AH-HAH! I GET IT NOW! - Getting Started

For years I struggled with finding the trick to losing weight.  It was always some secret that constantly eluded me.  I'd see people lose weight and become fit and I'd wonder how the "heck did they do that? Why can't I do that?"  Well the answer was pretty simple.  I had never been able to maintain weight loss before because I had always viewed it as temporary, and never understood the healthy/right way to lose weight. On top of that I lacked the commitment and drive to stick to whatever method I was using, and gave up at the first sign of failure. 

The problem with these "diets" I tried was they were not maintainable.  They were so restrictive and I was setting myself up for failure because there was just no way I could sustain them long term.  In the mean time my body was probably in starvation mode, and I was depriving myself of a balanced healthy diet - which leads to other health problems.  Sure I lost some weight, but I wasn't losing it in the right way.  I wasn't losing fat, I wasn't getting fit, and I wasn't any healthier (probably the opposite).  It wasn't until the light bulb went off in my head one day that I woke up and realized weight loss is not a temporary fix, or a quick for that matter.  I had to seriously change my ways for good, not to just lose weight but to be healthy (lets face it being skinny doesn't make you healthy, and isn't this about a healthful life anyway).  Once I accepted that truth, everything else seemed to fall in place, it finally "clicked". It wasn't until I stopped looking at losing weight as a diet, and realized it was a LIFE style change that I fully committed myself.

For many, and for me, Its hard starting out.  Where do you start?  So first I had to determine what it was exactly I wanted to accomplish.  My personal goals included losing 85 pounds, getting out of the "obese" range and into the "healthy" range on the BMI scale for good, and feeling "fit" for starters. So I made a promise to myself, no more fast food or soda, I was going to start eating until I was satisfied not stuffed, and I was only going to stock my house with healthy snacks and treats.

Not only did I have to make dietary goals I had to get my butt off the couch and start exercising.  Where does someone who hasn't worked out in 5 years start?  Do I walk? Do I try running?  Do I do home DVD's?  The options are endless.  I decided to join 24 hour fitness figuring that would give me a wide variety of options.  I made a work out schedule and began working out 5 days per week. Some days were at the gym doing the elliptical trainer and free weights, other days I rode my bike, or went for a walk. 

In the first two months I lost 20lbs, all by staying with in my sparkpeople recommended calorie range of 1200-1550 calories/day (and also with in my fat, carbohydrate, protein, & sodium ranges) and working out 5 days a week (of coarse this is specific to me and I am not making any personal recomendations to any one for what their calorie goals should be, but you can build your own program and goals using sparkpeople.com). In the beginning completing 20 minutes on the elliptical was a challenge, so was lifting 5lb weights.  I stuck with it and over time I grew stronger and my body adapted. I was able to increase the restistance on the machines and go for longer.  I grew stronger and became more fit!  After a few months of doing pretty basic exercises, I decided it was time to branch out and challenge myself a little more.  I tried every class that 24 Hour Fitness had to offer.  Normally I would have been terrified of those classes. I always felt that everyone would be starring at me or judging me.  I'll be honest I had a lot of apprehension at the first classes, but quickly I found that it was quite the opposite.  Everyone in those classes were there for the SAME reasons as I was, no one was starring or judging - in fact it was a very high spirited environment.  Some people were way more fit than me, but that was encouraging - it inspired me and gave me something to work towards.  I discovered I loved spinning, and zumba, and turbo kick boxing! Those previously were things I wouldn't have dared doing, but taking that leap was the very best thing I ever did for myself!  I immediatley invested in a heart rate monitor and realized I was burning upwards of 800 calories per class!  How motivational is that!

So starting out can be hard, but if you can manage to stick to the plan for a while, and get committed I guarentee you will see results. One of my favorite quotes "Be more stubborn than the scale, eventually it will go down".