TAKE ACTION! Karen, Part 2

I asked Karen if she wouldn't mind sharing an update on where she is now since we last talked... well, she's even further down the road. And as excited as I am about that, it's not what I'm most excited about.

What I loved reading is how she talks about not being complacent. It's the reason I asked her to share again, because with this new theme of TAKE ACTION, just settling for being "OK" with where you are is the first step to a long, slippery slope of backsliding.

Don't misunderstand me. Maintenance (aka, giving your body a break from weight loss mode is critical), indulgence days, a day off from working out, all of those are hugely important for long term success. But, settling for OK is the enemy of every goal you set, every sacrifice you've made to lose the weight. Don't settle for it. Enough about what I'm saying, check out Karen's update:

When she started this journey

Now!

Since you last shared your story on the blog, what has changed with your transformation journey?

Since I last shared my story in January, a lot has changed and a lot has also stayed the same. 

I am still dedicated and determine to live a healthy active life. That will never change. In the beginning of my weigh loss journey, the weight easily melted away. All I needed to do was eat and work out according to the rules of the State of Slim program and I lost the pounds. About 7 months ago, my body decided enough was enough and stopped responding in the same quick weight loss manner as I had grown accustom.  

This was surprising to me and at first I did not understand why all the hard work was not seeing better results on the scale. I asked questions, tweaked a few things and the results were still disappointingly slow.  I have learned to trust the the process, so I did not give up, I did not stop eating and working out on plan. As a result, I still continued to lose weight but at a much slower rate. 

Where I started seeing big differences were in the inches my body was losing. I was surprised how my clothes were fitting and I was able to wear sizes I have not worn in over 40 years. I had to learn to be comfortable seeing the number on the scale as data and not as a measure of my success or failure.  My weight loss journey has been a huge life transforming success in so many more ways than just the number I see on the scale.

So strong!

What personal victory are you most proud of so far?

Aside from having lost 95 pounds in the past year, I am proud to say I have become a runner! 

My entire life I have tried to learn to run without success. The most I had ever run nonstop was a mile and a half and I thought I was going to die! That was years ago. I hated running but thought I need to learn . . .for my own good.

 One of my weight loss team mates gave me this advice, 'Run and don’t walk even if your running is slower than your walking pace. Your body need to get used to the rhythm of running. And, don’t go breathless, make sure you are always breathing." 

As soon as I heard and applied these two principles, I was able to run my first nonstop, unofficial 5K in February. In May I ran my first official 5K and placed 5th out of over 40 women in my age group at a 11.58 pace... not bad for someone who waited until age 60 to run her first official 5K! 

Two weeks ago I ran my first ever 10K (6.2 miles) nonstop and once again finished 5th in my age group... though there were only five of us brave enough to even tackle the 10K.

You have to start somewhere

And believe that you have what it takes

How have your goals changed? 

My goals have not changed a lot over the past year. 

How I view reaching my goals has changed. 

I now view my goals as just a part of my life. I no longer obsess over the number on the scale. My goal is to keep trusting the process as a way of life, never giving up on living life to the fullest and as you say,  "Live in the arena."  

I am also more focused on sharing my journey so that others may know they are not alone in their struggles and so that hopefully I will inspire others to be the best person they can be so they too can live a full and happy active life.

What has been the one piece of weight loss advice/truth/mantra that was most helpful for you during weight loss?

With out hesitation . .  “Choose Your Hard” is the mantra I repeat over and over to myself. 

Sure, exercising and changing eating habits can be hard, but it also can be fun when you realize the benefits your are gaining. Being fat, unhealthy and unhappy all the time is very hard. When I repeat the mantra “Choose Your Hard”... I know there is only one choice for me, to live an active, healthy, happy life, choosing the healthy hard..

What is most challenging about where you are right now?

The hardest part is to not allow myself to be comfortable being where I am, to the point that I become complacent. Complacency is when bad habits start to creep back in. After our one year reunion, I become too complacent and gained about 5 pounds... not awful but I also knew it was not good and could lead to a return and a regain of the weight I fought so hard to lose.  

Having a reset bracelet with the number I will never allow myself to go above has been a great reminder to stay focused and committed. I will never take a healthy, happy, active life for granted. I choose to work hard everyday to ensure continued success.

What's easiest?

“Life” is what is easiest. While my life is not perfect, I am living with joy for the first time in a very long time and that is a wonderful feeling. It makes staying on plan easy.

You're going to crush your race!

What milestone are you most looking forward to hitting during the second half of 2016?

I have two goals I have set for the remainder of 2016.  

The first is to shed the last 30 pounds I want to lose. This will put me at a body fat percentage of about 21%. 

The bigger goal, and at times I can’t believe I actually set this goal . . . I’m training to run the Hershey, PA, half marathon in October. For someone who has never been a runner . . . I did not even like running . . . this is huge! I am terrified and excited all at the same time. I will do it and when done, the feeling of accomplishment will be amazing . .  AND, I am told I will get to eat chocolate the entire route of the race . . . yes, this will be an indulge day without guilt! Cheers to terrifying goals and to living life in the arena!