How I Lost 100 Pounds

 First, I must start with the declaration that I am not a Doctor so don't take medical advice from me. Always speak to your trusted physician about what diet and exercise plan is right for you.

WARNING: this is long and has NOTHING to do with quilting. If you aren't interested, come back in two weeks for quilt-talk.

Officially down 100 pounds, 15 months, give or take. Photo taken August 17, 2023:

March 2023:

March 2022: 

Before and After--April 2011 with my husband vs. June 2023:

Since my early teenage years I have struggled with weight. Always overweight, always fighting the urge to overeat. There are many reasons for this, and most have nothing to do with food. Let's just say food has always been my drug of choice, in dealing with the slings and arrows of life. 

Several times before I have lost substantial weight, then gained it back plus some. This time I wanted to lose it and keep it lost forever. A little more than a year ago I started again...

I had reached my highest weight, 256, and size 22s were tight. If not now, when would I fix this? 

This is my story, for inspiration and to answer the many questions I have received since people started to notice.

Everyone wants to know the SECRET. Surgery? Gummies? Nope. Diet and Exercise. The same thing we've always been told. Eat less, move more. So I knew what to do. I just had to START. 

For years, when trying to lose weight, I have used a great app, MY FITNESS PAL. I use the free version to track everything I eat and my daily exercise. 

I use it to plan meals at restaurants, BEFORE I go, so I make better choices. I can eat whatever I want but everything I eat counts. Will it get me closer to or farther away from my goal of being healthy? I love this app and would be lost without it. I especially love the button at the bottom of each day's Diary--COMPLETE DIARY. It says "If every day were like today, in 5 weeks you'd weigh XXX". It is such a simple way to see that having a calorie deficit takes me in the direction I want to go. So I check, even on BAD DAYS--that helps me get back on track tomorrow.

Then I stumbled on a great book about diet and exercise for those of us over 50:

I first read about this in the AARP magazine. The book is easy to understand. It explains why we need more Protein as we age, not less, and how to get the right amount every day. It is not a DIET--it is a plan for eating healthy foods most often, and getting enough Fiber, something else most Americans don't get enough of. It explains the need to build muscle now as we age and how to do that. If you want a plan, I highly recommend you read this, cover to cover. Very educational and a great resource. 

MY DIET: 

Here are my MACROS, the guide I have set for myself:

Calories    1220-- most days I get closer to 1400 and when we go out to dinner it's 1700

Carbs     45%     137 g

Protein   35%     107 g

Fat          20%      27 g 

Sodium  1500 mg

Fiber 21 g 

Sugar 46 g 

These have changed over the years but, with all the diet books/websites I've read, this is best for me at this point.

The Whole Body Reset says women over 50 should aim for 25 g of lean Protein and 5 g of Fiber at all 3 meals. And a little more from 1-2 snacks a day. Men should get 30 g Pro and 7 g Fiber at all 3 meals. 

I don't like to cook nor spend lots of time shopping/planning meals. It has always worked best for me to have a few go-to meals, for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Once I figure those out, I save then in My Fitness Pal, making it so easy to add them to the daily Diary. 

I will do a separate blog next week with my RECIPES. But so you know what I eat most days, here are my go-to meals.

BREAKFAST:

1. Whole oats, frozen berries, Muscle Milk Protein Powder Vanilla Creme flavor, Two Good Greek Yogurt vanilla flavor--one half container to add sweetening and more protein. Oatmeal alone is not a good meal as protein is low.

2. In a hurry, I grab a banana and a big spoonful of peanut butter. My favorite is Jif Reduced Fat PB, but it has more sugar. Natural peanut butter is best but I don't want to deal with stirring cold PB so I use the one I like best. Life is all about choices and compromise. 

3. Eggs---two hardboiled, scrambled or fried in extra virgin olive oil, Thomas' Multi-Grain English Muffin--100 calories and lots of fiber. Since it resembles cardboard, I add butter and some kind of preserves to it. Just not a huge amount of either--I have to be mindful of sugar. 

Oatmeal at home and 1 cup skim milk in coffee

LUNCH: 

1. Cottage Cheese Jello "Fluff": cottage cheese, sugar-free Jello and 1/4 cup no sugar added Fruit Cocktail. Stir, let set, this makes at least 4 servings. Cottage cheese is high in Sodium so I watch sodium for the rest of the day

2. Banana and Peanut Butter--see above

3. Lean protein and a handful of cherry tomatoes and/or sliced peppers or cucumber. Rotisserie chicken is great to have on hand, as is canned salmon and tuna. 

DINNER: 

1. Salad, lots of veggies, add olives, and a lean protein. 

2. Rotisserie chicken, frozen veggies nuked, brown rice

3. Baked Salmon, salad or frozen veggies nuked 

Half salad, half chicken salad sandwich McAllisters deli on the road

Salad with boiled shrimp, at a restaurant but easy to prepare at home

SNACKS:

I refuse to be hungry so I snack when I am and the next meal is still a few hours away. 

