My story: 113 lost

okay, here it goes...

My story:

I was 29 years old and I was almost 300 pounds (295). I had sleep apnea, chest pains, blurred vision, hypertension, shortness in breath, (pre?)-diabetes, what may have been early signs of a heart attack! I was in major denial of my health, I would keep telling myself I just took bad pictures and that I was still in okay shape. I hadn’t weighed myself in years and I would even sometimes avoid looking in mirrors. I even talked myself into believing some of my health problems were due to old age (remember, only 29, lol) or lack of sleep, not weight related. Denial is crazy, yo.

What changed? A random family ‘Biggest Loser’ challenge for 20 bucks made me weigh myself. That challenge made me realize just how far I’d gone from what I wanted to be. Also, several family/friends had lost 30+ pounds, so that was a big encouragement to me.

I lost the weight by simply tracking calories and eating more fruits and vegetables (200 calories of carrots/celery will fill me up much more than 200 calories of bread). I wish I could tell you more of a trick, but really, that's it. I did *try* several other diet plans for a week (juicing, Special K, Slim Fast). They didn’t have any staying power.

Before:


After:



In 293 days, I went from wearing 42 and 44 waist pants to 32s and 34s. My BP is down to 89/68. I got rid of my CPAP machine. My weight is now 182. I no longer have headaches or chest pains. Basically all my medical problems went away. I *feel* my (pre)diabetes is under control, but still need to get the test. *fingers crossed*

I hope to lose the last ten(ish) pounds and keep them off through accountability instead of denial. I’m hoping posting my embarrassing story will help me never go back and to see how far I've come!