A Magic Pill

If you missed it, I wrote a guest post for Mizfit Online. Here it is:

A Magic Pill

“How did you do it?”

That is the question I get a lot when people find out I lost over 100 pounds. I then proceed to tell them just how I did it. And I watch their faces fall.

Disappointment.

I counted my calories.

“Oh, I can’t do that.” They say.

I started swimming.

“I hate exercising.”

Most of the time the conversation ends after that. No, I don’t have a magic pill that melted off my 110 pounds.  Many people aren’t interested in hearing any more after that.

The truth is, people have to decide for themselves when they are done being fat. No one else can make that decision for them. Concerned family members can’t guilt or browbeat them into losing weight. They have to hit rock bottom on their own.

Rock bottom is different for everyone. For me, it was 250+ pounds, size 24W jeans and pre-diabetes. Being labeled “obese” by my doctor was rock bottom. Being in my mid-20’s and not doing the typical things a 25 year old does was rock bottom.

2005 -250 pounds

Food addicts hitting rock bottom is no different than being an alcoholic and hitting rock bottom. It feels the same: despair, hopelessness, and worthlessness. It feels like nothing is ever going to change, nothing will ever be good again.

So you hit rock bottom and decide there MUST be a better way. There MUST be a change that is sustainable. There must be something I can do to be happy. Once you have that realization, there’s no turning back.

110 pounds is a lot of weight to lose.

Not only that, I did it without doing any programs. Jenny Craig, Atkins, Weight Watchers, Slim Fast, Medifast…all of those programs are expensive! And what happens when the program stops? Often times the weight comes back (and more).

Instead, I taught myself how to eat the right way. I learned what serving sizes were. Once I got started, there was no turning back. It’s hard to “unknow” something. I look at food completely differently now.

2005

Eating half a carton of ice cream in one sitting….I can mentally calculate the calories and that stops me short. Deciding what to drink at the bar….One beer has 170+ calories in it….but a shot of Vodka is about 100.

There are a million and one choices I make regarding food.

You may read that and think, “Wow, she’s taken all the FUN out of food and eating.”

NOT TRUE!! I assure you I still eat good food. But it’s about eating in moderation and eating for the right reasons (something I’m still learning).

I could eat half a pizza by myself in one sitting (and I have–many times). But now I know how that will make me feel. I make a different choice now.

I love carbs. Give me a slice of freshly baked bread and I’m in heaven.

Now I eat carbs the day before a long run to fuel my body and keep me from crashing. I eat carbs but I eat them in moderation and solely for fuel. If I didn’t, if I gave into ever whim I had, I’d be fat.

Reach the Beach 2010

Unused carbs turn into fat in the body.  I eat protein after a good weight lifting session in the gym to repair my muscles. I eat dessert almost every evening because I definitely have a sweet tooth. However, I eat it in moderation and make healthier choices.

“And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.” – Anaiis Nin

Every day is a different challenge. I love that challenge.

No, I don’t have a Magic Pill. Losing weight takes determination and hard work. Losing weight takes a desire to change.

How do you want to change your life?