How I Lost 12+ Pounds

Hi friends and happy Tuesday! I hope your week is off to a great start! I know this post is a long time coming, but I’m going to give you more of a background on how I lost my weight. If you haven’t read THIS POST yet about my health, I would suggest starting there, then coming back to this one because I will reference details from that post in this one.I want to start off by reminding you that I am not a healthcare professional, I’m not an expert, I’m just sharing what personally has worked for me. Please remember that what works for one person may not work for another. Again, this is MY personal journey to health and it is not sponsored. I’m just sharing what I found success doing, in hopes that it will help some of you, too.

BRA (medium) // SHORTS (small) // SNEAKERS

Food and Diet

After being diagnosed (again) with a thyroid issue and autoimmune disease, I finally had part of an answer for my 20+ pound weight gain. Between stress and my hormones all out of whack, it’s no wonder that I have felt so terrible. Because I have struggled with my weight for basically as long as I can remember, I feel like I have tried everything. Maybe not everything, but lots of things, lots of programs, etc. I finally got to a point in January where I needed help. I was the heaviest I had been since delivering my babies. I legit stepped on the scale one morning and told myself that was it. I knew I had to make a change if not for my emotional and mental state, but also my physical state. I felt bad more than I felt good and while my medication would help with that, I was still carrying unnecessary weight around and my medication did not help me lose at all. It’s been an uphill battle to lose even a pound here and there. My jeans were tight, I felt uncomfortable- I just got to a point where I needed to do it and that was all I knew! One night in January, I laid in bed feeling sorry for myself and basically talked myself out of doing anything and then suddenly it came to me and I thought, why not try Weight Watchers (again)?! So, on a whim at like 10:30 at night, I signed up for Weight Watchers. I did Weight Watchers in college at one point and loved the simplicity of it. Back then you had to go to meetings, but now, it’s mainly run off an app, which makes it even easier. The points to me are SO much easier than other programs I have tried. I could never figure out macros, carbs, etc, so I needed something pretty easy in that sense. I filled out the questionnaire, it placed me in a group- they have purple, blue and green depending on what is important to you, goals, etc. I am green and I love it!

So, I signed up and got to work. It’s not the WW from my college years, I do everything within the app. I keep track of all of my food, drinks, my exercise, my steps- it’s all connected to the WW app. I synced my watch with the app, so that it tracks all of my movement and exercise- this is key because you get fit points for exercise! Here is what I will say, if you’re struggling to find a program that works for you, throw away ALL of your preconceived notions about Weight Watchers and try it. It’s an amazing program and when followed correctly, it works! What I love about is most is, that I personally lost weight slow and steady. Losing weight rapidly can mean you’ll gain it back rapidly. As much as I’d like instant gratification, I’ve preferred the slow and steady approach. Even on weeks where I didn’t lose, I was able to maintain my weight, which for me, is HUGE. Most of what Ive done since having kids is yo-yo dieting and this time, my goal was slow, steady and maintenance. So, today, I am down over 12 pounds and feeling great! It might not seem like much, but it is HUGE feat for me personally! It also helped me remember that I can do anything I set my mind to! I think over the years in the aspect of my health, I’ve forgotten that!

The food, cleaning up my diet and my exercise are what got me where I am today. I’m currently working on my next 10 pounds. I’ve been at a bit of a plateau the past few weeks and the most important thing for me is to keep on. You will have plateaus- it’s just part of it. You will have weeks where you gain or you don’t lose, but ultimately, staying the course, will get you further. They say diet is 80% and exercise is 20%. I’m not sure the accuracy of this, but I have cleaned up my diet in a big way. What I love about WW is that you don’t deprive yourself of anything. If you want a cookie or a glass of wine, if you can fit it into your daily points, you are set! I believe in the “everything in moderation” lifestyle and I can say that I haven’t given up much to get where I am today! Sure, I think twice about a cookie or dessert, but most of the time, I’m staying within my points and its been easier than I anticipated it would be! It takes a few days to get used to tracking your food and drink intake, but honestly, once I got into the hang of it, I became faster at it! I have found the points system to be way easier for me to grasp than other things I have tried. The app is so helpful and you can figure out points so easily!

Exercise

So, for my exercise, I own a Peloton Bike and Tread. I love both dearly, but I will say, for now, I love my Tread more. I love that I can run/walk and get in over 6K steps by 9am most days. I’ve also realized that my body seems to thrive more on high impact exercise than the low impact than the bike offers. While I still use both, I am on the Tread almost every day. My goal is to walk/run/walk about 3-3.5 miles a day. So, that is what I do. I could incorporate more weights and resistance, but for now, I’m sticking with what I enjoy! And I have really come to enjoy running. I can zone out, think and just focus on not falling off the treadmill. Ha! I know it sounds funny, but for someone who overthinks as much as I do, this 45 minutes a day has been life changing and I crave it! I did get a few messages on Instagram saying I shouldn’t run daily, but this is where I say, “you do you, I’ll do me!” This daily exercise has helped so much with my mental and emotional capacity, so for me, it’s worth the everyday exercise. It may not be for everyone or recommended, but I am going with what helps me in ALL capacities! I’m really a big believer in moving the body every single day. Even on vacation, I walked each day because I feel so much better when I am getting daily exercise. The WW gives you fit points for exercise and while I usually see how many I can get each week, I typically do not use them. If you have an apple watch or any sort or fitness watch, I highly recommend syncing it to the app if it is possible!! It’s also important to track your exercise. I really do believe that daily movement in whatever capacity you can do, it helps. When making your own exercise plan, just start where you can! Walking is amazing for exercise! My goal is to close all my apple watch rings daily (if you have an apple watch, you’ll feel me on this) and to hit 10,000 steps every single day! Hitting the 10K steps alone is a great goal to add to your daily routine!! Robin, one of my favorite Peloton instructors always says “a pair of running shoes saved my life” and I really think it’s the same for me. A pair of running shoes changed my life! This could be said for a pair of walking shoes, too.

