Fat Mom to Fit Mom

Everything has a beginning, every book, every life, every journey. There is always a start. Your fitness journey will/or did also. Do you have a before picture? Do you have a physical way to remember the way you were before? Do you have a way to visually measure and see the difference your efforts have made? I can personally tell you that having that before picture makes all the difference when you’re busting your butt or when you feel like you are spinning your wheels for nothing, or when that plate of cookies looks so yummy. Empower yourself with a before picture today. Go find those jeans that you keep avoiding to get rid of because you WILL fit in them one day. Put them on, even if they only pull up to your knees and take a picture. Use your phone, no one else has to see it. It exists to empower you and to help you see the changes when you feel hopeless or like you want to give up.
my before picture:

I’m not proud of the way I look here. This was taken May of 2008 and I am 201 lbs here. I had my baby girl in March of 2008 and well ya know I’ve already been on this soap box. But something about this picture- it now lives on every one of my business cards I hand out. My 19 month old daughter held my business card and pointed at my current picture and said “Mommy!” then I asked her who was in my before picture. She stared at it, then shrugged her shoulders and said “I dunno!”. Wow, my baby doesn’t know that woman, and I never want her to.

My current picture:

60lbs lost and feeling like a rockstar!

So I never thought I’d EVER post pictures of myself anywhere, let alone the internet- where ANYONE can see them. I’m kinda a private person, but I have learned the benefit of taking and posting my before and current pictures.
I had initially resisted because i thought it would be so embarrassing for people to see me especially in a bikini. And its online so my nephews or my pastor or my husbands co-workers could see them! But I did it, i took a leap of faith and I did it because I realize two things. 1-People needed to see the change and 2-I needed to see it too.
You can tell people all you want about the benefits of getting fit or how awesome a workout is or how eating clean makes you feel, but when it comes down to it, when I slap down my business card with my pictures on them thats when I get a response. They can see the change. I wholeheartily agree that the change inside is soo much greater then what can be seen outside, but what I display outside is my only way to communicate the wonderful changes inside. I have blogged before of how I felt physically and emotionally before the fat loss, but no words can really do them justice so I can give you my pictures.
In seeing the responses and people telling me how motivating my success was being for them, I became a believer in posting pictures.

We are the only one who is with ouorselves every minute of the day. We are the ones who see ourselves in the mirror, we are the ones who can feel that bulge over our pants when we sit. We are the ones who notice the jiggly or bumpy or whatever on ourselves. Something I noticed is that the self critiquing, though is lessens and the focus shifts, it’s still there. I don’t hate myself anymore. I don’t get depressed and cry endlessly because nothing will zip or sit right, but It is so easy for me to feel like I am back at square one and feel like I look yucky because that old fat Rossy is still in there deep inside and she tries to come out and bring new Rossy down and she is so sly sometimes. But I am empowered with that before picture. I know I am a different woman now, because I can see it!

Well? Go take your picture! You’ll be so happy you did!