Why

    Everyone wants to be fit, in shape and skinny.  Somewhere in the craziness of my busy life, work, school, family and friends my healthy lifestyle got lost.  I have never been a “skinny” girl and have struggled with weight since I was a teenager. 
    When I was about 13-14 I went through a major depression when my parents got  separated then eventually divorced. I would go to school and eat junk I would get excuse notes for my P.E. class and after school I would come home and gorge myself then sleep until dinner.  I would wake up for dinner and gorge on dinner, watch t.v. then go to sleep. This continued for about a year.
    My weight skyrocketed. I went from a size 3/4  to a 19/20 in about a years time. I got horrible stretch marks from all the sudden weight gain. By my freshman year I was the largest I have ever been in my life.  I started doing aerobics and by my senior year I was in better shape. I graduated at a size 13/14.  After high school my workouts continued but I was partying and not living very healthy. I eventually went through another depression when I was 20 years old and guess what there was my size 20’s again.  I lost some but I was large.
    When I was about 21 close to 22 I started dating a guy who was a food lover. He loved cooking and eating. My weight skyrocketed. At my largest I was 230.
    At this point I was told by my doctor that I was pre-diabetes and that I had thyroid disease.  The doctor advised me that I would need to start taking medication, change my diet, and start exercising. If the weight didn’t come off I would be a type 2 diabetic.  I started taking the medications and exercising a couple times a month.  Needless to say I didn’t lose much weight.
    I went through a break-up and used the gym as a distraction.  I lost a little more weight, but when I went back to the doctor the following year I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and had to go see a diabetes nutritionist.  She went over how my diet needs to be different than what a regular person who is trying to lose weight needs to be.  Shortly after this doctor visit one of my co-workers asked me to join a “Biggest Loser Challenge” that was being hosted at my workplace.  I told her I would do it to support her.  At the first weigh in I was all ready 10 pounds down from my last doctors visit the month prior. I weighed in at 218.  I had the support of my friends and as the weekly weigh in came I was losing more and more weight. A few pounds a week was amazing! I was actually in the running to win the competition.  It was three months long and it came down to me and another woman. She lost 70 pounds. I had lost 30! They went off body fat percentage and she won by only a few points.  I was so proud of myself and the compliments were amazing I was down to 178 pounds! 
    Due to the change in my diet and the dramatic weight loss I developed gallbladder disease and ended up in the ER. I had to get my gallbladder removed and need a month or so to recover. This is where my exercising was put on pause.     Needless to say I never pushed play again fully and the weight has slowly crept back on. I am ready to change my lifestyle and keep the weight off for good.  Beachbody is a great program and the support system is incredible. I know I can do great things through this program.