters as long as you start again and again... LIKE Rocky said.. it ain’t about how hard you hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward; how much you can take and keep moving forward. That’s how winning is done! Now, if you know what you’re worth, then go out and get what you’re worth. But you gotta be willing to take the hits, and not pointing fingers saying you ain’t where you wanna be because of him, or her, or anybody. Cowards do that and that ain’t you. You’re better than that!
  • JenniferMacdonald2015
    JenniferMacdonald2015 Posts: 5 Member
    I too have been overweight pretty much my entire life and have struggled with depression and Anxiety and I can tell you that changing your diet and exercising will do so much for you in that department. it's been about three weeks for me since I've been eating clean no fast food no fried foods yada yada and I feel so much better, I'm not depressed anymore, the time I spend with my kids is more enjoyable now and life just feels worth living. so keep it up you're doing a great job already and you're going to be fine. Brightest blessings to you.
  • Gillian_H
    Gillian_H Posts: 1 Member
    This is an amazing story and sure to be an amazing success. I wish you and your girlfriend the absolute best. I have no doubt in my mind you can do it.
  • lakc21
    lakc21 Posts: 4 Member
    Thank you all so much for the wonderful comments and encouraging words. It's people like you and people like my girlfriend who save the lives of people like myself. I really appreciate it and I am grateful to be here.

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