There are two times in the year when everyone goes through a phase of wanting to grow and “reinvent” themselves; the start of a new year and over summer break. Everyone makes resolutions like, losing weight, eating healthier, save more money, etc. Although it’s always a good idea to want to improve the person you are today, most of those goals don’t last more than two weeks. The problem with this is that once people fall off the wagon, they feel like they can’t climb back on. I know because I was one of those people.
When I was freshman in high school I weighed around 130 pounds. This wasn’t bad at all considering that I was 5’6” at the time. Over the course of my sophomore and junior year my weight would fluctuate between 130 and 135. Then, when I was a senior in high school I took advantage of my open campus lunch breaks and off hours. I gained 30 pounds my senior year alone. I would go out with my friends during my morning off hour and get breakfast at a fast food place, then I would eat fast food for lunch. I did theatre in high school, so I usually had rehearsals that went until 5:00pm, so of course, we all wanted snacks during out down time which lead to raiding the vending machine.
I never really noticed my weight gain as it was happening until my mother told me that I was getting fat. I thought she was just being really mean, so to prove her wrong I got on a scale. 160 pounds?!?! I was so upset. And ever since that day, I have constantly made goals to lose the weight. I would write up an elaborate workout, diet, all the caloric intake calculations, BMR, BMI, everything. I would have my whole plan down to a T. The only thing I never calculated was the lack of confidence and then lack of motivation. I have always been a very impatient person, so when I didn’t see results right away, I would get immediately discouraged. Then I would tell myself that my body was fine and that I didn’t need to lose weight, so I would give up.
Yes, being 5’7” and 160 pounds isn’t terrible. I’m not dangerously overweight or obese. Some BMI calculators even say I’m at a healthy weight. However, being at a “healthy” weight and being healthy are very different things. I found myself running out of breath when I walked up the stairs. I was getting headaches, which never happened to me when I was younger. I even started to get really bad menstrual cramps which weren’t usual for me either. I had tried all the tricks under the sun to “lose weight fast" but they never worked. I would get self-conscious in pictures because I always had to do the “skinny arm.” I was and still am miserable.
Here I am, going into my 3rd year of college. I have written out a plan, yet again, to lose weight and get back to a body that I am comfortable in. I’d been planning to do it this summer anyway (like I always do). It wasn’t until I went shopping with my two best friends that I really realized how uncomfortable I was with my body. They’re both smalls and extra smalls, and I’m a large. It made me so upset that they were able to try on cute clothes that would never fit me, or never flatter the body I have now.
Starting on Monday, May 30th, I am going to start my plan. I will be walking at least 10,000 steps a day, working out 6 days a week and doing yoga on my rest day, drinking 1 gallon of water a day, and I will be going vegan. I know it’s a lot and people say not to tackle a lot of goals at once, but I don’t want to just change my habits for the summer to lose the weight and then stop once I do. I want to adapt these challenges as a lifestyle change because a big part of tackling challenges is accountability, I will be posting on instagram every day with a picture of me at the gym, my gallon water bottle, and at least one of the vegan dishes I made that day. I will also have my best friend going to the gym with me every day. The final thing keeping me accountable is the fact that I’m putting this piece out into the world, and I don’t want to let the world down!
If you want to join me on my journey, I’m starting May 30th and ending the challenge on July 31st. Although that’s when the challenge ends, I encourage you to keep going if you haven’t already made a habit of it, because I will keep going. If you don’t want to participate in the challenge but want to make sure that I’m keeping myself accountable, follow me on Instagram @millythomas5496. If you’re doing the challenge with me I would love to see pictures or hear about your experiences.
