How I Lost 100lbs

I say 100lbs, "officially" it is 98lbs, but that all depends on the day. You know what I mean - stress, water weight, a little too much cake. That can all change that number, but it is around that number.

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You know I am not obsessed with that number though. My motivation always was and always will be my health - but society is so obsessed with the number on the scale and people can't see the changes to my health as much as they can see the changes of my appearance, so it is sometimes easy to talk about the number. People react well to a number.

Anyway, with this being a blog about my weight loss and health and everything I ate/eat to keep it that way, I have spoken in detail about how I lost the weight, but I thought it might be nice to condense it down into bullet points of what I did. Obviously there is much more too it than bullet points and this list is not intended to make it look easy (it definitely wasn't), but it gives you an idea of all the changes that I made.

We all have to find what works for us, so just because all of these things worked for me doesn't mean they will work for you. I tried a lot of things that worked for other people, but they didn't work for me. It doesn't make them all wrong. It comes down to trial and error.

Here goes...............

Set myself small goals
Made one change at a time
I didn't focus on losing 100lbs - I focused on losing 5lbs at a time
I bought a Wii Fit so I could workout at home

Walked everywhere
I went swimming
Did workouts during the breaks whilst watching TV
I found workouts that I enjoyed
I became aware of portion sizes
Cooked healthier versions of the junk food that I loved

I counted calories
Found a balance with clean eating and still eating the things I liked
I educated myself and read everything I could have health and fitness
Signed up to weight loss forums/health and fitness Facebook pages and blogs
I cut out processed food
I started cooking everything myself

If I ate something I shouldn't or skipped a workout, I didn't beat myself up
Fit my workouts in where I could - like doing squats whilst cooking
Stopped making excuses
Made sure I was sleeping enough
Stopped being scared of lifting weights (they won't make you bulky)

Stopped dieting (it is a lifestyle, not a diet)
Quit the artificial sweeteners
Always had breakfast
Switched to wholegrains
Stopped saying "I can't"
Cut out the negative people in my life
Ate more fruit and vegetables

Listened to my body and rested when I needed to and ate when I was truly hungry
Celebrated my success without food (a pair of shoes or a trip to the cinema)
Worked out 5 days a week for 45 minutes to an hour
Made sure I was drinking enough water (but not too much)

Gave up fizzy drinks and only drank water and green tea
Gave up alcohol for 3 months (it helped me cut out other bad habits too)
Dealt with my emotional eating
I made time for my workouts - I didn't find time
Always reminded myself there is no such thing as perfect
Stopped comparing myself to other people
Bought myself nice workout clothes so I felt good during my workouts
Did some food prep for the week

Planned some of my meals for the week
Ate less calories than I was burning, but still made sure I was eating enough
Took my body measurements each week to track my progress (kept me motivated)
Snacked wisely
Reminded myself that there was no end date. I was getting fit for life
Started thinking more positively
Started each day as a new day and left yesterday in the past
Stopped seeing food as the enemy and stopped labelling it as good and bad
Always changed my routine to keep my body guessing
Made time to relax
Made appointments for my workouts just like I would a meeting
Put motivational quotes around my house
Put up photos that motivated me
Made sure there was plenty of fibre in my diet
Ate lots of healthy fats

Didn't go back for a second portion of dinner
Ate slower
Did yoga - great for releasing stress and toning up
Identified my eating triggers
Bulked out pasta dishes with spinach
Ate berries with my breakfast
Got creative with salads

Added herbs and spices to boring clean meals
Used my slow cooker a lot
Still allowed myself the foods I liked, but in moderation and not all the time
Tracked all my food (in the beginning)
Was honest with myself - lying about what I ate to my food diary didn't get me anywhere
Limited animal fats
Included protein with every meal
Started reading the labels on everything I bought
Stopped ordering pizza and fries to be delivered
Never gave up (despite many falls and wanting to many times)

*Note - it didn't take from 2007 to 2011 for me to lose weight, it took me 18 months, above is just when the photos were taken* You can read more about my weight loss in the About Me section.

That list might seem like a lot, but like one of the first points says - make one change at a time. I didn't do all of these things straight away and I learnt them along the way. Make changes that are going to make you feel healthy and stick with it. You are stronger than you give yourself credit for. Want some healthy meal ideas? Take a look at the recipe section.

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You can find me on Facebook at Hungry Healthy Happy, on Instagram at @hungryhealthyhappy, on Twitter at @HHH_Dannii or on Pinterest at hhhdannii. Also you can subscribe via email.