Please welcome Meegan from Redstar5 – Work in Progress. Meegan and I have a lot in common, especially the fact that we are both pretty slow losers. You can visit Meegan’s blog here.

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Bobbie and I have something in common. We tend to fight this weight loss battle in a slow but fiercely determined fashion. We both got a little fed up with the way we had been leading our lives and have made some big changes. Changes we’ve grown to love and incorporate into our lives. I think we both also get a little frustrated sometimes with our fierce determination not resulting in seriously swift weight loss, but it helps knowing we’re not alone.

I started this weight loss journey in earnest when I turned 30 in February of 2009. I was 289lbs. Now it’s almost a year and a half later and at my last weigh in I was 213lbs. That’s 76lbs in 16.5 months or 66 weeks. That makes my weight loss average only slightly better than 1lb a week. That is slow (but steady) weight loss.

Some of my before and after pictures:

I mean seriously, would any of us ask for slow weight loss? So many people seem to be searching for that magic pill, diet, solution – anything that will bring on the skinny overnight. We all want that perfect beach body in the blink of an eye. We don’t want to wait weeks, months, even years to reach our weight loss goals. But here’s the thing, for many of us (or at least for Bobbie and I so far) on the path to lasting weight loss that’s the only way it happens. SLOWLY.

Now that I know that slow is the way this will be happening for me – I am learning to love slow. Don’t get me wrong, I know it’s a challenge to say that you like weight loss slow and steady. It is tough to be satisfied with progress when it comes little by little. But if this is how it is for me, I’m going to grow to accept it. I’m a slow loser. In fact, I have never been able to do anything fast before.

• I don’t run fast,

• I don’t move fast,

• I don’t think fast (I tend to ruminate and over think) and,

• I definitely don’t lose weight fast.

It’s frustrating. But when you decide not to be satisfied with your status quo YOU CHANGE. With all of the changes I’ve been making in the last 66 weeks I’ve learned that:

• I can run. It may be slower than all the other girls in my bootcamp, but I can run and it’s faster than before.

• I’m teaching my body HOW to move fast – and it feels good.

• I still analyze everything, but I don’t agonize over anything and life is SO much more straightforward that way.

• The one thing I haven’t been able to solve or change has been the pace at which I lose weight.

I’m almost a year and a half into this journey and I’m still losing weight slowly. But you know what, every decision, every pound; every change I’ve made has been worth it. The frustration will come and it will go, but I’m proud of the progress of I’ve made so far. I’m still losing pounds, and I’m making major gains in learning to live a healthier and happier life. Slow weight loss progress is still progress and its progress in the direction I want to be heading. In fact, I like to think that there are divine reasons for the slower pace:

• I like to think that losing the weight at a slower pace is giving my mind and body time to adjust to my new healthy way of life.

• I like to think that it means I will live my life this way forever, and keep the weight off forever because I’m learning to do it slowly.

• I like to think that maybe, just maybe, I will minimize at least a little bit of the whole loose skin factor by losing weight at a slower pace.

• I like to think that it’s giving myself the time I need to let new habits simply become my way of living life instead of something I’m just trying out until I reach my goals.

• I like to think that slower weight loss means my perceptions of who I am in a new body will have time to keep pace.

• I like to think a year of slow and steady weight loss has made lasting changes, in my life, in the way I think and in the mirror.

Bottom line – slow is good. Slow and steady really can win the weight loss race and make some serious lasting changes. After 66 weeks, with no turning back now, I am learning to love slow.

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Today’s guest post is courtesy of Jody from Fit at 52. Please hit up her blog and give her some love. She’s one of the sweetest bloggers I’ve gotten to know and I love, love, love her posts and know you will too. :)

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First, thanks to Bobbie for letting me guest post! She is one that never gave up & she is showing the results for that hard work! Thanks Bobbie!

