Fitness Friday: Not Losing Hope and Not Getting Discouraged

It’s been two weeks since I poured my heart out and admitted my big, fat, plateau failure. I have to tell you – that was one of the scariest things I’ve ever done. Truly. I am not a public person. I’m not extroverted or outgoing or a sharer. So opening up about my weight loss journey (and failures) online (with photos) was such a hard thing for me to do. But I am so glad that I did because the support and encouragement that I’ve received has been overwhelming!

 
Image Courtesy of: Getting Something Done

I have gotten tips from personal trainers, suggestions from nutritionists, heard weight loss stories from many (including several lovely bloggers whom I never [not in a million years] would have guessed struggled with their weight, too), been asked to join others in getting out of their plateaus, and generally received a buttload of warm-fuzzy feelings. *I did get one piece of hate mail [a small sampling: “…people like you make me sick. How can you even talk about having sex – that’s gross. I don’t want to see fat people walk across a room and you’re telling me about you having sex.”]. I kept it because it was obviously from someone with major food/eating disorder issues and I want to hang on to it to remember not to get too obsessed with the scale and numbers.

 
Image Courtesy of: Run For Fit

And then something even cooler happened – a bunch of people took me up on my offer to start a mini support/motivational team on My Fitness Pal. And that? Has been the best part of this whole thing. Every day, I have this little group of people who all post how their day went eating and exercising-wise. We make suggestions, support, and encourage each other. We admit our weight loss waterloos, pony up to bad food choices, and struggle through difficult workouts together.

This little group has been my plateau salvation. Because of them, I have not cheated on my calorie counts (even on days that I made poor food choices), I’ve upped my cardio workouts, and I’ve worked really hard to view my stalling weight as an obstacle that I can overcome. And, I’m proud to announce that in the two weeks we’ve been together – I’ve lost nearly 6 pounds!

 
Image Courtesy of: I Can Relate

Motivation has always been really tough for me. I don’t like rules or schedules. So it’s not some much about finding the time to workout or choosing to eat right – for me, it’s more like “Ooooh! Look at me – I’m breaking the rules by skipping cardio and eating this cheeseburger!” Also, I FREAKING ADORE food. I love, love, lovelylovelove it. And the more cheese, carbs, and bacon it has – the better!

 
Image Courtesy of: Diet Horoscopes

So, I’ve had to rework the way that I think. And that’s really, really tough. But it is doable – you just have to think of it as a new habit instead of lying to yourself (which, I’m sorry sports therapist – that’s what self-motivation is… it’s LYING!). For example, if I was only able to sneak in 10 minutes of cardio instead of my full 30-45, I’d give up before I even started because really – what’s the point? Then I remembered this (from my Pinterest Fitness board):

 
Image Courtesy of: Fitspiration For Life

I also had to rethink the way that I handled my reactions to my bad days (made poor food choices, didn’t workout, ate three pieces of pizza instead of one). Let’s face it, anytime you make a change in your life, you’re going to run into bad days. So on the days that I am stuck at a wedding with only bread and pasta and cake as my food options and I pig out – I let it go. Or as I call it, I think like a man.

Forgot your anniversary? Eh. That one-night-stand? Forget about it! Walking around all day with your zipper down? Oh well. Guys just forget it and look ahead. For some reason, women have a really tough time with this and instead feel overwhelmed and guilty about their moments of weakness. So now, I say to myself “WWTBD” {What Would The Boy Do}, get up, and get over it. I don’t let myself give in just because of one bad day. And when that doesn’t work? I just look at my fitness hero, Jamie Eason:

 
Image Courtesy of: Bodybuilding

So, Tulle Nation – keep supporting me. Bug me on Twitter, Facebook, and check out my Fitness board on Pinterest). Keep letting me in on that fitness advice and those nutritional suggestions. Be my friend on My Fitness Pal (I'm "akbuilt" on there – come find me and friend me!). Because obviously, the motivation is working for me! Team Tulle? Can I count on you? Do you want to join me? Got some choice hate mail for me? Bring. it. on. Right now, I'm ready for it all.