The Weight Loss
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January 2009, I woke up from my sleep, stretched and walked into the bathroom. I was about to turn 16 years old, stepped on the scales, and my heart sank. 96 kilograms, and at that time, I was 5'7" -- obese. Yep, medically obese.
Honestly I was a pretty dreamy 16 year old. I didn't really use the internet for much except pretty pictures and horses, and now, I decided I'd use it for weight loss. I didn't exactly know how to lose weight (what can I say, dreamy) so the whole concept was pretty daunting.
Being big and a little naive isn't so bad, but as soon as you wake up to it.. well, let's just say I never carried weight well. I had boyfriends and I had friends, but I didn't really fit in with them at all.
I realized basically I was eating too much. Now, I was a vegetarian and had been for 9 years, but a bad vegetarian. I ate too much pasta, a lot of cheese, huge servings and very little water or fruit. I can't even imagine how many calories I was consuming in pasta and cheese a day, it could have been upwards of 3000 calories. As for exercise, I was riding a little and not really doing much else, except perhaps, waddling around the house in search of an ethrenet cable (hey, it was 2009.)
After finishing school, I had nothing to do and no real work prospects. This ended up being an entire year off anything, no 9-5 work, no school.. I lounged around a lot and just chilled with my horse, mostly on the ground. This was when I met a horse trainer -- a reining horse trainer. He'd trained Ted before, we'd sent him off for two weeks 6 months earlier, but now I really got to know this trainer. He offered me work and experience at his stables -- and believe me, I took it! This was a perfect opportunity. This trainer was, and is highly credentialed in both Australia and the USA in the reining and clinic circuits, and the chance was too good to miss. Every single morning I was up there working with his horses, mostly leading and saddling and watching and photographing. I learned a lot. I also had to walk a hill, a huge hill, usually lugging a saddle over one shoulder, and a 3-year old in one hand, scaling that hill like a boss.
What happened? I lost weight! This was the motivation I needed. Well, this and the fact the trainer was my own personal thinspiration. A short little fella, but very very fit, and looked great on any horse with excellent posture. So I looked into diet. This lead to the most important part: what you put in your mouth.
The Diet
I went clean. REALLY clean. Holy sort of clean. I went raw vegan. Well, mostly. I did still eat oats, which while raw, do not fall into the "LFRV" (low fat raw vegan) lifestyle. I ate a lot of fruit, and discovered the green smoothie. The green smoothie was my saviour, and something I credit a lot of this weight loss to. What is a green smoothie, you might ask? Well, it's water with fruits, berries, a little flaxseed oil sometimes, and greens. Yeah, a green smoothie really is.. green. But guess what?! You can't taste it, unless you're using handful after handful of rocket. Not recommended unless you enjoy pepper.
Anyway, these are beautiful and so much sweeter and tastier than dairy smoothies. My main mix was pineapple, banana (thick!), and some frozen berries. Maybe mango if it was available, and with this, a few handfuls of silverbeat, spinach or rocket. Really, you can make anything. Watermelon, water, ice and grapes is a tasty summer treat.
I drink nothing but water and tea's. Currently, my favourite tea's are ginger root, ginseng (hard to find without lactose), and camomile, all very warming, soothing teas, and at the moment in the freezing Victorian weather, it's a necessity!
I eat no chocolate, dairy, sweets, or processed foods. I drink no coffee, no soft drinks or bottled drinks. The majority of my meals are fruit only. I drink 1-4 litres of clean water a day. Now this isn't to say I don't venture from a raw path, which is a great deal easier in Summer. I eat a lot of homemade vegetable soups, sometimes with a tiny bit of pasta mixed through for a hearty change. I basically chop a lot of vegetables up, leek, fresh herbs and homemade stock, boiling this up in a huge crockery pot and usually simply eating it cold throughout the week. Sometimes I'll stir apple cider vinegar through to make it sour, which tastes great (believe it or not.) For breakfast in the cold weather, I'll have raw oats mixed with some sultanas and raw almonds with water, but I don't feel half as clean unless I'm 100% fruit. That is what my body runs best at, because I'm perfectly well hydrated, like a well oiled machine.
