Lost nearly 40 lbs in 6 months - before/after pics

My journey isn't over, but wanted to share my story with you all. I've lost almost 40 lbs since January and boy, do I feel better! It's amazing what a little hard work and commitment can do.

Growing up I was always relatively thin. I'd also been fit, at times, which we all know is not the same as being thin. In college, I worked out at least 3-4 times a week and didn't eat any junk food (you can imagine how difficult that is for a college student). I biked to all my classes, to the store, to everything. At my thinnest, I was about 115 lbs at 5'3". I did lose weight to get to that point, and knew a healthy lifestyle was essential to staying thin and feeling good. Despite that, I fell into bad habits after graduation. It started slowly at first (a few slices of pizza here, an ice cream sundae there...), but before i knew it, unhealthy eating habits and a sedentary lifestyle caught up with me big time. I packed on about 60 lbs over the course of a couple of years, and I was not happy.



When the new year started, I was determined to take control of my health again. I asked for a small exercise machine for Christmas, since my apartment is tiny and I don't belong to a gym. I got the Stamina In-Motion Elliptical trainer and started using it every day for at least 20 minutes (I used mine sitting in a chair because it was hard to balance standing up, although you can use it that way too). Immediately, I had more energy. I didn't feel tired when I woke up in the mornings. Most significantly, I think, my cravings virtually disappeared.

From there, I started learning how to make healthy meals. I've never been much of a cook, so I started small. Tuna salad with avocado instead of mayonnaise became a lunchtime favorite, and asparagus mushroom tacos for dinner helped me get some veggies in my diet that I actually enjoyed eating. I've always loved carbs so I never once considered giving them up, but I tried to make healthier choices. Brown rice instead of white, whole wheat pasta instead of regular... I quickly realized when you find flavorful sauces and ingredients to add, you can't even tell the difference between whole wheat and white. Collecting recipes and trying new things became an enjoyable pastime, and it really helped me take control of how many calories I was consuming. I got a food scale and weighed all my ingredients so I knew exactly what my intake was.

As time went on, my stamina increased and I could work out for longer. I used my Apple watch to track my workouts and started challenging myself to burn more calories than I did the day before. I also realized that once you get some momentum, it's not that hard to keep going. There were so many times I didn't even want to work out and told myself I'd just do a quick 20-minute session, but ended up sticking with it for twice as long. I always thought "Ah, well that last 20 minutes wasn't so bad at all, let's go for 40." That's why even if I'm totally not feeling it, I try to push myself to workout for at least 15 minutes. It almost always turns into a full session.

For the first 4 months, I was strict and diligent. I ate only healthy, low-calorie food (lots of veggies, very minimal dairy and no red meat) and worked out every single day. Before I knew it, my weight was in the 130s and I was no longer considered "overweight" by medical standards. My goal was (is) still to get down into the 125-lb area, but since I wasn't that unhappy with my body anymore, I started relapsing. Over the past 2 months or so, it's admittedly been a bit of a struggle. I've been losing motivation and eating junk for a few days at a time, before I snap out of it and get back on track. I've been bouncing between 135 and 140 for what feels like forever, and it's been frustrating.

Today, I got some pants in the mail that I ordered online. They were on clearance, so they only had a size 4 or below. I ordered the size 4, thinking "I'll be able to fit into them once I shed this last 10 lbs or so." I tried them on and lo and behold, they actually fit. They fit well. I suspect they may run a little large, but nevertheless, it was a big confidence booster. I feel like I hit a major milestone and, even with the setbacks, I'm in a good place. I'd still love to lose another 10 lbs, but for now, I'm happy in my skin :-)