|Fifty by Thirty| I know it sounds like a measurement of the length times width of a room or something, but it's not. I plan to lose 50 pounds by the time I'm thirty. I know it doesn't sound like much, but according to my dietitian, it's spot on for healthy weight loss over a year's time of one to two pounds a week. If you follow my other blog, you've read a little of my back ground. My latest post was about continuing my weight loss journey, dealing with PCOS, my love/hate relationship with exercise, and wanting to become a mom. This blog will encompass all of these issues and more. Below, I will share with you where I am with each of these individually. This may be one of the longest posts I write for this blog, but there is much that needs to be known to follow along.
I have been overweight for as long as I can remember and obese (morbidly) for all of my adult life. I grew up in a very rural town with parents whose menu was solely comfort food. I mean real comfort food, everything was fried with gravy or super creamy and cheesy, I'm talkin' that stick to your ribs (and everything else) type of cuisine. If there was a vegetable, it was sauteed in bacon grease or had some type of meat added for flavor (usually a ham bone or some part of the hog). My favorite foods growing up were any type of green (collards, kale, mustard, watercress) and bacon. I loved them individually, but it was rare that we had greens without bacon or ham added. We were...well still are a meat 'n' tatas family! I didn't realize I was fat (that's right I said it) until I was in the first grade and we were learning about line graphs. The teachers were taking out heights and weights for illustration and to make the learning experience interactive. I was so proud of my number because it was one of the highest, so I told the other kids, and the boy I had a crush on, Timmy, said "that's because you're fat." My poor feelings were hurt. As time progressed, I clung to the "big-boned" theory. Most of my family was on the "heavy side," so it was normal to me. Then, I was involuntarily inducted into the "she's pretty for a big girl" and "she carries her weight well for her size" clubs. Which I thought was funny and possibly true because people who would guess my weight would always be off by between 30 and 50 pounds. It felt good to know that I looked smaller than my actual weight, but I was still fat! I tried every quick fix I could in high school. It wasn't until college that I actually began to attempt eating right and exercising. It took some time for my body to adjust to the many hills of James Madison University (JMU), but I did eventually. I lost the freshman 15 + 12, but gained a little back over time. My friend, Porscha, and I would work out together from time to time; we even signed for a few eight-week courses that required us to work out. Then we discovered the pecan pie! Anyone who has heard of JMU knows that they have been ranked among the nation's best for campus food, and you better believe they deserve it! After graduating I tried to stick with my good habits while slipping back into the comforts of home, and have since lost and gained 30-40 pounds. I soon found out why it was so difficult to maintain any weight loss.
In July of 2010, I was diagnosed with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS), also known as Stein-Leventhal Syndrome. To read more about PCOS, the PCOS foundation sums it up pretty well on their website. Let's rewind to early December 2001, I was a freshman in high school living my life as a normal teen, so I thought. One day I missed school because I was in so much pain. The next day I was miserable, so my dad asked my aunt to take me to the doctor. One of the first questions the nurse practioner asked me was the date of my last period. I realized then that I would be 15 the next month, and I had never had a period. Not one. I wasn't sexually active, so I wasn't pregnant which was the next question. She told my aunt that because I hadn't began menstruating that I was at high risk for developing uterine and other cancers, so I should seek a specialist, a message she relayed to my father. Low and behold, two days later Aunt Flow came and slapped me full force. I began to realized other characteristics that reminded me that something wasn't right with my body. First it was they excessive facial hair, then the hair on my top of my head began to thin, I was missing periods for months and even over a year sometimes (which I thought was blessing and a curse), and very quick weight gain. By the time I was a senior, I was close to 300 lbs. All of this by 2005, and I didn't know who to talk, and I didn't have a regular doctor or insurance, so I just lived. Foward back to 2010, sitting in the office of the OB/GYN at the free health clinic listening to him tell me that I have PCOS and my treatment options. We talked about how proper diet and exercise were the absolute best treatments and the possibility of never conceiving, how tremendously difficult it will be to lose weight and how equally easy it will be gain. I was put on birth control pills and metformin (which is primarily used as a diabetic drug). He explained how the metformin would help with insulin resistance which is also a sympton of PCOS that increased the likelihood that I would eventually develop Type 2 diabetes. It was all so overwhelming. I found out just last week that I am at the pre-diabetic stage that can be reversed with diet and exercise. That was the day I decided to challenge myself to the "fifty before thirty" challenge. My hope is that I will lose more because I've lost 40lbs in 6 months before. We are trying it for the long haul this time, so we will see, but I have really high hopes. I pigged out on my birthday which was just a couple of days ago, but today is a different day!
