Hi all,
I've been toying with the idea of posting about my weight loss journey and finally feel ready to after today's gym trip.
In March 2017, I had a breakdown and committed to losing 92lb. Start weight was 204lb, and after exactly 52 weeks I hit my 112lb target. 14 months on, I have some issues mentally and lapse but I'm holding on tight. Before (May 2017) and after (today!) here:
So how did I do it? I joined a Slimming World group here in the UK. I was very sceptical about how it would work, because the consultant kept using buzz words like 'free food', 'speed food', 'syns', 'food optimising' and 'body magic'...this was surely nonsense and I wouldn't lose weight. In any case, I jumped right in and starting filling up on free and speed foods (low calorie foods that are more filling than others), kept within my syn limit (higher calorie foods that are less filling) and had my healthy extras (to make sure you're getting dairy and fibre) and in the first week I lost 6lb. I couldn't believe it.
The following months I followed it religiously. I cut out alcohol (I didn't drink much anyway), started walking more and ate huge portions of low calorie food, and it still kept coming off. I even managed to go away on holiday for a few days and come back with a 0.5lb loss. I started calorie counting alongside SW to try and understand how I was losing weight, and worked out that the plan automatically kept me around 1200-1300 calories a day, without counting a single one. 300 calories would come from my syns (things like chocolate, crisps and so on...as long as they were measured) and meant I didn't feel as deprived as I thought. Now that I reflect, it's basically CICO but makes sure you're not missing out on any big food groups. I didn't miss a single group the whole year on my way to target and was completely focused. The groups held me accountable as I felt like people would look down on me if I gained (they wouldn't, but my mindset helped here).
I've been finding it more challenging to maintain, especially when I was studying and working, and had a 11lb gain that I had to lose again. I'm back at target again, and for the past 2 months have been going to the gym twice a week (mostly light-moderate cardio but often add some legs and arms in). I still go to SW group every week as they give you your membership free when you're at target, but now I've mostly changed to calorie counting to see if I maintain better this way. I have a lot of loose skin, especially around my chest and tummy, but overall I'm happy with how I look now. I might try and tone up more but it's not the biggest priority.
Sorry for the huge post, but thought somebody might find something useful here. Happy to answer any questions about my journey!
[link] [comments]
from loseit - Lose the Fat http://bit.ly/2w5YwdZ
No comments:
Post a Comment