Or a post full of SOMETHING. MUST. BE. DONE.
We’ve talked a bit about weight loss before but this time I’m serious. I’ve had enough of being fat and unfit and I want to embarrass myself into doing something about it by blogging about it.
As of this morning I weigh 172lbs (12stone 3lbs) which is NOT GOOD for someone who’s only 5ft 1ins tall. In fact, as my Wii Fit never fails to delight in reminding me, I am obese.
Here I am this morning in my work out clothes
I could win the Olympics for yo-yo dieting and have tried every regime under the sun. Last year I had some success with Weight Watchers, but have managed to put most of that back on again. In fact I’m currently nearly at my heaviest weight ever.
This time though I don’t want to count points, or calories or carbs or avoid certain foods. I LOVE food (as you’ve probably worked out) and restricting my eating in any meaningful way always ends up in a big fat fail for me. I also don’t think I eat that badly – we cook a lot at home, so most of our food isn’t processed; I eat plenty of fruit and veg; and I don’t like the taste of soda or really junky foods. But I do know I eat too much, and have been known to binge if there’s a pot of ice cream in the house.
Over the last month or so though, I’ve been reading a lot about the science and psychology of overeating (particularly white carbohydrate addiction), so this time I’m going to approach things in a slightly different way.
Based on my reading here are my new weight loss rules.
Paola’s 5 Rules of Weight Loss
1. Do a bit of exercise EVERY day
2. Cut right back on/avoid refined white carbohydrates, fats, salt and artificial crap
3. Eat as much fruit & veg as possible
4. Try to eat slowly and meaningfully
5. Cut back on portion size
We’ll be talking a bit more about each of these elements over the next few weeks and what is working/isn’t working for me and I might refine these rules along the way. On the 6th of each month I will weigh myself and post up photos so you can see any progress.
I know we’ve been here before, but this time I’m really determined to keep going with it. I also have an added incentive. Last week week I signed up to do a triathlon at Lake Chelan on July 18th 2010. Since at the moment I can barely run, I am rather daunted by this prospect at the moment, but it really is focusing my mind. And hopefully the long deadline means that I will be a completely different person come July.
Wish me luck!
Oh and coincidentally (since I’ve been planning this post/new regime for quite some time now) Megan Not Martha has just written up a long post on how she managed to lose 25lbs this year using a similar regime. We meet up occasionally to knit, and I can testify that she really does look amazing.
Thanks for posting this – it’s inspiring to read. And, good luck!
I started on a similar road to self improvement exactly a month ago, so I was amused to note that we’ve got the same schedule. My exercise of choice was to join a local Curves gym, and my weigh-in days there are always the 6th, too. Just as I was musing over the fact that I’ve got that coming up this evening, your post popped up in my blog reader. As a result, I’m looking forward to seeing the progress reports on the 6th every month – maybe it will keep me honest, too! 😉
Oooh fate… Good luck for this evening and do come back and let us know how you did. Does anyone else want to do a 6th December weigh in with us?
good luck! i had to deal with similar numbers myself, the only tiny difference being i’m only two inches taller than you. i’ve fought with my weight for ten years and at the beginning of this year i put my foot down to resolve this once and for all, and have managed to drop to 10 st! sounds like you’re doing the same, you can do this!
Yay Bushra! Good for you. What are your best tips?
You and I are the same height and weight, yet you are so much braver than me to post pics. And every time my Wii says “that’s obese” I wish I could smack it around a bit and call it exercise. Count me in for the December 6th weigh in as well.
Oh, good luck. Even without the certainty of weight loss, your new regime will have you feeling so much better. (You probably know there’s a big drive over here in the UK to get everyone leading healthier lifestyles as obesity is a significant health issue for us). Keep us posted on your progress.
Hi Paola,
I’m a new reader here. I want to wish you good luck. I’ve had my own issues with weight.
It should be said that exercise does not contribute greatly to weight loss, but it is really important to your health. It will help keep the weight off, though, once you’ve lost it. (c.f. British Journal of Sports Medicine http://bjsm.bmj.com/cgi/content/abstract/bjsm.2009.065557v1).
I’ve been doing weight watchers myself and I am about 5lbs away from my goal, but now I’ve found myself too busy and stressed to keep up with counting points on most days. But when I did it diligently it really worked!
