Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labour. For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow: but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up.
Ecclesiastes 4:10
One of the greatest blessings of the Meltdown has been the new friendships I have made along the way. It's like having an entire council of friends who lift you up, give you inspiration, and most of all know what you are going through along this journey.
Our posting today is from one of the blessings in my life from our first Meltdown. This beautiful lady continues to be an inspiration to all of us! She always has a smile on her face, a positive word to say, and a kindness in her heart.
Today we celebrate Becky Stout & all of her accomplishments in her Meltdown journey.
Becky's Before photo
After Meltdown 1
It's hard to pick Becky out of this photo! She is in the middle!!
Why did you decide to begin the Meltdown?
We take family vacations every couple of years. This year we were going to D.C. I knew that would be a lot of walking. I started walking on my own, before the first meltdown. The meltdown sounded perfect for me. I had decided to lose weight this year. When the first one came along, it seemed to be a gift. I thought it would keep me accountable. Keep me from slipping back into my old ways.
I hadn't lost all my weight yet, and was excited that there would be a meltdown 2. I really needed to tone my muscles, and the exercise classes are certainly doing that.
What has been the most fun about the Meltdown?
I have really enjoyed meeting new friends and exercising with a group. It is a lot more fun that popping in a DVD at home. I look forward to the daily blog, and will miss that. I also enjoy the dinners. We had several on the first meltdown, and I am looking forward to the one next Wednesday.
How much weight and inches (or sizes) have you lost since you began your journey?
That is a tough one. The weight is easy. As of this morning, I weighed 158.6. When I weighed in January, I weighed 205. So that is 46.4 pounds. My goal in January was to lose 55 pounds. That seems overwhelming. I went for 6 pounds as my first goal, to be below 200. I had told myself I would not weigh 200 pounds. Of course, I told myself I would not weigh 170. Then 180. Then 190. Finally at 200 I had to do something.
After the first 6 pounds were down, I set a goal for 10 more. It has really kept going. Some weeks slower than others. Sometimes I faltered and went back up a bit. But I always kept my eye on the goal.
I didn't measure myself when I started. I thought I had the first meltdown card with me, but don't. Maybe you could look up my waist size then. I'm sure it was bigger. Now it is 35 inches.
I was wearing 2X clothes on top. Size 18 shirts. I had elastic waist jeans, and never bought anything bigger than 16W. But I was fooling myself. Stuffing myself into them. Now I can get into a size 12 jean. With a zipper. :) Still a little snug. :) And I wear medium tops. I haven't bought any shirt that was a size, but I think it would be 14. With my height, I should be wearing smalls. I will be. :)
What is one piece of advice you would give to someone who wants to improve their health?
I have learned so much on the meltdowns. Can't pin it down to just one. Drink water. I was never a water drinker. Never drank much of anything. I could bring a can of pop to work and still have some left at the end of the day. Now I have a 20 ounce water bottle. I try to drink 3 througout the day. Adding the powdered drink mix makes it much easier. My personal favorite is Propel Berry Zero. It has a lot of vitamins. I bought some Crystal Light strawberry banana hunger satisfaction and had some today. It is a very close second favorite. :) If you are thinking they seem expensive, remember what a can of soda costs. And you are worth it. :)
I had a diet doctor tell me once to find the biggest apple I could and eat it every day. That is still sound advice. I usually eat a medium in the morning and another in the afternoon.
I think, most important for improving your health, is to find an exercise you like and do it. I like walking. I walk for 30 minutes every morning. The first thing I noticed when I started losing weight was that my legs were shrinking. If you can find an exercise buddy, great. But don't let them slow you down or bring you to a halt. In bad weather, I go to walmart. Just move.
It is hard for me to believe that before picture. My almost 15 year old granddaughter said the perfect thing to me the other day. She said, "Gramma. I can't remember what you looked like when you were fat."
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