Hey all, just wanted to give you a bit of background on me & what I've achieved so far as hopefully it will be off help to someone.
I gained a LOT of weight & was weighing in at nearly 18 stone. So about 6-7 months ago I decided enough was enough & to do something about it. My first step was joining a local slimming world club where I discovered exactly where I'd been going wrong in cooking.... Everything I thought was healthy wasn't!
Over a few months I learned how to make healthier choices, cook healthier meals with better portion sizes & I started losing weight which was fantastic. Now I had the basics down I could manage alone & left my class swapping it for a local gym membership. I'd tried gym's before but didn't see much progress (probably because I was still consuming more calories than I was burning) & being a bigger girl my self confidence was so low I gave up everytime as I was embarrassed & sure people were watching & judging me (too stuck in my own head).
I finally found a gym I liked & went along for a while with a friend, my fitness levels were not great & could still use some work... But by going with a friend to classes I finally seen some decent results & plucked up the courage to approach one of the personal trainers for some help. Honestly I have no idea what I was so worried about, he was fantastic, so helpful & supportive & not at all judgemental & he gave me a real confidence boost to finally realise I could do this & no one else cared what I looked like, they just wanted to help if they could. He recommended I increase my water consumption also & this simple tip really helps. I now drink 2-3 litres a day & I definitely believe it's helped with the weight loss.
I don't get to the gym as often as I'd like but on the days I can't go I work out at home, following fitness dvds, you tube videos, running up & Dow my stairs, doing yoga in my living room. I've swapped all my meals & snacks for healthy home cooked meals, get my 5 a day by making sure at least Hal of my plate is salad or vegetables, or my favourite is a homemade fruit & veg smoothie made with coconut water. I still treat myself to the occasional chocolate bar or a day out with friends where I drink wine & eat pizza, but I no longer punish myself for it or let one bad day become a week that becomes a month. I just get straight back to my healthy choices as a diet can start any day nit just a Monday as I used to think.
So far I've lost 48lbs & I'm so much happier in myself. I've still got a long way to go & progress is much slower now, but I'm determined to get there one day at a time. I just need to keep believing in myself. And if I can do it anyone can, just keep believing in yourselves too & take each day as it comes. If you slip up dust yourself if & get back on the horse, we're all human, we all have good & bad days, keep a positive mindset though & you will achieve your goals. Good luck to you all. Leanne x