Before and after 28 pounds down with pics!

My weight loss journey has always been ongoing. I am not a small person by nature and when I was 10 years old, I remember being on my first "diet". I am only 5 feet tall, so when I gain, it shows. I was my lowest weight in High School when I played soccer for my high school team. I weighed 125 pounds. My weight fluctuated for the next several years, but it wasn't until I got pregnant and had 2 kids one year after the other that I saw numbers on the scale I thought I would NEVER see. My highest weight was 208 when I had my daughter in July 2010. I was a little in shock. But I had a newborn and a 15 month old to take care of, so I shrugged it off. I lost some of the baby weight and was 180 on her first birthday.I was discouraged when I ran a 5 k with my mom and sister April of 2011 in 58 min, that is really really slow. I was suffering from anxiety, vertigo and depression. When my daughter was 17 months, Christmas of last year, I let myself go and weighed 190 pounds and it showed. I wore a size 16. I needed to change this destructive path I was on. I grew up being an athlete! Before I had my kids, I was playing soccer 3 times a week and working out everyday. I had never imagined I would get to this point. My best friend decided we needed to get our selves back and we signed up for a half marathon for April of 2012. Training for that race was one of the hardest things I have EVER done. I braved the snow, tears, and pain. I finished my half in 2 hours and 24 min. I was so elated and didn't want to stop running. Didn't want to stop feeling good. I was about 178 when I ran my half, but knew I needed to change my diet in order to lose more. I thought I knew what I needed to know about food. I didn't have a clue.

I started really buckeling down and doing my food diaries everyday in June. I ran 17.8 miles in an 18 hour period for the Ragnar Wasatch Back and ran 6.5 miles in one hour! I knew I needed to keep this up. My weight loss was slow and steady. By July, I had signed up for a sprint triathalon for August with my best friend. By the end of August, I was 160 pounds. I finished my Tri in under 2 hours and was so proud! I even survived a week long anniversary vacation in Seattle with my husband and even lost a pound that week due to my strict gym schedule! I can't believe how far I have come! I now weight 150 pounds and haven't weighed that in over 8 years. My goal is now 135. I hope to keep up what I have learned about food, working out, and myself. I will keep running and keep pushing myself! I will never quit on myself again. I am worth the time and effort put in to be healthy and be an example to my family. I know these last 15 pounds are going to be hard to lose, but the fact that none of my pants in my closet fit because they are all so huge, makes me happy and I can celebrate the fact that I have at least come this far! Don't give up my fellow MFP friends! We are worth it!