How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
#1How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
Posted: 11/27/07 at 9:27am
Happy Holidays my BWW friends.
I want to share with you ladies and gents my tips for dropping a nifty 50 pounds in 5-6 months. Before I start I want all of you to know that it's not easy and you gotta want it! I had been out of work for over a year and when I was ready to go back none of my uniform pieces fit. I decided to give myself two months to start losing some weight before I ordered bigger pants and jackets.
The first thing I did was to cut evening snacks. How many of us go to bed with a full belly? I know I did. I would eat/snack every night and then go to bed while chewing my last bite. It wasn't easy and there were more than a few nights that I woke up at two in the morning and grabbed any food I could find, eat it and then go right back to bed.
The important thing is to identify the "triggers" that stimulate the "overeating." For me it was evening TV watching. I stopped watching TV after eight in the evening. I DVR'd everything I liked and saw it while having breakfast the next day.
Breakfast. That was also a trigger for me. The bigger the breakfast, the hungrier I was for the rest of the day. I used portion control for my breakfast meal. Usually a Wasa(TM) cracker with a tablespoon of peanut butter and a banana, coffee, grapefruit juice(which I like) and 2-3 glasses of water.
For lunch and dinner I had a large salad w/ a little bit of dressing and some sort of protein. Canned tuna, salmon, chicken or Tilapia. Dinner always included a veggie (broccoli, spinach or brussel sprouts) and half a sweet potato or yam.
Finally, I did eliminate most of my comfort food. Now to be very clear, comfort food for me was punishment food. It was stuff I would put in my body that I knew was bad for me and that's the purpose it served. If I was down and I wanted to stay depressed, I'd buy a couple of pints(?) of Ben & Jerry ice cream and a bag of Utz chips. I eliminated all of it. My evening snack was water and a diet Pepsi.
That takes care of my diet. The second part of my weight loss involved exercise. I had gained so much weight and been so sedentary that I had forgotten how to walk. Oh sure I could walk around the house but when I went for my first exercise walk I felt like an 80 year old man. My walking wasn't an easy stride. I felt every step and every part of my lower body bothered me. But i continued to walk. Every day for as long as I could and by the end of the first month I was walking 30-45 minutes a day.
The process was slow but I did see results little by little.
I feel great. Not always of course but now it's not because of my weight or my lack of energy.
And the reason all of this benefited my BWW family...I have less time to contribute badly written, unapologetic and less than contrite posts. 
Happy Holidays again and know that I love being here with you and chatting about the folks who live on the hill.
Click on my profile and watch Chita Rivera "Put On A Happy Face"
blueroses
Broadway Legend Joined: 10/18/04
#2re: How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
Posted: 11/27/07 at 9:31amCongratulations on your accomplishment!
#2re: How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
Posted: 11/27/07 at 9:31amThat's great, Chita. Congrats!
Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; begin it well and serenely and with too high a spirit to be enbered with your old nonsense. ~ Emerson
wexy
Broadway Legend Joined: 9/19/05
#3re: How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
Posted: 11/27/07 at 9:34amGreat work. Congrats.
'Take me out tonight where's there's music and there's people and they're young and alive.'
Borstalboy
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/9/04
#4re: How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
Posted: 11/27/07 at 9:36amGood for you! STILL trying to lose 20-30 lbs. here!
"Impossible is just a big word thrown around by small men who find it easier to live in the world they've been given than to explore the power they have to change it. Impossible is not a fact. It's an opinion. Impossible is not a declaration. It's a dare. Impossible is potential. Impossible is temporary. Impossible is nothing.”
~ Muhammad Ali
#5re: How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
Posted: 11/27/07 at 9:39am
Congratulations. Any plans on how to make fitness an ongoing part of your life so you don't gain it back?
I'm on week #7 of the 12-week Body for Life program. It has completely reshaped my body, partly due tp the fact that for the fiorst time in my life, I've been going to the gym 6 days a week (3x weight training, 3x cardio + 1x yoga) for 6 weeks now.