So most of us reading these fitness, health & weight loss blogs obviously either have a weight issue right now, had a weight issue in the past, are still working to lose excess weight, just trying to get healthy or any combination of the above & more.  I was heavy as a kid and into high school before I lost my weight. Now, saying that, I still had “knowledge” issues into my 20’s and 30’s. I kept most of the weight off, I did not yo-yo excessively but my “knowledge” factor stunk!!!!

Now, how many of you put on your weight young like me BUT had all those friends that could eat anything they wanted & never put on a pound??? I can remember bitching about this & how I was the only one in my circle of friends that put on weight just by looking at food!!! I was active early on & in high school put that did not stop the weight. Of course I was eating too much & the wrong things but so were a lot of the friends!!!   For those friends that could eat anything, many of them had reality hit in the late 20’s to 30’s (some later) when they found out they could not eat like they used to & that combined with less activity turned into a lot of pounds on the body!   One thing good about my situation – I found out earlier in life about eating healthier foods, having to exercise and/or find activities to help keep the weight off & most importantly, I learned to listen to my body & understand what works best for me, when I needed minor & major changes to either or both my food & exercise program and how to manipulate both for the best end result for me.

I think many of us give up because it is just too hard and it takes too long to lose the weight (even though it took years to put it on). We just lose patience with the process and fall into that woe is me. Well, if you think it is hard now, wait till you start the change of life if you are a woman! If you are a man, you are still going to have a slowing metabolism. BEST LOSE THE WEIGHT EARLIER ON CAUSE IT GETS HARDER THE OLDER YOU GET!  When I hit the 47-48 time frame (it may have been 45 since I lost count of these crazy years), my body started to attack. What I did was not working anymore. What I ate was not working anymore. This is when I stepped up my workout routine. I already was working out pretty hard BUT I upped the intensity by adding plyometrics, high intensity interval training, intervals but more a version I made up for myself and more… AND I HAD TO RE-EVALUATE MY FOOD PROGRAM!

Honestly between that 47 year old to now going on 53 years old, I have changed up my exercise AND FOOD program multiple times & still do. I am still working thru the change of life & so is my body. So, yes, I went into that “this sucks” talk to myself since I was already doing everything right when this hit. I was eating healthy foods & not too excess, I was exercising, I was lifting weights. SO, yes, I was doing everything right & I still had to make changes!  DID I GIVE UP? NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I FOUGHT BACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was not going to give in to this. Yes, I did & still work very hard at fighting the aging process but it is worth it!

So if you think woe is me now… just wait. Buck up & tell yourself you are worth the effort! Understand that it takes time, patience & consistency. It is easier to get the process started now than when it attacks you even more so later on. Giving up is not an option! Your life & health are the pay off. Change the thought process & tell yourself you are lucky to be able to do this for you & your body! Find a food & exercise program that you love. One size does not fit all here. This is a lifestyle & you need to find things that will work long term. This is not a race to the finish… Understand it takes time, learn along the way and DON’T GIVE UP!

I can tell you from experience that if you work at it, you can fight the aging process to the best possible for your age. No, you may not look like you did in your 20’s or 30’s but you can still look damn good for your age! YOU ARE WORTH THE EFFORT!

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There once was an addict that I knew. He was an alcoholic that had to drink at least a case of beer a day to function. He was conspicuously missing from most of my childhood, but would reappear at random times for no apparent reason. He was very charming and had the the type of personality that almost hypnotized you into liking him despite all of his many faults. He could tell some fantastic tails of bar room brawls and cross country travels, and while doing so make you believe every single word.

That addict is my father.

There once was an addict that I knew. She was a food addict that had to eat to maintain her feelings and to prevent herself from feeling any emotions in life. She was mysteriously missing from most of her childhood, but would reappear at random times when necessary. She was very sweet and outgoing, but her personality was inhibited by her food addiction, which lead to a dislike of herself. To keep herself numb and from experiencing life, she would also live vicariously through intriguing novels, which assisted her in never really having to get to know anyone in real life.

