Progress? Not So Much

Well about two weeks into my new life style I must say the progress hasn't been much. I'm not up set with my self though. I have been researching several different diets and life styles. I have also been tested and diagnosed with a very very bad gluten allergy  This was very odd  to me because gluten products have been a staple in my diet since I was a baby. But basically once I start not eating gluten I can't go back. My body would then have the reaction. If I do decide to cut gluten out of  my diet there will be no turning back. I really like the idea of being able to tell people no to cakes and breads and having a medical reason to do so. It will help me on my journey!

Another diet/ lifestyle I have learned a lot about is the Paleo lifestyle. I will be doing a modified version of this diet to start with then possibly progress to the strictest form of it. Paleo doesn't allow anything processed, any dairy, or any grains (wheat or otherwise). It goes back to the way our ancestors lived and ate. It sounds strict but has amazing success stories and it really a very logical way to eat. I am excited to be starting my new life style! It will be gluten free and eventually it may even be a total Paleo lifestyle.

Fat Girl Problems

These posts will probably be a regular edition to My New Skinny Life. They are intended to high light struggles I face every single minute as an obese 18 year old as well as be documentation as to why I'm never going back to 220 pounds. They will be reminders to me and to all of my wonderful readers as to why we are getting fit and healthy. It will be the much needed motivation when we struggle to find it else where.

One of the biggest problems I'm facing right now is PCOS. Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome. It is a relativity common health issue among overweight women of child bearing age. It can lead to infertility  sever acne, difficulty losing weight, and facial hair growth. It is an awful syndrome that can most easily be treated by weight loss. I am one of the many suffers of PCOS and I don't want to be kept from having children just because I'm lazy. Every day since I was diagnosed I have been faced with the fact that if I don't do something about this my reality will be no children. It devastates me to see what I'm doing to my self. By being lazy and having zero will power that is exactly the fate I am headed for. I have invested in several books and cookbooks for a PCOS diet. I will still be counting calories but any help I can get with losing weight I will take.

Another problem I noticed today while I was getting ready for my work out was I couldn't hardly tie my shoes!! This is probably one of the most annoying problems that I have encountered being obese. My stomach has never gotten in the way like this! And hopefully after several months of hard work and dedication this problem will be a thing of the past!

This two problems suck!! But when I get this excess weight off I will easily be able to see my progress simply in how easy and every day task is and when there is no more little hairs on my chinny chinny chin. I'm so excited and motivated to change these annoying and slightly frighting issues I have.

As always thank you so much for reading my blog!!

Running for Compassion

My biggest passion in life is helping others. One of the organizations I have chosen to do this through is Compassion International. Compassion International is a Christian child sponsorship program. It helps lift child out of poverty around the world.

My endeavor to lose weight is not only for me. I want to help others along the way. One way I want to do that is by raising money to running 5k's and 10k's and maybe even get to a half marathon and full marathon. My first event that I will be training for is going to be the BolderBoulder which is a 10k held every May in Boulder, Colorado. It is too late to run in this years race but I am planning on running in the May 2014 race. With in the next week or so I will be setting up a paypal account to collect donations to donate to Compassion International. My goal over the course of the next year will be to get in shape and be healthy enough to finish the race and collect $1000 in the process. I have not decided exactly where with in the Compassion organization the money will go but I can promise you that it will directly benefit and help the children served by Compassion. If any of my Compassion sponsor friends are reading this I would love to hear where you think the money should go. I will have this decision made by next month so that I can tell people exactly where the money they so generously donate will go!

Please support me in my endeavor to change the world by changing my life! Your financial support and words of encouragement will be the difference in the success of this run. You may donate per mile or kilometer or give a flat donation. Thank you so much for your donations and taking the time to read my blog! If you have any questions please leave them in a comment and I will be sure to answer! 

Requisitioning Supplies and Chasing Dreams

Now that I have set the stage for my blog and for my journey it is time to write something a little more personal (not that sharing before pictures and measurements isn't personal this will just be a different kind of personal). 

The past four days I have been spending the vast majority of my time researching weight loss and buying products to help me on my journey. I have learned the very basics like you  need to burn more calories than you consume to lose weight. I have also learned about very complex pills and supplements that can be taken to speed up weight loss and improve health. I've decided to take a mixture of supplements to help improve my over all health and balance out my vitamin and mineral intake. One thing that I learned is that vitamin deficiencies is a top contributor to weight gain and the inability to lose weight. After hours of research and personal assessment I have discovered that I am most likely deficient in many vitamins. I requisitioned vitamins and supplements off of Amazon.com. I purchased everything from a basic multivitamin to extra vitamin B, C, and D. These three vitamins are essential to weight loss. Another few products I purchased was collagen, green coffee extract, and flax seed.  I'm not by any stretch of the imagination saying that these will be miracle pills and will solve all of my weight loss problems but hopefully they will help.

Another set of supplies I requisitioned are work out DVD's. I bought Zumba Exhilarate and ChaLEAN Extreme. Zumba as most of you probably know is a dancing program that is very high energy  and very cardio focused. ChaLEAN is also very high energy but it is more weight lifting oriented. I figure if I mix them together I'll get a good variety while also getting a good work out each time. 

