Wow, it's been a while... :) I hope your holidays were wonderful and that you're enjoying the new year so far. My life has taken busy/hectic to a whole new meaning lately so recently I've taken to prioritizing more, enjoying life more and am making more time for my family and myself. I'm beginning to feel more relaxed and happy than I have in years. Success!
Like a lot of you, I'm sure, I've wanted to lose weight/inches for a long time now. After two kids, being an on again off again smoker the last 15 years, eating fast food at every turn (because it was easier, faster and more convenient), dealing with stress (eating my feelings) on a day to day basis for most of my adult life, I'd accumulated nearly 70lbs of 'extra' weight. Over the last three years, I'd catch myself looking in a mirror and find myself shedding a tear for the old me hidden below the layers. My wonderful husband who never saw me any differently from or loved me any less than the day we met, gained along side of me. Our lives became all about the kids, the house, work, money, etc. we just seemed to forget to take care of ourselves. Together, we had let go.
For the past 6 months, Cory and I have been working on getting our weight in check, toning up and building healthier immune systems, all while also working on our self esteem (guilty). And well, it's a new year! I have a new look and even though I'm still working on it, a great new body :) My heaviest weight (190lbs) was in 2010/2011 and as of today I have lost 40+ lbs! My husband has lost 35lbs and we couldn't be happier with our results! It's been a lot of hard work and sacrificing, but in the end, we feel like teenagers again :) I have 17 more lbs to go to be at my goal weight, and with staying on track every day, I should be there by my birthday in July. Getting back into my size 5 jeans from high school? BEST birthday present ever! Our children have been super supportive and my son has even said losing all this weight has made me like a kid again, lol It's amazing how insightful our kids can be when it comes to our moods ;)
Again, losing the weight has been hard work but trust me when I say, completely worth it! It takes time. Unfortunately, fat just doesn't leave the body as fast as it goes in (unless we're talking liposuction) If anyone tells you otherwise, I'm sorry, but they're wrong. Begin rant: It seems at least once a day, I see a new advertisement or offer for some miracle weight loss product and it makes me upset to see so many people being scammed and taken advantage of. This last year's biggest weight loss product fad would probably have to be the 'It Works! Wrap bands.' Let me save you some time and money: no, it doesn't. Not in the magical way that it promises and not in a long term way, at all. In fact, JUST using these wraps will NOT cause you to lose ANY weight. They are a scam. A scam directed at people who feel desperate to make scammers money. I'd be lying if I didn't say that I wish that they really did work. My belief is that as a human, it's in our nature to want to believe or to want to hope. To have a save all, cure all solution. To have and see immediate results. Life, just doesn't work that way. After seeing numerous scammer ads on Facebook and other social networking groups, I wrote up a brief post on all of this. I hadn't actually posted it yet because I have a handful of really good friends that are trying to earn a living selling this stuff. If they didn't need the money to support their household I know that I would have sooner. A few of them also really believe in what their selling, even though they have even yet to achieve the miracle results their product promises. So what to do with these words that keep making their way up, no matter how hard I try to suppress them? I figured I'd blog and throw them on here ;) P.s Make sure to check out the end of today's rant because I'm going to include a list of our personal weight loss tips!
Like anything else in life, losing weight/getting healthy takes work. Work and time. If you're ready/determined to change and to work hard, the sky is the limit. If I could "wrap" away my body fat or take a handful of "diet" pills and recieve the same results (fat loss, a tone build, healthier diet, stronger immune system), don't you think that I would? In order to lose 1 lb of fat you have to create a 3500 calorie deficit (work off 3500 calories). Wraps and pills do not/will not do this. Ask any rep. for these type of products and they will tell you "in order for the product to work, you have to drink a lot of water, you have to excercise, you have to eat healthier and overall it takes time if you want long lasting results, blah blah blah, etc.". Interesting... I'm pretty sure that all of those things are what in fact causes weight loss, lol So in conclusion, by buying into the fad (literally) you are allowing yourself to be scammed. You are helping someone else make money off YOUR hard work (if you are in fact losing inches/weight because you are following the directions above). I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news but I figured if I can even help just one person not waste their money and tears on a sham, I should. Because that's what they offer. A sham that takes your hard earned money and makes people like them, rich :/
http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/skinny-on-diet-scams?page=1
Our Personal Weight Loss Tips:
