I can hardly believe it, but my Meno Pot Belly is shrinking. Seriously, like someone made a little puncture in a beach ball, there's a slow leak and a noticeable reduction. Really? No way? Yes, way! I got on the scale the other day, the first time in months because I didn't really want to know how high the numbers were. I waited until my clothes were lots looser, and then risked it, the dreaded scale. I've lost 12 pounds. I know, I know, I need to lose more, but this is a good start. Everyone has asked me, how'd you do it? So, if you want to know, here goes:
It was not easy. It was difficult and it took f-o-r-e-v-e-r. I started in March and now it's the end of July; yes, it was gradual and glacially slow, yet effective. I was inspired by 2 people: Sally Field and one of my patients. Let me start with Sally. I worked with her for a day last summer and she was talking about how challenging it is for her to find time to exercise, how she really doesn't like to exercise and how much it takes to stay on track. I just assumed that she was naturally thin, naturally perfect and by the way, really nice. I mistakenly thought that it was easy for her, but when she clarified that big misconception, I felt like an idiot. I mean I advise my patients on how to stay healthy, but wasn't taking my own advice. I gave myself so many pep talks, I felt like I was on a high school basketball team. If Sally can skip the fries and have a salad and make time for weight training, I can too.
So in March, I started exercising for 1 hour each day. I made time for myself. I really had to carve it out, I had to put up with the guilty feelings that I could be doing something else for someone, that it was too long, but after about 3 weeks, I really enjoyed the time to myself and a few days a week, I added weight training or a zumba class. I also started eating a lot less and followed the 2nd stage of The South Beach Diet, meaning very few carbs. It only took about 2 months for me to get used to eating appropriate sized portions. I guess it took about 4 months for my body to figure out that I was really serious about getting healthy and start relinquishing the weight.
It's getting easier, I'm not as hungry, I don't miss the treats, I can skip desert and not feel deprived. I hoped that this would happen, but was still pleasantly surprised when the good old combination of eating less and exercising more worked. In part 2, I'll tell you about my patient who provided more inspiration.
Thanks for mentioning that it takes a long time to see results. We all give up too easily. I remember when I started walking every day. The results came slowly but it worked. I think your body doesn't take you seriously at first. It's saying, "Oh sure. Another exercise plan. I'm not paying attention."
Posted by: Judy Demick | August 17, 2010 at 04:45 AM