Weight Loss Story

I always feel strange telling my "weight loss story" because my weight has always been up and down... and I didn't keep very good track of it.

In middle school, I was overweight. I was the chubby girl that hated running. I felt very awkward about myself and I found attention by being the funny, crazy girl. 

These are really embarrassing. 

Then, I went to high school. I really wanted to play sports but I never tried out. I felt too fat and too slow. I have no idea if I was classified as "overweight" in high school but I felt overweight. Looking back at pictures, I wasn't that big of a girl:

I've always hated my legs. I think they are fat and chunky. 

I found ways to avoid showing off my legs in the summer - wear hospital pants or a skirt. 

Then.... I went to college. And I gained a lot of weight - I think my highest weight was in the Spring of 2008 (2 years of being college). I ate crappy - really crappy. Then I went to Yellowstone National Park to work for a summer and that kick started my weight loss. 

Now, the last three years have been up and down. I was never as big as I was in 2008 but I did gain weight and started to feel like the chubby girl again. 

Then... I went to Yellowstone National Park again! And it (once again), kick started more weight loss. Once I got back, I continued to loose weight and we get to today. . . 

Here is the grand "before and after" picture:

The picture the left is the biggest picture of me I could find. The picture on the right is the most recent picture of me. It was snapped on my boyfriends phone while I tried on clothes (for fun) at Banana Republic. 

I have lost 70 pounds and went down 6 dress sizes. 

It's strange because I have never been this size. I am not use to it. 

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Since I'm going along the theme of being honest - I'll be honest. . . 

Currently (as in right now as I'm typing in my bed), I hate being skinny. Well, that's kind of lie - I love it and hate it. I love it because I feel awesome. I can walk into a store and try on almost anything and it probably will look good. I don't need to worry about love handles, tires, or muffin tops.

I hate it because nothing in my closet fits. And if you've been following my blog then you know that I am on a strict "no spending" budget. 

On Christmas Eve, I am suppose to go out to dinner with my boyfriend's family. I am very stressed out about this. I was told to wear something nice but not formal. This is the worse situation for me. Even before (when all my clothes fit), I would stress out about this. But now, I literally don't have anything to wear. I thought maybe, I had some black pants I could wear so I tried them on. This is what it looks like:

This is how most my clothes look. All my tops can be pinch in the back about 3 - 4 inches.

I feel like such a brat right now. I'm complaining because I'm "too skinny" and that I "don't have enough clothes." I'm ashamed to admit that because I should be thankful that I'm in a healthy BMI range (finally) and that I have any clothes (even if they are too big). 

But regardless of my efforts to be thankful, I'm still stressed about what to wear on Saturday. . . 

Sorry for getting so off track and dampening the mood of my weight loss story. This is just how I'm feeling currently (on a grey rainy day). Taking a step back, I feel happy and proud of myself - it's taken a lot of work to loose weight. I shouldn't worry about buying clothes that fit because I can do that in the future. Now is the time that I should focus on maintaining my weight and making sure I don't gain it back.

And if you are curious how I lost it - eating less, drinking lots of water, and exercising. 

I'm a broke college student!

Oh, surprise surprise. I'm a broke college student... But these past few weeks have been especially hard. I'm living paycheck to paycheck like most of America and I don't like it. But I am going to change!

 And here's how:

#1) I'm not going to spend money. You may be thinking "but Annie, you HAVE to spend money!" Who says so? Here are the things I normally spend money on (that aren't bills) - gas, eating out with friends, food, taco bell, library late fees, school supplies, amazon stuff and miscellaneous clearance  items that I find at the end isles. I'm done spending money on these things. I quit.

#2) Okay, I'll still buy gas. I have to.


#3) Also, I have to eat so I'm only going to spend $5 a week on food. You may be thinking "that's impossible!" Yes maybe but I can try. Here's what you don't know: My panty is full of food! Okay, that's an exaggeration but I do have quite a bit of food on my shelves. So, I'll live off that food. Currently I have beans, rice, pasta, frozen chicken, frozen vegetables, and most of everything that a person is suppose to have "on hand" (oils, baking supplies, spices, etc.).

So, maybe you think I'm crazy. I don't care. I'm poor. I'm reading Dave Ramsey and he thinks I should have $1,000 saved for emergencies. Do you want to know how much I have in my savings account right now for "emergencies"? I have $32.86 - I just checked. This is why I ran into problems in October when my car battery died and I had to pay $115 for a new one. So, I'm going to be putting every cent into this fund.

Currently, I have three sources of income - tutoring, cleaning, and nannying. They are all under the table and all pay very well. But what goes along with this, is that they are all very unstable. For example: In October, I had 5 tutoring sessions canceled - each with a good excuse. That's $100 out of my monthly budget!! That's a lot of money to me! So to fix this problem, I'm making a "cancellation policy" (basically if you cancel too much I still expect to be paid). Maybe it's mean but I don't care. I need to know how much money I will have at the end of the week. Also, this is even more evidence that I need to save $1,000 for emergencies.

I also have little ways of making money - selling text books on Amazon. I made $87.39 selling textbooks (minus about $11 for shipping). That's a lot of dough. I'm also going to try sell some clothes at a consignment store. It's sad to say goodbye to my really nice clothes but I would rather have finically stability than nice clothes. Also, I'm making a little bit of extra money by being a "Research Assistant" for my friend's thesis paper. Yay!

I'm thinking about selling my plasma.... I've done it before and hated it but it's such easy money.

Okay, that's enough about my boring money problems. . .

I'm going to blog about this and tell you how it goes. I'm going to be 100% honest and accurate. Not spending money on food is going to the hardest part so expect to hear about that.

The Fears...


#1) I'll feel gross from eating processed food all the time. I eat a good amount of fresh food and I know the effects of eating Ramen everyday (tired and cranky). But hopefully, this won't happen BECAUSE thankfully most things in my pantry are considered healthy - beans, whole grain pasta, brown rice. But if I do end up eating Ramen everyday - oh well, tough luck.

#2) I'll give into my brainwashed material instincts that I have to buy something. I literally already have everything I need. I have a warm bed, a car, clothes for every occasion, and food. I shouldn't have to buy anything. I'm worried that I'll fall into the mindset of "well, I've been so good lately and it's a really good deal and I deserve this".  Lies, lies, and more lies - I haven't been good lately (that's why I'm in this situation), it's not a good deal (if I don't need it), and I don't deserve it (I deserve peace of mind).

#3) Peer Pressure: GAG, I hate peer pressure. Here is a letter:

Dear Friends,

Let's do something fun that doesn't involve spending money. If you want to do something that involves spending money then expect to pay for me. Otherwise, I can't go. If you want to go to a restaurant and not pay for me - I'll go but I will get water and stare at you jealously. I still love you. Please love me by supporting me and not pressuring me to spend money.


Okay, that's enough for now. I have $5 in my back pocket and I'll keep you updated on what I choose to spend it on.

Somebody buy me this.