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Ajima Jackson

Aiesha lost 25 pounds

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Let’s show some Black Women Losing Weight love to Aiesha.  She lost 25 pounds by tackling her biggest challenge: changing her eating habits.  She was inspired by her mom who reversed her diabetes.  Here is what she shared with us:

Aiesha weight loss journeyHi all! I am Aiesha and currently a college student who was tired of being tired, so I decided to take on the challenge and better my health! My transformation is never ending and I’m still a work in progress.  However, I am very happy with the results that I come to know thus far. My my motivation to take on a healthier lifestyle was my mother.  She too lost weight and reversed her type two diabetes.  I figured that if she can do it, still tackle a heavy work load and never give into excuses, well I can too! Another motivator for me was the fact that I did not like what I saw so I decided to stop complaining and really make the change. My starting weight was 211 pounds and my current weight is 188 pounds. My goal weight is 170 pounds, so I still have some work to do! Nonetheless, I am very pleased with myself because I committed to something and stuck with it no matter hard it was or how much harder it was to give up! I first tackled my diet because, for myself, the workout was the easier part.  The eating was the challenge, so I cut out ALL fast food, cut out bread and all things white.  I detoxed everyday, I ate vegetables with every meal, drank lots of water, and I really tried to understand what is bad for you and what is good for you. One thing that really pushes me to this day is the encouragement and inspiration I get from others.  I inspires me when people make a simple gesture saying to me “You really motivated me to lose weight!” Those words really make this  journey worth while.  Though I didn’t do this for anybody but myself, it still is rewarding to knows that all the sweat, tears, countless hours in the gym and sun, and sacrifice is really paying off! I hope that I can touch someone to want to change for the better!

Aiesha weight loss before and after

2-Day Clean Eating Sample Menu

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Today, I wanted to give you a preview of our Clean Eating Ebook with this 2-Day Clean Eating Sample Menu. This sample will give you an idea of how you could be eating this month to support your weight loss efforts.  Each meal is approximately 1500-1700 calories by my judgement.  Of course, you can adjust as you need to.  For the items noted in purple, there is a recipe below.

Meal Day 1 Day 2
Breakfast  Granola 1/3 cup
Greek Yogurt 1 cup
Berries 1/2 cup
 Cold Whole grain Cereal 1cup
Skim Milk 1cup
1 med Banana (sliced and added to cereal
1 Hard Boiled Egg
Snack  1 med Apple & peanut butter 1tbsp 1 1/2 cup fresh vegetables cut up w/ yogurt dip
Lunch  3 oz sliced ham, 1 oz cheddar cheese, 2 slices tomato, 2 iceberg lettuce leaves and 1 tsp mustard on 1 whole-wheat pita 4 oz deli-fresh turkey breast slices on 2 brown rice cakes with 1 Laughing Cow Light Blue Cheese wedge (as a spread)
1/2 cup Quinoa
Snack  Grapes (17)
1 String Cheese (low fat)
 5 whole grain crackers with low fat cheese (1oz)
1 cup fresh berries
Dinner  Pot roast 3 slices
1 cup Mashed potatoes
 Baked Fish 3oz
1 cup Steamed Broccoli
1 cup corn

Visit Calorie King or MyFitnessPal to put in the food values and determine calorie counts, if you’d like to know the actual calorie values.  Disclaimer: Please know that these meals are not based on specific nutrient ratios. It’s an example and is not tailored to your specific dietary needs. I am not a dietitian and I cannot possibly foresee what your personal dietary needs are. So use these menu suggestions wisely and appropriately. 

Recipes

Granola

Ingredients:

  • 1 ½ cup Quick Oats
  • 1 Egg white
  • ¼ cup Almonds
  • 4 tbsp Honey
  • 1 tbsp Flax seed (ground)

Instructions:

  1. Preheat Oven to 400 degrees
  2. Chop Almonds or pulse in food processor
  3. Mix all ingredients together in bowl
  4. Spread out on Non-stick cookie sheet
  5. Bake for 10 minutes (watching for even browning, don’t let it burn)
  6. Cool & Store in Refrigerator in air tight container

Yogurt Dip

Ingredients:

  • 4 Tbsp plain greek yogurt
  • 1 tbsp crushed garlic
  • 1 tsp your preferred spices (dill, oregano, rosemary)

Instructions:
Mix all ingredients together & serve as a dip or dressing on sandwiches

Quinoa

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup Quinoa
  • 1/2 cup low sodium chicken broth
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1/8 tsp garlic powder

Instructions:

  1. Bring water, chicken stock and quinoa to boil in a medium saucepan
  2. Reduce temperature to simmer and cover.  Cook for about 8-10 minutes, until water is absorbed.

