After no weight loss for way too long, the scale is slowly
starting to move again. I’ve lost three
more pounds since the “plateau”.
Probably the most difficult part of being on a plateau (besides the
emotional aspect of it), is staying on track eating-wise when you see no
result. I can’t say I did very well with
that. More cheats happened in the last
two months, than in the whole seven months before that! But now that the scale is moving again,
however slowly, it is definitely motivating me to be more diligent (again) with
my food choices. On the upside of being
on plateau, it gives you a whole new perspective on “only” losing one pound a
week. I was never so excited to see a
minus 1 result on the scale as I was that day.
I was simply ecstatic. And now I’m
just grateful for anything, anything, less than it was the week before.
Running continues to be the main part of my workout
plan. I run 4 days a week and go to the
gym 2 days. I went back and reread my
posts about running at the beginning of the year. I really, truly, honestly hated it. It was strictly to help the weight come
off. My plan was that I’d stop when I
hit my weight goal. But that has
changed. Radically. I. Love. Running. Somewhere between the first 5K (in March) and
now, I truly began to enjoy running. I
look forward to my run days. I even occasionally
sneak in a 5th run on my “rest day” under the guise of “it’ll just
be a relaxing, slow, recreational run.”
If you would have told me seven months ago I would ever use the word “recreational”
and “run” in the same sentence, I would have never believed you. It is amazing to me how much my attitude
toward this single activity has completely changed. And I am convinced it is what is helping me
lose the weight.
You may be like the way I was when I started this whole
journey, i.e. hating working out. I didn’t
do anything for the first six weeks I started the diet. When I did start, it was with much grumbling
and complaining and lack of a whole lot of effort at first. The encouragement is that your attitude may
end up changing. I know you don’t
believe me, even as you read this. I
wouldn’t have either. But I can testify
that by sticking to a workout plan (whether it’s running, swimming, biking,
cross-fit, lifting…whatever), and slowly seeing results from that plan, and
pushing through the times when you absolutely hate what you’re doing but know
you need to do it anyway, your attitude
toward that very hated activity may begin to change. Not overnight, and not anytime soon. But if it happens for you , as it did for me,
one day you’ll look behind and be totally shocked by the change.
While it’s clear to me that I won’t make my goal of hitting
my desired weight in a year, I am still committed and encouraged, and despite not
blogging much, still very much see myself on a journey. Like everything else in life, it has ups and
downs and long stretches of nothing exciting.
And through it all, I just keep going.
