Tips To Help You Stay Positive Through Your Weight-loss Journey

[Guest Post]

Hello, my name is Gabrielle Beverly and I am the author of “The Gabby Diaries” I am 29 years old, and I am a Capricorn. My hobbies include writing, sketching, blogging, reading, listening to music and podcasts, and binge-watching anything at this point.
My passion in life is to help other individuals understand, and learn how to cope with their mental illness. On my blog, I talk about topics dealing with overall health, both physical and mental. I also talk about the importance of self-care, and how my faith and spiritual growth has helped me on my journey of self-love and self-discovery.

I guess my journey originally started back in high school. Growing up, I was the chunky kid. The funny thing about it, I never got bullied for being plus size. Crazy as it seems, it’s the truth. Everything else that I was bullied for, my weight was never an issue. As I got older, I learned so much from my health class, and my P.E. teacher at the time. Then, I also learned from family, friends, and a group called SistaKeepers, that I need to learn to love myself first. Not only has this been a journey about losing weight, this has also been a journey of learning to love myself more, self-discovery, and self-care. 

THE BEGINNING OF MY STORY

When I got diagnosed with Bipolar 2 in 2006, one of the things my doctor stressed to me that exercising would help activate the medication I was taking. At the time, I wanted to be happy, but I didn’t take my overall health seriously. As time went on, my health was also affecting my relationship with my parents. My mom, was always a little person, and at times, it felt like she was doing more nagging than helping. My Dad, a little bit stocky, understood my situation and would give me pep-talks, but I needed this conversation from more of a woman’s perspective. Luckily, I have my Aunt Jasmine to motivate me. 

My aunt grew up overweight, and for most of her life, it was a struggle for her. Until one day, she told me that she needed to take time alone, and take care of herself. At the time her journey started, she has just left an abusive relationship. Once she left, my aunt told me she spent reevaluating herself, setting new goals, and taking time to think about what was really important to her in life. After we had our talk, and spent that time together, I understood what I needed to do to take care of myself. In 2015, I ended my relationship with my second boyfriend because we weren’t evenly yoked, and I felt like I was not only giving my all, but I was losing myself in the relationship. Weight was one of the reasons. 

A WAKE UP CALL

From 2015-2017, I’ve constantly juggled back and forth with my weight, to the point that I became pre-diabetic. Then 2018, I received news from my doctor that I had developed Type 2 Diabetes. That was the official wake-up call for me to change my lifestyle drastically. From that point on, I participated in classes, learning about diabetes and how it affects my health, I was working out from January 2018 until September of 2019, losing a total of twelve pounds back then. I was happy, I had more energy, but towards the end, I became obsessed with working out every day, that I wasn’t giving my body a break. 

Earlier this year, I got sick with a sinus infection, and from October of 2019 until now, I haven’t done any kind of activity, and I gained majority of my weight back and more. Most of this occurring when I started working from home back in March. I was happy to work remotely, but I became comfortable. I didn’t have a routine in place, I was working every other day in my pajamas, and since I wasn’t doing much meal prepping, Uber Eats was my best friend and my worst enemy.

MY ADVICE TO YOU

I share all of this with you to say, if you have been struggling with your weight like me, it’s ok. Remember, if you are just starting off, there will be more moments of trial and error until you get things right. There will be wins of meal prepping, eating a healthy meal, or even getting the proper amount of sleep. There will be losses of having a cheat day, gaining some weight back, and feeling defeated. But overall, as long your mindset is all about embracing positivity and living to become a better, healthier version of yourself, keep pushing through. Keep moving forward, don’t stop, and don’t give up. They use to say you should focus on your weight in your early teens to mid-20’s, which sounds true. But, that’s not the truth for all of us. For most of us, it took a “last-straw” moment to get us moving. Many of us, like myself, it was a health scare. Others, witnessing a family member or a friend going through their struggles and not coming out on the other end of the battle. 

Long story short, if you’re ready to embark on a health journey, just know that it starts with you. You need to be motivated, and you can’t do it for all the wrong intentions. You have to do it for you, and for those that are important to you. But it starts with self-first. I hope you all continue to stay positive, motivated, and inspired. Even though we’re in uncertain times, it’s never too late for you to start your journey.

Are you on a journey to become more healthy? What are the struggles you have faced during this time? Are there any tips you can share with us?

WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE YOUR BLOG SHOWCASED HERE? OR DO YOU WANT TO GUEST POST ON THIS BLOG? CONTACT ME AND WE CAN TALK!