The Turn-Around

This post I am going to focus on how things started to change, and my first "success" at weight loss. This is going to be a longer post, and I apologize. But after this the back story will be complete and the posts that follow will be shorter... :) I promise!

In the Fall of 2008 I was living out in Minnesota, going to law school, and had really not done any type of exercise in months. Around Halloween, my mom sent me a care package and tucked inside was a small book that had been my Grandmother's at some point. It was called the Carbohydrate Addicts Diet - by Drs Rachael and Richard Heller. At first I was annoyed that she would send me yet another weight loss book, but I figured I loved my carbs and maybe the book would have something to offer.

I stayed up and read the ENTIRE book in one night. I wasn't planning on it, but as I started reading it, it kept saying to me "THIS BOOK WAS WRITTEN FOR YOU!". And I couldn't put it down.

The basic premise is that some bodies process carbs differently, and you can control/fix it by arranging how/when you eat carbs. Basic plan is to eat no carbs and no sugars at breakfast or lunch, no snacking, and then dinner you can eat carbs and pretty much as much as you want, as long as you keep your dinner time to under 60 minutes. It sounds kooky, but I figured what the hell. I had done Atkins/South Beach, I could go no carb again, and the idea of being able to eat bread, potatoes or pasta at dinner excited me.

I lost 17 pounds between Halloween and finals. It was the most I had ever lost in any of my attempts. I was sold on the program and had pretty good success following it and not cheating. (Hey, no one is perfect)

My grandmother passed away that December, and I went home for break, and that is when things started to fall apart. I was not really happy in Minnesota, was depressed and grieving the loss of my Gram, and dreading pretty much everything. Needless to say worrying about what I was eating and planning out my meals went out the window. I put all the weight I had lost back on, and then some. And then I got a phone call....

I received a job offer from the Department of Veterans Affairs the week before I was supposed to fly back to law school. I turned it down at first, but a few weeks into being back in Minnesota I decided to take the offer. So my parents came and packed me up and back east I moved. When I started at the VA in March 2009, I went back on Carb Addicts and lost around 10 pounds. That July I started to go walking at night around my neighborhood, and kept that routine going most of the summer. By a friends wedding in August I was down about 20 pounds and was feeling really good.

In September of 2009, I was sitting outside the VA on break with some co-workers, 2 of whom were talking about the multiple gyms they go to, and different workouts they do. And I remember thinking to myself that if these girls can have multiple gym memberships, then I could have ONE.

Now, here is where I really am lucky. The VA has a fitness center on site, and it was $20 for a LIFETIME membership (as long as I'm working there, anyway). So I went down and signed up. At first, I was afraid to do anything but the recumbent bike. But I did it every day. Religiously. And I felt great. I had never gone to the gym so consistently ever. October 2009 my name made it onto the bulletin board of "15 a month" - the names of the members who came 15 times the previous month! I honestly had never been more proud of myself.

Around Christmas I started working with the 2 girls that work at the fitness center on different workout programs, and also an eating plan. Turns out on the Carb Addicts plan I was eating somewhere between 700-900 calories a day. Which, turns out, is BAD. Really, really BAD. So we started to work on that, and also increasing my workouts. Sure enough, the weight started to melt off. So much so that by Thanksgiving when my family came to see me, they were suprised at how "thin" I had gotten! It was a great feeling.

This is the plan that I follow still almost a year later... I go to the gym at work every day. And I keep a food journal of what I eat, and make sure I stay as close to my target calorie intake as possible (right now about 1800 a day with my workout schedule). I also use a pedometer daily, and wear a heart rate monitor. But these are gadgets and tools I will discuss in a later post.

Next week expect a post about the first time I ran, and the different tools I use to help keep myself on track.

As always, thanks for reading! :)