Not exactly new, but my story may help others..

I have been a member for years, but never really introduced myself. After losing over a hundred pounds, I would like to share my story with others who want to hear it.

Before, 280 pounds:


After, 165 pounds:


How I Became Morbidly Obese
Despite growing up below the poverty line, I became a victim of childhood obesity. Research shows there's a correlation between poverty and obesity, as counter-intuitive as that may sound. I qualified for free school breakfast and lunch, and ate processed meals for dinner. As each year went on, I gained more weight. When I reached my final height (5"6') as a teenager, I continued to gain weight. This made me more self conscious in gym class, less likely to go out and do things with friends, and even made me depressed. This all caused a vicious cycle, with me using food as a coping mechanism, which in turn made my mental and physical health worse.

There truly aren't any key foods I can point to and say "this is what made me obese." Despite not drinking sodas or eating fast food, I gained so much weight solely because I stress ate too much and exercised too little.

The Decision to Lose Weight
In my senior year of high school, I peaked at 280 pounds and was diagnosed with pre-diabetes and polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). At this point, I had never had a boyfriend. As my friends were going off to college, I was left depressed and unsure on what I even wanted out of life, let alone how to afford college. All I knew was that I wanted to marry someone one day, and maybe even have children. I knew that, in order for me to have children, I would have to get my PCOS under control. I may have not had a clear idea of what I wanted to be, but I knew what I didn't want to be. I didn't want to suffer from type 2 diabetes like so many of my family members, nor did I want to continue to wonder "are guys not interested in me because of my weight?"

The Challenges
My initial challenge was all of the conflicting information out there about weight loss. Is exercise or diet more important? Which diet is the right one? Wait, you mean I shouldn't "diet" and, instead, I should make small lifestyle changes? Okay, what lifestyle changes are important? Do I avoid fats or carbs? Are artificial sugars as bad as real sugars? You say don't starve myself, but how do I lose weight without a caloric deficit?

Starting out, I was very overwhelmed. To make matters worse, I was still depressed and very self conscious about my body. I still didn't want to be seen out in public, but I found ways to conquer my fears.

How I Finally Did It
My most successful "diet", to this day, is adhering to a Mediterranean lifestyle. I eat whole grains, nuts, fruits (especially berries), vegetables, and a lot of baked poultry and fish. For a long time, I did not even have to count calories in order to lose weight. Just switching from processed foods to healthier, more filling whole foods made the weight fall off.

After a while, I noticed that, even though I was eating super healthy, I wasn't losing anymore weight. This was when I started counting calories and realized that you can even overeat on healthy foods. After reducing my caloric intake, I started losing weight again.

As far as exercise goes, I attribute the bulk of my success to walking. When I weighed 280 pounds, I started walking in place, in my bedroom. Then, I gradually started walking more and more outside. I then made it my goal to get 30 minutes of a walk in each day, but I enjoyed it so much I often walked for an entire hour each day.

After two years of eating better and walking more, I was down to 220 pounds and started college. Four years later, I graduated college, found love, weighed 165 pounds and swapped out walking with running and weight lifting.

Next Steps
Moving forward, my goals are to mostly maintain my weight and to lower my body fat percentage through weight lifting. I recently gained some weight from reverting back to some bad habits, so I am currently logging my food to get back down to 165 pounds.

I am not perfect, and my journey has not been perfect either. I am living proof that losing weight is hard, but it is a very real goal. I have slip ups, but my happiness has been worth all of the hard work (and so is yours!).

One day, I would like to write a book on weight loss or find some similar way to help others. Through this journey, I have learned how to take care of myself not just physically, but also mentally. I would love to help others achieve the same and I hope my post helps someone else out there.