One Year on MFP (with pics)

I posted this on my blog..but I think one solid year of healthy choices deserves a forum post too IMO :-)

Tuesday marked the exact day I logged onto MFP for the first time. 365 days of change.

I remember the events leading up to my "enough is enough" moment like they were yesterday. I was overweight, always tired and letting my friends down. Always complaining about being fat..never doing anything to actually fix the problem. I wanted to wish it away.

Last August was a particularly hard month for me. I went to a waterpark and agonized about being the heaviest girl there. I felt ugly on my boyfriend's (now fiance) birthday and my low self esteem effected everything for him. And finally, one friend let me know how frustrated with my attitude she was...her words hurt..but it was the kick in the *kitten* I needed. I decided I was done. I was done having friends let down and angry at me. I was done being less that what I knew I could be. I was done knowing my guy deserved better than what I had been doing the last two years..and let's be honest...I deserved better than what I had been giving myself.

One year ago I did two things...I started using MFP to log my calories and I joined a gym. The beginning of this whole process wasn't easy for me. There were honest to God temper tantrums about not being able to order a big fatty Abos pizza anymore or having to go to the gym 5-6 days a week. I had a really hard time with myself in those first few weeks. I relied heavily on "diet" items (Lean Cuisines, Lo Cal foods, pre prepared foods) because I had to take baby steps. That was all I knew how to do. I did the elliptical for 20 minutes a day..then 30...

And low and behold...it got easier. The pounds and inches started to fly off and by Christmas I had lost 20lbs! I got to feel more confident in a bikini on vacation with Tim than I had in the entire time we had been together. I loved being able to shop and fit into most things. I loved not feeling like the biggest girl in the room. I wasn't stopping there...

Through MFP I gained the confidence and knowledge I needed to take the next steps. I started preparing more of my meals and found I enjoyed finding healthy recipes and ways to make our house favorites better for me and for Tim. I incorporated less processed food, I became concious of sodium and I learned more about moderation. I didn't deprive myself as much..rather I lived life..but in moderation.

On the fitness front I continued to grow. I got a trainer and worked out harder than I ever had. After my trainer left the gym I was on my own again and I was thrilled to find out that the new me loved a workout challenge. I now do strength group classes twice a week plus a seriously hard cardio-strength interval class once a week. I elliptical on the weekends for 45 plus minutes and if I have to squeeze in a workout during lunch due to time I go HARD for 30 minutes. I'm no longer lagging at the back when my family takes our dog for a hike in the mountains...I'm the one at the front RUNNING with the pup. Trail running. I trail run. Last year I complained the whole way on a 2 mile hike. Now I'm running. Sorry for the tangent but that took a minute to wrap my head around. I get in at least 5 workouts a week..three of which are at least an hour long. I often find myself getting that "adrenaline high" when I workout and I look in the mirror at the gym...and I marvel at how far I've come.

As my MFP friend base grew I found myself feeling accountable to them. I loved the praise I got for simply getting off my butt and getting to the gym..even if it was only for 20 minutes at the beginning. My MFP friends worried when I hadn't logged in and I came back to battle another day each day not only for myself..but for them. MFP ended up being the best weight loss tool I have ever known. Not for the logging tool (not that the app on my phone isn't handy in keeping me accountable on the road) but for the community. I could not have done this without everyone here. The constant inspiration of success stories, the knowing I wasn't alone in how I was feeling, the place I could come for support..and get it. I wish I could meet all of you. I wish there were more people like each of you in my real life. I considder you all my friends. And I thank you.

What's next for me? I'll still be here! Tim proposed in April and I'm hoping to be 10 more pounds thinner for my wedding in August. I've lost 40lbs...10 seems like cake (although all of us here know every pound is a fight). I can do this. I know I can.

A special thank you to my MFPeeps who have been with me from the very beginning. You know who you are. Thanks for one hell of a year! And to my newer pals..I'm so happy to have you as well! Can't wait to see what this year holds for all of us *holds up my giant water bottle* Cheers!!!!

And now...the pictures....headshot on my fiance Tim's birthday in 2010 and in 2011. And me at my heaviest in 2010 and me this past June. Truth: Gained 4lbs since the pic in June because I got a litle too relaxed this summer. BUT I'm back on track and have since lost 2 of those 4 :-) Look out world!!! Bride on a mission!!!