a hungry girl and her story

Okay. This is a personal thing what I’m about to write. But i’m pretty sure everyone who has a mouth can assimilate to my story and this blog is around to inspire people. right? so I will write about what inspired me regarding my… appetite and how I changed myself [inside and out] this year.

height: 5’9″

starting weight: 173 lbs

current weight: 153 lbs

here’s what -20 lbs looks on this girl here:

First off, I want to say that everyone is beautiful, no matter what size they are; especially if they are happy at their size. For me, though, feeling good and beautiful means 1- being comfortable in jeans 2- not feeling like I just ate Thanksgiving dinner on a random Tuesday at lunch (I tend to eat past the point that I should stop), and 3- not having to “suck it in” at all times when I leave the house, in pictures, to button my jeans, etc.  I have never been obese as far as BMI goes, nor has anyone in my family (thank you, genes). I had a normal childhood when mom cooked supper every night and limited my junk food intake. I had an ‘athletic build’ in high school (1 year freshman track, thankyouverymuch!) and always kind just ate whatever I damn well wanted to without much worry. College I started gaining some lbs, as do most ladies, and then my parents got divorced right after we got married my senior year of college. That can do nasty things to a person, in all aspects of life. For me, in this story, it was weight gain. At my graduation in 2004  think I was the heaviest I’ve ever been to date, 179 lbs.  I knew it was bad… I hated all my clothes. No matter what I put on or poured myself into, I never ever felt pretty or comfortable. Not even in sweatpants. Jimmy Johns was new to town, too. That was a bad, bad thing. Pictures came back from the 1 hour photo of graduation [yeah…film!] and I knew I had to change or I didn’t think I could ever revert back. Ryan and I began doing weight watchers at home and I lost 19 pounds and Ryan lost around 30 in 9 months. We were pretty proud of ourselves …….and it took us about 9 years to gain it all back. LOL

Fast forward to earlier this year, 2012. Ick. back to the 170’s. wtf. see above photo.

But this time, we counted calories and used the iphone app My Fitness Pal. a wonderful little app that reminds you and makes it so easy to log your food and stay on track. When you really sit and add everything up, it’s INSANE. For example, one night we had been shopping in Omaha shortly after starting our calorie counting in July. We were starved by about 9pm, so we went to Applebees (I hate this place, but it was all that was near and open at the time). We sat down and carefully chose items that we could afford (in calories) and while we waited for our food, we got to thinking…if we weren’t watching what we ate, the old us would have each ordered an appetizer, a high calorie entree with tons of salt and cheese, and a soda or a beer. And eating all that at 9 o’clock at night, no less. But by simply making a rational food choice and feeling zero guilt about it, we saved ourselves hours of bloat, guilt, and about 11,348 calories in just that one meal.

small changes, people. baby steps.

So we began our weight loss in about July and by October ( our goal for our photo shoot with Tara Whitney) I had lost 21 pounds and Ryan about 30. yay us!

But again, it’s all about small changes.

We did do a jumpstart 4 day anti-bloat diet, which was pretty strict, but totally worth it. Pretty much no salt and tons of water to sort of “reset” your palette and gut.

And the beautiful thing is… once you allow yourself to eat good food that is clean and without processing, your tongue begins to change as well as the size of your ass. You no longer crave yuck foods. Carrots taste sweet.

After that, we eat normally…. lots of fruits and veggies…lots of protein. only whole grain bread and pasta.

We eat as few processed and canned things as possible. (I miss Prego spaghetti sauce, terribly)

We drink lots of water, pretty much our exclusive beverage with the exception of hot decaf tea and coffee in the am.

I get a side of veggies instead of fries with my sandwich/burger when we eat out.

We do not drink soda anymore.

We don’t keep chips or sweets in the house.

The only sweets we have are hard candies (just when I need something sweet after a meal) and always a large selection of fruit.

Only skim milk.

Now Christmas season is tough because we go to all these parties and the food is so yummy and such a treat because our friends are all fabulous cooks! But it is the season of indulgence. : )

But hopefully somebody can identify with my story. Even if you haven’t started to change your diet, but want to….trust. start small. lose it sloooowly.

I can’t even begin to express how great i feel now. I had to clear out my closet because about 80% of my wardrobe got way too big. I used to wear L-XL and sizes 12-14. Now I wear Mediums and my jeans are size 8. I have no desire to lose any more. I definately don’t want to gain it all back. But I have so much more energy, I feel sexy and confident in my clothes (as a well chosen wardrobe should make you feel) and I don’t want to hide from mirrors. And the positive feedback from friends feels amazing.

was this helpful to anyone? any other tips you can give to me?

Hope everyone has a fabulous New Year!

-2013-