I'm finally doing it :)

Like so many persons, I've been struggling with my weight for years.

I have always been overweight, from early childhood to now. I have been teased and mocked so many times that I've lost track and developed a somewhat thick-skin, especially in my teen years; being between 250 and 300 lbs during that time was definitely no walk in the park. As a result of this, I was very moody, became depressed quite often and suffered from lack of confidence and self-esteem. I was also quite, as we Jamaicans love to say, feisty (pronounced facety). Nevertheless, my family would always try to make me feel better about myself by telling me how pretty I was, though that did nothing to appease me.

As an adult, I became a bit more comfortable with myself as I had decided to live for me and love me. It was hard getting to this place but I had a couple of friends and family members who always had my back. Unfortunately, it turned out that I did not love myself enough as I was not so keen about changing my lifelstyle, until now. Yes, I have been to many gyms, all for one-month or less, but I did not believe that I would lose the weight so I always found some excuse to quit, especially seeing that I had no health concerns at that time, though my doctors kept warning me of the dangers of being overweight.

But life has a way of waking up us sleeping giants. And, though it was a subtle push, it was enough to propel me into action.

I was suffering from serious headaches for approximately 2-3 weeks, on and off. At times, I would feel dizzy and other times my head felt like it was floating away. When I finally got up the courage to check it out, the doctor advised that my blood pressure was high. I did not take it for anything, I just wanted some medication for the headache but he was considering medication to stabilize my blood pressure. Now, I have heard bad reviews about those pills so I immediately launched into a series of excuses, noting each time that I never suffered from high blood pressure before. After assessing me (and hearing me out) he decided to have me monitor the pressure for three days. No problem, I was sure I'd be okay, especially seeing that I had lost some weight recently and was finally under 300lbs. Well, that's what I thought. Instead of getting better, my blood pressure kept trending upwards; my diastolic pressure (bottom figure) kept going up which indicated that my heart was in some sort of trouble. Now, if I were under 150 lbs I would be a bit surprised (though still worried), but being waaay over the 200 lb-mark, I was terrified. My pharmacist who checked my pressure for me during those three days was also quite worried. But he advised me that I needed to make some drastic changes in my life in order to lose the weight, stabilize my blood pressure and avoid the meds.

So, I'm doing it. After all these years, I'm finally doing it.

I began doing my research on low calorie diets, fitness plans, etc. My only problem was that I had no idea how to count calories. How much was too much? But then I found MyFitness Pal! Now, I'm so very excited. I have not only made some drastic but necessary changes to my diet, including eliminating all "white" foods from my meals and incorporating a lot of whole grains, and exercising 5-6 days per week for 45-60 minutes, but I've also become more enlightened and empowered with this new found knowledge. And can I tell you, though it's only been a few days, I feel soooo good. Not only am I motivated but I feel physically better.

With my friend and fitness partner embarking on this journey with me, and the wonderful assistance of MyFitness Pal and their daily planners, I know that I will accomplish my weight loss goals and live a healthier and more-fulfilled life.

So look out world, I'm on my way! .