A photo and a wedding proposal changed my life. The proposal was my daughter Jessica's; the photo was that unflattering shot taken at Niagara Falls in June 2004. I refused to look like that in my daughter's wedding pictures.

In July 2004, at over 150 lbs and with some health issues, I started dieting and exercising; my goal weight was 110 lbs by October 2005. I resumed weightlifting, started cardio workouts and counted calories. At first, I could barely WALK ten minutes and the ...

A photo and a wedding proposal changed my life. The proposal was my daughter Jessica's; the photo was that unflattering shot taken at Niagara Falls in June 2004. I refused to look like that in my daughter's wedding pictures.

In July 2004, at over 150 lbs and with some health issues, I started dieting and exercising; my goal weight was 110 lbs by October 2005. I resumed weightlifting, started cardio workouts and counted calories. At first, I could barely WALK ten minutes and the scale would NOT budge - but, I stuck with it. It took fifteen months but on my daughter's wedding day, October 2005, I weighed 108.5!

By October 2006, I had regained some weight. Wanting an easier way to track calories, I joined SparkPeople in December 2006 weighing 114 lbs.

SparkPeople helps me stay on track and I have gone beyond what I thought possible. More importantly, I'm improving upon the healthy habits I've adopted while maintaining my weight and fitness.

~~~~~~~~~~ HOW I DID IT ~~~~~~~~~~

1. DON'T DIET - adopt a healthy lifestyle. A healthy lifestyle does not have a “finish line.” It is what you do for the rest of your life and it lets you KEEP your results for life...

2. Without a road map, we get nowhere! Write out specific goals and a plan of action. Be detailed. WHAT, HOW, WHEN, WHERE and even WHY are important questions to answer.

3. Get a complete physical before you start.

4. Clean out your cabinets and refrigerator. Get rid of all the junk – I don’t care if you bought it yesterday!

5. Eat 1200-1550 calories per day.

6. NEVER SKIP BREAKFAST!

7. Eat small meals every three hours - you'll never be hungry.

8. PORTION CONTROL is vital. Measure, weigh and track everything you eat. Use the SparkPeople Food Tracker regularly.

9. Start exercising right from the start (cardio AND resistance training) but at a MODERATE pace. Don’t burn out - it will be easier to stick with it!

10. As fitness improves, challenge yourself. GRADUALLY increase time and intensity.

11. LIFT WEIGHTS. It builds muscle, prevents sagginess, boosts metabolism, and sculpts your body. The older you are, the more important weight training is!

12. EAT CLEAN - fruits, vegetables, lean meats, fish, olive oils, whole grains and legumes. Read labels - eliminate sugar, avoid high fructose corn syrup and hydrogenated fats. Keep junk out of the house...

13. COOK CLEAN - broil, steam, stir fry or bake.

14. Enjoy an occasional treat, in moderation.

15. BANISH GUILT. Guilt is paralyzing, counterproductive, demoralizing and useless. If you deviate, learn from it and pick up where you left off.

16. Be patient! This will take time and effort and everything you do is cumulative.

17. Believe in yourself and in the power within you to make changes.

18. Be consistent. Do something every day to get closer to your goal.

19. No matter what - don't quit!

20. Above all, remember my guiding principle and personal motto, "BE MORE STUBBORN THAN THE SCALE!"

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I truly appreciate the generosity of the SparkPeople community and I'm humbly thankful for your comments, goodies and positive reinforcement... Thank you!

Read More About BEMORESTUBBORN (Updated November 20)

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