As a child. My parents never kept unhealthy food in the house. We never had soda or junk food. But I would always overeat. My parents told me one day it would catch up to me and it did.
NAME : Eman
BEFORE WEIGHT : 280
AFTER WEIGHT : 150
POUNDS LOST : 130
HOW DID YOUR WEIGHT AFFECT ANY ASPECT(S) OF YOUR LIFE? I was self conscious. I hated shopping. All my friends would get to buy cute clothes at the mall and when I went shopping with them, all I could buy was accessories.
WHAT WAS THE “TURNING POINT” THAT GOT YOU STARTED ON YOUR WEIGHT LOSS JOURNEY? My turning point was when my father passed away. I had promised him I would lose weight and be healthy. I kept that promise and let that motivate me.
HOW DID YOU GET STARTED? I started researching different exercises and diets. I downloaded my fitness pal and still use it to this day.
HOW LONG AFTER YOU STARTED DID YOU BEGIN TO SEE RESULTS OF YOUR WEIGHT LOSS EFFORTS? I saw them in as little as a few weeks. The weight literally started falling off.
WHAT WAS THE HARDEST PART? I didn’t really have any challenges. I just had to make sure to keep showing up for myself even during the weeks when the scale didn’t move.
DID YOU EVER WANT TO GIVE UP? WHAT KEPT YOU GOING? Oh yes. It is not easy. I just kept thinking about the promise I made my dad and envisioned a smaller body with cute clothes.
DID YOU HIT ANY WEIGHT LOSS PLATEAUS? HOW DID YOU OVERCOME THEM? I hit a couple and I would just zig zag my calories to get past it.
HOW LONG DID IT TAKE YOU TO LOSE MOST OF THE WEIGHT? I would say about a year.
DID YOU HAVE ANY NON-SCALE VICTORIES? Yes! I was able to fit into cute clothes and pass my army PT test.
WHAT DOES YOUR DAILY DIET LOOK LIKE COMPARED TO WHEN YOU WERE HEAVIER? I was definitely an emotional eater. I would eat when I was bored or sad. I at somewhat healthy food. I just ate a lot of it.
HOW DOES YOUR PHYSICAL ACTIVITY COMPARE TO WHEN YOU WERE HEAVIER? I started working out at my heaviest. I would go to the gym and do cardio. It has become a lifestyle for me and I truly enjoy working out.
MY WEIGHT LOSS TIPS & TRICKS
- Meal prep. Meal prep. Meal prep. It’s so easy to grab something unhealthy when you’re in a hurry. Meal prep makes you have no excuses.
- Always stick to a certain time to workout. I workout every morning before work. When you make it a routine, you stick to it. It’s so easy to say I’ll go after work if you skip your morning workout, and not do it.
- Track your calories. That helps so much. You never realize how much you’re eating.