My Weight Loss Journey: Day 49

While on this weight loss journey I am learning so much about myself and my eating triggers. I have learned thus far that my life stressors have really hindered my weight loss. Let me explain what I mean by that last statement. On days that I am to workout either I am so tried from working all day or my home life is not at peace that all I want to do is sleep and eat. And a while back I would have done just that, went to sleep and ate. Weight Watchers has taught me how to manage what I eat and how much I eat, and I am very happy about that; because the way that I am eating now is becoming a habit. Since I have been on this journey I am able to recongize the stress triggers better, but now I must figure out how to push through and not let those issues punch holes in my life. I really like the fact that I am actually losing weight, and I am doing it the right way. I still get to eat what I want to eat and enjoy the foods that I like. My problem now is handling the stresses of life. And because I am going to contiune on this journey until I reach my overall weight loss goal, I know that I will figure it out.

But on a happier note, I am now down 10lbs. When I look in the mirror at myself I really can't tell, but numbers don't lie. So, I am very happy about that accomplishment because that means that I have 2 more pounds to lose to reach 5% body weight lost. Because I am learning to set small goals for myself, instead of just focusing on the big picture, I can say that I am encouraged to continue because I am seeing results no matter how much stress I may be under. What doesn't kill me will make me stronger, and this time around I will be mentally strengthen. I know that God wants me to prosper and be in good health even as my soul prospers. This tells me that as I go through this journey this time I will prosper both spiritually and naturally. And I am so looking forward to the prosperity that is coming my way, that God promised me in His word.

Let me know what you think and I also want to hear some of your stories. Please stay tune because there is more to come.

My Weight Loss Journey: Day 28

So guys, the last time we met I told you that I met my first small personal goal of losing 5lbs. And because of that I was able to reward myself with a new pair of workout shoes. So, this weekend I went out and brought me some new shoes.

I really like the color; if you did not know blue is my favorite color, and they are very comfortable. Now I am working on my next small personal goal, which is to lose 5% of my body weight (12.5lbs). And I have already gotten off to a bumpy start. This past Friday I was not felling well and I did not work out, nor was I able to eat anything. I just felt really weak, so I laid in bed all day and drank tea. Because I wasn't feeling well yesterday I did not go to my Weight Watcher's meeting, I slept in and tried to get some rest. And by me resting up I felt better that evening so I went to workout. Every health professional and fitness professional will tell you that sleep is important for losing weight, as well as maintaining a healthy weight; so I think the reason that I did not feel well was because I was not getting enough sleep. I am constantly working, taking care of my son and my house, and making attempts to take care of my husband, while studying for my upcoming board exams and making time to work out, among other matters that I deal with daily. I guess my body just needed me to take some time for me, and not feel guilty for taking the time needed. Feeling guilty is another story that I might get into at a different time, but today I want to express to everyone that we all need time for ourselves, time to just be, time to just relax, time to breath; and you should not feel bad about it. Because if you don't take care of you who will?

Before I end this post I want to say that in spite of me not feeling well, I still got a chance to celebrate me meeting my first personal goal which motivated me and pushed me to continue despite me not feeling 100%. So, I am excited about what is yet to come for me on this journey. I have already learned so much about myself and some reasons way I continue to gain weight, but God has more things to show me. So, stay tune because there is more to come....

My Weight Loss Journey: Day 22

Well guys I have been on my journey for 1 month now, and I must say that joining Weight Watchers was a great idea. On my last weight in, which was yesterday, I lost another 2 lbs which gave me a total of 5.2 lbs lost. I was so happy that I accomplished my first small weight lost goal, and I did it eating the food that I like, that I gained more motivation to continue the journey. The reason that  I am writing this blog is not to just focus on the highs of the journey, but to tell my truth about my weight in hopes that I can help somebody while I am on my journey. So, the question you all should ask me is am I learning from the jourmey, because when on a journey you should be learning something? Great question, and my answer to the question would be yes; I have learned two very important things. 1.) I have learned that when I am stress that I want to eat so I can feel better, and the foods I want to eat are sweet (cake, cookies, ice cream, chocolate, etc.), and 2.) I have to learn self control and in order to learn self control I must listen to my body.

