It took me a long time. I begged my daughter to go with me to the gym, I knew that once I got there I would be hooked again, but for some reason I couldn't get there myself. The light changed and it was no longer dark when I wanted to do my run. And riding my bike was just too darned HARD.
Yes, it took an accidental meeting with an ex-boyfriend to push me to it. A boyfriend who knew me in the best days of my fitness and I was mortified and horrified - especially because, granted, the guy was still totally hot. I told him about the triathlon I wanted to do in September and that I was training for it and he jokingly (or not) said to come back in three months to show him my progress. It was a horrifying moment that was also filled with hugs and love, and it reminded me of the time not so long ago when I was thin.
I was at the gym the next morning.
Bethenny Frankel's book about being "Naturally Thin" also seemed to directly address my own specific eating issues. I don't know if her book will help everyone, but it definitely was right on with me. Due to this, I've been able to keep my calories at around 1200 per day (+/- 200) and have not felt hungry AT ALL.
Then I started working out, either at the gym or on my bike, every single day. I burn an average of 600 calories per day, and 800 on weekend days. This means only 400-600 calories left for the rest of the day, and that is how I've lost so quickly.
I've been doing this for two weeks now, and lost a total of eight pounds. I am now at a weight I haven't seen since June 2006 !!!!!!!!!!!!!
And as luck would have it, as luck ALWAYS has it, I am now sick. But this time I don't think I'm going to lose my motivation. I really really love going to the gym every morning, and I had just hit the point where I was seeing great progress on my bike - hills that would have killed me last week were easy and fun this week. So we will cross our fingers, but I think I'm finally on my way.
There are 153 days until the Mermaid Triathlon, and I'm finally confident that I'm going to be able to make it. And at this rate, I'll be the hottest triathlete there.
Weight on February 1, 2009: 217.2
Weight on April 27, 2009: 209 !!!