Slow and Steady wins the race they say......but geez it can

niknak30
niknak30 Posts: 58
edited October 5 in Introduce Yourself
I am the heaviest I have ever been and my aim is to be in a size 18 (which I think is a US 16) by my 40th birthday in May '12 - currently I am in a 24-26 so its a long road ahead. I also hope to buy the dress from a regular store not a plus size store if I can. I have tried the MFP method because I believe my best hope at a long term sustainable result is to do something that fits in with my lifestyle..... as tempting as it is to go for a quicker losing diet.

So, I am now five weeks into an 8 week challenge that my personal trainer is running. I don't have a hope of winning (and thats ok) but I am chuffed at how I am going so far. You see, I am not someone who can go gung-ho and ignore my lovely social life and the silly season as it approaches , but I am proud of myself all the same. My social life (which is very busy) revolves around lunches, dinners, coffees and parties and I love my life - I just dont love the me that is in it.

I have lost 5.8 kg (which is about 13 pounds I think) and I am definitley feeling better for it even though I am not yet seeing it. I am trying not to think about the long term goal which is basically to lose a human... too daunting really. So my aim for the 8 week challenge is to finish in the top 5 of the 42 contestants ( I am currently in 8th) and to lose 8 kilos. I then have another short term goal which is to get through Christmas and New Year (which includes 2 and 1/2 weeks of holidays and no training) without putting on any weight. Then a new 8 weeks challenge will commence again- although not as part of a competition.

I am doing two 1hr personal training sessions a week as well as a 1hr boot camp style group session. I am the heaviest girl in the competition and the second heaviest overall. That in itself is pretty scary when it comes to the group training as I always feel like I am behind or not good enough even though I try to focus purely on my own progress. I still can't help but see some people run twice the distance in the same time as me.

I am going to stick at this regime as long as possible and see how much I can achieve...... guess we'll see how it goes..... wish me luck!!!

Replies

  • BettyDraper68
    BettyDraper68 Posts: 6 Member
    Good luck. You sound really motivated and I am sure you'll do really well and achieve all your goals :)
  • melvac
    melvac Posts: 333 Member
    You will see it just keep it up sounds like you are doing fastastic :smile:
  • TwinMumCork
    TwinMumCork Posts: 125 Member
    Good luck , you have started with a great attitude with trying the small goals first.

    In no time you will be running as fast as these other people and not even noticing it. :bigsmile:
  • KirstenRLD
    KirstenRLD Posts: 54
    good luck :) you've got a great plan
  • Luandanielle1979
    Luandanielle1979 Posts: 747 Member
    You are doing a great job and well done on joining a boot camp.

    They do it at my gym and sometimes I join in with the classes. There are all different shapes and sizes and abilities you just do what you can manage if you arnt jumping as high as the others it doesnt matter you are doing as well as you can. You will still be burning ooodles of calories.

    You are making changes and sticking to them thats important I wish you all the very best on your journey and believe me if your working hard and keeping up with the exercise you will soon see results.

    Luan x
  • Jacquibennett
    Jacquibennett Posts: 95 Member
    Good luck!!

    I think you've got the right outlook on the whole diet thing, well done!! Hope you achieve your goals :) x
  • miss_jamaica
    miss_jamaica Posts: 376 Member
    Welcome to MFP, and I honestly believe you have what it takes to be successful. Look around and you will see tickers that read "30 pounds lost" and "45 pounds lost" etc... and soon you will surprise yourself because you will be the one with the ticker.

    Best of luck, and again welcome!
  • Teresa3612
    Teresa3612 Posts: 21 Member
    You can do it! Find yourself a friend with the same goals. That is how I got started on MFP. A friend a work was doing it and encouraged me to try. I have have lost 5 pounds since starting. It really makes me conscious of what I am eating and I try to make better choices because of it.

    I think your goal of just not gaining during the holidays is a good one. We do that here at work during December. We call it "Weigh No More!" Everyone weighs in the week before Thanksgiving and again when we return to work at the first of the year. The only goal is to not gain any weight. Last year we even had a few that lost a few pounds:)

    Keep reaching for your goal and remember that you didn't gain it all overnight, so you can lose it overnight either. - Teresa
  • jdhosier
    jdhosier Posts: 315 Member
    You are doing exactly the right thing. Setting reachable, intermediate goals. Those victories will pay off and, before you know it, you will reach it and set another goal. One day you will realize that you have lost that person.

