Meet Katie Foster (SLIMKATIE) a SparkPeople member who has maintained a 115-pound weight loss for two years! Find out her secrets of success here.


What is your age?: 30
 
How long have you been a SparkPeople member? How did you find SparkPeople?: I have been a member since 2007, but I started actively using the site in 2009. I found SparkPeople when I did a Google search for weight-loss success stories.
 
What is your favorite feature on SparkPeople?: I love the recipe calculator. In the beginning of my weight loss, I typed in all my recipes and then saved them to use for later. Whenever I cooked dinner, I just had to look it up and the nutrition info was right in front of me. It was a big time-saver!

How much weight have you lost?:  I initially lost 125 pounds, but I've been maintaining a 110-115 pound loss for two years.
 
How long did it take to lose the weight?: It took 16 months to lose 125 pounds.
 
What was your light bulb moment that made you decide to lose weight?: My son Noah, who was 5 years old at the time, was learning to ride a two-wheeler bicycle. He needed someone to run up and down the street alongside his bike. I tried, but was physically unable to keep up. I felt like the worst mother ever, and my sister had to take over for me. I vowed to lose the weight so that when it was my younger son Eli's turn to learn, I would be the one to teach him. (And I did!)
 
What was your biggest obstacle while trying to lose weight?: My biggest obstacle was dealing with other people's opinions on what I was doing. Everyone seemed to want to tell me how I should or shouldn't be eating, so I just had to do what I knew was right for my body. It was hard at holidays and parties when everyone kept telling me that "just one bite" wouldn't hurt.
 
What does your weekly exercise schedule look like?: Depending on whether I'm training for a race, I usually run 3-4 times per week (anywhere from 3 to 10 miles each time). I've also recently started doing some mild strength training between my running days.
 
 What is your favorite way to exercise?: I am addicted to running! I don't really love it while I'm doing it, but my body feels amazing when I am done. I love when my muscles feel tired and used!
 
Do you have any personal fitness goals coming up?:  I am currently training for my second full marathon! I also hope to run a half-marathon in under two hours and a 5K in less than 26 minutes... both are goals that I've had for a long time.
 
What does a typical day of food look like for you? How does this compare to the way you ate before your transformation?: For breakfast, I usually have oatmeal--I love oatmeal with coconut, dried cranberries, and banana. Lunch might be homemade lentil soup or scrambled eggs with potatoes and cheese. A favorite dinner is homemade pizza--I make a whole-grain crust and top it with pizza sauce, fresh mozzarella, feta, and green peppers. For snacks, I like to have toast with nut butter. And I always have dessert--usually a brownie, cookie, or ice cream.  Before I lost the weight, I used to skip breakfast, or just have a huge coffee loaded with cream and sugar. Lunch was a giant bowl of pasta or risotto, and dinner was deep-dish pizza with pepperoni and bacon. A snack would have been a pint of super-premium ice cream.
 
What is your favorite healthy food?: I love nuts and nut butters! Natural peanut butter is probably my favorite, and I eat it every single day.
 
What is your favorite treat food?: A chocolate chip cookie topped with buttercream frosting. I save this for days when I do really long runs!
 
Who is your biggest inspiration?: I wouldn't say that any certain person inspires me... I get inspiration every time I am able to go for a run, or play with my kids, or even bend over and tie my shoes without having to hold my breath. It's the little things in life that have gotten so much easier that keep me inspired.
 
Do you have a personal mantra/saying/quote that you live by that you’d like to share?:  "Don't make any changes you're not willing to live with forever."  I live by that! The only changes I've made are ones that I know I can do (and don't mind doing) for the rest of my life.


Does Katie inspire you? What healthy changes of hers can you incorporate into your own weight-loss journey?