New Goals!

Yes, I finally reached my weight goal of 150, but I am not ready to stop there. I feel so much better, and have so much energy. I want to push myself to go further. So, I am setting myself a few more goals:

1. I am going to finish the Couch 2 5K running program and run my first 5K. I am planning to run one at the end of the month with some friends. I am so excited.

2. I am going to lose 13 more pounds. Why 13 pounds? If I lose 13 more pounds, I can say that I lost 100 pounds! That is not the only reason though. Losing 13 more pounds would put me at 137 pounds. I haven't weighed in the 130's since I was 16. Please don't get me wrong! I am at my "Happy Weight" and I am so proud of myself for getting here, but I still see the areas I need to work on. I plan to look AmAzInG in my bathing suit this year.

3. Last, but not least: This is not really a goal, but more like a promise to myself....I will NEVER EVER let myself look like I did 2 years ago EVER again!!!!

P.S. Thank you all for reading my blog and for all the sweet comments you gave me for reaching my goal weight! I couldn't have done it with you!

I DID IT!!!

I am SO happy that I can finally write this post....

I DID IT!!! I have finally reached my goal weight! 150 pounds! I lost 87 pounds!!! I am so excited! It has been a really long journey, and has taken me a really long time to get here! Several of you have followed me from my very first, embarrassing post (you can read here. http://ali-fattofabulous.blogspot.com/2011/07/my-journey-begins.html ) to this post. I want to say thank you so much for the advice, compliments, and encouragement you have all given me along the way! I do not think I would have been able to do this without this blog and without all of my friends and family supporting me along the way. Losing weight is not easy, but it helps when you have people behind you cheering you on. I appreciate you all so much! So here is a before and after picture...



For all of you out there reading this, that think you can't do it, YOU CAN!!!! Just don't give up. It took me almost 2 years, but I never gave up. I am a different person than I was 2 years ago. The person I was two years ago was a sad, depressed, lazy, shy individual. I didn't want to go anywhere or do anything. I hated myself. Today, I am a much healthier, happier, more confident, more outgoing, more energetic person. I am loving my life right now!

I have actually set some new goals for myself. I will post more on those later, but right now I am just happy to be able to say, "I DID IT!!!" Thanks again for reading and cheering me on as I WENT from FAT TO FABULOUS!!! :):)

P.S. Also, I did WIN the Biggest Loser competition at Fun 2B Fit! :)

WooHoo!!!!

I know I said I wasn't going to post again until I reached my goal weight. I am REALLY REALLY close, but not quite there. However, I have reached one of my goals and I am so excited about it I had to post. In January 2012, I posted a picture of my "dream jeans". Those jeans that I had and have never been able to get into to. Well........................................



This is ME WEARING THEM!!!!!! :):):)

Swimsuit, Shorts, Tank Tops Oh my!!!

This COLD, snowy weather has me dreaming of sunshine and summertime. I have always dreaded summertime because I knew that meant swimsuits, shorts, and tank tops. This year I am finally looking forward to it. I am still not where I want to be, but I know I can get there. I plan on spending a whole lot of time at the pool this summer, and hopefully make a trip or two to the beach! It's time to get my booty in gear. I am going to start tanning and taking more Zumba toning classes. I hope that I will be swimsuit ready come May. :) I have a Victoria's Secret swimsuit picked out that I am going to order if when I get to a certain weight. I have never spent a lot of money on a bathing suit, so that is going to be my reward! I can't wait to be relaxing on the beach, kindle in my hands, and my feet in the sand! :)

Also, I have decided that I will not be posting on my blog again until I can post that I have reached my goal weight! So be watching! Hopefully if won't be too long! :)

Am I the Biggest Loser????

Macedonia's Biggest Loser

Well, the results are in...............Am I the biggest loser???????

Nope. Not this year. I am the second biggest loser. I will take that. In 8 weeks, I lost 11 pounds, 6.6% of my weight. I know I didn't work as hard as I could have. I had a few not so great weeks during the competition that hurt me, so to finish second place is okay with me. Now I am focused on winning the Biggest Loser title at FUN 2B FIT. Going to kick it in high gear from here on out. Look out FUN 2B FIT ladies.....I love y'all, but I am on a mission to WIN!!! 2nd place is not an option. :)

How I am losing Weight

I have had several people come up to me and ask, "What are you doing? How are you losing your weight?" So here goes....

1. Exercise. I try to do an hour of Zumba 3 times a week. I also try to walk for an hour on days I don't have Zumba, when weather permits.

2. I have cut back my calories. I try to stay around 1,100 calories a day. I have recently started keeping a food journal to stay on track. I also try not to eat past 5 pm. This has always worked well for me.

3. Drink water. This is one that I struggle with. I am trying to do better.

Eat right and exercise! Unfortunately there is no secret trick to losing weight. Believe me, if there was I would know about it. Not giving up and staying on track is the hardest part of a diet, for me.


