thank you for stopping by my page! i'm glad you're here. sparkpeople has been essential in my health journey, and i hope that you're able to find inspiration from my story and the hundreds of other stories on this site. don't put it off any longer; start today! make the choice to give yourself the love, attention, and health you deserve. you only get one body and one life. it took me a long time to realize that taking care of myself is key to showing my friends and family that i love them. i ...

thank you for stopping by my page! i'm glad you're here. sparkpeople has been essential in my health journey, and i hope that you're able to find inspiration from my story and the hundreds of other stories on this site. don't put it off any longer; start today! make the choice to give yourself the love, attention, and health you deserve. you only get one body and one life. it took me a long time to realize that taking care of myself is key to showing my friends and family that i love them. i will never compromise my health at the expense of my family or my quality of life ever, ever again. i love them too much not to give them my best self.

my story:

i've been overweight as long as i can remember. i got down to a reasonably healthy weight my freshman year of college, but packed on the pounds throughout the next four years ... eventually putting me at 206 on my wedding day in december 2007. 6 months into my marriage, feeling unhealthy, unattractive, and miserable at my highest-ever weight of 225 pounds, i decided to change my life.

i started spending all my free time reading books and online about nutrition & exercise and learned how to do it the right way -- a complete lifestyle overhaul. i started exercising regularly, eating more whole foods and less processed, sugary, salty food products. i cut portion sizes drastically. i was able to lose about 30 pounds before i found out that i was pregnant, and then my goal shifted from losing weight to not gaining too much. i was extremely committed to maintaining my healthy new lifestyle because i wanted to give my son the healthiest start on life possible. i only gained 13 pounds during my pregnancy, and i lost all of it within a week postpartum.

as of this writing, i've lost 70 pounds (december 2010). i am committed to working my butt off and getting in the best shape ever. ultimately, i'd like to weigh around 135 and have a low but healthy body fat percentage. i'm no longer obese, but i want to get out of my comfort zone and know what it feels like to be athletic and not to have extra fat anywhere on my body. i want to be a walking example to encourage others to do whatever it takes to take charge of their health and change their life.

i'm not the best at strength training, i read about it but i'm not ever sure that what i'm doing is going to get the results i'm looking for. my strength program right now consists of a dumbbell workout in my living room. any and all advice in this area would be very, very welcome! update: i will be starting chaLEAN extreme on january 3, 2011. see my spark blog to read about my experience with the program.

"there is a difference between interest and commitment. when you're interested in something, you do it only when it's convenient. when you're committed to something, you accept no excuses; only results."
-kenneth blanchard
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stats
age: 25
height: 5'8"
highest weight: 225
goal weight: 135
(see ticker for current weight)
anything else you'd like to know?

body fat percentage:
(will resume after baby #2 is born June 2012!)

weight:
(will resume after baby #2 is born June 2012!)

Read More About MONIQUEARIELLE (Updated July 28)

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