A Cautionary Tale

[Pedal Wench]

I know it's easy to look at thin women and think, "It's easy for them, they've got good genes. They don't really have to work at this like I do." I know that's what I thought when I lost my initial weight back in 2000. Maybe it's true for some women. But I think most fit women are like me, they are working at it every day.

I have to work at it. Every, single, day.

[Biciclista]

oh Veronica, you're beautiful!! I am extremely impressed. I hope you can keep it up..

[warneral]

way to go! Very impressive

FYI - my favorite way to indulge in pizza (b/c I love it) is a trader joe's whole wheat pita as the crust. I personally like pepperoni so I use turkey pepperoni. I toast it in the toaster oven on the rack and it tastes SO good!

I am trying to lose about 7 pounds and it has been a struggle. I lost 35 a few years back and it takes a lot of work to maintain! I have been working to learn to eat sensibly by intuition after developing some unhealthy food issues through my weightloss and early maintenance.

I, too have a sweet tooth and find it is a slippery slope to junk food-om!

[nscrbug]

Wow...you are truly an inspiration! Especially for those of us that are finding it difficult to get "back on track" (including myself in that bunch). Real quick, here is my story - back in 2008 I decided to do my first triathlon (a sprint). I trained using my own plan. I'm not really sure what my weight was for that first race, but if I had to guess...I'd say I was somewhere in the mid to high 140's. My sprint was on June 22, 2008...I did okay, finishing in 1hr, 30min. I had such a great time and was so proud of myself, that I immediately decided to sign up for another race...this time, an Olympic distance in August. My Oly was on Aug. 10, 2008...and in between my sprint and oly, I managed to drop down to a very muscular 138lbs. I too, have photos...and there is a clear difference in how I looked during both races. Flash forward to the present, I haven't done a tri since then...kind of "lost interest", I guess. My main focus now, is cycling...but I still do some running and swimming here and there. I weighed myself yesterday, and I am now 156lbs...I still have a fair amount of muscle, but I certainly don't look as lean as I did back in August of '08. I've been struggling ever since, to get back that lean, slimmed down "me"...but it surely hasn't been easy. Especially since I'm also 3 years older and everything just seems harder the older I get.

Anyways...just wanted to share that. YOU ROCK, Veronica!

Linda

[spindizzy]

..every single day.....it's really hard work, but your shared very poignantly what can happen and how easy it is to make excuses. Good for you V for sharing..it's easy to post the good stuff, much harder when we falter....

[maillotpois]

Hey good for you for getting back on track. It's easy to let your guard down - I've done it many a time. I think you identified the key, though - only make changes you can live with forever. If you're doing the "beets and cottage cheese only" diet, you'll never make that last a lifetime.

And there should always be a place for the good champagne ...

[PamNY]

You look great. Thanks for sharing your story.

While I'm not a serious athlete like you are, getting "off track" can happen to anyone. It's inspiring and informative to hear about what's you've done.

[indysteel]

Veronica, you look so awesome!!! You really are an inspiration. A couple of months ago, you shared some of this story and your most recent stats. I had already been toying with starting back with running, and it was that thread that pushed me over the edge. Thank you!!! Granted, I haven't been back to it long enough yet for it to be totally engrained, but I'm making progress. I feel like I'm getting back to my old active self bit by bit. I still need to up my bike mileage, but the weather refuses to fully cooperate. My yoga practice is improving and I'm feeling far fewer aches and pains than I was this time last year when my hip was giving me fits.

Anyway, thanks for sharing your story with us!