On day 9 of this journey I was face with some personal challenges that caused me to be stressed. And because I was stressed I did not want to workout and I could not focus on counting points because all  could think about was the issue at hand. On day 9 is when I learned that stress was a negative trigger for me, and that in order for me to loss the weight and keep it off I have to learn how to handle my stress. So, day 9 was a very important day for me, because it opened my eyes to see some of my shortcomings as it concerns my weight.  On day 10 of this journey I found myself not eating what I needed to eat which resulted in me getting a headache, which caused me to just eat so my headache could go away. This to me was a lack of self control. I did not control my schedule to ensure that I ate something, which caused me not to eat throughout the day, which caused me int he end to just eat. This is a cycle that I have noticed myself doing since I have been on Weight Watchers. So, when you hear health professional, fitness professionals, and people in general say that losing weight is all in the person's mind they are absolutely correct. Because as you can see from day 1 up until now I have talked about what was going on in my mind which caused me to acted in a negative manner, which in turn effects my weight.

The bible tells us that as a man thinks so is he, which means what I think about will come true. So, if I think negatively negative things will happen to me. But when I begin to focus on positive things, positive things will happen to me. What I am learning thus for on this journey is that I have to get my mind right also. I can loss all the weight I want but if I don't see myself as God sees me then the weight will come back, and I might gain more than I started out with. This is the first of many breakthroughs, but I don't believe that this is the main breakthrough- the thing/matter that actually caused me to gain weight in the first place. That matter is what I must get to, deal with, and overcome if I hope for permanent weight lost.

Please share your own stories of challenges and how did you overcome them. Stay tune because there is more to come.

My Weight Loss Journey: Day 1

Well guys I did it, I took the first step in the right direction as it concerns my health. On Saturday, March 15, 2014 I started Weight Watchers. March 15, 2014 was the day I had to admit to myself that I need help with losing weight. I thought because I went to school to become a chiropractor and took classes in nutrition that I knew it all and I did not need help, but I was wrong. I will admit that I know more about health, fitness, and nutrition than the average person, but I still need help with being motivated to do what I know I should be doing as it concerns my health and fitness. I will also admit that I was ashamed of myself because I had gained so much weight after losing a lot of weight. The first time I really tried to lose weight I was in chiropractic school, I had help from my friends, and I got down to 200 lbs on my way to my goal weight of  185 lbs ( a size 12). I was so proud of myself, and I had son much confidences in myself. And then we all graduated and life started. I moved to Illinois and began working. I met a man and got married, and then had a baby. And while I was living my life the weight began to come back and I found myself weight 250 lbs. During my pregnancy I gained more than 60 lbs, and I felt that it was okay because I was pregnant. After I had my son, and gained release for my midwife, I began working out. But I felt so guilty about leaving my son to go to the gym to workout that I stopped, and my weight kept increasing. My self esteem continued to decrease and depression began to creep into my life. So, I began working out again, but guilt began to creep back into my life. But this time I thought that I could workout before I came home from work. I thought that since I am already out of the house, I am not leaving my son, so when I get home I am there to stay. This plan worked for a while and I began to see some weight lost. However, this did not last for long and the weight came back. This back and forth cycle continued for almost 2 years. What changed you may ask? Good question, and my answer would be that my mind changed.

God says that I am healed, and this includes obesity; so I believe that I am healed. And because I believe this my spirit began to speak to me. I began to see me healthier, having more energy, and being more active with my son. I told a friend that after I had my baby I wanted to join Weight Watchers, but after I had my son I found every reason not to join. But when the new year came I just thought that if other people can do it why can't I. I began thinking about where would the money come from, because I don't have extra to pay to Weight Watchers. So, I prayed and March 15, 2014 I took my first step.Taking that first step was very scary because thoughts of failure began to creep in my mind, but I took the step anyway. My spirit began to speak to me and it told me that God has a purpose and a plan for me and in order for me to reach it I have to be at my best and right now I am not at my best. So, I sat in the meeting and after the meeting was over the discussion about payment came, but I knew it would. I almost said forget it because where would the money come from, then my spirit told me to pay weekly ($14.00 every week), which may seem like nothing but it is when you have  child to tak care of. Nevertheless ,I did it. I signed up and moved forward with what I was told to do by my spirit.

So, Day 1 I weighted in at 251.6 lbs and my overall weight loss goal is to lose 67 lbs. My weekly goal is to workout 5 days a week for 30 minutes. Many will say that this goal should be easy to complete, but if you have read my story you will know that this will be difficult for me, but I know I must do it and I will do it with help from God. I will do it one day at a time, because my spirits tells me to only look at and focus on that day.

Continue to read about my weight loss journey and wish we well. You can also share you own personal jourenys. See below how I look now: