Monthly Archives: January 2015

Having fit body but being unable to see it: how to accept new fit body

January 27, 2015Body image problems, Emotional issues after weight lossaccepting body, after weight loss, body acceptance, body image distortion, Body Image during and after weight loss, body image issues, body image problems, body image struggle, distorted body, distorted body image, downside of being fit, fit body, weight loss strugglesChristina Marky

Remember how I’ve had problems dealing with phantom fat in the past? I struggled with accepting my smaller fit body after being obese and fat most of my life.

After losing weight and becoming fit the issue that I am struggling with is similar to seeing a fat self image instead of a new fit body. The problem I am having is that I can’t see the muscles and my body for what it is. After losing significant weight and becoming fit I started weightlifting because I was losing more muscle than fat. So I figured that weightlifting is a way to go to improve my new fit body. Plus, I’ve read awesome things about the benefits of weightlifting for a woman, so I had to give it a try.

How to address the emotional side of not being able to see your new fit body for what it is

As it feels awesome to be able to carry my own groceries, it feels strange to look in the mirror at the gym to see muscles on my body where there used to be fat. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t have manly muscles, because a woman can’t just get muscular like that with no additional work. I have nice, visible muscles, that give my whole fit body a more feminine look. I look like a girl-beast only when I flex my muscles (joking). My tummy is flat and my abs are visible for the first time in my life! So it’s pretty fun to look at my new fit body in the mirror, but yet again I feel like my mind has not caught up to the fit body I have in reality. I see myself in the mirror, I know it’s me, but that fit body that is looking back at me from the mirror surely isn’t my body, because I am not so fit and muscular.

I remembered the last time when I felt like this was when I lost weight and I was looking at my fit body in the mirror and feeling unable relating to it. It is happening again with my fit body. However, I lived through this before, so this time it doesn’t make me think that I am insane for not being able to see my fit body for what it is in reality.

I know that not being able to see my fit body is just a temporary phase and that my mind just needs a little more time to accept the new fit body. [Tweet this!]

I find revelation in the fact that I’ve been through this before, and successfully accepted my fit body. Now I once again need to accept my more muscular new fit body.

What can I do to speed up the progress of my mind accepting my new fit body?

Having the fit body of your dreams is new: your mind will need time to accept it. It will happen with time, but hey, let’s just speed up this process of your brain accepting your new body:

Look at yourself more often: take a photo of your fit body where your muscles are showing and put the photo on the fridge or another visible place
Get workout clothes that accentuate fit body features in the most flattering manner: look for a pair of workout pants and/or dry fit top that will make you look into the gym mirror more often!
Take progress pictures: even if you don’t see your fit body gains in the mirror, looking back at older pictures (even if it was taken a month ago) will make you see how far you’ve come.
Ask for reassurance: ask a friend or a significant other you trust if they see your muscles on your new fit body. My significant other wants to touch my abs all the time! Just don’t make it a habit to ask for reassurance a lot. Always think about your intent before asking for reassurance. Is your goal to remind yourself of what you already know?
Compare: Look yourself in the mirror at the gym while working out and compare the fit body you see there with other bodies in the gym. You’ll see how far you’ve come.
Go window shopping: Pick something out that you would never have dared to wear before and try it on just for the fun of it! I was trying on some dresses that I would have never even thought of wearing before. I didn’t buy it, because I have nowhere to wear it, but damn, I looked good!
Ask for comparing: ask your friend or significant other to point out someone from a crowd of people or a celebrity who has a similar fit body composition as you. You’ll be surprised! Also, seeing other people who are similar to you will not trigger the same emotional response as seeing a picture of yourself would, therefore it’s helping you rationalize.

Could this be your story too? Are you are struggling with accepting your new fit body? Join my group of struggling girls on Google+! Don’t like other people? Sign up for an update about new posts! Click here>>>

Afraid of going alone to the gym? 4 tips to help you go to the gym for the first time as a girl

January 20, 2015Emotional issues after weight loss, Motivation to stay fitBody Image during and after weight loss, body image problems, fit body, healthy life mindset, lifting weights, motivation, muscleChristina Marky

I was afraid of going alone to the gym as a girl. I was afraid of going alone to the “manly” section of the gym to start lifting weights. I remember planning to go to the gym alone for days. What occupied my mind was the moment when I’d step into the manly section of the gym to start my routine of lifting weights. I imagined that every person in the gym would look at me walking towards the weight rack, judging me. It was awful. It took me days to gather courage to actually go to the gym. But I wanted to go alone. I knew about the benefits of lifting weights for girls. I wanted to be that girl. The girl at the gym who is lifting weights.