Pot Roast

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 lb boneless chuck roast, trimmed
  • 1 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
  • 1 cup beef broth
  • 1 tsp black pepper
  • 1 chopped tomato
  • 1/2 onion, chopped
  • 6 baby carrots, chopped
  • 1 tsp canola oil
  • 1 tsp flour
  • 1 tbsp water
  • 1/2 tsp rosemary
  • salt to taste

Instructions:

  1. Marinate roast in soy sauce and garlic at least 8 hours (in the fridge)
  2. Remove roast from marinade, reserving marinade in a container. Sprinkle roast with pepper, gently pressing pepper into roast. Combine reserved marinade, mushroom broth mixture, and tomato; stir well, and set aside.
  3. Place onion, carrot  in a 6-quart electric slow cooker; toss gently.
  4. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add roast, browning well on all sides. Place roast over vegetables in slow cooker.  Pour tomato mixture over roast and vegetables. Cover with lid; cook on high-heat setting 1/2 hour.
  5. Reduce to low-heat setting, and cook 6 hours or until roast is tender. Place roast and vegetables on a serving platter; keep warm. Reserve liquid in slow cooker; increase to high-heat setting.
  6. Place flour in a small bowl. Gradually add water, stirring with a whisk until well blended. Add flour mixture to liquid in slow cooker. Cook, uncovered, 15 minutes or until slightly thick, stirring frequently.   Serve the resulting gravy with with the roast and vegetables.
  7. Save the leftovers for lunch.

Inspired by www.myrecipes.com/recipe/company-pot-roast-10000001535414

Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients:

  • 2 Medium potatoes
  • 3 Tbsp Plain Greek Yogurt
  • 1/2c Skim Milk (may not have to use all)
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • Pinch sea salt

Instructions:

  1. Peel, then Boil potatoes
  2. Mash potatoes in a bowl with Greek yogurt & add milk gradually until correct consistency is achieved
  3. Add spices & mix until you reach the smoothness you desire

Baked Fish

Ingredients:

  • 1 fillet of white fish your choice about 3oz  (I suggest haddock, halibut, or whiting)
  • Canola oil spray
  • 1/8 tsp old bay seasoning
  • 2 pinches of dried rosemary
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

  1. Preheat oven to 350, Coat baking sheet with cooking spray
  2. Sprinkle seasoning, rosemary, salt and pepper on fish along with some cooking spray
  3. Bake approximately 10 minutes or until fish flakes

Keesha lost 65 pounds

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Today’s weight loss before and after story: Keesha lost 65 pounds with Zumba, walking, fasting, changing her eating habits and help from Weight Watchers.  Here is what she shared with us about her weight loss journey:

Hi my name is Keesha. This is my story and I’m sticking to it.  My journey started in April 2011. I was 36 years old I weighed 240 pounds. I managed to lose 10 pounds by weening myself off of my drug of choice, soda. That got me down to 230 pounds. I was experiencing a few life altering situations. Pregnant teen daughter, death of close family members and a troubled marriage. It just seemed that no matter how hard I tried to make everyone else happy. I still felt as if I was lacking. I wasn’t healthy mentally, physically or spiritually.  I realized that It was time for me to do something for me. No, I couldn’t go on a shopping spree, a dream vacation or anything like that. So, I took a look in the mirror (for free) and gazed straight into the windows of my soul…MY eyes. I was lost and I didn’t recognize me. I set out on a journey to find ME.

I started off with getting baptized because I knew I couldn’t do this without GOD. I joined church and started to pray more. I started using my YMCA membership that I had been paying on for years and never used. Then I started doing Zumba classes. I joined run/walk groups via Facebook. I also started walking on my own. The weight wasn’t going anywhere. I googled information on losing weight and discovered that losing weight was more than just exercise.  It was about a lifestyle change. I had to change my way of thinking and EATING! I went on a 17 day fast. Plenty of water, green tea, no sweets, no sugar, no bread, lean protein (chicken, turkey and fish), no beef or pork for me, plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables and rest.  I was eating right and hitting the gym at least 4-5 times a week. In that amount of time, I lost 26 pounds. It was on!

