Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Every story has a beginning...

I don't want to spill my entire story right now, preferring to leave some of my life a mystery in order to make things interesting, but I will give you some basic background details. I live, and was born and raised, in Greenville, SC. I'm 28 years old and I live with my mom. The whole "living with mom" thing is completely by choice and not by circumstance. My husband is serving in the US Navy. He is not here and I hate being in a house alone. I am a preschool teacher assistant at Head Start and I absolutely adore my job most days. I have a hyper rat terrier mix named Peedee and a fat white cat named Radley (Interesting side note: We named many of our pets after characters from To Kill A Mockingbird when I was a kid. Attica is my mom's cat. Boo came before Radley. Scout got hit by a car.) 

A few years ago I tipped the scales at 300+ lbs. Today I don't weigh nearly that much (70 pounds lighter, thank you very much), but I have hit my first plateau, and it has lasted a lot longer than I anticipated. My husband is leaving soon and I have an amazing homecoming from his first (short) deployment to look forward to. By June my goal is to be down to either: a) 200 lbs or b) a size 14.


The pic on the left was taken in May of 2007 at my heaviest, on the right was August 2011.


Here's where I am currently:




I recently realized that I have a food addiction. When I eat I find it very hard to bring to my mind my reasons for wanting to lose weight. The food becomes all consuming and once I start eating I don't stop until I'm stuffed stupid. I'm working on trying to change the way I think about food and to use some visualization techniques to help me stop overeating. I figure what I really need is one very good mental picture of one of my goals that I can pull to the front of my mind when I start to eat; something that I will have to sit and think on and take time to develop to make it as real and as detailed as possible. That, coupled with Zumba and Pole Fitness (YES I said POLE FITNESS!), and eating better should do the trick!

I will (hopefully) be updating this blog once a week with new weights and pics (always in the same outfit). I am determined to do this. I ***can*** do this!!


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2 comments:

  1. AnonymousMarch 30, 2012 at 8:17 AM

    I'm very proud of you. I have recently went from 347 pounds down to 240 pounds and am having a hard time going any lower. Like you, I find myself wanting to eat more than I need. I've been steady at 240 for 2 months now, but I'm *GOING* to keep losing until I am satisfied. My ultimate goal is around 180.

    One idea that I had, which I think could help you too, would be to print out a picture of the "old" you and keep this with you at all times when you might be eating. Sometimes just glancing at how you used to look while or before eating will remind you of your goal and why you've come as far as you have.

    Good luck and you have my best wishes.

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  2. Jerida RavenMarch 30, 2012 at 9:09 AM

    Thanks for the idea! I think maybe a good way to keep a pic of my "old self" around is to make it the background on my phone. :)

    And congrats on your amazing weight loss!! I know how awesome it feels to accomplish something that big, and how frustrating it is to see the progress come to a screeching halt. Keep at it! I'm rooting for you!! :)

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