Milestones

Definition of a milestone – “a significant event or stage in the life, progress, development, or the like of a person”

I find this a perfect description of the milestone I have reached today in my journey of a lifetime. I reached a significant stage in my life and the progress of my weight loss…. I have lost a total of 75 lbs and 75 7/8 inches!!! Just a mere six months ago, I would not have dreamed that this was possible! I have been overweight and unhealthy for so long, I had pretty much lost hope that I would ever be able to accomplish such a remarkable feat! 

I am so happy to report that not only has my hope been restored and I am moving right along on my journey, but I feel better than I have in almost 20 years. The aches and pains that I had are drastically improved – my knees and feet don’t bother me nearly as much as they used to. I have not had an asthma attack since starting this diet journey, which is amazing because in the months prior to beginning, I was really struggling with getting my asthma under control. I had many dr visits and even a trip to the ER. I am not even taking any asthma medicine now and have only had to use my inhaler 2, maybe 3 times since Aug. (Previously I’ve had to be on daily medication and still used my inhaler once or twice a week)  Also prior to starting this diet, I was taking medication for acid reflux every day. I was able to quit taking that by September and have not had any problems with it since! Migraine headaches were also a frequent inconvenience in my life. I went from having 1 or 2 a week or so, to ZERO! I’ve hardly even had to take Tylenol or Ibuprofen for anything at all! For probably at least a year before I began my journey, I was having a lot of problems with arrhythmia and heart palpitations, but the dr couldn’t determine the cause.  After eating healthy for about a month, those symptoms almost completely disappeared! I have more energy than I’ve had in a long, long time…I sleep better at night…I can walk and shop and do “normal” things without feeling like I’m going to die from it!

My weight loss was slower over the past two weeks since I last posted. But, I did really well in losing inches, so it all evens out in the end.  :)  This is what I’ve learned over the past two weeks. Stress really slows down your progress! So does not getting enough sleep or drinking enough water! Unfortunately, when you have all three happening at the same time, progress slows down to a snail’s pace. But the good news is I still lost weight! Maybe not as much as I was counting on, but a loss is still a loss, right? I’ve also been dealing with the desire to emotionally eat. I’ve been craving chocolate, bread, mac n cheese… all those things I can’t have right now! Not because I’m physically hungry, but because I WANT them. I have to keep reminding myself that it’s not worth the set-back! I won’t tell you it’s been easy, because some days it’s been all I can do to keep from eating the wrong things, but I WILL tell you I’m happy I haven’t given in! :)  I will be starting the stabilization phase soon, and I will be able to eat more variety and flavors. As I get to that phase, I’ll try to post tips and things I’ve learned about stabilization. This is the part that a lot of people struggle with. When I did my first stabilization phase, I had no clue what I was doing and I wasn’t able to find a lot of information out there about how to do it correctly. Since then I’ve read a lot and also learned from my own experience.

So, onward to the next milestone! One hundred pounds, here I come!!