My Before And During!! SO PROUD OF MYSELF*!!

I would like to thank everyone SO MUCH for their kind words. I am so glad that I have inspired so many people to keep working hard at their goals. If my post allows one person to reach their goal, then I have succeeded!!! Since I recieved so many responses, and alot of you asked questions, I have decided to tell my story. I hope that my story will answer all the questions that have been asked.. I am a 23 year old mother of one amazing little boy!! I am only 5'3 inches and when I decided that enough was enough, I was 172lbs and counting. My story though starts long before this day though!! Like I said, I have one amazing little boy. Prior to becoming pregnant, I was always a petite girl. In fact, I was 120 lbs pre pregnancy. When I was pregnant with that amazing little boy, I was on strict bedrest for 6 monhs. I was only allowed to get up for bathroom breaks and to shower twice a week. The worst part though was the fear of losing my little boy. I had a 17% chance of having a full term healthy child. Given the odds, I was a nervous wreck.. I used food for comfort. After beating the odds, and having my miracle baby....not much changed. I used food as a way of comforting myself for everything. If I didnt feel good, I ate. If i was bored, I ate. If I with friends, I ate. Well...you get the picture. This is exactly how I managed to go from 120 lbs to 172 lbs in a year. In that year, My fiancee and I set a date for our wedding. My mom and I decided to go to a boutique down the street to look for a dress. This day should have been one of the happiest of my life but it definitely wasnt. I went to this boutique for ONE dress. I wanted to try on this beautiful Mia Solano dress that I had seen in her store about 5 times. I got there, went to the rack and picked it out. The store owner tells me that the dress is a size 8, and she will need to help me into it. She tried, and tried and tried. She then tells me that shes sorry but it will not fit. She then tells me that I can hold it up to my skin to show my mom. I was so embarrassed that I told her that I didnt like the dress. I wanted to cry. Not because I couldnt try on the dress but because I couldnt. I was just hurt. I culdnt possibly explain how I felt. Then on the way home, I blamed the store owner for only having SMALL dresses. I complained but in the back on my head, I knew that my eating had gotten out of control. When I got home that afternoon, i decided that I had ENOUGH! I never wanted to feel like that again. WORST feeling of my life! So thats my story... Thats how I got where I am today.,. That moment in the dress store is the moment responsible for being the girl that I am today. But how did I do it?? Well honestly, i didnt do anything special... My fitnesspal suggested that I eat 1200 calories a day, so thats what I did. I ate between 1200-1400 calories per day, and used walking as my exercise. I loved walking. I would put my son in the stroller, and off we would go. It worked perfect for months. Until of course, the cold came. At that point, I decided that I needed another form of exercise. I purchased a mordic track elliptical form sears, and have been using that as my form of exercise. Walking was much easier. I loved it. It made losing weight alot easier for me. It was easy to walk for 2 hours. It was also a way to get me out fo the house. The elliptical is quite that easy. I struggle to use it everyday, but I DO! MY suggestion for everyone who is looking for tips on exercie is to find something that you like doing. For me, its walking. While I cant walk (due to the cold), I found something else that I can do. Its not always going to be easy. I can guarantee you that. But its possible. If I can do it, anyone can!!! Also, some of you asked if i ever hit a platueau!! The answer is YESSSSS!! So many times!! In fact, I am on a plateau right now. I have lost a pound since september! Thats a 5 month plateau!! I wanted to give up so many times, but I knew that not losing is much better than gaining. So i stuck it out. I tried everything under the sun to get out of the plateaus but nothing ever worked. I think you just need to let it run its course. Eventually your body will lose again. Also, alot of you aksed if this was stil a during or an after... I wil never show an after picture. Because this is a lifelong journey. If I stop logging my calories, and holding myself accountable, I will easily be 172 lbs again in a year. This is something that I need to do forever. I have a probelm with food. Its no different than other peole with alcohol or drugs. I also consider it a during, because I am not done losing. I still want to lose another 10 lbs. I dont want to be stick figure thin, but I want to be healthy. If I lost another 10 lbs, I would look and feel much healthier!! So anyhow...I hope each and everyone of you the best of luck! I know that you can do it!! Just stick to it, and you will feel like a new person at the end of your journey!!