Fatness to Fitness Part II: 40 lbs Later

Ignorance was bliss…

I went through my 20s with my health on the back burner. I worked and worked and worked, and that didn’t leave much room for anything else. I traveled a lot for work; for a few months at a time, I would fly out of state and drive from one city to another. Most days, I was going from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. and the only break was in between meetings or when I driving. Breakfast was usually the closest drive-thru so I could swing by on the way to my first meeting. Lunch was often offered at a mid-day meeting or another drive-thru simply for the sake of time and cost (we had a limit to how much we could spend a day on food while traveling). Evenings were usually spent at events, and food was often included - typically sandwiches, some kind of noodle or potato salad, chips, sodas/water, cookies, coffee (which I didn’t drink at the time). By the time I made it back to my hotel room, if I hadn’t eaten yet, I just ordered room service before I crashed on the bed.

During the non-travel times of the year, I was still working 10-14 hours a day. Food was all about convenience. 99% of the time I didn’t know what I was going to have until it was time to eat, and then it needed to be quick and easy since I was already hungry. If I needed a snack, my go-to combo was an orange Mountain Dew Kickstart and a bag of Cheez-its. I remember my boss once told me my food choices were going to kill me, but I laughed it off. I was young and looked skinny-ish, so I didn’t give it a second thought. After all, I was too busy building my career!

If that sounds like an excuse, well, it is. I hear the same stories from clients all. the. time. I think it gives me a unique perspective as a coach and allows me to feel empathy during a challenging process - I was there! That was me! I was the most difficult client I never had. And I am actually thankful for what happened next, because otherwise I would have probably continued living my life the same way since I didn’t know any better - and probably end up proving my boss right.

… until it wasn’t.

February 2013 I was at the state fair eating a deep-fried Oreo (sharing with my friend who never had one). Looking back at pictures from that fair, I was still my normal self - minus the hair, anyway (I was going through a black-hair phase). Fast forward two months later. In April 2013 I was sitting cross-legged on the ground at a rock music festival waiting for the next band to start. I looked down at my legs, which seemed really big and swollen. In fact, as I continued to look down, I remembered that I had to buy new pants for the festival to find a pair that was big enough to be comfortable for an entire day outside in the hot Florida sun. What was going on with my legs? Where did my ankles go? Around the same time, my dryer at home was having major problems and was running way too hot. My clothes were always too hot to touch even on the lowest setting. That had to be it - my dryer was shrinking all my clothes. No wonder they didn’t fit right anymore.

Lightbulb moments

Those of us who have made the decision to make a lifestyle change - to lose weight, gain strength, whatever it may be - have all had what I call a “lightbulb moment.” A “lightbulb moment” is that exact moment you realize you need to make a change. It’s so powerful it kicks your ass into gear to make you take that first step. When I talk to a new client for the first time during a consultation, I ask them about their own lightbulb moment. If they don’t have one, then there is a good chance they aren’t ready to make long-lasting change. So what was my moment? Well, I was driving home from work one day, just a normal day on my hour-long commute. I almost got into an accident - I slammed on my brakes and swerved and somehow managed to avoid a t-bone collision. My body flew forward and then back against the seat. After sitting in my car in the middle of the road for several seconds, I continued on my way since I was meeting my mom at the nail salon in a half hour. By the time I arrived at the salon, I was feeling some discomfort from the near-accident and was standing kind of hunched over while my Mom was getting her eyebrows waxed. The tech looked over at me, innocently pointed to my stomach, and said, “baby?” Absolutely not! Most definitely NOT. No baby in this belly. But that’s when it hit me... my stomach had gotten bigger. In fact, ALL of me had gotten bigger. THAT’S why my clothes didn’t fit. It wasn’t my dryer (which ended up dying a slow death but it didn’t sabotage my wardrobe). When I got home that night, I stepped on the scale for the first time in a long time. And I was 30 lbs heavier than I’ve ever been before.

(You might be thinking to yourself, but the title says 40 lbs! You are correct. Stay tuned, I will explain everything).

Which one was me? I didn’t know anymore.