***WALL OF TEXT***
Right, introduction time. I'm 27, turning 28 soon and next year, I'll be graduating. (Sounds weird to you? Well, I first worked 6 years before going back to get my degree). I do not want to graduate as "the fat one". After graduation, I will then soon marry my wonderful boyfriend. There's no way I'm doing that as "the fat one".
As for my weight, it's always been... You know... Odd. At age 14-15, I was a highly active person, but weighed about 190 pounds or so. At the same time I quit working out (I blame computers and whatever), I lose weight, until a nice 135 lbs. I wish I could explain why quitting excercise made me lose weight, but, alas.
At that time (sweet 16), I meet my (now ex-)boyfriend and in the three years we are dating, I slowly gain weight again, until I'm weighing well over 190. Getting real tired of him (for various reasons that have little to do with my weight), I dump his furry behind, quit school, get a job and lo' and behold: I lose weight, getting to a stable 140 lbs. (I'm not saying my weight was his fault, but, well...
).In the time after, I gain maybe 5 pounds again, but then... I decide to quit smoking. Healthy decision, but my weight did not agree. Since I'm used of telling this story in kilos (because it's funny), I'll take the liberty to do so. In the 14 days after quiting, I gain 14 kilos. Yes, one kilo per day. (That's 30 pounds in two weeks, for those who know little about kilos). In the months after, my weight stabilizes (thank you very much, weight!) at 190 pounds again.
I then get really tired in January (my weight being at that level now for a while) and since I'm tired all day, my mom tells me to have my bloodwork done. Thyroid is acting up (what?), GP tells me to have it checked yearly (the TSH was like 4.5, for those knowing anything about thyroids and all). So, thinking, hey, my weight is going up and down without me doing anything specific, I decide to see a endo, which again checks my blood, tells me my TSH-values are now "normal " (like 2.1) but I have anti-TPO (means Hashimoto's and I need to check my blood every 6 months (yeah, like I've done that!). That's 2009, by the way, if you lost track of time.
She does send me to a dietician, which tells me to eat more per day than I usually eat in three days (huh?) and to go back to gym. Which I do, for the next four months. Weight difference? 9 pounds. Oh, that I gained, not lost.
So, whatever. Not having much time, and feeling someone getting paid just to put me on a scale is a bit over the top, I decide to quit going there and my weight stays at ease, losing those 9 pounds even in the next few months.
Then, oh no... I move in with my boyfriend (December 2009). Slowly, but surely, his lifestyle makes me gain weight. He's 6'7, way taller than me, and has a knack for eating bags of chips and bars of chocolate until there is none left. Instead of sharing chips and chocolate, I have to buy my own, otherwise I get none. My mom taught me to just leave the bag in the cupboard and take a handful with you while watching TV. He taught me to just take an entire large bag and eat that in one go.
Of course I have my own responsibility, but it's really hard, living with a man like him who just eats and eats. Funny thing, when we met, he wasn't even fat. He was even skinny. (Weighing less than me despite being a ft taller). I guess he too once had a mom who taught him good things, but more of a... "You get one bag/week" (which he then ate in one go), whereas my mom was like "We get one bag/week" (which we then enjoyed together for an entire week).
Doesn't matter, I'm drifting.
Two years ago, weighing a whoppin' 250, I decided to "diet". Diet being a nice word for a very unhealthy "let's barely eat and walk an hour a day"-thing. I lost quite some weight, ended at 220, but then I went back to school, getting home at 7:30 PM, still having homework and such, so I decide to let him to do the cooking.
All he can cook, is spaghetti, fries and frozen pizzas. Fortunately, I don't get home that late every night and to counteract that bad food, I eat an apple at lunch. But steadily, the lost weight creeps back up on me. Until at the end of June this year, I was weighing more than ever... 263 pounds! I mean, I felt bad about my weight when I was dragging 190, let alone THAT. At the same time, my boyfriend needs his bloodwork done (we've been very sick in April and he still had issues apparently with his intestines and the GP saw it as a sign to at least get his cholesterol done). His cholesterol is very high (like, I'm not even going to tell you how high because it's embarassing).
His father had his first heart attack at age 55, meaning his levels could be a genetic disorder, but, there's only one way to know. (Well, I find it the best way to know): We partake a low-cholesterol diet for three months and then get him checked again. And, while we're at it, we just change our entire (disgusting) lifestyle, and do what we should've done years ago: Live healthily, exercise regurarly.
Which is what we are now doing, obviously.
And that goes just fine. I am learning healthy ways to make certain comfort foods (like pancakes, hah!). I've lost 9 pounds and it's now slowing up a bit, but I feel much more energized eating fresh and whole foods. Yet, I know not every day is going to stay this easy, hence why I seek a forum to support me on those bad days and to support others when I'm winning the fight. In the beginning, I did speak of the fight against the weight, but my main goal, my absolute goal, is to be healthy. I am not on a diet, I assure you. We are just adapting a lifestyle that we wish to keep on until the rest of our days. Is all.
Your enthusiasm will play a vital role in this transition - just make sure to stick to the plan and commit to it. Good luck!
