So how can I avoid this? Any helpful tips? Maybe I’m on the wrong brand of birth control and need to switch it up to one that doesn’t have these side effects. I’m on Apri right now, any ladies out there on something different? Please help me!

Laura

I was looking through old pictures on facebook and I came across a picture from halloween last year.  It was crazy to see the difference just one year makes.  I showed this picture combo to my mom and she pointed out that there wasn’t just physical differences, but a drastic difference in confidence : )   

(top Halloween 2008, bottom Halloween 2009)

I haven’t posted a weight in over 2 weeks because I was on vacation.  The looming weigh-in I knew I’ve have to do this morning was a little nerve racking.  My vacation was not the best for eating and exercising.  I over-indulged and rarely worked out (although does shopping count :P).  So I stepped on the scale this morning, thinking for the first time since I started I would probably have gained weight.  However, I was pleassantly surprised that I lost 1.6 pounds within the two weeks yay!! I was even more surprised and overwhelmingly happy when I computed my bmi.  I am officially not obese :D:D:D:D!!!!  With a bmi of 29.9 I am finally in the overweight category.   Never have a been so happy to shout that I am overweight, in the sense of bmi that is.  Another crossroad passed in my goal of being in a healthy weight zone.

I’m posting my writing assignment for school that I wrote tonight.  The task was to write a narrative about anything really and I chose to about my weight loss journey.  I struggled when writing this because I was torn on whether I wanted my classmates to read this or not.  In the end I handed it in … *fingers crossed* that it turns out alright. 

One life, one body is all we get.  How did I let mine go to waste?  How did I let my body, one that should be healthy and strong at my age, become so unhealthy?  Was it too late to turn it around?  For me, this was not an option I was willing to accept.

When given the task to write about an interesting story, I had difficulty thinking of a major event that occurred in my life recently.  When attempting to think of a story I shared recently with my mom, sisters, or close friends lately, nothing but everyday mundane events came to mind.  After brain storming for awhile, the most important “everyday mundane event” stood out in my mind as what I should write about.  Losing over 100 pounds is what my life has been about in the last nine months.  This is a story of my weight loss journey.  One that has come a long way, but is still not complete.

January 19^th this year was a Sunday.  It was a Sunday like all others, except that I had a profound realization.  I realized I can do anything, I can change my life, and that I could change my body.  There was nothing special about January 19^th, nor did any big news or events trigger my realization.  I just remember that when lying down for sleep that night I decided that from that day on I would change and become healthy.  I remember that night clearly, a strong feeling of excitement mixed with wonder for why the idea had never hit me before.  This simple idea was that I could limit calorie intake and increase exercise and weight loss would surely follow.  I had never attempted this before, but somehow I knew that I could succeed.  The next day started a new chapter in my life.

The following morning, I started my day with a bowl of cheerios as I do every morning.  Except this morning I took out the measuring cups and measured a proper serving size.  For how was I supposed to keep tracker of how many calories were in my bowl if I didn’t measure out the cereal.  Eating healthier foods and limiting junk food allowed me to eat plenty of food, which made it easier to stay on track.  The most important thing I learned was that I had to write down everything and become accountable if I was ever to achieve my goal.  After the first month, I became more confident that I could do it, which was verified by a nine pound weight loss.  I also noticed that it became habit to write everything down and it became easier to eat healthy.  For someone who rarely exercised before, I found being active and exercising was a big part of my life.  Inspired by my new healthy lifestyle, my sister and mom joined me.  This made my goals more attainable, as the people I live with were also keen on cooking healthy meals and keeping junk food out of the house. 

I mentioned attaining my goals, but I realize these are not clearly defined.  Some I have already reached like my goal for having all of the clothes in my closet not to fit, some are in progress like my goal to lose 150 pounds, and some I have yet to complete like my goal of biking in the Ride-For-Heart.  However, I am now more positive than ever that I can reach all of the goals I set for myself.  I know that am doing my best to be as healthiest as I can possibly be.  Now nine months later, I’ve lost over 100 pounds and am well on my way to making my one body healthy and strong. 

So I’ve been very fortunate to not experience any plateaus in my journey so far, which is pretty fantastic considering 95 pounds has come off easily.  However, in the past 2 weeks I’ve only seen a pound or less loss.  I’ve been staying right around 200 pounds and I can’t seem to go under the 200 pound milestone.  I increased working out A LOT lately, since I’m back in school and have easy access to a gym.  Am a gaining muscle which is slowing my weight loss? Should I cut back on the workouts to see results again? Do I need to stick to my 1200 calorie goal even on days that I work out? Anyone experience a plateau lately? If so, please tell me how you were able to overcome the plateau.

Many thanks,
Laura

I know being 206lbs on my birthday is really good progress for me, but still I would love to say I accomplished my goal!

A little update from me, I’ve been in Hong Kong for 2 weeks now.  I haven’t counted a single calorie here because I am so unfamilar with the food.  Also, I haven’t been able to weigh myself regularly because I don’t have a scale here.  I did managed to find a coin opperated scale in a mall yesterday.  I was soooo shocked to discover that in 2 weeks time I lost 15 pounds!! I’ve been walking a lot, especially climbing up hills and stairs.  Plus, I’ve gone swimming 4 times here (yay!). 

I think I’m eating enough at meals because I’m always so full.  And, I’ve blown a ton of calories on alcohol here.  Because I’m on vacation, I only brought a limited number of clothes that fit at the time.  I’ve had to buy new clothes because I wasn’t expecting to lose any weight while I was here, I was just hoping to not gain anything.  I know I shouldn’t complain about weight loss, but over 7 pounds a week cannot be healthy for me.   So, I think I need to start snacking more often during the day. 

I hope to hear from everyone soon, sorry I’ve been a little disconnected from buddy slim.  Hope you’re having a great week!

I’m so excited to share some new progress pictures with you.  Although not to many people I know have noticed my 50 pounds weight loss, these pictures show it.  Before I was rather shapeless and round in the middle, but now an hourglass shape is emerging :D  So exciting!!

Laura