2010: Year of Personal Weight Loss Plunders

In January 2010, I didn't make a resolution to lose weight. I was overweight and hypertensive, and definitely needed to lose at least 30 pounds. Making resolutions to lose weight didn't work for me in previous years. I decided to try something different. I began to write my plan for weight loss. I bought a notebook which was already divided into three sections. The first section was dedicated to health. This is where I recorded health and weight loss goals and then journaled the daily events in this quest for weight loss.

My weight loss journal started on January 10th. I weighed 215 pounds. My waist was 45 inches in diameter. My Body Mass Index (BMI) was 38.1, and my blood pressure without medication was 163/100. From January to May, I followed an eating plan and exercise regimen that was simple. I will get into the details of the regimen later in this article.

By May, I weighed 198 pounds. I was 40.25 in the waist. My blood pressure with medication was 124/72. In spite of my triumph - losing 17 pounds and almost five inches off my waist - I was disappointed in how long it was taking me to lose weight. In 2003, I lost a total of 70 pounds within a six month period without any exercise. I even wrote and published a book about it called How I Lost 70 Pounds in Six Months. Although I'm older and my hormones don't work the same as a "40-year-olds", I expected the same kind of weight loss results, especially since I was exercising this time. It was not until now that I sit and right this article that I realize how well I'd done on the weight loss plan I started in January.

These are the things I did faithfully from January through May 2010 that took 17 pounds of fat off my body and carved away five inches from my waist:

Exercise 3-4 times a week

Drink 6-8 glasses of water everyday

No red meat until March

No "white foods" (potatoes, grits, white rice, white pasta, corn and corn products, white bread products and basically any vegetable or grain that was high in starch)

No sugars/sweets

No fried foods

I guess when I look at the facts I recorded, my weight loss plan was a success until May. I lost three pounds per month. If I had stayed true to my goals, by now I would weigh 179 pounds. My waist, hypothetically, would be 34 inches.

Why My Weight Loss Plan Failed

I noticed May was the last month I made entries in my weight loss journal. If I recall correctly, two things happened that month. First, I got bored with my exercise routine. Second, I started a home based baking business in which I was not able to resist the temptation to sample the treats. It was downhill from there for me. I'd always had a sweet tooth. Unlike my husband who can be satisfied with one slice of pie, I had to eat two. If it was potato pie, I had to eat it all. I knew that sweets were my weakness, and should have never started with them. Once I invited sweets back into my life, why resist the fried chicken and starchy foods, my taste buds reasoned?

As I began to eat out of control again, the pounds and inches came back with a vengeance. On October 26th, I started over again with my weight loss. I am once again exercising 3-4 times a week whether I like it or not. I'm eating healthier, too. By Thanksgiving, I'd lost a few pounds. Once again I was disappointed. I'm beginning to see now that weight loss at my age takes time or drastic measures. I choose time.

As I look back over the year, I can see that the biggest blunder I made was not being more patient with my weight loss plan. That is the only reason why it failed.

See also
http://www.lulu.com/product/paperback/how-i-lost-70-pounds-in-six-months/70959
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/5868110/the_rise_and_fall_of_a_home_baking.html?cat=55
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/5847638/exercise_the_worst_time_is_better_than.html?cat=5