Riding Solo – Month One Weight Loss Journey

As of today, the last day of January 2017, I am down 26.5 pounds for the month. I am incredibly grateful for the things I am learning about myself but also about the positive changes I have felt and seen.

For the first month, I didn’t want to focus on exercise because my legs wouldn’t move much on day one. I felt it was best to start with my food and work my way out from there. On day one I removed all red meat, sugars, starches, artificial sweeteners, and anything with preservatives. Essentially, I eat chicken, fish, fruits and veggies. I had to ditch my comfort foods like spaghetti and pizza which was hard but only for the first few days.

Consciously I wasn’t making any promises. I didn’t know what several weeks or months would look like, but every day I would wake up ask myself one question, “Hey Bean, can you keep on your plan today”? “Yep – I can do today.” When I worked on only completing one day at a time, it never felt overwhelming.

As days turned into a week and then two weeks, I started noticing my energy levels were increasing. I wasn’t wanting to take a nap at 2:00 pm and my midafternoon shakes and lightheadedness were gone. My dialogue changed from “I can’t have that” to “I don’t want that” which was liberating. I was sleeping better at night which most likely has had the greatest reward. I can think better, I can focus on more things, and I’m not sleeping at 6:00 pm. No more heartburn, no more – ugg ……daily hemorrhoids. Sorry, not to give all the details, but that was a daily part of my life that just….. really burned my ass.

Within a couple weeks, I started noticing not just the pounds coming off, but my daily steps on my Fitbit were recording much higher numbers. I went from an average of 2000 steps per day to over 4000 steps per day. It doesn’t seem like much but when it hurts to walk, seeing numbers that high gave me hope that my legs were starting to work better. They don’t throb as much, and I can stand for longer periods of time without having to sit down. I actually had enough energy to clean my home for the first time in a long time without it taking 8 hrs.

A few nights ago something happened. I woke up around 11:00 pm to use the restroom. I was tired, so I stumbled in there and headed back to bed. Just before I got to my bed, I felt this vibrating on my wrist, and I could hear my Fitbit going “buzz buzz buzz……..buzz buzz buzz.” I was startled because it had never done before. “What the hell was wrong with this thing?”. I shook it, but I just keep seeing these little lines go across the screen. “Damnit, it’s f-ing broken.” I took it off and flung it on the nightstand and went to sleep. In the morning I picked it up, and it seemed to be working just fine. “What the hell”? I guess it was just a freak occurrence.

A little while later, I picked up my phone to sync the Fitbit armband and my phone app and all the sudden I got this message that popped up “CONGRATULATIONS, YOU MADE YOUR DAILY STEP GOAL.” This is what the armband was trying to tell me the night before. I made the goal. Well holy shit, that had never happened before. What do you know? It buzzes you to let you know when you’ve made it. All be damned. Clearly……… the first time I had ever made my step goal. For a girl, a month ago that could barely walk around without a cane – that was an accomplishment and one I’m so proud of.

So there you have it – lessons from month one. First – If your Fitbit ever wakes you up in the middle of the night and scares the crap out of you – you’ve done well. Second – I’m doing good on my own – riding solo is feeling pretty….. damn…. good.

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