My overeating and weight loss journey

My thoughts on overeating and weight loss

I was approaching my 40th birthday and morbidly obese.

I existed in a state of embarrassment and shame.

Common thoughts at the time were…

“How much more weight do I need to gain before the weight gain stops?”
”I hope I don’t die at this weight, the ultimate humiliation would be having the pallbearers struggle to lift my coffin at my funeral”
“How did I become such a failure?”

I had a lovely home, two amazing children, a solid marriage, a successful business – no traumatic childhood.

I also used to think…

“Anyone hearing about my life will think I am a success – anyone looking at me will think I am a disaster”

I felt so capable in so many areas of my life, work, and family, and yet so incompetent at something that, I thought, should be relatively straight forward.

Losing weight and keeping it off!

My weight had fluctuated since my teens. I grew up in a family that overate healthily, all fresh home cooked meals, but large quantities of food. Mine was also a family where meals and food were a huge part of life. My parents both worked long hours and we ate out regularly.

I was larger than my friends during my teen years at school. I used to think…

“Please don’t include me in the photo. I’ll spoil it!”

From memory I developed the skill of overeating during long school holidays when I was home alone and bored because I didn’t know what to do with myself. I would make anything that I could find ingredients for, usually cakes or creamy, cheesy pasta dishes.

Then, when I went to university, I lost weight easily. Life was exciting an adventure waiting to happen. I did a lot walking, met my future husband, fell in love and at age 21 was truly slim.

Then I got married, started working, studied to further my skills, we saved to buy our first house. Life was good, but hard work and with no money to do exciting things I fell into the pattern of bingeing on unhealthy snacks and watching rented videos from Blockbusters.

I gained and lost a couple of stone several times over the next six years.

I then had my son, gained more weight, lost a little, and then gained again when I was pregnant with my daughter.

In the year after my daughter was born I lost four stone following a very low calorie diet that consisted of shakes and bars. I felt great and desperately hoped that I wouldn’t put the weight back on again when I started to eat ‘normally’, but of course I did.

Another 3 years later and I was five and half stone heavier. At this point, I hated…

Social occasions
Shopping
Photos with my children
Beach holidays
Hot weather

Many of the things in life that should have been a source of joy.

I then again lost and gained the same two or three stone several times over the next five years!

Dieting was quite traumatic. I would have so much hope and anticipation that this time I would do it. Until I didn’t. And then the despair and disappointment would kick in.

During these years I would devour stories of other peoples’ weight loss success. What was the turning point for them? What made them make the switch?

Most seemed to have a profound defining moment, whether it be a health scare, the desire to run around with their children, or the dreaded post-holiday photo. I would have obsessive thoughts swirling around in my head about this. What will do it for me?

Then, suddenly, after another failed attempt to stick to a healthy eating plan I sort of gave up.

I thought…

‘‘I will not put losing weight at a higher priority than looking after my kids and doing the work required to maintain our finances”
“I have a slow metabolism – from all the years of yo-yo dieting”
“It’s in my genes, my Dad’s overweight, my grandma was overweight”
“I’m so lucky in all other areas of my life, this is just going to be my thing, my flaw. It’s just the way it is.”

During this phase. I started to be a little nicer to myself. I didn’t beat myself up quite so much. I felt I had a little more head space.

And then I kind of stumbled across something that was going to be life changing.

I discovered how to approach weight loss through life coaching.

And I loved it!

For so many reasons.

I discovered that…

"Being thin didn’t equate to having a great life"
"It is so much easier to lose weight when you are kind and lovely to yourself"
"I have so much more energy when I don’t overeat"
"I didn’t need to eat food to make me feel better when something stressful happened at work"
"The highlight of my day should not be eating dinner!"
"When you suss out why you desire food so much, making healthy food choices and not overeating is easy!"
And importantly, that "it’s all about managing your mind"

I got rid of all the thoughts I’d been having around food and weight loss since my teens and created a whole new empowering mind set.

I had not felt so passionate about something for a long time!

As I lost weight, without deprivation and wanting to self-sabotage, for the first time ever…I developed total freedom around food and eating, and a new sense of purpose.

And then I knew with 100% certainty that I wanted to help other women do the same. If it was possible for me, it was possible for anyone.

And since then, well life’s certainly been more interesting.

I love everything about life coaching!

I love that there’s a whole way of living that enables me to evolve into coming a better version of myself every day. The better I become, the more I do the work the more I can help other women address whatever life throws at them.

I’m now in the very fortunate position to have had the opportunity to coach hundreds of women, and a few men, from all around the globe, from South Africa to Korea, from New Zealand to France.

And I love it.

I love coaching on weight loss, relationships, stopping over drinking, even coaching on coaching! It’s so much fun and so rewarding.