FIFTY POUNDS!!!!!

I’m so happy to have reached this milestone today, and I think I’m about done with my weight loss at this point, need to work on maintenance now. Here’s a recent picture of me taken with my IPhone almost two weeks ago. Feels great, better self esteem, so happy!

 

Happy happy happy happy!!!!

I can’t wipe the stupid grin off my face because look what I bought today?

I can hardly believe this label is from MY pants, woot! Smallest size I’ve ever ever owned, even in my teen years. Happy Happy Happy!!!!

I really mean it when I say I’m not gaining that weight back this time. Can’t ever forget how awesome I’m feeling now. And getting rid of those fat clothes I posted about yesterday I believe to be a big turning point.

 

44 pounds lost

And today I decided it was time to purge the closets of the fat clothes. Here’s the pile:

Part of the fun in doing such a purge involves trying on the old clothes. Does doing that ever illustrate the weight I’ve lost, makes me very happy. Check out how this skirt, which I think was too snug for me to wear last summer, now:

This time I’m determined to keep it off and I’m going to do it!!!!

 

Thought I’m come and update here today, it’s been a while! I’m happy to report that I’ve now lost a total of 42 pounds, another 10 or so pounds to go. Overall though, I’m happy and comfortable with my weight now, and have so much more energy too. I was in Vancouver last month, and did tons of walking around the city. It was so much easier than last time I was there (last summer before I started my weight loss program), more stamina and no sore back either. And at belly dance the other night, looking at myself in the mirror, for the first time I didn’t have totally negative feelings about what I saw. Now the key will be to keep it off. I’ve done this twice before and am a bit nervous about the whole thing. Third time lucky perhaps? Of course luck has nothing to do with it. I know what I need to do and this time I have to follow through.

The weather is starting to become more springlike here on Vancouver Island, and hopefully that will spur me on to be more active. I’m such a couch potoato by nature, but know that exercise is essential. In that regard, I went for a lovely walk this afternoon on the trails behind our house. I haven’t been back there since last fall, and it felt so good and right to be there. I walked a good 5 KM and it took about an hour. I tracked it using a new to me IPhone app, Runkeeper Free. I screwed up once and stopped it from running, but I think it’s kind of neat how it tracks the activity out. You can check out my activity with this app here:

RunKeeper Shared Fitness | Walking Activity.

 

Update

After plateauing big time in November/December, I’m back on track now. I joined Weight Watchers at the beginning of this month, and it was just the change I needed. I’ve lost another 10 pounds, for a total of just over 33 pounds lost. I feel so much better, am getting tons of complements, and having a great time shopping for new clothes. I thought it might be time to post some before and after pictures, although I still have another 15 or 20 pounds to go.

Here I am last summer, at my heaviest:

Here with my sister:

And this picture was taken of me yesterday, modelling one of my recent handknits:

And finally, this was taken today, in a clothing store change room with my IPhone. Thrilled to have found this dress on sale, size medium when before would have needed extra large, and it still might not have fit.

Now the key is going to be keeping the weight off. I’ve done this twice before, this time it really needs to stay off.

 

Still going

Well I’ve fallen down a bit on the exercise thing, haven’t run for about a month. Will get back to it at some point, but I’m basically just a warm weather outside kind of gal. I had several weeks of being a couch potato but am getting back on track now. Still enjoying belly dance class, and have ordered a couple belly dance DVD workouts that should arrive any time now. That should hopefully get me back to being more active again. Will also try to go for lunch time walks whenever possible.

I am however happy to report that I’m down 23 pounds now!!!! It feels awesome and I love the complements that I receive. I started out wearing size 16 pants, and am very happy to report that the size 11s that I bought not that long ago are getting to be baggy. Going to wait for a while before I buy size 9s though. One thing I wonder: have sizes gotten bigger or something? In my much younger teenage days I typically wore a size 11 or a size 13, and I believe I was smaller than I am now! I think the sizes have even gotten bigger since than last time I lost weight, which was about 10 years ago or so. I didn’t wear size 9 then until I was at my goal weight, and weighed close to 30 pounds less than I do now. Thoughts?

