There are a ton of reasons to lose weight: health concerns, preventing disease, the desire to achieve fitness goals, vanity. It doesn’t really matter what the reason is, as long as it’s something that can motivate you to strive for success. It’s funny how those reasons can evolve and change, it’s strange how my mentality changed once I became a runner.
When I was 250 pounds I set achievable weight loss goals for myself…
- I wanted to lose 50 pounds by my brother’s wedding. 8 months later I was 199 a week before I walked down the isle.
- Then I wanted to lose another 25 pounds. I did it.
- I hung around several plateaus and FINALLY achieved my goal weight: 150 pounds.
Andy's Wedding
I’ve written about it before…how that Elusive Goal Weight tends to change. It can change many time too! I’m not talking about changing goal weights now…what I’m talking about is a shift in priorities.
My reasons behind losing 100+ pounds were:
- Health and disease prevention. (I was developing diabetes.)
- Vanity and improving my self-esteem. (I was tired of being The Fat Girl.)
I achieved my weight loss goals and successfully prevented diabetes and a whole mess of other issues I was having. When I was training for Reach the Beach and Hood To Coast, I realized that my reason behind losing weight wasn’t vanity anymore. For once, I had a “higher cause” for losing weight: improving my running and cycling abilities. Instead of focusing on the numbers on the scale, I was focusing on other numbers: fitness numbers.
You may think that 5 or 10 pounds does not make much of a difference in terms of fitness abilities but you’d be wrong. Losing even 5 pounds for a runner can increase speed AND decrease injuries by a huge amount.
If you have any doubts, check out this article about Tour de France. “Any excess weight such as body fat will only slow them down.” Lance Armstrong counts his calories, weighs and measures his food and follows a strict diet when he’s training for those mountain climbs in Tour de France. Even 5 pounds extra will add time. Not good when you’re competing against cyclists who are smaller, thinner and younger!
Runner’s World shared a pretty nifty guide on how to increase your time.
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WEIGHT LOST
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5K
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10K
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HALF-MARATHON
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MARATHON
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2 lbs
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12.4 secs
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25 secs
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52 secs
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1:45
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5 lbs
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31 secs
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1:02
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2:11
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4:22
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10 lbs
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1:02
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2:04
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4:22
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8:44
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20 lbs
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2:04
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4:08
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8:44
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17:28
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Losing 5 pounds will shave almost 5 minutes off your marathon time! When I was running 3-4 times a week in preparation for Hood to Coast I had a hunger that was insatiable. I ate so much food…but I also burned tons of calories. My body also wasn’t losing weight during my training. Losing weight while training for a running event is near impossible. I’m sure many of you can attest to that.
What I found interesting in the article was this quote:
“…while excess muscle on a cyclist’s upper body is dead weight, it’s vital in other sports. So, if you like to run, swim or play team sports as well as cycle, don’t lose weight by just losing muscle mass, or you’ll notice a decline in your performance. Similarly, if you lose too much body fat, your health will be affected.”
Basically with cycling, you want your muscles in the lower body–which is a no-brainer since the leg muscles are what drive your body forward. It never even occurred to me that my big swimmer’s shoulders could be a downside for cycling…Regardless, swimming is here to stay for me because I love it.
But when it comes to cycling, I’ve noticed that my performance has improved with a few simple things. The first thing that has helped has been weight lifting. Losing body fat is always a good thing. The squats and lunges I’ve been doing to strengthen my lower body has made my recovery time fast.
Another thing that has improved my performance is the core work I’ve been doing. Having a strong core is essential to cycling because when you’re hunched over a road bike for long hours that can lead to back pain. Having a strong core prevents back pain from happening.
The reason can change, motivations can evolve as training and years go by. Being flexible to those changes is what keeps things interesting.
QUESTION: What’s your reason? Has it changed since you first started losing weight?
Scott
Amazing! Congrats on all of your success, both with the weight loss and running.
Lisa Eirene
Thanks for reading Scott!
Debbie
Lisa, you are super inspiring, as usual! I remember in one of your posts, you referenced an ap you used at the gym while lifting weights. If I remember correctly, what was the name of the ap? I’d like to start lifing weights at home. It would be handy to have a reference. Thanks!
Lisa Eirene
It was probably the Nike Training Club app. It’s free and it has TONS of exercises you can do at home.
Debbie
I’ll check it out. Thank you so much!
Lisa Eirene
They have different types of activities:
1) Get Lean – high interval cardio
2) Get Toned – light weights and intervals
3) Get Strong – increased weight and reps
4) Get Focused – target 15 min workouts
Debbie
I have a Droid, darn it. (I actually love it.) My kids both have an iPod touch though. I’ll have to borrow one. I’m anxious to get some new ideas!!
Lisa Eirene
If you can get it, do it. It’s so useful!
Debbie
I will definitley check it out tonight. I bet I can even get my kids to try it out with me. Can’t wait!
Tina @ Best Body Fitness
My reason is that being fit truly makes me a better person inside and out. I can FEEL such a difference when I take care of myself…and that is reason enough for me. What a great post, Lisa!
Lisa Eirene
And that’s the BEST reason, honestly. I feel sooo much better when I am fit and active. I notice a difference in my moods, appetite, sleep, everything when I don’t work out…
Lori
I was just so tired of being obese. I hated it and finally hated it enough to really do something about it by making the changes that I needed to make.
Now I don’t worry so much about a number as being strong and fit.
Lisa Eirene
Me too. And I’d finally gotten to the point where I hated it enough to change for good. Not everyone gets there, unfortunately. I was just talking to a friend about some friends of her who weigh 350 pounds and 700+ pounds. They don’t want to change.
Jill
At first I wanted to lose weight as I saw a picture of myself and felt disgusted. As I started losing weight and my daughter began getting older it became more of me being a role model for her on how to be healthy. I didn’t ever want it to be about body image- just health. Now I have learned what being healthy and strong actually brings to my life. Happiness, confidence, stamina for everyday things, long bike rides……
Losing weight has made me happy!
Lisa Eirene
I’m sure there was vanity involved in my decision to lose weight as well, but it was mostly the medical issues that were looming on me. Diabetes scared the crap out of me and I knew I had to change. The more weight I lost, the better I felt and vanity definitely played a part. I suddenly liked what I saw in the mirror, I enjoyed shopping for clothes, the clothes I could buy were MUCH cuter! All of that helped motivate me.
I think you are doing it for the right reason: your kids. That’s great!
Roz@weightingfor50
Hi Lisa. I am in awe of the photo with you holding up your old jeans. You are amazing. I’m on this journey to be healthy and fit as I move toward middle age. Hope you have a wonderful Monday.
Lisa Eirene
Thank you Roz! 🙂
Karen@WaistingTime
Honestly, for me, not so much. I think it has always been vanity, to some extent. Wanting to be happier with my body and how I looked and felt. That’s still the same. Now as for exercise – that’s another story. I started in my 30s for health reasons – high cholesterol. Now I do it because I like how it makes me feel:)
Lisa Eirene
And there is no reason why vanity can’t motivate us. Wanting to look and feel good is an excellent reason!
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