People always ask me how I stay motivated to stay in shape, and what I do so I've been thinking for awhile about creating a blog. I find alot of inspiraton in reading what others do, so hopefully I can do the same for someone else.
First I should point out I wasn't always so dedicated. Growing up I was naturally thin if not average. I didn't have to work very hard to maintain my weight, but I definetly was not "in shape". You can be skinny and not fit...and that's how I'd describe myself back then. Occasionally I'd get on a fitness kick and try a work out dvd, or run a few laps at the track, but then I'd get bored and quit. I hated gym class, and I hated working out! Throughout high school I was a size 9 and pretty much stayed there.
After I graduated I yo-yo'd a little. I lost a bunch of weight when I worked midnights at the Post Office because it was a fast paced job, and I'd go right to bed when I got home instead of eating. Around 22 I started to pack on the pounds though. I worked part time, and spent alot of my off time laying around watching tv. Eventually it caught up to me, and I kept having to buy bigger sized jeans. At first I was a 9....then an 11....then a 13...and when I hit that point I knew it had to stop! I was always getting sick, and I just felt horrible.
I was tired of buying bigger sizes so I bought an exercise bike. I used to a little but it didn't really stick. I've always liked to walk so I bought a pedometer. I read you were supposed to get at least 10,000 steps a day (5 miles), so I'd wear it from the minute I got up until the end of the day. Whatever I had left to reach my goal I'd go for a walk and get it done. Some days I'd stop at 10,000 and others I'd go over by a few 1000, but I never did less then 10,000. Within a few months I started losing the weight. I watched what I ate but I was never restrictive. I LOVE food and could never see myself dieting forever, so why bother changing that.
Soon I was back to my old size 9 jeans. I was so excited that I kept it up. All of this began in the Spring, and by the fall I signed up for a gym membership. I'd use the eliptical for 30 minutes and do a few weight machines. Soon I was in a size 7 jean, and eventually was in a size 5. Smaller then I could ever remember being! I knew from that point on I never wanted to go back to my old lifestyle.
I think at my lowest weight I was around 119 lbs, but I think I got so small because I went from no exercise to a bunch, and plus I didn't have much muscle back then. Today I go between 125-130 and wear a size 7. I work out at least 6 days a week (usually only 30-60 minutes), and if I don't feel like a hard workout I walk. I eat 3 meals a day, and usually 2 snacks (to maintain my weight I probably eat 1800-2200 calories a day). I really believe this is the key to it all. You HAVE to eat, and it's okay to splurge and eat bad things. You just can't do it every meal, every day! I recommend looking online for a calculator to tell you how many calories to reach your goal, but you can play with it too and see what works.
The point of this entry is I just wanted to let everyone know my history with fitness and eating, and tell you what works for me. In the future posts I want to talk about what I'm eating and doing, and how I feel. I think what has really worked with me is I've just never stopped. It really does become a lifestyle change. Working out to me is now something I schedule into my day like anything else I need to do. The awesome thing though is eventually you won't feel forced to do it, you'll want to!
So get out there and start small, but know that everything you do is going to make a huge difference later. You will never regret it!
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