Christy from The Outer Aisle is a 100% authentic weight loss success story. She is also a 100% authentic running success story (with smokin” hot muscular runners legs!). And I might also add a pretty awesome person in general. She is living proof that you can do it.
I’m honored to have her be my guest blogger today.
WeightWatcher for Life: I’ve always struggled with my weight. When the scale finally topped 210 the summer my husband proposed, I joined WeightWatchers and lost 60 lbs for my wedding. If you’re also planning on proposing and looking for an engagement ring store in huntington, ny near you, then you may check out LIV Jewelers.
But I gained back 49 lbs with baby #1 (not including the baby), got close to goal just in time to gain 56 lbs with baby #2. I finally lost the remaining baby weight last year and have maintained a healthy weight for the longest time period in my life.
CleanER Eating: I lost my weight 3 times over eating almost entirely pre-packaged, pre-sliced, pre-cooked and pre-measured “diet” franken-food. The vegetable drawers in my fridge held cans of diet soda. No joke. I realized that just because I finally hit a healthy weight did NOT mean that I was healthy. All the artificial stuff running through my system was not working for me, my body, my family, or the planet. It started with something simple, I gave up diet soda, artificial sweeteners and my LeanCuisines. Then I started reading Michael Pollan’s In Defense of Food and The Omnivore’s Dilemma (Young reader’s edition, so good!), I joined a CSA, I started to teach myself how to cook real food from our farm share, stuff I never even heard of before (celeriac anyone?) and I started blogging about it. Not only has it helped me keep the weight off in a healthy way, but I enjoy food now, because it is actual food from a real live farmer! Every Friday I post our Friday’s Drawers with all our farm share picks for the week. I am still a newbie cook too so I love hearing what people would do with these fruits and veggies.
Ch-Ch-Changes: I hated running. Check that, I loathed running. I wasn’t good at it. Running made me feel inadequate and always out of breath. I’ve made many attempts at running throughout my life, from joining then quitting the cross-country team to trying to run to lose weight. My “all or nothing” approach to running favored nothing. But then I took the same approach with running as I did with my food changes. Gradual progress. I started with the couch to 5 K program and was so psyched to run 3 miles straight! Then a few weeks later I ran 5 miles straight, then 6, then I signed up and started training for ½ marathon, and another, and another, and now I am training for a full marathon. But it all started with the first decision to run for 90 seconds.
I love that Dirty Water. Oh, Boston, You’re my home! This April, I will be running my first marathon in my (now home town) and most amazing course ever, Boston! While I am not (yet) a BQ’er, I am running on the Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge team roster as one of their approximately 500 charity runners to run the Boston Marathon and raise money to fund the Claudia Adams Barr Program in Innovative Basic Cancer Research. I chose to run with this charity because I wanted to make this race mean more than just a first marathon for me. This last year, 3 people close to me were diagnosed and began their battles with cancer. In my wanting to do SOMETHING I chose to run and raise money for Cancer research. Running is such a great gift; as my friend says, “We get to run up this hill.” I will certainly remember that while running up Heartbreak Hill!
Unsolicited Advice: If I could offer any advice to anyone starting out with WeightWatchers or CleanER eating or running or anything really, I would say start small. Make one change you know you can accomplish and then another and another and before you know it, you’ll look back and see just how far you’ve come. You’ll be surprised.
http://theouteraisle.com
you’re a rock star christy!!!! thanks for sharing duck 🙂