Going to the gym alone to workout and start lifting weights can be intimidating for a girl. Here is a guide to get you on the road of going alone to the gym for the first time:

1. Pretend like you belong there

Fake it till you make it! Pretend like you know what you are doing. This doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t prepare yourself for your first time going alone to the gym. Pick out a workout plan that fits your level of fitness, know exactly what exercises you will be doing at the gym, in what order. Study the exercises you are about to do. Watch YouTube videos of proper forms of the exercises. Use the mirrors in the gym, they are there so you can check yourself and your form (and later to see your sexy body and flex your muscles!). Do everything that you feel like you need to do in order for you to feel ready for your first time going alone to the gym. Then just walk in and pretend like you belong there. Let me tell you a secret: chances are, the others are faking it as well. Also, don’t be afraid to stand around and stare at the equipment or look around to see if it is the machine you’re looking for.

2. Use warm up and cardio for making yourself comfortable

You need to warm up before engaging in any exercise activity. Use this time to calm your mind. If you are used to running, then use the treadmill to get your pulse up and watch other people around you. This will make you feel like you fit in with the gym locals. If your goal is to start lifting weights, then do what I did: use the weight room for warm up exercises so you can assess the situation before starting your lifting routine.

3. Have a workout plan

Know what you are there for. You surely have a goal set ahead of you (for choosing a goal, visit XXFitness FAQ). Whether it is losing weight and fat, gaining muscle and strength, improving your cardio and heart health or toning up your body, you will need a workout plan for it. Pick a workout plan in advance that works towards your goals. I started lifting weights with the Stronglifts 5×5 app, because having my phone with me at the gym and using the built-in timer for counting rest time between sets seemed like a good idea. Knowing that I can see the exercises on my phone gave me the courage to act like I knew what I was doing. Or you could just have pictures of exercises on your phone to remind yourself of the exercises you will be doing. Nowadays I just use 3 different post it notes with the exercises scribbled down with cute stick figures performing the exercise that I rotate on my 3-day workout days.

4. You are awesome for even thinking about going alone to the gym

If you’d have ever spent time in a gym, you’d seen that most people there are noobs. Not many people know what they are doing. So don’t be afraid to be one of the noobs. Everyone has to start somewhere. By having a workout goal and a workout plan, you are already in the scarce minority. Just look around among your friends: the reason of why you even thought of going alone in the gym in the first place is because there is no one around you to keep you company. So committing to going alone to the gym, you already placed yourself in the scarce minority of people that actually care about their lifestyle. Congratulations, by researching the proper form of exercises and attempting them you further narrowed yourself to make the awesome gym people cut!

Just remember: it takes one step at a time, and the first step is the hardest! Everyone at the gym had to start somewhere, so nobody in their right mind is going to judge you for being a beginner. Don’t worry, no one is there to watch you working out. At least not yet!

Found this guide useful? Get more useful quick tips on how to motivate yourself towards a lifestyle filled with healthy habits! Click here>>>

15 things I wish I knew before I started losing weight while I was obese

January 13, 2015Emotional issues after weight loss, Motivation to stay fitafter weight loss, Body Image during and after weight loss, fit body, healthy life mindset, Maria Kang, motivation, successful weight lossChristina Marky

anorexia vs phantom fat distorted body image — [Image courtesy of marin at FreeDigitalPhotos.net]

I have a confession to make: I enjoy being the fit girl! Not just because of my looks and health benefits of regular exercise, but also because of the things that I’ve learned during my journey from fat to fit girl.

Some of them are little, important things that I’ve discovered during my journey from fat to fit while other things came as a big revelation! Looking back I wish I knew all these things before I started losing weight while I was obese, because it would have made my journey from fat to fit more easy. And faster. Knowing all this, I would have jumped on the “get fit now” bandwagon a decade ago!

