Can you really get here from there???? If someone would have asked me that question on May 13th, 2007, my answer would have been “NO, you are kidding…you can’t get there from here”. The here and there I’m talking about is, going from where I was the day before I joined Sparkpeople and where I am today!!! It is not possible to get here from there in just under 11 months!!! But here I stand…HEALTHY, STRONG, DETERMINED AND PROUD!!!

I joined Sparkpeople on May 14th, 2007 just 3 ...

Can you really get here from there???? If someone would have asked me that question on May 13th, 2007, my answer would have been “NO, you are kidding…you can’t get there from here”. The here and there I’m talking about is, going from where I was the day before I joined Sparkpeople and where I am today!!! It is not possible to get here from there in just under 11 months!!! But here I stand…HEALTHY, STRONG, DETERMINED AND PROUD!!!

I joined Sparkpeople on May 14th, 2007 just 3 weeks after my mother was diagnosed with Stage IV Colon Cancer!!! I weighed 173 pounds on that day…I had gained 28 pounds after maintaining what I thought was my ideal weight of 145 for over 2 years, I was desperate to get back into shape and help my mother fight her cancer!!! We were going to beat the odds and she was going to make it past the two years they were giving her!!! I am sorry to say she did not beat the odd and passed away only 10 weeks after her initial diagnosis on July 5, 2007!!!

During those weeks, I logged onto Sparkpeople every day, I logged my food, tried to get more active and joined a few teams!!! I read posts but didn’t post much myself, I was mostly trying to find my footing somewhere since my real world had been shaken so violently by my mother’s illness!!! I don’t remember much of my weight loss during that time…everything is kind of a blur!!!

What I do remember is the unconditional love, support, encouragement and kinds words I got from so many Sparkpeople during the time of her illness and especially after her passing!!! Somehow without my even knowing it, the wonderful ladies on my teams wrapped their collective arms around me and held me while I mourned!!! They told me I was doing great and to keep up the good work!!! When I doubted my progress, someone would point out the 100 places where I was successful!!! I continued to heal and grow and lose weight!!!

On August 20th I reached what I thought was my goal right on schedule…I wanted to be back to 145 by my birthday, which is August 24!!! I wish I could tell you I did something miraculous to reach my goal but I didn’t!!!

May-August 2007

The first things I completely gave up was soda and fast food and frozen M and M’s since that is exactly what created the 28 pound gain in the first place!!! Next, I slowly started to ride my stationary bike...I started with 15 minutes and worked my way up to 60 minutes over time…what helped me do this was creating little competitions (in my mind) with other SP ladies!!! The more they did, the more I did… it was fun and it also got me more involved with the teams!!!

September-November 2007

At the end of August my “home team” the 40andup, Young at heart ,SASSY SEXY AND SUCCESSFUL team was in need of a new leader as the past leader had left unexpected. One of the ladies asked if I wanted to co-lead the team with her…before I could think of a good reason to say NO, I said YES!!! Leading this Spark team helped me stay accountable and on track…I felt I would be letting the team down if I binged or didn’t work out!!! Doing the right thing for the team was the best I could do when I couldn’t do it for myself!!! I was amazed to find I was still losing weight…in fact during this time I went for 145 to 130 without any effort!!! I ate within my calorie range and rode my stationary bike 6 days a week for 60 minutes!!!

In October, I volunteered to lead another team…the 40 Something Maintainers team!!! I felt at 130 I better get a handle on maintenance since I probably was at the lowest I was going to get!!! I learned so many things from the ladies on the team!!! Maintenance is just as challenging as losing weight if not more!!! I had to eat more and work out less, that went against everything I was ever taught about losing weight!!! What I wasn’t doing at the time was strength training…I had somehow lost all the weight I wanted plus more and never lifted a weight…that had to change!!!

December-March 2008

In December after coming back from vacation I weighed between 125-130 which I thought was great…who loses weight on vacation…I guess Sparkpeople do!!! I joined LA Fitness and committed to 2 days of weight training and one Yoga class per week and continued Cardio 5-6 days a week. While on vacation, I decided I wanted to start running!!!! I had been toying with the idea but really thought I was incapable of running!!! But I read other peoples stories about being new to running and thought WHY NOT!?!?! In January I started to slowly increase my time and speed on the treadmill until one day I was able to run for 5 minutes…then 10 ..then 15!!! Well, turns out I was wrong…I can run and I actually LOVE to run!!!
The day I ran my first 10 minute mile I knew it was on!!!!

During this time, I also made a commitment to eat a CLEAN DIET 90% of the time!!! I eat 5-6 meals a day that consist of lots of lean protein, whole grains, fresh fruit and vegetables and healthy fats…I drink at least 9 glasses of water a day and strive to get 7 hours sleep a night!!! Eating Clean has increased my energy level and stabilized my weight fluctuations and my moods!!! I also have found eating a nutrient ratio of 40/30/30 works best for me…if my carbs are too high or too late in the day, it triggers evening binging behavior!!!

April 08-Now

My weight this morning is 117.0…my lowest weight since before I was 12!!! My body fat is 18.3% down from 20.8% in December!!! On March 4th, after watching the Los Angeles Marathon on TV, I registered for my first 5K, which I will be running on April 13th, just one day shy of 11 months on Sparkpeople and just two days from today!!! I have trained for this run for the last 5 weeks and I am ready to accomplish this first step on my new path as a runner!!!

~~~2008 Completed Races:~~~

4/13 UCLA 5K 30:48 (1st race)
4/26 CSUN 5K 28:09 (4th in my age class)
5/25 The Brentwood Run, CA 10K 1:00:10.26
6/21 You Run Like a Girl 8K Trail Run, Pasadena 56:49
7/04 Village Runner 4th of July 27:36 New Personal BEST 5K!!!
7/13 Keep L.A. Running 57:46 New Personal BEST10K!!!
8/9 The Hills Are Alive 10K Trail Run 1:06:58
9/14 Awareness & Hope to benefit Ovarian Cancer 10K 55:24
10/12 Long Beach Int City Bank 1/2 Marathon 2:18:28
11/16 Run for Her 5K Friendship Run for Ovarian Cancer Support/Reseach 28:16
11/27 Long Beach 10K Turkey Trot 1:01:55

~~~2009 Completed Race~~~

2/1 Surf City 1/2 Marathon 2:18:11
3/22 Pasadena Marathon 5k 29:38 PLACED 2ND AGE DIVISION
5/02 Sparkpeople Convention Fun Run (Volunteer)
5/25 LA 5K (could not ride LA Bike Tour due to injury)
6/6 Camp Pendleton 10k Mud Run (can't participate due to injury)6/27 SparkRally in Long Beach
7/26 San Francisco 1/2 Marathon (Golden Gate Bridge)


~~~Upcoming Race and events~~~

9/6 Disneyland 1/2 Marathon
10/11 Long Beach Marathon (my first FULL)
12/6 Las Vegas RockNRoll 1/2 marathon
3/28 Chesboro 1/2 marathon (trail)

Read More About MISSJCISRUNNING (Updated August 4)

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