Five Weight Loss Promises to Myself

Today I am embarking on my postpartum weight loss journey.  I have weighed myself for the first time since giving birth, I've dusted off my workout gear, and I'm ready.  But!  Before I start this adventure, I'm setting boundaries.  Weight loss is an incredibly emotional journey, in addition to the physical transformation - A woman can ruin her self-esteem and create unrealistic goals for herself that will only set her up for failure... I won't do that to myself.  Below are my "Five Weight Loss Promises to Myself" - my boundaries for both my physical and emotional well-being:

I will love myself, no matter what.

Society sets women up for serious self-esteem issues and the levels of self-hate running through many woman because of their weight is disgusting.  I don't care how "chubby" I may be, I will love myself for who I am.  My weight loss is for health reasons, not to fit into a tiny bikini.  Yes, looking great in a pair of skinny jeans will be awesome, but that's not why I'm doing this.  I'm doing this to be in a position where I can keep up with my kids and live a long, healthy life.

This is a lifestyle change - not a diet.

I can't do diets.  They are restrictive and NOT fun.  If this is going to work, this is a change of my eating habits and lifestyle - this is permanent, not a fad, and it will be a slow process of figuring out what works, and cutting out what doesn't.  If I treat this as a diet, I'll likely end up miserable and need "cheat" days to keep it up - that's not the goal here.  This is changing my approach to eating and fitness in a way that is sustainable.

I will workout.

I was on workout restrictions starting at 9 weeks during my pregnancy, so it's been close to a YEAR since I tried any form of fitness routine.  This won't be easy to start up again, because I can tell that I've lost a lot of strength and endurance - But that's okay!  We all start somewhere.  I am committed to working out and slowly building to where I was before.

I accept that this won't happen overnight.

Expecting immediate results isn't realistic.  In fact, doing so will probably make me thoroughly disappointed.  It took me 10 months to gain these extra 30 pounds, and thinking that I'll get them all off in less time than that is just ridiculous.  I'm in this for the long haul and I will be patient with my body as it gets back to a healthy place.

I will not be victim to the scale.

I weighed myself today.  I will not return to that scale until next week.  Daily weigh-in's are crazy to me - I've done it before and it wasn't good for my emotional health.  Our bodies fluctuate so much and depending on daily numbers can make you a slave to your scale.  I won't do it.  Every Saturday - that's it.  No more.  Plus, there are so many other ways to track your progress - how your clothing fits, measuring, etc.

At the end of the day, any person's weight loss journey is intensely personal and we all have different limits.  These are my promises to myself - What are yours?