(no subject)
I was just reading over my journal, and I realized I do not update nearly as close as I thought I had been! So, since I've gathered some new lj friends, and hopefully will get getting more for support- I'll give a little summary of my health history.
Since about grade 8, once I stopped figure skating, I've been a bit overweight, I don't think I was technically overweight, never by alot but just enough to make me self conscious every now and then, especially to be a bathing suit, and I in the summer- I wouldn't wear shorts because I was self conscious about my legs. Then around grade 10/11 I hit my highest weight at 160, and really knew things had to change. At the beginning of grade 12, I went vegetarian and made an effort to eat healthier. I lost about 10 pounds from not eating meat, but I still wasn't that healthy of a vegetarian.
Once I started university, I stayed around the 150-155 range, and didn't keep track too much of what I ate, and worked out on and off.
Then, the summer in between second and third year, I saw pictures of myself at a party and that was it, I joined a gym the next day, I really found joining the gym motivating. I joined Goodlife and they got really into the classes, and I found it was a really supportive atmosphere, after about a month at the gym I tried a spinning class, and thought I was going to die, but I knew it was a good way to burn calories, so I made myself go a couple more times, and after I got the hang of it and saw the pounds drop off I was hooked!
I consider spinning to be the number one way that I lost weight and kept it off. I lost 15 pounds that summer (I was 155 at the beginning), and even though that doesn't sound like a lot, it really made a difference to the way I looked, fit in clothes, and felt. I was the amount I needed to loose to feel like I had a more average body. It balanced me out more, since I have a pear shaped body, and with the extra weight, I looked really disproportional.
The next year, I worked mostly at maintaining that weight, but also got really into yoga and I found confidence in gaining strength. Then this past summer, I got into running, and worked my way up from hardly being able to run 5 minutes, to running a 10 km race with my Mom in May! That was a big accomplishment for me.
My challenge now is sort of the "last 10 pounds" situation, which is always the hardest. I weigh 134 as of today, and ideally I'd like to get to 125, but I don't want to obsess about what I eat, which I kind of did the first summer I lost 10 pounds, and this past summer when I was running.
I don't like feeling stressed out by paying so much attention to what I eat. I enjoy eating well, and do eat really well for the most part, but I do like to snack and that's my downfall. I don't believe in restricting your diet, and not eating when you're hungry because thats not a sustainable lifestyle in my opinion, SO I'm going to try to avoid bad snacking by eating veggies and fruit whenever hungry between meals, and allow myself treats everyone once in a while in small portions to stay sane! I just love food so much!
Maybe I'll start posting recipes to my homemade soups and other things on here too, I love cooking!
I usually do well loosing weight if I just commit to no late night snacking, so that's what I'm working on now!
So ANYWAY, here is my food thus far today:
-whole wheat pita with a bit of homemade peanut butter/homemade pumpkin butter & flax seed
-coffee w/milk and sugar
-homemade veggie chili
-carrots and cauliflower.
Since about grade 8, once I stopped figure skating, I've been a bit overweight, I don't think I was technically overweight, never by alot but just enough to make me self conscious every now and then, especially to be a bathing suit, and I in the summer- I wouldn't wear shorts because I was self conscious about my legs. Then around grade 10/11 I hit my highest weight at 160, and really knew things had to change. At the beginning of grade 12, I went vegetarian and made an effort to eat healthier. I lost about 10 pounds from not eating meat, but I still wasn't that healthy of a vegetarian.
Once I started university, I stayed around the 150-155 range, and didn't keep track too much of what I ate, and worked out on and off.
Then, the summer in between second and third year, I saw pictures of myself at a party and that was it, I joined a gym the next day, I really found joining the gym motivating. I joined Goodlife and they got really into the classes, and I found it was a really supportive atmosphere, after about a month at the gym I tried a spinning class, and thought I was going to die, but I knew it was a good way to burn calories, so I made myself go a couple more times, and after I got the hang of it and saw the pounds drop off I was hooked!
I consider spinning to be the number one way that I lost weight and kept it off. I lost 15 pounds that summer (I was 155 at the beginning), and even though that doesn't sound like a lot, it really made a difference to the way I looked, fit in clothes, and felt. I was the amount I needed to loose to feel like I had a more average body. It balanced me out more, since I have a pear shaped body, and with the extra weight, I looked really disproportional.
The next year, I worked mostly at maintaining that weight, but also got really into yoga and I found confidence in gaining strength. Then this past summer, I got into running, and worked my way up from hardly being able to run 5 minutes, to running a 10 km race with my Mom in May! That was a big accomplishment for me.
My challenge now is sort of the "last 10 pounds" situation, which is always the hardest. I weigh 134 as of today, and ideally I'd like to get to 125, but I don't want to obsess about what I eat, which I kind of did the first summer I lost 10 pounds, and this past summer when I was running.
I don't like feeling stressed out by paying so much attention to what I eat. I enjoy eating well, and do eat really well for the most part, but I do like to snack and that's my downfall. I don't believe in restricting your diet, and not eating when you're hungry because thats not a sustainable lifestyle in my opinion, SO I'm going to try to avoid bad snacking by eating veggies and fruit whenever hungry between meals, and allow myself treats everyone once in a while in small portions to stay sane! I just love food so much!
Maybe I'll start posting recipes to my homemade soups and other things on here too, I love cooking!
I usually do well loosing weight if I just commit to no late night snacking, so that's what I'm working on now!
So ANYWAY, here is my food thus far today:
-whole wheat pita with a bit of homemade peanut butter/homemade pumpkin butter & flax seed
-coffee w/milk and sugar
-homemade veggie chili
-carrots and cauliflower.