Trying to lose weight or maintain your weight can be very challenging and sometimes you might feel that you want to quit. That’s how Andrea Barlow felt before her weight loss journey, but when she learned how to lose weight effectively, she went from feeling completely hopeless to successfully shedding all her excess weight.
Andrea’s Story
Battling with weight loss wasn’t something new for Andrea as she dealt with weight issues all her life. “I tried to establish healthier habits through programs like Weight Watchers, but had no luck.” Andrea gained most of her weight when she started having thyroid issues during her pregnancy.
After she had her baby, she weighed 375 pounds. “I struggled through some of the simplest parts of life.” she says. “I couldn’t fit behind the steering wheel of our car. I had to take breaks going up just two flights of steps. Getting dressed was a chore, I couldn’t tie my own shoes.”
Andrea became incredibly depressed. “I felt miserable and trapped,” she confesses. One day, she had a nervous breakdown after weighing herself on the scale and scared her baby who started crying. Andrea took that as a sign that she had to make a change.
Andrea’s Weight Loss Journey
She Improved Her Food Habits
Andrea followed a meal plan that did more than just control the amount of food she was eating. “This plan taught me to remove unhealthy foods from my diet and replace them with healthier options. Before this program, I didn’t realize that some foods are nutritionally more dense than others.”
Cleaning up her diet also helped her realize that some foods were harmful for her. “I not longer eat red meat, pork, or dairy. When I tried to begin incorporating these back into my diet, I started to experience a lot of inflammation and rashes, so now I know that they’re a trigger for me.”
She Exercised
Andrea initially started working out for 30 minutes every day, but did a less intense workout once a week. After she completed a round of workouts, she rested for two to three days. “These at-home workouts were great for me at the start of this journey because I felt self-conscious anytime I went to the gym.”
After a few months of successful weight loss, Andrea moved on to more intense workouts to build lean muscle and felt confident enough to join a gym. “I go there about once a week now and do a combination of box jumps and rope pulls, and spend time on the elliptical if I need something low-impact.”
She Found Support
Weight loss is hard enough as it is, but doing it alone can be much harder. When Andrea felt like giving up, she would turn to people who had the same goal as her and knew how difficult it was to stick to that goal. “I felt I had a support system beyond my friends and family—people who understood what I was going through,” say says.
How To Make Losing Weight Part Of Your Lifestyle
Learn About Healthy Food
To change your food habits, you have to know which foods are best for your health. Look for foods that are dense and fill you up so you don’t overeat, such as potatoes, beans, bananas, and oranges. Also, eliminate high-calorie processed and refined foods, such as sugary pastries and replace them with nutritious whole foods.
Make A Meal Plan
Planning your food for the whole week can keep you focused on your goal. Look up recipes to get ideas for multiple meals and make a list of ingredients. When you buy groceries, stick to the list and when you go home, stick to your plan.
Exercise
Going to the gym can be expensive, time-consuming, and even uncomfortable for many people. Fortunately, your home is a judgement-free zone where you can exercise whenever you want. If you need a little motivation, you can always watch a workout video. Here are some YouTube channels to get inspiration from if you don’t know where to start.
POPSUGAR Fitness has many short, beginner, follow-along, and no-equipment workouts if you’re not familiar with exercising.
FitnessBlender is a husband and wife team who can show you how to do various workouts and have a strong focus on healthy eating and sharing unbiased nutrition and fitness information.
XHIT is ideal for you if you’re more advanced and you’re looking for energetic high intensity training workouts.
Be Physically Active
Physical activity can be anything that makes you move. If you are not able or ready to do intense exercises, you can walk, climb stairs, do stretching exercises, or even do chores around the house. All these activities burn calories and help keep you in shape.
Let Your Family Help
Talk to your family about your struggles and let them know how they can help you during your journey. You could even propose to exercise together or follow the same meal plan.
Join A Weight Loss Community
Family and friends can be supportive, but sometimes they might not understand exactly what you’re going through. Look for an online or local weight loss community that can give you support and advice because they have similar experiences and goals to yours.
Always keep in mind that seeing a satisfying number on a scale is not your goal. Your goal should be to feel healthy and happy, and you can achieve that by investing time and effort.
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