How I Lost 100 Pounds & Kept It Off
Maybe you're like me and have struggled with weight your entire life. Maybe you have tried everything to get healthy only to be left disappointed by failed programs and fad diets. Maybe you’ve always been fit and are just starting to put on a couple extra pounds. Wherever you're at . . . I FEEL YOUR PAIN!!
As mentioned in previous blogs (and if you take a look through the rest of this website) you’ll notice that I lost a tremendous amount of weight; like, to the tune of 165 pounds! I lost this weight over an 18 month period and have been able to keep it off for well over a year now by adapting the changes made into my everyday life. And while there is no “get healthy quick” pill or overnight miracle cure; there are a few pretty basic things (rudimentary, if you will) that I incorporated into my life that made a HUGE difference!
“I lost this weight over an 18-month period and have been able to keep it off for well over a year now.”
Focus
It’s going to be critically important to replace toxic and harmful mindsets and thought patterns with the new healthy mindsets. Toxic mindsets are what cause us to throw in the towel and quit and at the root of all toxic mindsets is the belief that you aren’t worth the effort. We need to replace that with a pattern of thinking that reinforces that you are in fact worth it and that if you trust the process and if you sustain the small steady changes over the long haul you will see success! Here are a couple ways to help with this.
Journaling: Write down your ultimate goals and how your optimal health directly will tie into those. Be specific on what your milestone markers are and when you want to be there. Write down daily thoughts on gratitude and what’s in your life you have to be thankful for.
Meditation: There are countless studies that reinforce the positive psychological benefits of slowing down and just breathing . . . and at its simplest form that’s really what meditation is. Start small with just a couple minutes and sit in a comfortable position and just be still and focus on taking long deliberate breaths; both inhaling and exhaling. Don’t get discouraged if thoughts enter your mind; just try and calmly refocus on your breathing when that happens.
Pictures: As much as you’ll initially hate every second of this, (I know that I did) taking “before” pics will be a HUGE motivational tool for you to look back on as you move forward on this journey. So, suck it up and get into your undies and take some pics.
Food
There are a slew of books and experts that tell you a ton about all the things “to” and “not to” eat. I am going to focus here on 3 quick principles of food and eating that were easy to adapt to: eating the right foods in the right amounts at the right times. These principles made a ton of difference without being overly complicated or burdensome.
Right Foods: It’s really easy to make heroes out of some foods and villainize others; and in reality, that’s probably not the best way to view our food. It might be better to look at foods as those that are better for us (fruits, veggies, lean meats, whole/all-natural ingredients, fermented foods) and then those that aren’t (processed, refined sugars, artificial flavors, colors, and sweeteners). I like the 80/20 rule where at least 80% of my diet consists of foods that are “better for me” and the other part is left for those foods that aren’t.
Right Amounts: We eat a lot . . . like a ridiculously silly amount more than we need to. One quick fix to this is simply to read the suggested serving sizes on the sides of ingredients and boxes and then stay within those boundaries. You will quickly learn what you are able to eat a lot of to fill up on and what is going to leave you severely wanting.
Right Times: The third point in this “holy grail” of eating is to make sure we are optimizing the times we eat. Within any given day there is actually an optimal window of time when it is best for us to eat. With that being true it can also be inferred that there must also be times in a day when we should stay away from eating and snacking. In short, that magic window is a twelve-hour time frame between 8:00am and 8:00pm which means that we should really avoid eating as much as possible between 8:00pm and 8:00am.
“Eat the Right Foods in the Right Amounts at the Right Times”
Fitness
While the thought of working out isn’t initially a fun thought because of the pain or investment of time; I have learned a few ways to make it more enjoyable and to give us the best bang for our buck! You see the problem is that we overcomplicate this with thoughts of muscle-bound beef cakes, 2 hour workout sessions, and loads of grunting and screaming. Well, that doesn’t have to be the case.
Deliberate Movement: The key word here is deliberate. Now, this doesn’t mean an accumulated 30 minutes of movement in walking to the car, or to the fridge, or in the office. That movement is a given. I am talking more about a walk or jog through your neighborhood or the woods; a low impact workout consisting of modified push-ups, stomach crunches, and squats; going for a swim . . . or whatever other movement you can do.
Duration of Movement: Find around 20 - 30 minutes at least 5 days a week to deliberately move. I try to do something that gets my heart rate up to at least 70% of its max for a good 20 minutes. The key here though is consistency! It’s important to be able to make this into a part of your regular life. Switch up what you do to keep it interesting and get other people involved to make it more fun.
Sustainability is the goal here! Don’t over-complicate your life by changing all the things! Make small changes that you can stick with for the long haul. There is no finish line and this isn’t a diet. This is the beginning of a healthy lifestyle that will eventually get you to where you want to be!
“Sustainability is the goal here! Don’t overhaul your life!”
