My Weight loss Story - The How
Happy Wednesday Y’all!
Over the past two weeks, I have shared “when” I decided to lose weight, “why” I made the choice for myself, and now I am wrapping up this series with the “how” I lost the weight. This is probably the most popular question I get! Below I tried to break it down for ya and show what I did one step at a time.
When I had my realization and knew I wanted/ needed to lose weight I started by kicking out sugary sodas (I saw on Oprah that it was bad for you #ThanksOprah). Within two weeks I was down nearly 15 pounds! I was now determined. So, anytime Oprah or the local news or even infomercials (yes I know) had any kind of health information I would write it down so that I could learn more.
I started learning more about calories and how to read nutrition labels. I quickly learned that I could save calories on things like burgers and burritos by ordering them without the cheese or ordering smaller portions (a happy meal instead of a #2). I was on a roll at this point and starting to really lose weight but after a few months, I hit the holidays which threw off my decline and for the first time I was starting to see my numbers climb. I decided to start keeping a calorie journal and this was a huge game changer and led to additional weight loss.
The last little nugget was figuring out my “triggers”. Once I started journaling I quickly realized that my after-school snacking is where my calories were disappearing to. I loved to just sit in front of the TV with an entire Sam’s Club sized bag of chips and watch whatever middle schoolers watch. This led me to change two things. One, never sitting in front of the TV with an entire container of anything/ measuring out all my snacks. Two, instead of going home after school I auditioned for every play/ musical (SHOUTOUT to my fellow Berry Bear Theater Nerds) and I threw myself into every after school club you could join.
These steps are what led to my greatest success and my initial 70-pound weight loss. Keep in mind, it took me just under 18 months to implement all of these steps. Over the next 2 years I started adding in exercise and then in college I focused on getting “Miss Texas” ready (future blog on that). So looking over my “how” I think there are 3 key points. First, it was gradual. I didn’t do a fad diet, I wasn’t starving myself, I didn’t do things so drastically that I wanted to give up. Second, I tracked everything. If you are really serious about losing weight I think you have to track everything. It not only keeps you accountable but it also educates you on what actually works FOR YOU (not every diet works for everybody). Third, I found solutions and eliminated my biggest trigger.
I can not guarantee success if you follow these steps but I will say that is the way it worked for me. I truly believe that if you are ready for change then it takes gradual steps, tracking your food, and finding solutions to your biggest triggers!
My Challenge to you:
Pick just one thing to change today in your diet (less bread, no soda, more water) and start tracking your food everyday for the next week and see what happens! Let me know how it goes!
PS If you are like me, then you are probably more of a bullet point type person.
Below I have listed things in order of my gradual steps to health. Just keep in mind this was over time.
My order of gradual dieting:
Kicked Out Sugary Soda- So long Dr. Pepper
Fast Food Without the Cheese
Smaller Portions- Going for the happy meal instead of a number 2 supersized
Starting A Calorie Journal- Rough estimates on my daily calorie intake
Started to Figure Out My Triggers- Mine was after school snacking
Slowly Added in The Gym- I LOVED group exercise and still do!
Transitioned From “Smaller Portions of Junk Food” to Healthier REAL Foods
Started Getting Pageant Ready- Future blog on pageant dieting, it is really more so if you are working on that last 10 or have one day you are getting ready for not what I think is at the core of weight loss
