how did you do it?

Question
Please give me some tips for weight loss that are realistic!  How did you lose weight?  My husband and I can't seem to shed the pounds for very long!

Thanks

Answer
First of all, it didn't happen overnight.  It was a LONG process, with many steps....and it took about 8 or 9 months for me to finish and reach my goal.  It's NOT a diet, though.  It is a LIFETIME change.  First of all, you have to eat right.  I don't believe any two people are the same though, so what might work for me, might not work for the next person and you have to find what works for you.  There are things you can do to help lose the weight. I've lost from 205lbs down to 135lbs and gone from a size 18-20W to a size 4-6 and kept it off for three years now. First of all,  how to eat, I suggest you listen to your body. Some people do better on low carbs, and some on low protein. We are not all made the same like some plastic mold that makes what-nots.
I don't believe there is ONE way to eat for any two people. Do you feel nauseous, for example, after eating red meat like I do? Then stay away from it. There is a book out there called Eat Right for Your Blood Type that really helped me, but if you go to www.drlam.com and type in your blood type diet (exp. Type A blood diet or A blood type diet), you will find a list of good and bad foods for your body according to blood type diet. This book helped me IMMENSELY. It's rather controversial...so it's up to you after you read the facts on whether to do it or not. But for example, it tells me to stay away from oranges, and guess what? I happen to be allergic to them. Portion control is a big deal. ALL of us overeat it seems. If you take a plate, and devide it into four it's the easiest way to eat the right portion. You put a palm size piece of lean protein (in my case would be broiled chicken breast or fish), a hand-sized starch, a hand-sized vegetable, and a hand-sized fruit (or another veggie). Those things fill the four spots. You are to eat two snacks a day, one between breakfast and lunch, and one between lunch and dinner. Have an apple or something like that. I eat very little meat, and when I do it's usually some form of fish, or chicken. Pork occasionally, and red meat maybe 3 times a year. I eat lots of veggies. Nuts are a good source of snacks also. NEVER eat fried food. Dump the junk food. No more chips or cookies or things like that unless it's a RARE treat that you allow yourself. And lots of people don't want to hear this, but sugar does us NO favors either. When I stopped using sugar, I lost almost 20 pounds right away. It takes about a week to two weeks to get over the urge to scarf down sugar when you're trying to kick the habit, but once you do...you find that sodas and things of that nature taste too sweet to you. And drink WATER, everytime you can think about it. I hated water, but tricked myself into drinking it by buying bottled water that was ready to drink in the fridge, and making myself deal with it. Now I PREFER water. I have an occasional diet soda, but ask for water 9 times out of 10. It's not a diet, though, Michelle. It has to be a change for LIFE. You cannot start to fuel your body with good things, lose the weight, then go back to old habits. I know it's hard, but trust me, if I can do it, ANYONE can. Another thing that no one wants to hear. You MUST move your butt if you want it to get smaller. I HATED exercise, but also found a tricky way around this by doing "floor" exercises. Leg lifts, pelvic lifts, leg circles, girl pushups,tummy crunches, arm circles,toe touches, just moving my body in repetitious movements and believe me I was lucky to do five of each thing and now I am doing more like 750-1000 tummy crunches daily...as well as a couple hundred of the other stuff. It takes a LONG time of working up another five repetitions maybe weekly until you get strong enough to do a little more. I do this EVERY day. Plus you need to work your heart, so I either walk, hike, bike, or do an aerobics tape three times a week as well. I worked up to all of this very gradually, and started my "floor" exercises while watching my favorite tv show, and believe it or not, it became so routine, that now I MISS it when I don't do it. Your muscles will not burn calories properly, and your metabolism WON'T respond unless you get SOME type of exercise! You just gotta start doing it just like you'd shower every day. And pick something you don't HATE or you won't stick with it. A favorite tape of mine is Pilates for Dummies, and you can get it for about $6 at most department stores, and it does floor exercises in three different modes. (beginners, intermediate, and advanced) I hope I've been of SOME help to you. There is NO easy fix for this weight thing. And one thing that works for one person won't work for another. You have to find what works, and I KNOW you can!

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