My Story: 188 to Now

As I celebrate 32 years old today, I'm realizing how far I've come in 10 years. Here's my story. I hope you find inspiration in knowing it's never too late to turn your life around!

At my heaviest I was 188 lbs...and that's including 2 pregnancies where I never hit 188.

I have met a few people who can look back on their life and pinpoint the exact moment a switch came on and their life changed in that moment.

Without a doubt one of those moments was the day I stood on a scale in college and saw 188. I decided I'd let myself go far enough, it was time to take control of my life.

I researched running, the only exercise I really knew, and researched healthy (cheap) food choices - I was in college! The next day I tried to run a block and about threw up. I bought tuna fish in a can, chicken, grapes, raisins, lettuce, low fat dressing and a few other fruits and veggies. Every day I tried to run farther and challenged myself to make good food choices.

It wasn't easy. I saw lots of girls smaller than me making horrible food choices and I knew they never exercised. It was easy to feel sorry for myself and rely on food for comfort during those times.
It wasn't easy to run in my baggiest t-shirt past fraternities and college kids wondering what they all thought.

I learned how to find mental toughness as I developed my physical strength. I learned to say no to those voices in my head that could rationalize an ice cream cone.

I learned how to focus on my goals rather than what others thought.

The weight came off slowly and steadily. In 1 year I was down 30 lbs and signed up to run a marathon right after my wedding.

I really think that marathon was a pivitol moment for my weight loss journey. I realized that if I could do something that so many people have never done or would never dream of doing, I was capable of so many other things...including losing over 20 more lbs.

Even though I've lost over 50 lbs I still struggle to maintain that mental toughness. That same voice that told me it was unfair that others could eat crap and never workout and not gain weight sneaks back in now and again. That same voice that cares what others think and say about me can creep in and cause me to second guess myself.

So, what's kept it off? What's the magic secret?? It's different for everyone. For me, it was channeling that inner perserverence and not letting go. It was setting goals and not settling for anything but success. It was turning off the negative voices in my head, letting the excuses go and making up my mind that I was worth it.

I am worth it...and so are you!