Anyway, with this being a blog about my weight loss and health and everything I ate/eat to keep it that way, I have spoken in detail about how I lost the weight, but I thought it might be nice to condense it down into bullet points of what I did. Obviously there is much more too it than bullet points and this list is not intended to make it look easy (it definitely wasn’t), but it gives you an idea of all the changes that I made.
We all have to find what works for us, so just because all of these things worked for me doesn’t mean they will work for you. I tried a lot of things that worked for other people, but they didn’t work for me. It doesn’t make them all wrong. It comes down to trial and error.
Here goes……………
- Set myself small goals
- Made one change at a time
- I didn’t focus on losing 100lbs – I focused on losing 5lbs at a time
- I bought a Wii Fit so I could workout at home
- I went swimming
- Walked everywhere
- Did workouts during the breaks whilst watching TV
- I found workouts that I enjoyed
- I became aware of portion sizes
- Cooked healthier versions of the junk food that I loved
- I counted calories
- Found a balance with clean eating and still eating the things I liked
- I educated myself and read everything I could have health and fitness
- Signed up to weight loss forums/health and fitness Facebook pages and blogs
- I cut out processed food
- I started cooking everything myself
- I didn’t beat myself up if I ate something I shouldn’t or skipped a workout
- Fit my workouts in where I could – like doing squats whilst cooking
- Stopped making excuses
- Made sure I was sleeping enough
- Stopped being scared of lifting weights (they won’t make you bulky)
- Stopped dieting (it is a lifestyle, not a diet)
- Quit the artificial sweeteners
- Always had breakfast
- Switched to wholegrains
- Stopped saying “I can’t”
- Cut out the negative people in my life
- Ate more fruit and vegetables
- Listened to my body and rested when I needed to and ate when I was truly hungry
- Celebrated my success without food (a pair of shoes or a trip to the cinema)
- Worked out 5 days a week for 45 minutes to an hour
- Made sure I was drinking enough water (but not too much)
- Gave up fizzy drinks and only drank water and green tea
- Gave up alcohol for 3 months (it helped me cut out other bad habits too)
- Dealt with my emotional eating
- I made time for my workouts – I didn’t find time
- Always reminded myself there is no such thing as perfect
- Stopped comparing myself to other people
- Bought myself nice workout clothes so I felt good during my workouts
- Did some food prep for the week
- Planned some of my meals for the week
- Ate less calories than I was burning, but still made sure I was eating enough
- Took my body measurements each week to track my progress (kept me motivated)
- Snacked wisely
- Reminded myself that there was no end date. I was getting fit for life
- Started thinking more positively
- Started each day as a new day and left yesterday in the past
- Stopped seeing food as the enemy and stopped labelling it as good and bad
- Always changed my routine to keep my body guessing
- Made time to relax
- Made appointments for my workouts just like I would a meeting
- Put motivational quotes around my house
- Put up photos that motivated me
- Made sure there was plenty of fibre in my diet
- Ate lots of healthy fats
- Didn’t go back for a second portion of dinner
- Ate slower
- Did yoga – great for releasing stress and toning up
- Identified my eating triggers
- Bulked out pasta dishes with spinach
- Ate berries with my breakfast
- Got creative with salads
- Added herbs and spices to boring clean meals
- Used my slow cooker a lot
- Still allowed myself the foods I liked, but in moderation and not all the time
- Tracked all my food (in the beginning)
- Was honest with myself – lying about what I ate to my food diary didn’t get me anywhere
- Limited animal fats
- Included protein with every meal
- Started reading the labels on everything I bought
- Stopped ordering pizza and fries to be delivered
- Never gave up (despite many falls and wanting to many times)
That list might seem like a lot, but like one of the first points says – make one change at a time. I didn’t do all of these things straight away and I learnt them along the way. Make changes that are going to make you feel healthy and stick with it. You are stronger than you give yourself credit for.
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