Picture of Success

Words can't express how proud I am of my cousin Fleur. She has been working like crazy to become a healthy weight and now 65lbs later she is the picture (literally and figuratively) of success. Reading her story has been an inspiration to me and I know it will be for you too. Nice job Fleur. Keep up the good work!!

Before I am a 30 year old wife and mother. I have a nine-year-old son, and five-year-old twin daughters. My weight began creeping up in college, then shot up during my first year of marriage. I managed a few short periods of weight loss between pregnancies, but never anything more than a few pounds, and never for very long. After I lost my baby weight from my last pregnancy, I found myself still to be 65 pounds overweight.


In 2008 I finally decided that enough was enough. I wanted to lose weight, and I was going to figure out how, no matter what! I started doing research online. I loved reading people's success stories, but found it hard to identify with them. Have you noticed that most people only post their stories after they've succeeded? You don't get to see all the heartache, frustration and bad days. I guarantee you that every person who has successfully lost weight had bad days, whether you got to see them or not. I had days that I would eat an entire pan of brownies to try to feel better. It didn't work. Then I would feel so angry with myself that I would cry myself to sleep. I regretted eating junk food as soon as the taste faded from my mouth. But, the cravings were so strong that I felt like I just had to give in. Extreme, short term diets never worked for me. I had spent my entire life eating what I wanted, when I wanted. I couldn't stick with deprivation. I decided that I needed to learn how to live healthy- not just “diet”.


I believe that in order for someone to make a major change in their life, they have to find the right “groove” or mindset. I found my groove a couple of times. It wore off. Then, I found it again. I tried many, many methods of weight loss. Calorie counting, low-fat, low-carb, pills, supplements, etc. The first groove-inspiring method was calorie counting. I was a big Dr. Pepper drinker. I was disgusted when I learned that I had been consuming around 1,000 calories a day, just from Dr. Pepper! I knew I would not be able to give up soft drinks completely, yet. So, I made the switch to Diet. I knew it wasn't much healthier, but at least it was calorie-free. I lost about 20 pounds. Calorie counting was too tedious and cumbersome for me. I still had too many bad habits, and the scale wouldn't budge anymore. I started looking for something else.


I decided to learn to run, mostly due to the fine example of my cousins on this blog. I love running. I feel strong and alive when I run. But, I told myself that since I was running I didn't have to worry about what I was eating. Well, that was wrong. Fact is, weight loss happens in the kitchen. If you want the weight to come off, you have to watch what you eat. I still run, but I don't down a big plate of pancakes afterwards. Usually. :)


So, I bit the bullet and started Weight Watchers. I knew that going to the meetings would help keep me motivated and honest. The plan worked for me. Since I joined in April, I have lost 42 pounds, making a grand total of 65 pounds down from my heaviest weight. I love that the plan is designed to be used for life. I can eat whatever I want, just not as much as I want. I discovered that food actually tastes better when you're not just mindlessly scarfing it down. I learned that I can be satisfied with one small piece of dark chocolate. I learned that I still shouldn't buy Oreos, because I still have a tendency to eat the entire package. I learned that I don't have to eat something just because it's wonderful. I can do without it. I can have it later if I choose.


Life is all about choice. You do have a choice. You can make anything a habit if you practice it enough. Eat what you love. Slow down, taste it, savor it. If you don't love it, don't eat it. Don't give up. One bad day, or week, or month does not signify failure. Your life is going to happen no matter what you do with it. If you're still breathing, you can try again. Find some small changes you want to make, then make them. Be patient with yourself. Live your life and love it for all the good things. Wear clothes that make you feel good about yourself, no matter what size they happen to be. If you love yourself and are patient with yourself, the changes you want will come.


Weight Watchers was what I needed to find my groove. But it may not be what you need. There are as many ways to lose weight out there as there are people trying. Try all the healthy methods you can find. Learn what you can live with, and what you can't. Be smart about it. Bulimia is not the way to go. :)

Good Luck!

After

See...inspiring. If you want to learn more about (and from) Fleur, check out her blog.

http://www.fleurshrinks.blogspot.com/