About 5 years ago I lost 100 lb. over 18 mo. and have maintained a 70 lb. loss. I have been struggling for some time to take off that weight off that I gained. I have been losing and gaining the same 5 lb. for some time. I am ready to get back to my goal and maintain a healthy lifestyle. On Mar. 18 of 2011 I had unexpected Open Heart Surgery. I have more reason now than ever to say motivated. I have food plan that is healthy, a food sponsor and much support through Overeaters Anonymous. I feel like God has given me a second chance. This is my story: Success began with exercise At age 50 it has become clear to me that exercise needs to be a priority in my life. Eight years ago I was assessed by a Physical Therapist who said if I did not do something about my physical condition, I would have permanent damage. He put me on a cardio & strength training program. After PT, I knew that I needed to continue to exercise but trying to do it on my own never worked for very long. That’s when I decided that joining a gym would be the best thing I could do for myself. I joined the gym. I started out slowly. When I first began I could only do 3 min. on the elliptical trainer. Even though I was not losing weight at first I gained a lot of strength and endurance. I also overcame several obstacles. I had arthroscopic knee surgery and was facing a knee replacement if I did not lose weight. I have rotator cuff problems, hip and back problems all of which tremendously improved. I was also having hormonal issues and was told that it would be very difficult for me to lose weight during menopause. I was determined and did not give up. I adopted a healthy eating plan and stuck with my program. I have now lost over 100 pounds and have maintained that weight loss for 3 years. I am a Les Mills certified instructor and teach RPM classes. I am also a certified Spinning instructor through Mad Dog Athletics. This is a HUGE accomplishment for me. For me fitness is not about having the perfect body. It’s about adopting an overall healthy lifestyle. I feel like exercise has given me a new lease on life.

My spiritual goals are to spend more time with God and have a closer walk with Him. My physical goals are to get back to my goal weight. My emotional goals are to gain sanity around food and become a better person both of which will be a byproduct of the first 2 goals.

Eating clean, lower carb and making healthy choices. Tracking my food in the nutrtion tracker. Staying in a calorie range of 1600-1800 calories.



People have asked so I thought I'd share: My experience with plastic surgery After I reached my goal and had been exercising for some time, I still had a lot of excess skin. I did cardio and weight lifting faithfully. I needed to have an abdominal hysterectomy and was disappointed that I had to be cut abdominally but because I never had children that was the method suggested to me. Then, I had a thought. Would it be possible to have a tummy tuck at the same time? I ask my GYN and she said that yes it could be done so off I went to see a plastic surgeon. He did a total body assessment and my main concerns were my arms, abs and legs. The legs were a whole different issue so we didn’t even discuss that then. But he did say he could do the tummy tuck and braecheoplasty at the time of the hysterectomy. I had the hysterectomy first and then the plastic surgery in the same surgery. I was in surgery a long time. I think it was about 9 hours total. I was off work for 6

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