    One way to keep track is that you keep losing people along the way. Right now you have lost a baby (or the equivalent in weight). Pretty soon you will have lost a 2 year old, then an 6 year old and so on.

    You CAN do this.
  • ycc1964
    ycc1964 Posts: 698 Member
    You are absolutely right Slow and Steady does win the race, you can do it and this is the best site to help with obtaining your goal.
  • niknak30
    niknak30 Posts: 58
    Thank you everyone. What a great supportive place this is. I will be sure to keep you posted on my progress.
  • niknak30
    niknak30 Posts: 58
    So, today is one of those days where I feel like packing it in. I won't of course, but I do feel like it. Have done my three training sessions of 60 mins each this week and have been under my calories every day and yet I still put on almost a kilo. I know all the rational responses and that it happens to us all, but this week, I really didnt want it to happen to me.
    So, just a little whinge ..... back to the good stuff...... lettuce is my friend LOL
    Nik
  • Kim55555
    Kim55555 Posts: 987 Member
    I have lost 5.8 kg (which is about 13 pounds I think) and I am definitley feeling better for it even though I am not yet seeing it. I am trying not to think about the long term goal which is basically to lose a human... too daunting really. So my aim for the 8 week challenge is to finish in the top 5 of the 42 contestants ( I am currently in 8th) and to lose 8 kilos. I then have another short term goal which is to get through Christmas and New Year (which includes 2 and 1/2 weeks of holidays and no training) without putting on any weight. Then a new 8 weeks challenge will commence again- although not as part of a competition.

    Good luck and good work so far and its great you are focussing on exercise! I've lost nearly 30 kg since April 2010 and yes what I did was break it down into 3 month periods at a time. I had a goal to reach every 3 months instead of looking at the very end. It helps. Its not so overwhelming that way. Also helped me visualizing myself that I had already made it!! Faking it before you make it. Its b***** hard work but if you have the drive nothing will stop you!

    I still have about 4 kg i want to lose and I keep setting challenges too, so I reckon your on the right track there!! Along with improving my measurements at my next appriasal what has helped me get through the last 6 weeks is that I have been frantically working my *kitten* off to fit comfartbly into my touch rugby top. I purposely got a size too small so I'd have to lose more weight to wear it. In week 1 I couldn't breathe too well in it and now a month later its looser. I reckon in another 4 - 6 weeks it will be the perfect size for me!

    Some tips. Along with taking your scale weight make sure you take your measurements so as to avoid discouragement when the scale doesn't move for you. Photos are also a good idea!

    Also a tip from my weight watchers leader. Take a monthly average of your weight loss and dont be too concerned about weekly fluctuations. There are large variations due to fluid movements in the body of which nothing has to do with fat loss. Anyway add up the total loss over 4 weeks and divde by 4 and just keep perservering. With me I wouldn't lose for few weeks and even put on weight and then in the 4th or 5th week all of a sudden i'd have a 1.5 kg loss. If you are wanting to lose half a kg every week its not going to happen every single week, the body doesnt work like that. Continue with your exercise eat at that defecit and the scale catches up eventually. You just have to be patient and dont give up :)

    Good work :) Keep it up

    ps I was born in 72 too! in July

    edited to add:

    Also try keeping a record of your running accomplishments. ie how far you can run. how long it takes to run a certain distance. That will be encouraging for you when you are trying to get through plateaus or your losing motivation. This way you will see what how healthy and fit you are becoming and this will inspire you to keep going! Take note of things you find you are able to do along the way, something as simple as not being as out of breath climbing a flight of stairs or noticing your flexibility improving when doing some stretches. ie You can comfortably stretch a body part because less fat is in the way now.
  • Clare_F
    Clare_F Posts: 76
    Good luck, you have made a really good start so far. I am too trying to lose weight before hitting the big 40 in April. I have been on here for a few weeks now and finding it so great, Id never logged calories or measured quantities before this. In addition I have taken up running setting myself the goal of a half marathon a month before my 40th !
  • niknak30
    niknak30 Posts: 58
    Thanks Kim55555 I hope to be on the right track. Yes, I am tracking my measurements and trying to go by clothes sizes etc which is good but my mind is stuck on the numbers which I know is so ridiculous. 30kg is a seriously impressive loss.... you are so close to the end...... I am sure losing that last 4kg is a tedious and frustrating time.
    Good luck, can't wait to hear when you make it!
  • Kim55555
    Kim55555 Posts: 987 Member
    Thanks Kim55555 I hope to be on the right track. Yes, I am tracking my measurements and trying to go by clothes sizes etc which is good but my mind is stuck on the numbers which I know is so ridiculous. 30kg is a seriously impressive loss.... you are so close to the end...... I am sure losing that last 4kg is a tedious and frustrating time.
    Good luck, can't wait to hear when you make it!

