My mom's death sparked my weight loss of 110 lbs.

laceylovespink · July 2011

You look amazing.....thanks for sharing, I love looking at all the progress pics!

LtAngela · July 2011

Today would've been my mom's 53rd birthday. She died at the age of 47 from a massive heart attack. She didn't eat well at all, ate out most days of the week usually twice, and she smoked about 3 packs of cigs a day. All of that, as you can imagine, led her to have a heart attack. She died when my oldest was only 8 months old and just three days before her second grandchild, my nephew, was to be born. She has missed so much in our lives, BUT I took her death on as my motivation to lose my weight. I didn't want my kids to go through the loss like we had. She died way too young, and I WILL NOT do that to my kids!

Here are some pictures followed by my "how I did it"...

260 pounds

245 pounds

180 pounds

150 pounds

Check out my profile pic for another B&A.

And because some might ask how I lost my weight, I will just go ahead and post it now.

First of all, while I didn't count calories in the beginning, I did look at other numbers...fruits/veggies servings, water ounces, minutes of exercise, "cheats," etc. I journaled everything I put in my mouth and eventually did post it online. I didn't want others to see me eating poorly, so I tried not to eat that "bad" stuff often (which is why I think having a public food journal on here is kind of important). I upped my water ounces to an average of 96/day, I aimed for at least 5 servings of fruits/veggies daily, I limited carbs (empty carbs, that is, and went for whole grains, not just eliminating all carbs), I choose lean meats, lowfat dairies, and add more healthful options to my menus. I added in more beans, different whole grains, veggies and fruits I hadn't really ever tried, and I LOVE taking a recipe and making it healthier/more beneficial.

Basically, I eat pretty "cleanly," and I try to think about how the food I put into my body is going to affect my body. If I have too many "off days" or cheats, I can definitely tell. I crave healthy foods. This took me about 30 months to do with 2 pregnancies in there. It may have taken less time if I had counted calories.

As far as exercise, I started out walking and doing Walk Away the Pounds dvds along with the first Biggest Loser dvd. I eventually added in Turbo Jam and other dvds. Over time I started running, doing Turbo Fire, and doing ChaLean Extreme along with other videos. I crave exercise also!

Hope this helps someone!

(By the way, if you do try to look at my food dairy, and it's blank right now, I am recovering from sinus surgery, and I can't eat much now or exercise, hence a journal not being posted right now.)

ETA: Before my sinus surgery this past Friday, my resting heart rate was only 54. The nurse was a bit baffled until I told him I exercise a lot. I try to pay special attention to my heart because of my mom (and my dad's constant health problems as well).

Here is RESULT!
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/288131-compare-my-photo-before-and-after

thinkpink4hope · July 2011

Wow oh Wow!!! What an inspiration!

Amy_B · July 2011

Thank you all for the nice words!

Tangerine302 · July 2011

Congratulations to you! I'm sorry about the loss of your mom. It's so good that you are taking care of yourself. Your good health is a wonderful thing. Hope you feel better very soon from your sinus surgery.

Setof2Keys · July 2011

Like most Mom's she gave her life for the safe of her children. I think this was the best thing to come out of her death. Way to turn a negative into a positive. She would be VERY proud of you.

Jade_Butterfly · July 2011

You're amazing sweetie. . Love you.. .And with me too..Losing my dad due to bad choices is spurring me into taking care of business! You inspire me as well. . Thank you for being you!:bigsmile:

debussyschild · July 2011

You look FABULOUS!!!!!!! What an inspiration to all of us here on MFP. Congratulations on your success and your new way of life!

Countrymade · July 2011

I am sorry for the loss of your Mom. She is celebrating her birthday with the Angels.
Thank you for sharing your amazing story. Such an inspiration.
I am sure your Mom was watching over you from the heavens and giving you
the strength to reach your weight loss goals.

mishamae · July 2011

Beautiful story, thank you for sharing

shannonpatton · July 2011

Wow!!! So inspirational Hun. Wtg!!!

Elizabeth38NC · July 2011

Thanks for your story.... I also lost my Mother to a massive heart attack. She was only 60 and she died in my arms.... it was devastating and I wanted to die with her... it spiraled me into a deep depression and self loathing and not caring if the sky fell on me... that is when my weight gain began.... I promised myself I would do better and get healthy and every anniversary of her death I feel guilty that I didn't... but this will be my year ... I just know it... thank you for your story... God bless.

Amy_B · July 2011

Thanks for your story.... I also lost my Mother to a massive heart attack. She was only 60 and she died in my arms.... it was devastating and I wanted to die with her... it spiraled me into a deep depression and self loathing and not caring if the sky fell on me... that is when my weight gain began.... I promised myself I would do better and get healthy and every anniversary of her death I feel guilty that I didn't... but this will be my year ... I just know it... thank you for your story... God bless.

I am so sorry to hear that this happened to you. Hugs! I'm glad you are finally able to take this experience and turn it into a positive was well.

Thank you, everyone!