If you read my profile, you know I am recently married (just four months next week). We are discussing life and our future, as always, and one of the things I'm really struggling with is the possibility of never being a mother. In some ways, I've come to terms with the idea of it not happening, but that doesn't change my want to be a mommy someday. I told my husband early in our relationship about PCOS and my experience as well as the possibility of infertility, and he responded very positively, and is very encouraging and supportive. We have decided that we will actively start trying to conceive in May which may change depending on whether we reach our fitness goals. By actively, I mean removing my birth control implant, and seeing what happens. We will not seek the help of a fertility specialist unless we feel it's absolutely necessary. I have baby fever every now and again, so I try to refocus, but I found out recently that three of my nine bridesmaids are expecting as well as the wife of one of Tyrell's groomsmen. I'm so very excited about that! Becoming an auntie again x4! Crazy thing is three of the four of them are due in June! I was wondering where I missed the memo lol! So, I'm hopeful that we can give them a playmate or, depending on how long it takes, a baby to sit someday lol.
I know this is a book chapter, but I hope you learned something from it. Maybe if you see someone with the same symptoms of PCOS, you can alert them to a growing problem in women of childbearing age. Maybe you have a story to tell that can help me (or someone else) through my journey. Please leave any questions in the comment section, and I will respond to them as soon as I can. Our next weigh-in will be next Sunday morning. I'm debating being brave and posting our starting weights because I feel like you have to put it all out there for accountability reasons. The other side of me knows how honest I am about my weight, so I know it doesn't really matter. We will be doing weekly challenges as well. Who ever loses the lowest percentage of his or her body weight has to do something special for the other person within specific parameters and so forth. I'll tell you what I do to keep motivated. Right now, I am following Black Women Losing Weight website's before and after page. There are all types of stories there. Today's post featured a woman who struggle with PCOS! I utterly enjoy the facebook page as well. This will be a bi-weekly blog, but next week will be my official first post. Check back on 02/07/2016 to keep updated. Also, add me on MyFitnessPal if you'd like to see some of my meals. I haven't been great at tracking, but I will try to do better. I can say tracking definitely helps with weight loss, so if you're struggle even a little this app is highly recommended! See you Sunday!
I have been overweight for as long as I can remember and obese (morbidly) for all of my adult life. I grew up in a very rural town with parents whose menu was solely comfort food. I mean real comfort food, everything was fried with gravy or super creamy and cheesy, I'm talkin' that stick to your ribs (and everything else) type of cuisine. If there was a vegetable, it was sauteed in bacon grease or had some type of meat added for flavor (usually a ham bone or some part of the hog). My favorite foods growing up were any type of green (collards, kale, mustard, watercress) and bacon. I loved them individually, but it was rare that we had greens without bacon or ham added. We were...well still are a meat 'n' tatas family! I didn't realize I was fat (that's right I said it) until I was in the first grade and we were learning about line graphs. The teachers were taking out heights and weights for illustration and to make the learning experience interactive. I was so proud of my number because it was one of the highest, so I told the other kids, and the boy I had a crush on, Timmy, said "that's because you're fat." My poor feelings were hurt. As time progressed, I clung to the "big-boned" theory. Most of my family was on the "heavy side," so it was normal to me. Then, I was involuntarily inducted into the "she's pretty for a big girl" and "she carries her weight well for her size" clubs. Which I thought was funny and possibly true because people who would guess my weight would always be off by between 30 and 50 pounds. It felt good to know that I looked smaller than my actual weight, but I was still fat! I tried every quick fix I could in high school. It wasn't until college that I actually began to attempt eating right and exercising. It took some time for my body to adjust to the many hills of James Madison University (JMU), but I did eventually. I lost the freshman 15 + 12, but gained a little back over time. My friend, Porscha, and I would work out together from time to time; we even signed for a few eight-week courses that required us to work out. Then we discovered the pecan pie! Anyone who has heard of JMU knows that they have been ranked among the nation's best for campus food, and you better believe they deserve it! After graduating I tried to stick with my good habits while slipping back into the comforts of home, and have since lost and gained 30-40 pounds. I soon found out why it was so difficult to maintain any weight loss.
