Starting Strong

I completed my first token weigh in this morning!  No issues with verification this time (I remembered to NOT have my face blocked by my phone).  In these first few days I've been kicking ass - 5.2 lbs LOST!!!

To be fair I sort of expected things to go quickly at first.  I joined on Jan 2nd after spending the better part of the previous two weeks shoving all manner of fatty, salty, sugary foods down my gullet and following up by sitting on my ass all day watching netflix.  I knew I was bloated from all the crappy food and a week of exercise and clean eating would do wonders. 

It's a Marathon Not a Sprint.

The important part about this challenge though is that it's not about losing a few lbs quickly, its about continuing to lose for 6 months, with an ultimate goal of nearly 20 lbs shed.  

I think that mentality this is going to be key for me.  It's not hard for me to be good for a while and then something comes up, I make excuses, and the habit of being good is broken.  

I also think I'm going to have an extra challenge getting past 183 (~12 lbs lost, ~6 lbs short of my DB goal, and 28 lbs short of my ultimate goal weight) - this seems to be where I always plateau. I often get discouraged and resign myself to staying there or give up altogether and yoyo back up.  Before the holidays I had hovered around 185 for several months.  

The Past: A Window into the Future?

Anyway, I know I can get past that plateau.  I have before!  The picture is from my Cousin's wedding in 2009 I don't know what my exact weight was but I would guess I was just a bit below my 10% weight loss goal for this Transformer DB.  (maybe 165-170 lbs??)

Back then I was biking to and from campus each day (~6 miles/day) and running all over the building (walking up/down flights of stairs and to separate wings multiple times a day).  I didn't have an activity tracker but I'm sure I easily clocked in well over 15K steps/day in addition to my biking. I was so busy with school I hardly thought about food. The lbs I'd been carrying most of my life just melted away.  It was crazy.  

I thought I had cured my fatness once and for all! I mean I had been overweight/obese my entire life and had finally gotten to a reasonably healthy weight (though still technichally overweight).  Why would I ever mess that up?

Well my friends... long story short stress is a bitch and I'm the type who finds comfort in food and beer. So here I am again.  Fat, but determined.  I know I can do it. I have photographic evidence!  

Everytime I look at that picture I'm like DAAAAMN GIRRRL!!! You looked GOOOOOD!  I actually still have that dress hanging in the closet.  I'm sure I can't even get the zipper up on it now but I think I might try it on at the end of this challenge.  That would be kind of neat.  :)