Yasmine Amibang,Cameroonian
Trying to lose weight? Having trouble? Women often find it harder than men to shed excess pounds.
In part, that's because women's bodies have a tendency to "hold on" to a certain amount of fat. But in some cases, the problem can be traced directly to certain habits and lifestyle traps - including many that can easily be remedied.
We had a little chat with Cameroonian "weight loss guru" Jasmine Amibang who thinks the secret to losing weight is in what you eat when you eat it, and how you structure your workouts. Is it as easy as she makes it sound?
Read out chat below - If her words can inspire someone out there battling with weight issues.
Why did you decide to lose weight?
Well, looking back at my old pictures back in Africa, got me thinking why I let myself gain so much weight. Even though at a USA size 14/16 I was in good health, extremely confident and pleased with my plumpness, I was mentally stressed and deep down knew I had to make some major health-related changes. Frankly, my throwback pictures were a very vital source in my decision to drop those pounds.
What strategies did you use to ensure weight loss?
Hmmm well, I embarked on my weight loss journey towards the end of February 2014. So I commenced my weight loss researches on diet and workout tips in January 2014, to sort of prepare me of the challenges I’ll face down the road. Secondly, I strongly believe that the key to losing weight is first targeting the source of your weight gain.
My weight gain was mainly from skipping breakfast, and ending up having large portion for lunch to compensate for missed breakfast, also, late night eating and by late I mean 10pm, consumed a lot of juices(not sodas) and last but not least, lack of exercise.
Those factors contributed 95 percent of my weight gain. Fast food and sodas were never my things, I had those once In a while. Once I targeted my weight gain issues, it made it easier for me to proceed on this journey. So I started by changing my diet and doing some workout videos on YouTube such as; Jillian Michaels, Sean T etc., I’ll do those in the mornings before breakfast and in the evenings, I would take 35-50mins walks around my neighborhood.
Oh boy! The first two weeks in were tough I kid you not, the YouTube workouts left me out of breath, there were times I would want to give up in the middle of doing a Jillian M. video but I’d glanced at my old pictures and also, I had pictures of some Hollywood celebs like ‘Nicole Murphy’ posted on my wall as a constant reminder of where I want to be. Three months went by, I realized I had lost 25pounds or so and I was getting better with my workouts and also, my body got adjusted to my new eating habits.
What are the significant health changes you made?
So I decided to cut down on my carbs intake. I am sure you can relate, growing up in an African home, we consume rice, fried plantains/potatoes, bread and pasta etc. at least every week, so I mapped out a planner, and on that planner, I was only allowed to consume rice, bread, pasta and fried plantains/potatoes once a month .
I also cut down on my juice intake from drinking juice twice or thrice a day to once a day and limited myself to 8oz. Oh! How can I forget alcohol consumption was also a big part of my weight gain, so I had to limit my consumption on that, from 2-3 glasses of long island teas, shots of liqueur etc.to one glass whenever I go out and eventually just stopped consuming alcoholic drinks when I went out during the weekends.
I would have a glass of wine or champagne here and there but no dark or white liqs. As of today, I am proud to say I haven’t eaten rice, and bread for a year and 3 months, no pasta/spaghetti since February 2016, no fried plantains, potatoes, chicken, fish etc. since 2014, NO RED MEAT from March 2014 till now. I also refrained completely from dark and white liqueurs for a year 9 months, I have a glass of wine occasionally but that’s about it.
What are the difficulties you faced while losing weight?
Well, the first 7 weeks into my journey was the most difficult for me. At that time, I felt so sluggish getting up each morning to workout, also, the small portions of food were challenging, because I would feel slightly hungry after a meal but it took some serious dedication and will power to not back slide. After seeing some changes on my body five months into my journey, that only motivated me more to keep pushing extra hard. The question I kept asking myself was “how bad do you want to achieve that dream body yasmine?”
What was your life like before your weight loss?
Quite frankly, my life then and now is pretty much the same. The only difference is, I get a lot more recognition on my hard work and dedication from acquaintances, family and friends but other than that, nothing has changed lol.
What health benefits have you experienced after losing weight?
Believe it or not, I was very healthy and also flexible prior to my weight loss, but one thing I knew for sure is that, if I hadn’t change my lifestyle I would suffer when I am much older. Some of the beneficial aspects after losing weight; my energy has immensely escalated, I feel so much lighter, both mentally and physically, I can now run and jog long distances without running out of breath, my flexibility has gotten better, and not forgetting “If you know what I mean” lol let me stop fooling around.
How different is your lifestyle now?
Very different! Every day, I am amazed to how far I’ve come and despite all negative comments, I received, I am glad that didn’t discourage me but it helped me focus on my goal.Now who’s having the last laugh? Lol but aside from the negativity, I have received and still receiving a lot of positive remarks.
I have all these popular fitness Instagram pages reaching out to me to see if there’s a possibility of joining their team, as well as other people who have stumbled on my IG page, letting me know how much I have motivated them to embark on their own journey, that alone makes me ecstatic and I’m beyond grateful.
Finally, I would love to say I owe everything to the Almighty God because even when people told me told my face I wasn’t going to stick to it, God was by my side, and pushed me through with my weight loss by giving me the strength, wiping down those tears and I am so thankful to Him.
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