While a simple formula for weight loss may work for some, for others, it takes more than just eating less and exercising more. Shedding pounds can be extremely difficult, and it often also necessitates a change in mindset and approach to life in general. But just because something is hard doesn’t mean it’s impossible, which is what 62-year-old KimAnn Phillips learned on her own weight-loss journey. Speaking with TODAY.com, Phillips revealed the four changes she made that helped her drop 106 pounds.
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Phillips decided to start addressing her weight five years ago when she became “sick of being overweight.”
“It was miserable. I wasn’t happy with myself. I wanted to be able to move around,” she told TODAY.com.
Phillips said she put on weight after having two children and developed related health conditions and joint pain. She also suffered from depression as a result of her father making comments about her weight as a child, even though she wasn’t overweight at that time.
While she stands tall at 6 feet, when Phillips reached her highest weight of 360 pounds, she said she was unable to move or go for a walk—and she then knew it was time to make a change.
To shed the pounds, she made a few key adjustments, one of which was integrating walking into her daily routine. Because she’s recovering from knee surgery, Phillips said she now averages about a mile daily with her dog and hopes to increase that when she can.
Phillips also didn’t feel the need to take advice from everyone and anyone. While some people say that getting on the scale can be bad for your mindset and mental health, for Phillips, it was helpful to step on and check her weight daily.
“Everybody says, ‘Don’t get on the scale every day.’ Well, my scale is my best friend. That keeps me in check. I get on there and I know if I need to get back on track,” Phillips told TODAY.com.
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She also learned how to overcome obstacles—and wasn’t afraid to ask for support when she needed it.
When she was five months into her weight-loss journey, Phillips lost her husband of 36 years and went through another breakup more recently. A breast cancer scare, which was even more frightening due to her family history, was challenging as well.
“I try to get up every day and mentally dig down deep, tell myself, ‘You can do this’ and try to be as positive as I can,” she told TODAY.com. “But depression was huge. There was a point where I was on medication, and then I quit and tried to do it on my own. I am back on an antidepressant right now. I don’t like taking it, but, quite honestly, it keeps me from bawling every day.”
Before his death, her husband was also a key supporter and her “biggest advocate,” she told TODAY.com. Since then, Phillips joined the Start TODAY Facebook group (an online group for support and advice for those on weight-loss journies) and turned to religion.
“One of the things that’s really gotten me through is my faith. It’s absolutely #1. Every morning I wake up and I have to dig down deep and I know that He’s got me. I don’t think He’s always been happy with some of my decisions, but He’s definitely got my back,” Phillips shared.
Lastly, she didn’t give up when she regained some weight or plateaued, and she also knows that her goal weight will be different from others.
“I’m a big-boned girl and I’m super tall. The classic 180 pounds will not work for me. I want to be at 225—I think that’s the perfect weight for me,” Phillips told TODAY.com.