WOW! Congratulations on a job well done - it must feel so good to have arrived at your goal yet I'm sure it also feels somewhat surreal - what an accomplishment!
Thanks so much for sharing - it's fun to celebrate this incredible victory with you - it is also great motivation for the rest of us - to read of your success, the result of hard work and determination, reassures us that it can be done and that your story can be ours!
Don't be concerned over any gain you may have over the holidays - you have conquered much more than that to reach your goal and I'm sure will be able to handle anything that comes your way - so celebrate yourself - you have earned the right to do so!
Passionista: Probably waaay more details than you're interested in (), but here you go:
I began in July of 2007 at 256 lbs, so it's taken a little over two years to reach my goal. I started out counting calories and walking on my treadmill daily for 30 minutes. I gradually increased my time on the treadmill over the next few months until I was doing about 60 minutes everyday. In November of 2007 I bought a set of Turbo Jam DVDs (w/ the weighted gloves) off of eBay. I can't remember how often or which workout(s) specifically I was doing at that time. I stuck with that until Christmas, then I kind of fell off the wagon , at least as far as exercise was concerned. I was still counting calories and got under 200 in January 2008. Around April of 2008 I started using my Turbo Jam DVDs again (Cardio Party on M-W-F and Turbo Sculpt with 2 lb weights on T-T). Saturday was (and still is) my rest day. I was down to the high 170s in late Summer/early Fall of 2008. A close family member had some serious health problems, so I stopped exercising again for a couple of months. I bounced around the high 170s for a while, but didn't gain too much because I was still counting calories.
I was pretty unhappy with myself around that time, so I got back to exercising in March of 2009. I also started calorie cycling, with 1500 calories per day as my goal. I weighed about 172 and I went back to the same early morning Turbo Jam rotation (Cardio Party on M-W-F and Turbo Sculpt with 3 lb weights on T-T) and added in another workout in the evenings (Fluidity Bar on M-W-F and Biggest Loser workouts on T-T). I have a very sedentary desk job, so that's not as much activity as you might think.
In late June of 2009, I switched to Jillian Micheals' new workouts. Banish Fat Boost Metabolism on M-W-F and No More Trouble Zones w/ 2 lb weights on T-T. In the evening I was still doing my Fluidity Bar workouts on M-W-F (I worked my way thru each DVD and am now doing the advanced workout). On T-T I started doing level 1 of the 30 Day Shred. I've been doing the same routine until last month, when I switched to 5 lb weights for No More Trouble Zones on T-T and started doing the Turbo Jam 20 minute workout and 30 Day Shred (level 1 w/ 5 lb weight) on Sundays. I still use 3 lb weights for the 30 Day Shred on T-T, though. I'd like to try ChaLEAN Extreme sometime in 2010, if I can afford it.
I think that's everything. I used to eat fast food a LOT (2-3 times per day), but started cooking healthier meals at home. I stopped drinking Pepsi daily and opted for water instead (that took some getting used to!). I do still eat fast food (usually twice) on the weekends - I know, I know: not the best choice. But I work it into my calorie allowance and I do intend to work on cutting that down/out eventually. Right now I'm trying hard to give myself a little credit and be happy with my progress thus far.
), but here you go:
, at least as far as exercise was concerned. I was still counting calories and got under 200 in January 2008. Around April of 2008 I started using my Turbo Jam DVDs again (Cardio Party on M-W-F and Turbo Sculpt with 2 lb weights on T-T). Saturday was (and still is) my rest day. I was down to the high 170s in late Summer/early Fall of 2008. A close family member had some serious health problems, so I stopped exercising again for a couple of months. I bounced around the high 170s for a while, but didn't gain too much because I was still counting calories.
