| My Story |
| I have been overweight most of my life. I was born fat, but was an average-sized child until puberty hit. This is when I went from chubby to obese. I remember when I learned that I liked to eat. I was about five years old. I vividly remember walking to the refrigerator, knowing that I was not hungry, and looking inside for something to eat. I ate yogurt from a big tub. My mom saw me and didn't say anything, so I continued. I remember waking up that night and vomitting because I had eaten so much earlier in the day. I kept getting sick because I kept overeating. I don't know why I continued to eat like this, but I did. I was always active, playing outside and participating in sports. This helped keep my weight down. As I aged, I began playing outside less and spending more time indoors, in front of the television. I continued to play sports, but this was not enough to keep my weight in check. I continued to gain weight as I went through junior high and high school. I tried to lose weight with some diets, including Slim-Fast (which made me shake uncontrollably), homemade programs and Weight Watchers., but I never was consistent with any one them. I was successful with Weight Watchers, but would stop after one gain. I went to college over 1500 miles from home and I thought that it would that it would be a great place to start over. I lost 30 pounds during the first semester of my freshman year because I was embarassed to eat in front of people (and the food was bad!) I tried returning to Weight Watchers after my first year and lost a few more pounds, but once again, I quit. I went back to school that fall and pretty much maintained a weight of 215 pounds throughout the rest of my time there. I decided that I was not going to "diet" anymore. I was tired of feeling like a failure. After graduation, I returned home and maintained my weight for a few months. Then, I got a sedentary job and started eating uncontrollably again due to sheer boredom. In about nine months, I gained about 30 pounds. I felt poorly about my weight. I decided to give Weight Watchers another try. I am so glad that I did. I walked into the center on September 13, 2000. I weighed in at 243.6, the most that I ever had weighed. I sat through the "Getting Started" session even though I had heard it before. I wanted to hear it as if I had never heard it. That evening I read all of my materials and decided how I was going to approach this program. I decided that I was going to try my best at working the program to the fullest. I looked at how I was living, how I felt about food, and how I was going to incorporate exercise into my life. One thing that I noticed about my eating style was that I hadn't allowed myself to feel true hunger for a long time. I would eat so often throughout the day that I never became hungry. I decided that before I was going to eat, I had to feel the hunger sensation for at least 10 minutes. I needed to do it and it worked for me. I followed the program very closely and lost almost nine pounds my first week. This was more than enough to keep me focused. Within two months, I earned my "10%" award. This award signifies that you have lost 10% of your starting weight (24 pounds). Receiving this award gave me the assurance that I would continue to be successful at weight loss. I have now been on program (OP)for lmost 4 years. I lost most of my weight during the first year (70 pounds) In the period after that, I have struggled to lose the last few pounds. I have been discouraged and frustrated, but never hopeless. I have always known that I would be successful in reaching my goal. Remaining OP has taught me more about myself than I would have ever known possible. I am resilient. I am worth the effort. I am SUCCESSFUL Update: I DID it! I achieved Lifetime status in August 2003. I have now lost 86.8 pounds as of December 13, 2003. I couldn't be happier. I am now working towards a new weight loss goal: 90 pounds, only 3.2 pounds to go!. Maintenance has been a great experience so far. I have found where I am most comfortable with the amount of food I consume and the amoutn of exercise that I do I excited about what 2004 will bring! May 2004: I have been working maintenance and tweaking my workouts and food intake. I am following a diet and workoutthat falls more in line with a fitness athlete. I want to become an even more healthy person. I am enjoying the process of making myself the best that I can be. The journey never ends, it only gets better! Update August 2004: I am back to attending regular meetings and am committed to taking off the 8-12 pounds that I have gained since achieving lifetime. I am using my own tips for success as well as discovering new ones from other successful people. At this time, I am unable to workout like I am accustomed to doing, so I am following the WW plan as closely as possible. I will be able to work out at the end of this month. I've already taken off 3 pounds just by following the program and journalling! Update September 2004: I have now lost 8 pounds since starting CORE and the Slim in 6 program (Beachbody.com). I have lost 1.5" off of my waist alone. I am excited to see what results I can achieve at the end of the program I hope to get back to my previous weight of 155 and eventually break the 150 barrier! I may have slipped but I am on my feet again. I'll keep you updated! Updated November 2005: After being in the "field" for work, I allowed myself to get off my exercise and weight loss routine. Fortunately, my weight maintained itself with little focus. This led to less focus and a weight gain of 25 lbs! I am now in the process of taking it off and being a FREE lifetime member again. Weight loss is a journey where there is no map. For more current updates, check out my journal at Happiness Within. |
 |
   |