2014 Weigth loss progress

Well 2014 is almost over and once again I haven't made it to my goal weight. Having said that, I'm awfully close!

I started the Atkins and gluten free lifestyle back in April and here I am at the end of the year and ready to report my "success". I know, it's not ultimate success but with weight loss there's never an ultimate success because it's a constant battle and journey to keep the weight loss off. But, I'm pretty proud of how far I've come this year and I'm looking forward to making it to goal in the next 4 months.

Right before we started this whole lifestyle change my sweet hubby took me to Salzburg, Austria for my birthday. I told you we're close to everything here! I love it! Anyhow, these are my official before photos and actually they are officials for both Johnny and me. We started together so these are a good indication of how far we've come.

Not sure if it's evident of not but I was in the 220s at this time. As much as I loved the trip I felt frumpy and uncomfortable the whole time. BTW, you know what's in that bag Johnny's holding?? Cronuts!!! Only the best donut/croissant mix ever! They were even filled with Bavarian cream and covered in sprinkels. TO DIE FOR! literally! If I had known I was about to start a major food overhaul I would have eaten three more! We're standing on the actual do-re-mi steps in A Sound of Music. If you wanna see more photos from my 41st birthday trip to Salzburg you can find me blogging about it here. A must see for Sound of Music fans.

This is our OFFICIAL before photo. I weighed 222 in this photo and that wasn't my highest. I had actually started at 235 and lost some and was on my way back up in this photo. 

I've always had a weight problem. Even when I was young and in school. I wasn't fat by any means but I was always larger than everyone else. In my head I was a fat girl and that never went away. 

So we started Atkins and I started eating gluten free for health reasons the end of March right after my 41st birthday. It was hard in the beginning but it's amazing how well low carb eating works if you don't cheat. It has taken me 9 months to lose 52 lbs and I still need to lose 20 but I'm super happy with the results. 

One thing Atkins promises is that you will lose more inches than weight and it is completely true! I weight more now than I did the last time I lost weight, I actually got to 167 but I wore a larger size in clothing then. I was following a low cal diet and while I weighed less I was bigger. Atkins works differently and it takes from fat stores first which makes your body physically leaner instead of losing muscle on a low cal diet. So I'm smaller now that I have been in 20 years. I'm in a large in most things and some mediums in others. I started in an 18/20 and in 9 months I'm down to a size 10 or Large. 

I will say, and if you looked closely at my weight chart above, the last 3 months have been extremely slow. I don't know what's going on. I don't cheat, I'm always on program but my body has just decided to take it slow. I was very bothered with it, since I'm a perfectionist and I usually like to get things done quickly but I realize now, this is a lifestyle. I'm never going back to eating the way I did and for more reasons than one. I can never eat gluten again, I am intolerant to it and it does terrible things to my joints and skin. Plus, gluten-free and low carb just go hand in hand so it's easy to live this way. Another thing is that I'm happy. I'm not at goal yet but I'm at a point that people actually tell me that I've lost enough. I always wanted to be here and now that I am it makes the slow losing more bearable to know that I look like I've lost enough. 

BTW, Johnny has lost 50 lbs also! He's in the best shape of our 24 year marriage and he's healthier than ever. 

So between the two of us we've lost more than 100 lbs since April. Johnny is maintaining and stays between 158-162 and i'm 170 as of today. We're both a year older but life has never been better. It's amazing what losing 50 lbs can do, not only physically but also the whole outlook on life.

One of my biggest fears has always been my husband's ministry as a missionary being cut short because of my health. I was so fearful and aware that any minute I could become sick and it would be my fault for not doing something about my weight. I'm thankful and glad to be at least trying my best to be healthy and if we have to ever leave the place that God has called us to work in, it's won't be because I neglected the body God gave me.

So there it is, the accumulation of 9 months of faithful eating and I'm pretty proud of it!! 9 short months have changed our lives and I know you can do it too. If you struggle with weight as 90% of us do, it's time to make a change. You can do it!!!