Becoming fit is not a destination – it’s the road that You’re on

The new year has started! Whoohoo! Back to my usual workout routine! The holidays gave me time to look back at my last year’s accomplishments. Going from fat to fit was the biggest achievement of my previous year! Becoming fit takes a lot of commitment and focus. You learn a lot along the way from fat to fit. Thinking back to my old fat self made me think of things I wish I knew before I started losing weight.

Sometimes it’s the journey that teaches you about your destination. [Tweet this!]

The things you learn during your journey from fat to fit are a valuable lesson. So what are these secrets?

15 things You need to know before You start losing weight

I figured that I’ll compile a list of 15 things I wish I knew when I was obese! Let it be a help on your weight loss journey from fat to fit. It doesn’t matter if you are getting started now or if you already made the first steps towards becoming fit and living a healthy life!

You don’t have to be fat. I wish someone had told me this when I was a kid. Seriously. I’ve spent my childhood, teen years and adolescence thinking I have to be fat, because I don’t have a choice.
You weren’t born fat. Have you seen a newborn? Babies aren’t born fat. They are fed into being fat. Trust me, it’s not your genes, it’s the amount of food that you eat.
Being fit is not just a temporary state. If you keep up with your lifestyle changes by developing healthy eating habits and make exercise part of your life, then you won’t get back to being your old fat self.
You can be a fit mom. This realization comes from the fact that my family was fat/obese. So I figured that I can get fit while single, but once I have kids, I’ll go back to my old fat self. Well, that’s not true! Check out my inspiration mom, Maria Kang!
The time you spend figuring out how to dress to cover up your fat body to look slim could be spent at the gym making your body sexy/fit. Think about this for a second. All that time and brainpower wasted into hacking your looks to make you seem thinner. Let’s get real: you’re not fooling anyone, but yourself.
Being fat is exhausting you. You may not be aware of it, but looking back I see now how little energy I had because of my bad lifestyle choices. One more reason to change from fat to fit!
Working out and exercising will make you feel in control of your body. By engaging yourself into any type of exercise or sport activity will make you more in control with your body. Yoga will help you with your clumsiness, running will tune your gross motor skills, Zumba will improve your coordination skills, weight lifting will make you carry your heavy groceries in one trip.
That voice in your head that feels ashamed of your fat body that you are trying to silence is actually trying to help you. The voice is trying to tell you that you are hurting yourself by getting any fatter. You lifestyle is bad for your health, and you know it. Deep down you know that being fat is unhealthy for you, even if you don’t admit it openly to others or even to yourself.
Being fat is your choice. Your choice only. So is becoming fit. So choose wisely.
Going from fat to fit isn’t emotionally harder than living as a fat person. I realized this now looking back at my mostly fat and obese life and the journey from obese to fat and then fit. Becoming fit made me struggle with body image issues, I couldn’t see my new fit body, I thought I was going insane. But being fat also had it’s emotional downs, and struggling with emotional issues while reaping the benefits of being healthy was way easier than it was struggling with being fat.
Being fit doesn’t mean spending endless hours on the treadmill or in the gym. I wish I knew this at the start of my weight loss journey. It’s the type of the exercise adjusted to your goal that is important, not the time spent with workout. I fell into the trap of exercising for hours exhausting myself, with no benefits whatsoever. Now my exercise is 3 days at the gym for 1 hours lifting weights, and on the 2 between rest days doing Zumba for faster, active recovery (it helps relieve soreness by stimulating blood flow and improving circulation to the muscles).
Being fit is more about your eating habits than working out. Weight loss is 80% nutrition or what you eat, and 20% exercise, also known as the 80/20 Rule. Yet again, wish I knew this at the start of my weight loss journey.
Being fit doesn’t mean that you can never eat sweets or junk food. Weight loss is more about eating less food than you used to. Just make sure that the healthy foods way overbalance the junk food that you eat.
You can start exercising or get into a sport at any age. There is no such thing as not being born as an athletic type – you make yourself an athletic type by engaging in a sport activity.
You feel awesome and accomplished after a good workout. An intensive workout is exhausting, but after it you feel like you accomplished something. You don’t feel depressed like after you finish stuffing unnecessary sweets in your face in unlimited amounts.

