from
Book One: Habits
So to introduce myself: I'm a woman in my 30s, and I've always liked optimizing things. I've lived with T1D since childhood, but I never really managed to control it satisfactorily. It was much worse during my teenage years, when I was definitely depressed, but now it is much better controlled. Still not perfect, but good enough that it doesn't scare me or eat up all my energy trying to manage it.
I've always struggled with my weight and body image and never really felt "fit." During my PhD, I got really into cardio, which kind of became an obsession where I felt like I had to do it every single day. I lost some weight and settled around 68 kg (150 lbs). I also occasionally did Darebee programs, sometimes consistently for years before changing something and becoming overwhelmed. I think I've always struggled with my mood and motivation, but after a particularly difficult period in my personal life a few years ago, I slowly got my life back together and have been much more stable ever since.
Eventually, I stopped doing cardio every day and gradually became more inactive. The pounds slowly kept piling on. After finishing my PhD, I didn't really feel like I belonged anywhere. I knew I didn't want to stay in academia and spent some time looking for a job.
Eventually, I found an interesting career in industry. For a while, I had to move back in with my parents until I found my own place. However, I couldn't really structure my day-to-day life anymore. Between commuting, adjusting to a desk job, and being in a long-distance relationship, I barely had the energy to do anything besides working. I looked forward to spending my free time sleeping. I also developed quite a habit of drinking zero-sugar soda.
After moving into my own apartment, life became a little easier, but by then I had gained around 10 kg (22 lbs).
I'm 161 cm (5'3"), and at my heaviest I weighed around 84 kg (185 lbs). I felt sluggish and unhappy.
Recently, my siblings and I realized the year was already flying by, so we each set ourselves a few goals for the next half year. I had already started improving my eating habits and moving more about a week earlier, and I finally felt motivated again. It's only been about a month, but I already have some results and, more importantly, I feel happier, more motivated, and more satisfied with life again.
Each of us set three goals. Mine are (I prefer measurable goals):
To keep myself accountable, I track my weight and log my calories every day, aiming to stay below my calorie target most of the time. I also use my Garmin watch to keep an eye on my activity and estimated calories burned. Reaching my step goal has become a fun little challenge, and I've started looking for opportunities to walk more throughout the day. One of the nicest changes has been going for a long, relaxing walk after work. Sometimes I need the excuse of wanting to hit my step goal to get myself out the door, but once I'm outside, I'm always glad I went.
I weigh myself every morning, but not always in the same way. My scale has an "eyes closed" mode where it records my weight without showing it to me. I can still look it up later in the app if I want to. As a woman, my weight can fluctuate quite a bit from day to day, and seeing a higher number first thing in the morning can sometimes be unnecessarily demotivating. On days when I know my mood would be affected by a "bad weight" I simply use the invisible weight mode instead. That way I still collect the data without letting a single weigh-in affect my mood.
Because of my T1D, I've always had to pay attention to nutrition labels, but this time I'm much more mindful about my food choices. Tracking everything helps me make better decisions. Even if I have something a bit more indulgent, I usually balance it out with a healthier meal later. I weigh most of my food during the week, although I don't do that on weekends when I'm staying with my boyfriend. So far, that balance has been working well for me.
See you in Book Two: Growth.
Edit: Spelling mistakes.
I've always struggled with my weight and body image and never really felt "fit." During my PhD, I got really into cardio, which kind of became an obsession where I felt like I had to do it every single day. I lost some weight and settled around 68 kg (150 lbs). I also occasionally did Darebee programs, sometimes consistently for years before changing something and becoming overwhelmed. I think I've always struggled with my mood and motivation, but after a particularly difficult period in my personal life a few years ago, I slowly got my life back together and have been much more stable ever since.
Eventually, I stopped doing cardio every day and gradually became more inactive. The pounds slowly kept piling on. After finishing my PhD, I didn't really feel like I belonged anywhere. I knew I didn't want to stay in academia and spent some time looking for a job.
Eventually, I found an interesting career in industry. For a while, I had to move back in with my parents until I found my own place. However, I couldn't really structure my day-to-day life anymore. Between commuting, adjusting to a desk job, and being in a long-distance relationship, I barely had the energy to do anything besides working. I looked forward to spending my free time sleeping. I also developed quite a habit of drinking zero-sugar soda.
After moving into my own apartment, life became a little easier, but by then I had gained around 10 kg (22 lbs).
I'm 161 cm (5'3"), and at my heaviest I weighed around 84 kg (185 lbs). I felt sluggish and unhappy.
Recently, my siblings and I realized the year was already flying by, so we each set ourselves a few goals for the next half year. I had already started improving my eating habits and moving more about a week earlier, and I finally felt motivated again. It's only been about a month, but I already have some results and, more importantly, I feel happier, more motivated, and more satisfied with life again.
Each of us set three goals. Mine are (I prefer measurable goals):
- Lose weight to 68 kg (150 lbs).
- Reach 10,000 steps on at least 80% of days. (Weekends with my boyfriend make this harder because we're usually less active and I have fewer opportunities to go outside.)
- Complete three Darebee programs (90 days in total).
To keep myself accountable, I track my weight and log my calories every day, aiming to stay below my calorie target most of the time. I also use my Garmin watch to keep an eye on my activity and estimated calories burned. Reaching my step goal has become a fun little challenge, and I've started looking for opportunities to walk more throughout the day. One of the nicest changes has been going for a long, relaxing walk after work. Sometimes I need the excuse of wanting to hit my step goal to get myself out the door, but once I'm outside, I'm always glad I went.
I weigh myself every morning, but not always in the same way. My scale has an "eyes closed" mode where it records my weight without showing it to me. I can still look it up later in the app if I want to. As a woman, my weight can fluctuate quite a bit from day to day, and seeing a higher number first thing in the morning can sometimes be unnecessarily demotivating. On days when I know my mood would be affected by a "bad weight" I simply use the invisible weight mode instead. That way I still collect the data without letting a single weigh-in affect my mood.
Because of my T1D, I've always had to pay attention to nutrition labels, but this time I'm much more mindful about my food choices. Tracking everything helps me make better decisions. Even if I have something a bit more indulgent, I usually balance it out with a healthier meal later. I weigh most of my food during the week, although I don't do that on weekends when I'm staying with my boyfriend. So far, that balance has been working well for me.
See you in Book Two: Growth.
Edit: Spelling mistakes.
