A Day to Celebrate

I am just a little over 5 feet tall. I stopped growing when I was in the 6th grade, to my consternation. But because I’m little, I love little surprises more than big surprises.

I’m going to share something with you that has taken a lot of courage for me to share, and I know you’ll understand why in a moment.

It’s no secret that I’m not exactly skinny, eh?

Here’s a family photo from ten years ago (You’ve seen the most current one on a recent blog post. We haven’t changed much…):

we’re all a little chubbalicious here.

(Check out the picture of Robin on the left — he grew out of his baby-fat phase.)

Speaking about baby fat, I didn’t always look this way. I lost my baby-fat in junior high and weighed 95 pounds, soaking wet, in high school. The day I got married, my wedding dress was a size 5, which in today’s uber-skinny sizing, was the equivalent of a size 0.

Babies — all three of them, helped me to get to a not-so-zaftig look. (Zaftig means sexy-curvy auf Deutsch) There was nothing zaftig about me. I constantly battled the losing weight/gaining weight yo-yo of life until 1989, when I started Weight Watchers for the first time.

I was soooo good and so diligent. I started out there at 180 and was within 5 pounds of goal weight… when I found out I was pregnant with Robin! Well, I was SO happy — it was a good pregnancy because I was really healthy but my craving in the last trimester for Baskin-Robbins Jamoca and hot fudge shakes and tuna sandwiches did not help a thing. Like the heart wants what it wants, the pregnant body wants what it wants too.

Kirsten started out losing weight at the end of October this last year, and by February she had lost 5 dress sizes. I started her weight loss routine and lost 16 pounds, but I started traveling a lot to teach and Quilt Market and nothing is a quicker weight loss killer than traveling and not being able to control what you eat. so… I climbed up and added 7 pounds.

Enter WebGuy, who was inspired by Kirsten’s weight loss, who has lost over 100 pounds since the first of February — that’s the equivalent of losing a small size adult like I was prior to babies! And he looks fantastic, I’ll tell ya. Just check out his Facebook picture.

Contrary to popular belief, NOTHING inspires you more to lose weight than to see current pictures of yourself. NOTHING. And certainly not pictures of you being thinner and looking great. When you are so over-weight, it’s hard to visualize ever looking like that again and eating your emotions (happy/sad, mad/glad) always outweighs the desire to be thinner. At least in my family, with my genetic makeup. My mom and sisters would agree.

This picture:

Yes, Cambria is darling, but it’s my chubby legs in this picture that I saw and thought “I didn’t know that I looked like that…” that gave me pause for thought.

And, this picture…


… when I saw this picture, I just about passed out. This is my favorite top. It doesn’t look like how I think it looks on me — it makes me look FAT. : (

These two pictures have motivated me to lose weight more than any skinny pictures ever would.

(I will post some of those next week. I will have to scan them because I have no skinny digital pictures…)

Immediately after this last picture, I decided that enough was enough – if Kirsten and Guy could do it, so can I. And, I decided that traveling is no excuse. After all, I make the decisions for myself and I CAN be in control. That was at the end of August.

So… Today, after 30 days of making that commitment and after 20 years, I finally have a cause to celebrate… for the first time since I was expecting Robin, I weigh…. 199.7!

I am under 200 pounds for the first time since I had Robin.

©2011 Annie Smith   All Rights Reserved

25 thoughts on “A Day to Celebrate”

  1. Congratulations, Annie. I’m anxious to see your pictures. Would love to know the secret of your success. I need some inspiration. I’ve lost about 30 pounds this year, but I’m stuck and need some motivation to move on.

  2. Congratulations! What an awesome accomplishment. I’m truly proud of you for taking control and removing excuses. You’re inspiriting to go to the club I just joined a few weeks ago and stay on the treadmill a bit longer than usual! 🙂

  3. Yay Annie! I know what you mean about being shocked by pictures and realizing that hmmm, I don’t look as thin as I thought I looked (even after I subtract that 10 pounds that the camera adds). I’m on a weight loss journey now too, spurred on by high cholesterol. We can do this!
    Sue

  4. Thanks so much for sharing this personal information. It’s inspiring. What weight loss method are you following? Congratulations on your success!

  5. Wow – keep it up. I should be inspired to loose some weight now too. My problem is being at home all the time and munching my way through the afternoon hours.

  6. Annie – Congratulations!!! I quit smoking about 23 years ago and know how very, very hard it is to discipline yourself for your own good. Keep up the good work. Looking forward to seeing some pictures of your svelte self!

  7. Way to go Annie. Celebrating is definitely appropriate as weight loss is so difficult for many of us.

  10. Congratulations on your decision to go on a weight loss journey! Keep up the good work and we’ll keep the good thoughts coming. Hugs.

  12. Thanks for sharing this with us Annie. A lot of us share the same struggle, and appreciate reading your comments.

  16. Wow, great job, Annie!!! I know how you feel about seeing yourself in photos. I hate having my picture taken because I see myself so much smaller than the camera does. Keep up the great work!!

  17. Thank you ALL for your kind words and support. I took a risk in putting it all out there – you know, like, if I fall off the wagon. But I really can’t now ; ) You would all call me on it! Thank you, my friends.

  18. Congratulations, Annie! I battle weight gain all the time. I’ve lost 40 lbs. since 2003 and I still need to lose 40 more. I know you can do it and so can I! My blood sugar is starting to creep above normal, so I’ve got to lose the weight.

  19. Congratulations Annie. I’ve fought the same battle. 165 when I got married, 220 by the time the third chid was born and 260 after the stress of a divorce. I’m now right at 220 again and hoping to get within about 10 lbs of my lowest weight by June. I just have to keep saying, weight watchers is my friend and just keep making good choices!! Keep up the good work.
    Diane

  20. Good for you!!! It’s very very difficult to lose weight with the stress of family members being abroad, managing your business, life, etc. Congratulations! (PS – so glad you’re back to podcasting and blogging again, lol)…hugs 🙂 Lori

  21. Congrats Annie! I have been lurking for a while, but I had to comment on this post. That is a great accomplishment. I’ll be under 200 in the not to distant future myself. Keep up the good work!

  22. Congrats Annie! You can continue! I’ve lost 20 lbs. in the past 6 months, most of it in the first 3, and have hit a plateau…..My push was taking a health class and being classified as “obese”, even though I am 5’8″ and weighed 204. It was way too much for me, and I decided I’m losing it, even if is painful along the way. I’ll admit, I’m not being as “good” as I should, and am leaving on vacation in two days (so more not good eating) but, I’m not giving up though…pictures really do have a way of making you see what the mirror doesn’t show! We can do this! Keep up the good work!

  24. Annie,
    So, so proud of you and I wish you skinny pants! I’ve been going to Weight Watchers and walking every day and have lost 40lbs. since Jan. It feels great and I wouldn’t trade it for a pizza or chinese. Good luck!
    Tammy

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