Transformation of the Day: Anelisa lost 54 pounds. As a medical student, she wondered how she would feel comfortable advising patients about weight loss when she was overweight. This South African sista got the guidance she needed from popular weight loss programs. Meal planning and running really made the difference. Check out her journey.
What was your motivation?
What motivated me to lose weight was not liking what I saw in the mirror. As a medical student, how was I going to advise patients to lose weight when I’m obese myself. What inspired me when I wanted to give up was seing my progress… just seing the numbers going down in the scale.
THIS IS HOW I LOST 24.5kg in 11 MONTHS. (54 pounds)
How did you change your eating habits?
For the first 6 weeks, I did what something I saw on the SleekGeek group called the Reboot Diet. There’s basically a green, orange and a red list food. You need to eat food the green list. You can consume the food on the orange list in moderation and red foods are a no no!! You can follow their page on Facebook. It’s a very good support system when it comes to the ups and talls of weight loss. I lost 6kg in 6 weeks (13 pounds). I continued with this diet but would change the rules a little bit.
For breakfast, I would drink a smoothie just to make things easy for myself. It would also count as my snack, until lunch. I’d also snack on cashews, almonds and all sorts of nuts (except for peanuts). I ate lots of fruit as well. I drank about 3 liters of water in summer and 15 liters in the winter. I drank 1.5 liters in class (from 8am-1pm), 500 ml in gym, and then 1 liter later at home.
I never got hungry because I was drinking a smoothie, water, tea, etc, and snacking on fruit until the next meal. I fell in love with five roses green tea (apple and pear flavour).
After 2 months of eating like this, I was a bit bored. I downloaded this app called “My Net Diary”. I basically weighed my food and logged them on the app. You need to enter all your info and your goal weight. The app will estimate how much calories you need to eat and how much you would lose in a month. This app really helps when you’re still starting on your journey because it teaches you to eat in small portions
After losing 17kg (37 pounds), I joined Weightless. The best experience ever. You basically eat all the healthy carbs but you weigh them. I joined the group because I wanted to eat carbs but still lose weight. With this plan, I lost 6.5 kg. (14.33 pounds) It’s so amazing that you can eat almost all you favourite foods.
I tried to avoid eating processed and fast foods as much as possible. I ate more fresh fruit, vegetables and whole grains. I prepare my meals before hand. I always have my food bag packed with my meals and snacks so I don’t starve or end up just buying anything on the go. I ate meat but made sure it was lean. NO FAT!!!!!
What did you do in terms of exercise?
For 6 weeks, I would jog for about 5km (3.10 miles). After initially losing 6kg in 6 weeks, I joined a gym, Virgin Active. I’d go to gym 4-5 days a week and run on the treadmill for 20 minutes, followed by joining on of the classes (the Grid, Shape, Kick or Bootcamp). I would run 8km (4.97 miles) on Saturdays. I would also run 10k races.
Starting weight/Current weight
My starting weight was 84.5kg (186 pounds) and now I weigh 60kg (132 pounds). In total, I lost 24.5 kg (54 pounds). My height is 158cm tall. I started my journey on the 22nd of Frebruary 2016. It basically took my 11 months to reach my goal weight, with a lot of ups and downs of course.
What advice would you like to share with others?
Believe in yourself, don’t be too hard on yourself, make small changes in your lifeatyle and you’ll reach your goal. Don’t give up because of one bad meal or week. Yes the whole week can go terrible but getup back again and continue with your journey.Wishing you all the best as the year is still new and you all setting your goals.
Instagram: @malindomhle_
Hi, My weight loss started when I was doing a 4 month course. That was last year in May. We were doing physical training three times a week. My weight when I started was 105 kg (231 pounds). At the end of the course i was 95 kg (209 pounds). However, I relaxed and did not exercise anymore. On Dec 6, 2013 I decided to register with the gym and I haven’t stopped since then. I even join their classes; spinning class which starts 5:30 in the morning till 6:30 and a 30 minute abs classes. I workout 3 times a week at the gym, Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. 1 day for spinning 2 days I would do cardio and strength, including abs. Now, I jog when I get a chance on the weekends, do TaeBo, skip rope and use an ab wheel. Today, I just bought 10 kg (22 lb) sets of dumbbells. I’ve invested a lot in home equipment like a skipping rope, an exercise ball, ab wheel and women’s health dvds. I’m currently going to the fitness house (gym) 3 times a week and I’ve joined endurance class which is spinning. When I started working out again at the gym I was 98.5 kg (217 pounds) and my body fat was 43%. The last time I checked my body fat it was 32%. I’m not sure what my percentage is now because when I want to check it the machines are always offline. My current weight now is 79kg (174 pounds). My height is 5’5″. My motivation to want to lose weight was because of my health. I’m a diagnosed asthmatic, so I would struggle with breathing and easily get tired. As a person who works in the medical field, I knew that if I didn’t do anything about it I would not live long enough to see my 3 beautiful baby girls group. My Eating Habits: I’ve cut all junk food like fried chips and soda drinks. I avoid eating too many carbohydrates and sugary stuff. My meals For breakfast I always have high fiber cereals, with fat free milk or plain yogurt. Mid day – Fruits, nuts, raisins Lunch – I can chose to eat my Low go bread which is also high in fiber with no sugar or salt added with peanut butter and boiled eggs Dinner – Brown rice, 2 servings of veggies with grilled meat (chicken, turkey or fish). Sometimes sweet potatoes with any meat or High fiber spaghetti Don’t forget the greek salad as well. The discipline that is most important is food portion control. You can use food scale or just a palm of your own hand. It works. Also, eat before 6pm in the evening and try not to stress a lot as you know stressing too much decreases ones digestive system. For those who want to lose weight, I suggest you start a motivating routine and set a realistic goal. Find a weight loss partner or group, this will help you cut down a mental strain by sharing what you going through with someone. Start an exercise log because writing down your progress makes everything concrete. Find an old photo where you look good and post it on your fridge. That will remind you how you used to look and see that what you want to be is attainable is motivating. Lastly but not least, set up a reward, think positively, pace yourself, keep it fresh and have fun.
