Finding Inspiration in the Community
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I sort of have this weird hermit thing going on. I have lots of friends that I really enjoy keeping in touch with. I like hanging out with other people and being chatty, doing fun things and what not. But I really like being by myself. A lot. I like doing my own thing, not having to talk to anyone, not having to really check in with anyone outside my immediate family. I am perfectly happy to sit staring blankly at the wall for a few minutes thinking only about those really pretty shoes I saw online the other day.
It was no surprise to me when I decided to start Medifast I cringed at the idea of having to socialize with other Medifasters. I just want to do my own thing and not worry about what other people are doing. Besides, they don't know anything about me. How can they help me?
Well, isn't that narrow-minded of me? How self-serving is that? And then the realization set in that that's another reason I'm fat. Because I am selfish. As humans tend to be, I am very selfish. Being fat and staying fat is probably the most selfish thing I can do to my family. It takes years off my life and takes me away from them. It makes me slow and lazy and creates an awful cycle of behaviors that just make you fatter and fatter.
Beginning Medifast not only means losing weight but losing parts of me. Peeling away those layers that are just suffocating the good stuff that's inside. Ridding myself of bad habits and behaviors that are not conducive to being successful on this plan. The day I was accepted into the program - in my mind - is the day I ran out into the street completely naked, and stopped in front of a crowd of people that were still fully clothed and reading my diary. It was cringe-worthy to say the least. But there I am, on Twitter, Facebook and the MyMedifast message boards all nekkid and ready to talk about how fat I am, my successes, my failures, my shortcomings.
As I began to immerse myself in the program and the social media, I find my self-conscious worries about myself falling away. I find myself not caring that you know I weighed 240lbs because you aren't worried about my weight, you are worried about yours. You don't care how my jeans fit, just that yours don't. I realize the more I support you, the easier it is to support myself. How could I tell you to put that cookie down and then eat one myself? How can I tell you to drink more water when I am still working on my first 8 ounces at noon?
As I watch the support spread through the group, I find I have no reason to remain so selfish and I need and want to join in. There are new moms struggling to lose weight, husbands that don't support their wives efforts, family that poo-poo on people's resolve to change their ways, military wives maintaining households single handedly while their husbands are away, working moms like me with far more demanding jobs than I, people with chronic illness and one woman facing the mortality of the man she loves so dearly.
I've got everything in my corner. My job - most days - is not stressful, I have an amazingly supportive husband, no one has tried to put doubt in my mind about the program and I have amazing friends that cheer me on and talk me down when I get all glassy-eyed over donuts. If these people with all of their struggles can commit to this program and do all that they do and still give so selflessly of themselves to support others, so can I. It's the most positive cycle I've ever entered into in my life. The folks in the Medifast community are some of the most truly supportive folks I've ever encountered.
While this might be my journey and I can be the only one accountable for me, I don't have to carry this burden on my own. Just because we are all so very different, doesn't mean they don't get it. They get it. They get the cravings, the sabotage and war that wages in your brain while you fight to succeed and the food fights to drag you back down. My Medifast people will talk me out of destructive behaviors, lift me up when I am down and lift me even higher when I have accomplished even the smallest things. We divide the load for each other when one just can't handle it on their own. Our goals may vary but it's all the same end-game. They get it and they want to see you succeed. I know I will succeed because of the support they give me. I hope that I can return the favor ten-fold - even if it means I have to take five minutes out of my busy schedule of staring at the walls and thinking about shoes. ;)
Thanks to hard work and the encouragement of my Medifast friends, I have lost a total of 19.6 lbs in 7 weeks. I honestly believe if I did not have these people I would not be as far along as I am. The community is integral to the success of the program. I hope we'll see you there. :)
Week two: -5 lbs
Week three: -1 lbs
Week four: -3 lbs
Week five: -0 lbs
Week six: -2 lbs
Week seven: -1.6 lbs
Total: 19.6 lbs gone forever!
Week three: -1 lbs
Week four: -3 lbs
Week five: -0 lbs
Week six: -2 lbs
Week seven: -1.6 lbs
Total: 19.6 lbs gone forever!
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*FTC Disclosure: Medifast provides their products for my personal use for free. I am not paid or compensated in any other way for mentioning their products. All thoughts written here are mine. I love complaining so I would tell you if I didn't like something in the program. :)
~*Censide aka Building Our Story*~
