The importance of adaptability and emotional understanding in Bathsheba's weight loss journey

Bathsheba Freud

City & country: Melbourne, Australia
Age: 33
Weight before diet: 64 kgs.
Weight now: 55.7 kgs.
Target weight: 50 kgs.

Being in the right emotional and psychological condition is a vital part of losing weight, as Bathsheba has discovered. She takes care of her body by eating right and engaging in more rigorous physical training; she motivates herself by making her weight loss program a fun experience. Here, she talks about the importance of self-honesty and gives some tips on dealing with internal and external changes.

-What finally made you decide to start with a weight loss program?
I had been going to the gym for years and because I wasn’t really working hard at gym or my eating, I wasn’t getting any results. In fact I was slowly gaining weight.

I decided to start taking a weight loss program seriously when I actually admitted to myself that weight loss was one of my main goals. Because I had been going to the gym, etc., and it wasn’t really working I asked myself, “Why am I spending time doing something that’s not working? Do I really want this? If so, make it work. If not, stop pretending that it is.”

Around this time I encountered the books of Lily Brett, a Jewish Australian writer who lives in New York. She deals with a number of significant issues like the effects of trauma and tragedy. Having once been overweight, she is also serious about eating and exercise. Previously I had been ashamed that I cared about how I looked and thought I was trivial and pathetic. I always had ways of undermining my goals. Through Lily Brett I learnt that I could do something about real-world issues and do something about my own weight and appearance. She made me realize that I could take myself seriously. It was very liberating.

-What type of weight loss program are you following?
I follow my own program adapted from things I’ve read. I incorporate some Body for Life techniques, combined with my own social needs and needs as a vegetarian.

One of the most important aspects of my program is trying to understand my emotional life. Unless you really know why you are motivated to overeat or why you find it difficult to stick to your goals, it makes it difficult to succeed. You can’t just change your external behaviour, you have to work from inside. The single most helpful thing for me has been keeping a “diet diary” or weight-loss journal, which turned into my blog. If I feel like binging or overeating I (mostly) try and find the real cause of this. I also record what I’m eating. This is an interesting process and helps keep you accountable. If you feel uncomfortable and self-conscious about doing these things, it helps to ask yourself why you are feeling this way.

-Why did you choose this weight loss program?
I read a lot of different things and kept changing my program and experimenting with things that appealed to me. Some things you just know are right for you, and the more you research, the more you have access to different suggestions. In the beginning I did a lot of group fitness classes like Step and Pump. I liked the class environment. I also like jogging because we have a beautiful circuit in Melbourne called “The Tan,” and it’s just a nice place to run outdoors. Then I began to think that no amount of cardio was going to get rid of my flabby tummy. I started reading that you need to build muscle to burn fat. That’s when I started to do more Body for Life-style training: high intensity interval short cardio workouts, weights and smaller more frequent, protein-intensive meals.

-How long have you been on your weight loss program?
Since January 2007.

-What kinds of physical activities do you like doing to help you lose weight and stay fit?
I like group fitness classes, jogging outdoors, short yet intense cardio workouts. I like going to the gym.

-What were the most difficult obstacles you had to overcome or are still overcoming?
It sounds cheesy, but “myself.” You really have to try and understand yourself and work with yourself. I have had many self-destructive behaviours in my life: drugs, alcohol, binging, bad relationships. You have to try and understand all your personalities and bring them in together to get your life heading in the direction you want. I have a good psychologist! Few days go by when I don’t think “mmm chocolate, mmm nachos, mmm a Brandy Alexander.”  I have voices egging me on to eat and drink lots of different things. You can do this sometimes, just not all the time.

-How do you keep yourself motivated?
I try and make my life a pleasurable experience for myself. I make sure I have good workout music, nice, comfortable gym clothes, wear my favourite perfume to the gym, have good Tupperware even! I’ve immersed myself in my goal by reading a lot of blogs, researching, and indulging my rich fantasy life with glossy magazines and DVDs. 

-Do you have any weight loss tips for our readers?
Try and find out who you really are and then do what’s right for the person that you find.

-Do you think it will be easy to fall back into your old lifestyle pattern? How do you prevent this from happening?
You can only do what’s right for you. Your lifestyle changes when you change, and if you “fall back” perhaps it’s for a reason, and you should seek knowledge of that reason. I am committed to the life I’m living at the moment, and it keeps changing and evolving, it feels dynamic. One of the hardest things for me is being honest with myself. When I’m honest with myself, I keep growing stronger as an individual. On the other hand, you constantly fall back, and in and out of things on a daily basis. Things don’t change in one big block, it’s a gradual process and a constant work of self-analysis.

-Do you have a favorite Web site or blog that helps or inspires you to lose weight?