Yeaaaa one year at CC!

I started last April 1st at over 240 lbs, old, tired and could not carry a 1.5 year old kid in my arms for more than 5 min. This April I have meet and reset my goals more times than I can count.  Last Sunday as part of my goals, I ran a 10 k race and much to my surprise, I hardly broke a sweat. I go to the gym 5 days a week and I have lost over 50 lbs while gaining allot of muscle mass, so do not know how much I really lost.

I now can carry a 2.5 year old kid in one arm and a 4 years old in the other and enjoy doing it. Every Sunday morning I run 3.5 hours over some pretty steep mountains.

I have to thank eveyone here for helping me get to a healthy lifestyle. If you asked me a year ago, how long I would stick to calorie counting or any type of diet program, I would have said a month or so. I never would have guessed that I would not only be still counting a year later, but no longer on a diet, but having had changed the way I eat, the way I spend my free time and my general outlook on life.

I have had some pretty rough times the last year. I was really stupid and was loosing a kilo a day for a period and went into starvation mode really seriously. Needed doctor care and a kick in head by some of the folks here to get me into a more healthy place.

For the last month as this day approached, I have thought every day, not of the anniversary of my starting, but of a chance to thank everyone here for helping, either by answering my questions, answering the questions of others and by asking the questions and by just being here. I do not live in the country I where i was raised and it has been so helpful to speak to people in my own language about things that I was going through and get positive support and advice.

So at the end of my first year at CC, I want to thank everyone here, those who are no longer here and hope you all can meet and exceed your goals.

take care

Michael

 

Congratulations, Michael! Your story is very inspiring indeed! I'm pretty new here (2 1/2 months), but already I've noticed a huge change in my weight, physique and attitude, primarily because I now count everything I eat (it really opened my eyes) and I exercise at least 5 times per week - doing enjoyable things like bicycling on a local bike trail, yoga and swimming. Strength training will come next! My goal is to make this a way of life, as you have. I will think about you running 3.5 hours up steep mountains on Sunday the next time I need motivation! God bless you and congratulations again! - Gina

It's my anniversary too!

Congrats in all you've accomplished this past year. Excellent job. Excellent! *rapidly claps hands in approval*

Keep up the good work. I agree with you that this place is nothing less than inspirational. Congrats man!

Thank you Michael for your inspirational story.  I keep hearing about counting calories being a way of life instead of simply a diet and you are certified proof of that.  It's one thing to hear it and another to actually see it!  Congrats on your accomplishments and thank you for helping those of us that still need to lose!

Congrats!  reading stories like yours puts a smile on my face =) 

That's fantastic! Congratulations!! Thanks for the motivation, which you didn't know I needed today. It's amazing what you have accomplished in a year.

Thank you all. My reason for writing this post was not to have everyone tell me that I have done great, my reason was to thank you because together we have done great.

There is no way my life would have changed for the better without this forum. The sad thing about changing the way I live and eat is the very thing, that being the people here and the website itself, have slowly become less important to me.

I have kind of gotten the weight of the food down in my head. I know the calories of most of the food I consume, I have been using the site now to track my weight and reading post now and then. I have been able to continue to loose weight and gain muscle without having to put in every food I eat because of what I have learned here. 

So since I come here less, I miss the insight of allot of the people. At one point I was truly addicted to the site, coming every few hours like a person dying of thirst looking for any bit fresh water in the way of any ideas to make me better. I wondered if I would ever be able to eat without being crazy with guilt.

Through all the post and all the info, I am happy that I can now come here with desire to learn and share and not out of some need to find the one morsel of info that was going to make me feel good about myself.

When I learned that starving myself was not going to make me feel good about myself but in fact, eating well and enjoying life was really the answer, well it all seems so simple, I wonder why we can't all see that without the journey?

 

I know you just said that you didn't posts for the congrats, but hey you deserve it, so congrats on meeting your goals.  But you are right when you give thanks to CC for the support.  CC is the best support site/group of people for almost any issues, real people, real problems, real solutions... 

Good luck man, with the 6 you have left to lose!