How Did I Do It?

I was putting away the dishes yesterday, and I opened the cabinet where I keep my Optifast products -- the shakes and soups -- and my extracts and sugar-free Jello and shaker bottle. And I stopped for a moment and asked myself, "Melissa, how in the world did you do this for 9 1/2 months?!" Then I thought about the weekly weigh-ins, and how slowly I lost my weight, and avoiding the restaurants and social gatherings for a long, long time. I did what I had to do, and it worked, but it was indeed a long haul.

Honestly, there are times when I have no idea how I was able to hang in with the full fast for so long. Temptation was everywhere -- heck, I was cooking full-tilt gourmet food for my husband every night! I got tired of the bi-weekly blood draws, sick of shopping for smaller clothes (if you can believe it!), upset with the random cravings, frustrated with exercising. Yet something carried me through. I think it was deep, deep inside me. Day by day, I kept going, pound by pound, inch by inch, I kept losing. I think I tried to always keep a positive outlook on things. There would be an end of the tunnel. I would feel a great sense of accomplishment. My body would thank me. I would be "right-sized" again. The benefits clearly outweighed the costs. So I faithfully stayed the course.

Time did indeed start to fly by. March 23 will mark one year that I have been enrolled in the Optifast program, and frankly, I have no idea where the time went. Now, this could be because I am older. I have found with each passing year, time just whizzes by. But it is indeed true that the months started "melting" into one another, and the days racked up, and then, there it was: Eighty pounds gone. At last.

I mentioned on the Facebook Optifast Chat Support page today that one of the benefits of being on Optifast and losing your weight slowly is, with food removed completely from the equation, you are able to devote a significant amount of time researching and reading and talking and listening about the things you need to do to maintain your goal weight. I had countless sessions with the dietitians, and attended many classes on weight management, plus had a chance to make wonderful friendships -- both at the clinic and online -- with others going through the program. All of this is helping me with maintenance. I know I've just started on this new phase of my journey, but I feel well-prepared because I had time to get the "tools" I need to keep this weight off for good.

It took years to become obese, and less than a year to get healthy again. But my journey is not over. Far, far from it. As you know, I still keep very, very close to the clinic, weighing in there once a week, attending class, seeing the dietitian. Keeping in touch with other patients I have met. I like inspiring those who are just starting the program. Helping them helps me too. I hope my patience and persistence might inspire others to stay the course -- it feels wonderful when you reach the finish line, and I want everyone to experience that.

So I guess I was able to reach goal due to a number of factors. It's multi-faceted. But I did it. Today I am going to move my Optifast "supplies" to a higher cupboard. I don't need them in arm's reach now. No, I am not going to throw them away just yet. It's like my old clothes that no longer fit anymore -- I was hesitant to get rid of them because what if I might need them some day? But I think eventually I may be able to let the products go. We'll see. That's a new goal. Thank you Optifast. You worked, I worked and we made it. Now as for maintaining...onward we go!