    HI :) Your welcome.

    I've learnt to become patient with the scale. I've had to be! It has been such a long slow process for me. A big reason why it has been so slow is because of the intense exercise and weights that I do. Yeah at times the last 4 kg has been and will be frustrating for me to lose but so have the other 28 kgs at different times during my journey. I'm hoping to get to 58 kg by my 2nd year anniversary in April 2012. But I'd rather lose it in 2 years looking toned, muscularly defined and physically fit, than lose it all in a shorter period of time and end up *skinny fat* and unfit/unhealthy.


    This is what I wrote in the losing the last 10 pounds group about what the scale means to me. I thought you might like to read.


    Hi

    I have learnt not to let the scale bother me anymore. My body has this pattern it goes through when losing weight. 3 weeks ago I got down to an all time low of 61.9 kg then a week later I got my period and it went back up 1 and a half kg. Since then it has been fluctuating anywhere between 62.5 and 63.5 for the past 3 weeks. But I know that this is what happens with my body. It kinda feels like the body is trying to readjust and is fighting the new weight of 61.9 kg for tooth and nail and what I do is I just keep doing exactly what i've been doing the past 3 weeks, eating at the same good defecit exercising intensely and eventually the scale weight will go back down to 61.9 and it will stay at 61.9 for probably a good few weeks before the whole pattern occurs again. You see I dont lose weight weekly it occurs in stages. I usually just take the 6 - 8 week average loss and whilst my body is not moving on the scale to keep from being discouraged I keep note of how my clothes are fitting me.

    Even though I went back up 1.5 kg from 3 weeks ago my clothes are even looser than 3 weeks ago. My touch rugby top is most definately feeling looser and i'm almost fitting into this top my sister in law bought back from bali which omg I cant believe I nearly fit it. I try it on every 3 - 4 weeks and it feels so much looser than a few weeks ago. So even though my scale weight went up in the past 3 weeks I know that i'm still losing body fat because of my clothes. The scale just takes a while to catch up to my weight loss!!
  • niknak30
    niknak30 Posts: 58
    Thanks Kim 55555, it is always great to hear advise from people who have gone before you and learnt from it.
    Trying to just stay focused!
  • Kim55555
    Kim55555 Posts: 987 Member
    I'm hovering between 57.5 - 59.2 now. I got to 57.5 on August 6th! :)

    I scale platued for 6 months but in the past 2 months scale started moving again. Even though the scale didn't move for 6 months it didn't mean I wasn't making progresss. I was losing fat & cms & people kept saying how much weight I was losing!

    How have you gone? :)
  • Kim55555
    Kim55555 Posts: 987 Member
    I'm hovering between 57.5 - 59.2 now. I got to 57.5 on August 6th! :)

    I scale platued for 6 months but in the past 2 months scale started moving again. Even though the scale didn't move for 6 months it didn't mean I wasn't making progresss. I was losing fat & cms & people kept saying how much weight I was losing!

    How have you gone? :)

    Wow I'm reading over my notes in here from last August. Its been kind of like an online journal for me. How funny! because I'm still hovering between 57.7 and 59 kg but ive lost so much fat since footy season ended in August when I wrote this. I hadn't seen the footy girls in 3 months (during the offseason) and got some great feedback in November that they could tell I'd lost a lot more weight. They wanted to know what training I had been doing to get so lean. I'm so glad a couple of girls made the comments because I told them I felt like I was kind of flying blind and wasn't entirely sure how my progress was going because I can no longer count on the scale to show the true story. I've been going by clothes sizes now mostly and peoples comments if I haven't seen them in 2-3 months.

    I've gone down in clothes sizes. I'm now fitting into skins xs size. Dream come true to be able to wear spandex haha. I still have some fat on my tummy i want to get rid of and its been taking ages but I just keep chipping away at it. I have no idea what number on the scale i'll end up at haha. I'll have to get off my *kitten* and upload some photos to photo bucket. I'm thinking maybe 57. It might
    take another 6 - 12 months to get there. My goal now has changed in that I dont just want to be in a healthy weight range I want that 6 PACK :D

    OP are you still around? How have you been going? Did you get to your girl for your 40th birthday?
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