Oh, good - hi!
It's just such a nice feeling to think there are people in my age group and weight. I know a lot of weight-loss philosophy does apply all over the map, but a lot of the big WOW success stories I see and read about online are, like, twenty year-olds with 100+ pounds to lose. And no doubt, that is massively impressive and I'm very happy for those people, but often their stories don't quite resonate for me.
I was solidly in the 130-135 range for most of my twenties. I always felt like I could be in a little better shape, but I generally looked and felt good and never really had to do anything special to maintain.
Then, in the last three or four years, I just... lost it (or rather, gained it!). I don't know how it happened, and I certainly didn't SEE it happening. But suddenly (or it sure felt sudden!) I had about 25 more pounds on my body! I had been working as a teacher and almost always wore skirts or dresses, so I didn't even realize I'd outgrown all my jeans.
I think that realizing how big I'd gotten actually made it worse at first - it was depressing and felt daunting. Every time I tried to lose it, I'd get frustrated with the lack of progress and give up. Because I hadn't realized how the weight gain was slowly happening over time, I was REALLY reluctant to accept how long it was going to take to lose it. It had felt so quick - why shouldn't the results be quick?! Well, I'm out of that woods of denial. And now I've got a long, PATIENT road ahead.
Siiiiiiiiiiigh.
(But I'm also excited!

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