Exactly 1 year ago I began a journey. A journey that I started many times before and always turned back around. The dreaded weight loss journey. Let me begin by saying that I've never been unhappy with myself. I've always been comfortable in my skin. I'm not one of those fat chicks who has a problem finding clothes. I live a full life. I travel (and I don't have to buy 2 airline seats - not that there's a problem if you do). I have to turn down invitations from friends to hang out because I just have so much going on. There seems to be a belief that if you're fat you are sad, desperate and have no willpower. Which is NOT true. I go out dancing and going to the movies. I hang out and I party. I was, however, unhappy with not being able to run a mile like I used to in high school. I was unhappy about having knee pain after walking through the mall. I was extremely unhappy about not being able to play basketball with my younger nephews and keep up like I used to when my older nephew was younger.
I've tried every "diet" - I use the term very loosely. I've tried the shit you drink before going to sleep that supposed to help you "lose while you snooze". Didn't work! I've tried the cabbage soup diet. Didn't work - had gas all day! I've tried Weight Watchers? It partially worked. I just don't have the time to dedicate to keeping a food diary for the rest of my life and counting points and calculating activity points. I barely have time to balance my fucking checkbook! I tried the diet where you drink cayenne pepper with lemon juice, molasses. Didn't work! I've tried the South Beach Diet! I should've just taken a trip to South Beach. Guess what? Didn't Work! I ordered this alleged wonder tea from China and aside from looking and possibly being panda piss it didn't work! I even spent a shitload of money and probably increased the sales of Frito-Lay tenfold by going on a - wait for it - a potato chip diet! Didn't work! I tried the Hollywood Juice Diet or as I refer to it the Gatorade mixed with crack diet. Didn't work! I guess you see a trend developing. While these diets may have worked for some people, THEY. DIDN'T. WORK. FOR. ME!!!!!!!!!!! I've tried everything except weight loss surgery it seems and I refuse to have surgery for something I can do on my own.
I found the magic weight loss solution that will work for everyone. I should patent it but I'm going to give it to y'all for free. It's called the "Get off your ass, step away from the table and exercise solution". Yes and it's that simple. Why I didn't realize it before is beyond me. I just had to do it and now one year later I've lost 82 pounds. I stopped eating fast food. I am a very good cook and run a small catering business so the reason I was eating fast food was out of convenience than anything else. To be honest most fast food is disgusting, we're just so accustomed to eating it that, that's exactly what we do - eat it. I started taking a Zumba class on Mondays in April of last year. In July I started taking a Friday class as well. I began eating more fruits and vegetables and completely cut out sodas. I drink mostly water and if the occasion arises that I do want juice. I grab a pineapple or an orange and juice it myself. It really is as simple as that. The waste from the juicing process is immediately thrown into the soil in the flowerbed in my backyard.
I stopped making excuses and started making changes. My overall health has drastically improved and I feel better than I’ve ever felt in my life. I still have a significant amount of weight to lose but I am happy with my progress. Since I stopped “dieting” I started losing weight and it’s been easier than I ever thought. I don’t look at the changes I’ve made as limiting myself; in fact, I enjoy food more than ever now and in such a great abundance that it’s unbelievable. I eat huge salads; I consume massive amounts of fruits and vegetables. I save money because I shop at farmer’s markets and have met a lot of people with gardens and get free veggies from them. I’ve learned to eat smarter, I’ve learned so much about eating for optimal health. I look forward to exercising and feel weird when I don’t.
I hope this encourages someone out there who may have tried diet after diet with no success. As with anything else you need to make time for it. That too was easier than I thought. I used to live my life on a strict schedule. Time dedicated for everything; music, TV, telephone, computer, work, work at home and even baths. I just had to schedule time for working out and it’s all worked out for me for the past year. I’ll continue to update this space with my progress. I never really had too much to blog about that interested me that I thought would interest other but I’m so excited about this life change that I want to share it with everyone.
Until the next time….
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