Four Months, 18 Kilos, and Reflections

Well have just finished my fourth month on WW and at weigh in this morning have lost another 1.7kg bringing my total loss to date to 18 kilos. Wooo hooo!!

I have been reflecting on my journey and have some thoughts I would like to share:

1. Four months is not that long. In four months I have lost 18 kilos. In that same four months if I had kept going how I was and not started WW then I would probably have put on another 4kg from where I was - so the weight difference from making good choices is probably actually 22kg for me in the past four months. And it has not been hard!

2. I feel incredible. I have so much more energy than when I started. I am still buzzing around at 10pm at night full of energy. This was not typical for me before!

3. My feet are feeling fantastic. I can now walk long distances without any pain at all. When I started WW four months ago my feet were killing me. They could not handle the extra weight!

4. I feel much more healthy than I was.

5. It is so much easier to make good choices now - for the most part they are almost automatic. My tastes have changed. I am really enjoying the flavour of healthy food. I am forming healthy habits.

6. I have learned a lot about how my weight fluctuates with my monthly cycle, and how this affects my hunger levels. I know that I will lose slower some weeks and have bigger losses other weeks and I have learned not to be disheartened by not such good weeks as I know it evens out in the end.

7. I have kept the promises I made to myself about this journey. I have not quit. That feels fantastic. I feel like my personal integrity towards myself has gone up expotentially.

8. I have learned that you can lose weight without being fanatical and that you can still have a life. This has been an important lesson for me as previous weight loss efforts have led to unsustainable behaviours.

9. I have learned my triggers and am learning how to deal with these things. I know that I have to be organised and have good food on hand. I know that if I plan to succeed I will succeed.

10. I know that I will succeed. It is not if any more, it is when. My belief in myself and what I can achieve has been restored.

11. I can feel my muscles - still can't see them that well yet but I can feel them.

12. My stamina has increased. I bounce back from a strenuous day much better than I did before. A good nights sleep restores my energy where as before a busy few days could leave me feeling tired for a week. I am also able to cope much better with "life".

13. I have learned to eat treats in moderation. Quite an achievement for an all or nothing girl! This was one of the lessons I most wanted to learn.

14. I have learned to listen to my body's hunger signals whereas before I would eat for a whole host of reasons - but very seldom was it hunger (ie because it was mealtime, because I was bored, because I was angry, because I liked the taste of something).

15. I am enjoying exercise and the buzz it gives me. Last week when I was too sick to exercise I really missed it.

This is an amazing journey which has been so worth it. But it is about so much more than losing weight - losing weight is just the icing on the cake.