I wonder if I'll be able to maintain that discipline after week 12.
blueroses
Broadway Legend Joined: 10/18/04
#6re: How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
Posted: 11/27/07 at 9:44am
PJ, what's the Body for Life program?
ETA: Forget it. I just looked it up.
Updated On: 11/27/07 at 09:44 AM
#7re: How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
Posted: 11/27/07 at 9:53am
PJ the hard part is sticking to it.
When I was losing the weight I was motivated by the inches and pounds I lost. Now I have to keep my eye on the prize but the prize has changed. It has become a more abstract prize(serenity, health and hopefully longevity.)
eta: while losing weight I joined a gym and go at least 3-4 times a week and when I don't go, I workout at home. I am jogging on the treadmill at 5 (is it mph?) and at a 2.5 incline for 20-30 minutes.
Click on my profile and watch Chita Rivera "Put On A Happy Face"
#8re: How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
Posted: 11/27/07 at 10:03am
Blue--it was on the bestseller lists for about 2 1/2 years. There's a diet program and an exercise program. I did only the exercise program, and the results are noticeable, even though you're not supposed to measure until the 12 weeks are over.
Part of what made the 6 days/week do-able for was that the 3 cardio workouts are ONLY 20 minutes long, and the upper body and lower body workouts are also short: 46 minutes and 42.
So I was in and out of the gym quicker than my old routines, which were 2 hours of everything, twice a week, three times, if I was good.
But if you're in the mood to apply yourself, it's a well-thought-out program.
#9re: How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
Posted: 11/27/07 at 10:04am
fab...congratulations!
Now let's see the before and after!!
"Carson has combined his passion for helping children with his love for one of Cincinnati's favorite past times - cornhole - to create a unique and exciting event perfect for a corporate outing, entertaining clients or family fun."
"In Oz, the verb is douchifizzation." PRS
"In Oz, the verb is douchifizzation." PRS
mauriposa
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/14/05
#10re: How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
Posted: 11/27/07 at 10:10amThat's great, Chita! I lost 30 pounds this summer and have been trying to keep it off. It's tough, but worth it.
#11re: How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
Posted: 11/27/07 at 10:13am
BEFORE:
AFTER:
EDIT: And congratulations, Chita! Well done.
"Jaws is the Citizen Kane of movies."
blocked: logan2, Diamonds3, Hamilton22
Updated On: 11/27/07 at 10:13 AM
blocked: logan2, Diamonds3, Hamilton22
Borstalboy
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/9/04
#12re: How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
Posted: 11/27/07 at 10:19amI have taken a look at Body For Life and the diet always struck me as a little draconian....hmmm, maybe I'll ask for it fer Christmas.
"Impossible is just a big word thrown around by small men who find it easier to live in the world they've been given than to explore the power they have to change it. Impossible is not a fact. It's an opinion. Impossible is not a declaration. It's a dare. Impossible is potential. Impossible is temporary. Impossible is nothing.”
~ Muhammad Ali
#13re: How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
Posted: 11/27/07 at 10:21amCongratulations, Chita! That evening snacking is a treat for me as well, but instead of cutting it out altogether, I completely changed what I snack on. Fruit or organic "snacks", and fruit flavored sparking/seltzer water mixed with water instead of diet soda.
Have I ever shown you my Shattered Dreams box? It's in my Disappointment Closet. - Marge Simpson
#14re: How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
Posted: 11/27/07 at 11:14am
Doing weight training before your cardio will also burn more fat, just FYI.
And cutting carbs really does work.
http://preppylife.tumblr.com/
#15re: How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
Posted: 11/27/07 at 11:24am
Rath, I like the the sparkling water idea. Diet sodas are something I still haven't kicked.
Cheno, Weight training first is definitely the way to go and after a couple of weeks I didn't miss the bread. Well...I missed it but I didn't crave it.
Doodle, I have the before pictures when I was at my heaviest, 202 pounds which my 5'8" frame did not carry well, but I haven't gotten around to taking the after pictures.