That addict is me.

For the first time in many, many months, last week I spoke to my father on the phone. He sounded different. At first I couldn’t place what the difference was. Then it hit me. He was sober!

I asked him, “Hey dad, how are you doing? You sound good.”

He said, “I’m doing real good. I stopped drinking the first of the year.”

At first I didn’t know how to respond to this. He had stopped drinking from time to time in the past and it had never lasted long. This time he was going on 7 months. That was miraculous in itself.

I said, “Dad, I’m so proud of you.”

There was no awkwardness or strange feelings tied to my response. I was and am truly happy for him. There was no regret in my tone, no ill-wishing towards him in my head, even though I probably am justified in both.

I realized how we are a lot alike in our respective addictions. Even though I am not an alcoholic and REFUSE to become one, I am a food addict. No matter how well I document my foods or portion sizes or how well I eat, I will deep down always be a food addict. I am probably a food addict primarily because of the choices my father made during my childhood.

There are many differences as well. I like to think that the differences between us are what makes my personal world turn. In each turn, I am given new life lessons that I can learn and grow from.

I no longer let the addictions of others dictate my life or my own personal dependencies.

I no longer blame the ghosts of the past for how I react or feed myself.

Do you know an addict? Are you one?

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I just had to post this article. I didn’t agree with how Southwest treated Kevin Smith, but I definitely do not agree with how they handled this situation. I’m not sure what is the right way to deal with this, but I would venture to say it would NOT be to punish the person that does NOT need two seats by removing her from the plane.

Link to article

NICK UT / Associated Press file, 2008

By Bob Shallit

Southwest Airlines made headlines earlier this year for kicking overweight actor-director Kevin Smith off a flight because he took up more than one seat.

Now we’re hearing the airline recently removed a 5-foot-4, 110-pound Sacramento-area woman from a plane so a hefty passenger could have an extra seat.

The incident happened last week on an early-evening Southwest flight from Las Vegas to Sacramento.

The local woman was flying standby, paid full fare for the last available seat, got on board, stowed her bags and sat down – only to be told she would have to deplane immediately.

The reason?

A late-arriving passenger required two seats because of her girth.

The Sacramento woman, a frequent-flying sales rep, was stunned.

“It didn’t seem right that I should have to leave to accommodate someone who had only paid for one seat,” she tells us. (She has asked to remain anonymous for fear some may regard her as insensitive.)

She’s even more miffed because she says Southwest personnel berated her when she questioned the decision to boot her from the plane.

She ended up getting on the next flight.

“It’s small potatoes, in the scheme of things,” she says. But she believes Southwest should have been more considerate.

Airline spokeswoman Marilee McInnis agrees.

“We know this was awkward and we should have handled it better,” she says, adding that the airline intends to apologize to the local woman.

McInnis says normal policy is to ask for volunteers when a flight is overbooked for any reason.

In this instance, she says, airline personnel may have been influenced to choose a faster course of action to reduce embarrassment for the late-arriving passenger.

Why the extra concern? The person requiring two seats was just 14 years old.

How do you think Southwest should have handled this?

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Good morning! Today I decided to do a short video update. Please keep in mind I just woke up and do not usually look like I just got run over by a Mac truck – I hope you’ll take the time to watch. :)

Even though I have had a week from hell, I’m still on track. Although my husband really paid the price yesterday for buying one of those funnel cakes at the carnival. He was puking and sick all day yesterday. I had always heard really good things about funnel cakes – you know, like they were “so good.” I had a taste and I was not impressed. That thing tasted like a big grease ball of shit! So, take it away from me (and my husband) and STAY AWAY from the funnel cakes.

The winner of last week’s America’s Nutrition Give Away is:

Cathy from 42 is a Magic Number

In keeping with the subject matter of my video post, is there something that you USED to enjoy doing but have forgotten about? Something that makes you TRULY happy that does not involve food or unhealthy choices?

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