 

Well I’ve been neglecting this blog just like my main blog lately! Truth be known, I was on a bit of a diet plateau so really didn’t have much to say. This week has been a hard week in terms of weight loss due to Thanksgiving dinner (and leftovers the following night) as well as a couple work functions. In the end though, my weigh in this morning revealed my lowest weight yet (I’ve actually been down 15 pounds more or less for a couple weeks now, today was over 16!), the first significant drop for a couple weeks, so I’m very happy. And yesterday I went shopping for clothes yet again, since I only had three pairs of pants that actually fit now (too large pants isn’t overly becoming, nor is it very comfortable when you have to keep yarding them up or cinch tightly with a belt). So that is now taken care of and I now have some decently fitting pants to wear. And the best part? One pair of jeans, albeit a line that fits quite big, is THREE sizes smaller than the last pair in that style that I purchased. I think I had a grin on my face when I left that store!

This weekend I’m off to a spinning retreat at the lovely Kingfisher Resort and Spa. Food is included, and I don’t think I’ve ever had a bad meal at this place. I’m hoping that there will be some healthy choices for me, and I’m packing my workout gear to use in their gym as well as some healthy snacks. I just hope my Monday morning weigh in isn’t too awful!

 

I tried on all the pants in my closet yesterday and it was clear that I needed new pants, most were way too big. A pair of jeans fit me that I haven’t worn for several years, and another couple that were too tight last I tried are a little loose now too. I went to Reitman’s and got a couple pair of their pull on Comfort Pants, they are fabulous, look good, and so comfy. One is a dress pair and the other are cords. They are TWO sizes smaller than the last ones I purchased!!!!!!! I’ve lost about 12 pounds now. I’ve never lost weight this quickly before, nor have I felt such a difference in my body shape. I attribute it completely to the running!

Last night was my third belly dance class. I’m enjoying it a lot even though I feel I’m not very good at it. And when I look in the studio mirror during the class I still feel fat! I have to remind myself that I’m going in the right direction, my scale doesn’t lie and my clothes feel so much better!

 

Well the last week at work has been extremely busy and stressful, and through all of that, I’m happy to report that I have not done too bad in terms of diet and exercise. And the best part of all, I’m now down 10 pounds, well away now from my heaviest weight ever! I’m starting to receive comments about my appearance, my clothes are feeling better (to the point that at least one pair of pants are no longer wearable due to their now larger than me size), and I just might have gone clothes shopping and dropped far too much money this past week, but on stuff that I will be able to wear even with continued weight loss. Basically I’m holding off on buying any pants for a little while still.

I have not gotten out for a run in a few days now, but MUST go today. I took yesterday off from exercise, but that is the only day this week I have done so. I loved the belly dance class last Monday, and am really looking forward to going back tomorrow. It’s such a fun way to excercise. And I’ve added bellydance to my at home exercise routine. I found a great beginner workout on youtube (what did we do before youtube anyway?) I thought I’d embed the video here, hope it works since I’m not at all used to wordpress. This is the first of four parts, you should be able to get to the next part at the end of each previous. Fun!

 

Had a pretty good weekend. Got out for a run/walk both days. Saturday was awesome, enoyed it a lot and felt I’d be ready to move onto the third week of the C25K soon. Yesterday I went again and it was SOOOO hard that I don’t feel I’m ready to move on yet at all! Wonder why it varies so much from day to day? Also, was looking at the third week times over on the C25K website, and it scared me, you have to do two 90 second runs and two 3 minute runs. Yikes, 3 minutes!

Weight loss has slowed down now. From past experience, I know that initially you loose quite quickly and then it kind of slows, so I was expecting that, but it’s still disappointing. Aunt Flo is currently visiting as well, so I know that impacts weight as well.

Nonetheless, I’m perservering and so happy to be doing something about my health. And I’m really looking forward to my first belly dancing class tonight, will report back about how it goes.