I had done IIFYM (with heavy emphasis on the “fits”), Weight Watchers, a stint as a vegetarian, keto, counting calories, etc. I had some success with macros and counting calories. This “success” came with the same 20 pound weight-loss-weight-gain-cycle for many years.

Until now…

I finally managed to lose (and keep off!) 25 pounds. It took me 18 months of inconsistency. I was stuck at 215 pounds. Hey, I wasn’t 240 pounds anymore, but I was still overweight and uncomfortable in my skin.

After an unexpected IBD diagnosis in June 2023 and 4 months of steroids and medications, I finally decided I needed help and accountability. I would make whatever sacrifices I needed to to get my life back on track. I couldn’t let life keep passing me by. My favorite jeans that had been in my wardrobe capsule for many years would not even go up my thighs. (If you’re seeing this blog post via email, take a look at my website for the cover photo to see the photo of the jeans. The “before” photo was taken in May 2023 and the “after” photo was taken on April 8, 2024.)

I drove by Total Fitness & Nutrition almost every day on my way to Dunkin’, Honey Dew, Starbucks, McDonalds, Darby’s – basically any place that would give me food so I didn’t have to cook. (I work from home so this was my routine every single day!)

At my “worst”, I would go to Starbucks for a venti iced brown sugar oatmilk shaken espresso and an impossible breakfast sandwich, then I’d swing by McDonalds for 2 hash browns and a large diet coke, and then to complete the food excursion, Darby’s for a cinnamon roll, 3-4 cookies, 1-2 cupcakes, and 2 focaccia pizzas. All of this food would be eaten as breakfast and snacks, maybe lunch if I had any food left over. I’d have to fight the urge to eat the cookie I’d save for my after dinner dessert all day and sometimes the urge would win. I was not working out at all during this part of my life except for the occasional, low intensity walks.

Anyways, I digress…

I remember driving by TFN one day and seeing women in the front flipping tires and working out using heavy-duty ropes. I was in awe. That was it. That was what I wanted. I had always loved going to the gym, lifting as heavy as possible, and feeling like a total badass. I just wanted to feel like that again. 

I reached out to Steff in the beginning of September 2023. We talked on the phone for 40 minutes. I remember getting off the phone and thinking, “She is exactly who I need to help me feel like myself again. She has the tough love to get me where I want to be”.

I told Steff that I wanted personal training and nutrition. We were able to start personal training the week after, but she needed some time to get to know me, to learn what I typically ate in a day, and to research my type of IBD so she could provide me with the best nutritional approach. I was so appreciative that Steff wanted to do that for me because the nutritionist I had met with in July hadn’t helped me much with my flare and I was miserable. 

I began the nutrition component on September 25 for 12 weeks. It was difficult to go from how I had been eating (90% of my meals were fast food, takeout, or microwavable) to following Steff’s protocols.

I did it though. I remained consistent and disciplined. I think I surprised everyone, including myself.

I remember trying to negotiate with Steff at the end of the 12 weeks: Just let me have 2 weeks off so I can enjoy the holidays and then I’ll get right back into it on January 1! We both knew exactly what I would do with time off: I’d resume my 3-restaurants-a-day bingers.

I had made a lot of physical progress in Session #1, but I hadn’t made a lot of mental progress yet. Session #2 started immediately after Session #1 ended. No time off.

At this point, I upped my workouts. I was doing 3, 30-minute personal training sessions with Steff from September through December. In January, I switched to 3, 45-minute personal training sessions plus a group class. I did this because I wanted even more time with the weights (squats, deadlifts, bench press, etc.) and the only way to safely get more time with the weight, is to increase the amount of time in the gym.

Some may think that her protocols are extreme, but I lost weight in a sustainable way. And when you have a lot of weight to lose, the scale tends to drop much faster in the beginning than towards the end.

It’s important to remember that

• I still enjoy the holidays with my family.
• I still go out to eat with friends.
• I went to the Bahamas in February for my 30th birthday and didn’t track anything I ate (except one protein bar/day to keep my My Fitness Pal streak alive – I’ll talk more about this in another post).

Steff is great at making sure I don’t lose out on memories.

And guess what else? My new eating lifestyle stopped my IBD flare in its tracks. I still have flares, but they last 1-2 days instead of 4 months. I would call that a significant improvement.

Here are some of my protocols:

• No added sugar (if it has sugar, fiber must be higher than sugar)
• Macro split of 45% protein, 30% carb, 25% fat at 1,500 calories
• No white foods (white bread, white rice, white potatoes)
• Complex carbs for breakfast and lunch only
• No candy
• No fried food

It has not been a walk in the park. I have moments where I want to say, “Screw this, just let me eat what I want”, but I realize now that it’s hard to be fit, but it’s even harder (speaking from my own experience here) to be fat.

It has been ~29 weeks since I’ve made this change. I save money in takeout and daily breakfast runs (imagine how much Starbucks, McDonalds, and Darby’s would cost me in one day!), but I make up for it at the grocery store. My quality of life has improved. My confidence has come back.

I’m 4 weeks into my third, 12-week session with Steff. I’m excited to see how my body recomps in the next couple of months. I’d love to be done with dieting phase and enter maintenance, but my body is still holding onto quite a bit of pudge in my midsection.

If you’re smart about your dieting phase, it won’t last forever. I’ve learned that small sacrifices now makes it so that I don’t spend years yo-yoing.

I remember when I was doing this on my own and I’d give in to hunger. This only prolonged my dieting phase. Dieting is uncomfortable and it challenges you. I think too many people (Fat Kate included!) throw in the towel when they get hungry. There’s a difference between physical hunger and mental hunger and there’s a fine line that divides the two.

Now that I’m getting closer to “the end”, it’s getting harder for me to lose the weight. My activity level is on-point (4-5 workouts/week) so what does that leave? Nutrition. I’ve had to learn the difference between eating to fuel my body and eating because I’m bored/just because I feel like it. At my heaviest weight I was probably eating 3,000 calories a day and now I’m eating 1,500. Am I hungry? Yes. My family used to joke that I had tapeworm growing up because I was always hungry. But these are the calories my body needs right now to continue dropping weight. (Do I voice my displeasure to Steff and anyone who will listen to me? Yes… But like I said, small sacrifices!)

Eventually, Steff will reverse me back up in calories so my maintenance calories will be closer to 2,000 (Steff, if you’re reading this, how about 2,500? Just sayin’… haha).

The dieting phase eventually ends and the new lifestyle you’ve learned helps you maintain all those pounds and inches you lost. Huzzah! Just hold on.

If you’re interested in working with Steff, please reach out to her via her website.

What worked for your weight loss journey? What isn’t working for you?

See you Friday!
~ K