I was now a grandma and I wanted to live for my children and my grandchildren. I wanted to be a shining example for them and me. It took me from October 2011- March 2012 to lose 30 pounds on my own. My goal was 170. Now I was at 200 pounds and I was feeling great but I wasn’t finished. I hit the gym even harder. I continued doing Zumba, joined a spinning class, a BLT class and start hitting the trails. I lost 20 more pounds that put me at 180 and BAM! I hit a plateau. Those last 10 ponds wouldn’t budge. So, I had heard about Weight Watchers from a few friends. I saw their results so I decided to join online. In one week I lost my 10 pounds!! I hit my mark! 170 pounds. I had signed up for three months, so I kept going. In August of 2012, I was down to 165 pounds. I was happy there. Mentally and physically so I stopped.  To date, I am now 38 years old. I went from a size 18 to a size 10!!! From 230 pounds to 165 pounds! I have lost a total of 65 pounds and have maintained the weight and healthy eating habits, with the help of Weight Watcher from time to time, for one year!!  (I fall off sometimes but I dust myself off and pick up where I fell off) With hard work, God, good friends and faith in yourself. This and any other journey is possible! When people see me they say I’m high school skinny. More importantly for me though, I feel good about the possibility of adding at least 10 more years to my life by getting healthy. It will allow me more time and energy to live!!!!

Keesha weight loss story

Tiara lost 31 pounds

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Let’s show some BWLW love to Tiara.  She lost 31 pounds and is sharing a progress report with us about the last 4 years of her journey to greater health and weight loss.  I love her transparency!  Here is what she shared with us about her journey:

Hello my name is Tiara.  I want to first start out by telling you THE STRUGGLE IS REAL!! It has taken me about 4 years to lose 31 pounds.  My heaviest weight was 268 pounds back in 2009.  I didn’t realize how big I actually was until I saw a video of myself.  I was disgusted at what I saw.  I decided it was time to get my weight down.  I have gone through ups and downs.  I tried Weight Watchers and lost a few pounds.  Held a biggest loser contest at work and came in 2nd place.  The latest thing I did was the Shred diet book. I stopped frying food, changed my bread to whole wheat and started drinking fat free or reduced fat lactose free milk about 3 years ago (small changes).  I also decided to get a gym membership. I have been in the 230’s since 2012 and keep fluctuating the same 5 lbs.  I am now at 237 lbs. I try to drink a lot of water but still can’t seem to stop drinking some other type of drink at least twice a day.  I’m in and out of the gym but have started going more recently.  Zumba and Body Pump are 2 of the classes I have been attending.  I am far from where I want to be but I will get there.  I just wanted some of you that are struggling to stay motivated to know that you are not alone.  No matter how long your transformation is taking, DON”T GIVE UP. I know I’m not.

Tiara weight loss journey

Tracie lost 84 pounds with weight loss surgery

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Let’s show some Black Women Losing Weight love to Tracie.  She lost 84 pounds with gastric bypass weight loss surgery, learning to prepare healthy meals and working out.  Here is what she shared with us:

My name is Tracie Bell and I’m a working mother of five. In 2001 after giving birth to my twin sons, I couldn’t seem to get the weight off.  I tried every diet under the sun but couldn’t lose the weight, it seemed as though I kept gaining no matter how hard I tried. In 2009 at my highest weight (259 pounds), I decided to have gastric bypass weight loss surgery, it was one of the best decisions I could have ever made, not only have I lost weight but I’ve also learned how to eat and prepare meals healthier for me and my family.  I enjoy working out and I have more energy.  My biggest benefit is that I can shop just about anywhere without having to worry about not being able to fit anything. Many people think that gastric bypass surgery is a quick fix to losing weight, well it’s not. You still have to eat right and exercise regularly because you can gain weight and sometimes even more if you don’t lose after the surgery. Now, at 42 years young and 175 pounds, my body feels better than it did 10 years ago. I’m happy I made the right decision for me!

Tracie weight loss before and after

Shantel lost 128 pounds

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Today’s featured weight loss before & after story: Shantel lost 128 pounds since May 2012 by exercising regularly and eating right.  Here is what she shared with us:

Hi my name is Shantel and I wanted to share my weight loss journey. In May 2012, I finally decided to make a change. I was tired of being overweight and very unhappy. I started by walking everywhere, pushing my daughter in her stroller. I would walk at least a mile 5 to 6 days a week.  Then I added in Turbo Jam about 3 days a week. I ate smaller portions and made smarter food choices with substitutions like, baked instead of fried, mustard instead of mayo, lettuce wrap instead of bread. Over a year later and 128lbs lost, I now only drink water and my diet is 80% vegetables. I now work out 6 days a week and focus on weight training, HIIT, and tabata. This journey has been hard but with prayer, determination and hard work, I am losing the weight and improving my life. I can truely say I am happy!

