Down a Quarter
I lost a quarter of my former physical self, but gained so much more.
If you’re overweight, you know it. You know that your clothes don’t fit as well, and you get little pains that you don’t know whether to blame on the weight or the advance of time. You’re tired.
My weight gain started late in college — part of an ill-fated foray into vegetarianism that focused more on carbs than vegetables. My early 20s saw me bounce back a bit — just in time for my 2002 wedding — but after I had kids I never could shake it. In fact, I excused it; perhaps even thought of the weight as something we women endure after childbirth.I began to accept the fact that I was overweight.
I wasn’t just overweight, though — I was obese, along with 36 percent of adult Americans, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.And I didn’t know how overweight my should-be petite, 5 foot four inch self was until I weighed myself in spring of 2012.
198 lbs.
And that, combined with the possibility of inheriting my mom’s continued knee problems caused in part by — you guessed it, weight — was a serious wake-up call.
I’m down 55 lbs. now. I’m about 10 lbs. away from my goal weight, but I’m definitely at a healthy weight and am definitely healthier than I was a year ago.
I’m sometimes asked how I did it, and think that friends and family expect a magic bullet answer: Oh, it was NutriSystem. Or Atkins. Or eating 8 bananas in a day:
My weight loss plan was pretty simple.
— Eat less.
— Exercise more.
Other requirements? Motivation, commitment and the right tools.
For me, eating less was the missing puzzle piece. I’d never really watched what I’d eaten — specifically, I never really understood how much I was supposed to eat. This was despite using all the little tricks that dieticians will tell you to use: Cooking at home, not keeping junk food around, avoiding sodas and eating lots of veggies (I actually love veggies and for me, a meal isn’t complete without a leafy green). That said, I still found excuses for ice cream, especially in the hot summer months. Or I’d snag a cookie here and there.
I never really knew how much I should eat, and how to tally that up. I needed help — and luckily help was free. I downloaded the MyFitnessPal app, and it was a serious game-changer.
The app couldn’t be more simple to use, but it does require dedication. If you’re not willing to input each and every morsel you eat — and the only thing I don’t count is my twice-daily coffee (less than 10 calories) — the app won’t work. The tool is only as good as the commitment of the user.
MyFitnessPal will ask that you input your current weight and weight loss goals (mine are modest and geared for the long haul at 1 lb per week). It has data on loads of available food, including restaurants, and you can build recipes too — perfect for home cooks like me. It was a huge eye-opener to see how many calories — sometimes the equivalent to more than a day’s worth — most restaurant food contains.I found myself making better food choices, and as a result, really training my mind and body to be a better, healthier eater.
The exercise component just fell into place for me — something I had been doing off-and-on for years without really committing to it. I finally decided on a schedule of sorts — usually 3 or 4 days a week. Zumba worked for me (I use the X-box Kinect), and I throw in a weights and step workout for variety. Whatever gets me really sweaty and smelly.
Here’s the thing — since I’ve lost weight, my allergies don’t kick up nearly as often in spring and fall — a miracle here in Tennessee. I don’t get little aches and pains anymore, and I have so much more energy. My clothes look fantastic on me (weight loss was a great excuse for an updated wardrobe).
My only regret? Waiting until I was in my mid-30s to finally lose the weight.
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Photo by Evan Bench.
