Most of you may not know my story and how I came to become where I am today. So today, I want to share a more personal side of my journey. It all started January 24, 1990....haha just kidding, I won't go that far back to the date of my entrance into this amazing world. but I will go back almost 4 years ago or a little beyond that. The date was May 31, 2011. It had been a really tough year. I had been struggling through nursing school. I had recently lost my cousin who was like an older brother to me. I was trying to accept the fact that he had been taken way too soon. I had always been overweight and struggle with staying in shape. In high school, my senior year, I had lost about 30 pounds right before college doing weight watchers. Going into college, I stopped following weight watchers. I was young, stupid, and thought that I was invisible and couldn't gain weight again. Stupid I KNOW! but you live and you learn! So the freshman 15 turned into the freshman I DONT KNOW (because I never stepped on the scale). I would go to the gym when I could and thought I was doing great. But then you throw in the cafeteria food which was all you can eat two or three times a day, excessive frat parties where drinking beer in excess was always happening thursday, friday, and saturday nights. So this whole cycle happened for my entire freshman year of college. Fast forward two years to my junior year where I had a horrible year. Cousin passed away, nursing school became really hard with clinicals and managing lectures and everything, and really just being totally unhappy with myself.
The entire month of May 2011, I knew I needed a change. I was unhappy, I couldn't stand looking at myself in the mirror, I hated the way I looked and felt. So on June 1, 2011, I signed up for weight watchers, like I had said before, it had helped me lose weight before I went to college, so I figured I could do it again. this time I knew it would be a lot harder and I knew I was doing it for the right reasons. I set a high goal. I wanted to lose 50 pounds. June 1st, I started at 220 pounds. When I went on the scale and I saw that high number, I cried. I had never been that heavy. I did not want that number to define me. I was determined. Went to the gym 6 days a week, checked in daily and tracked my points. I worked my butt off day in and day out. No excuses. Even when I did not want to, I used motivation, I used my thoughts of what other people thought about me.
I also want to let you in on a little baby secret of mine. I told absolutely NO ONE what I was doing. I was determined to prove myself wrong and change that 220 into a different number. I did not tell my family, my close friends. I kept it in secret..you know why...because I was ashamed. I was ashamed I let myself get to 220. I was ashamed that I couldn't control what I had done to myself. While that was hard to swallow and hard to handle, being ashamed only made me work that much harder. Within the first month, my family started to notice, they would ask me if I was on a diet or something because something had changed. I started meal planning and prepping, following the weight watchers point system.
When the weight started to drastically come off, and people would ask me what I was doing, I felt like everyone was out to judge me (this was my own insecurities) and I would just say oh working out and eating healthy. To me it was not about a diet, it was about a lifestyle change. Weight Watchers changed my life and they saved me! If I did not start weight watchers on June 1, 2011, I do not know where I would be today! So many amazing things have happened to me as a result of my weight loss. THANK YOU WEIGHT WATCHERS FOR SAVING MY LIFE!
By December 2011, I had lost the 50 pounds that was my goal. I was so proud of myself. I felt amazing, I was happy, I loved the person that I became. I was at a cross roads. Thoughts of anxiety went through my head about what should I do next? How will I maintain my weight loss? What is my next goal?
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| 1st Triathlon 2012 |
Well now that I hit the 50 pounds down mark, I had to set a new goal. My goal going into 2012, was to maintain my weight loss. In the past, as you know, I had lost weight with weight watchers and then gained it back. So my biggest fear was gaining that 50 pounds back, I thought long and hard about what I wanted to accomplish next. I always wanted to compete in a triathlon, so why not sign up for one. I signed up for the Danskin Women's Triathlon in Sept 2012 in Sandy Hook, NJ. I had trained for months leading up the the tri and I have to say, It was one of the most amazing experiences ever. While I was training, I lost another 20 pounds while following weight watchers. I felt like I was in the best shape ever. I finished the race better than I ever thought, if I can remember correctly I finished 7th overall for my age group. Something like that. This just fueled me more to want to continue to stay in shape, all by continuing to follow the weight watchers point system.
Weight Watchers taught me how to portion size, meal plan and prep, follow a routine of staying healthy. Above all, it taught me about how to live a healthier lifestyle. It wasn't a diet or a quick fix, its a way of life.
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| DC Half Marathon 2014 |
Over the next year, I would continue to workout 6 days a week, including cycling, and running. I ended up getting into running with my dad and we started to do runs. who would have thought, this would have lead me to run the Washington DC Nike Women's Half Marathon in April 2014. This was a huge accomplishment and was taken off the bucket list.
Towards the end of 2012 and into 2013, I was training for my second triathlon in May of 2013, this one was in Red Bank, NJ. As a competitor, I wanted to be better than I had done before. I was strong in the swim and bike but when I got to the run part, I literally thought I was going to die. I felt like the wheels rolled off and I couldn't gain momentum. I wanted to give up but I did not. I think it was a sign of God that I maybe was not following through with weight watchers and I was going through the motions and I needed a change.
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| 2nd Triathlon 2013 |
Sometimes you have to move on and challenge yourself to something new to overcome a plateau. I had posted my transformation picture in april of 2013 and I ended up getting alot of responses and comments about how I did it and people wanted my help. It literally took me like a week to post the picture and even that I almost did not post it. People wanted my help? I thought. I had that self doubt and self negative image of myself but weight watchers allowed me to help others and believe in them, when they didn't believe in themselves.
In June of 2013, I became a beachbody coach, only because I wanted the discount on shakeology and I wanted to do p90x. For those of you who do not know, shakeology is a healthy meal replacement you drink daily that has vitamins, super foods, and amazing nutrients in it. It has been a staple in my life over the last almost two years. I wanted to challenge myself to push my body to the limits and let me just say, I have truly done that. I have completed programs such as P90X, T25, 21 Day Fix, PIYO, and I am currently doing Insanity Max 30. I never thought in a million years that I the girl who was 220 pounds would ever be doing programs like insanity and p90x. but you know what I have completed them.
No matter what, you need to lead a balanced life that is filled with happiness, health, wellness, and above all, a life that you want. I know the struggle of being unhappy with what you see in the mirror and not loving who you are but by doing weight watchers and losing 70 pounds, my life was saved. I have no idea where I would be if I had not decided that I was sick and tired of where I was in my life and I needed a change.
Helping others in their own health and fitness journeys has given me a phenomenal opportunity to be a support system for others in their own health and fitness journeys. the journey is not easy but when you have someone there to support you and help you, it makes it a little easier.
We have an accountability group starting on monday January 26th! It is a great way to achieve all your health and fitness goals. I would love to help you out in your own health and fitness journey! Fill out the form below and I will contact you! Anyone who does not currently have a coach or is a coach can join us!
Hope You All Have a Happy & Healthy Day!!
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