Shantel weight loss story

Tiffany lost 43 pounds

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Let’s show some BWLW Love to Tiffany who lost 43 pounds by going raw vegan.  Here is what she shared with us:

This past December, I passed a mirror and surprised myself. I thought, “surely I am not that big.” I decided to take a picture of myself. One turned two then ten. I just knew, if I kept snapping, I’d see the woman I thought I was. It never happened. I knew then I had to change. My son deserves a mother who is fit enough to play, and my students deserve a teacher healthy enough to instruct.

I began my weight loss journey on January 8, 2013. I stepped on the scale at an embarrassing 289 lbs. Over the last 7 months, I have lost 43 lbs. Currently, I weigh 246. Mostly, I credit my weight loss a change of my diet and exercise 4-6 times a week. I’ve found myfitnesspal, my gym membership, and Zumba to my success. The community and challenges I’ve found through Instagram and Black Women Losing Weight have been tremendous motivation to keep going.

I still have roughly 60 lbs to go before I reach my target weight.  In the beginning, I used Dr. Oz’s Flat Belly plan. I tried some of the shakes, but they didn’t work for me. Now I eat a 60-100% raw fruits, vegetables, and nuts a day, but currently, I am eating a 100% raw diet to detox. I also drink a gallon of water per day. Regardless of how this story ends, I am thrilled with my progress thus far.

TiffanyAug13

 

 

Jonquil lost 59 pounds

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Today’s featured weight loss before and after: Nurse, college student and single mother Jonquil lost 59 pounds with diet and exercise. She knew that she needed to get healthy.  Here is what she shared with us:

Jonquil weight loss storyI was a fast food junkie and always on the go. My motivation came from a bet with my boyfriend. Whoever got to their goal the fastest won. I jumped on the bet right away because he and I are very competitive. I had to learn how to cook healthy foods and make them suitable to substitute fast food. I began to see change and so did my peers. I learned to love to eat healthy, especially on the go. I work out 5 days a week. I do 3 days of jogging and 2 days at the gym. My starting weight was 236 pounds and I am now 177 pounds. I’ve began my lifestyle change in November 2012. It’s been 8 months. I realized that dieting alone will not give me my permanent results, a lifestyle change was what I needed. I love working out now. The key to weightloss in my opinion is acknowledging your bad habits and knowing it will take time to adjust them. After I acknowledged my bad habits, I slowly learned to live without them. To this day, I fail and get back up, but I am successful with weight loss because I continue to get back up. I use weight training, whey protein, and cardio. I love my figure,  so I focus on squats and abdominal exercises, and jogging.  It works!  Eating habits: no fried foods, just baked and raw fruits and veggies. I suffer from acne and once I changed my diet, it has significantly decreased my acne.

Jonquil weight loss story

Evony lost 60 pounds

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Let’s show Evony some love.  She lost 60 pounds.  At 25 years old, she was on high blood pressure meds, now she has lost the weight by changing her eating habits and exercising.  Here is what she shared with us:

I would like to share my weight loss story. I was only 25 years old when I started taking high blood pressure pills while pregnant with my 2nd child. I made no time to exercise or at all. I was very unhappy with my health. Finally at age 27, I did something about it. In January of 2013, I was 286 pounds and currently I am 226 pounds. I was a size 24.  Now, I’m down to a size 18!  I’m glad to say that I lost the weight and I’m off my blood pressure pills by making healthier food choices and exercise.  For exercise, I walked on the track for 3 to 5 miles, 4 times out the week. I also don’t eat fried foods or sweets.  I eat mostly chicken and turkey.

Evony weight loss before and after

Kia lost 155 pounds

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Today’s featured weight loss success story: Kia lost 155 pounds.  This 5’4″ mom has been dealing with her weight all of her life and had lap band weight loss surgery but gained the weight back.  She credits Weight Watchers, Zumba, bootcamp, walking and running as a big part of her transformation. Despite personal tragedy, she has pushed to be healthy and happy.  I think her story is moving and heartfelt.   Here is what she shared with us:

I am a married mother to two children, ages 2 and I have a very challenging,demanding career. This background information provides a little insight into what could be considered the chaos of my everyday life. It is challenging, yet can also be rewarding. It also doesn’t leave very much time for incorporating a healthy lifestyle that for 37 years, I did not employ. Change is definitely, in my opinion, one of the hardest thing for any person to accept because I believe you have to rediscover who you are! That is where my journey began!