Follow me on my journey from fat to fit girl! Click here>>>

Bulletproof secrets to sticking with Your new year resolution

January 6, 2015Motivation to stay fitafter weight loss, healthy life mindset, motivation, no excuseChristina Marky

Coming up with a new year resolution is easy, and if you are anything like me, you’ve come up with tons of resolutions you’d like to make a reality in the new year. That is really nice, but what can guarantee that you’ll stick with your new year resolution in the long run and won’t drop it after a few weeks into the new year? I have the secret to sticking with your new year resolution right here, that I guarantee that will work:

Secret #1: Make it a habit

Making a new year resolution sets you up for failure if it is not based on observing your current habits. What you need to do is make behavioral changes. In order for you to stick with your new year resolution, you need to make it a habit. By taking up a new healthy habit or substituting an old, existing bad habit with a new healthy habit, you guarantee that you’ll stick with it in the long run. So instead of making new year resolutions, concentrate on developing healthy habits in the new year. There are 2 ways to do this:

Substitute a bad habit with a new, healthy habit
Take up a new healthy habit

It doesn’t matter whichever you choose; the important thing is to think of your new year resolution as a habit. This is key to making you stick to your new year resolution in the long run.

Secret #2: Take up one new healthy habit at a time

As a new year resolution, I started last year with a 30 day challenge of eating at least one fruit per day for 30 days. Seems easy, right? Well, it wasn’t! In order to keep up eating a fruit for 30 days, there were several issues I had to address, that I didn’t see coming. It seemed easy on the first week: I ate an orange, apple or a banana every day for 7 days. Then all the fruit I bought started going bad, because I bought a bunch of fruits that I couldn’t eat in a week. I ended up without fruit at the end of the first week. So I had to change my approach and buy smaller quantities of fruit. Then my appetite got better, and ended up eating more than one fruit per day, and again ended up without fruit at the end of the second week. After the 30 days were over, I figured that I like eating fruit, so I made this challenge a healthy habit and continued eating at least one fruit per day. On the next week, I forgot to buy fruit, because it still wasn’t a healthy habit for me to buy fruit during grocery shopping. Every time I had to write down exactly how much fruit I need to buy and which type during grocery shopping. It needed a lot of adjusting in order for me to develop a healthy habit out of my new year resolution. After 90 days into the new year I remember looking back and thinking about how challenging those past 3 months have been. But I stick to it, adjusted, and finally developed a healthy habit of eating one fruit per day. By making it a healthy habit, after a year, I still eat a fruit a day.

Now imagine yourself with 3 or more new year resolutions that you want to introduce in your life all at once. A simple thing as eating one fruit a day took me 3 months to shift into a healthy habit: I had a lot of adjusting to do until I came up with a right shopping plan that works for me and that doesn’t leave me with spoiled fruit or without fruit. I was ready to introduce a new healthy habit after that. Have I taken up 3 new habits at once, I guarantee I would have failed in all 3 of them in the long run. So figure out one new healthy habit, and when you see that you made it a habit and you can stick to it for more than a month, then move on to the next one.

Introducing 12 new healthy habits this year is quite an achievement, right? Way better than failing at 3 new healthy habits before the end of the first month.

Secret #3: Take it step by step – with small steps

Don’t make a new year resolution that is way too much of a challenge and needs you making huge changes in your life. You won’t be able to stick to any drastic measures in the long run. By making an surrealistic new year resolution, you are setting yourself up for failure.

Let’s say: You decide to lose weight by working out at the gym at least an hour a day 5 times a week while your current workout routine is going to a yoga class 2-3 times a month. It is guaranteed that you won’t be able to maintain that regimen longer than a week because of work and other responsibilities. You feel bad because you failed at the start, and you stuff a pizza, coke and delicious sweets into you face for the next month. You failed because you set yourself an unrealistic goal as a new year resolution. You can’t expect to go from working out once a week to working out 5 times a week. You need to make that shift gradually. First, make it at least 2 times per week to the gym or to that yoga class. Then, when it becomes a habit, raise the bar. Make it 3-4 times a week. You will need to overcome a lot of obstacles and figure out a workout schedule that works for you in a long run. Introducing new healthy habits is only possible if you do it with small steps.

Like these tips? Get more useful quick tips on how to motivate yourself towards a lifestyle full of healthy habits! Click here>>>

From Fat to Fit Girl

coping with changes after weight loss