After gaining and losing an entire human being between 2 pregnancies (and no I did not eat one although it does look like I did), I can empathise wholeheartedly with anyone who has ever been through it and earned that particular t-shirt.
I hope this tale will inspire others battling with weight and who think its something they are stuck with forever and find it hard to do anything about.
You’ve heard the reasons or maybe said it yourself- “oh but I had kids”, “oh but gave up smoking”… the reasons for carrying spare rucksack around your middle or on each of your backsides are endless.
I sometimes get chills at the thought that if I had not lost 6 stone after Baby 1, and gained all that weight again for Baby 2, I potentially could have ended up needing that “rag on a stick” for daily hygiene and I would have been 24stone now.
Excuses are futile and achieve nothing. We have to take responsibility for our own health and wellbeing.
To change, we have to make changes.
I had so many spare tyres floating around that it felt like my body belonged to someone else. They moved when I walked – hurt a bit too so made it very difficult to exercise. After feeling in a pit of despair, I rang a good friend and colleague and she gave me the advice I needed.
I put on every old bit of lycra I owned in layers so it held me like a corset and prevented the painful jiggle – then I slapped on a big pair of tracksuit pants and took off walking the hills with pram. I combined this with good honest conditioning work, mat, resistance band, stability ball, and watched what I ate. It was not easy, and it took time. If you try for something that will drop weight in a week or 2 stone in a month, IF it works, it is more likely to return in spades. How we live our lives and what we feed ourselves ALWAYS shows on the outside.
WORDS TO ENCOURAGE
If you meet someone who has changed shape – it feels better on the receiving end to be told “Wow you look so FIT!”, or “you look great!”
Not… “you lost LOADS of weight”,
“you look waaaay lighter – how much did you lose???”
that’s like saying “Jeez you were FAT!”. You don’ t know whether to be offended or pleased.
I would not encourage anyone to rely on potions, pills or magic…. tempting as is to want to try them to get a fast result. You will be more likely to get the results you desire through lifetime lifestyle changes and healthy eating.
When you are going through this sort of challenge, seeing it come off bit by bit is the best encouragement! My best ongoing motivation was, and still is to see the inches come off or being able to pull on clothes that I used to wear but without opening them. Also to set yourself new fitness challenges, it makes you feel great to hit the goals and feel fitter in your skin and it has a great effect on the waistline.
DON’T OBSESS ON THE SCALES
Only check your inches every couple of weeks and try not to get hung up on what you weigh on the scales. How you feel in your skin and your clothes is more important. Weighing yourself too often is counter-productive as your body fluids will fluctuate and its not about the weight – its more about what you are made up of or your Body Composition. It is possible to have 2 people the same weight and height and one person will look a lot bigger than the other purely down to the how their weight is made up in lean muscle vs fat weight.
Ask yourself “What do I want more?” The “treat” which effectively isn’t a treat…or to feel great in your skin for a lot longer? It’s a personal decision that you have to be ready for in your own good time.
Fuel your machine properly, pick an activity or sport you LOVE – go at it with a happy head, you will be more likely to continue.
Fitness is for life not just for Christmas, so its time to start and stay going!
More to come…
In Navy now
