We’re two months into 2011 and I’m having the toughest time with my primary New Year’s resolution—the dreaded new year, new diet. About 38% of people set weight goals each year. Only 8% actually achieve their resolutions, weight related or otherwise.* Scary, but true.
Over the past couple of months several people have asked me how I shed my extra pounds. At my highest, I tipped the scale around 185; I stopped tracking my weight at that point. It took roughly a year and a half to shed around 50 pounds, but I did it and kept it off—for the most part—until now. Carrying the extra five to ten pounds of Thanksgiving-to-New Years’ weight is enough to make my clothes fit tight and make it hard to breathe again, which is my main motivation for losing weight and keeping it off. Then again, I have to admit that my five-year-old calling me “jelly belly” had a great deal to do with pushing me to get back into shape again.
Why beat around the bush? There’s no secret, super-fast short cut to losing weight. It takes hard work, exercise, and eating right. Exercise, I can do. Eating right, well, that’s another story.
What makes me qualified to talk about dieting? After all I’m not a fitness trainer, a celebrity, or getting paid to promote the latest fad. I’m a real person with real diet challenges just like most American moms out there. I don’t believe in fad diets or taking pills to shed weight. For me, dieting has to be a long term solution and one that I can maintain as part of my lifestyle as a working mom. A diet has to be realistic. If it promises that I’ll lose ten pounds in two weeks, I know that within four weeks I will have gained back the ten pounds and then some.
Everyone’s body is different. We need to find a solution that fits our individual needs. Start by consulting your doctor. Never EVER embark on a diet or exercise strategy without consulting a doctor or nutritionist first, unless you know without a doubt that you are already in optimum health. Our goal should be to get healthy, not kill ourselves in the process.
Thanks to two pregnancies and my annual hibernation / holiday binge, I’ve gained and lost a lot of weight through the years. My weight still fluctuates based on the time of year (e.g. more physical activity in summer versus winter). And I’m ok with that. It’s been a difficult notion to accept, but one that was essential for me to understand who I am and how my body works.
That said, I have five basic steps for dieting success.
1) Get Real: Set realistic goals i.e. “I want to lose 15 pounds in six months” not “I need to lose 15 pounds by next Friday.”
2) The Scale of Judgment: Don’t weigh yourself every day. Find out the best time of day to weigh yourself and do it once or twice a week. Watching your weight fluctuate day-to-day is a self-sabotaging diet killer.
3) Patience is a Virtue (& a Dieting Necessity): Be patient. Long-term diet success takes months and years. Don’t expect overnight results.
4) One Size Doesn’t Fit All: We are each unique, so don’t compare your diet success to your friends or celebrities.
5) Forgiveness: Every day is a new day and new opportunity to get back on track if you fall off of the diet caravan.
Like everything in life, it’s always easier said than done, but I’m hopefully determined. And that’s half the battle.
Stay tuned.
Resources:
* New Year’s Resolution Statistics: http://www.steveshapiro.com/2008/12/11/interesting-new-years-resolution-statistics/
Showing posts with label weight. Show all posts
Showing posts with label weight. Show all posts
Monday, February 28, 2011
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Weighing In
The headline caught me. “Ice dancer Belbin has put on weight, and she couldn’t be happier.” (Thanks Yahoo! Sports.)
For those of you who follow the Olympics, Tanith Belbin and her ice dancing partner, Ben Agosto, won silver in Turin 2006. Without a doubt, Tanith was gorgeous. She literally looked like a Barbie doll.
So, obviously, curiosity got the best of me when I read the article’s headline. Expecting to see an Olympic-athlete-turned-obese-woman, I was slightly disappointed to learn that she gained ten pounds.
Ten pounds. And this makes news.
Ten pounds is nothing. I can pack that on in one indulgent weekend of chocolates, champagne, and take out.
Still, I had to read the story.
The article’s author, Maggie Hendricks, wrote:
“With Linichuk's [her new coach] help, Belbin changed her eating and training habits. She
grew stronger, allowing curves and muscles to be a part of her body. Agosto said that their lifts have improved, as Belbin can hold herself up more easily. If you've ever held a sleeping child, you know that Agosto's job became much easier as Belbin's strength improved.”
As a result, the pair is in gold medal contention this week. Imagine that—an Olympic gold medal is in your grasp thanks to a few extra pounds.
So, if weight makes us stronger and healthier who cares if we gain ten or even twenty pounds as we age? No one can (or should) expect us to look the way we did in high school. Unfortunately, women with natural curves aren’t appreciated in the heavily covered media world of celebrities. For some reason, silicone and surgically enhanced beauty is what both men and women are taught to expect. It’s not fair.