In July of 2010, I was diagnosed with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS), also known as Stein-Leventhal Syndrome. To read more about PCOS, the PCOS foundation sums it up pretty well on their website. Let's rewind to early December 2001, I was a freshman in high school living my life as a normal teen, so I thought. One day I missed school because I was in so much pain. The next day I was miserable, so my dad asked my aunt to take me to the doctor. One of the first questions the nurse practioner asked me was the date of my last period. I realized then that I would be 15 the next month, and I had never had a period. Not one. I wasn't sexually active, so I wasn't pregnant which was the next question. She told my aunt that because I hadn't began menstruating that I was at high risk for developing uterine and other cancers, so I should seek a specialist, a message she relayed to my father. Low and behold, two days later Aunt Flow came and slapped me full force. I began to realized other characteristics that reminded me that something wasn't right with my body. First it was they excessive facial hair, then the hair on my top of my head began to thin, I was missing periods for months and even over a year sometimes (which I thought was blessing and a curse), and very quick weight gain. By the time I was a senior, I was close to 300 lbs. All of this by 2005, and I didn't know who to talk, and I didn't have a regular doctor or insurance, so I just lived. Foward back to 2010, sitting in the office of the OB/GYN at the free health clinic listening to him tell me that I have PCOS and my treatment options. We talked about how proper diet and exercise were the absolute best treatments and the possibility of never conceiving, how tremendously difficult it will be to lose weight and how equally easy it will be gain. I was put on birth control pills and metformin (which is primarily used as a diabetic drug). He explained how the metformin would help with insulin resistance which is also a sympton of PCOS that increased the likelihood that I would eventually develop Type 2 diabetes. It was all so overwhelming. I found out just last week that I am at the pre-diabetic stage that can be reversed with diet and exercise. That was the day I decided to challenge myself to the "fifty before thirty" challenge. My hope is that I will lose more because I've lost 40lbs in 6 months before. We are trying it for the long haul this time, so we will see, but I have really high hopes. I pigged out on my birthday which was just a couple of days ago, but today is a different day!
If you read my profile, you know I am recently married (just four months next week). We are discussing life and our future, as always, and one of the things I'm really struggling with is the possibility of never being a mother. In some ways, I've come to terms with the idea of it not happening, but that doesn't change my want to be a mommy someday. I told my husband early in our relationship about PCOS and my experience as well as the possibility of infertility, and he responded very positively, and is very encouraging and supportive. We have decided that we will actively start trying to conceive in May which may change depending on whether we reach our fitness goals. By actively, I mean removing my birth control implant, and seeing what happens. We will not seek the help of a fertility specialist unless we feel it's absolutely necessary. I have baby fever every now and again, so I try to refocus, but I found out recently that three of my nine bridesmaids are expecting as well as the wife of one of Tyrell's groomsmen. I'm so very excited about that! Becoming an auntie again x4! Crazy thing is three of the four of them are due in June! I was wondering where I missed the memo lol! So, I'm hopeful that we can give them a playmate or, depending on how long it takes, a baby to sit someday lol.
I know this is a book chapter, but I hope you learned something from it. Maybe if you see someone with the same symptoms of PCOS, you can alert them to a growing problem in women of childbearing age. Maybe you have a story to tell that can help me (or someone else) through my journey. Please leave any questions in the comment section, and I will respond to them as soon as I can. Our next weigh-in will be next Sunday morning. I'm debating being brave and posting our starting weights because I feel like you have to put it all out there for accountability reasons. The other side of me knows how honest I am about my weight, so I know it doesn't really matter. We will be doing weekly challenges as well. Who ever loses the lowest percentage of his or her body weight has to do something special for the other person within specific parameters and so forth. I'll tell you what I do to keep motivated. Right now, I am following Black Women Losing Weight website's before and after page. There are all types of stories there. Today's post featured a woman who struggle with PCOS! I utterly enjoy the facebook page as well. This will be a bi-weekly blog, but next week will be my official first post. Check back on 02/07/2016 to keep updated. Also, add me on MyFitnessPal if you'd like to see some of my meals. I haven't been great at tracking, but I will try to do better. I can say tracking definitely helps with weight loss, so if you're struggle even a little this app is highly recommended! See you Sunday!
I love you Tychier my Queen. You make your weight loss goal. We will be healthy and happy. - Your King Tyrell.
ReplyDeleteAwwww! Thanks Bae! I know I can count on you for support! :)
DeleteExcited to follow along. Good luck sistahfriend!
ReplyDeleteThanks Ci!!!
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