I kept a few pairs of my size 44 pants, just as a reminder of how obese I really was just a few short years ago. To put it in perspective, I went from size 44 waist down to size 34.
It seems hard to believe that at one time I actually fit into these pants. Some of the shirts I've saved went half way down my legs, many being XXL. Now medium shirts fit me... I never thought I would fit into a medium.
I love doing cardio! After all, the treadmill helped me lose most of my weight. I've been trying to cut down on cardio but this week has really been different. I did not use the treadmill for a whole week. I don't want to keep losing weight... I'm so active that it seems like by using the treadmill, I would keep losing weight.
I still get my steps in. According to my pedometer, I do get well over 10,000 steps each day. So what do I need to use the treadmill for when I'm already active enough? I'm focusing on my muscle and I think the results are getting more noticeable each day. Also, I did run for 5 minutes yesterday around a track as a warmup.
I'm really getting into strength training. I have decided that I no longer need the treadmill. I still will do my walking and get my steps in, but I don't need to lose more weight.
During the past few months, I was using the treadmill for about 5 to 10 minutes for 5 days a week. It's not too much, but the weight tends to fall off me so easily now. I want my body to build muscle and using the treadmill might confuse my goals... my body might still think it needs to lose weight. A trainer was talking to me about cardio today, that it could actually hurt my efforts. I don't want it to get in the way of my goals!
I was overweight for most of my adult life... actually I should say morbidly obese. I never dreamed that I could lose weight and maintain the weight loss for about two and a half years so far. After losing the weight, I've come to this conclusion: losing weight is the easy part!
This is just my opinion, of course, everyone is different. I have a much easier time shedding the weight than bulking up. The muscles are developing and my abs are tightening further, but still, muscle seems to come a lot easier to others.
Check out this cute video of a duck following somebody around every time they walk. I guess even creatures in the animal kingdom want to get some exercise in!