On January 21, 2008, I stepped on a scale for the first time in months and saw a number I never thought I would see: 261.4. That day sparked the beginning of a journey for me, a journey to change my life and lose 100 pounds. I blogged about it here.
Five years and one baby later, and I now weigh 167.6 pounds. I know that when I began this journey, I never would have guessed that five years down the road I STILL wouldn’t be at my goal weight, but I also know that there are few things I could have truly anticipated. If I did know how hard and how long I would struggle, I don’t know if I even would have tried to lose the weight at all. There is a reason God doesn’t allow us to see the future. 🙂
To prevent myself from being all Negative Nelly about the fact that I am not at my goal weight, I decided to make a list of things I accomplished in the last year. Over the last year, I:
1. Lost 16.6 pounds.
2. Completed my first half marathon.
3. Achieved a new 5k PR (personal record).
4. Fit into size 12 pants.
5. Fit into size medium shirts.
6. Completed 30 consecutive days of exercise (with a fantastic group of people on Facebook)
7.Tried Weight Watchers and had success with it.
Honestly, the past year was really tough for me. I struggled to lose the last of the post-pregnancy weight (if it can even be called that–my daughter will be 2 in March). I felt as though I would never reach goal, and I was frustrated by my seeming inability to control myself around food. Then I got the shock of my life in the fall when I was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis, and for once in my life, weight loss was the farthest thing from my mind. In the first weeks after my diagnosis, my only focus was to get well. That still is my ultimate focus, as the medications I am taking have not led me into remission yet. But the best way that I can help my body is to treat it kindly, and that means I need to start taking nutrition and exercise more seriously. I allowed myself to become lazy and undisciplined, and I am going to have to jump off the lazy train if I am going to shed these final 10 pounds.
And now, a pictorial walk down memory lane:
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| On my honeymoon, June 2007. I don’t really know what I weighed at this point. |
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| March 2008, about 2 months after I started trying to lose weight. I had lost 15 pounds at that point. |
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| March 2009, after I FINALLY saw 199 on the scale. |
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| July 2010. I was actually a month pregnant in this picture and around 170 pounds. I think I look better in this picture than I do right now. |
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October 2011, around 185 pounds |
It’s hard to believe that it’s taken me 5 years to get to this point. Apparently I am going for the “Slowest Loser Award.” While I am tempted to beat myself up about how long it has taken me to lose this weight, the fact remains that I have lost 94 pounds and have entered every year for the last 5 years at a smaller weight than the year previous (excluding the year I was pregnant). Though I didn’t achieve my original goal of losing 100 pounds in a year (I laugh at that goal now), I have managed to keep off a significant amount of weight for a long period of time, and I have never done that before.
If nothing else comes of this blog, I want the people reading it to know that weight loss is possible. You may not lose 20 pounds in a month, but if you lose one pound, that’s one less pound you’re carrying around with you. You may not ever be a size 2, but how you live your life matters more than the number on the inside of your pants. You may feel like you will never get to your goal, but isn’t it better to try than to just wonder if you could? You may feel like you have too much to lose and that you’ve tried countless times before, and I get that. I have been there. I spent most of my life overweight, and sometimes I thought that’s just the way it was meant to be. But you know what? All it takes is one day. Make healthy choices just for today, and then tomorrow, do it all over again.
You can do it. I can do it. Start today.
Erin Mount 
Five years seems long, but you know what all that time you kept reaching for more goals. The 5K, the marathon, the new pair of pants – that is just awesome that you kept going and didn't give up. This post makes me smile from ear to ear – love the picture updates and so proud of what you have accomplished, not just this year but since you began the journey. Keep up the good work!!
MO
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Way to go Erin! I think sometimes those goal weights aren't achieved so that we are on a constant path to keep improving. If we hit that goal weight, we might feel like, “Okay! Done! Now, back to cheese fries.” I too am still 12 pounds away from a goal weight I set for myself three years ago. Still, it feels good to be down 15 pounds this year. If it happens, great. If it doesn't, great. You look phenomenal and will be on a constant path to make yourself better and better every day, even if you never hit that goal weight.
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Yay, Erin! It may have taken you a while to lose 100 lbs. but you also got pregnant and had a baby during that time. Your body needed more calories while you were pregnant and even after so it can be much harder to lose the weight. Not to mention, all the hormones, lack of sleep and everything else that can make losing weight difficult. You've come a very long way and should most definitely be proud of what you have accomplished. Losing weight is a complete lifestyle change and you have done such a great job!! You are truly an inspiration!!! Keep up the great work and have faith that your health will get better and you will be back on the road to your goal weight!! ❤
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you look amazing Erin!! not only have you lost weight, but you've begun to run races AND you had a healthy pregnancy–your body has done some amazing things in the past five years! long-term committed weight loss is the hardest to thing for people to accomplish, and you have–you should be proud!
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Great job, Erin! You look amazing and I think that weight loss is an everyday commitment that we sometimes forget about due to other factors. I think you should be proud of yourself and know that you are very inspiring to a lot of people, including me!
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Erin,
Soooo proud of you!
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Kat posted your story on Twitter, and it's very inspiring! I'm finding that the slow changes I make are the ones that stick. Thanks for sharing your story!
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Congratulations! thank you for sharing your journey with us! you look amazing!! this was a wonderful and encouraging post! 🙂 🙂 much love!
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What a beautiful story of God's grace, love, and mercy! Thank you for sharing how God is teaching you how to live with your palms open, anticipating joy. I love you and I am proud to call you my friend ❤
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Thank you all so much for your comments. You're so very kind!
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