Quote Originally Posted by Triskeliongirl View Post
So Catherine, just curious what changed? I've watched you struggle for a while and it looks like something finally clicked.
Not to derail the thread, but it has come down to three things:

1) Hormonal IUD removal. Removing all synthetic hormonal influences have finally allowed my body to act the way it should when I reduce my intake and increase my exercise. Now the results I get when I put in the effort, make sense. This is HUGE both mentally and physically.

2) Triathlon. Or, I should say, competition. I'm supremely competitive, so having something that I can do where I get to compete to test myself and where I can train consistently (ie, three sports to alleviate boredom and over-training) has really helped keep me on track. I think that biking would have done the same thing for me back when I first started riding but back then, my results did not match my efforts and I got discouraged.

3) Environment. My husband's age has finally caught up with him (ie, he cannot eat whatever he wants and still stay slim and healthy anymore) so he's more open to eating right and exercising regularly and that helps me a lot. And secondly, most of my local friends are athletic and eat healthy (and eating healthy in the Portland area is WAY easier than it was in Greensboro, NC) so it's easy to stay on track when I don't have others trying to talk me into BBQ or baked goods or the like... Plus, some of my friends are crazier than I am now, so no one is telling me that I should "stop working out so much" or "just relax this one time and have a drink" because they are doing even nuttier things than me! (you know who you are, Susan! )

I've also finally learned the importance of moderation. I will NEVER eat 1000 calories/day while doing 10+ hours a week of activity again. That was dreadful, not sustainable, and most importantly, not working. Now I eat a lot...truly. I'm currently tracking using weight watchers and I eat 36-37 points on average every day (my target is 29). I've learned that if I chose the right foods, keep my activity level up and I'm patient, then I eventually lose weight. The patience is the hardest part but I'm really, really trying to enjoy the journey and focus on performance more than appearance.

/hijack