Jan 2013 Starters....

I started February 2013 and set out to lose any and all excess weight. I'm not done... but I'd say over 100 lbs lost is a very fair accomplishment for 10 months time! Looking to get under 200 lbs in 2014. I'm so excited to see where I can take this new life of mine!! I hope you find the motivation you are looking for! I'm not sure exactly how I've managed to stay motivated but I'm not going to question it! lol feel free to friend me on MFP or like my page on facebook. i try to be inspirational and helpful!! http://www.facebook.com/onelbatatime Perhaps we can empower one another?

Here is a fun throwback thursday photo I posted on my weight loss page recently to show some comparison...

Sorry I did something wrong there. I meant to say WOW you look fabulous...great job so far!

I started January 17th and really wanted to lose 100lbs. After my wedding in July, I had a bit of a rebellious period so my total so far is 62.5lbs gone. I bought my wedding dress 5 sizes too small. It was very stressful but worked for me

Embo78 You looked gorgeous! Great job on the weight loss.

I started February 2013 and set out to lose any and all excess weight. I'm not done... but I'd say over 100 lbs lost is a very fair accomplishment for 10 months time! Looking to get under 200 lbs in 2014. I'm so excited to see where I can take this new life of mine!! I hope you find the motivation you are looking for! I'm not sure exactly how I've managed to stay motivated but I'm not going to question it! lol feel free to friend me on MFP or like my page on facebook. i try to be inspirational and helpful!! http://www.facebook.com/onelbatatime Perhaps we can empower one another?

Here is a fun throwback thursday photo I posted on my weight loss page recently to show some comparison...

You look amazing and I love your FB page!

My joined date is later, but I didn't actually change my life around until January. Here is a photo from then:



So...in December I quit smoking, and then in January I changed everything else. Cut some calories, started exercising, stuff like that. Decided that I wanted to learn to love running. So...started Couch to 5K, found the C25K group on here, and then on March 23rd (my birthday) I completed my first 5K:



Continued running, joined the local running club here and then found the Women's Run/Walk Memphis and decided to try the Intermediate 2 group:



Is that not the face of a runner's high! Anyway, made lots of friends. Here are more photos from there:





Then....in October...you guys ready for this? I completed my first HALF MARATHON!



Wow...what a day that was. Blistered foot, tired as hell. But to cross that finish line at 02:33:48 was heaven. And come to find out, the course was messed up. The escorts made a wrong turn and added an extra .25 miles onto the course.....so I might have come in under 02:30:00...we will see in March how much I have improved. That is my next HM.

I wandered after that. Did a 5K here, some running there. And then read an article about some girls who had stuck together after the Women's Run/Walk Memphis ended for the summer, and decided to go check them out. Now, I have a running group of about 10 ladies I run with, and the group is getting bigger! I am known at the running stores...the owners are some of my best friends....and our group is known well throughout Memphis. We even have shirts to prove it!



Yesterday was my one year anniversary from quitting smoking. I am 25 lbs lighter and a whole lot healthier. My goals are already set for next year, including 3 HMs and I have been asked to help coach the beginner's group at the Women's Run/Walk Memphis, something I am seriously considering. But the biggest thing is, I enjoy myself a lot more now...which I think is the biggest success.

I was released from the hospital on Christmas Day last year, decided then it was time to take control of my health and my life. Found MFP and another site that week, haven't looked back since. One year many things can change if you put the work in! 92 lbs lost in a year, and because of all I've learned in this year, it was not miserable. I lost weight while still going out to eat about once a week, eating Talenti gelato almost nightly, wish I had figured this out years ago!

This year I've gone from 14 prescriptions daily to taking 8 and out of those 8 - 4 of them had the dosages drastically dropped.

I was supposed to be put on 24/7 oxygen that didn't have to happen.

I was on strict doctors orders that I was only allowed to stand up for 5 minutes at a time, now I ride my bike for 30 miles or run for 5 miles.

Again strict doctors orders not to lift anything over 10 lbs, well last week I had my best deadlift at 140 lbs!

Although I technically started with MFP long before January 2013, I didn't get serious about logging (and didn't exercise at all) until January 2013, at which point I changed pretty much everything about how I was living my life. I didn't believe that I would succeed, so I didn't set any goals in the beginning. Since then I've lost 65 pounds, taken up shadowboxing, begun weightlifting (am now up to 80 kg deadlifts), made some wonderful connections on MFP, and had to replace my entire wardrobe. I still have a long way to go, but the major difference is that now I believe I will get there.

Bump!! I need to get to this later on when I can upload appropriate pics (I usually do mine in my underwear...a little too revealing for here):laugh:

I started January 5th 2013 (that was when my gym membership started and the gym opened again after the holidays) with my best friend and originally my boyfriend (who has since fallen off the wagon--well...very quickly)

I was 140 pounds (I'm only 4 foot 11) and my friend was slightly over 200 (she's 5 foot 2).