I counted no calories, but had a general idea and kept it around 1, 200 calories per day or under. Currently, I can eat up to 3, 000 calories a day in sweet, juicy fruits and continue to lose weight, not bloat, and not feel sick and lethargic.
the Exercise
I was lazy. That's why it took me a year to lose the weight. I did a bit of running and a LOT of riding. That's it. Maybe 30 minutes a day non-hard running at night on a newly purchased treadmill, walking my dog 3-6 kilometres a day, as well as riding and training reiners.
However, as I got more into exercise during the last few months, (coincidently, after I discovered dubstep) I started running harder, and longer distances. I got into dance (I always loved dancers bodies) and yes, yoga. I do a lot of 1980's style aerobics (minus the legwarmers, thank you very much!) and ride. In fact, Ted is definitely the major reason I lost the weight -- trick training takes a lot out of you!
The Benefits
Not only looking and feeling better, but there are so many reasons to do this and stick with it. I promise you, it's worth the wait. It's not the lifestyle changes that are hard, it's the waiting for the results you expect every morning.
My skin and hair and nails. It was obvious, when I changed my diet and lost some pounds, my organs worked much smoother. The new hydration suppled and toned my skin, and the nicest result.. my acne disappeared. Not overnight, of course, it took 2 years of majority-vegan diet and lots of water to totally clear, but eventually it was gone. For the first time in years, I had a clear face.
My hair grew longer, faster. No down my circulation was drastically improved.. it thickened and grew lush, dark and long.
My riding and whole horsemanship improved drastically. My posture and riding position became more efficient, and my balance is next to none. I can do fancy tricks like vaulting, as well as basic athletic feats (such as training a horse to flying lead change which involves constant pressure with the outside leg until the change is made) which before, would have been nearly impossible. I don't bounce or flail around anymore. I have no problem riding two-year olds and no longer do I have any guilt buckling up a 15 kilo saddle anymore.
Summary
It boils down to eat well, live right. Get some sun, don't be afraid of living outside, breathing in the air deep, using your lungs, and moving. That's all there is to it. If you do nothing else, replace breakfast or lunch with a green smoothie -- trust me on this one. A well made green smoothie is not only tasty, but packs a HUGE punch nutritionally. You will feel the difference. Google them and try it for a month and tell me how you feel. Go for a run with your dog!
I feel confident and happy. I entered a long-term relationship and ended up with a glamorous job in a local nightclub. These things of course didn't happen because of the weight loss, they happened due to the security and confidence from succeeding in the weight loss.
It's worth it.
If you have ANY questions, or need motivation, please do not hesitate to e-mail me, message or I.M me.
I'm here to help, from someone who's been there. |
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Jul 2, 2011
• 3,587 views
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Jul 3, 2011
• 3,600 views
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Dream Forever
you look really pretty i want to be like you when i grow upxx
you look really pretty i want to be like you when i grow upxx
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Jul 11, 2011
• 3,592 views
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solo pony
Wow you look great now
Wow you look great now
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Jul 11, 2011
• 3,732 views
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Jul 11, 2011
• 3,732 views
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Jul 12, 2011
• 3,617 views
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Dream Forever
wow ur so pretty wen i grow up i wanna be just like you to inspire people and to be beautifulxx
wow ur so pretty wen i grow up i wanna be just like you to inspire people and to be beautifulxx
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Jul 15, 2011
• 3,591 views
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RoyalCrownEstates
MOD
What a nice story ! Congrats for going through with it all and sticking to it
you look amazing !! you did a great job :O)
What a nice story ! Congrats for going through with it all and sticking to it
you look amazing !! you did a great job :O)
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Nov 8, 2011
• 3,621 views
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4 days ago
• 3,628 views
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Nov 8, 2012
• 3,609 views
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