Those Pesky Last 10 Pounds

It has been over a year now since my weight loss journey began and I’m happy to say that I’ve successfully lost and kept off 30 – 40 pounds depending on the week and whether or not I am actively playing a round of the game.

One of the things I love the most about the Game On Diet is the incredible wisdom and insight that I inevitably gain each round I play or administer from my fellow players!

In fact, I loved this post from fellow Gamer Shari Cleland so much, that I asked for her permission to share it here on my blog. That way whenever I need a reminder to take this amazing wisdom to heart, it will only be a click or two away.

So, without further ado here’s Shari writing about goal weights and the quest to lose those last 5 lbs…

I’ve been doing the healthier lifestyle/weight loss thang for over a year now.  In the beginning the formula worked… cut calories, exercise and the weight will slowly come off. Then you hit the final 10 and start to struggle with your body not cooperating. Then you hit the point where it’s just a few more pounds and no matter what you do, that shit ain’t moving.  This is where I am now, and have been since December. I’ve been trying to lose my final 3 pounds for close to 6 months, and I’m coming to believe and accept a few things:

1) There is the ideal weight you’d like to be at mentally, and then there is the weight your body is happy at. There is usually a discrepancy between these numbers, with the mental weight being lower than the happy body weight.  While you can push yourself to get to the mental number, I think it sets you up for a “lifetime challenge” scenario where you will always be fighting to keep your weight below where your body wants to be.  I’m now accepting this and am realizing that Game On is teaching me how to successfully be in maintenance mode and keep my weight stable.  (It’s a huge fear of mine to put it all back on.)

2) There was an article that made the rounds a while back about lessons from the dying.  How when people look back on their life they rarely think “gosh, I wish I worked more” or “I wish I was more judgmental and critical on myself.”  That struck me as so poignant that I do try to focus on feeling good with where I am now in whatever journey I’ve embarked on. I don’t want to look back on this year and think, man…that was the healthiest and slimmest I’ve been in ages, why was I so miserable and unhappy about it because of some uncooperative numbers?!?!  Anyway, just a reminder to feel good about all the hard work and success we’ve all had thus far.

3) Have you ever seen someone lose more weight than you think they should?  There’s just a little something off about it. On the rare occasion when I did temporarily dip down a pound or two lower than where my happy body/plateau weight seems to be, I looked and felt much thinner than usual.  But I’m not actually sure it looked healthy.  I kinda looked gaunt, like someone who lost weight from being ill.  Then the next day I’d be back up a pound to my happy body/plateau number and then I felt I looked healthy again. So bizarre that a 1 pound change can feel so dramatic. In any case,  just another weird thing to consider for those of us blessed enough to struggle with those last few pounds.

So true…and so inspiring!  Shari’s words have helped me take my foot off the gas and stop worrying so much about getting to a certain number on the scale….and to start fully enjoying how great it feels to be in a body that is in its best shape ever in my mid-40s!   I hope that by sharing her thoughts here, that they might inspire you in a similar way on your own health journey!