BabyBeansMama
New member
After days, weeks, months, of saying "oh shucks, I'll just start tomorrow" I've decided I can't keep doing this to myself. So here I am. Taking the first step to getting... no, BEING serious about losing this extra weight and being the healthiest I can be.
Why now? Well, yesterday was Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent for Catholics/Christians. Every Lent, for 40 days and 40 nights, we are asked to give something up. In the past I've given up TV, chocolate, the internet, rice, soda, smoking, among other things. Out of everything I've ever given up, only two have stuck. Soda and cigarettes. I've been without soda for over 6 years and without cigarettes for 3 years. But even with the determination to do that, I've struggled with staying on course when it comes to losing weight.
This Lent, I've decided to give up the major carbs. Rice, bread, pasta, etc. Whatever I seem to give up for Lent, I really stick with for the whole 40 days. I don't know why I'm not able to do that when it's not Lent though. I'm hoping that this will jump start the habit of eating foods that are better for me. I'm even contemplating following Atkins or South Beach for a while. We'll see what I decide after I read the Atkins book I have coming in the mail from a friend.
So... how about a little info about me. This is going to be lengthy, so bear with me...
My name is Jasmine. I'm Filipino/Chinese. 26yrs old. Married to my high school sweetheart. Mommy to a spunky 2yr old daughter. We live in the San Francisco Bay Area. I am a full time working mom who's days never seem long enough.
In high school I was a serious competitive swimmer. Even at a short 5'2", I never weighed less than 125 lbs., most of which was muscle. So, I guess you could say I have a medium/large frame. In college, I stopped swimming/exercising to focus on my studies. Long sleepless nights fueled by a steady stream of junk food had me gaining weight... a lot of weight. In my first two years of college I gained about 60 lbs.
My 3rd year, I caught myself and started watching what I ate and exercising. I was able to lose about 30 lbs. But in my final years of college, the stress of senior projects and some turmoil within my family got the best of me. I ended up gaining all the weight back.
Once home from college, things evened out in all aspects. I started exercising and eating better again. Lost about 30 lbs. Got married. Got pregnant. Did great during my pregnancy and only gained a lil less than 20 lbs. Had a healthy baby girl. By the time my daughter was 3 months old, I had lost all but 5 lbs of the pregnancy weight. But then life got crazy again. I started turning to food for stress relief/comfort. The scale started moving upward again. I tried Weight Watchers. Lost a little weight. Fell off the wagon. Gained it all back plus some.
So here we are today. Last week I weighed in at 181.4 lbs. Which is officially MORE than I weighed the day before I gave birth. That is simply not acceptable to me. I will lose this extra weight and be healthy. Not just for me, but for my daughter. And I will NOT wait for tomorrow anymore. Today I will take action and every today from here on out.
The goal I'm setting at the moment is to reach 135 lbs. That will bring me right into the upper end of the healthy weight range for my height. Once I get there I can reassess the situation and whether I want to strive for a lower number. Oh, and I'll get around to posting some current pictures in a few days.
I've been lurking on these boards for a couple months. And now I'm jump straight into the mix. It'll be a long, hard trip to reach my goal, but I'm confident that with all the great advice and support I've witnessed on this board, I'll be able to get there eventually.
Slow and steady wins the race, right?
Why now? Well, yesterday was Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent for Catholics/Christians. Every Lent, for 40 days and 40 nights, we are asked to give something up. In the past I've given up TV, chocolate, the internet, rice, soda, smoking, among other things. Out of everything I've ever given up, only two have stuck. Soda and cigarettes. I've been without soda for over 6 years and without cigarettes for 3 years. But even with the determination to do that, I've struggled with staying on course when it comes to losing weight.
This Lent, I've decided to give up the major carbs. Rice, bread, pasta, etc. Whatever I seem to give up for Lent, I really stick with for the whole 40 days. I don't know why I'm not able to do that when it's not Lent though. I'm hoping that this will jump start the habit of eating foods that are better for me. I'm even contemplating following Atkins or South Beach for a while. We'll see what I decide after I read the Atkins book I have coming in the mail from a friend.
So... how about a little info about me. This is going to be lengthy, so bear with me...
My name is Jasmine. I'm Filipino/Chinese. 26yrs old. Married to my high school sweetheart. Mommy to a spunky 2yr old daughter. We live in the San Francisco Bay Area. I am a full time working mom who's days never seem long enough.
In high school I was a serious competitive swimmer. Even at a short 5'2", I never weighed less than 125 lbs., most of which was muscle. So, I guess you could say I have a medium/large frame. In college, I stopped swimming/exercising to focus on my studies. Long sleepless nights fueled by a steady stream of junk food had me gaining weight... a lot of weight. In my first two years of college I gained about 60 lbs.
My 3rd year, I caught myself and started watching what I ate and exercising. I was able to lose about 30 lbs. But in my final years of college, the stress of senior projects and some turmoil within my family got the best of me. I ended up gaining all the weight back.Once home from college, things evened out in all aspects. I started exercising and eating better again. Lost about 30 lbs. Got married. Got pregnant. Did great during my pregnancy and only gained a lil less than 20 lbs. Had a healthy baby girl. By the time my daughter was 3 months old, I had lost all but 5 lbs of the pregnancy weight. But then life got crazy again. I started turning to food for stress relief/comfort. The scale started moving upward again. I tried Weight Watchers. Lost a little weight. Fell off the wagon. Gained it all back plus some.
So here we are today. Last week I weighed in at 181.4 lbs. Which is officially MORE than I weighed the day before I gave birth. That is simply not acceptable to me. I will lose this extra weight and be healthy. Not just for me, but for my daughter. And I will NOT wait for tomorrow anymore. Today I will take action and every today from here on out.
The goal I'm setting at the moment is to reach 135 lbs. That will bring me right into the upper end of the healthy weight range for my height. Once I get there I can reassess the situation and whether I want to strive for a lower number. Oh, and I'll get around to posting some current pictures in a few days.
I've been lurking on these boards for a couple months. And now I'm jump straight into the mix. It'll be a long, hard trip to reach my goal, but I'm confident that with all the great advice and support I've witnessed on this board, I'll be able to get there eventually.
Slow and steady wins the race, right?
