#mryddinwilt talks about health

[mryddinwilt]

I hope you get that photo-op with Colin! But I HAVE to ask - how did you manage to lose 115 pounds? How long did it take you? What did you do? Thank you

Oh hey Nonnie this is something I have been thinking about talking about but also feeling kinda weird about because it feels like bragging to just make a post. So thanks for giving me an excuse! It got a little wordy so I’ll give you the too long didn’t read and you can click through if you are interested in the whole story. 

TL:DR- Didn’t think I could lose weight but lost 115 pounds in 10 months, regulated my hormones, cleared up psoriasis, came out of depression, and got healthier overall thanks to Whole30 and Autoimmune Protocol.

I have struggled with weight my whole life. While in the Army I kept weight gain at bay with lots of physical exercise and carefully counted calories. You can and will get kicked out of the Army for being overweight so it wasn’t really an option to gain. Even with all that the scale would keep ticking up and I just figured my body was the kind that gained weight. When in actuality it was hormone disregulation, autoimmune disease, and adrenal fatigue that was playing havoc with not just my weight but my emotions and overall health. 

When I got out of the Army and figured out that all the intense workouts were actually hurting me (I am talking HIIT’s and Crossfit) I stopped and of course the scale went up. Then came the depression and lots of other stuff that I won’t go into but which resulted in a very heavy, very unhappy, very unhealthy, very in denial me. It was in this state that I took my photo op with Colin and it was crying over that photo that made me realize something needed to change. 

Just after the convention I saw an amazing before and after photo on Facebook of a friend of my sisters who had lost a lot of weight. He was thanking her for introducing him to Whole30 and singing it’s praises. Now my sister had been trying to talk to me about Whole30 for awhile but I didn’t want to listen. I thought I knew my body and I knew that trying to lose weight was a ridiculously long and hard process and in my depressed state I wasn’t interested in trying. But now I was searching for an answer and I went to the website and read up on the program. 

It’s all online or you can buy their book but essentially it’s an elimination diet that cuts out foods that most people can be sensitive too (all grains, dairy, legumes) as well as eliminating processed sugars for 30 days. Compared to working out 2 hours a day and eating 1300 calories (most of them in the form of protein shakes) it seemed almost too easy. The program is about health not weight loss. I was interested in better health and the reversal of my autoimmune symptoms, which Whole30 was supposed to help with. I have psoriasis and thyroid dysfunction that had not responded to medication. I decided I would do it for the health benefits and for my autoimmune conditions. I had zero hope that I would lose weight because I just knew my body wasn’t capable of it without hard workouts and calorie restriction. I didn’t step on a scale or take measurements but I did take a swimsuit picture just in case. 

The funny thing is that I actually don’t know if I have really lost 115 pounds. That’s my conservative estimate based on the last time I got on a scale (about 8 months before Whole30). It’s possible I have lost maybe up to 130 pounds. Now of course I wish I had weighed but at the time it felt pointless. I didn’t think I would ever lose the weight, that losing the weight was impossible. I am happy to be wrong. 

My Whole30 started on May 1st last year. I did it for 45 days and then transitioned to an autoimmune protocol elimination diet which is actually more restrictive but better for helping with autoimmune issues. I did not get on a scale until the end of July and only at the insistence of my parents because they wanted me to see that I had lost weight. I didn’t think I had and didn’t really care because my skin was clearing up, I was sleeping better, I had emerged from the fog of depression, I was happy and that was far more important than the weight. I came to realize that I was fat because I was sick not the other way around. 

My parents did Whole30 with me and saw similar benefits. My dad lost 45 pounds and was able to go off his ulcerative colitis medication after 15 years of struggling with it. My mom has lost 50 pounds and has been sleeping through the night for the first time in decades. They are both in their 60′s and have so much more energy and health that my siblings are constantly talking about it. Neither of them have gone back to their old way of eating. My dad added back dairy though because he can’t live without milk and yogurt and lucky for him his body doesn’t react to it.

Doing Whole30 required a lot of learning new recipes and a lot of cooking at first. But after the first two weeks (the detox period) I never felt really deprived or desperate for foods I used to enjoy. I eat good food that I love and it loves me back. Sometimes I get frustrated that the world is not built for people who don’t want added sugar or other harmful things in their diet but I don’t want to eat those things. Sometimes I get triggered by stress and suddenly want a Snickers but I am realizing that is more about emotional eating and self-soothing not about the food itself. 

I could literally talk for hours about what I have learned about myself and about food and how important it is for overall health. In offline life I am probably annoying to be around but I feel like I have discovered something amazing and I want to share it with people. Because I know it can change their life too! 

I have helped about a dozen people do Whole30 and I am 100% willing to talk to anyone who wants to pick my brain about it or the autoimmune protocol. It’s something I am really passionate about and so thanks again Nonnie for giving me the chance to talk about it! 

[word-bug]

2016 Positivity

So I was tagged by @mryddinwilt (you’re amazing) for this. And I apologize for being so late in responding.

2016 was overall a bittersweet year for me given my proclivity to overthink and my flare to dramatize.

1. I started focusing on my health. While it wasn’t what I thought it would be but it turned out to be something else and I was internally fit with less of throwing up due to acidity.

2. I graduate and I am pursuing my Master’s currently.

3. I finally joined tumblr and it’s a joyride and I met some of the most amazing people whom I never thought I would meet/talk to.

4. After like 6 years for the first time I was able to relax during summer vacations. It was amazing. Earlier it was always something studying or attending classes or the likes.

5. I started writing again. I wasn’t extremely successful but I did write bits and pieces so there’s that. A liberating process though. 

6. I am staying in a hostel. This is the first time I am staying away from my home so it was a new adventure altogether.

7. I realised how my anxiety affects me and I am trying to work on it. It’s a 60-40 success ratio.

8. Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them!!!!!

9. I met new people and understood how less I know and I am working on it without getting worked up over it. A 70-30 success ratio.

10. I tried my reading on some new genres. It was amazing fun. 

11. I learnt about people and their behaviour and I have vowed to be more careful and less forthcoming in just a few meets. 

I am a little late but I tag @lifeinahole27 @allthelittlelostgirlsgrowup @the-corsair-and-her-quill @i-know-how-you-kiss @phiralovesloki and anybody who wants to do this

[mryddinwilt]

This might be a stupid question and you don't have to answer if you don't want to, but you said you lost 115 pounds, right? Do you have any loose skin? I'm reading horror stories about people losing a lot of weight and being left with horrible loose skin... And I'm worried because I have to lose at least 60 pounds...

I actually had not thought about loose skin at all. I mean I have heard of it being a thing but it’s not something I thought about in regards to my own weight loss or the loss of people I know. I don’t have any loose skin and my skin itself is so much healthier than it was, not just the psoriasis almost gone but less puffy and red too. 

I think loose skin happens more on crash diets/surgeries where the body isn’t getting enough nutrients and tends to shed muscle while keeping fat which results in a body composition that is different. While I did lose a lot of weight very fast, at one point it was 15 pounds a month for three months, my body composition has stayed the same. My diet is very nutrient dense, and includes collagen in the form of bone broth and a powder I throw into smoothies a couple times a week so that might help too. 

Honestly I am no expert on this stuff but the people I know who have lost a lot of weight by shifting their diet to whole foods haven’t had any loose skin issues. Good luck with your weight loss! It’s such a hard and daunting task but I am sure you are up for the challenge. And if you need anyone to talk to I am here to cheer you on or answer questions.