Unsalted CASHEWS -- 1/4 cup, my Favorite

An apple and cheese

Muscle Milk Protein Shake--Knockout Chocolate when daily Protein needs a boost (32 g), Strawberry when less Protein is needed (25 g). Zero sugar, plenty of fiber. These travel great as they are non-dairy so I often bring them on trips--chilled overnight they are yummy. Available at grocery stores in the Pharmacy area or on Amazon:

I drink one large cup of coffee with breakfast, using 1 cup of skim milk to make it palatable, just for the caffeine. The rest of the day I drink plain water, at least 100 ounces a day. I sweat buckets during my two hours of exercise so need to replenish that and stay hydrated. If out for a nice dinner, a couple times a month I enjoy one glass of Moscato wine. Otherwise, it’s just plain water for me.

MY EXERCISE: 

The other part of the equation is exercise. I eat every day so I move my body every day. For me, the easiest thing to do is walking. All I need are good shoes. I just have to walk out my door. If I have to drive to the gym, it won't happen.  I just walk.

When I started again last year, I went around the block. Once. Done. The next day I did it again. And the next day, again. The beauty of using MY FITNESS PAL is I can see that I can eat MORE if I exercise more. 

A month in, I was walking at a 3.0 mph pace for 30-40 minutes. Then one day I was "walking and talking" to a friend and I JUST KEPT GOING. I walked for an hour and felt great. That's progress. I kept it up, the weight was coming off and I was seeing results. 

Today I walk at  a 4.0 mph pace for almost 2 hours, most days. As I move into maintaining more than trying to lose much more, I will walk less. An hour a day maximum is my goal.

Now I am really working on building muscle with free weights and lots of squats, lunges, etc. There are unlimited free videos on Instagram and YouTube to help.

Both my knees were replaced years ago, 2007 and 2012. They work just fine now that I have taken off 100 pounds. I can really tell the difference. 

Exercise, love it or hate it, you need it. Find something you can learn to like and JUST START.

MY MEDS: 

Daily Blood Pressure pill, my BP is perfect.

Weekly Trulicity injection--I am still borderline pre-diabetic from the many years I abused my body with food. I hope that can be ended at the next doctor's visit in December. If A1C is normal, that should happen. 

A Multivitamin, B12, and D3--just to keep my bloodwork as the doctor wants it. 

Let's show some pictures:

2018 on the set of The Quilt Show

2020

2021 the perfect BEFORE shot

December 2021 with Sam

July 2022 with Stella

And now from my Journey: 

February 2023

Birthday June 2022

Birthday June 2023

March 2023 onboard cruise ship at Veteran’s Salute

May 2023 on the road in Durango CO

May 2023 on the Road in Huntsville TX

May 2023

 

June 2023

July 2023

July 2023

July 2023, size 10 shorts, size SMALL shirt

August 11, 2023 so close...

MY GOALS: 

All my life I have had goals. Here they are:

1. Weigh less than my husband--CHECK

2. Be able to shop for clothes in Regular Misses sizes--CHECK

3. No longer be OBESE--for me, that means under 175--CHECK

4. Weigh less than it says on my Driver's License--a month ago I burst out laughing at the bank when I saw my DL--175--and I was really 171--CHECK

5. Be able to wear the Special/Favorite clothes I saved from 26 years ago--CHECK

6. Lose 100 lbs--CHECK

Only one more goal, the MOST IMPORTANT OF ALL, maintain this healthy, happy size with daily exercise of one hour or so. No more yo-yo-ing up and down. So far, so good.

I check my weight every Monday and Friday. If it is up, even one pound, I check every day until it is down again. 

You should know, the BMI chart still says I am OVERWEIGHT; at 5'4", I need to be 145 or less to be "normal". I am not sure that will happen and today, it's not a goal. My doctor is thrilled with where I am and so am I. 

In my younger days:

August 15, 1975, the day I was commissioned a 2LT in the United States Marine Corps--one of the BEST days of my life

March 29 1979 1st Lt United States Marine Corps, serving with VMAT 202--my GLORY DAYS

July 1981 the first time I got to goal on WW

I never expect to be this small again, and that's OK. I am so much smarter now than I was as this young woman. I am loved by some wonderful people, and love them in return. I have had several successful careers and think I have been helpful to many people over the course of my life. All in all, I am happy and now, healthy. There are great things ahead for me yet, and I look forward to that. I have a dream, a goal and a plan.

CONCLUSIONS:

1. If I can do it, you can do it.

2. Just start, wherever you are. Make small improvements every day.

3. See results monthly, not daily.

4. When you fall off the wagon, get back on the next day.

5. Next year I will be one year older. If I am to be better, it starts with what I do TODAY.

6. Nothing tastes as good as being HEALTHY feels. Although, Key Lime Pie is right up there...

Next week, I will share a variety of the simple recipes I like to make and eat. UPDATE: FIND THAT POST HERE

After that, let's quilt!

PS. PLEASE FEEL FREE TO SHARE THIS if you like. With the small buttons at the bottom of each post, you can EMAIL, BLOG, share to TWITTER, share to FACEBOOK or share to PINTEREST:

Thank you!

Barbara