My Experience

So, for me, the 12 pounds came off slowly, but surely and I couldn’t have done it without Weight Watchers and my daily exercise. As with anything here, I am sharing what worked for me, in hopes that it will help at least one person. If you have tried everything like I had, this would be worth a try for you! There’s no magic potion or magic amount of of effort, but I will say, when I set my mind to doing this, it became a goal that was attainable, not easy, but I realized I COULD do it! I will remind you again that YOUR WEIGHT DOES NOT DEFINE YOU! But, for me, the bloodwork numbers, the way I felt, the anxiety over other potential health issues, that was my drive to do something about my weight. I’ve talked to so many of you who have gained weight from one reason or another and end of the day, we all have our own personal goals for why we want to get more fit! My goal was just to feel better all around, but also to work on some other numbers that gave me a bit of stress based on family history. I would love to remind you that putting your oxygen mask on first is such an important thing to do. I think I have put so much before my health over the years and that got me to where I was and really where I am, today. The daily exercise has helped me in a HUGE way in all aspects and my whole household knows, that like my coffee, it’s a necessity for me, each day. I also love that I am showing my kids that daily movement is so important. I want them to see me as an example in that aspect, too!!

A few things, people have asked on repeat since I started this journey…

What program are you using? Weight Watchers

Favorite Treadmill- Peloton Tread +

**Tread + was the only option when we purchased, I have no info or comparison on the new smaller one.

Favorite Inexpensive Treadmill– I had THIS one and gave it to my sister. I just used my Peloton app on my phone while I waited for my Tread to arrive. This Treadmill looks like a great under $800 option, too.

Exercise Bike- Peloton

Budget Friendly Exercise Bike– This bike has great reviews and I have a few friends that have it! This bike is under $400 and has over 5,000 reviews on Amazon! So, it’s another option to look at it.

Favorite way to drink more water? I drink 2-3 of these bottles a day. Highly recommend these bottles over the huge jugs because these CAN FIT IN A CAR CUP HOLDER!! To me, that is key!!

Favorite Sports Bra– This BRA IS THE BEST! I also like THIS ONE. I do a size medium in both.

Favorite Workout Leggings- I love these leggings and these leggings!

Favorite Workout Shorts- Hands down, my favorite shorts are THESE! You can also buy them HERE! And they now come in prints HERE!

Favorite Running Shoes- I wear THESE SHOES daily to run. They have been great for my knees and my plantar fasciitis issues. I like to walk in THESE SHOES. I don’t switch mid workout, but if I am specifically walking, I’ll wear THESE.

Favorite Socks– These are my favorite SOCKS!

Favorite Healthy Lunch- Grilled chicken, avocado and a bagged salad. My favorite is the 365 Spicy Ranch Salad or the Josie’s Siracha Ranch Salad and all we do is add grilled chicken and avocado. You could easily recreate this salad by using this dressing and any salad mix.

Favorite Healthy Dinner- Grilled Pesto Salmon, grilled or roasted vegetables, cauliflower rice with pesto. We also do cauliflower rice bowls a lot- add grilled chicken, black beans, avocado or guacamole and some chips on the side!

SNEAKERS // WATER BOTTLE // SNEAKERS

PELOTON TREAD // LEGGINGS // SOCKS // LEGGINGS // PELOTON BIKE

BRA // BRA // BRA

SHORTS // SHORTS // SHORTS

TREADMILL // BIKE // BIKE // TREADMILL

BRA (medium) // SHORTS (small) // SNEAKERS

I want to thank you for bearing with me as I took a bit to write this post, but it actually hasn’t been easy to get these words out there. Sometimes, it’s hard to be vulnerable and sometimes it’s hard to share these types of things. I dive pretty deep into my health history in this post and, this post really just piggybacks off of it. I hope you find this post helpful and informative and I hope if you are feeling in a place where you’ve tried it all, that you’ll consider trying something new. I only share this because I truly believe in it and I really found success with it! Keep in mind, what work for me, maybe not be the exact recipe for you personally, but it’s worth a shot, I always think! If you decide to try it, let me know! I’d love to hear how it’s going for you!!

Thank you for always cheering me on in so many of my life endeavors. It truly means so much to have you in my corner. As always, by sharing this, I know that if it serves as motivation for one person, then I’ve done my job today! Have a great day! XOXO