    

It has been a life long dream of mine to be in the military especially the Navy or Marine Corp. Obviously that can't happen with me weighing 220 pounds. I'm hoping that by the time I finish college I will be able to become an officer. But if this dream is going to come true I'm going to have to lose weight and lose it now. My dream is what will drive me through these tough yet exciting months that lay ahead of me. What drives you to have a better healthier life? If we can focus on those things then we'll be just fine. We'll battle the bulge and be beautiful, strong, sexy, confident people before we know it!

Thank you for reading! As always if you have any tips or comments for weight loss or a better blog please leave a comment!! I would love to hear from you!

My Starting Measurements

So I am not only going to be tracking my weight loss in pounds but I will also be tracking my fat percentage  and my measurements in inches.

Body Fat Percentage:
To figure my body fat I will be using a wonderful very accurate little device called body fat calipers.

This device is surprisingly simple and accurate because most of a person's fat is located directly below the skin surface. You take three measurements and average them together for the final number. Then with the help of a handy chart it tells you what your fat percentage is.

My Starting Body Fat Percentage is: 44.6%

My Measurements:

To get these I just used a simple tape measure. Nothing fancy or expensive. 

Waist: 45

Hip: 51

Abductor: 29

Chest: 48.5

Right Arm: 14

Left Arm: 16

Right Thigh: 22.5

Left Thigh: 22.5

Right Calf: 16

Left Calf: 16.5

Neck: 15.5

Total Right Side: 241.5

Total Left Side: 244

I don't have a goal wight. I have a goal dress size. I want to be a size 4. Last month I bought a prom dress at a breath taking size 24. I did all I could to hold back tears while trying it on. My goal is to be thin the next time I have to buy a dress for a special event. I don't want to look in the mirror and see a blob staring back. 

This is it. I have officially started my journey to a healthy, happy body. My starting everything is out for the world to see. And in an attempt to keep myself accountable I couldn't be happier for doing it.

Again thank you so much for reading my blog!! Please comment if you have any tips to better my blog or for my get healthy journey. Or if you just want to say hi I would love to hear from you!

Healthy All Around

Not only am I starting a weight loss journey I also am going to be starting a skin and hair health journey. My ultimate goal is to be healthy all around. I want to come back from my freshman year of college (which will start in August 2013) being healthy and happy. I want to knock the socks off of everyone who doubted me and made fun of me for my acne, hair and weight! I live in a very small town where everyone knows everyone.

Skin Health Journey:
You might be able to tell from my before pictures but I have battled sever cystic acne for years. In the last six months with the help of a wonderful dermatologist I have gotten it under control. However, I still get breakouts and black heads (thankfully they aren't cystic acne breakouts any more!!). I need something to get my skin exfoliated and fresh without a ton of work. I have decided to purchase the Olay Pro-X.

This is the brush I bought. I got it fairly cheap off of Amazon.com

I am going to be using the cleanser that comes with it to start and then go from there depending on how well its working.

Hair Growth Journey:

I have very very very curly, thick, frizzy hair. Also since I work at a swimming pool it is very chlorine damaged. About two years ago I cut my hair that went to my waist up to the middle of my ears. It was very very short. And don't get me wrong I enjoyed it a lot but I am definitely ready for long hair again. As of right now my hair is 20" long. That is about to my collar bones when its wet. In order to have stronger healthier hair I am going to be using Patene shampoo and conditioner as well as a Pantene hair repair serum. I know in order for my hair to gain length it needs to be strong so it doesn't break. That is my goal through buying these products. I also would like to start using a hair mask. If you have any recommendations leave them in a comment below!! I would love to hear them. I also will be taking hair, skin, and nail vitamins as well as folic acid. These will both help with actually hair growth. 

On top of everything I'm doing for hair and skin health, I obviously will eating healthy and drinking lost of water. This will also help my hair and skin become healthy and radiant.

I will be updating my progress ever so often. 

Thank you so much for reading my blog! Again if you have any suggestions for me to better my blog please leave me comment! 

The First Day of the Rest of my Life

That in a nut shell is what today is. My name is Lindsey M. I'm 18 years old and I am 5'2 and I weigh 220 pounds. Yep I just said it. I weigh 220 pounds. If any one is reading this my goal is to inspire others through my journey and to keep my self accountable on my journey.

A little bit about my self:
Well I'm a senior in high school. I am a life guard and swim instructor. I live with my dad. My mom passed away on December 8, 2012. She was 55 years old and my best friend. She had a heart condition that could never be cured but had she lost weight there is a chance she would have had 10 or even 15 more years on this earth with us. I need to lose weight so I can be around longer than she was. I need to get healthy to avoid this same fate for my self.

My plan:
After years and years of dieting I know all about what works and what doesn't. I'm going to make a combination of all the things that work to create my own diet plan. I'm going to be counting calories, fat, sodium, and protein. I'll be eating 1300 calories a day. I'll be eating a combination of lean proteins, whole grains, and fruits and veggies. But the beauty of counting calories is that I can eat almost anything in moderation. Moderation is the key word though. That is what I personally need to work on. I'm also going to work out three to five days a week. I don't want to bit off more than I can chew. Other wise I'll fail.

Below are my before pictures. It's really gross I know:

I am making a promise to my self that I will never look like this again.

If you like this blog post or have any tips for improving I would love to hear them! Leave them below in a comment! This is my very first blog post ever. And I have really put my self out there for the world to see. Please be kind in your words. Thanks!!