[clawlady]

Almost one year ago today I set out to lose 50 pounds. I didn't know if I could do it, but wanted to try. Now I've lost 78 pounds and am officially a normal BMI. 147lbs at 5'5". I'm down from 225.

How did I do it? I started off downloading the My Fitness Pal and decided to try and learn to track my calories. I stuck to the calorie goals and consistently lost weight; about 5 to 8lbs a month. As I felt better I started adding in exercise, mostly walking and biking. I have done all kinds of diets before and just gained the weight back. I didn't want to repeat the process so I decided to only do things I can do forever. Drink water, but I still have 1 diet coke per day. Keep my calories to the MFP goal and focus on maintenance from the beginning. I don't want to do this in a way I can't sustain it. I've been at 150lbs for 4 months now. I just dropped to 147 this week. This is the longest I've maintained a normal weight since I was a teenager and I'm 38 now.

I thought about posting this when I hit 150, but I wanted to keep it off for a little while first. It took me a while to get to the realization that maintenance is the most important part though. I have tried so many diets - Atkins, South Beach, diet pills, slim fast shakes, I even went vegan for a few months. I could lose weight with all the diets but it was just so restrictive and different from how I'm comfortable eating I stopped and gained all the weight back. I decided this time needed to be different so I focused on maintaining from the beginning. I've read books, listened to podcasts (Half-Size Me is a great one) and read tons on this forum. Once I learned about calorie counting and changed my mindset from how I look to how I feel, it kind of clicked. My eating is much healthier now, but it has been a slow process.

My Imgur before and after pics link is attached. Hopefully it works. http://imgur.com/gallery/gPANm

[Emma121]

Wow. Congrats. What an achievement.i hope to be just as successfull someday. I hope you enjoy the New you and your new life.

[grannynancy]

Congrats on your achievement and here to hoping your path towards maintenance from the beginning will keep you there. A solid 4 months is a great start to the rest of your thin life.

[clawlady]

Thank you both very much! I'm feeling so much better. I wish you the best of luck on your journey!

[Keiran]

Great work! Keep it up!

I myself am doing things a little differently nowadays. I've tried so many weight loss programs in the past but like you, I was never able to sustain it for long. And once I "slipped", I began to get lazy picking up where I left off. I knew I needed something more sustainable, something that wouldn't make me think I was depriving myself. And something that didn't need me to go to the gym (did I just say I was lazy?).

But you know, I realized that it all starts with motivation. You have to dig deep within you and truly understand why you want to lose weight. You have to have a strong motivation to enable you to sustain your efforts to lose weight. Because it's not easy at all.

[clawlady]

Thank you Keiran! I'm doing my best each day. And don't worry about being "lazy" - I sure am! Lol I think most people are, we just have to find ways to work with the laziness. For instance, I know that I'm not going to get up an hour early to go to the gym so I just started taking my dog for slightly longer walks, and walking around the block on my lunch break at work. I have spent so much money on gyms to go for a month and then stop. I am not paying for it anymore. I did however, buy myself a stationary bike to use at home while watching TV. I have to work with myself, not try to force myself to do things I don't enjoy because I will not stick with it.

I have done the same thing with my eating habits. I track my calories and I have a range that I stay in, but within that range I can eat whatever foods I like. I've slowly worked toward healthier foods, focused on protein and fiber to keep me full, but I still eat the foods I like, even pizza and cheeseburgers. Lol

Personally, I don't really focus on motivation - I focus on creating habits that I can stick to whether I am motivated or not. I don't need motivation to brush my teeth or shower each day, I do it because of a habit created many years ago. I have worked on creating habits slowly over the past few years to drink more water and less soda/coffee. Now it is so ingrained in me to drink water, I don't even think about it. I have also done the same with walking, biking, eating more veggies and fruit. Create habits and the change will come, whether the motivation does or not! Best of luck to you on your journey!

[HydraWoman]

Congratulations! You are such an inspiration! Thanks for sharing how you were able to achieve your goals. I especially like how you changed eating habits and so forth and were able to lose in a healthy way and will be able to maintain your weight.

[VictoriousWeightLoss]

OMG. Excellent! Congratulations