And Fit For Life really works.
Click on my profile and watch Chita Rivera "Put On A Happy Face"
#16re: How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
Posted: 11/27/07 at 11:27am
I was addicted to Diet Coke for almost twenty years. The way I cut it out was to tell myself I could have it on weekends only. By the second weekend, I didn't want it anymore.
Now I'll have it when I go out for "drinks". I usually don't have it even with restaurant meals anymore. I went from being someone who couldn't stand drinking water (since childhood) to someone who drinks it more than any other beverage. I never thought I could change those habits.
Anyone can do pretty much anything.
Have I ever shown you my Shattered Dreams box? It's in my Disappointment Closet. - Marge Simpson
#17re: How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
Posted: 11/27/07 at 11:37am
Chita- I used to be addicted to baguette and olive oil. And pasta. I didn't think i could cut them out.
But like you, I didn't miss them after a while.
I eat pasta as a treat because it's my favourite food, but i don't need it all the time.
http://preppylife.tumblr.com/
#18re: How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
Posted: 11/27/07 at 11:55am
What did I miss? What's wrong with diet soda? I drink zero calorie Fresca.
Aside from that I find that avoiding white food (bread, rice, sugar, potatoes and pasta) keeps me fit. If I avoid those things I find I don't have to think about it past that. I think, for me, that it has to be that uncomplicated in order for me to maintain it as a lifestyle.
Congratulations, Chita! Here's to a healthy future!
Art has a double face, of expression and illusion.
#19re: How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
Posted: 11/27/07 at 11:56am
Congrats, Chita! I lost about 30 lbs. on Weight Watchers over the summer, but I still have a lot to go. I'm not on the program right now and I've continued to maintain or lose, which really goes to show you that it's mostly about lifestyle changes. All good advice.
Diet soda isn't much of a problem for me, fortunately. I'll drink it when it's just there or I need a caffeine boost, but I don't buy it at the grocery store and I get water at restaurants.
Updated On: 11/27/07 at 11:56 AM
#20
Posted: 11/27/07 at 11:58am
My avatar is a reminder to myself. I need lots of reminders...
Updated On: 12/23/09 at 11:58 AM
#21re: How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
Posted: 11/27/07 at 11:59amwater makes this little girl have to winky tink...so's I just about wet my pantaloons!
"Carson has combined his passion for helping children with his love for one of Cincinnati's favorite past times - cornhole - to create a unique and exciting event perfect for a corporate outing, entertaining clients or family fun."
"In Oz, the verb is douchifizzation." PRS
"In Oz, the verb is douchifizzation." PRS
#22re: How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
Posted: 11/27/07 at 12:01pmI won't be able to take a dance class (my only form of exercise other than walking) for three weeks as they conflict with my rehearsal/performance schedule. I'm concerned about my fitness level and losing body shape/form. However, I'm not going to have time to do anything else, and there's not room in my apt. to do fitness dvd's.
Have I ever shown you my Shattered Dreams box? It's in my Disappointment Closet. - Marge Simpson
mejusthavingfun
Broadway Legend Joined: 4/12/06
#23re: How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
Posted: 11/27/07 at 12:09pmCongrats!!! Keep moving and remember to reward yourself!
Unknown User
Joined: 12/31/69
#24re: How I lost 50 pounds in 6 months.
Posted: 11/27/07 at 12:11pm
I lost over 100 pounds 6 years ago- and have kept it off. To me it's all about calorie control. I lived on 1000-1200 calories a day for months- now I don't count them but try to stay under 1800. My word of wisdom is- WHEN (not if) you fall off the wagon and splurge, pick yourself up, and get back on your diet. I see so many people who say "I shouldn't have eaten those Nachos- my diet is ruined! I might as well eat that pie- I've blown it for the day!" Nonsense- you overingdulged, pull yourself together and get back on your plan- not tomorrow, not next week, NOW.
And I can give up ice cream, I can give up potatoes- but DO NOT TRY TO TAKE MY DIET COKE from me! I WILL CUT YOU!
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