First 10 Pounds Gone!
 

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I DID IT! KNOCKOUT - ROUND 1 (of 6)

I cannot tell you how much fun it was today to change my little chick avatar from 5 lbs to 10 lbs lost! My other rewards are to post here...my first time in the Mini Goal thread...do my victory laps in the grocery store with TWO five lb bags of sugar ... and going to get my hair trimmed. Oh yes, and I'm adding three days of working out in the exercise room every week. Gotta start thinking of exercising as a reward, and not punishment!

:lifter: :tread: :exercise:

In some ways it feels like such a little amount, but in others it seems already like a huge accomplishment. I've never actually tried to lose weight before in a real planned fashion. Only by starving myself or diet pills. Although I am very committed to my "lifestyle change" this time, I needed the incentive of seeing the scale number drop, to confirm my decision. I really can do this, it's not magic.

I basically count calories with an online tool, am paying attention to nutrition and activity level, have a diet buddy and joined here for support, try to eat as much "whole food" as I can, limiting processed and eating organic fruits and veggies, have been working in more exercise, am working on my self-esteem (inside out changes) and honestly give myself a little leeway when I need it. We cut down drastically on alcohol, but I still enjoy a couple of glasses of wine a week, have a favorite bratwurst meal once or twice a week (but count it) and those days I want to crawl back in bed, I do.

The best part is I have a loving BF who loves me as I am and is willing to make life changes with me just because he wants to support my happiness. I could cry writing this because - well - I really got lucky in the love department!

The first month has been hard - there was some weird perspective changes as one one hand I was looking in the mirror and since I had finally faced the reality of the scale, really started seeing how badly out of shape I had gotten. This was somewhat horrifying. But because my first 10 pounds seemed to have come off my upper belly I could see an immediate difference in my waistline and how pants fit - so it was like I was seeing both good and bad at same time. Emotionally it was a little disconcerting.

So 1/6 of way to goal. Can't wait til I've been here long enough to add my ticker. But I started at 205 almost exactly one month ago (tomorrow), the scales showed 194.8 today and I'm aiming for 145. At 5'5 I know when I was thin I looked good at 135 - but I was squishy. This time I'm aiming for FIT AND BUFF. So I've added 10 pounds on for all the amazing muscle I'm going to be putting on.

THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR YOUR SUPPORT - and sharing all your successes and yes, even failures. Because sometimes there are days when the scale hasn't moved it's just darn depressing. I need to know this is not a journey I'm undertaking alone. I'm so glad to be here in company of such awesome gals and guys.

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:grouphug:

THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR INDULGING ME IN THIS POST!

By the way, I'm protecting some posts on my 3FC blog - not sure if this is just paranoid, or not. I guess I don't want anyone from the general public stumbling on them. It's just the before pictures at this point of course. The thing is I talk about some things that I'd prefer stay somewhat private and I don't necessarily want semi-private and public to cross. I want to be able to be completely honest in my blog. If anyone here is interested and wants the password though feel free to send me a private message. When I reach goal though I will post before/after in the forums!

great job! 10 lbs is awesome-it seems like such a small goal-but it ISNT :) congrats!!:yes:

thats awesome, congrats on changing your avatar :)

Congrats!! :carrot:

In no way is this a little amount -- you should be very proud!

Congratulations! Can't wait to be there myself. 10lbs is a lot! Just started the cookie diet and get motivated each time I read success stories like yours. Keep up the great work.
Raquel

Raquel7 - what is the cookie diet???!!! That sounds too funny. Is it like my favorite workout song is "MMMMM DONUTS" by the Lunachicks? Sort of perverse encouragement.

Thank you EVERYONE for your support. I guess it is a lot. I know when I started I would have given a tooth for that 10 lbs to just magically disappear. I have to remember perspective, perspective, perspective. It's all relative.

That's just fantastic, you should be so proud of yourself! 10 lbs is a lot of weight...go to the meat counter and make a pile of 10lbs of beef and you'll really see what you've done. Congrats!

This is wonderful! Congratulations!! The beginning is always the hardest. I've just begun my weight loss journey and can't wait to join you in losing my first 10 lbs. Very inspiring!! :)

Wow! You've done really well in only a month. Good luck on the rest of your journey;)

Wooo!! Congrats!!!!!!!!!!

Thank you all! But okay - maybe I should have waited as the next day the scale inched up a lb and then the next day another lb and a half. I was back to where I was two weeks ago! BUT I'M NOT GIVING IT BACK. My scale saw that weight and since it wasn't a sudden drop then it was real and I'm keeping it.

However I have made a new change. This morning....I didn't (gasp) get on the scale. IT WAS SO HARD NOT TO.

But what other posters say is true. If I've made this a lifestyle change - a commitment - then I don't need the emotional up and downs brought on by my daily weigh-in. The scale has been in control of me! I had to give it up.

So who knows if I lost it again or not. Probably water weight - could be a dreaded early plateau.

I couldn't go completely cold turkey - one poster recommended just weighing when you KNEW you'd lost weight. Like if your pants were looser. But I don't think I can do that. Instead I have agreed with myself, for now, to only check on Sundays. I'll post here again then. Fingers crossed I can keep my 10 lb chick!

Just a last update. Happy to report, my little bounce up the scale - it was just water weight - WHEW- I can keep my little avatar GRIN. Weighed in today (on my now only-once-a-week weigh in) and was 194. Yeah. It stuck! Celebrated with forty minutes in the exercise room. Now on to the next mini-goal...

congrats! awesome job!