How to Start:

No more saying, "Tomorrow, I will start a diet." Start today! Right now! First, you need to set a goal. Where do you want to be? What is your ultimate goal weight? Visualize what you want to look like. Make a plan that suits you. How many calories are you going to consume every day? What kind of exercise are you going to do and how long every day? Make a cut off time. "I will not eat past ___ o'clock." Decide how many glasses or bottles of water you are going to drink every day. Do things to motivate you!!! Hang your dream jeans (those jeans you want to get in one day) where you can see them. Make Pounds to Go and Pounds Gone jars (Fill a jar with stones representing the pounds you have to lose. Move the stones to the pounds gone jar as you lose them). Hang a picture on the fridge of how you used to look. Post motivational sayings aound your house. Start a blog of your own. Keep a journal. Find a workout buddy. Start a ZUMBA class. I recommend Fun 2B Fit in Underwood if you live in the Florence, AL area. Most importantly you have to believe in yourself and be determined to reach your goal!! Also, remember it took time to put it on, it will take time to get it off! Trust me, if I can do this, ANYONE can!!! Good Luck! You got this!!! :)

The Dreaded Cake Walk!!!

Why do my boys have to be so lucky!?!?!?

My plan to stay on track until I reached my goal weight went down the drain today!! We had a benefit fish fry today at church, and we always have a cake walk. My boys LOVE to walk in it. Today they won 2 pans of brownies, a cookie cake, and 6 cupcakes. Unfortunately, I gave in to the temptation and ate a piece of cookie cake. :( Not good!!! Especially since this week is one of the weigh in weeks for Biggest Loser at Fun 2B Fit! Then tonight we had my mother a surprise party at Logans. Again, I could not resist temptation!!! I had to eat peanuts and a roll. :( Other than that I did just eat a baked potato (loaded) :( On the upside, I did not eat a piece of birthday cake. So with the fish, fries, hushpuppies, cookie cake, peanuts, roll, and loaded baked potato today was not the best diet day!! Back on track tomorrow!!

Stay the Course!!

"Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall." ~Confucius~


It is so easy to get off track while dieting. One bad diet day leads to two, then three. Before you know it a week has gone by and you realize you have lost 7 days of opportunity to get off some more weight. Then you get SO disappointed in yourself. At least that is how it goes for me. That is exactly what happened to me this past week. I didn't completely blow my diet, I just didn't really try to lose either. To me that was a wasted week! When you get off track, you can make one of two choices: GIVE UP or START BACK WITH A VENGENCE!!! Being this close to my goal weight, it would be so stupid of me to give up now. I have worked so hard to get this far. Giving up is not an option. So that leaves choice number two, START BACK WITH A VENGENCE!!! Which is what I intend to do. I hope if you have had a bad week, a bad day, or even a bad month you will NOT give up! Giving up is probably the easier of the two options, but easier is not always better. The truth is if I had stayed on track since the day I began this blog, I would have been at my goal weight several months ago. If you have been following my blog since the beginning you know that I have had bad days, weeks, and yes, months, BUT I have never given up. I have always eventually got myself back on track and I am so proud I did. After my last wasted week I have decided, NOW is the time to START BACK WITH A VENGENCE! Now it is time to STAY THE COURSE!! Now it is time for me to finally reach my goal weight! I will not GIVE UP! I will NOT stop!! I will NOT fall of track again! I am too close to getting where I want to be! GIVING UP IS NOT AN OPTION!!!

So here are a few new things I am going to start doing...

1. Keep a food journal. (No, I haven't been doing this.)
I know how important this is while dieting. I am surprised I have done so well without this, but now I am going to start.

2. Drink Water! (No, I have not been doing this either!)
Again, I know how important this is not just while dieting, but all the time. I just am not a water drinker, except while exercising. Now is the time to start!

3. Stop eating past 5 o'clock. (I have done this!)
I have always done well when I stick to this rule, but I haven't been doing it lately. It is time to start back.

I hope that by adding these three rules to my diet plan, I will reach my goal weight by the end of this month. Thanks again for reading my blog and for liking my new Fat to Fabulous facebook page. AND REMEMBER.......

Continuing the Journey

I have some pretty exciting news to share tonight.

First, I want to say "Thank You!" again to all of my readers for supporting me along the way. Many of you have been reading from my very first post. I appreciate that so much. I posted a picture a year ago of me and my cousin, Heather. We got together Friday night and took a new picture. Some of you may have seen it on facebook, but for those of you that did not....

I am so proud of what we have accomplished in the past year. We were talking about how a year ago if you had told us we would be where we are today, we would have thought you were crazy. Heather is a Turbo Kick instructor and is running 9 miles at a time now. She is working her way up to a half marathon. (So proud of you, girl). I am loving my Zumba. I have so much more energy and feel so much better about myself. It is amazing what a difference a year can make.

Next, I had my first Biggest Loser weigh in at Fun 2B Fit and I am one of the top five "losers" so far. We have weigh in's throughout the competition to see how everyone is doing. Congrats to all the other competitors. Keep it up ladies!! Everyone is doing great!!!

Last, I have started a Facebook page similiar to my blog. It will be easier for me to post quick updates and information on it than the blog. I am not going to stop blogging, the FB page is just another way for me to stay motivated and keep my awesome readers informed. Also, I would love for you to post about any diet success you may have, fitness tips, motivational quotes, recipes, etc on my page. So be sure to go like my page and keep reading!!! :) Thanks everyone!!!

Biggest Loser

Just a quick update:

Right now, I am in the middle of two Biggest Loser competitions. I am going to try to win them both. :) I still have yet to reach my goal weight, but hopefully by the end of the competitions I will be there! I went in Target the other day and saw they have already starting putting out bathing suits!! I have big plans to look AMAZING this summer!!! I can't wait to go to the beach and NOT feel like a beached WHALE! No, I will not be wearing an itty, bitty, yellow, polka dot bikini, but I will be looking FaBuLoUs in a one piece. ;)