Then and Now

Like most females, I have struggled with my weight my whole life. I would gain weight just thinking about food. Then I would lose a whole bunch by counting calories and working out, then I would get tired of eating just chicken and bland foods that I would gain the weight back and more. I was very frustrated and very unhappy with myself. So I decided one day that I was just going to be happy being overweight. Eat what ever I wanted and not care.

Then July 2009 came. I was at my heaviest, 257 pounds. We had just moved to Chappell, Nebraska. It was July 2, my birthday, I had a great day - good food, fun friends to celebrate with and more. That afternoon while I was sitting in my home office, my left arm started getting numb, my fingers started tingling and I got scared. My hubby took me to the clinic in town. I remember being in the Dr's office and getting weighed and all that stuff they do to you. He was asking me my family history and asking me what I had for lunch. Then he said, "Today... it was not your heart, but if you keep up the way you are going, the next time it might be, you need to lose weight." In my 34 years of life - no Dr had ever just come right out and said that to me. I knew I was unhealthy, but up until that point, nothing really hit me the way that did.

It took a few weeks to figure out what I was going to do about my weight. I prayed a lot about it. Knew that I needed to make changes, but didn't want to eat bland no calorie foods. I knew that sugar and caffeine were my enemies - not because of it's contents, but because it affects me different then other people. I get very sleepy when I have sugar and anxious when I have caffeine. So what I did was decided to take one day at a time. I started by eating good, healthy, foods that had lots of flavor. Didn't worry about counting calories and I stayed away from all sugar (which is harder then you think) and only have a little caffeine here and there. I started eating more veggies and fruit. Changed from eating ground beef to eating ground turkey. I still eat pasta (just whole wheat) and rice (sometimes brown). I ride my bike or walk if I am going anywhere in town.

It is September 2010, a little over a year later. I am down to 181 pounds and have lost 76 pounds so far and I am feeling good! I would like to lose 20-25 more pounds. I remember the day when I got on my Wii Fit and it said "You are Overweight". I was so excited! I have only ever heard it say, "You are Obese". It's the little things in life :). I love having the energy to play with my dog and walking with my hubby without breathing heavy.

Thank you to my friends and family for loving me the way I was and the way I am now. I couldn't have done it without all the love, support and encouraging words.

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