Weight Loss Transformation of the Day: Ebony lost 100 pounds.  After years of sexual abuse, depression and low self-esteem, she broke out of a cycle of comforting herself with emotional eating and began to heal herself, mind, body and soul.  Here is what she shared about her transformation…

Hi, My name is Ebony. I’m 28 years old and I’ve been overweight for over 20 years of my life. I began to use food as a comforter to cope with the repeated sexual abuse which started at the age of 8. From there my weight spiraled out of control. I remember the doctor and my mom making me feel so ashamed of myself for weighing nearly 280 lbs in the 7th grade. My dad was in and out of my life and never really showed me the love and support that I needed, especially after being sexually abused by my mom’s boyfriend at the time. I remember so vividly, him asking me, “Don’t you do anything else besides sit in the house and eat all day?” This was shortly after the abuse started and all I could do was run outside and cry my eyes out. Needless to say, these poor parenting choices on both their parts left me pretty broken and with the worst level of self-esteem imaginable for a little girl. All of this compounded with being teased and bullied because of my weight in school ultimately lead me extreme bouts of anxiety/depression and 2 attempts at suicide in my adolescent years.

As cliché as it may sound, all of this also lead me to looking for love in ALL of the wrong places. It wasn’t until I was 26 years old that I finally sought therapy to help me get through my emotional issues. When I tipped the scale at 398 lbs on 12/17/12, I decided I had enough that day and completely changed my lifestyle and FINALLY committed to it for more than a week! Since then, I am down 100 lbs and finally have a man in my life that loves me exactly as I am, flaws and all. Most importantly, I LOVE ME enough to treat myself that way with the choices I make for my mind, body and spirit daily.

I initially changed my diet completely for the first 30 days by cutting junk, fast food, soda, and pretty much anything processed. I did that cold turkey because it was the best/easiest option for ME. I didn’t count calories or carbs, I just ate REAL food and introduced green smoothies to my diet daily. After those 30 days, I slowly added back some of the things I enjoyed, but only ate them sparingly. I chose that time to strictly focus on nutrition to prevent feeling overwhelmed. After I had the hard part down, I hired a personal trainer and started working out 3 days a week. After spending so much money, I invested in home workouts. I did lots of cardio at first, but I eventually got in to CrossFit and weight training and the rest ISN’T history, it’s my future!

All though I’ve definitely still got work to do I’m extremely proud of how far I’ve come. My message to anyone that’s struggling with weight/poor self-esteem is this: No matter which avenue you take, be it therapy; life coach; or whatever, learn to forgive yourself and those that hurt you. Learn to love you exactly as you are in this very moment, then take action. Eat like you love yourself. Move like you love yourself. Know that, Yes, it is possible to change your body out of love, NOT hate. Love, peace, and happiness to all.

Instagram: @bodypositive_fitness