Progress Pic - April 10 - Dec 11

Thanks

Thanks everyone!

Hi

My journey so far

haha be prepared for a long read. I have a habit of writing long stories. I hope I can inspire and motivate others and maybe offer some tips that have helped me.

I put on a lot of weight in 2006 after I stopped playing sport and exercising and when you stop exercising usually your diet tends to go by the wayside too. At this time in my life I was diagnosed with a medical condition which also caused me to gain weight.

So since 2006 I have tried a couple of times to lose the weight. In 2008 I was 95 kgs and managed to lose around 10 kgs but couldn't keep going and put it back most of it back on. I settled at around the low 90's.

In 2009 I started to get interested in playing aussie rules again. My passion in life. I have played for 20 years now. I would turn up to training but not train I would just walk / jog laps. I remember when the girls would ask me why I didnt join in I would say I want to lose a bit of weight first and then I'll play but I never could get started. I guess I just wasn't ready for the committment.

2010 comes along and I remember it was April and I was having all sorts of problems moving on the footy field. My knees were especially hurting. I was struggling big time and I wasn't enjoying myself. I wasn't able to give my best out on the field because it was so difficult to lug the weight around. I remember vividly talking to the fitness coach at the end of training one night about how fed up I was and that my knees were killing me. I said I really wanted to lose the weight so that I could play footy, and she went on about all the health problems I'm heading towards etc etc.

My motivation for losing the weight was so that I could play FOOTY. haha I didn't care about anything else. Everything else was secondary. I just wanted to play footy the way that I used to be able to play and I was not able to. So that is what gave me the determination. As I write this I am becoming very emotional thinking back. I am fighting back the tears.

I started off with weight watchers. I needed all the support I could get. People ask me how did I lose it and I kind of didn't like to mention that I have been going to weight watchers because then I get the impression that they think weight watchers has been doing all the hard yards. I'm the one that has worked my *kitten* off to get to where I am today. Weight watchers whilst it has been nice to say hello to people, they have not been the ones smashing themselves in the gym, and on the track. Its all been me!! I'm the one thats done it.

Ok so I started in April 2010 with Weight watchers weighing 91.3 and dont get me wrong weight watchers is a great organsation. I just dont like it when people say the organisation is the magic ingredient that has done the trick for me. I feel like they are taking credit away from me in some way. Anyway rant over.

When I started I knew that exercise is just as important as what you eat and how much you eat. So I started off doing what I could do. I used to walk long distances and as I got fitter I can remember walking home from work the long way around the river. Total time taken around 2 and half hours. A few months later I started incorporating the weights again.

I knew that my weight loss is always quite a slow process for me and at times it has been frustrating but I came to learn that there was always a familiar pattern with my loss and that its important to take the average of the month to see how you are going. My weight watchers leader told us this. I would lose for instance 1.5 one week, then the next week nothing, then gain weight, then lose just .02 then lose another 1.5. This kept happening but as long as the trend was going down I knew I was on the right track.

As I got fitter I started mixing the jogging in with the walking and before I knew it I was jogging the whole way and over time jogging faster and faster in the same distance and time. In march 2011 I decided to start taking my measurements at the gym. During some stages of time where I wasn't losing scale weight I was losing centimetres and my clothes were getting smaller and had to keep buying smaller clothes. So even though I wasn't losing on the scale I knew I was losing body fat and this stopped me from getting discouraged. I wont lie though at times I did get frustrated and a bit discouraged but I kept taking note of the fact that I was having to buy new smaller clothes and I also kept noticing changes in my appearance. I was looking trimmer, and people kept making comments all the time about how thin I was getting. This actually happened during an 8 week period my boss went overseas and when he came back even though i hadn't lost scale weight he could see a MASSIVE change in my appearance and told me how I have lost so much weight since he's been away. The scale eventually caught up to all the hard work I was doing.

This leads me to this: No matter how much fat you have to lose you have to be very patient, persistant, determined and focussed. I think I have become so focussed on my goal almost to the point of obsession. Some tips. Dont worry so much about scale weight as I talk about in the earlier paragraph. If you are doing all the right things, eating 10 - 20 % below your estimated maintenance TDEE calories a day and exercising then you just need to be patient and in time you will lose weight. It is basic maths.

I have lost the 30 kgs in 20 months and would like to lose perhaps 3 - 5 kgs more. I'm glad I have done it slowly because it meant that I have had enough energy for my sport and exercise and enough fuel to power me and to perform at my best. Over the course of the 20 months in order to get through pleateaus I have had to change my exercise routines, activities intensities you name it. The body adapts and needs to be shocked in to further growth and loss. Its so important to keep your food intake at a decent level. Dont eat too low as your body hangs onto its fat. I have found its best for me to have a calorie range of somewhere between 200 - 500 defecit from my TDEE. At the moment I'm losing 1 kg a month eating between 1800 - 2000 with heavy exercise. I lost 3 cm of my waist in the past 2 months doing this.

