dieting is easy...
dieting is easy for about 2 weeks, maybe 3. at that point i pretty much want to shove french fries in my face at any given moment. french fries. and chicken fingers. and milkshakes. and alfredo. and when i am not wanting to shove terribly fattening and oh so delicious food down my gullet, i am sneaking pieces of chocolate and great big drinks of ice cold coca-cola.
in my first three weeks on weight watchers, i lost 7 pounds. in my fourth week, we were on vacation. my goal was to not gain any weight. i knew i wouldn't lose weight, but i didn't want to gain weight. and i accomplished that. so in 4 weeks, i lost 7 pounds. and i felt pretty good about that. i felt great about that. i knew it would come off slowly, i am trying to change a lifetime of bad habits here. and as my husband so lovingly reminded me, "hey, if you lose 2 pounds a week, that is over 100 pounds a year." and he is right. and as i get older they years come and go quicker, so i would be at my goal weight in no time. but then came week 4. and week four i gained a pound back. 1 pound. 1 pound back on my body. and that could have destroyed me.
you see, i watch the biggest loser. and i see them lose 20 pounds in a week. and it is easy to be disappointed when i see a 1 or a 3 pound loss in a week. this makes me kind of hate the biggest loser. it gives me false hope, unrealistic expectations, and that results in disappointment, and a feeling of failure, and that keeps me fat. but the hate and blame doesn't really fall on the biggest loser, although i will inappropriately lay the hate and blame on them until i am blue in the face.
i am the reason i am fat. it is not because of my mom or dad. (although they told me i was the most beautiful girl in the world, no matter how fat i was, and did not always provide the healthiest lifestyle for me) it is not because of anything my husband did or did not do. (although i did seem to gain most of my weight back after we were married) it is not a defense mechanism to some terrible time in my past. (although i can pinpoint when i really started packing on the pounds, to a very confusing and hard time in my life) it is not because society puts too much pressure on young women to be thin and young and perfect (although i think they do) it is not because i was not given the tools, it is not because i didn't know the danger.
i am fat because every day i choose to be. it is no ones fault but my own. why do i choose this? why do i choose to stay unhappy, uncomfortable, unsure, and unwilling or unable to change? i don't know the answer to that. not yet. if you know the answer tell me. because i have been searching for it for some time now... and at this point, i am not even sure there is an answer. perhaps it just is. perhaps it is just because. perhaps it is just because i choose it.
when i lost about 70 pounds 5 years ago (that is a guess, i never weighed myself before, so i don't know exactly) i proved to myself i could do it. i could lose weight, i could be a healthy size and weight. and i could feel beautiful in every situation. and i resent myself so much for not keeping the promise i made to myself to never go back again.
resent, hate, disappointment, self loathing, anger, hurt, those feelings are a sure fire way to failure. and i know i have to change those thoughts and feelings that are embedded so deep in my heart and mind. in order to succeed at this i have to rid myself of all of them. but that is the hardest part. because maybe it is easier to hold onto them than to let go of them. because if i let go of them now, i will have nothing to take their place. and with nothing to fill that empty heart and mind, i will just be an empty shell. and what good is a fat empty shell? but what good is a hurt, angry, resentful shell of any size? and that is not the person i really am. i am not really an angry, disappointed, resentful creature. but that is the wall i have built. and now the wall has to come down. but what brick do i start with? where do i go from there?
i know what i have to do. it is the doing it that is the hard part. so pray for me. today, this week, this month, this year. that i can let go. that i can let go, and become who i was meant to be. (and maybe lose a few pounds while i do it)
You are certainly in my prayers. Almost 2 years ago I had a "light bulb moment". The Lord showed me I was fat by choice. I did not want to be fat, but I was by the choices I made each day. It was not a condeming thought, it was revealing. In the same instant, He showed me I could make other choices and lose weight. For me, personally, He called me to repentance. That meant I needed to make a 180 degree turn from how I had been eating. I had been rather bratty wanting to eat anything I wanted with no consequences. He brought me to a new place of fitness and health.
ReplyDeleteBy His grace, I've been making good choices and have lost 103 lbs. I now know each choice brings me closer to health and fitness or farther from it. It's up to me.
The Lord has brought me to a fitness level I didn't think possible. I can hike 13 miles when a single mile left me in extreme pain before. Physical activity is a pleasure now. Next year in June, we will be hiking the Grand Canyon from rim-to-rim, a goal I thought impossible before.
There is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus. He loves you if you are a size 16 or a size 6. You cannot do anything to make him love you more. He already loves you passionately. You cannot do anything to make him love you less....He already loves you passionately!
You are young and beautiful with a lifetime ahead of you. Go make the best choices in nutrition and exercise. You will see a change take place. The Lord will take you to a brand new place if you want it.
Hugs and prayers!
It is a minute-by-minute fight. But you can do this, you really can. Hang in there.
ReplyDeleteI'll be praying for your strength. And sanity! ;)
mamie,
ReplyDeletethank you so much for your encouragement. your story is an inspiration.
mamageph,
thanks for the prayers. will.not.give.up. not this time!
keep in mind on the biggest loser they work out for six hours a day and eat 1200 calories. some of us have jobs and can't possibly do that. those thirty pounds in one week from last season isn't realistic. dedication and a pound at a time is the only way the rest of us can do it.
ReplyDeleteAll I have to say aout the biggest loser is that if we had nutritionists, no jobs, personal trainers and cameras on us everyday we would probably lose weight a lot faster. WW is about changing your lifestyle and losing a healthy max of 2 lbs per week. You didn't gain the weight over night so you won't lose it that way. Keep going!
ReplyDeleteOh and 1 more thing. For me personally... and I'm not recommending this for everyone... I have a freebie day. I weigh in Sat morning and then eat a meal of my choice. Whatever I want. (Seriously anything) Then I have the whole week to be good. This keeps me from going way off track and never getting back on. It is a system I know I can keep up forever.
ReplyDelete-Lifetime member, Dandy :)
Great stuff here! Thanks for the inspiration.
ReplyDeleteI have two sisters who also struggle with their weight and it is heartbreaking to see how sad it makes them. I am rooting for you Melinda...you can do it!
ReplyDeleteI'm with Dawn - i weigh in on monday nights and then go out for Mexican. :) It's not a blowout, but it's my favorite thing, and it's satisfying, and it's long past bloating me by the time the next Monday rolls around.
ReplyDeleteI lost 4.4 my first week, and maintained my second. Not a very auspicious beginning. But I'm as committed as you - I'm going to conquer the mind games this time. I'm so tired of THINKING about weight loss, aren't you?? it's such a DRAG. Remember what my friend Valerie taught me: Being overweight is hard.
Losing weight is hard.
Pick your hard.
Praying for you RIGHT NOW just as I'm praying for me as I'm about to take the kids for a quick dinner before VBS while dad is out of town. There's no need for this to be a failure. I just had a bowl of soup and am going to treat myself to a gargantuan Mc D's Diet Coke. Sounds good to me!!!
S