While I’m not against plastic surgery, I wish the media would offer a more balanced view of reality. Model-like skinny makes up a very small percentage of the population. With the average size of women estimated at a 14 dress size, clearly, the size 0 actresses featured on nearly every TV show and movie do not reflect reality. But Hollywood wouldn’t have it otherwise. After all, movies are an escape and a size 4 ‘fatty’ doesn’t translate well on the silver screen. (For those of you who don’t know me, I’m being 100% sarcastic.)
While the Hollywood situation isn’t about to change, I hope that the Tanith Belbin story of overcoming the fear of weight gain will change the way some girls and women see themselves. Beauty, after all, lies within and isn’t measureable by inches around your waist.
Good luck, Tanith and Ben. Make the U.S. proud!
Resource:
Yahoo! Sports
For those of you who follow the Olympics, Tanith Belbin and her ice dancing partner, Ben Agosto, won silver in Turin 2006. Without a doubt, Tanith was gorgeous. She literally looked like a Barbie doll.
So, obviously, curiosity got the best of me when I read the article’s headline. Expecting to see an Olympic-athlete-turned-obese-woman, I was slightly disappointed to learn that she gained ten pounds.
Ten pounds. And this makes news.
Ten pounds is nothing. I can pack that on in one indulgent weekend of chocolates, champagne, and take out.
Still, I had to read the story.
The article’s author, Maggie Hendricks, wrote:
“With Linichuk's [her new coach] help, Belbin changed her eating and training habits. She
grew stronger, allowing curves and muscles to be a part of her body. Agosto said that their lifts have improved, as Belbin can hold herself up more easily. If you've ever held a sleeping child, you know that Agosto's job became much easier as Belbin's strength improved.”As a result, the pair is in gold medal contention this week. Imagine that—an Olympic gold medal is in your grasp thanks to a few extra pounds.
So, if weight makes us stronger and healthier who cares if we gain ten or even twenty pounds as we age? No one can (or should) expect us to look the way we did in high school. Unfortunately, women with natural curves aren’t appreciated in the heavily covered media world of celebrities. For some reason, silicone and surgically enhanced beauty is what both men and women are taught to expect. It’s not fair.
While I’m not against plastic surgery, I wish the media would offer a more balanced view of reality. Model-like skinny makes up a very small percentage of the population. With the average size of women estimated at a 14 dress size, clearly, the size 0 actresses featured on nearly every TV show and movie do not reflect reality. But Hollywood wouldn’t have it otherwise. After all, movies are an escape and a size 4 ‘fatty’ doesn’t translate well on the silver screen. (For those of you who don’t know me, I’m being 100% sarcastic.)
While the Hollywood situation isn’t about to change, I hope that the Tanith Belbin story of overcoming the fear of weight gain will change the way some girls and women see themselves. Beauty, after all, lies within and isn’t measureable by inches around your waist.
Good luck, Tanith and Ben. Make the U.S. proud!
Resource:
Yahoo! Sports
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
The Numbers Game of a Weighty Issue
I have a love/hate relationship with food. I love to eat it but hate the weight gain that comes with it.
It’s ironic that over the past few months several people told me that I haven’t changed a bit since high school. I’ve gotta admit that makes me feel pretty good, but a lot has changed over the past thirteen years. Other than the obvious—marriage, kids, career—my appearance has fluctuated quite a bit, from pixie haircuts and burgundy colored hair to health issues complicated by increased weight.
I had always been muscular—thanks to dance classes and cheerleading. Plus my competitive streak had me rivaling the boys in my high school weight training gym classes.
Then I went to college. No more ballet. No more cheerleading. No more will to get to the gym for fear of being stared at and judged by the people who knew how to use the equipment.
By the time graduation rolled around, I had gained ten pounds. Within six months of that, I gained another eight. Still, I didn’t look bad. I looked half decent in my bathing suits—at least I didn’t feel like I’d blind anyone on the beach—and I wasn’t overly self-conscious.
Of course, all that changed after baby number one arrived. I lost all of the pregnancy weight except for the last ten pounds. Not bad considering I didn’t exercise. Then four years later, baby number two threw a cosmic imbalance into my teetering system.
I gained 40 plus pregnancy pounds (I stopped looking at the scale after I topped 185). Assuming I’d drop the weight just as easily as after baby number one, I was in for a rude awakening. Of the 40 plus pounds, I only lost about 15. My weight ebbed around 170 for about three years.
Though the weight bothered me, the number wasn’t what hurt. I was constantly exhausted. I couldn’t play with my kids outside for more than a few minutes because my asthma would kick in during spring and summer. And, I was generally miserable. For the first time in my life I actually felt fat. My legs were heavy. My butt dragged me down. My back hurt.
Irritated, I recalled my high school days and how I thought I was chunky back then. (Typical teenage self-confidence issues, I guess.) The days of the six-pack abs were long gone and I missed them. I considered exercising and dieting, but it seemed like such a long, painful road. It was easier to pop another Hershey's miniature and complain about the situation.