For a couple of months I think I needed a bit of a break from losing so was maintaining between 1900 - 2600 and then two months ago I was ready to lose again. I started to do rowing sprints and a new weights routine incorporating core body work and a fitness ball which was all knew to me and my body. I also have started doing hill sprints which has worked absolute wonders for me in burning the fat and my fitness is at another level now. I have really turned into AN athlete now, like I used to be. After I finish my hill sprints I feel like I have just done a marathon i feel that stufffed and ill. So its very important to keep challenging your body if you want to develop that nice physique and keep losing the fat.

I have completely overhauled my eating. I have reprogrammed myself and dont eat junk food. The only thing I eat occasionally might be some lollies but thats really it. I'm eating lean skinlees chicken breasts, tuna, lean meats, fruit, veges, yoghurt, wholegrains, low fat dairy. I have learned to subsitute. For instance I make the yummiest chicken burgers. Toasted skinless chicken mixed with a little bit of avocado and instead of mayo I use low fat greek yoghurt. It is so delic. haha who would have thought eating healthy could taste so good. I have found I am constantly trying new types of foods now. Foods I would never have thought of trying before. This has been a total lifestyle change for me and not just a *diet*. I could have dieted the 30 kgs away in 12 months and lost a lot of muscle in the process, but no thats not what I'm after.

I'm 5 foot 2 and looking to get to 58 kgs. I have a large frame with muscle and this is a good weight for me to maintain. I need to make sure I have enough calories to fuel me through my sports and if I go to low on the scale then it will effect me in the amount I can eat and the energy I have for my activiites not to mention I love my food and I would be miserable having to eat less.

Looking at the photo of me. Do you think it looks like I need to lose much more? I'm curious.
I still have a bit of tummy roll fat I'd like to decrease. I'm currently 61.5 kg and w hen I get to 60 kg I'll reassess, see how I look and feel and then probably aim for 58 kgs 127 pounds. I can remember though about 10 years ago when I was 30 that I managed to get to 58 kgs but i found this weight hard to maintain and only stayed at 58 for about a month before settling at 62. So its not set in stone I guess. I'll play it by ear and see whats best for me when the time comes. I'll continue to eat at this defecit and keep up the intense exercise and see how much fat my body wants to lose.

At stages because I have really been working out hard I have burnt myself out. I would exercise every day and most of the time intensely and then after 4 or 6 weeks need to take a day off. Now that i'm closer to goal I'm worker smarter. I'm focussing on quality rather than quantity. 3 times a week sprints and intervals and 2 days a week either cycling or slow jogging. 2 days a week weights, with 1 day off a week for rest.

I am so excited about footy pre season!! Pre season training starts at the end of January and I know that this year I wont be back of the pack. I'll be one of the fitter ones there. I'm pretty dam fit right now lol and I cant wait to see the looks on everyones face when they see me after the offseason having lost a lot more.

I hope I haven't left anything out. I guess If I remember anything I'll post it. Feel free to ask me any questions. On a final note I think you have to be mentally ready for this change. I'm so glad that I found the strength to do it! Not only can I now enjoy my footy, but my health is so much better now. I was headed toward diabetes, and all sorts of health problems. Future is looking great and I know I will maintain this weight loss. I have totally gone off the junk food and it takes like poison to me now. I dont go there anymore. I also love playing sport and that helps you to maintain a healthy weight.

Good luck everyone. I wish you all the best with your fat loss and if you have questions for me please post here rather than by personal message because others might benefit too.

Oh yes and as I am just typing as things come to me. I forgot to add: I found it easier if I broke things down into 5 kg goals. It wasn't as overwhelming to me to lose then. My aim was to try to lose 5 kg every 3 months. Now that i'm closer to goal I try for 0,5 - 1 kg a month and I focus on my 8 week preappraisal meeting. It has been a huge struggle/challenge, this marathon weight loss journey of mine but oh so worthile. They say that maintaining the weight is harder than losing but I disagree with this. I believe both are hard especially if you have a lot to lose. I couldn't imagine what it must be like if you had over 50 kg to lose. Wow you would need a lot of determination for that.

I think when i'm at maintenance, just so that I can remain accountable for the food i'm eating and know that i'm eating the right amount of food I'll continue to log my food for a while and then just see how I go with that. Perhaps do it for a year and then see.

Well I'm off for a lovely bike ride around the river. Such beautiful weather here in sunny Perth, Western Australia!

Seeya

I am so looking forward to when pre season footy training starts at the end of January! I haven't seen most of the girls since August and haha... I cant wait to see everyones reactions!

I cant wait for the 1st game in April when i'm in the changerooms and I pull off my shirt to put on my footy jumper. Feeling sexy & s*** haha

I will use this as motivation to get to goal by April!