Let's Start At The Very Beginning ... It's A Very Good Place To Start

I love stories, they have a beginning, a middle and an end.  Fairy Tales start with 'Once upon a time...' Christmas Carol with 'The Marley's were dead to begin with...'
The beginning sets the whole book up, It captivates you and invites and entices your imagination to run away with itself.  The words jump off the page and you delve deeper and deeper in to the world of make believe.

The beginning for me wasn't like that, it wasn't a fairy tale and it most certainly wasnt a story to entice or invite imagination into ... I can remember my beginning can you remember yours?

For me it was the summer of 2014.  A time that will not easily be forgotten.  I remember it because I was still reeling from an appointment that I had gone to with my husband about IVF.  I walked in and the doctor told me that she wouldn't even look at my notes until I had lost at least 3 stone.  

Have you had an experience like this?  How did you feel about it?

If like me you were - devastated - I would believe you in a heartbeat.  I really was heartbroken and slightly ... ok more than slightly, I was very angry with the doctor.  

One thing that some doctors do is fail to empathize with their patients, they lack a good 'bedside manner'  and while yes the doctor was correct in saying that I needed to lose the fat surround my body, she was wrong in how she approached it with me.  I felt judged! I felt like the doctor held a negative attitude towards me.  It was the nurse (who did my weight and BMI) who comforted me and tried to help soothe my wounded pride and heart, not the doctor.  

When I looked at her all I saw was a slim woman, her arms and legs were toned and if she was bigger than a size 10 (UK) I would have been shocked.   

I left the hospital with the opposite feelings of those I had gone in with.  I was deflated and all I wanted to do was eat! (I was and still am an emotional eater) 

I received a Molly Bear (HERE) that summer, and it was beautiful.  My little boy took pictures and I was horrified by what I saw in those pictures - so much so that I got rid of some of them. For me THAT moment is when I told myself enough was enough and that I had to do something.  

I remember the date I started 11th August 2014.  

These were my measurements and what I looked like on my first day.  

Bust -              50 inches

underbust -    40.5 inches

waist -             48 inches

hips -               53 inches 

legs (L+R) -    25.5 inches

arms (L+R) -   15.5 inches

neck                14.5 inches.  

People always ask me about how I started and this is it.  I picked a day that i would start - a Monday, and I picked the workout that I was going to do - 30 day shred by Jillian Michaels and I made myself push play.  

I will be honest at the beginning I HATED it.  I hated exercise of all kinds but it had gotten to the point where I couldn't climb my stairs without needing to catch my breath, my husband had to pull or push me up a hill that we lived down - and you couldn't not go up it.  We had no car and if I forgot to get something when I was out then it was tough luck or pleading with my husband to go get it.  

Pushing play at the beginning was a chore, I was thumping about with 19st on me.  I found every workout hard, I was exhausted and I wanted to give up.  I wanted to break the disc and bury my head in the sand again.  This time though - it wasn't an option.  There was no way that I was going to let myself quit.  

I'll let you into a little secret here - I did not change my food much at this point!  I know, I know, slap on wrist for me here.  I thought that exercising was all I needed BUT how horribly wrong was I!!!!!

From the August right through to the January I lost NOTHING!!! 

not even ONE pound!!!!! BUT by December my fitness level had improved so much and I was planning to start with a new workout buddy - Shaun-T.  

Why am I telling you this?  Well to put it simply 

YOUR FOOD IS IMPORTANT

IF you want to get fit, IF you want to be healthy, IF you want to make a difference with your body .... you HAVE to choose the right foods.  You can't expect to work away the bad food that you have eaten that day.  

Choosing healthier options instead of the unhealthy options.  

What do I mean by healthier options? 

Sometimes we eat because of our feelings (not a good idea and so many of us fall at this hurdle)

The RULES at the beginning of any healthy eating plan - Love this quick wee rhyme. 

 Get it into your head, have your notebook and pencil ready and get tracking.  It's not always crucial to do this, as you progress through your journey you will be able to see the things that are better for you and how you are eating.  It's so important to track so that you know what you are ingesting.  Sometimes we forget what we've had throughout the day and this step helps to really make it clear for us.  When we see it in black and white we are able to understand our food problems.  

That's my beginning - I'll share the next part with you real soon xx