I have been overweight all of my adult life. I started to gain weight as a pre-teen, around the age of 12. While in high school, my dad allowed me to sign up for NutriSystem. I was able to lose approximately 30 pounds, which put my weight at 168 pounds. I hated the food and the program was not sustainable because eating their food was the only key to success. Standing only 5″4″ tall, by the time I entered college, I weighed a whopping 210 lbs. The weight continued to snowball from there. When I returned home from college I weighed 260 pounds. I immediately joined a gym and hired a personal trainer. This also proved to be futile because I was not ready to change my eating habits. I loss no weight during this time. I quit!

Through the years, I tried and failed many times at all kinds of weight loss plans. Mostly crash dieting and extreme food depravation. I would lose weight for the short term, at times as much as 40 pounds, but I would shortly gain it all back plus a little more.

Kia weight loss story

I haven’t yet shared this part of my story with everyone because it is deeply personal, but I wanted to be totally honest.

By the age of 31, I was completely fed up with myself topping out at 319 pounds. This prompted my decision to go under the knife and have lap-band surgery. This has proven to be one of the worse decisions that I have ever made. Although this surgery probably assisted in me being able to get pregnant. Prior to the surgery, I did not have a consistent menstrual cycle for years. My doctor often told me that this was a side affect of being morbidly obese. After the surgery I immediately dropped 50 lbs and within a month I found out I was pregnant with my first born. I was over the moon with excitement and did not care that I had just invested a ton of money into the surgery. Within another 18 months I was pregnant again, but this time I wasn’t so lucky. I loss the son that I had prayed for after 5 months of pregnancy. This sent me into a tail spin. I had no outlet for stress. Eating was what provided comfort in any uncomfortable situation. I quickly started to put the pounds back on. By the grace of God, I was pregnant again within a year with another son who is now two years old. I never once had the lap band adjusted. I believe that even if I did adjust the band, it would not have sustained weight loss because I was not ready to change my mind about food. ]

During my second pregnancy I developed hypertension. I couldn’t believe that this was happening to me at the age of 36, but I accepted it as my fate. I thought that I was just an overweight woman. I spent many years convincing myself that I had achieve the American dream because I had a husband, two children, four fish and two birds. What more did I need? I was worried about the life threatening effects of hypertension, but not enough to change my lifestyle.

On a random night out with my girlfriends, I was chatting with a stranger who happened to be really into fitness. We started to chat about my fitness journey and I have to admit I was pretty defeated. He encourage me to give it one more try, if not for myself, then for my children. The following Tuesday, January 17, 2012, I walked into Weight Watchers with a friend weighing in at 299.4 pounds. I initially only wanted to join for one month to see what it was all about, but after the first meeting I was hooked. I signed up to do it all. I wanted to work the plan to the fullest to see if I could do it. After the first week I was down 4 pound. The second week, I was down another 4 pounds. I thought that this was impossible. This continued for about a month and then the weight loss started to slow to about a pound per week. I realized then that I need to incorporate exercise into my plan. I have never been very patient, so I knew in order to stick with this I was going to need to see results… FAST!! I started doing Zumba on my WII 5 or 6 days a week with my husband and children. I followed this routine for months, barely missing a day. When the weather started to get warm, i signed up to start walking 5K’s. This changed my life. I started walking along the Chicago lakefront everyday 3 – 4.5 miles. By the end of July I was able to run the entire path, albeit slow, but I still did it. This started my “like” for running (I’m still not in love). Running for me is the time that I have quiet space, with just my thoughts and my breathing. I often cry when I run, but it’s a good cry, a release of emotion. I have found out from talking to other runners that this is a common phenomenon. Running allows me to be FREE of stress!

In September, it started to get cold and I started running on a treadmill! Boring! Yet again I had to be flexible if I wanted to stay on the path to weight loss. I was already down nearly 100 lbs, I couldn’t quit now. I joined a bootcamp with a friend. This is where I developed a love for circuit training. In October, I was referred to Andrea Nichols-Everett, who own D3: Dre’s Diesel Dome. I initially started doing the bootcamp only two days a week and I would run the other three days. After two months I was hooked and changed my program to Monday – Friday, while still running three days a week.

Today, I weighed in at 144 pounds at Weight Watchers. That puts my official weight loss at 155.4 pounds.  Slowly, but surely changing my mind about who I am has led me to change how I think about what i eat!