Why I'm Never Dieting Again: #MealPrepMami
“That evening, we asked ourselves, “Will there ever be an end to dieting?””
I remember a few years ago, I was in my friend’s apartment in NE and we put together a quaint and impromptu vision board party. She lived right above Walmart, and we decided to include cupcake decorating- it was perfect. On my vision board, I included a cutout from a magazine that read “death to dieting.” When I presented my own board, and we dissected every pasted quote on my black cardboard masterpiece, that one stuck out to both she and I.
My friend and I are both full-figured women. In fact, 95% of women in my life are rather dense. For both she and I, we have openly discussed our struggles with weight. We battled our big weight gains, we felt emaciated at lows to the point of feeling like a bobble head, and we continue to fight our cravings and sugary temptations. Among it all, we have continued to remain constant positive lights during both of our effervescent journeys with weight. That evening, we asked ourselves, “Will there ever be an end to dieting?”
In October 2016, I joined my current studio, my gymly (Uju-ism: gym-family), Elevate Interval Fitness. Elevate has given so much to me through the course of time that I have been an involved member. Within the first three months of my membership, I lost 20 pounds. I thought that was it. I thought I had kicked the curse, and the hard work I put in would stick. I thought the scale would freeze. However, I was yet to face my biggest adversary.
The holidays. The holidays came around, I returned home, and slowly, but surely, old habits ensued. By the end of that following Spring, May 2017, I was up 40 pounds. I gained what I lost, and then some. I quite literally amassed a great amount of weight in record time. In all fairness, I was in a very depressive state, and I should have recognized the signs. Of course, hindsight is always clearer, and knowing what I know now, I would have made changes a lot sooner.
Real Life Candid Footage of the Struggle
Whilst my studio membership was clearly frozen at that point in time, and I actually didn’t reactivate it until the following January of 2018 (that’s how much of a slump I was in), it was my nutrition that KICKED MY WHOLE BEHIND. Oh my gosh. What was I eating? I wish you could understand how many free pizzas I got from my Domino’s rewards. That’s how much pizza I ate. Mind you, I am also extremely lactose intolerant, but I didn’t care! I ate and ordered food so late, that I even feel asleep while an order was en route. I was immobile, reclusive, and discouraged. I thought I was so far gone, to the point of no return, that I might as well embraced my new body.
January 2018, I vowed to turn my life around in the direction of my former athlete self. Meal prepping changed my life. I started with SunBasket. I received partially prepared meals that were smaller portions, healthy options, and respectful of all of my intolerances. May 2018: I reemerged from 240+ (because at that point I didn’t even want to own a scale) to 208. This is was a major feat for me, mind you.
My first big weight loss was my junior year of high school during lacrosse season where I lost 30 pounds, and went down to 180. I looked like a bobble head (very positively, of course). Senior year, my body balanced out, and I maintained a solid 190. That is where I felt completely comfortable in my womanly shape. So, for me to reach 208 in my 20’s, I was very pleased. I have since gone below the 200’s, and I applaud myself with the deterioration of every painstaking pound (losing weight in much more difficult as you get older- FYI!!), but it’s not easy. I have my highs, I have my lows, and it is very tasking. It is draining mentally, and physically.
But, I found my groove. I always say I can’t cook. (I can bake the hell out of an oven- but I had to leave that in Jersey.) This is because my sister and my one cousin are the true chefs in the family. HOWEVER, I cook for entertainment and necessity. I am quite the host (your modern-day mocha Martha Stewart). That is where I found joy and motivation in my social series #MealPrepMami. I created and took to the moniker because it pushed me further along. Having others anticipate, inquire, participate in my journey encouraged me to stay consistent.
Following SunBasket, I graduated to a nutritionist as I seriously prepared and trained for my pageant. If a week or so passed and my followers didn’t see what I cooked next, there were questions! I kept meals simple, interesting, colorful, AND PRAGMATIC. The foods I cook(ed) had to be foods I could eat living a life on the GO. I’m going, ya’ll! My weight loss journey birthed Meal Prep Mami. While I am not usually where I quite want to be, I haven’t given up. I haven’t dieted in a long time, because in January 2018, I committed myself to a lifestyle change. Meal prepping changed my life.