My Transformation
I thought it'd be fitting for my first post to introduce myself and my own fitness journey through my transformation. I've been contemplating posting this for a while, but I've been too hesitant (nervous maybe?) to post something so personal. I've seen so many amazing 'Before and After' 6/12/ whatever-week transformations, where these people have lost so much weight and shed a ton of fat in a relatively short amount of time and despite being inspired by this, it's often difficult to not be discouraged by it too. My journey started in January 2014, and is still ongoing. That's something I have to always keep in mind is that this doesn't have a finish line, there will never be an 'after' photograph as I always need to strive for more. Yes, I have lost weight/fat and gained muscle but it is hard to not be too down on myself as this transformation has, and is still, taking it's time. Yeah, I probably could have lost the weight faster, but despite my journey taking longer than others, I'm still proud of how far I've come, all by myself, whilst still enjoying ALL the food!
I should probably start from the beginning with this, when everything started going down hill as I started University. I fell horribly victim to the 'Fresher-fat', and within the first semester went from an already uncomfortably 11 stone, to 12 stone, (14lbs in 13 weeks!). It was the first time experiencing living and cooking by myself and essentially just let lose in the supermarkets, grilled cheeses galore! I was so wrapped up in the madness of first year to really notice the changes in my body, but it was towards the end of that semester when I was diagnosed with IBS which pushed me to make some positive changes. January 2013 I jumped on the 'new year-new me' bandwagon, joined the University gym and swapped the abundance of pasta, cheese and bread for salad and salmon and the like. It wasn't necessarily the exercise and healthy eating that was difficult, it was having to accept that I had lost control over my body and put myself in this situation in the first place. I've never been 'slim' but standing on the scales and seeing my weight hit 12 stone was hard, for a long time I had been in denial about my size. I went full throttle with my attempt to shed some pounds but quickly burnt out and within two months I had reverted back to my old ways of not exercising and eating shockingly. Looking back now, it was clear that I was not in the right frame of mind to begin such a process, I kept looking for quick fixes, and was not dedicated to and trusting enough of the journey for it to last.
Over the course of 2013, with University deadlines and a summer in a new city, I gained even more weight, rocketing to 13 stone by Christmas. Again, I didn't seem to care what I was eating and that I was doing very little exercise, and that every time I walked past a mirror I would be too scared to look at the reflection. Evidently, I was in denial... again.
The new year came round again, and I was devastated to be entering 2014 heavier than I did the year before, but after doing some life-reevaluation over the Christmas break I knew that I seriously had to do something about it. I hated being unhappy with myself, always feeling ill, bloated and tired, I had to change. So when the next semester started in January 2014, I re-joined the gym and was more dedicated than ever. I really enjoy cooking, so I tried to channel that into creating healthy, but still enjoyable, edible meals. I still had to be somewhat restrictive with my food as I started out again, mainly trying to rid my addiction of bread, and mayonnaise, but I tried to find alternatives to prevent me going mad (and then bingeing). Combined with this, I was hitting the gym around 3x a weeks and the weight did start to come off. It was so hard being patient, as I'm not a very patient person, but I just had to trust the process and think of my future self. There were times when my progress would stall and I would want to give up so badly and just sack it all off and get a pizza, but I knew that I couldn't, I'd come too far to ruin it all now. With the stress of University and other issues, there were short periods when I wasn't able to hit the gym and my eating habits weren't so great, but I was always able to pick myself back up and carry on.
Around November, 2014, I discovered IIFYM (if it fits your macros) which opened up a whole new way of tracking and thinking about food. Up until this point I was roughly counting calories, occasionally using several apps to help me do so. However, with IIFYM I was able to more precisely track what I was eating, which also meant I could eat more 'unclean' foods (yay ice cream!), but it changed how I thought about food in genreal. Rather than something to indulge in, I see it as something which fuels my body to enable me to continue to train. So, yeah I can eat pizza if I want to, but 'bad' foods = bloating = pain = discomfort = bad training session.
Despite lifitng since the start of 2014, it probably wasn't until around April that I began a structured program, and with my own research I began to understand the basics of weight training. I've always hated cardio-based excersises, I dreaded the thought of slugging away on the treadmill for an hour as it can be so mind numbing. I knew it was necessary, not just to lose fat, but to increase my overall fitness levels. So for me, lifting was what got me to enjoy the gym, but with time and perserverance, I did begin to like cardio too. I went from barely being able to jog for 5 minutes straight, to busting out 20 minute sprint intervals, followed by more HIIT (high intensity interval training) circuits.
When 2015 came around, I was so proud of myself for actaully sticking to something, and seeing a process out fully, properly commiting to this healthy lifestyle. Even so I try not to get too wrapped up in the numbers on the scale, it was pretty good seeing the number had dropped from 13 to 10 stone, with my body fat % falling from 36% (yikes) to 26%, going from a tight size 14, to a comfotable size 10. Over the following few months I've been really trying to push myself, and track my gym progress properly. By changing my lifting routine, focusing more on the compound lifts, and still getting in my cardio, I hope to continue losing fat.
When I first started in 2014, I had a goal weight in mind, which was 9 stone, and roughly a goal BF% of 20, which would be optimal for my BMI. I don't really weigh myself that often anymore, as I realised the number on the scale isn't always very reflective of my progress. But for the purposes of this post, I am currently fluctuating between 9.1 and 9.5 stone, with a BF% of 25, and now a size 8/10. I'm still working on lowering my BF%, to hit that goal. BUT I'm trying not to focus on the numbers too much and just enjoy the process, after all, I want this to last a lifetime, so I may as well enjoy the journey!
