This article was first published on January 16, 2019, and has been updated since then.
Weight loss is not an easy journey. Some people would rather go under the knife than follow diets and exercise routines. A survey published on Health.com reveals that 2 out of 5 people who start diets quit after the first week. Another sad statistic is that only 20% stick to it for more than three months.
It’s not surprising; dieting is hard. But it’s not impossible. It mostly requires a lot of willpower and determination.
Many dieters tend to lose track of the big picture sometimes. When they don’t focus on the final goal, it becomes harder to resist the tempting sights and smells of unhealthy food.
A common mistake people make when trying to lose weight is not knowing how to start small. It’s natural to want to see results right away. But losing weight and keeping it off is a lifestyle change, not a quick fix.
People make drastic changes all at once, and it’s almost always too hard to keep up. But a few successful individuals managed to achieve their goals by taking one step at a time.
Keely Dellit, an Australian mom of three, is one of them. Her baby-step approach to a healthy lifestyle change helped her reach her goals. She lost an incredible 125 pounds in 14 months.
She didn’t drink slimming tea, sign up for the gym, or undergo any surgery. Most importantly, she was patient and focused. She simply took things slowly.
She told womenshealthmag.com about her amazing fitness journey, as she used to weigh almost 280 pounds, but she wasn’t always like that.
She started working at a fast-food restaurant in her teens, and that didn’t do her body any good. After her first two kids, she stopped caring about her weight. She felt it was out of her control until her third baby came.
“My turning point happened the day I got home from the hospital after having my third child. When I finally stepped on the scale, just days after giving birth, I weighed 278 pounds, my highest weight ever. I knew I had to make a change, not just because of the number, but because I felt unhealthy and exhausted. And because I wanted to get healthy for my three kids.”
Keely said she didn’t find weight loss too hard because she made small changes every week. She’d choose small fries over medium instead of giving up fries completely. She switched soda and juice with sparkling water, started cooking with brown rice instead of white, and tried replacing dairy with plant milks. Slowly, she got used to her new lifestyle. The small changes became her new habits, and she kept making more changes.
Here’s what Keely’s daily diet looks like, as published on womenshealthmag.com:
Breakfast: two scrambled eggs and a small bowl of oatmeal with berries.
Lunch: A large salad (lettuce, avocado, cucumber, carrots, and peppers) with grilled chicken or tuna.
Dinner: steamed fish with a big pile of cooked veggies.
Snack: protein bars, carrot sticks, or natural peanut butter. Keely’s diet is healthy and low in unnecessary carbs and extra calories. She also made sure to stay hydrated by drinking plenty of water every day.
Besides, she didn’t just switch up her food game; she also got into working out. Now, hitting the gym when you’re carrying extra weight can feel like pushing a boulder uphill. It strains your joints, and you get tired real quick. But Keely wasn’t about to let that stop her. Nope, she had a plan.
So, for the first half-year, she wasn’t following some fancy exercise plan. Nah, she was just winging it: strolling around the park with her kids or sweating it out to YouTube workouts at home. And you know what? It worked. She started feeling stronger and more sure of herself. And when she felt ready, she upped her game by joining a boot camp class.
But listen, she didn’t dive straight into those boot camp sessions like a maniac. No, sir; she took her time, easing her body into the routines. Slow and steady wins the race, right?
And get this: she ended up loving those boot camp sessions so much that she started going every day, and sometimes even twice! She was on fire! Heck, she enjoyed it so darn much that she went ahead and became a certified personal trainer herself. How cool is that?
Fast forward fourteen months, and Keely’s shedding a whopping 125 pounds! Can you believe it? From 278 pounds to a total knockout! Sure, she had her moments of doubt; who wouldn’t? But she knew deep down that she had to stick with it if she wanted to get healthy.
Her advice for anyone out there looking to drop some pounds? Take it slow and celebrate every little victory along the way. It ain’t about some magic trick; it’s just plain old perseverance. And look at her now—strutting around with a killer body, feeling lighter, healthier, and happier than ever. Keely’s living proof that if you put in the work, you can totally crush your goals.