In addition, my boyfriend's mother felt the need to announce at his birthday dinner how fat we've gotten...especially me. She was like, "oh you used to be so skinny..what happened?! you guys got so chubby. I read a story that that happens!" :explode: I purposely gained some more weight to protest her comment...like MY weight isn't YOUR business- especially when your son LOVES me the way I am (we had been together for 3 years by that point--now we've been together a little over 4)

Anyway-- We started off easy...working out each day on the elliptical and doing some weights. Eventually, we started taking a few classes we liked (Bounce and Tone on trampolines, Jukari with the dancing bands, lots of yoga) and we would go hiking for about 5 hours every Tuesday if the weather permitted.

We were always intimidated by the Zumba classes there, so we would sit and watch in awe and say how we couldn't do that ever. Finally, after staring like weirdos, I said "screw it!" and tried it out. I looked like a total spaz that time, but I had the best time EVER! I convinced my friend to come with me next time, and she loved it as much as I did. Pretty soon, we switched out our elliptical cardio for taking Zumba every day, as well as some of our other classes.

By this point (around May) I was down 20lbs and my friend was down 40lbs.

Sadly, with my friend's new school schedule (college- so it's always changing) she was no longer able to some of our classes and we could no longer go hiking. I also got bitten by a tick while hiking, then got a horrible flu, then had to graduate (for my Associate's Degree) with aforementioned flu, so I was derailed for a little while. I continued to walk around and exercise during the summer, but the weather had me outside more and not at the gym, therefore I wasn't doing all the weights I should have been doing. And in addition, during my one week summer vacation, I gained back 5 lbs.

When September hit (my birthday month) I got sick again. But as soon as I got better, I knew I had to kick my butt back into gear! My friend is rarely there at the same times as me now (we do run into each other on Monday, Tues, and Friday *usually* but not always) so a lot of my motivation had to come from myself now. Luckily, she introduced me to a ZumbaToning (zumba with little weighted maracas) instructor before she got too busy and I swear--that's what changed my life!!

I got back into gear, kicked those 5+ lbs I gained off...and another 4 more. That's when I decided I never want to be unhealthy again. I want to live a life where exercise is a priority for me- not a life where I'm at a desk all day and anxiously have to fit it in because of guilt.

I ended up going to my Zumba Instructor licensing in November and I'm now a certified teacher. I trained in Zumba Core and Zumba Glutes as well- got my CPR/AED/First Aid certification- and have taught in a few of the classes that inspired me in the first place. I have a few jobs lined up even- i'm just getting settled back in the new semester before I start (one includes teaching at my University as well!)

Also, having always been very into health/fitness/the human body-- I was always a Science major. I have always wanted to be a neuroscientist- but I do need employment in the meantime of getting my doctorate. There was no major directly for neuroscience at my University, so I ended up signed up for a Baccalaureate Degree of Science- Physical Education Teaching for K-12 with my neuroscience Honors track as a bonus. I'm going to teach gym to little kids!!

In one year, almost exactly actually, I've gone from a girl who was never athletic, only fit in the sense that I had "lost weight in the past", and used to sit out of gym class every day in HS because it got too violent (I still don't regret that! Boys can be MONSTERS in there!!) -- to a girl that exercises EVERY day, none of my clothes fit me anymore (I can't even wear XS sometimes!! I was in a LARGE!!), and I'm a fitness instructor with a fitness major.

This site has given me AMAZING friends- some of whom I even talk to once even if they've left here on FB and stuff. I had support when no one else would give it to me. It also helps a lot to have a mother, boyfriend, and friends that all tell you you are beautiful no matter what. Besides that birthday dinner comment- I never felt I HAD to do anything...I just WANTED to. On my birthday this year even, instead of going out for drinks and partying like usual, I made all my friends take a ZumbaToning class with me. Then we participated in Sweat, Spa, and Sangria (a night of spa treatments, Zumba, and...well you guessed it SANGRIA!). It's all I ever want to do anymore. Fitness has become my life, and considering it extends it- well, no complaints here.

One year can really change everything. I am a better, stronger, healthier person-- emotionally and physically, than I was when I started this. (in addition- i fight with my mom a LOT less- she said she's noticed a huge change in my mood since the weight loss- I don't know if it's related but HEY! WOOT!) So really, if this is what you want to do- you can do it. Get support- but in the end your best supporter is YOU!!

I'm sorry for chatting your ear off--but I really want everyone to know just how far you can come as a person in one year--whether losing 200 lbs or 20

I was released from the hospital on Christmas Day last year, decided then it was time to take control of my health and my life. Found MFP and another site that week, haven't looked back since. One year many things can change if you put the work in! 92 lbs lost in a year, and because of all I've learned in this year, it was not miserable. I lost weight while still going out to eat about once a week, eating Talenti gelato almost nightly, wish I had figured this out years ago!

This year I've gone from 14 prescriptions daily to taking 8 and out of those 8 - 4 of them had the dosages drastically dropped.

I was supposed to be put on 24/7 oxygen that didn't have to happen.

I was on strict doctors orders that I was only allowed to stand up for 5 minutes at a time, now I ride my bike for 30 miles or run for 5 miles.

Again strict doctors orders not to lift anything over 10 lbs, well last week I had my best deadlift at 140 lbs!

Amazing job taking control of your life & your health!