1. WATER.
As in drink as much of it that you can, all the time. Water is calorie free, it's SUPER good for you and it literally, unlike anything else, melts pounds away (by purifying your body of toxins). It really doesn't matter if you don't 'like' it. If you want to lose weight, DRINK it :) - My husband and I gave up all beverages but water 4 months ago and I have lost a total of 24 lbs in just the last 3 1/2 months ;)
2. Excercise when you can, be active as much as possible :)
As a mom to two little ones, who during the week, only get's to see my husband in the evenings after his 12-13 hour work day, I know how hard it can be to fit in time to (want to) work out, let alone clean my house. Baby steps. Set aside 20-30 minutes every day to work on you. I do sit ups, push ups, jumping jacks, jump rope, and use wii fit/just dance. After making my own excuses for so long, I know that I CAN make the time and now, I do :)
3. Get a good calorie tracker like Live Strong's: My Plate, to keep you from going over your calorie limit a day. We use it every day to track our calorie intake and it keeps us on track, accountable and on our way to our happy goal weight!
*Keep in mind that one pound of fat is equal to 3,500 calories. Therefore as a general rule of thumb, to lose 1 pound per week, you must take in a negative 500 calories a day or negative 3,500 calories per week. You can reduce the calories by a combination of eating less, eating healthier and exercising more to lose weight. So you see it’s pretty simple, if the total number of calories burned is more then the calories consumed it will lead to weight loss.
***To figure out how many calories you should be consuming to lose weight:
1. First you need to calculate your BMI (Body Mass Index).
Estimating your BMR:
Calculating your BMR can be a very scientific process, but here is a quick “back of the envelope” sort of calculation which gives a good estimate.
BMR = your body weight (in pounds) multiplied by 10.
Example: 186 pounds x 10 calories/pound = 1,860 calories
Another more accurate way of calculating your BMR is called the Harris-Benedict Formula This formula takes into consideration your gender and age along with your weight. Visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basal_metabolic_rate for the formula.
2. Next factor in calories used in physical activity.
Multiply your BMR by the appropriate activity level factor, as follows:
Physical Activity Calories = (BMR x Activity Level):
Sedentary: 20% (Sitting most of the day)
Lightly Active: 37.5% (Walking here and there; daily chores)
Moderately Active: 40% (Constantly moving around; daily exercise)
Very Active: 50% (Heavy exercise for prolonged periods of time, such as training for a sport)
Example: 1,860 calories x 0.20 = 372 calories for a sedentary person.
3 . Next factor in the calories used during digestion.
Calories used during digestion, are estimated at 10% for the general population..
Digestion Calories = (BMR + activity level ) x 10%:
Example: (1860 + 372 calories) x 0.10 = 223 calories
4. Total Daily Caloric Expenditure = (BMR Calories + Physical Activity Calories + Digestion Calories)
* This how many calories your body should be burning every day. Now that you have this number, you understand by eating at or close to that amount of calories a day, you will either stay at the same weight or even gain weight. Unless of course, you are active enough to burn the extra calories. Remember, in order to lose 1 pound per week, you must take in a negative 500 calories a day or negative 3,500 calories per week.
I hope this information has been helpful in one way or another and I'd be happy to answer any questions that you may have, to the best of my ability :)
To anyone who is ready to challenge themselves to be at their most fit/active, I just want to say congratulations and good luck! I know personally how hard it is/can be and am still working at it every day but the results speak for themselves and now that I know how much better I feel/look than I did only a few short months ago, I will never go back! Fast food just isn't worth it anymore ;)
Sincerely Yours.
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