Then I .........; now I ..........!

Lets all do a few and see how many different ones we get!

Then I wore dowdy, old lady, baggy clothes and hid behind dark colours.

Now I wear fashionable, smart clothes in the whole range of colours!


Then I thought twice, three times, four times before walking up stairs to get something.

Now I run upstairs without thinking; often two steps at a time.

Kate

Then I would get out of breath just walking up a flight of stairs...

Now I can run for 45 mins and feel great..

Then I wore a size 28...now I wear a size 12.

Love my band! -Nikki

Here's a newbie version...

Then I felt hopeless and doomed to be fat for the rest of my life, now I feel like I am taking my life back.

(Also... then I sucked down cupcakes two at a time, now I walked into a cupcake shop to pick up a treat for my husband for VDay and realized that they didn't even really look that appetizing.)

Then I had to squeeze into rides at Disney

Now...I have no issues at all..and feel sorry for those who do :)

P.S I'm not a fashionista, but wearing smaller jeans and T's is nice, also :)

Petra

THEN I avoided the camera at all costs
NOW I want to be in pics with family and friends

THEN I hated what I saw in the mirror
NOW I like what I see in the mirror

THEN I made excuses not to do activities with the family like skiing, ice skating etc
NOW I have the memories of doing fun things with my family

THEN I wore size 26 pants
NOW I wear size 14's

THEN I never felt satisfied with all the food I ate, it was never enough
NOW I'm satisfied with my bandster portion

Okay, I'll stop because I could go on and on!
Kristi

Then I wore a size 24
Now I wear a size 14/16

Then I ate candy by the bag full
Now I read labels and put things back on the shelf

Then I thought all men were looking for Barbie
Now I think there might be a guy out there to love me

Then I avoided having my picture taken
Now I am starting a scrapbook of memories-with me  in the pictures

Then I thought weight loss was hopeless, and I was doomed to obesity
Now I know that with my band and some discipline,  I can be in control of my weight

Then I wore my big clothes

Now I wear size 8.

Then I would buy a cupboard full of chips cookies and chocolate and eat it all in a day or two.

Now (although I still buy the stuff)! it just accumulates and accumlates in the cupboards until I throw it out cause I barely touch the stuff anymore....  I gotta get over the habit of acquiring.

Then I would stay home to hide myself.

Now I venture out happily.

Then I would buy a whole pizza and eat the entire thing myself.

Now, I am lucky to finish eating just the toppings of one piece.

Then I would eat bread, rice, pasta, cake as my staple foods.

Now I do not go near them - I cannot eat them anymore.  Although I do miss rice, I don't, surprisingly, miss bread.

Then, my supper would include just chicken or just cheesies or just pizza...

Now, my supper is sure to include a salad and vegetables.

Then I would look down at my goal weight,

Now I am below it and look up at it.

and finally

THEN I would obsess over skinny people and diets and wanting to be thin.

NOW I AM!!

Good luck to everyone starting this journey and to everyone already well on the path. You are all fantastic, tell yourself every single day.  You are worth it.

 

Then I ordered the biggest shirts I could find and hung them to dry so they wouldn't shrink
Now I dry my shirts to shrink them because they are too big

 then I did full hair and makeup to take "candid" pics with the family ( and hated them any way)

now I take pics with out makeup and with a ponytail and I love them!

then I worried about being an embarrassment to my 13 year old daughter

now I worry about being mistaken for her!lol

Great post, Kate!

Before: I'd get soaked walking in the rain from my car into a store/office/whatever. (Umbrella? Who ever remembers to carry an umbrella?)
Now: I RUN from my car to my destination without getting breathless

Before: Coworker's comment on my outfit, "Dark colors really aren't all that slimming, aren't they?"
Now: Coworker's comment on trousers I'm thinking of buying, "I don't know why you're holding a size 10, Miss Jean. You need to go back and look for a size 6 or 8."

Jean