Keep us posted on your efforts!
Dawn. Interesting article re. exercise. In my case – working from home and sitting in front of a computer all the time I think my metabolism was slowing right down, so I really needed to get moving again. And putting all this in the context of doing a triathlon is really focusing my mind. I don’t just need to get thin, but also FIT.
Good luck with WW and the last 5lbs too. It definitely works, but I just can’t do it and lead a life as well…
Kassy. Maybe they should use a picture of the Wii Fit machine in the boxing exercise? Have you got Wii Fit Plus? MUCH better…
The boxing exercise is fun and it makes me sweat. I didn’t know about Wii Fit Plus but have just ordered it.
Paola, what a brave post! I also prefer healthy food to junk, but just because it’s healthy doesn’t mean it isn’t rich in calories. My problem is portion control, coming from a family of big eaters, I’m always amazed at how tiny a “normal” portion of food should be. Unlearning an entrenched eating pattern is terribly difficult, but possible. Good luck!
I’m on a similar journey, I’ve got about another stone on you and I’m only 5ft 4 so I need to get back down to about 11 stone – I’d be happy with that. Well done for enrolling in the triathalon, it’s something to aim for 🙂
OMG you are so brave to show photos.I’m actually hibernating at the moment and not wishing to brave the outside world. I have put back on a lot of weight as we have been entertaining visitors from the UK for a whole month!
Portion control and too much wine is definitely the issue for me, anyway, best of luck and keep us posted.
Kassy – Wii Fit + is MUCH better than the old Wii Fit as it gives you much more flexibility over putting together your workouts without having to continually hit the ‘A’ button. I’ve also got a couple of other Wii fitness games that I’m really enjoying and which I’ll blog about in the next week or so.
Cate and Shannon – my problems are also entertaining and portion control… I always put weight on over the summer as we do a lot of entertaining on our roof deck. I’ve been reading a lot of stuff about white carbohydrate ‘addiction’ recently (not just sugar but stuff like pasta and potatoes too) and I think that’s been a lot of my problem. I’ll blog about that later too…
Hey Paola, all I can say is I had the same determination you have right now. I also used http://www.fitsugar.com to keep in the loop about exercise and all the the little things that could help make a difference. I started exercising consistently and avoided eating extra to treat myself for it, and over time good habits that I hope will stick around have formed.
You are going to do awesome. I don’t know if you have an iPhone but there are some great apps that help you track calories. I lost 35 lbs last year by watching calories and working out. It really can work! Good luck!
Am I right in thinking you are already slimmer than you were the last time you posted a photo like this? Looks that way…
B, thanks for the FitSugar tip. Looks like some good stuff on there.
J, I’m trying not to count calories this time round. I’ve spent my whole life counting things – calories, fat grams, WW points – and while I know these things work I can never incorporate them into my lifestyle for very long which is why I’ve ended up fat. But congratulations on losing 35lbs. You guys are all so inspirational!
D, it’s very kind of you to say so, but I think I may be heavier this time round. Must be a trick of the light or something…
Hi Paola,
I just found your blog and really like your blog. I especially like that you post about your goal of loosing weight. Good luck!
Where do you live in Seattle? I lived there for one year as an Au pair 🙂 I watched 2-year-old triplets and lived in Mt. Baker. I miss miss miss Seattle a lot! My hostdad also works at Microsoft.
Next year in april I’ll go to Seattle for my vacation and I cant wait!!
Looks like you have a lot of support on here from all the comments above. I’m on the same track you are as of two weeks ago. I have cut my calories, but I don’t count them, to about 1,200 a day, and do water aerobics three times a week ( have have a bum hip). So far I have only lost 3 lbs, but I feel better already. I’m like you, where we eat super healthy. I don’t drink, smoke or eat red meat. I eat only whole grains, fruit, veg. It is truly the darned portion control that is my final hurdle. I lost my taste for sweets, and I allow myself a small square of 72% chocolate. I drink a lot of herbal teas and for snacks I have a small container of yogurt, and a 1/4 cup of walnuts.
I’ll wish you luck and strength to keep going, it is worth it! Hope we reach our goal 🙂 the other think I do is to only think about five pound increments, instead of the entire amount I have to lose.