# A small victory **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 22, 2015, 11:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-small-victory/741088 "2015-12-22T11:51:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Lars\_Aruns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c68b51/32.png) [@Lars\_Aruns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lars_Aruns)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2015, 11:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-small-victory/741088/1 "2015-12-22T11:51:52Z")
Can I be allowed a bit of showing off, guys? It’s only a small victory, and I have plenty of other problems and issues, like everyone else, but at least I can feel happy about one good thing - my weight loss. I am about 171 cm, and weighted 118 Kg roughly one year ago. Even after deciding it was time to change things, it took me some time to get my shit together, let’s be honest. I started with changing the way I ate - no pasta, rice and bread, no grazing, always cook my own meals. That was the start. Then I started swimming again. That was, I think, the turning point - getting [the runner’s high](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neurobiological_effects_of_physical_exercise) (maybe swimmer’s high?) and seeing results. So I started going to the gym, and exercise at home; most importantly, I started walking to work. That’s a solid hour exercise every day! Slowly my weight was going down. Suddenly all my trousers were way too big! I bought a couple of jeans, and then lately _those_ became too big. Yesterday I went with my daughter in a clothing shop for new, smaller trousers, and saw a large pair of jeans on heavy discount. I went over to have a look - it was my old size. God, it was huge! Was I _that_ huge? Well, of course I was. I could have done better, and faster. I went from 118kg to 91, and from UK size 44 to size 34. I still have a long way to go: I am still fat, and according to the metrics they use I still fall in the obese category. But if I went all this way, then maybe going further is doable; and the lesson I intend to take away is that if I can manage this much, I can sort out other problems as well. Hopefully. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2015, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-small-victory/741088/2 "2015-12-22T12:22:44Z")
Well done! ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2015, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-small-victory/741088/3 "2015-12-22T12:28:19Z")
Congrats to you! You have every right to feel justly proud. Few things are as difficult as actually changing our habits. Learning good habits is an awesome achievement! Don’t give up, just keep on doing what you’re doing. And when difficult times present themselves, and they will, always remember; this didn’t just happen. You MADE this happen. That should give you a lot of strength moving forward in your life. Yay you! ---
**Author:** ![Robert163](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/4af34b/32.png) [@Robert163](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robert163)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2015, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-small-victory/741088/4 "2015-12-22T12:37:01Z")
Yeah, stick to it, you are an inspiration to me with this, I just started diet/exercise too…