As I stated in yesterday’s blog, last September I spent five days devouring the Twilight book series. Having eaten virtually nothing during that time, I dropped ten pounds (Jeff fondly refers to this as the “Edward diet”). While I don’t recommend that crash course, it provided me with the impetus to get moving.
I decided I was going to take charge of my health and make a change. After all, no one else could do it for me. I alone controlled what went into my system and how to take care of it.
Brushing off the thick coating of dust covering my long unused exercise tapes, I popped them in and began exercising 15 minutes a day, three days a week. No it wasn’t enough to make a difference, but it was just the right amount to get me motivated to do more. Today, I exercise 30 – 75 minutes six days a week and I feel GREAT!
It’s been about 11 months since I started chiseling the soft mush that defined the ‘Andrea’ of the past seven years. While I still have a way to go, I’m proud of my progress having dropped from a size 14 to a 6. Not bad. Despite this success, I still have good weeks and bad weeks. It's a day-by-day effort. Sometimes cravings outweigh all sense of logical reason, but I wake up the next day with increased resolve to try again.
Truth be told, I don't want the body of a size 0 celebrity. It’s not about the numbers. It’s about how I feel. The fact that I can outrun my kids and keep up with their over charged, out-of-control energy is an accomplishment in my mind. I’ve rediscovered the joy of living life actively instead of having it lived for me by fear and a lack of will power.
It’s ironic that over the past few months several people told me that I haven’t changed a bit since high school. I’ve gotta admit that makes me feel pretty good, but a lot has changed over the past thirteen years. Other than the obvious—marriage, kids, career—my appearance has fluctuated quite a bit, from pixie haircuts and burgundy colored hair to health issues complicated by increased weight.
I had always been muscular—thanks to dance classes and cheerleading. Plus my competitive streak had me rivaling the boys in my high school weight training gym classes.
Then I went to college. No more ballet. No more cheerleading. No more will to get to the gym for fear of being stared at and judged by the people who knew how to use the equipment.
By the time graduation rolled around, I had gained ten pounds. Within six months of that, I gained another eight. Still, I didn’t look bad. I looked half decent in my bathing suits—at least I didn’t feel like I’d blind anyone on the beach—and I wasn’t overly self-conscious.
Of course, all that changed after baby number one arrived. I lost all of the pregnancy weight except for the last ten pounds. Not bad considering I didn’t exercise. Then four years later, baby number two threw a cosmic imbalance into my teetering system.
I gained 40 plus pregnancy pounds (I stopped looking at the scale after I topped 185). Assuming I’d drop the weight just as easily as after baby number one, I was in for a rude awakening. Of the 40 plus pounds, I only lost about 15. My weight ebbed around 170 for about three years.
Though the weight bothered me, the number wasn’t what hurt. I was constantly exhausted. I couldn’t play with my kids outside for more than a few minutes because my asthma would kick in during spring and summer. And, I was generally miserable. For the first time in my life I actually felt fat. My legs were heavy. My butt dragged me down. My back hurt.
Irritated, I recalled my high school days and how I thought I was chunky back then. (Typical teenage self-confidence issues, I guess.) The days of the six-pack abs were long gone and I missed them. I considered exercising and dieting, but it seemed like such a long, painful road. It was easier to pop another Hershey's miniature and complain about the situation.
As I stated in yesterday’s blog, last September I spent five days devouring the Twilight book series. Having eaten virtually nothing during that time, I dropped ten pounds (Jeff fondly refers to this as the “Edward diet”). While I don’t recommend that crash course, it provided me with the impetus to get moving.
I decided I was going to take charge of my health and make a change. After all, no one else could do it for me. I alone controlled what went into my system and how to take care of it.
Brushing off the thick coating of dust covering my long unused exercise tapes, I popped them in and began exercising 15 minutes a day, three days a week. No it wasn’t enough to make a difference, but it was just the right amount to get me motivated to do more. Today, I exercise 30 – 75 minutes six days a week and I feel GREAT!
It’s been about 11 months since I started chiseling the soft mush that defined the ‘Andrea’ of the past seven years. While I still have a way to go, I’m proud of my progress having dropped from a size 14 to a 6. Not bad. Despite this success, I still have good weeks and bad weeks. It's a day-by-day effort. Sometimes cravings outweigh all sense of logical reason, but I wake up the next day with increased resolve to try again.
Truth be told, I don't want the body of a size 0 celebrity. It’s not about the numbers. It’s about how I feel. The fact that I can outrun my kids and keep up with their over charged, out-of-control energy is an accomplishment in my mind. I’ve rediscovered the joy of living life actively instead of having it lived for me by fear and a lack of will power.
Summer 2008 - weighing in around 170
Spring 2009 - weighing about 135
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